Chapter 4: Holy War (1)

After that, I tormented the Black Sun's Incarnation for about an hour.

It felt like a good time, reminiscing about the old days.

Actually, each of these experiences is a good process for adapting to this new world.

I looked at the whimpering Incarnation and contemplated whether to lift the curse or not.

"Should I do it or not..."

If it weren't for me, our filial daughter Lisia would have been beaten up and faced a terrible situation.

And before me stands the mastermind behind it all.

"Alright, I'll ask just one thing."

「....」

"What on earth gave you the guts to attack Lisia?"

Judging by my progress in the Game, I had established a position where most Constellations wouldn't even dare touch our Religious Order.

I had raised the Order's authority to a position befitting the title of 'Absolute Ruler.'

The message remained silent for a while.

It gave off the impression of a child about to confess their wrongdoing.

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' says they hate you, Constellation 'Ron'.」

"I know that."

It's not like they've only hated me for a day or two.

By the way, it seems even the Constellations know me by the name I changed to from my old nickname.

Anyway, so.

Why did they decide to rebel against me now?

Actually, I'd felt a sense of dissonance ever since I first faced the living Lisia.

Although it was overshadowed by the Black Sun bastards' ganging up on her, why was she grieving, searching for my presence?

At least when I was playing, the game ended with everyone happy and cheerful.

Resources, Affinity, Faith Level, Progress, and so on.

Everything was smooth sailing, and there were no crises whatsoever.

So, even at my current level, why would another Religious Order even think about attacking?

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' pleads that it was necessary.」

"So what was it, then?"

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' says that if they didn't weaken your forces, your Religious Order would have launched a large-scale Holy War against the world.」

And the moment I heard that answer, my mind went blank.

"...What?"

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' insists it's not a lie.」

It’s about my Religious Order, no less.

Those bastards might do bad things, but my own Order would never start a war first.

'...Or would they?'

I was unsure even as I thought about it.

I did actively manage them to progress through the Game, but I never played with malicious intent.

That alone qualifies me as a good player.

If you log into the game's community, it's full of all sorts of bizarre and malicious gameplay.

And all I wanted in the Game was to expand my Religious Order and collect pretty and powerful female characters.

Whether or not other factions suffered from Holy Wars was none of my business.

That's why I didn't actively engage in Holy Wars against other Religious Orders.

"Are you saying my followers are that bloodthirsty?"

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' affirms.」

"Why?"

「They claim your absence was the problem.」

"Huh?"

A war just because I was away for a bit? I didn't raise them like that.

I raised them with a pure fatherly heart, with all my care and love.

"You're lying."

No matter how I think about it, the Incarnation's claim and my Religious Order's nature are completely opposite.

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' claims your negligence was the problem!」

"What negligence?"

「They say that because you abandoned your Religious Order, your Priests are taking it out on others.」

"What did I do?"

This is unfair.

All I did was play the Game diligently and just saved Lisia with the power of love.

"Isn't it something you guys did?"

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' denies their involvement.」

"Sigh, I don't know."

Let's summarize the situation.

My Religious Order thinks these Constellations are responsible for my disappearance.

And the Constellations are desperately trying to survive.

"My followers aren't like that."

They're always smiling, so I never thought they'd make such drastic judgments.

I need to check how things are going quickly.

Even with world-class power and influence, a Holy War against the entire world is a shortcut to self-destruction.

'Were they that anxious about our separation?'

To the point of searching for me even if it meant turning their backs on the world?

"But how long was I even gone?"

「'The Black Sun's Incarnation' says a Constellation's silence is unprecedented.」

"Is that so?"

I can't even fathom how this world operates.

The Game I knew was just clicking buttons, playing, and then ending the game. That's it.

Let me try to understand the situation by borrowing the Game's settings.

A Constellation is a god.

They are beings who must answer when called upon by members of their Religious Order.

