Nia closed the metal nameplate and struggled to drag it back into her luggage again.

In a brief silence, Tails pondered the story on Anset's nameplate — or rather, the story Meghan told through it.

The old priest withdrew his gaze from the setting sun outside the window, and waited quietly for him, as if expecting this silence.

"Faith and magic, from the same source, the battle of the saints, the rise of mankind?"

Tails was talking about the story, but what flashed through his mind was the first meeting with Ashida.

[The Master explores the truth of the world, uses various ingenious methods and wisdom, uses the resources and energy of the world, and serves a better world. 】

Meghan glanced at him, and then spoke slowly:

"But that's just the beginning. ”

There was a faint regret hidden in the tone of the old priest:

"When the foreign enemy is gone, disagreements arise. ”

The attitude towards gods and beliefs eventually caused the eldest and youngest sons to go their separate ways and drift apart. ”

The eldest and youngest have two sons, so that's their explanation.

It's hard for them to come up with a statement that Abel is like Cain.

Tails sighed to himself.

"The firstborn of God to the youngest son of God, faithful, rebellious......"

If you don't know......

"I thought it was the Artanis swarm. The prince complained silently.

Megan, who has very smart ears, frowned:

"Atanis?"

Tails raised his head and smiled innocently and sincerely:

"It's okay, it's just a joke from some Northland......"

Megan pursed her lips, the corners of her lips sharpened.

The old priest soon returned to lecturing:

Thus, for thousands of years, under the attention of God and the practice of man, the eldest son and the youngest, faith and magic, the church and the mage, the two fought endlessly, and went back and forth in different paths and beliefs. ”

"Wait a minute?"

Tails narrowed his eyes at the right time to interrupt:

"So, according to you, the difference between faith and magic - is it because believers believe in God and mages don't?"

"Can I understand that believers believe in gods in unknowable things, while mages believe only in themselves?"

Meghan didn't answer right away, she looked at Tails quietly, her eyes slightly rippling.

She remembered that two days earlier, when she had come to the Charity House, she had visited Bishop Stylianides, who was working hard to find a book and prepare for a lesson with great hope (Meghan had inadvertently glanced at it, it was the 1,000-24-line Church classic hymn "Shine on the Miles"), and brought a greeting from Archpriest Lisia, by the way......

Inform him that the duty of teaching Prince Tails and Duke of Star Lake will be taken by himself.

She remembered the vicar's incredible shock and well-suppressed anger.

It is true that as one of the fifteen vicar bishops of the Stellar Realm, Stylianides was young and promising, and he did not want to miss the opportunity to read the Sunset Decree for the future king of the Stellars, to spread divine grace and glorify the holy deeds.

Just as Archbishop Rondon was to Tormond II, as Archbishop Clemment was to Mindish III.

It's just that the lucky ones who are blessed by the sunset and bathed in the grace of God.

They will always be accustomed to the light in front of them.

So much so that it is forgotten where the gift comes from.

It is also forgotten that for believers in God, trials and obstacles are everywhere.

The stars are shining.

Only after sunset.

This is the most common and dangerous misconception in history. ”

Meghan smiled slightly, nodded slightly to the prince, and was gentle and polite:

"Especially for those who have not yet had a chance to understand, but in the midst of hearsay, they are resolute and averse to the faith. ”

Tails frowned.

He put on a helpless look, wanting to make a tacit look with Gilbert.

But Count Cassel fell silent and just looked at Meghan quietly.

"The mage doesn't believe in God?"

"Definitely. ”

Meghan's expression turned cold.

Her next sentence left Tails confused:

"Of course they do. ”

"Believe in God, believe in faith. ”

Meghan's tone is still steady, but the content is sonorous and powerful:

"No matter how many times they deny it. ”

What the?

Tails blinked: "I don't ......"

