The Archbishop instantly mapped out all the plans to come.
The Divine Emissary was, for now, unwilling to lead the Church as a Divine Emissary.
This meant the time for him to personally guide humanity had not yet arrived.
Given the present chaos and division within the Church, it was only natural for the Emissary to have reservations.
The Church, as it was, would only hold him back. Unifying the Kingdom Church was, for Albert Morel, his present mission.
For now, all he had to do was support the Divine Emissary with his whole heart and quietly wait for the day he willingly revealed his identity.
“You are right, Sir Allen.” Though the topic was heavy, Lucien, the Archbishop, showed a smile of relief. In this moment, he felt lighter than ever before.
“The current Insignia System is, indeed, a bitter fruit we planted with our own hands. At the start of this new Cycle of Reincarnation for humanity, we never realized how different it would be from all before.”
“Who could have guessed that humanity’s enemies would not just be the Observers, but also the legendary evils recorded in the Holy Scripture—those that hide in the depths of the stars? They concealed themselves in the mists of history until…the Engraved Mark appeared.”
“At first, we thought the Engraved Mark was some kind of genetic mutation, or perhaps the sublimation of humanity’s collective unconscious—a sort of awakening of Psychic Power. Back then, we called those who bore the Mark ‘Psychics’. They wielded mysterious mental energies—Psychic Power. We believed this power was something science could explain and utilize.”
“In truth, the related research made major breakthroughs. We discovered that the crucial human element described in the Holy Scripture—the Soul—was real. That’s right, humans have souls!”
At this, Allen’s mind raced.
Psychics? This all sounded straight out of the interstellar era!
He’d always thought “Mark bloodlines” was nonsense, but if Psychic genes could be inherited, it all made sense.
What’s more, if Marianne could awaken the Brand of Shadow, that meant Marks weren’t just for nobles; even commoners could awaken them!
This alone was enough to overturn the entire era!
So, the Star Listener was the first to study the essence of the Marks?
Through his development of the Pseudo-Mark, he ultimately “open-sourced” the Engraved Mark?
Was his path to save humanity really one of Psychic ascension?
Allen didn’t know how to judge this madman who stood against all humanity. He’d done countless monstrous things, yet he had produced real results.
You could only say, if his path really could save humanity, maybe you could rate his deeds as three parts merit, seven parts fault.
But Allen thought Psychic ascension was absolutely no good.
If humans really did have souls, then weren’t the Evil gods coveting them for that very reason?
Psychic ascension would be like cultivators ascending from the lower realm, only to find the lords of the upper realm fed on those who ascended—delivering themselves up as takeout!
Did the Star Listener realize this path was a dead end, so he revealed the truth to change things and help in another way?
Seeing Allen lost in thought, Archbishop Lucien continued,
“However, just as the research was making breakthroughs, one of our scientists—the one who would become the Star Listener—was corrupted in spirit by the power of the Evil gods during his deep study of the Engraved Mark.”
“In the end, he fled the Church with his research and founded the Crimson Spiral Cult. Not only did he cause the Church tremendous loss, but he also posed a direct threat to the existence of all humanity.”
Learning the Star Listener’s background, Allen couldn’t help but sigh:
Well then! Turns out you, Star Listener, were a fallen scientist from the Church!
You really had a spirit of experimentation, daring to use yourself as a test subject and actually turning yourself into an unnameable monster.
“After a series of crushing blows, the Church could no longer halt the spread of the Marks. In the end, the Evil gods, in a sense, took control of human society. Of course, those who truly bore the Engraved Mark were not as mentally unstable as the heretics who implanted the Pseudo-Mark, so the Church’s internal view on the Marks became divided.”
“The Imperial Church holds that the Mark—Psychic Power—is neutral. It may have originated from Evil gods, but it has since become symbiotic with humanity and is not entirely a bad thing. As long as it is guided and monitored by the Church, it can benefit mankind.”