However, there's an unbridgeable gap between me when I was playing the game and me now, preventing us from interfering with each other.

Can I say with certainty that my current body is the same as before?

'Absolutely not.'

A forced situation, but I'm no longer alone.

‘I never thought this would be real.’

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' earnestly pleads for you to end the Curse.]

“…”

I responded to the request by manipulating the System and locating the Curse cancellation tab.

[Will you retract the Curse placed upon the Black Sun Religious Order?]

“Yeah.”

Recalling a Curse already cast incurs a small penalty, but it's nothing to me.

I can always cast another Curse anyway.

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' breathes a sigh of relief.]

“Is this the time to be relieved?”

I still have a lot of information to extract from him.

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' tenses up.]

Observing his reaction, I continued manipulating the System to check the status of my Religious Order.

First off, large swathes of the Map were blackened and dead.

An indication that they had been deactivated from my influence.

On the other hand, the monastery where I had just saved Lisia was reactivated and turned blue.

‘This is just like the Game.’

From a constructed monastery, Divine Power channeled through a Follower activates the monastery, as well as altars and churches.

The range is limited to the area under the monastery's jurisdiction.

“It’s a real mess.”

Looking at the state of the Map, it’s understandable why I’d have Separation Anxiety.

Clearly, something happened when I crossed over to this world.

“Where do I even begin to fix this…”

The sheer breadth of the area I was managing was overwhelming.

First, I should activate the center of the Religious Order—

As I was thinking and moving my fingers—

-Ding!

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' screams!]

“Whoa!”

Startled by the sudden notification, I turned my attention back to the message window, which was flashing wildly.

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' trembles in fear, saying they have arrived.]

“What? Who?”

I lifted the Curse, so shouldn't everything be over?

[He reports that your Followers have arrived.]

“…My kids?”

Checking the Map, I saw countless green dots moving towards the Black Sun’s territory.

The problem was, there were way too many of them.

“What the…”

Like an army marching to war, the green dots, formed into ranks, were encroaching upon the Black Sun’s territory at a frightening pace.

A Holy War.

My Followers, desperate to find me, had finally started something.

“Crazy.”

This wasn't a Game; this was reality.

Even I could understand the implications of war.

“This is bad.”

A massacre, with blood and gore, was unfolding in the world I was managing.

And the perpetrators of this evil were my own children. Absolutely unacceptable.

According to the System explanation and the information extracted from the Constellation, all these problems could be solved by simply proving my existence.

“Who’s managing that area right now?”

I focused on the brightest glowing entity among the green dots marching to wage Holy War.

『Belladis Rochellia』

And I saw a very familiar name.

“Ah.”

I knew that name. It was none other than a character I had raised.

However, the way I acquired her was different.

Lisia was obtained through gacha using in-game currency, whereas Belladis was a story character.

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' is shocked.]

The Constellation, having confirmed the name through me, reacted with recognition.

They wouldn't be able to forget that name either.

She was the monster they created, after all.

“Wow.”

The setup was like something out of a play.

The person who hated the Black Sun the most, and the Religious Order that had to stop her.

And me, watching it all unfold.

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' begs you to do something, anything.]

“Me?”

There were plenty of ways to intervene, but why should I save the guys who were just trying to attack my kid?

That was my genuine question.

['The Black Sun's Incarnation' offers to do anything.]

“Anything, huh.”

Well, that changes things.

I accepted the Constellation's offer and decided to stop the war.

Truth be told, I didn't want a war to break out either.

In the Game, it would just end with a simple data wipe.

But a war, a Holy War in reality, only ends with someone getting hurt or dying.

I didn't want the Priests of my Religious Order to meet such a cruel end.

“It’s definitely not because I want to see Bella in person.”

“…”

Seeing Lisia realized as a living, breathing person had been a great inspiration.

Now it was Belladis’ turn.

[Will you use the skill ‘Summon’?]

I decided to descend personally to the scene of the Holy War.