Chapter 63

However, Augustine listened quietly, not taking Avia's words as a joke, and listened attentively until he finished speaking.

Then he asked Avia a question:

What is the City of God? And what is the Earthly City?

At present, neither the Western Rome Roman Empire nor the Eastern Rome Empire has suffered from the invasion of 'barbarians'. To be precise, these people are simply incapable of confronting the glorious Rome of today, and can only operate on the periphery of Rome. Naturally, the Rome remains impregnable and has never been breached.

"The glorious the City of God, whether it travels through time among the irreverent, lives by faith, or sits securely on the eternal throne of the Future, is not any tangible political organization, but an invisible one formed by the covenant of goodness in people's hearts."

"The Earthly City are the various organizations that people encounter in this life. The benefits and disadvantages are shared by both good and bad people. As long as one lives in this world, one will eventually die. Therefore, death itself is not the key issue. The key issue is what one's Fate will be after death, which will be determined by one's Fate in life."

"Whether we love each other, wage war, or kill each other in this life or the next, we will eventually reunite in the heavenly city to Judgment. The good will be rewarded, and the wicked will be punished, like the Republic in his youth who committed heinous crimes, or Cephalus, the tyrant who pursued the interests of the strong and ruled by the winner, who bullied and Thrasymachus others—they will ultimately be punished in the Last Judgment."

"Good deeds bring good rewards, and evil deeds bring evil consequences. The best of all is good fortune, and the best of all is good fortune. Good deeds bring good fortune, and evil deeds bring evil consequences. The best of all is good fortune, and the best of all is good fortune. The best of all is good fortune, and the best of all is good fortune. The best of all is good fortune, and the best of all is good fortune. The best of all is good fortune, and the best of all is good fortune. The best of all is good fortune, and the best of all is good fortune."

"The initiation declaration of the Holy Church should also be based on the covenant of 'good'."

When Augustine recovered from his surprise, his body trembled slightly.

As a believer and familiar with various philosophies, he naturally understood a great deal from Avia's two sentences in an instant. To non-believers, Avia's words seemed to be nothing more than proselytizing, but in reality, this argument was not only a theological viewpoint, but could also be connected with political philosophy.

In traditional political philosophy prior to this, the core concern of politics was real life, and religion was basically subordinate to politics.

This kind of political life encouraged people to pursue success and honor in their careers, but the distinction between the two cities negated the substantive meaning of traditional political life. In his view, the honor of the motherland, the gain or loss of political power, and the victory or defeat in war all became unimportant.

These all belong to the category of "Earthly City," and the visible Church is also defined as an "Earthly City."

Augustine couldn't understand why Avia, who hadn't been baptized according to custom, was saying such things, but at that moment, he only had one thought—

Is there anything else?

The black-haired man's expression clearly revealed his inner thoughts, his eyes fixed on the silver-haired youth.

"... Augustine, do you think this world is beautiful?"

The seemingly random question left the man looking puzzled.

What does this mean?

Do you think humans are beautiful? Gentle? Kind?

Augustine did not answer.

Avia looked at him and smiled.

"I understand... what you're thinking is unlikely, right?"

People are fickle and cannot remain Issei forever, a fact that Avia knew all too well.

Even if the City of God, as it is later promoted, defines the physical Church as an "Earthly City," those who come to power in Church will inevitably make it a representative of the "The City of God." Thus, the Church will theoretically possess the highest authority over people, which is unavoidable, as people's Desire will always increase.

However, the silver-haired youth's thoughts remained the same as on that day: as long as the most basic bottom line could be upheld, as long as this point did not change, that was enough.

Therefore, some things can only be done by others.

"Augustine, I have only perfected the beginning of this subject. Could you understand and complete the rest, so that the world may once again know the meaning of doing good?"

Avia paused for a moment, then continued.

Please.

Hearing his incredibly confident words, Augustine was somewhat taken aback and bit his lip.

If one is a believer, one should not have any connection with the Dead Apostle; if one is not a believer, why does one have such a high level of understanding?

Unable to understand, Augustine suddenly found himself unable to comprehend Avia.

But in that instant, the dark-haired man seemed to be transported back to the day he heard those sacred words in Alexandria. Before him lay the central square of Alexandria, and gradually, his features and appearance overlapped with those of that person—

"You are, no, I..." Augustine suddenly nodded, "I understand, I will complete... the task you assigned me."

"No," Avia shook her head, still smiling, and said, "Augustine, this was originally your subject, which is why I want to thank you, thank you for accepting it."

Avia's words were somewhat strange, but Augustine didn't pay much attention to them, only asking nervously for the first time.

"Do we really want to destroy the Church?"

"In any case, the Church must be destroyed."

