Various drinks were available, and since there was plenty of ice prepared, anything was fine, whether mixed with water or served with ice.
Even though Japanese sake was out of the question, a wide variety of beverages were prepared.
The Holy Knights gave it high praise.
I wished that the story of the "Tempest Martial Arts Tournament" would disappear with the momentum of the banquet, but it didn't go as well as I hoped.
The story was definitely going to proceed.
For this reason, the next morning,
a meeting was held to determine the future relationship between Tempest and the Holy Church.
In reality, the damage on our side could have been enormous, so a soft response was not an option.
However, sanctions were imposed on the Blood Lunatics, the perpetrators, and it seemed to be different from the Holy Church's intentions.
Since there is a responsibility for management, it can't be said that it's completely unrelated.
Regarding the Holy Knights' suppression this time, we might have to demand compensation, but... since the territory is too far away, accepting distant land wouldn't help much.
Moreover, this is not the kind of issue that can be resolved with money.
Frankly, a good relationship is more desirable for me than money.
With such thoughts in mind, the meeting began.
The participants from the Tempest side were me, Rigld, Benimaru, and the former Goblin chiefs who have taken office as representatives.
The participants from the Holy Church side were Hinata and five vice-commanders.
First, I wanted to adjust our mutual understanding. We would decide on compensation and other matters afterward.
Therefore, before the meeting, we exchanged documents outlining our situations and perceptions.
We confirmed the flow of our situations while looking at these documents.
If there were any discrepancies in perception, it would be better to correct them quickly, I thought.
We looked at the flow.
From our perspective, everything started with the invasion of the Palmas Kingdom.
Our stance remained consistent, and we would adjust our response based on how the other side acted.
From the Holy Church's perspective, Hinata said there was a problem before the Palmas request.
That is, recognizing the existence of a monster country goes against the doctrines of the Holy Church. This is an important issue that could fuel the distrust of believers.
If left unchecked, it would hasten the betrayal of believers and weaken the power of the Holy Church.
Therefore, it was necessary to destroy such a monster country.
For that, a just cause and an opportunity were needed... so Hinata said.
The Palmas Kingdom attacked Tempest to protect its own interests and satisfy its greed.
Acknowledging this would be tantamount to declaring that they were entirely at fault...
I was surprised, as I thought they would try to downplay it more.
"Haha, there's no helping it. We lost. We must acknowledge what needs to be acknowledged; otherwise, we can't move forward.
Moreover...
I used to believe that the Holy Church was the only entity that could protect the people.
The doctrines were everything, and those who followed the church would be saved, while the rest should be cut off.
Since our salvation has limits, it was just to save only those who believe.
That's what I thought. But...
It seems I was wrong.
It was enough to lend a hand to those who strive to survive.
The idea of saving as many as we can, which I had, was, in a sense, arrogant.
Therefore, whether one believes in the doctrines or not, if there is someone in trouble, we should help them.
Doing this within the range that we can see is what we can do."
He said this as if he had shaken off something, with a refreshing smile.
Believing only in the doctrines and not helping others was the opposite of what Hinata believed.
Not saving anyone except those who believe in the doctrines.
We don't have the power to save everyone. Therefore, if we want to save people equally, it's an impossible wish.
That's why we prioritize saving those who believe in the doctrines.
By distinguishing rationally and cutting off non-believers coldly.
Believing that they were right, they have lived by deceiving their hearts.
In the end, since the number of people we can save is limited, it was a matter of drawing a line somewhere.
Saving everyone is impossible.
For Hinata, the line was whether one believes in the doctrines or not.
That's why Hinata feared the decrease in believers and the increase in non-believers.
Because the number of people he could save was decreasing.
His way of thinking is so inflexible that I can't help but point it out.
Still, I can understand it to some extent. In the original world, it was the same.
Those who worship a single god are often quite inflexible.
The interpretation of the doctrines can vary, and that alone can make a religion seem suspicious, yet they don't reflect on their own behavior.
If they were more flexible and understood the other party's perspective and thoughts, many disputes would decrease, I think.
But, that's the surface reason for the disputes. In fact, they are all about pursuing interests and benefits.
In the end, to satisfy a few people who gain benefits, devout believers end up crying.
How to avoid crying yourself? It's a simple story.
The key is to think for yourself.
Not to follow others' words but to think with your own mind. Just by doing that, you can be quite saved.
Most people are in a position to use others as well as be used.
Blindly trusting the other party is not a good idea.
In that sense, Hinata is too sincere.
From now on, I recommend living a bit more comfortably.
Thanks to Hinata's light-hearted admission of their mistake, the meeting proceeded smoothly.
It seems there were no objections from the Holy Knights' commanders.
They probably trust Hinata. There were no negative or complaining comments about Hinata's statements.
We confirmed each other's situations and the flow leading to the dispute, and the Holy Church admitted their mistake.
Then, how should we handle the compensation?
