The Hunt of Arrogance
Sorebel belonged to the Papal State. Strictly speaking, it was the territory of the Kormillius family, but since the Pope was chosen from that lineage and governed the land in place of the rightful heir, no one truly distinguished between the two.
The Emperor personally leading an expedition, launching a surprise attack at Sorebel, and achieving a great victory—this meant that Jokuster had entered full-scale war against Kormillius.
Moreover, Novasolon—the Emperor's destination—was a city of the Pantheon. Having won the first battle, the Empire was now aiming straight for the very heart of the Church.
"In the end… the Emperor made the first move."
Covering her mouth with her left hand, Beatrice frowned deeply.
"And a great victory, at that…"
At Roberta's murmur, Giacomo let out a snort.
"They've already lost face in the opening clash," he said, flicking the letter. "We can't grasp the full situation from this alone. But if it's called a great victory, then the losses must have been significant. The Emperor has seized momentum."
A single battle does not decide a war. Kormillius was no weak force. The Church itself functioned as their private organization—arguably making them even larger than the Empire.
However, there was a critical flaw.
The Church was a religious order, not a kingdom. It wielded influence through faith, not through sworn fealty.
There had been instances before where secular rulers opposed the Pantheon, but those had always been isolated acts—never escalating into full-scale war. The Church, the Pantheon, and Kormillius had never needed to intervene directly.
Because the faithful themselves had crushed such attempts.
Even if a ruler tried to raise an army, their vassals would refuse. Soldiers would desert. They could not bring themselves to fight the representative of the gods.
The news that the Emperor had achieved a great victory at Sorebel meant that all those barriers had been overcome.
A secular ruler had personally led an army, invaded the Papal State—and won.
Since the dawn of the Third Age of mankind, it was an unprecedented event.
"The repercussions will be enormous…"
Beatrice sighed.
"Archbishop Giacomo, you said you hadn't received any prior notice about a war, correct?"
"I told you already. I was only instructed to wait for an opportunity once the standoff ended. That fairy, Praselli, said securing the artifacts was the priority. She knew that even without me joining the fight, it would be enough to check Kormillius."
The Langen bishopric was one of the Church's core dioceses. Simply by defecting—even without taking action—Kormillius had already suffered a major loss of strength.
"And even if you tried to help them now, it would be hard to regain their trust."
"Not easy at all," Giacomo muttered, clicking his tongue.
"I even spread word intentionally so that the lords would stay wary of us and be unable to move freely."
"For now… we need to clearly declare our stance. We must eliminate suspicion first."
"And what about the bait plan?"
Instead of answering, Beatrice bit her lip.
Their plan had been to hide the fact that Giacomo had returned to Kormillius' side, lure in the anti-divinity faction's contact, and capture them. But if his return became known, no contact would approach.
"We assumed the contact would arrive before the war began—but we can't afford to just wait anymore. Kormillius has already lost the first battle. The situation will deteriorate rapidly. If we wait indefinitely and Novasolon gets attacked, we're finished."
The two clergymen fell silent, their expressions dark.
"Abandon the bait."
Ulrich spoke.
He had been listening quietly all this time, seated on his unmoving horse.
"Are you suggesting we give up the pursuit?" Giacomo asked, turning toward him.
"The situation has changed, so our response must change as well. I will go to the Emperor."
"To meet him… personally?"
"Personally," Ulrich replied.
"From what I've heard, Edgar—the Emperor—is no ordinary man. Someone like him would not be controlled by another. He was merely given an opportunity. Even if we capture people like Praselli, Jokuster will not halt its advance."
"That's true. The Emperor likely despises Kormillius deeply."
Beatrice started to say more, then shook her head.
"…The anti-divinity faction may have encouraged him, but even if they disappeared now, the Emperor wouldn't give up this opportunity. He'll want to crush them decisively while he has the momentum."
Ulrich nodded.
"There is another reason. No matter how many are in Praselli's group, even if they all gathered, their influence would still be less than a single gesture from the Emperor. So, to quell the chaos, stopping him comes first."
"Do you have a way to meet him? He will surely be hiding his intentions, just as Praselli deceived me."
"There are many ways. Do not worry. First, we must go to Novasolon."
Kormillius would continue to be pushed back. Their strength had already been greatly diminished—they could not defeat the Empire. The initiative now belonged to the Emperor.
And the Emperor would inevitably aim for Novasolon.
Because that was where the Pantheon stood.
Where Kormillius stood.
To end the war, he would have no choice but to reach it.
"Beatrice, Giacomo—you two gather forces and delay Jokuster's advance. Avoid direct clashes as much as possible. Buy time."
"There's no need to merely buy time. If it is Father's will—"
Ulrich raised his hand and placed it on Giacomo's shoulder.
Their eyes met.
"Do not become obsessed with victory or defeat. A victory before your eyes is not what matters. What matters is how quickly stability can be restored after everything ends. Giacomo—if you truly believe in Hestio, then do not let people die in that name."