Avia's statement originally came from Carthage, Cato Rome statesman. After the Second Punic War, Cato believed that Carthage Future become a threat to the Rome Republic and strongly advocated for Carthage destruction. Therefore, in any speech he gave to the Senate, he would end with the statement, "Carthage must be destroyed."

"Really... won't you regret it?"

"I used to have some regrets, thinking that I should have done things differently. However, there are other things that make me feel 'thank goodness I did it.' I don't look back from the perspective of gains and losses, but rather from the perspective of having warm and kind thoughts in my heart and actually taking action, and afterwards I feel that it was really good to have done it."

The silver-haired youth turned his head to look at the dark sky.

But it's gone now.

Countless tears of light, the strings of the night tracing traces, a rare meteor shower streaking across the sky, its tail of light serene and profound.

127: I haven't boarded the ship yet!

"Come visit again next time! It's only been a short while, why don't you stay a few more days? I haven't properly entertained you yet. Go see the Iceberg Summit, the scenery there is absolutely stunning."

In the South port of Scandinavian Island, the sea breeze seems to blow eternally.

When gentle, it's like a lover's whisper, brushing against your cheek and bringing a refreshing ocean breeze; when fierce, it's like a raging beast, whipping up towering waves that crash against the shore rocks with a deafening roar.

Meanwhile, Beowulf, still shirtless, stretched out his arms and embraced Avia and Siegfried on either side, speaking loudly and cheerfully.

"King Beowulf, you don't need to do this... This isn't right."

Meanwhile, Augustine spoke calmly from the side.

"You're such a hassle as Missionary Church. What's with all the 'good' and 'bad' stuff? Avia and Siegfried didn't object, so why are you so concerned?" Beowulf still had his arms around the two of them, his smile unchanged. "You rascal, you were supposed to go back to your missionary work the next few days, but you've lingered until now, so I haven't had a chance to drink with Avia. I can only go to Siegfried. How are you going to make it up to me?"

"No, King Beowulf, what you're saying makes no sense at all, and the Church forbids drinking alcohol—"

"Avia isn't a member of your Church, so why can't she drink?"

"This..."

Even the eloquent Augustine was momentarily at a loss for words, and could only offer a subtle expression.

Even the smartest person can't speak properly when their brain stops working.

The dark-haired man didn't know how to describe Avia. Was she really that person? Or was she really not?

He really didn't know. This question would have to wait until they returned to the Eastern Rome, and then have the current Bishop of Constantinople Jerome, contact Kouhaku Kaubak, who is still hiding in the Great Labyrinth. Then everything would be clear.

In any case, Augustine was filled with gratitude for the problem left by Avia.

"Alright, it's about time. We really should go. Don't miss out, Beowulf."

As Avia's voice rang out, the blond, muscular man nodded deeply.

"You must come visit sometime! After all, you're a great hero of Scandinavian Island. How about I introduce you to some of our outstanding women?"

"Let's forget about that," Avia replied with a smile. "But it wasn't just me. Beowulf, Siegfried, and several of us participated in defeating the Monster. We're all heroes... Alright, we really have to go now."

After saying that, Avia and Siegfried boarded a small boat.

Upon reaching the top, you're greeted by the salty, damp sea breeze, along with a subtle, almost imperceptible fishy smell—a unique ocean scent that instantly evokes the vastness and depth of the sea. It gently brushes against your hair at times, and sometimes roars past, carrying away your worries and bringing endless reverie.

"Hey!" Beowulf waved his hand. "Siegfried! Don't bother coming next time. Your drinking skills are terrible. Wait until you can outdrink me before you come back, or you can expect to continue our naked fight in the snow!"

"..."

Clearly, Siegfried was somewhat at a loss for words in the face of the enthusiastic Beowulf.

However, Beowulf did indeed drag me into drinking quite a bit of alcohol during this period, and I simply couldn't outdrink him.

"This is Beowulf's wish for you."

Avia nudged the bewildered silver-haired man with her elbow, and Siegfried immediately understood, shouting back towards the ever-receding port:

"This request! I agree! Beowulf, I will grant your wish!"

However, this time Beowulf didn't wave as before. In Siegfried's eyes, the shirtless blond man probably nodded and then turned and left... After all, would he ever have the chance to come back here again after this parting?

The hero who slayed the dragon isn't quite sure, but since he promised, he should find some time to come back sometime.

Meanwhile, at the port, Augustine sighed as he watched the two leave. He would need to stay here for another three years, as he was, after all, here to spread his faith and was the backbone of the Eastern Church of Rome. He couldn't return immediately.

"What is that...?"

