Volume 1 Chapter 585

Chapter 585: Trying to Pick the Lock

Listening to Kanor’s words, Lalea was also slightly surprised.

After all, this statement really did sound quite outrageous!

This might have surprised her even more than hearing her father say that the people are like pigs.

After all, this was exactly how he thought.

The entire strategy of the United Kingdom of South Sotua reflected this idea.

In fact…

On this continent, such views were not really new.

Because this world had extraordinary powers.

Bloodlines, magic, martial skills, legacies…

Various factors meant that the nobility and royalty in this world possessed not only an accumulation of different resources but also rules that always favored them.

There was also real and powerful strength.

The power of individuals was strong.

No matter how one gained extraordinary power, whether through bloodline or secret knowledge passed down.

As long as one was in power, they must have such a monopoly.

There was no ruling class in any country that wasn’t a Superoperator.

Even if one or two members could be weak, the family or force of the ruler in a place was always the strongest.

They possessed the most advanced extraordinary technology, equipment, and the strongest people.

Otherwise, this rule was just a castle in the air, unrealistic.

It was not only because of internal troubles; there might be other Superoperators eyeing one’s position.

There were also external threats.

For example, the Abyssal Demon King’s army was sweeping across the continent.

The small countries in the North Land had long been forced to migrate.

Even without the Abyssal demon race…

Dwarves, elves, Orcs, and humans were also in constant conflict with each other.

Not to mention, there were wars between nations.

Next to you was the Ryman Empire, whose general was a demi-god.

As the leader of your country…

If you did not even have a Holy Domain and only had a few legendary figures under your command…

The next day, your country would become a province of Ryman.

Even if the Ryman Empire had no interest in attacking you…

Your people might not be able to stay calm with a strong enemy nearby.

If your land is small enough, with few resources and talents, then you might consider yourself lucky.

This way, you could be a vassal duchy, and you might not even need to be one.

You only need to behave yourself.

But once your country discovers some Sacred Tool or high-level magical materials…

Or if something good from an alternate plane falls into your territory…

The speed of writing a letter of surrender might not be faster than the enemy’s army arriving.

Even if everything is peaceful and not watched by any powers.

Just dealing with the monster problems…

Is already enough to require strength to support it.

If a slightly stronger wave of wild monsters comes, you won’t be able to clean them up…

How can one talk about building a nation and a city?

This is the most practical problem.

Even if a not very strong family temporarily has its own territory and subjects,

It won’t last long.

This continent, this world, will ruthlessly filter anyone who wants to take on something.

Always testing you to see if you are good enough.

If you are even a little weak, you will be left behind by the times.

You might just become stagnant and not be as strong anymore…

If something like the arrival of the Abyssal Demon King happens suddenly, you might be left out again.

Not to mention…

There is also the "End of Days," which has already destroyed two eras.

Even though most people don’t understand, if you delve a little deeper into the extraordinary, you can find information about the End of Days.

This is unavoidable.

The End of Days has already happened twice.

There will be a third time.

All of this has ultimately led to the current state of the mainland in the third era.

The Superoperator must take on more responsibilities.

This is a common occurrence.

But is this really right?

The Church of Light is already a very good place.

The people here have enough to eat and wear, with no worries, and can live their lives in peace.

"Though ‘caged’ sounds harsh, is this really so bad?"

Lalea voiced her doubts.

Kanor looked at Lalea and gently shook her head.

"Not good enough."

As she said this, she pointed to herself and Lalea.

"As I said, there isn’t even a wanted notice here, Sister Lalea."

"We are standing here openly, and if the Paladins don’t notice us, as long as we avoid them…"

"We will find a way to get a little access to the power of Holy Light…"

Kanor opened her hands.

"You see, we could even be bishops."

As she said this, Lalea was a bit speechless.

Lalea had never visited Hillenbrand Town, nor had she ever participated in its operations.

So, she did not understand this.

But Kanor had seen it.

Whether it was her, or Isabella and Tina…

In fact, without realizing it, their horizons had been greatly expanded by Lolth.

About how to help the ordinary people without extraordinary powers to live their lives.

Lolth did it better than anyone else.

Of course, it cannot be denied that this was because Lolth used her own strength and outstanding skills to create a paradise-like place.

Comparing Hillenbrand Town to South Sotua, Ryman, or even Seychelles is quite unfair.

But this Holy Lieto Empire…

Isn’t it a paradise on earth?

At least that’s how The Church of Light promotes itself.

This is why Kanor looked down on her.

"To put it simply, Sister Lalea, you don’t understand one thing…"

"You can only understand after seeing Hillenbrand Town and Teacher Lolth’s notes…"

"In any case, separating the common people from those in power is a dangerous thing."

"Even if it’s done with extraordinary power… though this is an option forced by the current state of the continent…"

"One could even say it is the best solution."

"However, we cannot deny that its drawbacks exist."

"For example, those things we saw earlier."

"The Church of Light actually does well, but its standards are too narrow."

"What the Holy Light shines upon is right…"

"But what if the Holy Light is wrong?"

As Kanor said this, a touch of Holy Light danced at her fingertips.

"Power is just power, but when you add so many things to it…"

"It becomes less pure."

As she spoke, the power of Holy Light in Kanor’s hand visibly became mixed.

Lalea was stunned for a long time before she continued to ask.

"So… what should we do?"

Kanor heard this and rolled her eyes.

She waved her hand and the Holy Light faded away.

"Sister Lalea, are you asking me?"

"I’m only eight years old!"

"I just came here to find the teacher!"

Saying this, she shrugged her shoulders.

"Let’s go to the church here and ask how to get to the Holy Capital."

Seeing Kanor’s changing expression in just a second, Lalea’s mouth twitched as well.

"You are eight years old?"

