[END]Side Story 7: The Proof of Faith Evan Allemier.
The second apostle of the Order had always admired heroes since his childhood.
He was fascinated by the countless stories of noble heroes who faced evil foes in epic battles and rose to greatness through trials and tribulations.
He was inspired by the stories of heroes that had been passed down for a long time, leaving a faint spark in his heart.
It was a flame.
A small ember that had not yet burned brightly.
But if someone added fuel to it, it could blaze up with a small possibility.
Evan, who was filled with dreams and aspirations in his childhood, fed that ember with his own fuel.
“Evan Allemier. You are appointed as an apprentice knight.”
Evan’s dormant aspiration became a firm faith, and the belief in his hand became a sword that would protect him.
Evan continued to follow the path that his conviction pointed to.
At some point, he became the most promising member of his family.
The family was satisfied with his brilliant achievements.
But they despised a pathetic member who did not suit him.
Hus Allemier.
An incompetent mage who inherited the blood of Allemier.
And the only brother of Evan Allemier.
Evan’s evaluation of the weak and dull mage was one.
“He does not suit a hero.”
Evan Allemier’s ideal of a hero did not match the person.
The family hoped that he would lead the frail Hus Allemier.
Evan felt the same way.
Evan wanted Hus to be a companion of the heroic tale that he would someday create.
The talk of not fitting the family was just an excuse to hide his intention.
He sincerely hoped that his blood would become stronger.
Strong enough to stand side by side with him.
“I decided to follow your will and join the Cloud.”
So when Hus joined the Cloud, the execution agency of the empire, it was a very welcome news for Evan.
If he worked in the Cloud that caught criminals, Hus’s weak personality would surely be fixed.
If he received recognition for his merit and advanced to a high position in the headquarters, the family might also see Hus differently.
So he sent his only brother on a harsh journey.
Hoping that Hus, who would someday face him on the battlefield, would be a reliable ally.
“Brother… why…”
Years later.
The two brothers finally met under the heroic tale.
The first thing that broke was Evan’s own faith.
***
The mansion of the Allemier family.
There, Evan, who was drinking with Hus, looked at his brother.
Evan, who had not drunk a sip of alcohol since he was appointed as a knight, was now sharing a strong drink with Hus.
Evan looked at Hus, who was dressed neatly, and opened his mouth.
“It was a ridiculous story when I think about it now.”
“What story are you talking about?”
“That you were more suited to be a hero than me, and I didn’t even notice that and kept harassing you.”
Evan said that and recalled the battle with Hus.
Apostle and hero.
The brothers who carried different fates met several times on the battlefield.
And what was left at the end of such a battle was countless scars engraved on each other.
The heroic tale was nothing more than a worthless story, and he realized that fact after spending a lot of time.
“There is no need for that. It was the result of my stupidity.”
“…”
“I knew from the beginning that I was not good enough.”
But Hus’s aspiration was different from his.
What he wanted to chase after was not the hero in the story that Evan admired.
Hus Allemier wanted to stand by Evan’s side.
He had followed Evan from the beginning with only that desire.
It was a completely different logic from Evan Allemier, who abandoned his faith and joined the Order.
“That’s why I always longed to be like you.”
Evan looked at Hus’s face for a long time, and tilted the glass in his hand, swallowing the liquor.
With the burning heat, Hus’s face became clearer.
The war left a lot to the two.
The broken spirit, the scars in the chest, they would never disappear.
But even so, Evan thought that he had learned a lot from the past.
About family.
About faith.
About the countless magic and the divine seats that dominate them.
Those many things were the factors that influenced Evan’s decision.
So Evan Allemier was able to say without hesitation.
“What I’m going to tell you now is the result of a meeting within the family.”
“What is it that you are talking about?”
“Hus Allemier. You will soon become the head of the Allemier family.”
Evan’s words made Hus open his eyes wide and look at Evan.
It seemed that Evan’s words were quite shocking.
“I… will become the head?”
“Yes. You are the new head of the Allemier family. The succession ceremony will take place soon.”
“Why me… Wouldn’t it be better for you to be the head?”
Hus shook his hand as if he did not suit to be the head.
He had no more power of a hero after his magic was destroyed.
So he meant that he had no qualification to take charge of the head, but Evan’s thought was quite different from Hus.
Evan himself was already a clergyman who followed the god.
And he was an apostle who devoted his entire destiny to the god.
After the succession ceremony, he would completely withdraw his will from the family’s event, and he did not intend to interfere with the family’s affairs anymore.
“I am an apostle who follows the great one.”
“Brother…”
“So I don’t suit the position of the head of the family. The only person who can be the head now is you.”
There was a silence between Evan and Hus.
There was a complex emotion in the eyes of the two who faced each other.
