Chapter 240: Trigger
“I am afraid I will lose my reverence for life.” Agamemnon said, reaching out to pick up the horn placed on the small wooden stand. “Once blown, it will plunge the entire town’s people into slumber, and in their dreams, their lives will be taken away.”
“Life is so fragile. One does not even need to hold a blade and splash blood upon oneself. Simply in their dreams, they can sink into eternal sleep.”
He caressed the horn carefully, as if touching the edge of a sharp sword.
“Perhaps this is mercy, mercy for these people—they will not feel pain. And also mercy for me—I will not have to see their faces.”
Agamemnon’s voice was unnervingly calm, like someone reciting another’s story.
Corleon’s voice echoed, “Over these years, many things have happened in York Territory. The constant turmoil has reduced its population by more than half. Yet among these incidents, only when Lord Pegira seized York Territory did the fewest deaths occur. Only a handful of knights died, and among them, only one was truly killed—your father, Knight Zorn Adams.”
“Lord Pegira did a few things. He gave the gentry of York Territory the interests they desired. For knightly families, he allowed their youths to become knights. For the gentry, he granted the qualification to serve as his close attendants. For families weaker than the gentry, he allowed them access to the outside world.”
“These were benefits. They showed these people that by supporting Lord Pegira, they would gain even more benefits.”
“But benefits alone would not ensure cooperation. On the other side of benefits was life. They could not be sure Lord Pegira would win absolutely. In wars between lords, if they stood on the wrong side, only total family annihilation awaited them.”
“Lord Helvin would never tolerate families betraying him in his territory, no matter how important those families were. Simply because their existence threatened his power. And other families would not mind devouring the spoils of those purged.”
“So, Lord Pegira did something else. He had his knights challenge Lord Helvin’s knights one by one.”
“Lord Pegira had only two knights, but both were young and in their prime. They defeated Helvin’s aging knights bare-handed. And before that, perhaps due to necromancers’ interference, Lord Helvin’s army had already suffered a crushing defeat.”
“Through martial strength, Lord Pegira proved himself to the gentry. Thus, some families bet entirely on him, yearning to rise higher. Some remained neutral, content with their situation, unwilling to risk rebellion for uncertain gain. And the last group—those already holding the greatest privileges—chose to remain loyal to Lord Helvin.”
“Even so, a direct offensive would still mean war, a war with many deaths.”
“So before doing these two things, Lord Pegira sent Lord Helvin a suit of armor. Such armor was immensely powerful. In the Three Principalities of Greenwood, only the Principality of Corlay had one. Only in kingdoms did such craft exist, and only in empires could such armor be mass-produced for knights.”
“For Viscount Helvin, this was a treasure he had never seen before. He became afraid, his mind unsettled. He shifted wealth, sought protection from noble allies for his children, thought of hiding, of survival. In doing so, he neglected governance. Thus, his closest scholars and magicians sensed something amiss.”
“They left—or rather, they fled. Seeing the scholars’ movements, families also wavered. Neutral ones turned to Lord Pegira. The rest, wishing to maintain the status quo, had no choice but to yield as well—for they did not want to die.”
“At this point, Lord Pegira only had to march into York Town with his army. Yet he did something else—he entered York Territory, entered York Town, with only one magician and one knight.”
“And so, with only your father, Knight Zorn, dead, Lord Pegira became the new lord of York Territory.”
“Knight Zorn could have survived, but he still chose to die. His death, along with the survival of his family—you and your grandmother—showed Lord Pegira’s mercy. This thoroughly calmed the families.”
“Thus, this war ended with only one knight’s death.”
As Corleon recounted, Agamemnon lowered his head. Corleon’s voice continued to reverberate.
“Ando was your friend. Even now, he remains your closest friend. Yet he could have survived as well.”
“His sister Yara could have formed a family with George. But she was not alone. She had her family, who needed her to lead them in survival. She was the first to form close ties with the Church. Look now at your Adams Family, look at Terry. Yara could have had a future like Terry’s—or even greater, she could have sat in the Senate.”
“But she and her family chose to oppose the Church. It was inevitable, for the Holy Scriptures aimed to overturn their social structure and power. Even now, in York Territory’s flourishing state, families who lost privileges under the Church’s system still long for the past.”
“Yet at that time, Yara decisively burned the Small Church to preserve her family’s interests. While today’s gentry only reminisce about the past while bowing to the Church.”
