Chapter 257

"Claire, for heaven's sake. You look awful."

Hearing the report that one of the people brought in by the patrol was a priest, Isaac immediately went to identify him. He had thought it odd that Claire was delayed, but he hadn't expected him to be mixed up with the Ciero Dawn Army.

As soon as Claire saw Isaac, he collapsed on the steps, sobbing.

"I am ashamed... to appear before you in such a disgraceful state."

If Isaac had known that Claire was among the fleeing Dawn Army, he would have found a kinder way to bring him in. However, after hearing the woman's story and the patrol's report, Isaac understood that Claire had tried his best to save someone.

The student priest who had caused trouble in Ultenheim was no longer just a priest, but a respectable human being.

'He might be quite useful after all.'

Isaac, who had been skeptical about Claire, felt a sense of expectation upon seeing his transformation. Now, Claire had become a person who held skepticism about the Codex of Light and a wary interest in the Nameless Chaos.

Isaac thought Claire might even learn that tentacles, too, had their uses.

"For now, clean yourself up and have a meal. Then tell me about your journey here."

***

"You say it seemed like a miracle of the Nameless Chaos?"

Claire, now looking neat, recounted his experiences.

He spoke of his departure from Ultenheim, wandering as a vagrant, joining the Ciero Dawn Army, and the hardships he endured to get here. But the story that caught Isaac's attention was only one.

When he tried to stop the Dawn Army from looting, the Codex of Light did not respond to his prayers, but the Nameless Chaos did.

"Has anything like this happened before?"

"No... I never even considered memorizing those prayers. Except during the ritual..."

Isaac touched his face to hide his astonishment. Until now, miracles had only been granted to a select few. Although Isaac's physical abilities had naturally developed as he grew, the explicit granting of miracles was rare.

Therefore, it was surprising that Claire had used a miracle of the Nameless Chaos.

Although he had performed the Nameless Chaos ritual, Claire had not been ordained by Isaac, and there was no reason for the Nameless Chaos to respond to him.

"What kind of miracle was it?"

"I prayed for something to grab their ankles. A dark energy surged from the ground and seized them. It was only for a brief moment."

"Can you show me now?"

Claire seemed hesitant to perform a miracle of the Nameless Chaos in front of the Holy Grail Knight. However, he couldn't refuse Isaac, who had once saved his life in Ultenheim. He hesitated but then recited the prayer he had used earlier.

"Gather the scattered fragments of oblivion with your touch."

Black energy slithered up from the carpet near the fireplace and quickly disappeared. It was so faint that it was hard to notice unless one looked closely, but it was clearly a miracle of the Nameless Chaos. Moreover, Isaac felt his divine power being subtly drained.

The reason Isaac was concerned about Claire's miracle was the possibility that it might signal the resurrection of the Nameless Chaos or something beyond his control. Just as Camille had researched the doctrines of the Nameless Chaos, there might be other hidden secrets. For some reason, the coming of the Millennium Kingdom required miracles of the Nameless Chaos, which suggested that its influence might be spreading further.

If they all committed acts of terrorism in the name of the Nameless Chaos or, in the worst case, triggered another plague, even Isaac might find it impossible to contain.

'But right now, Claire used my divine power to perform the miracle. It was a small amount, hardly noticeable, but...'

Isaac, wondering, focused on preventing any divine power leakage and commanded Claire to perform the miracle again.

"Try it once more."

Claire did as instructed. This time, the miracle did not occur. Even after reciting the prayer a couple more times, nothing happened, leaving Claire looking puzzled.

Isaac was convinced by this.

'...It was my divine power that triggered the miracle.'

Isaac remembered being summoned by Claire in the underground crypt of Ultenheim. Although it was only a fragment of his soul, it was still a summoning, and he had taken over Claire's consciousness to help him. Claire seemed to have been deeply influenced by Isaac and had developed a sense of reverence for him.

There was another possibility, too. This world granted miracles to those who earnestly desired them. Claire's sincerity might have moved the world, causing a miracle. However, because he prayed to the Nameless Chaos, a miracle of that nature was manifested.

In other words, Claire had become a follower of the Nameless Chaos.

Or rather, in this case, the Nameless Chaos had a name.

Isaac Issacrea.

"...What will happen to me now?" Claire asked in despair.

Seeing Claire's gloomy face, Isaac realized the weight of his confession. Just performing the ritual of the Nameless Chaos was a grave sin, and now he could even wield its miracles, making it reasonable to fear for his life.

Even a benevolent Holy Grail Knight would find it hard to accept.

In short, Claire had confessed to Isaac with the expectation of facing death.

Isaac had no such intention.

"Claire, listen carefully."

"Yes."

"Your miracle seems to have originated from me."

"Yes... yes?!"

Isaac revealed the Color Beyond in front of Claire. The swirling colors, emerging from his left palm, were much darker and more viscous than what Claire had summoned.

'This is the only thing I can show for now.'

Tentacles would be too shocking. He needed to persuade Claire step by step.

"Wait... Are you saying, Holy Grail Knight, that you also use the miracles of the Nameless Chaos?"

"Yes."

