Chapter 11

Chapter 11

When I returned to the selamlik, I heard a frustrated voice from inside.

“What do you mean, raid the harem? You bastards! You guys are talking crazy!”

I entered with awe.

“Eriez?”

“Oh, Juya?! Listen, these guys…! ARGHH!”

Eriez hated arguing with the brothers. He sometimes ranted to me about his discontentment, but it was rare to see him getting involved in a fight.

I saw that Eriez may have been trying to stop a fight since he was standing between a couple of guys, but suddenly, one of the brothers punched Eriez’s face. They were surrounded by about 20 brothers, and it seemed like something serious was happening. I hesitated to get involved, but I saw that Eriez was outnumbered. He was on the floor, and thankfully, the others seemed to turn shocked and hesitant. Others were also bleeding a little.

“Argh.”

Then suddenly, Manar raised his hand to stop the fight.

“Now, listen here.”

I wasn’t sure if he really meant well, but I listened to his words anyway, “So Iztal Eriez, it sounds like you have something to say. Maybe you have a better suggestion than these idiots, who use their fists first before their brains. What do you think we should do?”

Manar was small, but many who followed him stood behind him. They seemed to be ready to fight Eriez, who was much bigger and stronger. Thankfully, I didn’t think they would do something drastic. At least not right away.

My friend explained in a calm voice, “Let’s just follow our common sense. Follow the rules given to us. Attacking the harem is out of the question. I know it is frustrating that our Goddess hasn’t returned to us yet, but we can make it happen. She will be born again, and once she does, we can return home with our honors still intact, unlike attacking the harem.”

“It was never our fault that the Goddess wasn’t reborn, so how can you say that we can make it happen? What can we really do?”

“We actually didn’t try anything at all so far. Rather than raiding the harem, why not one of us go there and talk to the Virtuous Priestess? Try to convince her. Show her our loyalty and our hope for the rebirth of the Goddess. That is what we should do. If it is not something she can do by will, then it makes even less sense for us to raid her home.”

I didn’t understand their conversation, but I remained quiet. I waited for Eriez to come to me.

To attack the harem…

“Eri…?”

When he approached me, I lowered myself a little to check on him. Meanwhile, Manar continued to argue, “So who will go there? Who will talk to her, Eriez?

“…”

“Would you even trust me or one of my friends enough to go? On the other hand, if one of your trusted brothers went, how can we trust him? What if he falls in love with the Virtuous Priestess, who is supposed to be very beautiful? Well, I supposed someone like Iztal Juya, who is known to be the most solemn of all of us, might be able to resist such a beauty.”

I felt confused at the sudden mention of my name. Eriez squeezed my shoulder, bit his lips, and replied, “No, I will go, and I swear to you on everything I have, my reputation, honor, and life, that I will not stray from the purpose of this mission. Don’t drag Juya into this.”

***

I helped Eriez walk to get to the washroom. When we arrived, I asked Eriez in confusion, “Where are you going? To the harem? Why?”

Eriez explained what the brothers were planning, and I gasped in shock.

“What? They were going to raid the harem? Are you serious? They were worried and becoming angry at the fact that the Goddess has so far refused to be reborn…. So they were going to rape the odalisques? Do I hear this correctly?”

I was screaming at this point, but it seemed Eriez didn’t even notice. Sometimes, Eriez could be very slow. He replied quietly, “Yeah… by the way, how are you feeling? Did the conversation with the prince go well?”

“Yes, of course, but Eriez, that’s not important!”

I needed more explanation. Why were my brothers so angry and upset? It was unlikely that I could convince them otherwise, but I still needed to know, and we needed to figure out how to fix this situation.

I thought an honest conversation was necessary with all of The Innocent Ones. We were supposed to be brothers, and if we couldn’t even talk to each other, what was the point of anything?

I got a clean wet towel and began to clean Eriez’s body. He was covered in dirt and dust, and many areas were bleeding. The fight must have broken out before I got there because I could see dried blood on his chest and back. Eriez also had many bruises.

After a heavy silence, Eriez blurted out, “… I don’t know how someone found out, but apparently, the Virtuous Priestess has no intention of becoming pregnant and having a baby.”

“What?”

I couldn’t tell if he was angry or sad. His voice sounded strange as Eriez continued, “The Goddess’ warrior has apparently admitted that the priestess has refused him, and this is why he didn’t see the point of visiting the harem. For a long time, she has been refusing on the days they were supposed to be together, the Sacred Day. This is why the Goddess hasn’t been born yet. It is also why the warrior decided to go to war to the west. We will either survive or die out there, and that is the point.”

“What?”

“Without the Goddess, Alincha will eventually fall and vanish. We need to let our capital know about this as soon as possible, but currently, it is almost impossible to send any messages to the capital.”

“Do you believe that, Eriez? Did Manar tell you that?”

“It doesn’t matter if I believe it or not. Even if I don’t, many brothers do, and they believe we need to gain the capital’s attention one way or the other.”

It was such a strange story.

All Alinchans valued their duties, especially if they involved serving the Goddess. The fate of Alincha depended solely on the Goddess, so all of us waited for her rebirth. Everyone, including The Innocent Ones, the Goddess’s warrior, the odalisques, and the rest of the citizens of Alincha.

Thus, to hear that the Virtuous Priestess has refused to bear the Goddess was an unexpected shock.

When the Virtuous Priestess bears a Goddess, she would be revered for the rest of her life as the mother of the Goddess. She lived the most luxurious life and could wield enormous power, so why would anyone refuse such an honor?

I couldn’t understand the logic behind this story.

“… if what you just told me is true, Eriez, did you hear the reason behind her refusal?”

“I’m going to try to find out. If I can, the best thing would be for me to talk to the woman in person. I will have to try to convince her to have a relationship with the Goddess’s warrior on the Sacred Days, as is her duty.”

“Do you really think she could be convinced that easily…”

“If she refuses to listen, then I am willing to threaten her with her own life. She may be important, but after all, she is just a mortal woman. She will die just as anyone would with a knife.”

I was still washing Eriez’s cuts, but after hearing his ominous words, my hands stopped. Suddenly, I remembered Prince Camille’s request.

Save the Virtuous Priestess before the Sacred Day, and take her to a place where no one can find her.

“Eri… You must know that threatening her is wrong. You know we should always think of a way to solve problems without using violence.”

This was the basis of our beliefs. It was also the most essential strategy I was teaching to the prince. Winning a fight by force was a good thing, but winning without a fight was an honorable deed.

The best thing for us to achieve was to survive without going through this conquest mission. Stopping the war in the capital was what we should hope to accomplish. Of course, convincing the Virtuous Priestess peacefully was what we should do.

This was the will of the Goddess.

However, it seemed that Eriez had a very different idea.