"It's just the god they believe in," Meghan didn't let him ask, and the priestess's voice was gloomy and solemn at the moment:

"It is an existence that has no form, no body, no name, no form, no quality and no material, but the power and status are superior to everything in their eyes. ”

She whispered:

"They call it magic. ”

Tails' eyebrows skipped a beat.

Megan clasped her hands together, with a correct posture, but with an imposing momentum:

But they will occasionally use the excuse of seeking knowledge, the good name is reason, the pretense is the truth, the disguise is the pursuit of progress, the sophistry is self-sublimation, and the worship is supreme. ”

After uttering a series of words that made Tails thoughtful, she was expressionless:

"Familiar?"

Before Tails could think deeply about this sentence, Meghan's eyes lit up:

But no matter how much they talk about lotus flowers, they can't hide the indisputable facts. ”

In the next second, her words were extremely affirmative:

"Because magic itself is their god, their faith, their supreme standard, and it is their 'church' and their 'doctrine'. ”

Tails could feel the power in the other party's words:

In a way, it is in their hearts, no different, or even more so, from our God. ”

"This strange 'god', the domineering and cruel, indifferent and ruthless in its hands, far surpasses all the beings that have been worshiped and revered throughout the ages. ”

Meghan's tone gradually became cold:

"The law is strict, the hegemony is supreme, the doubtful are difficult to ask, and the contradictory is not tolerated. ”

Tails wondered:

"You mean to say that they worship the ideas and principles of magic itself as if they were gods?"

Meghan just snorted lightly and didn't answer directly:

"As for the millions of believers who have been brainwashed by it, whether they are mages or not, and whether or not they are qualified to wield magic, it is even worse. ”

"They regard themselves as orthodox, and reject strangers as hypocrites, and are more fanatical than all believers in gods and demons. ”

Fanatic, hypocritical, unaware......

Tails was silently stunned.

But at this moment, he suddenly remembered a long, long time ago, when he was still on the way from the Black Sand Territory to Longxiao City, the future was uncertain and uneasy.

At that time, Ramon, the strange doctor who was very interested in magic, explained to him like this:

[Magic is a meaning, an attitude, a belief, a principle of life!]

Tails remembered Ramon's expression at that moment, and his tone that bordered on madness.

[This is the mage! This is magic! The most important, gorgeous, and precious chapter in the history of the rise of mankind that has been forgotten by everyone!]

The words of the sacrifice gradually took on the meaning of praise and disapproval:

"They are infidels but they call themselves unbelievers, they have a position but they pretend to be neutrals, they pretend to be objective people despite their numerous prejudices. ”

"They are obviously incompetent and powerless, but they have to think that they are pseudo-gods in human form beyond the transcendent things, and while playing with the world and enjoying the admiration of all people, they also complacently say that this is the noble, truth-seeking, magical research attitude. ”

Megan's face tightened, obviously uncomfortable, but she still insisted on finishing her words:

"So yes, Teachers, not only do they believe in their own gods, but they are the worst and most fanatical followers, servants and servants of gods who can draw motivation from their gods without praying and repentance, without baptism, without performing sacraments, and who are full of energy to the point of self-orgasm. ”

The old priest coughed softly, and Nia hurriedly handed her the teacup and helped her gently beat her back.

Energetic to the point of self-orgasm of the divine servants and divine slaves......

After listening to the long list, Tails took a deep breath and tried to drive away the man in blue who had automatically sat in his seat and had a cold face in his mind:

"Wow-wow. ”

Ashida.

Seemingly......

While slightly surprised, Tails couldn't help but think a little gloatingly:

You've got an opponent.

"So, you're going to tell me that magic is wrong as a believe, and mages are bad as believers, and there are countless evil consequences?"

After Meghan finished resting, Tails collected his thoughts and tried to lead the topic towards the curious:

"And that's why we boycott and ban magic?"

But to his surprise, after being asked this question, Megan, who seemed to be very pious and disgusted with the demon law, paused for a moment, seemed to be thinking, and was slightly confused and hesitant.

