Nia closed the Metal Inscription Plate and laboriously dragged it back into the luggage.
During the brief silence, Tales pondered the story on the Ansett Tablet—or rather, the story Megan had told through the tablet.
The old priestess withdrew her gaze from the sunset outside the window and quietly waited for him, as though she had expected this silence.
"Faith and magic share the same origin. The Saint-Chasing War, humanity's rise?"
Tales muttered over the story, but what flashed through his mind was his first meeting with Ashida.
[Mages sought the truths of the world, using various ingenious methods and wisdom to harness the world's resources and energy in service of a better world.]
Megan glanced at him before finally speaking in an unhurried voice:
"But that was only the beginning."
A faint regret hid in the old priestess's voice:
"Once the external enemy was gone, differences arose."
"Ultimately, their attitudes toward Gods and faith drove the Firstborn Son and the Youngest Son of God apart, sending them farther and farther down separate paths."
The Firstborn Son and the Youngest Son of God—so that was their explanation.
It had not been easy for them to come up with a story resembling that of Abel and Cain.
Tales sighed inwardly.
"The Firstborn Son of God against the Youngest Son of God. Loyal, rebellious..."
For someone who did not know the context...
"They might think Atanis was trash-talking the Zerg." The Prince silently complained.
Megan, whose ears were sharp, frowned.
"Atanis? Who?"
Tales raised his head and smiled innocently and sincerely.
"Nothing. Just some joke from the Northern Land..."
Megan pursed her lips, the corners of her mouth sharp.
The old priestess soon returned to her lecture.
"Thus, over the course of thousands of years, beneath God's gaze and through