第１８５４堀：新大陸の情報まとめ (Part1)
Chapter 1854: Summary of Information on the New Continent
Side: Yuki
Vilia, Nina, and the others had successfully infiltrated the church in the Giadana Kingdom, the headquarters of the Clear Church, but...
"It’s completely incomprehensible."
"Agreed."
I had no choice but to concur with Seraria’s assessment.
The individuals who appeared to be the core leadership—the very top of the Clearstream Church—were, by all accounts, demi-humans.
Why, then, would they be spearheading a movement to purge their own kind?
Furthermore, this was supposedly orchestrated by Bishop Petra, a protégé of Archbishop Dodona.
There was no doubt that the Bishop had maintained numerous ties with demi-humans.
So, what on earth could have happened to trigger this sudden shift toward exclusion?
"It’s hard to call it a 'change of heart' when they’re still actively trying to recruit Archbishop Dodona."
"If they were truly committed to purging demi-humans, they would certainly incur the Archbishop’s wrath. Would they really do something so foolish?"
"That’s what I thought. I even considered the possibility that they were luring her in just to assassinate her."
"That doesn't make sense. There would be no need to go through the trouble of summoning her, and it would only be a detriment to them if it were discovered that the Clearstream Church was behind it."
Yeah, Seraria was right.
It was too sloppy to be a genuine assassination plot.
Which meant...
"Could it be that the upper echelons are divided?"
"Or perhaps they are acting without the knowledge of the higher-ups..."
"That’s impossible. Word is that demi-humans from all over the North are fleeing to the Giadana Kingdom. Archbishop Dodona is aware of this, too. She claims she doesn't know the true intent behind it, but she knows it's happening."
Exactly.
The fact that the news of the demi-humans migrating had already reached Archbishop Dodona’s ears was precisely why she had asked about it during the recruitment attempt, only to be met with feigned ignorance.
"Then, let’s try changing our perspective."
"Perspective?"
"Yeah. Instead of 'expelling' them, what if they’re 'herding' them?"
"Herding? To what end? What is the justification for moving only the demi-humans? Besides, from an outside view, that’s synonymous with weakening the national power of every country involved. Well, even though there’s a tendency to exclude demi-humans just like on the If Continent, they still exist in village-sized pockets. It’s the lesser of two evils, or perhaps it’s about the same?"
"I suppose. On the If Continent, there’s the demi-human nation of White Forest, much like Ohe. Though, lately, since demi-human villages are independent and don't contribute directly to national tax revenue, you could say the If Continent is actually further along in its exclusion."
"Ah, you’re right. They aren't getting tax revenue from them. Thinking about it that way, the If Continent is indeed more advanced in its purging of demi-humans."
Yeah, I hate to say it about the If Continent, but they’ve effectively cast demi-humans out of their economic framework, which makes their situation even more malicious.
Still...
"They haven't gone out of their way to attack White Forest. In fact, it seems they’ve been interacting with them normally behind the scenes."
"True. Roday and August have maintained appropriate relations. So, if we apply that to the If Continent, it’s as if the southern factions were waging war on White Forest."
"When you say 'the South,' you mean Zilba and Enaria... That doesn't add up at all. The scale of the land is completely different. It’s impossible for them to block information from the northern countries while simultaneously moving an army through their territories without anyone noticing."
"...Come to think of it, the army did pass through, didn't it? Through other territories. Or was it through land that didn't belong to anyone?"
"That doesn't exist. If a road exists, it belongs to some lord, and by extension, some nation. Otherwise, moving an army would take an absurd amount of time. We’re talking years, if not longer."
Right.
Even when walking on roads built by men, moving an army is a time-consuming endeavor.
To suggest they marched through pathless wilderness is just plain insane.
"So, they must have received permission from each country regarding the southern expedition."
"Exactly. We discussed this, didn't we? The Clearstream Church went around securing those permissions."
"Right. They did. There’s no doubt they communicated their intent to purge the demi-humans. So why are the leaders of the Clear Church so suspicious of it?"
"It’s too unnatural. Even if they want to distance themselves, they’re still recruiting, and the Clearstream Church is taking actions that threaten the demi-human towns within the Giadana Kingdom..."
"Well, no matter how much we speculate, it’s all just guesswork. It really is baffling. It’s not like the leadership is split, yet the Clearstream Church as a whole is moving toward exclusion."
"True. And yet, they’re trying to bring Archbishop Dodona into the fold. It’s full of contradictions. Is something strange happening in the North?"
"That’s why the other countries accepted the demi-human purge? And yet, they didn't inform the Giadana Kingdom. What is going on?"
The more I thought about it, the less sense it made.
"At least we know the situation behind the scenes is incredibly messy. Well, let’s have Vilia and Nina continue to work with Archbishop Dodona to gather information. Fortunately, the Giadana Kingdom seems to be moving slowly for now."
"Yes. On the surface, it’s been announced that Ohe has fallen, and they’re currently debating who to send in."
"Well, even if they send people from the Clearstream Church, there are some decent folks among them, on both sides."
"Indeed. After all, Ohe is the bulwark against monsters. The King of Giadana and his Chancellor said they would use that as the basis for negotiations."
Exactly. The King of Giadana and Chancellor Daeda aren't fools.
They are planning to use a very cunning method against those who preach the purge of demi-humans.
They might have occupied Ohe, but what about the monsters coming from the South?
If the demi-human purge isn't enough to stop the monsters, Ohe will become the front line of the battle.
That means those sent there will have to handle the fighting against the monsters themselves.
Since they were the ones who expelled the demi-humans, it’s only natural that they should be the ones to fight in their stead.
Naturally, the budget will come from the enemy—the Clearstream Church and its cohorts.
We’ll steer things toward making the enemy spend their own funds and manpower to defend Ohe.
And in the meantime, we’ll extract the information we need.
Yeah, it’s absolutely ruthless.
Thinking about it this way, there are only upsides, but...
"Still, they are being treated as a defeated nation. We need to figure out how to stop them from making unreasonable demands."
That’s the problem. Currently, the Ohe Kingdom is being treated as a defeated nation by the Giadana Kingdom.
In this world, being a defeated nation doesn't mean a "gentle world" where treaties are upheld and civilians are spared.
It means they can be stripped of everything without question.
Well, even in the modern world, war zones are always subject to looting. It’s just not officially announced.
Regardless, the question remains: what will those who think they’ve acquired the Ohe Kingdom do?
Based on the current flow of events, they’re bound to start making those kinds of troublesome demands.
"That is the issue. Well, we could always claim that Weed was the one who occupied it."
"...That’s an option. I’ll consult on it later."