She took a deep look at the sunset outside the window:

"I don't know. ”

Tails was a little confused:

"What do you mean?"

Megan withdrew her gaze and shook her head.

"As believers in our God, tolerance and rigor are our commandments. ”

"So we can't be so arbitrary, just because we see that the consequences are not harmonious, and make a judgment first, saying that magic itself is wrong. ”

Hearing the other party's answer, Tails was taken aback.

I saw the old priest rubbing his arms, thinking about it, and said cautiously:

"The most we can say is that countless mages throughout history, countless people who have used magic and admired magic, have done many wrong things. ”

Megan's thoughts seemed to be a little more clear, and she nodded immediately:

"But if so many people who follow magic as their creed do the wrong thing......"

The elder priest sighed slowly:

"Who's to say that the supreme magic itself must be pure and immaculate, and that it is out of it?"

So, I don't know the answer. ”

"Don't mislead your answers. ”

Tails was a little dazed by this string of judgments that first chased and beat and then gently let go:

"You've fooled me. ”

Meghan turned her head and smiled apologetically at Tails.

"But I can find another angle. ”

The sacrifice regained the gentle words of the right talent:

"As I said at the beginning, this is a science of people. ”

"When I believe in my God, the important thing is not how great and omnipotent God I believe is—though she is—but whether I can become better for myself and others, and for things and things, after believing in God."

Megan looked at him with a smile:

"Tails, I suppose God does not want us to look at them in adoration and be blindly superstitious. ”

"Rather, we should be tolerant and compassionate, look at each other, and reflect on ourselves. ”

Don't be blindly superstitious......

Tails had a strange expression: "This actually came from the mouth of a cultist?"

Megan thought for a moment and sighed a little:

"I think we believe in gods to make ourselves better. ”

"Instead of making the gods higher—that is not, and should not be, our duty. ”

As long as we don't misunderstand God, it won't mislead us. ”

Megan took a deep breath:

"So back to the question we just asked, is magic good or bad......"

"The two sons of the divine apocalypse, believe in magic, come from the same source, and the young are separated. ”

Meghan raised her head, but the meaning in her eyes was much firmer:

As God's firstborn, when we believe in God, what we should believe is the humility and self-reflection, sincerity and purity that we can get before God—this is the key to faith. ”

"As for the youngest sons of God, historically, they are most easily deceived by the greed and lust, resentment and self-restraint that are born after they abandon God and stand on their own—this is the sorrow of magic. ”

Humility and self-reflection before God.

Abandon God's greed and lust for self-reliance.

Tails unconsciously sat up straight.

Odd.

That sounds ...... Familiar.

Once again, he realized that he was wrong to think of this old woman, who only thought and answered, and paused and hesitated, as a fanatic who only had "God is great" in her head.

And Gilbert hadn't interrupted her for a long time.

And whenever the youngest son takes the lead, instigating people to question the gods and beliefs, and exaggerate their own power and status, it is the arrogance and ignorance of the mortals themselves that are finally exposed. ”

Tails raised an eyebrow: This is still a ...... Humanistic religion?

"So, what you want to say," the prince tried to keep up with the words that had been soaked in the language of religion for so long, "there is nothing wrong with magic, but those who believe in magic can go to the 'sorrow of magic', to depravity, to sow evil?"

Megan smiled.

"More than magic, my child, more than magic. ”

The expression on her face became much kinder.

"Every era and every person will have their own beliefs and their own gods: kings believe in power, businessmen believe in wealth, artists believe in affection, nobles believe in status, and scholars believe in knowledge...... There are too many, not just magic. ”

The king believes in power.

Tails' nerves tightened.

But no matter what you believe, the original infallible and immaculate faith in your heart can be tarnished and unconsciously replaced. ”

It may have degenerated from the reverence for the greatness of the gods, from the awareness of one's own insignificance, from the necessity of humility, from the innumerable goodness that the original faith could bring, to something of another kind. ”

Megan said solemnly:

"So, no, it's not magic that brings the way of the young son, it's the way of the young son that erodes the man of magic. ”

Tails groaned:

"For example?"