“As for us, the Kingdom Church, after the Star Listener’s lesson, we believe the Mark is fundamentally uncontrollable! It’s like a backdoor secretly installed in humanity. It seems stable, but hides endless calamity, and could lead to the worst outcomes at a crucial moment.”
“The disagreement over the Marks ultimately led to the split between the Kingdom Church and the Imperial Church. But even before that, our relationship was on the brink of collapse. Both sides hold parts of the pre-civilization heritage. Our path is to return to the stars, and we are called the Stellar Faction. Theirs is to preserve civilization—they are the Wheat Faction.”
“For nearly a millennium, we’ve argued over the path to save humanity. In the end, we went our separate ways, each completing their own plan for humanity’s salvation.”
Archbishop Lucien looked up at the glowing Starspike Emblem in the animated star chart, sighing,
“Perhaps, as you said, the Church’s descent into such division and impotence is proof positive of humanity’s refusal to believe in its own strength, its lack of unity, and its deep-rooted flaws.”
At that, Allen began to doubt himself again:
“No, Archbishop. In my view, this proves humanity’s greatness instead. Everyone, on their own, is seeking a way to save humanity. Even that wretched Star Listener wasn’t wholly fallen; he sought a path in his own way.”
“Humanity’s real flaw is our inability to understand one another. All conflict, oppression, hatred, suffering…comes from that.”
“But I believe, someday, mankind will unite under one banner, under one ideal, and achieve at least some degree of mutual understanding. Because humanity has Love—not just the love of blood, or between man and woman, but something far greater. Love is the answer the Lord gave us, and to prevail, we must let all humanity understand that Love.”
“That’s why I think humanity is still worth saving, and still can be saved. We are free, and free Souls will never submit to a predetermined fate!”
“Out there, beyond the dark vault of heaven, is our true enemy! We must overcome them—we have no time to waste!”
Getting worked up, Allen couldn’t help but slip into his usual impromptu speechmaking, declaring passionately:
“Humanity only gets one chance at revival. If others lack the ability to seize it, then let me see it through! Let war begin—let it spread from this planet’s sky to the farthest edge of human knowledge! Let the star seas boil, let the stars fall, and even if I spill my last drop of blood, I want to see humanity liberated again! If I cannot save humanity from its past failures, then let this world burn!”
Allen’s voice was strong and forceful, his tyrannical declaration of war echoing through the Sanctum for a long time.
Everyone present had their own thoughts; only Allen himself saw nothing wrong with his words.
In fact, he felt that spouting such lines straight out of a supervillain’s mouth in front of everyone was just…awesome!
Tch tch tch! The boldest, most fearsome, strongest, and coolest villain in the galaxy is me, Allen de Laval!
Once his bout of adolescent villainy subsided, Allen looked at the still-pensive Archbishop and suddenly grinned:
“Well, that’s really all I wanted to say. Honestly, with my current strength, I can’t shake the world at all, but so what? I don’t intend to interfere in the Church’s affairs. I trust your wisdom, and humanity’s wisdom. As long as the Church helps me, I’ll be very happy.”
That’s right—at this stage, Allen knew he didn’t have the ability to take the helm.
He was still too weak, and his death flag hadn’t been cleared yet.
Livia was waiting for him, the Dawn’s Children needed to develop, and leading the Church in a war against the Old World right now was meaningless.
The Observer wanted Allen to destroy the Invading Creatures with his own strength; relying on the Church’s advanced technology to crush medieval natives would surely displease It.
Its deletion of the Church’s database was a stern warning.
You can’t change the world just by talking. You have to advance one step at a time. For now, all Allen needed was to win the Church as an ally.
If they really handed management of the Church over to him, he couldn’t handle it!
He wasn’t some “Old Blue” with multithreaded thinking, able to command hundreds of wars while planning thousands of planetary developments.
Allen was just an ordinary man. He could barely manage his current work, let alone serve as Divine Emissary leading a vast Church… He’d rather be killed on the spot.
Archbishop Lucien was a “villain” like him.