After listening to Ansu recount every word of the divine decree, a flash of surprise crossed Celia's eyes, and they widened slightly.
"Use the blood of heretics... to cast the foundation of a new world. Did the deity really say that?"
She analyzed it thoughtfully, "It certainly sounds like she's calling upon the faithful to wage war, much like the holy wars the Church of Holy Light launched alongside the expansion of the Empire..."
Ansu nodded. From this perspective, the so-called Chosen One was far from the radiant and righteous figure people imagined; instead, they were more like the primary enforcer for expanding a deity's faith.
However, it aligned perfectly with his initial cynical suspicions; he had long felt that the gods harbored no good intentions.
"How ironic..." Celia clicked her tongue, glancing toward the door.
"I wonder how that pious and foolish follower of the light out there would feel if you told her this."
Celia suddenly broke into a mischievous grin.
She was actually looking forward to seeing the expression of despair on the Holy Maiden's face when her faith finally collapsed.
Ansu didn't answer, but he had a feeling... Freya might not react the way Celia hoped.
The current little Holy Maiden, because of him, no longer followed the church's dogmas so blindly.
"So, what do you plan to do?" Celia was curious about Ansu's choice; after all, he wasn't a fanatic who lived for slaughter. "Are you going to ignore the divine decree?"
"I'll just stall for now..." Ansu gave her a strange look, thinking to himself that this was the tactic he was most familiar with.
Back when he had the mission to find a Chosen One for her at the academy, he had stalled for who knows how long.
He had stalled until the situation turned upside down, to the point where even after revealing his identity, she couldn't bring herself to kill him... Thus, being able to stall was a skill in itself.
Celia didn't know where Ansu got the nerve to stall for time with a deity, so she blinked suspiciously.
"Of course, we still have to keep up appearances." Ansu chuckled and shared his thoughts. "Benalu City has become a den of trouble. We certainly can't go back until the situation changes, so I was thinking, should we find a different place to develop?"
"Where have you decided to go?" Celia asked curiously.
"To the North," Ansu replied.
When he rescued Freya in Benalu City, he had already considered the idea of heading north; with the current situation, it was now an absolute necessity.
Of course, Ansu wasn't 'playing a grand game of chess' as Freya had over-imaginatively assumed; he was simply taking it one step at a time.
His idea was to bypass the Church of Holy Light and head to the northern border, where the mountains are high and the emperor is far, to secretly build his influence using the charisma of a Chosen One.
Once again, there would be two suns in the sky...
"Why the North?" Celia pondered for a moment. "If you want to avoid the church's influence, wouldn't the southern border of the Empire be just as good? The climate there is warm, and the environment is pleasant... If we encounter a crisis, we could use the islands as a springboard to hide in other countries at any time."
"Because..." Ansu found it a bit hard to explain. He couldn't exactly say he had already read the script, could he?
The further one moved from the Eternal City, the weaker the influence of the church and the Empire became. Celia's analysis was technically correct; given the current situation, the southern border was the best choice.
But she certainly wouldn't expect that the southern border would become an inevitable doom in the future.
In the original plot, two major events would occur in the North and South within three years, after which the massive Novalon Empire would rapidly fracture and collapse like a row of dominoes.
First was the North. An outer organization of the demon army remnants, their 'old friends' the Squirrel Party, teamed up with the black mages of the North to pull off something massive. A terrifying explosion leveled the major northern stronghold, Norvigel.
After the northern defense line was breached, barbarians and monsters poured in. Local lords took the opportunity to declare independence, leading to constant warfare. The North completely entered a Battle Royale Era.
And the South was even more of a heavyweight disaster.
The disaster-level 【Fall of the God of Nature】 event—the outbreak of monsterization turned fertile fields into wasteland, crops failed, and a Great Famine followed.
The corrupt Empire's relief efforts were ineffective, and with high-level 'geniuses' making constant blunders, the influx of refugees and bandits became severe, turning the South into a living hell.
Ultimately, Duke Berry raised an army in rebellion, leading the refugees and rebels to storm the 'impregnable' Eternal City, causing the Novalon Empire to collapse entirely.
After that... came humanity's darkest hour. The demon army returned in full force, and several evil god cults that had plagued the world at the end of the Second Era were all resurrected, leaving the entire continent crawling with demons.
Ansu thought privately that the crisis in the South was an almost unavoidable scripted death. By comparison, the North was a better option.
"Choosing to go North, besides the church's influence being weaker there..." Ansu thought of a good reason. "Norvigel, the largest city in the North, has very good schools. They were built by the northern nobles out of their own pockets to mimic the Royal Academy."
"Vera is still young, and I don't have the time to look after her. It's better to send her back to school."
Ansu mused, "I've heard the magitech major at Norvigel United Academy is particularly impressive. Vera has liked those things since she was little; it would be good for her to study there..."
"I see." Celia understood immediately upon hearing it was for Vera. In her memory, Vera indeed quite liked those magitech toys and such.
She had to admit, Ansu was a very capable older brother. While being caring and protective of his sister, he also took on the responsibility of planning for the family's future.
To be honest, she was even a bit envious of Vera...
But envy was just envy; she didn't harbor hostility toward Vera like she used to. A sister was a sister, after all; she wasn't on the same level of threat as Freya.
"Moving with Vera... who knows how long it will be before you two can return to Benalu City and that old house of yours as respectable citizens." Celia smiled.
Thinking about how Ansu was always so considerate of those around him, she suddenly thought of the person outside.
"What about Freya? You'll have to take her with you to Norvigel as well, right?"
"Her... of course." Ansu instinctively glanced at the door. "Actually, there's one more small reason for heading to the North."
Celia gave him a look that said 'I'm listening.'
"The North has many races and many demihuman autonomous territories, like the Staya Tribe where Freya's mother is from..."
Ansu voiced his previous concept. "The vast North has countless potential allies who could all become our strength. Freya is not only a demihuman but also a former Holy Maiden. With her level of charisma and popularity, once she returns to her homeland and rallies them with a single cry, wouldn't they..."
Celia couldn't help but laugh. "You don't just want her to continue being the church's Holy Maiden; you want her to become the 'Holy Maiden' in the hearts of all demihumans, don't you?"
"Exactly, that's what I mean!" As Ansu spoke, he quietly observed the witch's reaction. Seeing her expression remained calm, he continued:
"Freya is indeed a huge help to our cause, and her identity is irreplaceable. So I think, rather than letting her leave, it's better to make full use of her value..."
"No need to be so nervous trying to speak well of her; I obviously know her value." Celia interrupted with a smile. "Ansu, have you misunderstood something? I never intended to let her leave either."
"Huh?" Ansu was stunned for a moment.
"Didn't I say? Before you woke up, the two of us had already made up, and we were even chatting and laughing together..." Celia blinked with a smile. "What, you don't believe me?"
"I believe you..." Ansu nodded silently, though in his heart, he truly could not imagine that scene.
Rate on N.U.
