For a long time, there had been no religious trial this sacred before the resplendent Aurora Grand Cathedral of Light.
The white marble square was packed with people. Every breath seemed to carry immense pressure as believers jostled for a glimpse of the supreme glory of the Red Cardinal of Light.
The Red Cardinal gazed compassionately at White Niven, bound to the stake.
It was pity for the foolish, as though he were looking at an ignorant child.
"Duke White Niven, your Heliocentric Theory holds that the sun is the center of the universe, that the Star Curtain World is a gigantic spherical celestial body, and that countless celestial bodies like it revolve around the sun. This contradicts the Festival of Light. In consideration of your hereditary ducal status, you may still achieve your final redemption by revising the heretical concepts in your book that blaspheme the God of Light."
At that moment, White Niven felt utterly calm.
He looked toward the Trial Jury of the Ecclesiastical Court, toward the Pope of Light high above, looking down on him, toward the endless Holy Light atop the Aurora Grand Cathedral of Light, and toward the scholars from various academies hidden among the crowd.
He could compromise, revising the natural studies in his book that contradicted the Festival of Light and keeping his ducal title. Or he could take a chance, give a single command, and call on the scholars hidden among the crowd to fight for him.
But when he saw the countless believers in the square glaring at him with fury, their eyes intolerant of a heretic, he knew what he had to choose.
White Niven knew that if he resisted, the Heliocentric Theory would remain a heretical doctrine in their hearts forever. The foolish faith that ruled human thought would endure even longer, and it would become harder for truth to pierce the thick night and bring the radiance of wisdom, reason, and civilization.
White Niven slowly turned his head and looked at the twelve Red Cardinals on the platform.
In their eyes, he seemed to see pity for him. His life's work, the Heliocentric Theory he had steadfastly defended, was nothing more to them than the wild imaginings of a foolish, ignorant man.
This world needed a martyr to cry out for reason and die for the truth!
"The Cosmic Starry Sky has no Heavenly Kingdom of Light!"
White Niven roared as he looked at the crowd, swallowed by fury and hatred over his words.
"Damn traitor! He's still clinging to his heretical theories! Burn him!"
"May the Lord have mercy on this lost lamb..."
"How ridiculous! He says the Star Curtain World is a giant sphere? If that were true, why haven't we fallen off? Hahahaha!"
"He dares to say there is no Heaven! I'll never allow him to defile the holiness of the great Creator of Light. Filthy, foolish wretch! Anyone who blasphemes the God of Light is a heretic and must be burned!"
Some people picked up stones and hurled them at the stake, venting their fury.
The few scholars in the crowd seemed so insignificant. Looking at the endless throng of believers in the Light and the pioneer enduring their rage at the stake, they wept bitter tears of frustration.
White Niven, however, simply endured it all in silence. Gazing at the sky shrouded in Holy Light, he let out a soul-stirring roar.
"The Law of Truth can never be extinguished by violence! The Law of Order between the celestial bodies of the universe cannot be changed, not even by the so-called Creator God of Light!"
Disappointment showed on the faces of the twelve Red Cardinals.
This pitiful fool, stubborn to the point of death, was beyond saving. His soul would fall into hell and suffer Eternal Torment.
But then!
At that very moment!
As the Holy Light atop the Aurora Cathedral surged, the Creator of Light's wrath seemed to erupt. Amid the believers' tearful cries of "A miracle!", the Pope, who had been calm and composed, sprang to his feet in horror. An immense, majestic Divine Power descended from the sky and engulfed White Niven at the stake.
White Niven gazed up at that magnificent force, beyond the mortal realm, and smiled calmly as he faced death.
"So you can feel anger. So you can feel fear. In the end, you're just a higher life-form, a being who calls himself the God of Light—not an omnipotent Creator."
The blazing Divine Fire of Light engulfed White Niven completely.
Countless believers fell to their knees, overcome with tears at witnessing a miracle of the God of Light in their lifetimes. They swore to eradicate every heretic and uphold the Light and righteousness until death.
Even the scholars mingling among the believers could only submit to Divine Authority and kneel, hearts full of resentment.
At that moment, Imperial Authority yielded to Divine Authority, and Natural Science was defeated by Theology of Light.
And yet.
Among the crowd, some rational people who had once been devout believers in the God of Light watched White Niven, burned to ashes by the Divine Power of Light as he fearlessly gave his life for the truth. Their hearts shook, and the faith in the Light they had held so firmly wavered.
Why would the great God of Light not show mercy and forgive this foolish man?
Several hundred years later.
Lake Onyx Town, Grand Duchy.
"I understand how you feel."
The priest's eyes held the same daily kindness as he patted the boy's shoulder with his smooth, pale right hand, offering comfort.
"Although you already possess the Power of Prayer, proving your Pious Faith in the Lord, Mr. Bob donated a hundred gold coins of his own accord to support the Church's expedition against heretics and spread the Light. Through his selfless dedication, he secured a missionary position ahead of time. You'll have to wait until next year."
Forty years had passed since the last eastern crusade by the Crusaders of Light into Night's Veil Land. Rumor had it the incoming New Pope could hardly wait to wash away the disgrace of that failed expedition.
Reilo looked up at the priest, his face full of resentment.
"You said the same thing last year, when Lars's Uncle Arbitrator took my place!"
The priest's eyes remained just as full of pity for all living things.
"A hundred gold coins are enough for the Church to train several outstanding Light Knights. Perhaps another Arbitrator may even emerge. Giving up the position that belongs to you is itself an act of Self-Sacrifice and Dedication—a chance to achieve Self-sacrifice and Redemption."
"But!"
Although Reilo looked thin and frail, he was a seventeen-year-old boy in the prime of youth, burning with resentment.
"They don't have the Power of Prayer. They can't spread the Greatness of the Lord at all! And my mother, because of her Pious Faith in the Lord, chose to sacrifice herself when she suffered a difficult labor seventeen years ago. I was born carrying Original Sin, and I've been trying to atone for it ever since! My father is the most devout believer in town, and his greatest wish is for me to become a Cleric and go to some remote, barren place to spread the Greatness of the Lord. Now he's gravely ill in bed. I can only ask for the God of Light's mercy if I become a Cleric..."
"That's enough!"
The priest snapped, "Your eyes are full of anger and envy. You haven't understood the true meaning of Self-sacrifice and Redemption at all! You're thinking only of your own family. You haven't spared a thought for the countless believers suffering persecution at the hands of heretics. Come back when you understand the Lord's selfless dedication!"
With that, the priest walked toward the Holy and pure church, leaving Reilo below the steps, pleading in despair.