This world is wonderful,
For God gazes upon it through me.
✦ ✦ ✦
“There you are, Lord Willow.” Father Felipo wipes his brow as I enter the camp. Is that basket on his back full of documents? Someone’s full of energy now. I could swear he was full of doom and gloom last I saw him.
“Sorry, were you looking for me?”
“No, don’t let it bother you. The reorganizing of the garrison takes priority, of course.” Reorganizing, huh? I guess that’s the right term.
The cost for subduing the troll was far too high. Our soldiers, which once numbered a thousand, are down to a mere three hundred now. The most we can manage is re-establishing the chain of command. There’s no hope for reinforcements.
“Just because we beat back the monsters doesn’t mean things are settled. We must set up patrols, kill any enemy stragglers, tend to the wounded, clear the rubble, restore public order, send out messengers... The military has the greatest executive ability during an emergency. In short, they are humanity’s elite. We cannot begin to express our gratitude.” His silver tongue is working overtime, as usual. And his gesticulations...
“We are simply doing what we must, just like how the church’s work is essential to restoring normalcy.”
“No, no. We are merely the wooden spoon that brings the feast to the lips. The light that brings the masterpiece to your eyes. You honor me too much.” Someone’s in a very good mood. That’s rather abnormal.
“A miracle has shone upon us, allowing us to survive. That is what a priest might say. That it was not the strength of our soldiers, but some supernatural power that saved us.” This man’s loquaciousness perplexes and tests you. That’s very normal.
“I’m aware. Oh, I’m very aware. I may be captain here, but I have no intention of imposing martial law. Nor do I intend to take the credit for our victory. The military and the church should be working together now, as equals.”
“I expected nothing less of you, Lord Willow. Such calm vision. Such a clever mind. Heh. Yes, that is how it should be.” Hmph. He’s so blatantly self-important. Is he drunk, or simply thrilled to be alive? No, that’s not it. No. This is...
“It is rare to see someone as fit to be a military man as you, my lord. As rare as it is to see a revolutionary will.” I knew it. Father Felipo is letting his inner ambitions run free. This is a temptation. He’s trying to make me, a member of the honorable Willow family, his accomplice. And with such conviction, too. His eyes are blazing; vigor rises from his very soul. It drives him to speak his mind.
If I were to nod, it would expose my sincerity. We would become staunch allies. But if I were to shake my head... He’d try to kill me with the holy lance he grips in his hands. Should I shut him down early and refuse him? That would be my professional duty.
But I close my eyes. I desire darkness in order to find the twinkling hunch inside of me—in order to stake my life on one decision.
“Hmm. You would discuss such trends in such a cruel world?”
“I would, for we have been given the rare, perfect chance.”
“You intend to champion Kuroi?”
“Hee hee. Not exactly. You are very, very close, but not totally right.” I watch him carefully, prepared for the moment of confirmation.
“I would present to the world a god—the human God, through His chosen one.” God. An all too understandable word. It settles in your belly, burns with intensity, and sets the body to shivering. It’s the same way I feel when thinking of the glorious exploits of my ancestors. I even recall the warmth of my late mother, and it penetrates my chest.
“That’s... what that was?”
“Yes, indeed.”
“I felt it, too. I even wished for it to be so.”
“Those are your true feelings. No trickery, only sincerity.”
“If only we were allowed to believe in something purely, without deception.”
“Of course. It should be considered a pious attitude to worship a higher presence.”
“I see...” I allow the warmth rising in me to flow through my cheeks. What is there to be ashamed of? Because of the man before me, my eyes are now open!
“We! Belong! In this world!” we chant, fighting back tears. It is a declaration. I feel like a weight has been lifted from my chest. Fighting and death. Fighting and death. And even more death. That has been human history. Our prayers were never answered, no matter how pious we were. There was nothing there to hear them. That was the human world. But we won. Our prayers were answered. On this day, humanity is no longer a race devoid of hope.
“Let me get straight to the point.” His voice is gentle. So he can talk like this as well, eh?
“It is too early to bring Lady Kuroi to the palace. The current pillar of the royal family is not so innocent as to easily embrace hope, nor are they brave enough to make a resolute decision to enact reform.”
“So she’ll be crushed?”
“Yes. Hardship makes people not only stubborn, but thick-headed and cruel as well.”
“Indeed. You’re right.” I can’t help but agree. The unspoken evidence is in reality itself. The horrible truth that most hesitate to voice. The cursed present that we must face now that we have survived—the Frontier.
The Frontier is a place on the edge of monster-infested lands, where people are sent seeking fertile ground. It’s an important thing. A necessary thing. A national project with the dignity of our race on the line, pushing the boundaries of human territory. An offensive stance for the future of our race, with military, church, and commoners alike working together.
At least, that’s how it was supposed to be. The truth is that anyone out here is left to fend for themselves, like the most recent battle. It’s basically become a method of population control via monster fangs and claws. And if that wasn’t enough, the people on the Frontier are treated as human shields. Our sacrifices keep their lands safe.
Is this really necessary? Is this the only way to maintain order? It’s infuriating and saddening. It’s enough to make a man numb.
“God, upon granting us this miracle, graciously chose this land as its stage—the Frontier, the site of human tragedy.” Father Felipo fixes his gaze upon me. I cannot even look away as I wait for him to speak again.
“So isn’t it fitting that this becomes our birthplace? The birthplace of our resistance. Our fight. Our challenge. Our action. Our salvation! In other words, the most magnificent of things... Revolution!” His tongue waggles happily. Even I crinkle my eyelids. Exhilaration pulses through me.
“It’s like a bath.”
“My, that came out of nowhere. Care to explain?”
“The world is terribly cold. But there’s no need to dive head-first into His grace. One first dips their toes into a warm bath before sliding in. Slowly, you let the heat spread through your body to your cheeks. It gives you the strength to carry on to the next day.” Pretty clever, if I do say so myself. What does he think?
“That is, erm, how should I say this... A very simplistic viewpoint that betrays your age. Ahem! In any case, thank you, Lord Willow, for your continued patronage of our church’s purification bath.”
“Hm? No, thank you. It is a marvelous thing you have.”
“If you would attend my sermons, it would make the water worth warming.”
“Oh, please. You would call your criticism of the holy book a ‘sermon?’”
“That was in the past. I’m talking about the future here.”
“You have a point. If the day comes when I can have a bath again, I will come to listen.” We both laugh. No matter how many problems pile up, as long as this spark of hope resides in my chest, I can laugh. A pleasant silence passes, and then I ask the question I have been harboring.
“By the way, what are the things in that basket you’re carrying? They appear to be official documents.”
“They’re various request forms. I wanted to get the Frontier army captain’s sign and seal on them.”
“Hmm. If you deem them necessary, Father, then I shan’t question you...” I inspect the documents. Addressed to the Frontier headquarters, they are things like requests for supplies, requests for more troops, requests for reinforcements from all frontier lands, warnings to our neighbors, solicitations of support from many influential merchants, requests to the adventurer’s guild and mercenary’s guild for more staff, research reports for the sorcerer’s guild, and interview proposals to the newspaper guild.
Every last document lists, in full, the number and variety of monsters fought off in our recent battle. Only two letters are addressed to specific places. One is to the Great Church. I suspect its contents would have changed depending on my answer. And yet he still sought my sign and seal first. In other words, he’s insisting on carte blanche for anything concerning the church.
The other is to the Willow household. He wants to see my conviction.
“Let us ring the bell first, and listen to its reverberations.” Bastard. He acts so innocent.
“Everything begins here. Let us put our hearts in order.”