Virgin Knight Who Is the Frontier Lord in the Gender Switched World - Chapter 98

I’m in the wooden church of the Cologne Sect.

It appears to be thoroughly cleaned daily, as not a speck of dust can be seen inside the church.

At the end of my gaze, an ancient statue that has been used for generations stands—the life-size figure of the Redeemer, the Son of God, crucified.

Of course, it is positioned at the center of the church.

In the hands of the Redeemer, strangely enough, rests a musket, a symbol of the Cologne Sect.

—There’s a lot I want to say, but I manage to hold back.

Why the crucified Redeemer is holding a musket is beyond me.

I refrained from voicing the retort that I simply couldn’t keep to myself.

Before the musket, it was probably a mace or some other weapon.

I didn’t mention that either.

My patience seems to be quite substantial.

The light filtering through the shutters beautifully illuminates the seated Virgin Mary.

“Now, let us talk about the Cologne Sect’s discipline with the believer Martina.”

“Yes.”

Lord Faust is not here.

He’s probably practicing his swordsmanship somewhere.

He once sent me to the church to learn about the Cologne Sect’s discipline as a believer.

I really have no interest in the Cologne Sect’s discipline.

Unlike the somewhat lax Lord Faust, I have properly read the Bible.

“In this world, there are many denominations. Some call the accumulation of money a vice, or view human social advancement as a vice, or even saints who have burned the Bible, claiming that one should not possess it for social advancement. Of course, these sects have their reasons for doing so.”

Still, I can’t defy Lord Faust’s orders.

As much as I repeat it, I am truly grateful to the Cologne Sect for lifting my excommunication.

So, I guess I will obediently listen to the discourse.

“The Cologne Sect does not deny these denominations. There is a meaning to living in poverty. Abandoning personal desires and living righteously under God’s providence. How can I criticize that?”

Yet, the Cologne Sect is not actually poor.

In this Polydoro territory, we might live modestly, but the diocese hosts a massive industrial city, exporting weapons throughout the Holy Gusten Empire.

They generate enormous profits, all of which are poured into new weapons development.

“The pursuit of profit and accumulation of wealth may seem like vices at first glance. However, man does not live by bread alone. Even we clergymen have our hierarchies. Once, a saint pondered: if someone accumulates money, someone else must be poor. Then let me be poor. While noble in spirit, this is also a mistake. For example, in the Anhalt Kingdom, the Elector Liesenlotte, who holds the right to mint coins, started processing silver mined from Duchess Astarte’s territories, significantly increasing the quantity of silver coins in recent years. Naturally, the production of bread has also increased. The supply of wealth and bread has reached many hands through her good governance.”

While listening half-heartedly to the Virgin Mary’s words, I ponder her knowledge.

Despite being criticized by the barbarian groups and my mother Caroline, the insight of the Cologne Sect clergy is high.

The intellectual level of the priest who once served in my Bösel territory and the current Virgin Mary of Polydoro seems almost the same.

“What I say may seem like mere sophistry. But in fact, today’s religion has progressed in harmony with finance and commerce. Searching for all possible means for the greater happiness, I believe, is truly the best path, not as God’s words, but as my own belief as the Virgin Mary.”

“Is that a personal opinion of the Virgin Mary?”

I interject.

I came here to learn about the Cologne Sect’s discipline.

“Yes, that’s right, believer Martina. Alongside the previous lord, Lady Marianne, I have dedicated myself to the development of this Polydoro territory. As a merchant brought in from outside, I have discussed with Lady Ingritt, and even negotiated prices alongside Lady Marianne.”

“That is…”

It doesn’t seem like a job for a clergy.

Well, there are indeed churches that hold a knight’s soul in weapons and armor as collateral.

In other words, there are indeed churches that operate as financial institutions.

“When I was young, I even specified the types of crops. Bring olives. This warm climate of Polydoro can handle it. And make it cheaper. I demanded quite unreasonably.”

“As a clergy, do you believe that was the right thing to do?”

I question.

It seems too presumptuous even for a clergy acting as an advisor to a feudal lord.

“Then, was it the wrong thing to do?”

“No.”

The Virgin Mary smiles gently.

I don’t think it was wrong.

Considering the roots of this village started by the exiled Polydoro, a person capable of pointing out the latest territorial improvement strategies is more valuable than gold coins.

It was fortunate for the Polydoro family to have such a person nearby, able to walk beside the common people and not entirely dismiss the acts performed by the Cologne Sect.

“Believer Martina, I have a very close relationship with Lady Marianne, and I even know the roots of this Polydoro territory. It was I who first speculated and suggested this. What about you?”

“Lord Faust informed me beforehand, anticipating that I would eventually realize it.”

I came here to hear about the discipline.

Somehow, we ended up discussing the Polydoro family.

It’s a bit suspicious.

I harbor doubts about the current situation.

“It’s enviable. It took me three years to know everything.”

“But the Virgin Mary knows much more, about Lord Faust and the former Lady Marianne, which I know very little.”

“Is that so?”

I need to be cautious.

The woman before me is very intelligent, not someone to be underestimated as a barbaric sect’s Virgin Mary.