As Augustine walked toward the city, he suddenly noticed that the Forest not far from the port began to shake. Birds flew out of the once peaceful woods all at once—countless small birds, eagles, vultures, and even owls, which were supposed to be nocturnal, took to the sky.

Then, a giant Werewolf leaped and ran towards the port at an incredible speed.

"Phantasmal Species..."

As soon as Augustine shouted, Beowulf beside him clenched his fist and calmly watched the Werewolf rushing towards him with a pleased expression.

"What impressive speed! That's the spirit of a true Norse Warrior!"

The Werewolf's speed seemed to make the sea breeze quite fierce. It howled through the narrow streets of the harbor, stirring up dust and fallen leaves, to the point that you had to cover your face to avoid being blinded by the wind.

"Excuse me, can you do me a favor? I urgently need to see the humans who just boarded the ship!"

"Oh? Just as you wish!"

Although it was just a brief conversation, Beowulf seemed to have no doubt about its authenticity, perhaps because the Werewolf's Warrior -like aura convinced him.

So he stretched out his hands, and the muscles in his upper arms bulged rapidly. The two-meter-tall Werewolf first jumped onto the thick veins bulging on his muscles, and then Beowulf swung him in the direction of the small boat that had been gone for some time.

The Werewolf streaked across the sky like a shooting star, and with Werewolf own strength, it landed firmly on the ship where Avia and Siegfried were.

"Phew, I made it in time. It took me a while to get that thing, I almost missed it. I'm so grateful to that blond human..."

The two-meter-tall Werewolf seemed to be holding something, shook his fur, then lingered on Siegfried for a long time before finally asking, puzzled:

"Eh... you are Sigurd!? What are you doing here?"

Do we know each other? And who are you?

Siegfried looked at the Werewolf he was meeting for the first time with a puzzled expression.

Avia, rowing the boat, said with a half-smile.

"This must be your brother."

128: King of Kings

"So it wasn't Sigurd, but Siegfried... They're essentially similar people from this era."

"The Werewolf sighed."

Sinfjötli is the son of Signy and her Sigmund. Signy's husband killed their father and brother. To avenge them, Signy disguised herself as Miko and tricked her brother into having Sinfjötli with her. Later, the father and son successfully Revenge their father, Signy committed suicide.

Later, Sigmund married Borghild. When Sinfjötli returned home from his campaign, Borghild gave him three cups of poison to kill him. Sigmund snatched the first two cups, but Sinfjötli chose to drink the last one.

After dying from poisoning Sigmund carried Sinfjötli's body to a riverbank, where Odin, disguised as a ferryman, led Sinfjötli to the Heroic Spirit Hall.

"Sigurd the Warrior King's brother, the hero Sinfjötli..."

After some getting to know each other, Siegfried and Sinfjötli, who was born in the body of a wolf, finally understood each other.

In fact, the dragons that Siegfried and Sigurd killed were both Fafnir, but they were actually similar evil dragons that manifested from Greed-Lust in and after the Age of Gods of Age of Gods. After the Age of Gods ended, the Dragon Factor left on the earth could grow again into dragons that fit the present.

Unlike Fafnir, the Dragon Maleficium is something that has been ongoing and exists. Even gods can experience the Dragon Maleficium due to extreme Greed-Lust.

"By the way, you two have been chatting for quite a while now, Sinfjötli, is there anything I can help you with?"

Although it was also Avia's first time seeing this Werewolf, perhaps due to the effect of the Runes from the great god Odin, he recognized the Werewolf's true identity at a glance.

Upon hearing this, the Werewolf, baring its sharp fangs, turned to look at Avia and said with a bright expression:

"You must be the Warrior recognized by the Great God. I have come for you."

In fact, the descent of Sinfjötli was indeed part of Odin's plan, a trial he bestowed upon humanity as a means of helping them.

However, this was before Odin met Avia. After meeting Avia and receiving her promise, Odin intended to entrust everything to the Greece and the humans he also recognized. As for Sinfjötli, Odin originally planned to call him back directly, but Sinfjötli said he wanted to help the people at the moment, so he didn't continue to interfere.

Meanwhile, on the Scandinavian Island, Sinfjötli was working hard to slay the Fire Dragon guarding the treasure. However, this Fire Dragon was suspected to have been born from the Dragon Factor of Jormungandr, so although it was destroyed, its resentment still lingered. It would take several decades for its concentration to drop to zero, during which time it would resurrect once, and then it would have to be killed all over again.

Subsequently, Sinfjötli, who was eagerly anticipating Warrior recognized by the great god, did not rush there immediately. Instead, he followed his current Werewolf aura to a remote mountain in Norse, where he found a secluded Werewolf Village and ultimately discovered the Star Drop.

This is my gift to you.