Chapter 281

[17th Round] Countermeasures

"Mollan's Teachings is a cult from the Northern Continent, aren't they?"

"Burn the heretics!"

"Get out of our land!"

The eyes of the Holy Empire's brainwashed citizens were filled with anger.

I understood the reason behind their actions, however.

They simply feared being accused as heretics themselves.

'Grand Master Mollan! Give me the wisdom and patience necessary to enlighten these stupid barbarians.'

"What did the God of the Holy Empire do for you? Protect you? Isn't ensuring the safety of one's subjects the duty of any country? Is such a shallow task really worthy of your praises and loyalty? Master Mollan demands nothing and requests nothing from you, but even so, since time immemorial, we have been living in His graces! Imagine life without flush toilets! The prevention of such a diabolical reality is the epitome of a real deity's true power!"

The cowardly wife poked me in the side, saying, "It was you who distributed flush toilets, not Mollan," but I ignored her, not wanting to take my eyes off the stupid savages.

"Well? Are you still not moved by His generosity and benevolence?"

At that moment...

"Glory to Mollan!" shouted Married Man A, who was saved thanks to the Mollan's Teachings religion.

I thought he would be useless after his retirement, but he provided support beyond my expectations.

He even used his Faith.

▷ Type: Skill

▷ Name: Faith

▷ Rank: SS

▷ SSS: Seal heretics.

▷ SS: Punish heretics.

▷ S: Brainwash heretics.

▷ A: Find heretics.

▷ B: Recognize heretics.

▷ C: Resist brainwashing.

▷ D: Resist false preaching.

▷ E: Strengthen faith with prayers.

▷ F: Belief.

Faith was useless at its lower ranks, but fraudulent effects arose once it had leveled up.

Married Man A's faith was SS-rank, which showed his sincere belief in Mollan's Teachings.

By the time he reached the capital of the Holy Empire, he was extremely pumped up.

"Oh... Long live Mollan's Teachings! Mollan!"

"Mollan's Teachings... It is the one true religion!"

His skill's S-rank effect quickly converted the heretics.

I didn't even need to interfere anymore.

Master Mollan's greatness quickly spread throughout the capital of the Holy Empire.

Because of Karma, heroes couldn't enjoy the same hospitality mercenaries did, but they were never neglected since they weren't just mere weaklings either.

As a result, a magnificent sight unfolded before my eyes.

Married Man A, a hero who sincerely believed in the Mollan's Teachings, invaded the Imperial Palace of the Holy Empire, leading an army composed of the opposing nation's own citizens.

"Stop him!"

"The Hero has gone insane!"

"Stop the Fallen Hero!"

"Guards! Guards!"

Married Man A's flaw was his low-ranked combat skills, which was the side effect of absorbing strong opponents' experience points with the help of Brave to level up swiftly.

That still meant his level was impressive, though.

I followed the angry believers of Mollan at a leisurely pace.

This was a good opportunity to learn about the politics and power structure of the Holy Empire.

"Overthrow the false god!"

"For the glory of Mollan!"

"Take up arms and gather under the flag of Mollan! There is no turning back now!"

"Forward! Everyone shall know and praise His glorious name!"

"Mollan! Mollan! Mollan!"

Mollan's followers marched unhesitatingly into the heart of the Imperial Palace.

"Strange..."

Although the combination of Hero & Brave cleared the way for everyone, their progress was still too fast.

The resistance was too weak, considering we were at the heart of the entire Holy Empire.

This place served as the home of the Holy Empire's emperor and royal family, which dominated the entire northern part of the Central Continent.

However, such a crucial place had nowhere near enough soldiers and guards to defend it for some reason.

Where did they all go?

"Maybe they've given up and fled."

I shook my head, rejecting Ssosia's hypothesis.

I knew better because I had become the emperor.

"If the emperor escapes during a civil uprising, his reign will come to an end. Running away during such a tumultuous time, as you suggested, is tantamount to abandoning the empire altogether."

But this was absolutely not the case.

The Holy Empire was strong because of the royal family's pride and their long history.

What about the current emperor?

I didn't know if he was still sick like in the 4th curriculum, but the emperor was never soft-hearted.

He wouldn't abandon his throne.

BANG!

Soon, Married Man A slammed open the heavy doors of the throne room, revealing a sight that made me feel a bit nostalgic since, as Emperor of the Holy Mollan Empire, I used this place for quite some time.

At the far end of it, a commotion was ongoing.

"Daughter! What are you doing?"

"I'm changing my country, father!"

