Chapter 72: Archpriest Eclair
The meeting proceeded as they wished.
It was thanks to the perfect public opinion movement, based on the support of Iriel.
No, it wasnt that public opinion had shifted, but rather their attitudes had changed.
They didnt want to be disliked, so they could only assume they had agreed.
And so, the plan began to progress smoothly.
Although it was somewhat challenging to alter the farming methods all at once, they decided to test them in one domain first and then gradually apply them to other domains.
Surprisingly, the resistance from the priests wasnt severe.
When the decision was delicately communicated, they seemed eager to experience the outside world and even showed signs of enjoying it.
Priests raised in the Holy Nation didnt grow up in free temples like priests from other countries.
They seldom went outside, so they might have wished to venture out at least once.
Moreover, since their duty was merely to treat the wounded from the rear of the battlefield, and the holy knights who would protect them were accompanying them, they didnt have much to worry about.
As he had forecasted, when the personnel were roughly organized and dispatched, quite a few countries approached them upon hearing the rumors.
The seekers werent only countries.
Countries and nobles who wished to reclaim territory overrun by monsters also became their clients.
When a significant amount of money was offered and the mercenary priests were leased out, the Holy Nation truly prospered.
They managed to raise funds for the development of their domains. Ray had no intention of sharing that with the nobles.
The funds generated by utilizing the priests were invested in the advancement of agriculture.
It wasnt possible for the people to adhere to their plans immediately.
They needed money and time, so they planned to provide funds for the Milpa Sola system.
It would take time to reap the benefits and see the results, so the only thing left to do was to guide the mercenary priests effectively.
The mercenarization of the priests could already be said to have been a success, as they steadily yielded good results.
Now, every time a meeting took place, the nobles looked at Ray like fervent followers.
That was because the profits from the priests were tremendous.
Most of the money was utilized for the development of agriculture, which the nobles also approved.
It was money that would have caused trouble if spent otherwise.
Wouldnt it have been more beneficial to observe the saint developing their domains as they were, rather than the other way around?
As the nobles thought so, Rays speaking power only grew stronger.
Three months after arriving in the Holy Nation, his speaking power matched that of Iriel.
By this point, there were nobles who worried that he might try to line his own pockets.
But in fact, Ray harbored no such thoughts.
He was only thinking of the quickest path to elevate the Holy Nation to its highest position.
Once agriculture is somewhat on track, we must focus on the education of the people.
If the people remained ignorant, it might have been beneficial from the standpoint of the nobles, but that was a dangerous thought in itself.
Even the Lecian Empire had a higher standard of living for its people compared to the Holy Nation.
Not only were the people given the opportunity to learn, but they were also given the opportunity to become knights through martial arts. Thus, those who held important positions were truly exceptional individuals.
As a result, the national power naturally grew stronger.
Ray thought the same.
If funds were secured, it would have been better to invest effort into education and place capable individuals in official positions.
If someone had to do the job anyway, wouldnt it have been better for a more capable person to do it?
Ray nodded in satisfaction as he thought about the plans that were gradually progressing.
The person with the greatest authority in the Holy Nation was the Pope.
Next were the saints or the saintesses, but most people knew that there was someone above the saints and saintesses.
That person had received tremendous trust from God.
Apart from the saints and saintesses, that person was the only layperson who had directly received divine power from God.
She headed towards the library within the fort.
As the librarian, who was yawning and fighting off sleep, saw her enter, he swallowed a gasp and stood up from his seat.
Is Lady Eclair here! Youre here again today!
The woman called Eclair frowned and replied.
Yes, but why does it sound like youre questioning me for coming again today?
No, thats not possible!
Hmm well, anyway.
She looked around the library and said.
Why are there so many people today?
Since it is our esteemed library, there are always quite a few people, arent there?
But no matter how one looked at it, this number of people seemed a bit too much.
The priests and holy knights rummaging through the bookshelves, and the people gathered around the library tables, wasnt this too different from usual?
For this place, where she often came, to suddenly have so many people was just absurd.
Unless there was a disease that killed you if you didnt read books in groups.
Eclair still looked around the library and asked the librarian.
So, because I didnt come for a week, the number of people visiting the library increased like this?
Thats because Lady Eclair is always picking fights whenever Uh!
The librarian spoke, shrugging his shoulders, but then quickly covered his mouth when he saw her shaking her fist in front of him.