As if avoiding his gaze, Giacomo lowered his head.
"…Understood."
Ulrich watched him for a moment, a faint smile forming on his lips. Then he turned his horse and rode away, leaving the distant city behind.
***
Heading southwest, they crossed mountains, rivers, and fields.
Soon, a wind carrying snow began to lash down.
It was the first snowfall—light, but the late-autumn wind was bitterly cold.
Riding against it, rather than walking, caused their body heat to drop rapidly. They stopped at a market in a city to buy winter clothes, but as the temperature fell day by day, they still found themselves shivering.
Before long, winter arrived.
And with it, Ulrich stopped camping.
Not entirely—only reducing it to about once a week. Before, they had camped almost every day, so for Fritz and Roberta, it felt like a significant change…
It only felt as though he had stopped camping.
Instead, without camping, Ulrich began traveling strictly along established routes. They stopped at settlements spaced about a day apart without fail, and set out again as soon as the sun rose.
They didn't spur their horses into a run, but having spent over a month on horseback except for sleep and meals, it was far from an easy journey.
"Did you hear? There was another attack nearby."
Leading the horses from the stable, Fritz spoke as he approached the inn's entrance.
"Yes. This time too, they say it was soldiers disguised as bandits."
"It looks like several merchant groups are planning to move together. They're also hiring a lot of escorts."
"They'll have to. It's not safe to travel like before anymore."
As they moved south after leaving the bishopric, it wasn't only the season that had changed.
From Langen to Sorebel was over a month's journey even on horseback. In other words, by the time Roberta heard the news, the war had already been ongoing for more than a month.
Sorebel lay north of Novasolon and was not on Ulrich's route—but the war was not confined to that single location.
The Jokuster Empire had not conquered the entire world, but there was nowhere beyond its influence. The same was true for the Church. Once the news spread, factions across the world began clashing.
"…The rumor that His Holiness excommunicated His Majesty… that's true, isn't it?"
Roberta placed her foot in the stirrup and mounted her horse.
"There are also rumors that Emperor Edgar claims the Kormillius bloodline is false. It's too precise to be something someone made up idly. His Holiness must have responded to the Emperor's accusations."
All kinds of rumors began to circulate.
That the Pope had excommunicated the Emperor.
That the Kormillius bloodline was false.
That the true lineage was being protected by Jokuster.
Rumors no one could have imagined even a few months ago now spread everywhere.
"But more than anything, the fact that these rumors are spreading is the real problem."
As she rode, Roberta let out a long breath.
"You're worried people might be swayed by false rumors?"
"No. That's not it. The problem is that people can now speak such things so easily."
Whether true or not, these were words that no one would have dared utter when authority still stood firm. The fact that they were now spoken freely meant that authority itself had crumbled.
The order upheld by the Kormillius lineage and the Jokuster royal family was collapsing by the day.
The secular rulers could not possibly fail to notice.
And they took advantage of the chaos.
They attacked towns and cities before their rivals could prepare, capturing the inhabitants. They burned settlements, leaving nothing but ruins for those who arrived too late.
The farther south they traveled, the more often Roberta witnessed such scenes.
"Ah."
Following behind, Fritz suddenly spoke as if remembering something.
"About that merchant group I mentioned earlier—they asked if we'd like to travel with them."
"That must be because of me."
Roberta glanced down at her attire.
Since there was no longer any need to hide her identity, she had returned to wearing her priest's robes.
"Yes. It seems they think having a priest accompany the caravan would make them less of a target."
Though the war was between Jokuster and Kormillius, not all priests of the Church supported Kormillius. Quite a few supported Jokuster instead. And even those who secretly supported Kormillius wouldn't be threatened as long as they didn't show it openly.
"So I'm like a charm," Roberta said with a faint smile.
They entered the main road of the city to head toward the gate.
There, the merchant caravan Fritz had mentioned was gathered in groups. Many had been stranded in the city, and the scale was considerable. They looked ready to depart at any moment.
"At this size, whether there's one priest or not won't make much difference."
There were dozens of wagons. Accordingly, the number of guards exceeded a hundred, and those hoping to join the caravan numbered in the hundreds.
In times like these, no one leaving the city would be unarmed—Roberta clicked her tongue, thinking that even most bandit groups wouldn't dare approach.
"Seems that way."
Fritz smiled awkwardly.
"Even so, under normal circumstances we might have accepted, but right now…"
As he trailed off, Ulrich suddenly pulled on his reins.
Startled, Roberta stopped her horse just behind him.
"Fritz, where did you say they were headed?"
"Ah… I heard they're going to Lüben. Their route overlaps with ours."
"I see."
Resting his hand on his chin, Ulrich stared at the caravan.
Had something caught his attention?
Roberta followed his gaze, trying to see what he was looking at—but with so many people, she couldn't tell who among them had drawn his focus.
"Are you planning to join the caravan?"
Without hesitation, Ulrich nodded.
"That would be best."
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