Meghan was silent for a while, and began to think, her expression gradually changed, sometimes with emotion, sometimes with sadness:

"For example, every time, when the greed of external demands in the eyes of people has become boundless, far exceeding their share in this life, when this greed is enough to make them ignore pain and price, disregard life and happiness, raise their hands and tear their souls inward, and fanatically pursue the ultimate and perfect self......"

The ultimate and perfect self......

Tails' nerves seemed to be touched by something.

In reality, Meghan's words continue:

"Every time, when the world no longer has reverence, no longer glorified faith, no longer acknowledges limits, no longer believes in this world that there are unattainable things, unknowable things, and unbreakable laws......"

Tails suddenly remembered the night his fate changed, and Ashida's first encounter with him in that chess and card room:

【...... Stand above the sky, surpass the gods, and look down on all beings!]

The priestess's words began to mingle with the voice in his head, but they were incomparably clear:

"Every time, when the world no longer humbly confronts its own weakness and ignorance, but uses it as an excuse to justify its insatiable greed......"

Tails' eyes flashed across the Prison of Bones, and at the entrance to the deep black dungeon, the strange emblem that looked like a deep eye, and the line beneath it:

【Gateway...... Omniscient. 】

Meghan's sigh came slowly:

"Every time, when the world pursues power and omnipotence by any means, it thinks that it is the only good and right choice. ”

Tails looked down and frowned, and the eager words of the strange doctor Ramon appeared in his memories:

[Magic is the sum of all knowledge, discoveries and truths, and the progress of magic...... Humanity itself can become more perfect, greater, more progressive, more ...... Close to the truth!]

Meghan's sigh brought Tails back to reality:

"Every time, when the world believes in something and something, at any cost, it reaches the extreme......"

Then we know that the way of the youngest son should be followed, and the world is not far from falling and reaping the consequences. ”

Megan was silent for a while, picking up the teacup that had been refilled by Nia.

Tails silently rubbed the scar on his left hand and said nothing.

After a while, Megan, who had finished drinking the water, said slowly:

"Two thousand years ago, the unified belief in the Supreme God forged the boundless glory of the ancient empire. ”

"A thousand years ago, the strong rise of the Holy Faith saw the revival of the eventual empire. ”

Speaking of this, the eyes of the priest inevitably flashed with yearning and awe.

But then she was darkened:

However, when the utilitarian tenets of magic overshadowed the noble insistence of faith, and the self-collapse of Myojin Catholicism, it foreshadowed the decline and fragmentation of the ancient empire. ”

"And the mage's frenzied and bottomless pursuit brought about the greatest crisis in history, until the end of the war, they reaped the consequences of their own evil and brought about their own destruction, and played the final note of the final empire. ”

Speaking of this, Megan raised her head and looked directly at Tails, with a stern look in her eyes:

"And you, child, have seen the power, the horror, the cruelty, and the madness of those monsters. ”

Gilbert at the far end of the spectrum stopped talking.

Tails took a deep breath and felt only that his thoughts were mixed:

"Calamity?"

Megan observed him and nodded slowly:

"Calamity. ”

And that's just one of their consequences – albeit the worst. ”

Despite the countless attempts to find answers in the hints of Ramon, Ashida, and the books, Tails found himself still unable to get used to it when the authoritative church of this world told him so openly.

The young duke remembered the dragon's blood for a night, and the once diluted smell of blood seemed to return to his nose.

Makes him sick to his stomach for a while.

"Remember, this is the 'way of the young son', which starts with arrogance and goes through countless times before finally regretting. It is the favorite of demons, the darling of evil, the cradle of calamity, and the starting point of misfortune. ”

Megan suddenly tightened her tone:

"And Tails, you have to be more vigilant. ”

The prince was slightly startled.

I?

