To summarize what had been decided here, it would come down to these three points:
The Kingdom of Friedonia would accept Lunarian Orthodoxy as its state religion.
The Orthodox Papal State of Lunaria would not name me holy king.
Souji Lester would be dispatched by the Orthodox Papal State as a bishop.
With the matter settled, Mary bid us farewell and departed. She hadn’t been able to make me into their holy king, but she had been able to get Lunarian Orthodoxy adopted as our state religion, so it was a decent result for her. I figured that with this, she ought to return to the Orthodox Papal State quietly.
I waited for the report that she had left the castle, and then I was finally able to feel a little less tense.
“Whew… Do you think that more or less handled it?” I asked.
“Most likely,” said Hakuya. “The saint believes that she has accomplished something, I’m sure.”
Then he laughed.
Just as planned… was what Hakuya’s laugh seemed to say.
I shrugged and told him, “Hakuya, you’ve still got your villain face on.”
“…Pardon me,” he said, and resumed his usual nonchalant expression.
I asked him, “So, have you made preparations for welcoming that bishop, Souji, or whatever his name was?”
“Yes. The Black Cats led by Sir Kagetora have already infiltrated the Orthodox Papal State. I am sure they have already accompanied Sir Souji to a place near the border. I assume that they will have brought him back to the royal capital within a few days.”
Looking at the intelligence-gathering ability he’d demonstrated by knowing about the bishop named Souji, as well as the preparedness he’d shown by taking steps to protect him, this was the sort of meticulous attention to detail that I had come to expect from our Black-robed Prime Minister.
“But did you really need to send the Black Cats to escort him?” I asked.
“From the saint’s reaction, it seems they are hesitant to dispatch someone who seems likely to embarrass their country as a bishop,” Hakuya said. “In order to secure our promise that we would recognize Lunarian Orthodoxy as our state religion, she accepted our conditions here, but once she returned home, there was the risk that she would renege on them for ‘some reason.’ For instance, we might be told that Souji was injured in an accident, and so they’d be sending someone else… or some other such story. That’s why I decided to have the Black Cats go and bring him back first.”
Injured in an accident… huh. In my mind’s eye, I could imagine the Orthodox Papal State doing it. There was no guarantee he wouldn’t “go missing” into a prison, or “die of a sudden illness” that was actually an assassination, either. If he had taken that much into account, I had to hand it to Hakuya.
“Honestly, I’m impressed you can scheme as much as you do,” I said teasingly.
Liscia, who was standing next to me, gave me a cold look. “You’re quite the schemer yourself, aren’t you, Souma? I mean, in a way, you’re deceiving that poor, innocent saint.”
“Don’t make me sound so bad,” I said. “I haven’t told her any lies.”
There had been no lie when I’d told her I would make Lunarian Orthodoxy our state religion.
“However, we might be working under different definitions of what a ‘state religion’ is,” I added.
“Honestly… It’s all in how you word things.” From the exasperated look Liscia gave me, I must have had a pretty villainous look on my face, too.
A few more days after that…
The royal castle in the Kingdom of Friedonia announced that all faiths and religions were to be registered with the state, and that all religions that received recognition in this way would be considered state religions. In other words, the meaning of a state religion in the kingdom was changed to be the same as a religious corporation.
King Souma appeared on the Jewel Voice Broadcast for the first time in a while to address his people.
“In this country, up until now, every person, every family, and every race has worshiped whatever gods they pleased,” he announced. “In addition to the faiths with the most believers, those being Mother Dragon worship and Lunarian Orthodoxy, the dark elves worship the godbeast said to protect the God-Protected Forest, and there are those who worship sea and mountain gods, as well. We all come from different races and have grown up in different environments, so it’s very natural that things have turned out this way.”
The people who lived in inland cities, in mountain villages, and in seaside towns all nodded in agreement with his words. They lived in different places, so it was a given that the things they feared and the things they worshiped would be different.
The image of Souma continued speaking to the people of his country.
“This is a multi-racial state. In our country, the customs of many different groups have melted and mixed together, creating new forms of culture every day. I believe faith should be the same way. What this kingdom needs isn’t unity under one god. I think it’s the harmony that comes from recognizing the freedom of individuals to choose what they want to believe in. Just as you have beings in which you believe, so do others. I would like for all of you to accept that, and to please be tolerant. If you are, I am sure that others will be tolerant of your beliefs, as well.”
The people only half-believed what Souma said.
In this country where the media had not yet developed, they had limited knowledge of other religions. Basically, they had no idea what was taught in the churches of other faiths. That was why they were doubtful. Suspicion gave birth to ogres in dark places and turned dried pampas grass into ghosts.
Even if a group were simple mountain worshipers, those who were suspicious of them might think they were a secretive evil organization. Souma was well aware of that.
“What do we need in order to cultivate that tolerance?” Souma asked. “Mutual understanding. No matter how I tell you to be tolerant of other faiths, we can’t accept evil religions that do things like sacrifice virgins in order to summon devils. I won’t ask you to be tolerant of such religions. However, I’m sure it’s hard to tell if another person’s religion is good or evil from the outside.”
Here Souma paused, and stressed: “And that’s why we’re nationalizing religion.”
He continued, “I want the representatives of each faith-based organization to register their religion with the country. If you pass the examination, your religion will be recognized as a state religion, subject to further investigations once every few years.
“The examination process is simple. You need only pledge not to engage in illegal activities such as killing, robbing others of their possessions, or engaging in sexual violence in the name of your religion.
“Harming people is generally against the rules, too, but some religions out there might engage in self-harm. For questions about the specific details, such as whether giving someone a tattoo constitutes harm, please consult your local authorities. I’ve provided them with specific guidelines, such as accepting things when people ask for it on their own, but forbidding things when they are forced on people who don’t want them, so please follow their directions.
“If any religion can’t make this pledge, or refuses to register, they will be dealt with by the authorities, so please be aware of that. Our people would have trouble sleeping at night if people who follow such dangerous beliefs were allowed to live near them, I’m sure. I want you to understand this.”
With all of that said, Souma took a deep breath. Then he continued on, as if speaking to each of his people personally.