She is trying to open my heart by sharing a common topic.

“I am a clergy who did not try to correct the hearts of the parishioners who misunderstood Lady Marianne as having gone mad. That sin is grave.”

Showing one’s weaknesses to alleviate wariness is a common tactic in conversation.

More so if the conversation has strayed from its original purpose.

“Lord Faust once told me, and I inferred from that. Lady Marianne chose not to have children with anyone but Lord Faust because if a legitimate daughter were born, it would crush Lord Faust’s future.”

By stating the lines the other person is about to say, I can often gain the upper hand with such people.

“I heard Lady Marianne’s confession. I am prepared to go to hell from now on. I don’t even care. I don’t need redemption from the Son of God. I will fulfill my vice. I found the child Faust, endowed with heavenly talents, adorable and wanted to give him all the lands, wealth, and technology I possessed. Therefore, I had no other children. I may be betraying the expectations of my people and my role as a noble of blue blood. Yet, I will commit this vice.”

Silence.

My initiative was easily crushed by the shift in conversation.

No, that doesn’t matter.

She just spoke someone else’s confession out loud!?

Staring incredulously at the Virgin Mary before me.

“I am now violating the confidentiality of confession. In the Cologne Sect, this would warrant excommunication and expulsion.”

The Virgin Mary responded calmly to my gaze, dominating the situation.

“This is the second time. I have spoken about it once before.”

What is she thinking?

I am more perplexed than angry as I scrutinize the heretical entity that is the Cologne Sect.

“Just the other day, Lord Faust begged me in tears. He implored me to tell him everything his mother thought. ‘I need it now,’ he said. He bowed repeatedly, his forehead bleeding from rubbing it on the floor, crying as he pleaded. Without fear of excommunication, I violated the confidentiality of confession and confessed everything.”

I am at a loss.

The taboo this clergy before me is committing and the content of our conversation are muddled.

What does she want?

How can such matters be discussed with a mere squire?

Why did Lord Faust, at this time, seek to hear his mother’s confession?

“Although I think I did something wrong, I am okay with being excommunicated or even going to hell. That’s how I see it. If I hadn’t done that, the child, believer Faust, would have been unsaved until his death. I’ve known that child since he was little, and rather than destroy his life, I would rather go to hell myself. Lady Marianne and I shared this. Believer Martina, if you think this act is a betrayal to the religious organization and its believers, you may send a letter to the great cathedral in the Anhalt capital. I will quietly accept that judgment.”

Why.

That thought fills my mind.

Honestly, it was all too sudden.

What is this clergywoman trying to say?

“Believer Martina, I was troubled. I agonized over whether I should speak of such matters. Everyone who cares about you, who has protected you, would cry out for me not to do this. But perhaps, just as Lord Faust has always been worried about you, you would have eventually realized it. If the gunpowder within your heart must explode, there is no better time than now, with Lord Faust by your side, who understands the same pain.”

Agony.

Her expression was as if she were choking on blood that filled her mouth.

Sort out the conversation, Martina.

I should be able to do that.

“Lord Faust asked me to discuss the discipline of the Cologne Sect. However, that is not for now. I thought it best to prioritize resolving your issues first. Think, Believer Martina. This problem, this one issue, for the sake of everyone who has protected you, you must realize it yourself.”

The Virgin Mary imbued all her words with meaning. To be specific, three points:

1. 1. She canceled the discussion about the sect’s discipline.

1. 1. She violated the confidentiality of confession.

1. 1. And she implied that there was something that, despite risking excommunication, she had to prioritize.

This means, if you are wise, you would realize everything.

“Believer Martina, return to the manor. By then, you will know everything. The feelings of all those who have been moved by you and tried to protect you from this world. The cries of sad people.”

I felt pushed.

After throwing all the problems at me, as if her role was done, she expelled me from the church.

The church door closed gently.

If I knocked quietly, it seemed like it might open again.

But I hesitated.

“The Virgin Mary said I had to realize it myself.”

Then, I decided to think for myself.

I started walking towards the manor where Lord Faust was waiting.

My thoughts did not stop.

The fragments of words the Virgin Mary had thrown at me.

Perhaps this was a test she had given me.

One, about vice.

Regrettably, without committing some vice, one sometimes cannot gain something.

One, about wealth and bread.

Though the amount distributed increases, it still does not reach everyone.

One, about searching for any means for improvement.

Even clergy might reach out their hands in desire.

One, about the roots of the Polydoro family.

More specifically, the difference between those who know and those who do not.

One, about confession.

What the Virgin Mary might have learned.

What a clergy could have learned.

One, about violating the confidentiality of confession.

In this world, there are things prioritized even if it means falling to hell or being excommunicated.

One, about something nobody actually wants.

That I, Martina, a nine-year-old child, would someday realize what has happened.

One, about the church door.

It was not locked.

The door could be opened any number of times.

Let’s think.

This is a riddle, a mystery, and according to the Virgin Mary, it has become something in my life that I cannot avoid.

Then, let’s face it.

More than anything,

Perhaps, what I am thinking now and what the Virgin Mary is hinting at me to realize,

Actually seem to be aligning.