Under the Divine Authority Council's ongoing adjustments and the Cecil Empire's firm governance, the clergy in this city had grown accustomed—or rather, had been forced to grow accustomed—to things that would once have seemed unimaginable: churches and temples concentrated into a single, uniformly managed "church district," laws declaring that "no cleric may independently convey a Divine Oracle without filing for approval with the highest Administrative Hall," and...
The fact that the two leaders of the Holy Light Church had dropped by the God of Commerce's church for a visit.
As the most influential and powerful "foremost sect" within the Cecil Empire, as well as the first of all sects to undergo institutional reform and the most enthusiastic supporter of the Empire's new policies, the Holy Light Church had always held an exceptionally important position in the Divine Authority Council. The monks and nuns personally trained by Light and Veronica were also a vital source of talent for the council. After all, the council was an organization that had to deal with religion. Beyond technical research positions, it also needed a great many professional theologians who truly understood religion, and in that regard, no one was more trustworthy than the deeply reformed Holy Light Church.
With that connection, the Holy Light Church had, in a sense, already become the Cecil Empire's "state religion," as well as the Divine Authority Council's officially certified "model institution." Though Gawain had always insisted on one principle—that no religion would be recognized as the Empire's state religion—he still needed an obedient "proxy" to help manage the Empire's motley collection of religious factions. The Holy Light Church was the obvious choice, and Light and Veronica, his two dependable followers, had more than lived up to his expectations.
With their outstanding abilities and personal charisma, they had earned