Merchant Noble is out (2/3 chapters for today)
Rebellion of Three Faiths vs the Warden Household (1)
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It did not take long for the arrest of Marquis Rizo and Marquis Friss to occur due to their dealings with heretics.
Marquis Rizo was unilaterally sentenced to execution by the High Priest in the religious trial held just a few days later, without being assigned a defense attorney. He was then taken straight to the execution ground, where he was burned at the stake while being pelted with stones by many fervent believers.
Marquis Friss successfully escaped prison just before the trial began and attempted to return to his territory alone. However, along the way, he was found by the holy knights and ‘was killed because he resisted fiercely’.
Ultimately, despite their high rank as marquises, both households were dismantled, and their territories were confiscated by the kingdom and the church. This incident became known as the ‘Rizo-Friss Incident’ due to the names of both households. Looking only at the events, it appeared as though ‘two marquis households were fabricated to have dealings with heretics and were crushed’, but the impact was quite significant.
First of all, King Louis could do nothing. What Zenon feared was that Louis would, with the threat of excommunication, attack to save the nobles. If he had been excommunicated to protect the nobles, then his trust from the nobles would become even stronger. Other nobles, in order to protect themselves, would have sided with Louis, and together they would have been a formidable force against the holy knights.
However, Louis turned a blind eye to the marquises. For Louis, who had been a believer since childhood, excommunication was more terrifying than death. As a result, Louis completely lost the trust of the nobles. Zenon, who had been watching the palace carefully until the execution of the marquis was over, was overjoyed that no soldiers had gathered in the palace. Zenon had won his bet. He had won the bet that Louis did not have the courage to confront the church.
In addition to that, the Viceroy, Casablanca, did nothing. This was also as Zenon had anticipated. The marquises, Rizo and Friss, who had been killed by the church, were nobles within Louis’s circle. Casablanca, who aimed to be an absolute monarch, saw the nobility as an enemy, and Zenon, who wanted to seize political control, also viewed the nobility as an enemy. The two were fated to be adversaries, but at least in the sense of wanting to reduce the number of nobles, they were in agreement.
Casablanca maintained a neutral stance regarding this incident and quietly observed the elimination of the nobles. As a result, both the King and the Viceroy merely watched as the church fabricated the sins of the nobles and executed them. Thus, Zenon succeeded in establishing a precedent that the church could eliminate the nobles.
“Chief Priest, there is a rebellion!” (Messenger)
Triggered by the marquis execution incident, the movement to eliminate heretics by the believers became active throughout the kingdom. At the same time, the backlash from the heretics intensified.
“Count Shinri in the eastern part of the kingdom has led the Nature Faith followers in a rebellion. It seems that the surviving members of the Horimas Order have joined in, swelling their numbers to around 20000. Furthermore, in the northern part of the kingdom, Baron Warden has refused to surrender the Sheeb Order.” (Messenger)
“Finally, he has finally come.” (Zenon)
Count Shinri was the only noble in the kingdom who is not a believer.
The faith of the Holy Church was introduced to this land about a thousand years ago, and the Laplace Kingdom had not yet been founded. The Shinri Household had built their power since such ancient times, and even after swearing allegiance to the kingdom, they did not abandon their faith in Nature Faith.
They had maintained a stance of ignoring the recent decree for the elimination of heretics, but perhaps sensing danger after the marquises were executed for their dealings with heretics, they decided to strike first rather than be struck.
Baron Warden, although a believer, was merely of merchant origin. His faith was lacking. It seemed that he was receiving information from the Sheeb Order, which was skilled in covert actions, in exchange for protecting them. It appeared he chose to defend the Sheeb Order even if it meant opposing the kingdom.
Shall we take care of the troublesome one first? Baron Warden holds significant power in the kingdom’s economy through merchants. Allowing him to run free is dangerous.
“Order the surrounding nobles to keep Count Shinri in check. We’ll attack Baron Warden first.” (Zenon)
—
“Tyr-sama, there are several thousand holy knights ahead. Following them, tens of thousands of troops are coming behind. They will soon be visible even from here.” (Soldier)
“Understood!” (Tyr)
Tyr gathered everyone capable of fighting from Mikanda and also recruited volunteers from the military academy. Many students refused to fight against the church, but a considerable number volunteered for Tyr.
Leading the Warden Household army, Tyr had fortified the mountains of Mikanda into a natural stronghold and established his position there.
“Everyone! Listen to me.” (Tyr)
As the coalition army of the church became visible, Tyr gathered the soldiers, who were still inexperienced and anxious, and gave a speech. He needed to dispel their fears and form a fighting group.
“There may be those who are anxious about fighting against the church. However, the church has maliciously spread rumors that the Warden Household is possessed by demons and has launched a one-sided attack. Even if we must fight against them, you need not worry at all. God looks upon us fairly. Now, let us protect our home!” (Tyr)
“Alright, let’s do this!” (Soldiers)
Hearing Tyr’s determination, the soldiers began to cheer one after another and assumed battle positions.
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