“Lord Luke! Uh, there’s that thing, you know? I mean, when I said I’m a bumpkin….”
“Got it. You can stop talking now, Andre.”
The first friends I made, Andre and Sunny.
I was heading to the dorm with them to unpack.
Even though quite some time had passed since our first meeting, Andre was still fidgeting and making excuses to me.
Well, it’s just the kind of guy Andre is.
“No, I’m just lacking in vocabulary. I didn’t mean to belittle you at all….”
“Andre. Enough. Stop being pathetic. Lord Luke, good boy.”
“Sunny! Pulsreino, you mean? The Pulsreino! Didn’t you hear the story of how the professors at the Academy were smashed by the first of the Pulsreino years ago? If they feel slightly disrespected, they’ll turn nobles or professors into rags without hesitation!”
While getting excited and yelling at Sunny, Andre suddenly realized something and stopped himself, turning to me.
“Ah… heh, that wasn’t meant for you, Lord Luke. I was talking about Seiren… right, Seiren-senpai. Your sister? She’s become a legend at the Academy, being the strongest student ever….”
Seiren Pulsreino.
My current host, Luke’s, older sister.
She inherited the Pulsreino blood most intensely and possesses an extraordinary strength due to her blessed ‘gift.’
Even in [Deus Ex Machina], she became a playable character at a point when power inflation was well underway, making her a surprisingly powerful woman at her age.
With such strong powers and a fiery temper, she normally appears as a beautiful lady but turns into a mad demon at the slightest provocation.
The story of how a new professor, who didn’t know her well while she was enrolled at the Academy, threw unsolicited advances at her and ended up getting wrecked spread across the Empire.
To prevent the wrathful professor from becoming ground beef, numerous professors rushed to her aid and suffered great humiliation, but without their sacrifices, that new professor might have genuinely been killed.
With such strength and fiery temper, Seiren’s sister, Meiru, equally possessed a nasty attitude and strong might, causing quite a stir at the Academy.
Maybe that’s why the Pulsreino family has such a monstrous reputation.
I mean, it makes sense.
In [Deus Ex Machina], they had caused incidents similar to this even with colder personalities after losing their younger brother, Luke, at a young age.
Well, given this reputation of the Pulsreino family, it’s no wonder Andre’s been reacting this way.
“Andre, enough. I know you didn’t mean it in a belittling way. And students at the Academy are all equal, right? So ditch that weird honorific.”
Of course, Andre’s fumbling has more to do with the strength and personality of the Pulsreinos than the family itself.
“Uh… is that okay?”
“Of course. And we’re friends now, right? Right?”
“Y-yeah? Friends… right, friends! Looking forward to it, Luke!”
“Yeah, let’s do our best from now on, Andre. Hahaha.”
Ah. The laughter just won’t stop.
I can’t believe I’m becoming friends with characters I adored like this.
Yeah.
This was it.
All those years of struggling for over a decade, doing everything under the sun, all made for moments like this!
“Ha, haha… Hahahahaha!”
As I was laughing, Andre awkwardly started to laugh along.
“…Fools.”
Well, Sunny didn’t join in on that.
*
The Deus sect
Deep within the first branch of Calandra.
A dozen or so prominent nobles from various empires were gathered around a large table for a meeting.
And at the head of the table, in the chair of the presider, Lydia Hubris led the meeting.
“Indeed, as my brother said, many have awakened to know Lord Deus in the Calandra Empire.”
“Then…!”
Upon Lydia’s words, a man slammed his hand on the table.
“But conversely, it means there are still poor souls in other countries who cannot follow Lord Deus. The Holy Kingdom, in particular, is even worse. We must spread the words of Deus to the ends of the earth as the scriptures say, to do as our Lord commanded.”
“That means….”
“Yes, not only within the Calandra Empire but throughout Nova Empire, the Elven Kingdom, and even across the continent. Do you understand now?”
“But the existing priests, and more importantly, the Holy Kingdom will not remain idle!”
“Are you afraid, brother?”
“…Excuse me?”
“I asked if you are afraid.”
“Oh, no, that’s….”
“Lord Deus is with us. The truth is our belt, righteousness is our breastplate, the god of gospel is our footwear, and the shield of faith is in our hands. With Deus as our full armor, what is there to fear? How could you, who have received the title of Duke, still show such a lack of trust?”
“…But Apostle, the priests who serve other deities….”
“Enough, enough, enough! Only Deus is ‘God.’ The other so-called gods are nothing but heretics daring to call themselves gods. I believe, brother, you’ll need to undergo re-education.”
With a wave of Lydia’s hand, two figures that had been waiting behind her suddenly flickered and appeared beside the man who was in an argument with Lydia.
“Y-yes! Enforcers! That’s not it, Lady Lydia! I was just worried and offering advice…!”
“To have such a mindset as a follower of Deus itself is a mistake! How could an elder have weaker faith than a mere layman? I believe, brother, it is time for you to relearn from the beginning. To the ‘Chamber of Truth.'”
“Please, spare me! Just one more chance!”
The man, grasped by two figures, begged as he was dragged out the door.
“Don’t! Leader! Please! Not the ‘Chamber of Truth!…'”
Screech
“NOOOOOOO!!”
Thud
As the man’s screams faded away and the door closed, silence engulfed the conference room.
“Now then, let’s proceed to vote again. Those in favor of the motion to conduct a massive evangelism campaign towards the Holy Kingdom, please raise your hands.”
As soon as that was said, everyone gathered at the table raised their hands.
“…Very well. It seems the elders are filled with faith, unlike Duke Rulla. Unanimous. I announce that this motion has passed.”
Bang bang bang
“Thus, all matters for today have been addressed. Thank you to all who participated.”
Clap clap clap clap
“Before we conclude the meeting, I have one more announcement to make.”
As Lydia smiled brightly, she continued.
“Our Lord, the Lord, shall be visiting the Academy.”
Murmur
At Lydia’s statement, the previously quiet conference room erupted into chaos in an instant.
“Apostle! Does this mean we will finally be able to see our Lord?”
A woman raised her hand to ask.
“Ah, not so. The Lord comes to the Academy solely for His journey. You are to neither approach the Academy nor do anything without His permission.”
“Then do we have a reason for being informed?”
“Yes. The reason I inform you all is that I wish for you to refrain from doing anything at the Academy. The Lord desires the Academy to operate as usual, for that is what is needed for His kingdom to be established on this land.”
For a moment, Lydia’s bright smile vanished.
“But if someone engages in strange deeds at the Academy or tries to meet the Lord, it may disturb His work. I have made this announcement to prevent anyone from throwing dirt on the Lord’s path.”
Swallow
Hearing Lydia’s words, everyone in the meeting chamber swallowed hard with tension.
“Our brothers and sisters are faithful, so we should be alright, shouldn’t we?”
Lydia flashed a smile.
“…That won’t happen!”
“Everything is for our Lord, Deus!”
Nobles who had been silent clumsily forced out words, stiff with tension.
“Oh, and please have the lawful delegates sent to the Holy Kingdom selected by Marquis Karl.”
“Understood, Leader!”
“Alright. Then we will conclude today’s Elder meeting here. Everything is for the kingdom of our Lord to be established on this land.”
““““Everything is for the kingdom of our Lord to be established on this land!””””
Once everyone departed and the room fell silent, Lydia whispered softly.
“…Just a little longer, Lord Luke. I will surely fulfill your command and come to see you.”
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.