"I'm sorry, but I have something to say about that," Hinata said.
According to the story, the Sacred Papal State Ruberios, the upper organization of the Holy Church, had no involvement in this dispute.
The upper organization, or the area around it, is troublesome... The person at the top of the country, whether called the Pope or the Pontiff, also holds the top position in the Holy Church.
However, the actual top of the Western Holy Church is Cardinal Nicolaus and Holy Knight Commander Hinata.
This time, the rampage and the suppression itself were not related to the main country.
Therefore, the involvement of the Sacred Papal State Ruberios is limited to Hinata.
If it became a matter of compensation, the story would end with cutting off Hinata.
Hinata's position, which also includes being the head of the Pontiff's guard knights, is troublesome.
Additionally, the guard knights and the Holy Knights are different organizations.
The guard knights move only to protect the Pontiff and never leave his side.
Only Hinata, as the head, is allowed to act freely and is involved in the training of Holy Knights and the development of the Holy Church.
Because of this position, the Sacred Papal State Ruberios cannot completely cut off involvement.
While it can't be cut off, the responsibility falls entirely on Hinata.
And, just in case, Hinata has applied to resign as the head of the guard knights.
This is not just for this time but to be able to cut off Hinata at any time, as heard from her teachers.
Her teachers, known as the "Seven Elders," are quite suspicious but are said to be first-class sages who also raise heroes.
They made it possible to cut off Hinata smoothly, so pursuing the responsibility of the Sacred Papal State Ruberios is impossible.
In any case, the Western Holy Church must be considered separately.
This time, we need to understand only the Western Holy Church.
Then, how should we handle the compensation?
As I mentioned earlier, monetary compensation is not what we intend.
From the perspective of the Western Holy Church, it would be ideal to recognize our existence and declare that they will not be hostile.
When I said this, a Holy Knight named Alno agreed, saying,
"There's no problem for us. If you were truly evil, we wouldn't be here."
On the other hand, a Holy Knight vice-commander named Leonard said,
"But there's a problem. How will we handle the doctrines? Depending on that, the Holy Church itself might..."
He frowned, indicating that he couldn't accept it.
This is the same dilemma as Hinata's.
In the worst case, the disbandment of the Holy Church might need to be considered.
The important thing is to protect people. Even if the Holy Church disappears, we will continue to protect people.
Unlike the discerning Hinata, it's also clear that the responsibility of the church's believers and the current organization cannot be neglected.
If the Holy Church disappears, the Holy Knights might also scatter.
To Leonard, who was seriously considering this,
"What if we declare that the residents of this country are not 'evil beings'?
In reality, they are so close to humans that it's hard to believe they are goblins or orcs...
Lizardmen are treated as Ein, so there's no need to mention the higher-level dragonkin.
Ogres are not low-level monsters but are in the class of land deities.
In short, if we declare that they are not 'evil beings' as defined by the doctrines?"
They are monsters, but not 'evil beings' as defined by the doctrines.
If we fully recognize them as Ein and treat them the same as dwarves, we might gain some understanding.
Alno suggested this.
It seems to be the most reasonable compromise.
We adopted this suggestion and discussed various details.
We reached some compromises.
Well, we have a plan to be recognized by the Western Holy Church, and it was decided that we would regularly exchange with the Holy Knights instead of compensation.
And, most importantly,
We received all the destroyed equipment as compensation.
In return, we gifted a replica sword. The performance should be similar, but we made it a rapier to suit Hinata.
We also plan to interpret her broken sword as a spirit-armed weapon. This is a bargain.
However, interpreting a spirit-armed weapon is significant.
The spirit-armed weapon possessed by the Holy Knight is a high-quality spirit-armed weapon. We can also interpret this.
While we can't use it as is because our attributes are a sub-type of dark, we think we can modify it.
It seems to be a state secret-level weapon, but once we interpret it, it's ours. Since it's compensation, this should be fine.
With this, our country's armaments will gradually become more sophisticated.
After firmly sealing the deal, the conversation turned to casual talk, and we obtained significant information.
It might have been common knowledge, but it was the first time I heard it.
The information was about the Holy War... or the Celestial War, which occurs every 500 years.
The flow of the conversation started when I talked about our future policies.
Initially,
"By the way, about the fried food, white rice, and sashimi...
Rimuru, I no longer doubt that you're from the same hometown as me.
To be able to recreate the food from our original world to this extent, I'm more amazed than surprised.
If you really came from there (which I believe you did), to create an environment as you imagined in just two years...
I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes!"
Hinata's comment was the trigger.
In response, I said,
"Not really. Logistics are slow, and information transmission is a problem.
With magic, we can manage housing and food preservation to some extent.
The worst part is culture. There's too little entertainment.
It will take time to root, but I'll develop it someday!
The current goal is road maintenance. We are currently working on making the trade routes safe and secure.
Next is information transmission. I had to give up on wireless or similar knowledge.
However, the transmission rate of magic is incredible. We can use this.