All the knights whose absence I noticed were here.

Standing alongside the Imperial Princess, they surrounded the emperor and his royal guards.

It was an incredible view.

But there was something more surprising than that.

▷ Race: Human

▷ Level: 274

▷ Job: Imperial Princess (Rank in the hierarchy = Attention ↑)

▷ Skills: Faith SS, Charm S, Elegance A, Eternal Youth A, Politics A...

▷ Status: Desire, Excited

Her status wasn't much different from what I remembered, except for one factor.

SS-rank Faith.

It was a high-level skill that she didn't have before.

"Why did you abandon our God for that heretic cult called Mollan's Teachings?" The emperor seemed more surprised by her new religion than her treason.

"This is the best way to get rid of my older brother, your heir to the throne."

"You..."

"Mollan's Teachings made it easy for me to put the blame for this whole ordeal on him." Like a low-grade villain, the princess smiled triumphantly and revealed all her plans.

"You're willing to destroy our family for the throne? How could you allow yourself to commit such a grave sin?"

"I had no choice! My brother would've killed me otherwise!"

"This is nonsense!"

"Let's continue this later, father. We have 'visitors.'"

The Imperial Princess decided to act.

"Protect His Majesty!"

"In the name of Mollan!"

The two factions' knights charged against each other.

The result of it was a foregone conclusion already, though.

"Agh!-"

"Your Majesty?!"

The princess's knights thrust their swords into the emperor's body without mercy or hesitation.

Having lost their master, the royal guards of the Holy Empire threw down their weapons and surrendered, forgetting their duty to protect their country.

The Imperial Princess smiled brightly at the winning faction.

"Allow me to sincerely welcome you to my imperial palace, my fellow believers of Mollan's Teachings. It is thanks to all of you that my career advancement plans accelerated."

Sly bitch.

Her combat power was the lowest among the Hero's companions, but she was still the most dangerous of them all.

In order to become the Empress of the Holy Empire, she was ready to use any means and methods.

It was easy to read other companions who mindlessly rushed into battle regardless of reason, unlike her, who dealt with everything in a much more complicated manner.

"You killed your own father..."

Married Man A, possessing the sensitivity of earthlings, looked at the newly-made empress with surprise.

The princess sat on the throne nonchalantly, replying, "It is unfortunate, but my father was a heretic who refused to accept Mollan's Teachings. His death pains my heart, but it had to be done."

Saying this, the princess let an ostentatious tear fall from one of her eyes' corners.

"Don't mock Mollan's Teachings!" Married Man A shouted.

"Oh! My faith in Mollan's Teachings is stronger than anyone else's. You're a hero, so you should be well aware of that, shouldn't you? The SS rank of my Faith is proof of that."

"Faith is not everything. You cannot use His teaching for your own benefit! Mollan is not a political instrument!"

"You attach too much importance to this."

"I am merely telling the truth."

"This is the only way to ensure the followers of Mollan's Teachings can live peacefully in the Holy Empire without fear of persecution. This is a fight for freedom."

"That is just sophistry. He treats everyone equally, and heretics are no exception. Why are you not aware of that despite claiming to be an ardent admirer of Mollan?"

The newly-made empress and the retired Hero began to argue about the correct interpretation of the doctrines.

It wasn't even funny.

They dared argue about this while standing in front of me, the first apostle of Mollan's Teachings?

However, I couldn't reveal my identity.

Everyone knew the legend about the "Prophet," who spread the word of Grand Master Mollan. He defeated the Demon Lord but fell under his curse, becoming the new Demon Lord.

However, that didn't mean there was no way out.

"Master Mollan."

"Mollan?"

A rainbow slime peeped out of Ssosia's vile chest.

"Silence! Master Mollan himself will explain what his wisdom truly means in a way that would allow lowly beings to understand!"

"Ah!"

"Oh my God!"

"Woah!"

Surprised exclamations echoed across the throne room.

Regaining their senses, Mollan's followers immediately fell to the ground.

Not even the Hero and the Imperial Princess were exceptions.

"Please teach and train your arrogant believers, Master Mollan!"

"Mollan? Mollan~"

"Loyal followers! As you have heard, he declared that he would reward everyone equally!"

"Hmmm?"

"Oh?"

It seemed that only I understood the deep meaning of Master Mollan's words.

"Tsk. Praise and pray for His holy name even if your minds can't comprehend his doctrine. Understanding will come with time."

"Ah! Mollan!"

"Mollan!"

Today, history was made as Mollan's Teachings became the Holy Empire's state religion!