"Is there anyone like you at eight years old?"

But in the end, she didn’t say this out loud.

After all, she still needed to rely on Dorothy for dinner tonight…

While Kanor was reflecting on the state of The Church of Light and the entire continent…

Her teacher, Lolth, was also working hard to reform The Church of Light.

The specific way…

Was shown in her chatting with Coristo.

After finishing her breakfast, Lolth lifted a small blackboard and began teaching Coristo.

Because she considered that the emperor of the Holy Lieto Empire, while having some power, was probably just as equal to Old Harper and herself in front of the Pope.

So, Lolth did not have very high expectations for Coristo.

The God of Light and the Pope did not expect to rely on the future emperor of the Holy Lieto Empire for anything important.

Coristo was like a gift from Lolth to The Church of Light.

Therefore, Lolth would not teach her any deep or mysterious political ideas.

Her focus in teaching Coristo was mainly on how to use the power of Holy Light.

After all, having the power of Holy Light gave her a basic chance for the throne.

Of course, now that she had started teaching, Lolth could not just goof off or be careless.

The decision about what to teach can be a bit more relaxed.

However, when the formal teaching began, Lolth was still a very responsible teacher.

So, at the beginning, Lolth also earnestly started to teach Coristo the principles.

"First, understand a somewhat unconventional and even rebellious viewpoint."

Lolth looked at Coristo and summoned a sphere of Holy Light power.

"Power is power. Look, here we have divine power, elemental magic, pure magic, and spatial magic…"

With each type she mentioned, she added another form of power to the Holy Light.

This made Coristo’s eyes widen in shock.

"Wow."

After Coristo finished in shock, Lolth slowly continued speaking.

"Power, extraordinary power, has no difference in height… There may be strength and rank differences, but essentially, they are the same."

"They all come from the same source."

"It’s like a flatbread and a meat pie; one has filling and one doesn’t. The meat pie might taste better, but that doesn’t mean the flatbread isn’t food, nor does it mean the meat pie is more special than the flatbread."

"Similarly, those who eat meat pies and those who eat flatbreads are the same."

"Do not judge a person by the power they use—do you think someone who eats a meat pie is necessarily kinder than someone who eats a flatbread?"

Lolth explained very seriously.

Coristo took notes carefully.

Then, when Lolth paused, she raised her hand to ask a question.

"Teacher, what is a meat pie?"

Upon hearing this, Lolth was momentarily surprised and sighed.

"A meat pie is a special kind of pastry… Don’t get hung up on my metaphor!"

"Okay, Master Nai!"

Coristo immediately replied with enthusiasm.

"So, the power of the Holy Light is the same," Lolth said, thinking for a moment, and continued asking, "Do you think there is any essential difference between the conditions for using the power of the Holy Light and spatial magic?"

"Of course there is," Coristo nodded and said, "To use the power of the Holy Light, a person must have virtue, sincerely believe in the Holy Light, and also have a natural affinity for it to be granted the ability to use the power… But spatial magic, after all, can be used if you have talent and learn the related spells!"

As Coristo said this, she remembered what Lolth had just mentioned.

"Uh, of course it could be like you said, Master Nai, that both are essentially powers… But if we only look at the conditions for use, there are definitely significant differences."

Coristo said cautiously.

"There’s no need to be so careful, because you are right. Divine power is a kind of magic, but it is also a very special category," Lolth said, waving her hand. "So, what do you think… the uniqueness of different divine powers comes from?"

When she asked this question, Coristo’s expression changed slightly.

She wasn’t unaware of the answer.

It was just that this answer, no matter how you put it, felt like a blasphemy.

"It was because divine power came from the Divine Kingdom half-plane, while magical power came from the mainland plane."

Lolth knew Coristo wouldn’t dare to say it and spoke calmly.

"In the half-plane or alternate plane where deities reside, possessing the characteristics of the Divine Kingdom, their power also becomes purer and carries some will of the deities, making it seem particularly ‘powerful.’"

"In equal amounts, divine power exhibits significant characteristics and absolute advantages—whether it is making other magical power dissipate or overshadowing their characteristics, high-level divine power surpasses pure magical power."

"To put it simply, this is what is called ‘divinity.’"

"Magic is power, but using the extraordinary power of magic actually has one condition."

"That is, magic turning into extraordinary power requires a ‘subject.’"

"The will of the subject determines the strength of the magic."

"And divine power, its user is assumed to be a deity, while priests and Paladins… are just secondary vessels, or indirect subjects."

"The planes generate magic, and the deities in their Divine Kingdom represent the will of the entire plane."

"Naturally, this is stronger than ordinary magic."

When Lolth said this, she drew a bit of fire element magic.

"But if we trace it back to its essence… most elemental magic doesn’t actually exist in the mainland plane, but seeps in from elemental alternate planes."

"Elemental magic comes in two types."

"One type gathers free elemental magic, while the other type draws elemental magic directly from an alternate plane."

"However, divine power carries the will of a deity and rarely spreads in the mainland plane— as long as it exists, it must be maintained in the form of tools or spells."

"Even in Eden Palace, the power of Holy Light is abundant because there is a continuous flow of Holy Light entering."

"Otherwise, divine power can be ‘targeted’—this is the rule of the planes."

"A power with the will of a deity can easily fade outside the Divine Kingdom— to sustain it, more sacrifices must be made."

"So, do you understand why divine power has so many extra conditions?"

"Because it is not without a master; every bit of divine power has either the will of a god or exists within the Divine Kingdom."

"In simple terms, faith, prayers, the ‘virtues’ defined by the God of Light, and the restriction on your non-mainland plane bloodline are all locks on His power…"

"Since you are destined not to open the lock."

Lolth said as she purified the power of Holy Light in her hands again.

"Then try to pry the lock open."