Isaac's honesty was partly due to his trust in Claire, but mostly because he knew no one would believe Claire if he went around talking about it.

His grandmother had transformed into a monster while researching the Nameless Chaos doctrine, and Claire himself had run away from seminary to join the vagrant Dawn Army.

Even if Claire now claimed that the Holy Grail Knight, Isaac, used miracles of the Nameless Chaos, no one would believe him.

'I can control the miracles whenever I want.'

But if he could speak honestly and persuade Claire, his usefulness would greatly increase.

Claire was the only person, besides Isaac, who could use the miracles of the Nameless Chaos with a clear mind. His character had already been proven, and the rest depended on how Isaac handled him.

More importantly, Isaac wanted to verify a possibility.

That it wasn't the followers of the Nameless Chaos who became mad, but that mad people followed the Nameless Chaos, causing disasters like the white plague. Neria and her cultists were also part of that experiment.

"It's shocking, but it's the truth. However, you must have already judged me enough. Do I look like a madman performing rituals, summoning monsters, and devouring people with tentacles?"

Isaac spoke boldly, and Claire, calming down, shook his head.

"...No. You do not."

"Exactly. I also think you're not a mad cultist, which is why I didn't behead you. If you were, I would have killed you in Ultenheim. I wield the power of chaos, but like you, it wasn't by choice."

'Well, creating the character was a choice, but...'

Since there had been no warning that he would have to fight for his life in the game world, it wasn't exactly a lie.

Claire nodded as if coming to his senses.

After all, he had come to the Issacrea estate to earn recognition through undeniable good deeds.

To live honorably. And to do that, he first had to be honorable to himself.

As Isaac withdrew the Colors Beyond, he said,

"But the important thing is how you use this power."

"...I understand."

"I have taken it as a sign to use this power not for existing order or system, but for my own sense of good. The more dangerous the power, the more one must strive to do good. That is the duty of all who wield power."

Isaac stood up and said,

"For now, don't show or use that miracle around others. It's easy to misunderstand. But starting tomorrow, I'll teach you a few more things."

"Yes."

If Claire lived up to Isaac's expectations, he would grow significantly. And he could become an unexpected asset when Isaac joined the Dawn Army.

"Where should I stay?"

Isaac smiled at Claire, who had nowhere to go.

"There are some people in a similar situation. They eat their vegetables and are kind to animals. You should get along well with them."

Claire tilted his head at the strange introduction.

***

'The empire is heading for a bad situation.'

Through his meetings with Gebel, Isolde, and Claire, Isaac had grasped the overall atmosphere and situation of the empire.

The empire was descending into chaos.

Massive numbers of people were voluntarily heading towards the Holy Land, and the church was resorting to all means, even researching miracles from other faiths. At this rate, even if they recaptured the Holy Land, the empire might collapse or come close to it.

Such a desperate move meant the church was staking everything on this expedition.

As if there was no need to consider what came after.

'...Does the coming of the Millennium Kingdom mean something like an apocalypse or a cataclysm?'

Isaac recalled the apocalyptic theories from his world. The idea that after a series of disasters, the world would be destroyed, and the gods would judge who survived, bringing the dead back to eternal paradise.

Some might think, 'Who would welcome such a thing?' but the faithful would not. To them, it was a sacred and holy conclusion. A world where justice was served, and their suffering was rewarded. Many had died or sacrificed themselves for this conclusion.

It must have been the same before the white plague arrived 300 years ago.

Isaac recalled the scenes Amundalas had shown him and fell silent.

If he was in any way contributing to that outcome, the Holy Land should not be recovered.

'...Honestly, I'm not blameless in the current situation.'

It was Isaac who persuaded the emperor to incite the Dawn Army. But even if the emperor had refused, the Dawn Army would have risen. His persuasion was to lead an inevitable movement more successfully. But he hadn't anticipated such madness.

Especially the Ciero Dawn Army was a problem.

'If they start targeting the Golden Idol Guild, the situation will spiral out of control, and even the church will struggle to manage it.'

The utility of the Golden Idol Guild was undeniable, and many bishops and priests received tribute from them. Naturally, they would try to control it, but with more people came more problems.

Problems were bound to arise.

The question was how big those problems would be.

The expedition from the Kingdom of Elil would soon be dispatched, and church supplies were flowing in from the Furnace of the World. The Golden Idol Guild was constantly transporting logistics for the Dawn Army, experiencing both the benefits of war and the lack of security. The Salt Council was also moving to awaken the sleeping god.

Worrying about vagrants causing trouble seemed almost trivial.

'So what is the Black Empire doing?'

The Red Chalice must have already started plotting and scheming. The Olkan Code would surely show movement too, but whether it would be before or after the Dawn Army's proclamation, Isaac couldn't tell.

However, the Immortal Order was eerily quiet.

It was always the case. Apart from occasional acts of terrorism or plundering, the Immortal Order never formed large-scale expeditions to subjugate the empire. They focused solely on defense.

But they wouldn't remain idle before such a large-scale expedition.

They must be doing something.

***

A while later, as Isaac had feared, a problem arose.

Not only for Isaac but for the entire empire, and in a completely unexpected form.