Only God

"Why do I have to be called a Prophet?"

Eden asked.

"Tonight's… miracle, and… you are a person esteemed by the Prophet... and one esteemed by the Prophet is a Prophet himself… isn't that quite normal?"

Arsia whispered, now somewhat afraid of Eden, fearful of this man who might be a Prophet.

To what extent was she afraid? Now if Eden asked her to do anything, she would do it, regardless of the request.

A person esteemed by the Prophet…

Eden shuddered once more.

Before, he had been thrilled countless times by Veldor's words, but now, he doubted this "esteem" had ulterior motives.

"Say it again, I am not a Prophet, don't call me a Prophet anymore."

Eden spoke deliberately, word by word.

"Oh… really?"

Arsia asked.

Eden nodded.

"Then, that might not be any sort of Miracle, but just a trick prepared in advance by some people to deceive others, right, just like that.

There must be someone standing at a higher place, at just the right moment, casting a beam of light, those from the Fahela Sect want to deceive me, making me believe I am shouldering a 'mission,' when in fact, they want me to go through fire and water for them."

Eden spoke rapidly, a string of words popping out of his mouth, faster than Arsia's crossbow.

In the end, he concluded:

"I have not received any revelation, I have not brought forth any miracles, I… am not a Prophet."

After hearing so much from the Priest, Arsia finally began to doubt.

"You mean to say that the so-called 'Miracle' is forged?"

Just as Eden was about to nod, the Princess changed the direction of the conversation:

"But… what about this 'Miracle Book' you mentioned? Why do they... act so devoutly upon hearing that phrase?"

Eden paused.

He knew more and thought more than Arsia.

If that miracle were fabricated, what about the account of miracles in the Pagan Scripture?

Eden, believe in yourself.

He couldn't possibly be the envoy or a Prophet of Heresy.

There was only one possibility,

The heretical Scriptures are wrong!

Eden immediately convinced himself, yes, his experiences did not verify the records of the "Miracle Book," but instead, it proved that the Pagan Scriptures are incorrect because they got the most fundamental fact wrong—He was not the envoy of the King of Kings.

With this in mind, he calmly said:

"This is what I learned through investigation, to bluff them."

Arsia reluctantly accepted this explanation, nodding hesitantly.

At that moment, both of them fell silent.

Dusk had long passed, and dawn was yet to come; the endless night, the high mountains in the distance seemed to connect with the sky, and the Milky Way poured clearly across the night sky, bringing with it a surge of emptiness.

Standing on this mound, you could hear the faint whispers of prayers from nowhere.

Looking towards the camp from here, you could see scattered sparks of fire, strikingly conspicuous under the night curtain,

Constantly sending smoke towards the Milky Way.

"Priest, I am really scared of you now."

Arsia said,

"If you're not the Prophet, then that's for the best."

Eden looked into her eyes,

"Why are you so relieved?"

"Oh, isn't it obvious? If you were a Prophet, then wouldn't someone like me truly be going to Hell? I am, after all, a sinner in your words."

Arsia blinked her eyes and said.

"Whether or not I am a Prophet, it doesn't affect that."

Eden said.

"No, it does affect it!"

Arsia raised her voice,

"If you are the Prophet, then I am in trouble. All along this journey, I've been regretting why I didn't become a righteous person."

Eden thought for a moment, then spoke up:

"Being righteous is not difficult. You can still repent and perform acts of goodness and justice."

Arsia shook her head firmly and said,

"I don't want to.

How tiring that would be. Look, we humans only live for a few short decades. If we spend all that time doing acts of goodness and justice, it would be so tiring, leaving no time for oneself."

"It's not that there is no time for oneself..."

"Hey, my time is meant for happiness, for enjoyment, but being a righteous person would encroach upon the time for my happiness and enjoyment.

If you ask me, such expectations are inherently not suited for me. Instead, it's the poor who find it easier to be righteous!"

With that, Arsia spoke with a sense of righteousness,

"Think about it, what is the origin of this belief? It's the Elves, they live for hundreds of years, while we humans have only decades, a hundred years at most.

Elves have so much time that they can both enjoy the present and be righteous, but what about us? If you ask me to spend all my time being righteous like my mother, I would no longer be myself. See, this belief is so unfair to us!

It is a belief for the Elves; how can it be forced upon us, especially on someone like me."

Listening to Arsia's words, surprisingly, Eden did not show any hints of anger. He was amazed at how, in the past, he would have either been uncontrollably furious or dismissive, but now, he seemed to have an infinite amount of patience.

"The Elves are also our origin. It's not just a belief for the Elves; the gates of Heaven are also open for us,"

Eden corrected her.

"But it's still not fair!"

Arsia said, somewhat angrily.

Eden looked at her under the starlight,

"Where is it unfair?

Even at the end of days, He sacrificed and died for people like you. He treats all of us equally; where is it unfair?"

Arsia found herself somewhat at a loss for words, so she then said,

"Then why don't you ask God, why did He die for someone like me?"

Having said that, as if she had declared her own victory, Arsia spoke out,

"Alright, I won't argue with you. We won't reach a conclusion anyway. For me, it's best if you're not the Prophet. If you were, I would certainly have to repent. Luckily, you're not, so I can continue to be myself."

After saying all this, the Princess realized that Eden had been patiently and silently watching her, gazing directly into her green eyes. Even though she was taller than him, she felt as if he was looking down on her, which made Arsia feel scared.

"What's wrong?"

"If…"

He finally spoke,

"If another Angel were to come, you would be one to persecute the Angel.

Even… if the Savior were to come, you would oppose Him."

Eden said these words with exceptional calmness.

"What are you talking about..."

Arsia felt scared again, then shivered, and avoiding further conversation, said,

"Say whatever you like, I'm going back. You're a born heretic."

Saying so, she scampered away like a startled deer, making a hasty retreat. Eden had never seen her so weak before.

............…

............…

After sorting out his thoughts, Eden completely calmed down. He realized that it was impossible for him to become the Envoy of the King of Kings. Because of that, the Pagan Scripture was false, and even the Divine they worshipped might be false.

If it was false, there was nothing to be afraid of.

Eden's fear vanished without a trace; he did not see himself as any prophet or envoy of Heresy, because it was false.

Although that ray of heavenly light was somewhat inexplicable, but… what of it? There are many inexplicable things in the world; it might have been just an accident, perhaps a prank by one of the Gods.

Yes, that heavenly light doesn't count for anything; it might not even be considered a Miracle. He need not panic over this; he just needed to do what he was supposed to do.

"Uh… In that case, then… I should make good use of my current advantages."

Eden murmured to himself.

First of all…

To make small changes in this era, to help those True Believers of the future.