I saw Meghan say solemnly:

"Because the way of the young son, its harm incarnates innumerable, it will appear in many forms, change names, change forms, and linger like a shadow in all ages: the seizer of power is beautiful to survive, the profit-seeker advocates prosperity, the indulgent sings of freedom, the seeker of place excuses dignity, and the seeker of knowledge appeals to curiosity ......"

"Those who blind their eyes will bring about their own destruction, and it is not only magic. ”

Megan paused.

Tails took a deep breath and tried to sort out the messy feelings, grasping the logic:

"But ......"

"So, Lady Sacrificer, wouldn't your faith, your gods, be a victim of the way of the young son?"

Meghan's expression changed slightly.

Tails observed the other party's reaction:

"For example, when the world believes in the goddess of the sunset, so that it blindly believes in fanaticism, suppresses dissidents at any cost, and resorts to extremes or either/or?"

"Even, what you say now, such a categorical answer, has fallen into the trap of 'the way of the young son'?"

The elder priest was silent.

But contrary to his expectations, Tails, who originally thought that the other party was going to avoid the important and cleverly justified, only saw Meghan's expression slightly darkened.

"Of course. ”

Nia listened attentively, and Tails had no doubt that if she was given a pen, she would immediately begin to take notes, thoughtful and thoughtful, and perhaps with important thoughts.

Megan sighed softly:

"I don't want to mention it, but yes, you're right. ”

Tails frowned.

"In the years when our ancestors struggled with magicians and mages, against the way of the young son......"

"The Catholic Church of the Ming God, which preached all directions, once recruited the temple guards and punished heretics;"

"The generous and selfless Church of the Holy Day has also set up an inquisition to correct the faith. ”

Megan's face was solemn and her eyes were vigilant:

"Belief knows no bottom line, exclusion only talks about positions, curbs residual voices, self-respect, and the means resorted to are even more sinister, and everything is used......"

"It is useless to preach, it is vain, it is useless, it makes countless enemies, it is notorious, and it is a great sin to lose oneself. ”

Meghan raised her head solemnly, as if it was not a sacrificial robe pressing on her shoulders, but a thick history:

"It was one of the ugliest and worst pages in the history of faith and the church. ”

Tails looked at her with a frown.

"It is precisely the evil of the way of the young son to revere something too much, to elevate its high status indefinitely, to abandon awe and the bottom line, to despise other paths and choices, and to ignore the wishes and meanings of others. ”

"Historically, many believers who are supposed to be the firstborn of God, my brothers and sisters, have gradually lost their hearts, forgotten their vocation, and finally sadly embarked on the same path—self-contained, arrogant, ignorant and unaware. ”

Meghan sighed softly, showing regret and lamentation:

"They didn't pass the test and went down the path they should have tried so hard to reject. ”

Speaking of this, Meghan started to do the prayer again, and Nia, who was so frightened that she was listening attentively, also hurriedly followed the prayer:

"The gods are perfect by nature, perfect enough to tolerate even imperfections—like its adherents. ”

"The power of the gods is infinite," the priest continued:

But it does not mean that those who believe in it also have infinite power, supreme authority, acting on behalf of heaven and speaking for God. ”

Meghan's voice echoed in the room, thought-provoking:

"Therefore, as we reflect on the evils of magic, we must be careful ourselves, reflecting, introspecting, and asking rhetorical questions—we must not fall for the depravity of our most vigilant adversaries. ”

"Only by glorifying oneself can one glorify God. ”

"If you are too superstitious about the gods, you will only lose yourself. ”

Meghan finished the prayer and stopped talking.

As if it had come to an end, there was a long silence in the room.

Tails struggled to pull his emotions out of his previous heaviness and think of something light.

Interesting.

The corners of his mouth curled.

So, according to what Meghan has just said about the sacrifice, not only can you not believe in God, but you can't believe in God too much.

If you don't believe in God, your world will be "forever missing a part."

But you believe in God too much, and there is a "way of the young son" waiting for you.

So, what is God, Tsundere?