"The Holy See?" The prince froze. "They... haven't they always refrained from interfering in worldly affairs?"
Among the four great Churches, the Candlelight Society had the best relationship with local lords.
These people seemed utterly uninterested in mortal affairs. Whether a lord was wise or tyrannical, they never interfered.
They did not care if their believers were taxed by lords, nor did the Holy See care if their believers were massacred.
So long as the army did not storm into a church, even if someone committed blasphemy right outside its doors, the Candlelight Society's priests would merely watch coldly.
The Candlelight Society's followers would not rebel, the churches sold holy water, and they could even help resolve Transcendence-related anomalies within a territory. What lord would dislike such an existence?
"In your mind, the Church simply went quietly about its own business, didn't it?" Isabella said softly. "But there is one circumstance in which the Holy See intervenes in worldly affairs."
She slowly raised her eyes, her gaze falling upon the decorative rack on the wall, where an exquisite firearm rested.
A bolt-action rifle, Castel's gift to Blood Port.
"Any technological improvement or advancement will be targeted and eliminated by agents dispatched directly by the Holy See. There is no trial, no defense. This is the Church's taboo."
"The Church does not refrain from interfering in worldly affairs. It has merely fenced the world in here. They are like farmers raising livestock, allowing the animals to fight within the pen as they please. So long as you do not try to cross the fence, they will not bother with you."
"We are the livestock raised by the Church."
Isabella's tone turned several degrees colder.
"Do you know that there was once a young man in Galahad's factory? On his own, he