“Do they fear death? No. Individually, they do not fear it. They do not even fear their families’ deaths. For their bloodlines interweave. Even if one family perished entirely, their scattered bloodlines could rebuild it. They are a class interest body.”
“Look at Yara’s punishment. Even then, gentry still schemed. Only when Knight Wolf acted did they finally realize the unchangeable tide. Resistance meant only more death. So they learned to live under the new system. Now, look—they hide wealth, seizing power in new ways.”
“Thus, for them, Yara’s act of burning the Small Church will never happen again. They are already part of the new order. As the Church grows stronger, they gain even more benefits. Together, they protect their class interests. Senators, officials, gentry, merchants—when they converse, they share one identity: devout believers, even carrying the Church’s cross with them.”
“They are the new class of interests. Compared to Viscount Youn, compared to the southern nobles, they are like the Church compared to Yara and the gentry of York Territory.”
“And now—it is the moment Yara burned the Small Church once again.”
“Lord Pegira showed the fundamental rules of this world in the most direct way.”
“Interests, martial strength, mercy, and momentum.”
“And when Yara burned the Small Church, I followed Lord Pegira’s way.”
“Knowledge, and the protection and power of Piero and your grandmother—that was the revealed interest. Overnight, Yara’s family vanished, while Marl and the Temple Warriors visited one by one—that was revealed martial strength, with Knight Wolf assisting. The gentry were full of sin, and nobles even worse. Yet those three barons were still entrusted, made into senators—that was revealed mercy. Finally, giving them interests and honor, constantly advancing the momentum.”
“Lord Pegira merely followed the old rules, so he needed only a month to win recognition from York’s officials and gentry.”
“The Church brought new rules. It took nearly three years to turn the semi-closed York Territory into a new interest collective, a new class.”
“This is not merely a viscount persecuting a priest, but an old class resisting a new one.”
“Interests—the Senate has shown and entangled them, pulling them into the new class system, letting them taste its benefits. Martial strength—the Solov Fortress Town and its stationed army have demonstrated it. Mercy—the nobles and gentry recruited by the Senate and attached to York Territory have set the example. Now, only momentum is missing—the unstoppable momentum.”
“Destroying Viscount Youn is that momentum’s trigger, just as Lord Pegira crushed Lord Helvin’s will to resist, just as the punishment wiped out Yara’s family.”
“Now, this trigger can be touched by the Senate or pushed by the Church. Whoever does so will become the object of awe for the old class, overwhelmed by the momentum.”
“As you said, they lack reverence for the Church. For now, interests, martial strength, mercy—all have been shown under the Senate’s name.”
It was not as the Holy Scriptures and Divine Word Manuscripts wrote: ‘The Lord loves the world,’ or ‘Blessed are the peacemakers.’ Instead, it was ruthless conquest.
Like the calm flick of a switch high above, opening an already-dug channel, diverting still waters of a lake on the left into the vast ocean on the right—everything was prepared.
As though waiting for Agamemnon to digest these words, silence lingered. Then Corleon’s voice rose again, gentler than before.
“Agamemnon, you were among the first to accept Faith, one of the monks in the Flower Church. You persuaded Melia. You should already know—Cicero and Olivia are not human. They are special. Ando is dead. George can only walk the path of the Holy Knight. Among you, only you became a priest.”
“You are clever, and wise. Even if your eyes cannot see as far as mine, you can sense the trigger of this momentum. But you are still a child. As I once told Ando—every day before sixteen is a gift from the Lord. Before then, children should enjoy childhood’s joy.”
“Yet at ten, you were forced to end your childhood and preside over Church affairs—not only the wondrous task of bringing the Heavenly Kingdom to earth, but also the sinful politics.”
“This is my cruelty to you, and my guilt.”
“I will not refuse your request, for your decision is already made. But I hope you think more. Visit the Senate, see their plans. Visit the Adrian Diocese, witness the lives between new and old—the poor, the gentry, the officials, the nobles.”
“Just as you said, Melia never left the Church. Likewise, you have never left York Territory.”
“After that, decide what you will do.”
“Do not worry about time. All is prepared. What will happen is already fated.”
“Do not worry if the Senate does this, for as you said, the era will not halt for one man. The future is inevitable.”
“Do not worry that doing this will make you lose reverence for life. I believe in you.”
Corleon’s voice slowly faded, leaving Agamemnon alone, quietly holding the Slumbering Horn.