They knew that it was not something that could be solved with just a word.
But even so, Evan decided to say the best word he could say now.
“I believe that you can lead the family properly.”
Faith and action.
That was the basis of the clergy.
***
The succession ceremony of the Allemier family was held less than a month after the conversation between the two men.
The guests who came to the ceremony were also more splendid than usual.
Among them were the crown prince of the empire, Aicliff Rogasion, and the apostles Peter and Perrin, who attended to grace the ceremony.
And what was most noticeable was that the divine being who ruled the holy land came in person to congratulate the Allemier family on their succession.
He was the one who rarely left the holy land in most situations.
Therefore, it was very natural that the eyes of the many nobles who participated in the ceremony were unknowingly drawn to him.
“Why did the great one come to this succession ceremony?”
As most of the nobles looked at the divine being who descended to the ground with their mouths open in admiration, Peter, who was watching the scene, asked Evan the reason.
But Evan knew that it was a futile question.
What was the point of trying to fathom the will of God as a mere human?
In the end, their job was to make things flow as the great one wished.
“As an Allemier, I am just grateful for the great one’s visit.”
“…You also didn’t know anything about the great one.”
“It’s impossible to fully understand the will of the divine throne even if you are an apostle.”
Evan said so and turned his eyes to the scene where the succession ceremony was taking place.
Even though most of the nobles were looking at the great one, Evan had to keep watching Hus’s appearance.
That was the role given to Evan Allemier today.
Among the crowd of people who surrounded the succession ceremony, Hus was heading towards the platform where the crown prince Aicliff was waiting.
Thump. Thump-
The sound of Hus’s footsteps echoed as he walked along the carpeted road.
He seemed to have made a firm determination for a month, and he was moving towards the crown prince without any hesitation.
As Hus knelt down in front of the crown prince, Aicliff, who was holding the imperial decree, looked down at Hus and opened his mouth.
“I, Aicliff Rogasion, came to confirm the loyalty of Hus Allemier and the Allemier family on behalf of the great sun of the empire.”
“Hus Allemier greets the representative of the great emperor.”
“I ask you on behalf of His Majesty, you, Hus Allemier, do you swear to be loyal to the empire and the sun forever?”
The oath of loyalty.
It was a ritual that every successor of a noble family had to go through.
Originally, the lord would go to the temple after the succession ceremony and perform the same ritual again, but today, the crown prince Aicliff came in person to accommodate him.
Hus swore eternal loyalty to the royal family and the empire to Aicliff, who was looking down at him.
“I, Hus Allemier and all the members of the Allemier family, swear to be loyal to the great sun and the prosperity of the empire.”
“Then you take this decree.”
“I accept His Majesty’s command.”
“I appoint Hus Allemier as the next lord of the Allemier family under the glorious name of Rogasion.”
Swoosh-
Aicliff drew his sword from his waist and tapped Hus’s shoulder with it.
By tapping Hus’s shoulder with the sword, representing the emperor, the succession ceremony of the family was completely finished.
As Aicliff was about to put his sword back in, all the participants of the succession ceremony realized that there was one more procedure left.
-“I will ask.”
Under the dark sky.
Behind Aicliff, a throne suddenly rose.
And sitting on it was a boy with hair as black as pitch.
The boy on the throne was looking at Hus, who had finished the succession.
Hus bowed his head and assumed a respectful posture in front of the intense pressure he felt.
-“Do Allemier and his vassals wish to be under my protection?”
The great one.
The only divine being who descended to the ground offered his protection to the Allemier family.
It was an attractive offer that no one in the world could refuse.
And under that oppressive offer, Hus instinctively found the answer he had to give.
This was in the form of an offer, but it was not something that could be rejected.
What he needed now was a submission that would satisfy the great one.
“I swear eternal loyalty to you.”
-“What I want is not loyalty.”
“I will prepare the sacrifices and rituals that suit the great one. The descendants of Allemier will offer sacrifices to the sky every year and swear to offer grateful offerings for your grace.”
After the oath of faith flowed out of Hus’s mouth.
The boy who was sitting on the throne stood up.
And he solemnly declared to Hus, who was kneeling and bowing his head.
-“As long as you do not lose that faith, you and your descendants will prosper forever.”
As soon as the declaration from the divine being ended.
The throne and the boy disappeared together.
Hus was then able to understand that everything was over.
Hus, who had completed the perfect succession ceremony, stood up and straightened his posture.
And he faced the baptism of applause from all sides.
“Congratulations. The great one himself blessed you.”
In the midst of the applause, Hus Allemier looked back at the scene he had faced.
The memory of the unbelievable past flashed through his head.
Evan Allemier and Hus Allemier.
The minds of the two men were still filled with thoughts of the capricious god.
