Chapter Twenty-Five: The Saint

The deck fell into a deathly silence.

In the eyes of the servants and the crew, Young Master Yugo was still a child. As the eldest son of the current Speaker, he had completed his first voyage with the fleet at the age of seven. Yugo was unpretentious and always able to get along well with everyone, leaving a positive impression on them all.

However, they all felt that he was better suited to be an adventurer roaming the seas than a senator. This was the first time they had heard the young master comment on imperial domestic affairs, and it was a statement that was as shocking as it was bold.

The Empire was on the verge of civil war.

They could only imagine the shockwave such feedback would cause once it reached the Council. They felt the young master still could not grasp what the role of an ambassador truly represented—every word he spoke upon his return would likely have profound implications for the Council’s future policies.

The captain quickly interjected, "No, no, Young Master, this is no time for jokes. How could a civil war possibly break out in the Empire?"

"Within a year of His Majesty Henry’s passing, at the latest."

Yugo remained unmoved. Propping his chin on his left hand, he continued, "Lily, when the Lovic Consortium and the Pope met with us, they both asked the same question: between the Consortium and the Church, which one does the Deep Sea Council prefer to establish long-term cooperation with?"

"That is only natural, Young Master. A few years ago, both parties expressed their desire to establish chambers of commerce and cathedrals in our coastal cities," Lily replied. "Since the sea routes were opened, relations between civilizations have become much closer."

"As far as I know, the Empire’s succession laws differ from our Council’s. They value bloodline above all else; the next successor to the throne will only come from His Majesty Henry’s descendants. Yet, they never once mentioned any of these heirs."

"The struggle for the imperial throne has always been this way," the captain said. "The current Majesty Henry only gained the support of the Netheril Cathedral and ascended the throne after his heroic feat of slaying a dragon. Regardless, any chaos will be temporary."

"That may be so, but chaos creates opportunities for others. The times have changed. In this era, as long as one is equipped with weapons produced by imperial military industry, even an ordinary person can kill a well-trained royal soldier."

Yugo sat there, standing his ground against the captain and Lily. Still, not a single crew member joined his "side." After all, the judgment sounded far too absurd.

Lily shook her head bitterly. "Such a rebellion would not last more than three days. Once the Empire deploys a Saint, the rebels have no chance of victory."

The classification system for transcendents was proposed by the Empire. Once a human steps into the realm of the Third Tier, they become an existence beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. However, above the Third Tier, there are two even higher ranks. No matter the path, once one ascends to the Fifth Tier, they are bestowed the title of Saint.

"Like gods walking among men." That was how people described the Saints.

Although the Empire had suffered heavy losses in the battle against the Winter Witch, even excluding the terminally ill Henry IV, they still maintained close ties with at least three Saints. Her eyes dimmed as she lowered her head. "In the face of a Saint, the struggles of mortals are meaningless."

Even if the young master's prediction came true, she could already see the outcome of this grand uprising—crushed like ants, their heads severed and hung from the city walls as a warning to those who followed. Their names would be recorded in history books as heinous sinners, nailed to the pillars of shame.

Noticing Lily’s distress, Yugo changed the subject. "By the way, when my father visited the Empire last time, the Containment Bureau hadn't been established yet, had it?"

The captain took the hint, seizing the opportunity to steer the conversation. "Oh, I have heard of them. It is said to be an agency specifically for handling anomalous cases in the Empire, established only in the last few years. The former director was an incredible figure; he was awarded the title of Fourth Tier Scholar by the Enlightenment Society at just thirty years old. It is a pity he met with an accident; otherwise, the Empire would likely have seen a new Saint emerge within a few years."

Yugo replied, "Rather than handling anomalous cases, I think it is more accurate to call it 'dealing with the followers of evil gods.' After all, most of the cases they investigate are created by such cultists. It is a naming strategy game."

"A naming strategy?"

"By omitting 'evil god' from the naming process, the situation appears less severe. Don’t you find it strange? Since the Fourth Era, followers of evil gods have never disappeared, so why would the Empire need to establish a special department to handle such events now?"

Yugo paused intentionally for a long moment. Seeing the captain’s hesitant expression, he knew the man already knew the answer but dared not speak it aloud.

"It means that the number of evil god followers within the Empire is growing—growing so much that the Empire has to establish a special department to cope with their activities... Could it be that these followers are growing out of the ground?"

Yugo pulled a parchment book from his inner pocket, its cover reading *A Guide to 100 Dark Creatures*. "I bought this at a bookstore in the Imperial Capital. The author is an experienced old hunter. While reading this book, there has been one question I couldn't figure out.

"The old hunter says that the faith of evil gods twists the human body and soul, turning them into monsters that are neither human nor beast. They lose their ability to think and develop all sorts of strange habits, such as an addiction to blood-drinking or cannibalism. Even those closest to them fear them. They are hunted by the Empire, living in constant terror, and no matter where they flee, they are no different from rats in a gutter."

No normal person would ever wish for their life to turn out this way.

Yet, in the Empire, the number of people falling into the worship of evil gods is increasing, even leading to an unprecedented incident where a Saint fell to corruption.

When Yugo toured the factories of the Imperial military industry and saw the way the workers looked at them, the question buried deep in his heart finally found its answer.

The Empire’s propaganda against evil gods had always been thorough; even commoners in remote cities knew the dangers of worshiping them:

"Worshiping an evil god will turn you into a monster, destroy your family, and cast you into the abyss... But I think, perhaps the evil gods have never denied this to their followers. They only promise them one thing—as long as you abandon all of this, you will gain power."

This was a weight too heavy for life to bear, and the most miserable existence Yugo could imagine.

That was until he realized that, for some, this did not seem to be a price at all.

Because,

"Many people are already there."