***

In this round, where Classmate A became Married Man A, I reaped a bountiful harvest. The Holy Empire pursued Mollan's followers, and the Imperial Princess was one of them.

Information was power.

I took advantage of the situation immediately.

All my copies wrote and mailed letters that said, "Imperial Princess, I know your secret."

Upon receiving the letter, she was left no choice but to cooperate.

I wasn't doing too bad.

"Cowardly husband."

"What?"

"Karma has already done its job. If you also interfere, the heroes will go crazy altogether."

"That just means they'll retire earlier."

A hero's adventures were optional.

If it was hard for them, they could just give up and start a family, like what Married Man A did.

And they would have children.

The day the MAX-Class Demon Lord and the cowardly Second Demon would rule the Fantasy dimension was near!

"Until next time, Kang Han Soo!"

Married Man A, having completed his mission as a faithful follower of Mollan, retired and focused on his life with his wife.

It wasn't just him. Many heroes who visited the Holy Empire abandoned their hopes and dreams.

They had no other option, after all!

Only a few female heroes rescued Prince A and helped him defeat the Imperial Princess.

"For the Holy Mollan Empire!"

"Glory of Mollan be praised!"

"Mollan! Mollan! Mollan!"

The state, now named Holy Mollan Empire, quickly stabilized under the rule of the new empress.

All this took about three years, starting from the moment the Hero was summoned.

In other words, if Prince A wasn't saved and the Imperial Princess was not stopped within three years, the heroes wouldn't even be able to get to the northern part of the central continent.

Unless they were a follower of Mollan, that was.

"This will cause my aunt a lot of problems."

"Because the old Holy Empire no longer exists?"

"Yes. It was the only country that believed in her.

The Holy Empire, praising the First Angel, had sunk into the history of Fantasy.

I liked this outcome.

"I wonder how she'll react to that."

▶ Sudden Appearance: Cadet Kang Han Soo! I learned the results of the teaching staff meeting. Changes will take place in all educational dimensions soon!

'Thank you for letting me know, beautiful and smart Trainee Teacher! Is this about the skill that will balance Karma?'

▶ Denial: Unfortunately, the skill won't be implemented anymore since it will confuse the skill system.

It wasn't that the system would be confused. They just couldn't add the skill itself.

"Haha! That's right! My aunt is incapable of building skills."

"Create spatial transference magic so we can escape already, my cowardly wife."

"I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry for you too."

As Ssosia said, it was just an excuse to hide the fact that they couldn't add their own skills.

However, it looked like they finally took some action.

▶ Problem: I think it's better to see the results of their decision in person than to listen to my explanation.

'Why?'

▶ Explanation: Take a look at the students.

I decided to check up on the heroes, as Trainee Teacher suggested.

Married Man A...

"Dad, what are you doing?"

"I'm overcoming my limits."

"What?"

"I am trying to become an invincible hero who will protect my beautiful princess. Pre! Oh! Do! Letha! Pre! Del!"

"Hehehe, you're so silly, dad."

He was trying to acquire a Z-rank skill.

It wasn't only Married Man A.

Except for complete beginners, the heroes didn't hesitate to sacrifice their skills to gain Z-rank skills.

Why was that?

"Oh! I see the problem now. She removed the skill reset feature."

The system rules had been changed in such a way that allowed the skills to be retained even after regressing.

If they couldn't add a new skill, they decided to remove existing features instead.

It was a nice countermeasure against Karma, which put more pressure on heroes the more they regressed.

However...

"Didn't they expect that I, the MAX-Class Demon Lord, who used to be a hero, would also regain my skills?"

In the 1st round, after ten years of suffering from the companions who interfered with my adventures as the Righteous Hero, I trained pretty hard.

Honestly, even at the end of the adventure, I didn't have a single MAX-ranked skill, let alone transcendental, but I did have a lot of rare skills because I gradually developed them without the power of the black box.

And they were all balanced.

That was what was most important.

"Auntie... What the hell have you done..."

"Looks like we won't be bored in the foreseeable future, cowardly wife."

The heroes mastered many transcendental skills and rushed to the Demon Lord's castle with high hopes and dreams.

However, they would soon understand... That they weren't the only ones that had their seals broken.

"Welcome, Heroes."

The vile power of friendship.

The vicious power of love.

Regression experiences.

The fraudulent black box.

And an automatic sword.

...

The power that defeated the Demon Lord Pedonar with ease...

I was about to engrave it beautifully into their hearts, mind, body, soul, and bones.