Has your courage grown a lot in the week I havent seen you?
No, no. Hehe.
His demeanor, as he rubbed his palms together while speaking, was undoubtedly that of a lackey.
He chuckled and pointed to one side.
I think there are more people than usual because of the saint.
At that, she asked him.
A saint?
Yes. A few days ago, the saint came to the library and started reading books.
What does the saints visit have to do with this crowd?
Well,
The librarian spoke and pointed his finger towards the center where people had gathered.
There, a noticeable young man came into view.
Even from a distance, one could tell he was quite handsome.
Eclair made a strange expression and smirked.
So they came to see the handsome saint?
The librarian nodded.
Most of them, yes.
So the rest are here to hang around the saint and pick up whatever crumbs fall off him?
The librarian shook his head.
Thats not it.
No?
The saint has done a lot for our holy nation so far. All the profits generated were used for the benefit of our holy nation. We know that, so I think these are people who genuinely admire the saint.
The librarian, who was good at criticizing but rarely complimented, praised the saint so much that spit flew from his mouth. She expressed surprise.
Wow. Is he really worth such high praise from you?
I too was captivated by the saints looks. Hahaha.
.
Although she glanced at the librarian after his last comment, the content was interesting enough to catch her attention.
She headed towards the table where the saint was sitting.
The librarian also watched her with interest.
Those around Ray frowned and looked at the person pushing through to come in.
The face of the person they saw was well-known to them too.
And in an instant, they cleared out of the way.
Ray, who had his view cleared in an instant, stopped reading his book and looked up.
A strong-looking woman caught his eye.
The woman with short hair and a strong impression had one cloudy eye, suggesting that there might be a problem with it.
However, the other eye was normal. Like her hair, her red eye looked clear.
She suddenly spoke to him.
Are you the Saint?
Having lived in the Holy Kingdom and become accustomed to receiving honorific language, Ray felt bewildered by the sudden informal speech.
Yes, why?
Hmm You certainly look like someone the librarian would fall for.
Yes?
As far as he knew, the librarian was indeed a man. They had exchanged a few words and built a bit of a rapport every time he entered the library.
Ray quickly turned his head to look at the librarian.
When their eyes met, the librarian thought,
Surely, Lady Eclair spoke well of me, right?
He smiled as brightly as possible to show his favor towards the Saint.
Ray viewed him a bit differently.
This is dangerous. I need to keep my distance from the librarian in the future.
Seeing the Saint shiver at the sight of the librarian, Eclair chuckled.
Looking down at the book the Saint had been reading, she was momentarily taken aback.
Is this what youve been reading so far?
Yes, but
The books related to medicine.
Although they related to medicine, the content wasnt as systematized as in modern times.
Her eyes sparkled with interest as she pointed at the book and said,
If youve read them all, you must know the contents to some extent, right?
He nodded and said,
To some extent.
How would you treat a wound inflicted by a corroded sword?
You could relieve the poisoning symptoms with Holy Cure and then heal it with Heal.
When she heard the textbook-like answer, she felt slightly disappointed and said,
Is that what you believe?
This time, he shook her head.
No.
Really? How would you treat such a patient?
Without any hesitation, Ray said,
I would cut out the poisoned area.
Eclair was taken aback.
What kind of crazy person was this? Instead of healing the wound, he would cut it out?
Was this something that should come out of the mouth of a Saint?
She asked again,
Why did you think that?
Rays words flowed out smoothly.
Usually, he didnt have anyone to share medical knowledge with, but now he had a chance to talk about his field of expertise, feeling like a fish in water.
If you were cut by a corroded sword, poisoning symptoms might appear, but they couldnt be fully described as poisoning symptoms.
Oh?
It wasnt the poison from the rusted sword that caused the symptoms, but rather the infection of bacteria in the wound.
In other words, it was tetanus.
When tetanus bacteria infected the area around a wound, neurotoxins acted on nerve cells, causing symptoms such as muscle spasms.
Thats why Poison Cure and Heal alone couldnt provide a perfect treatment. The right way to treat it was to cut out the bacterial-infected area and then use Heal.
What is bacteria?
Oh no. Something came to his mind at her words.
There was no definition of bacteria in this place.
There might have been a similar meaning, but the word bacteria was purely a modern term.
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