Volume 10 Chapter 3 What Sir Ciel Saw
Sir Rail, having finished his oyakodon early, leaned lazily on the table and said with a hint of disbelief.
"Ciel, you are smart and can basically do anything, right? But that's not really a good thing, is it?"
"Isn't it good to be smart and able to do anything...?"
After pinching the back of Sir Ciel's hand tightly, I felt bad seeing it turn red, so I gently stroked it to make the pain go away while tilting my head.
"Exactly. Because you can do anything, you try to do everything by yourself. You don't want to rely on anyone else. That's not a good thing. In the end, you're just tightening the noose around your own neck."
"The noose..."
Was Sir Ciel's neck being tightened? Looking up at him, it felt like a thick rope was wrapped around his neck. Our eyes met, and his troubled smile was elegant and beautiful, but──.
"No matter how good you are at swimming, if you overestimate your abilities and dive too deep to grab a shell stuck to the rocks, you'll run out of oxygen before you can surface and drown."
Had Sir Ciel been drowning all this time? He didn't look like it, but maybe he was.
"Don't take pride in being able to work, Ciel. I do the hero thing as a hobby, but it's not a hobby for you, is it? What's important is your free time. Loving people, enjoying hobbies, growing plants, eating delicious food, reading books, taking walks. A man with a relaxed heart is cool, like me."
"Ah. I think you're cool, brother."
Sir Roxas agreed.
"Right, right. It's okay not to be able to do everything, and it's okay to bother others. I think even the princess would have preferred it if you had clung to her for help rather than trying to do everything alone and getting hurt in an unfamiliar place."
"...I'll keep that in mind."
Nodding at Sir Rail's advice, Sir Ciel agreed.
"That's right, Sir Ciel. No more secrets. No way. Absolutely no way."
"Yeah... From now on, I think I'll let myself be spoiled a bit more. Thank you, Ms. Lydia."
Honestly, I wish he would just talk normally, like he usually does. I'll tell him that next time.
Sir Rail said, "Ah, I ended up talking seriously," as he buried his face in the table. I gently pulled my hand away from Sir Ciel's and said, "Sorry for grabbing you."
"So, Ciel. What did the goddess Alexandria leave behind? I've seen the Holy Land's stone tablet, but it was just a rock. There didn't seem to be anything special carved on it. I was curious why the Bernard people worship a stone."
Mr. Lucian said.
I've never been to Holy Land Hailshtrul, but I hear there's a stone called a tablet that is worshipped there.
Holy Land Hailshtrul is the final destination of the pilgrimage.
The priests of Bernard travel from temple to temple, praying as they make their way to Holy Land Hailshtrul.
This is to deliver their wishes to Goddess Alexandria.
It's said that by completing the pilgrimage to the Holy Land, the Tears of the Rose will end, and the country will be protected from the threat of monsters.
"At first glance, it looks like just a rock, but if you channel magic into it with a certain strength, words will appear. I've never tried it before, though. Besides, I wouldn't even be allowed to touch the tablet in the first place."
"If you had told me that, I would have easily given you permission."
"Yeah. Your Majesty. I'll do that next time."
"Make sure you do. Don't ever come close to dying again. If you get hurt, Lydia will cry."
"I truly appreciate it from the bottom of my heart."
Sir Stefan said seriously, and Sir Ciel placed his hand on his chest and looked down.
The explosion from the release of the Magic Stone's power in Edelstein almost shattered Sir Ciel's body as he tried to protect the Bernard Kingdom and its people. We haven't talked much about it until now.
But everyone had their own thoughts about it.
I'm not the only one who thinks of Sir Ciel as a dear friend.
"The goddess Alexandria left behind an apology. I'm sorry. Those words were left in abundance. ...It detailed what happened after the goddess Alexandria came to this country, and what she entrusted to future generations."
"What did it say?"
Dad asked. His voice was unusually serious.
"The goddess Alexandria... the one everyone revered as a goddess, is actually one of the Moon People. An immortal living on the White Moon, Blanche Runne."
"Immortal..."
That was a word I had heard before. Dad had said it. Immortal.
He never explained what it meant. I remember asking Mx. Margaret about it, and then consulting Sir Ciel, I think.
It feels like it was just recently, but it also feels like a long time ago. So much has happened.
"Immortals are, as the name suggests, beings that cannot die. They do not age or die, possessing strong magical powers that are universal and eternal. They once lived in this land and seemed to think of aging, dying humans as inferior beings. They called themselves gods and were revered as leaders by humans."
"If there are those who can use powerful magic without aging or dying, that would be a threat. People would have no choice but to fear, respect, and flatter them to survive, right?"
When Mr. Lucian asked, Sir Ciel agreed, "That's right."
"That might have been one reason. It's a story from a long time ago, so I can't be sure. But the immortals weren't absolute beings. They each had their own emotions and thoughts. The clash of emotions and thoughts leads to conflict. Tired of fighting, the immortals decided to ascend to the moon and not engage with humans."
"People on the moon..."
I murmured.
People live on the moon.
Since Sylphina is imprisoned on the red moon, it wouldn't be strange for people to live on the white moon.
They say that place is a paradise where the dead go.
The people of Bernard ascend to the white moon when they die. It's said to be a paradise protected by Goddess Alexandria and God Theobart, free from suffering and sorrow.
But, is that really true?
Was that teaching, which is the state religion, a lie?
I feel a sense of instability. It feels strange, like the ground I've always stood on is crumbling away.
But there was no fear.
Even if what I believed in is changing, I'm not scared now.
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