Jerok, the headquarters city of The Way of Peace in the Eastern Province of the Akame ga Kill! World.
The Way of Peace attracted a large number of followers with its doctrine of 'Do good deeds and you will live a happy and long life', and in just over a decade, it became the largest force in the Eastern Province of the Empire.
Its influence was so great that even the Imperial Capital was wary of it.
In the Eastern Province, most of the Imperial nobles had to keep a low profile, but only slightly better than in other provinces.
Such a vast religious force was naturally not monolithic; spies from the Imperial Capital and hidden agents of the nobility intertwined within this massive organization.
Even Lord An, who founded The Way of Peace, was physically and mentally exhausted at this time, sighing with worry about the future of The Way of Peace.
At the very center of Jerok was a complex of buildings resembling a palace with a strong religious atmosphere, all built with funds voluntarily donated by believers.
Followers wearing white robes with hoods and face coverings walked and worked there,
Addressing the worries of the believers.
However, they could only solve minor daily troubles; The Way of Peace could not intervene in major issues related to the nobility and the Empire.
If they did, the Empire would have a reason to act against The Way of Peace, and it would be brutally suppressed.
Before The Way of Peace touched upon these matters, the Empire treated it with a policy of appeasement, and The Way of Peace had no choice but to compromise,
tacitly allowing Imperial spies and noble agents to infiltrate its ranks.
Among them, Berlick, the spy sent by the Empire to monitor Lord An, had to be promoted to Lord An's assistant, holding a high position.
"The Way of Peace will be destroyed—" Lord An walked dejectedly down an deserted corridor in The Way of Peace headquarters. Only in his residence within the headquarters could he escape constant surveillance by spies and hidden agents.
"What should I do?"
Ever since he tacitly allowed Berlick, the Imperial Capital's spy, to become his assistant, most of The Way of Peace's power had been usurped by him.
And he used his power to wantonly humiliate female believers.
The Way of Peace worshipped a 'God', but to prevent anyone from using this to monopolize power, he claimed to be God's messenger on earth.
Only he could communicate with God and was granted the abilities to heal wounds and predict the future by God.
However, this was actually because he was a forbidden existence, a hybrid of Dangerous Species and human, thus possessing these abilities naturally.
He merely disguised them; he could not communicate with God and did not know if God existed in the world.
His goal was to consolidate all power to himself, so that no one could shake the foundation of The Way of Peace, and no one but him could modify the doctrine.
However, Berlick exploited this point. After becoming his assistant, he claimed all his actions were Lord An's will, and Lord An was following God's teachings.
If he refuted, the hidden agents and assassins within The Way of Peace would threaten him. Of course, he feared death, so he had endured until now.
"Could it be… I can only agree to ally with the Revolutionary Army?"
Lord An was somewhat conflicted at this moment.
Although the Revolutionary Army was resisting the Empire, he, with his ability to see into people's hearts, knew very well that the Revolutionary Army was not entirely righteous and glorious.
In fact, they were not much different from the Imperial army.
The Revolutionary Army cooperated with nobles and merchants who exploited and abused the people for money and supplies. Those nobles and the Revolutionary Army put on a show, only temporarily stopping their exploitation of the people. Once the Revolutionary Army achieved its goals, those nobles would intensify their exploitation, taking back even more.
Those Revolutionary Army members even cooperated with foreign armies that specialized in abducting Imperial citizens, and even disguised themselves as foreign armies to burn, kill, and loot Imperial citizens.
"Although the Revolutionary Army is not entirely bad, if The Way of Peace cooperates with the Revolutionary Army, their dark dealings might extend to the believers in the future." Lord An sighed. His ability to predict the future was not that mystical; at most, he could only sense recent dangers.
As for how the danger would occur and what the specific danger was, he did not know.
However, he had seen some fragments of one event.
In half a year, an assassin group belonging to the Revolutionary Army would help him resolve the crisis of The Way of Peace.
But that must be because he had no choice but to cooperate with the Revolutionary Army, right?
"Is there really no other way?" Lord An was a bit unwilling.
"Oh God, I wish you truly existed."
"If you truly existed, The Way of Peace would overcome all crises, and even spread its doctrine throughout the Empire, making all the people of the Empire believers. That way, the nobility and the Imperial Capital would surely change, right?"
After speaking, he sighed deeply again. He knew that God probably did not exist.
"I'll try one last time. If it truly doesn't work, I can only agree to cooperate with the Revolutionary Army."
Buzz~
An indescribable sound appeared. This sound inexplicably calmed Lord An, and even generated a feeling of reverence within him.
"?" Lord An stopped in his tracks, his expression frozen.
A golden gate appeared out of thin air in front of him. Petals of golden and white light emerged from the void, slowly encircling this gate.
"Sacred" "Supreme"
He truly couldn't think of any other words to describe it besides these two.
"Is this—an Imperial Arm?"
The golden gate slowly opened before him, and the scene within the gate appeared in his eyes.
It was a glimpse of another world. Four figures were walking out of this scene.
"God—" Lord An was completely stunned. He saw the World Tree like a mountain, a little girl with wings joyfully fluttering behind her, beautiful, peaceful—
But when he saw the temple on the World Tree, this information automatically appeared in his mind.
Heavenly Realm, the world where God resides.
The four figures had already walked out of the gate, and the sound of their footsteps landing on the ground instantly brought Lord An back to his senses.
"Welcome, Divine Messenger!" Lord An's heart pounded rapidly, his eyes filled with fervor at this moment, and he knelt on the ground.
As the founder of 'The Way of Peace', called Lord An by many believers, he claimed to be God's messenger,
But only he himself knew that he was just a fake.
However, he never expected that the 'God' he spoke of actually existed!
And when he was about to fall into distress, God sent a messenger to appear before him.
Could it be that his establishment of 'The Way of Peace' was subtly guided by God?
Yes! It must have been God guiding him!
Holy Son, Shinobu Kocho, Butterfly Kanae, and Sima Wei Zhi walked out of the 'Heavenly Realm Gate', looking surprised at the young man kneeling before them.
The young man wore a white religious robe, had long white hair, and was considered handsome among ordinary people.
The quick-witted Shinobu Kocho instantly understood what had happened and recognized who it was.
"Lord An, the leader of The Way of Peace."
"Yes! Divine Messenger! Welcome to your descent from the Heavenly Realm, I am honored beyond measure." Lord An's face was filled with fervor and piety, his hands clasped together. His name was just one character, 'An', which is why the religious group was called 'The Way of Peace'.