By setting up magic lines through shadow movement in space, we can connect cities, and even with moderate magical power, communication is possible.
How about it? It should be very convenient, don't you think?"
I boasted.
In fact, we are planning to build a network connecting not just cities but also villages.
While the long-distance communication device developed by Vester allows for video calls, it's too expensive to cover all villages. It's impractical in the current situation.
With magic lines, if we can process the lines, it's quite simple to set up.
If we entrust it to those who can enter the shadow movement space, there are no obstacles, so it can be installed without much trouble.
The rest is waiting for the development of the receiver.
Indeed, for someone who lived in an information society, the speed of information transmission is a priority.
Hinata was amazed,
"You know... Well, it's fine.
If you go too far, you'll be attacked by angels."
It seemed like she was saying it as if it was no big deal.
Angels? What are you talking about?
Noticing my confusion, Hinata explained,
"What, you didn't know? Every 500 years, the sky gates open, and angels attack.
They generally don't attack humans, but they destroy overly developed towns.
Research has shown that angels dislike civilization.
The only country that can avoid this attack is the Dwarf Kingdom.
It has two narrow entrances and dragons living on the mountain, so large-scale attacks are ineffective.
Therefore, it's possible to defend.
Other countries' civilizations stagnate at a certain level because of this.
The exception is the Ingarsia Kingdom.
The council is installed here for research and development to reduce damage.
So, in Ingarsia, the royal road is renewed every 500 years.
This is done by agreement among the countries, and the residents understand.
The last time, it wasn't too bad, but the damage was minimal.
With support from other countries, various research is conducted here.
Only the most convenient and easy-to-hide results are used by the kings of each country.
If the research results spread too much among the people, it would invite attacks from angels.
Only the carefully selected, problem-free results are passed down to the lower ranks.
Well, the angels' goal is to exclude monsters.
Therefore, some tolerance is allowed, but that's the reality."
She explained it as if everyone knew.
What's that? Angels? I've never heard of it...
"Hey, did you know?"
When I asked Rigld and the five others, they all didn't know.
Some knew that angels attack, but not that it was a battle between angels and monsters.
I had heard that a great war happens every 500 years, but I thought it was a battle between demon lords or humans.
No... thinking about it, if they were fighting humans, the constant ceasefire would be strange. I hadn't thought about it deeply, but it makes sense now.
But, every 500 years, angels attack, right?
They don't attack humans but dislike civilization. What does that mean? Do they want to hinder or worry about human development?
I don't understand.
"So? Are the countries just going to let it be? Can't they just defeat the angels?"
The answer was clear.
They don't want to create an enemy worse than demons by acting rashly!
Indeed, they don't want to create another enemy on top of the troublesome demons.
In reality, as long as human civilization doesn't develop, they don't attack humans. But, at what level do they consider it worthy of destruction?
It seems they especially dislike the presence of isekai people. Is it because of gunpowder?
Each angel is ranked "B+" and comes in an army of about one million.
Moreover, there are commander-class leaders, so they attack in an organized manner.
There are also general-class leaders, but their combat power is unknown.
It's said that a few demon lords were defeated, so they must be quite strong.
The Western Holy Church, with its holy attributes, consistently refrains from attacking them.
If they don't attack, they are harmless and help defeat monsters, so it's natural.
Most importantly, they are not allies of humans, but Hinata and her group don't seem to know the details.
Because they have never seen an actual angel, they can only speak based on stories and records.
One reason the Holy Church considers monsters enemies is the existence of demons.
Among monsters, those who systematically oppose humans are called demons, and some demon lords are clearly hostile to humans.
Like Clayman, for example, who is already dead.
But, since Clayman is dead, there are currently no demon lords among the Eight Demon Generals who are clearly hostile to humans.
"Huh? Clayman is dead!?"
Hinata and her group were surprised.
"Yeah, he's dead. I killed him."
While reaching for a snack of fried potatoes, thinly sliced and salted, I answered calmly.
It's quite easy to make and is the perfect snack.
Thinking about it, let's talk about the angels! When I looked at Hinata and her group, they had a complex expression, amazed or giving up.
Honestly, I don't care what happens to that little guy.
I heard that Clayman was secretly active in various ways, and it was impossible to catch him.
But, he was clearly hostile to humans, and if the demon lords hadn't restrained him, a war would have started long ago.
That reminded me.
"Right, right. Clayman's master was a demon lord named Kazahim, I heard.
So, it seems related to Yuki, so be careful."
I also passed this information to the Holy Knights who didn't know the details.
"Huh? The leader of the Free Guild! Is there a possibility that he is Kazahim?"
"But, it's impossible to ask directly... If we do, it might lead to a war between the Holy Church and the Free Guild."
"But, if Kazahim is alive and controlled Clayman...
Then, the leader of the demons is Kazahim.
While we can't definitively say the leader is the leader, if the possibility is high, we need to monitor him."