AWDC Chapter 59

Chapter 59: The Advance of the Orthodox Church

For a time, rumors circulated that Prince Charles, who had shown a stance of thorough resistance, would be pursued and suppressed by the Crown Prince’s side, raising tensions.

However, even after half a year, there were no reports of a punitive force departing from the capital.

“The capital is peaceful,” a merchant from Labos reported.

Meanwhile, in Toriholi Village, military training was conducted, and I also delivered wheat and other goods to Milona.

In a way, the tension in the southern region had eased considerably.

During that time, various things were happening in the village.

One of them was the arrival of a pastor at the church. Until now, there had been a church in the village, but no pastor was stationed there permanently.

For Ilse’s funeral and our wedding, we had to ask a pastor from a neighboring village to come.

“Could you please arrange for a pastor to come?”

Some villagers asked the lord to do so.

However, if a pastor came, the burden on the village would increase.

“If monks and temples increase, the peasants will suffer.” This is a saying from the Edo period. It’s the same even if the world changes.

The pastor does not engage in any productive activities.

The village had been selling wheat to buy necessities. They endured eating rough black bread instead of delicious white bread.

White bread was only eaten once a year during festivals. Everyone worked hard, but they were poor.

If they invited a pastor, they would have to provide meals, but the poor village could not afford it.

Now, paper and lamp production are on track, and land reclamation in the desert is progressing, making the village richer.

Even if one or two pastors came, it would not be a burden. Nevertheless, the lord was reluctant to invite a pastor. However, the church side suddenly sent a pastor.

I couldn’t understand why Toriholi Village, which had been left alone until now, was suddenly targeted, and that too by order of the Orthodox Church in the capital.

I decided to use the network of village women to monitor the church’s movements.

“Cathy, I have a favor to ask,” I said as I went to the house next door.

“What is it? If it’s a request from Toma, I’ll agree without hesitation.”

“Recently, the village population has increased, and there are many unfamiliar faces.

So, it wouldn’t be surprising if suspicious individuals were wandering around.

Our defense隊 is also patrolling, but the number of people is small.

So, I’m counting on Cathy’s wide network to gather rumors in the village.

You don’t have to walk around for that. Just talk to the women as usual, and if anything unusual happens, remember it and tell me.

“Oh, that’s an easy task.”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s something like a baby is about to be born at someone’s house, or some strange guys were hanging around in an alley yesterday.

If I’m not here, you can tell Margarita.”

“Don’t worry, I meet with the women every day.

I’ll tell you immediately if anything happens.”

And the pastor who came was a tall, slender figure.

At first glance, he seemed nervous and difficult, but he responded casually when conversing.

He greeted every villager with a smile and quickly began to get along.

Naturally, he attracted the attention of Cathy and the others.

My daily life at that time was relatively peaceful. It was normal to do office work at the town hall after the morning military training.

The military training that started at the beginning lasted all morning. It had become quite familiar, and it was only done for a short time before work began, and then each member would take on their regular job.

I was in the garden before going to the morning training.

Last year, my daughter was born, and she’s been crying a lot at night lately, so I was looking at the garden to refresh myself from lack of sleep.

‘The cuteness of a sleeping child, the hateful face of a crying child.’ As the nursery rhyme says, raising children is hard.

I didn’t have children in my previous life, and now I’m experiencing it firsthand. I must have caused my parents this much trouble. I truly felt grateful to my parents.

“Toma, good morning.”

I was squatting down to look at the cute flowers blooming in the garden when I heard a voice from behind.

“Oh, Pastor, good morning. You’re early, do you need something?”

“No, as they say, ‘The early bird catches the worm.’ I don’t have any particular business, but walking around the village early in the morning makes me feel good.”

“Oh, is that so? I can barely walk around the garden, but you’re amazing, Pastor.”

“No, no, not at all. Toma, you must be tired from the military training.”

“Even if amateurs gather, nothing will come of it, but when I train, the villagers encourage me, so I can’t stop.”

I exchanged a few words with him.

“Oh. It seems my wife is calling me. Excuse me.”

I used my wife’s voice as a good excuse to quickly end the conversation.

Recently, the pastor had been talking to me more and more.

What on earth did he come to the village for? The church suddenly sent a pastor. I couldn’t help but think there was something behind it.

I somehow understood the purpose from Cathy’s information.

I had asked Cathy to watch the movements of the new residents of the village, and in particular, the villagers were highly interested in the pastor, and everyone was concerned about where he was and what he was doing. In other words, everyone was paying attention to where the pastor went. Whatever the pastor said or did was immediately conveyed to me.

The pastor appeared everywhere in the village, but his appearance rate was especially high around me. Of course, he was in the church, but I often saw him in places where I was, such as the town hall, the lord’s mansion, and the training grounds. The pastor was appearing as if he was following me.

“What, the pastor came to watch me?”

“That pastor is investigating me.”

I concluded that the pastor’s movements were aimed at that. I thought about the purpose. I can’t say for sure, but it means that the church has begun to take an interest in me.

Perhaps someone in the church suspected that I was a reincarnated person. I considered being more careful in my actions once again.

‘To the esteemed Chief Priest Hofa, who guides us.

I have come to Toriholi Village this time, and I immediately realized that this village is a special place.

Despite being a small village, the administrative processing at the town hall is well organized.

Those who have immigrated to the village submit documents stating their name, age, gender, previous address, and occupation. Of course, many people cannot write, but the officials write on their behalf.

After that, those who have a destination are accompanied by a guarantor and move to their workplace. Those who have not decided are placed in a temporary settlement, where their aptitude for a job is assessed, and then they are introduced to a workplace.

It seems that many farmers experience life in the model farm’s settlement and receive agricultural training for one year, after which they move into the desert reclamation area.

As a result, the village is developing without major confusion despite the rapid increase in population.

As a clergyman, I was able to reside in the church without being told anything.

I am grateful for Chief Priest Hofa’s assistance in this matter.

…’

The letter was still continuing, but Hofa was driven by the urge to tear it up.

“What are you writing so nonchalantly? The villagers are all kind and immediately accepted you? That’s not important.

You are welcomed wherever he goes as if he was waiting? Isn’t it natural for a new pastor to be disliked?

Did someone tell the villagers not to antagonize the pastor if they saw him? It’s as if they are monitoring the pastor.”

It seems that greetings are exchanged normally, but he has not been invited to a dinner party even once. He is only acquainted with Toma to the extent of exchanging greetings. From the contents of the letter, it could be seen that the pastor was being watched.

The relationship between Prince Charles and Toma was also a concern. However, it was fortunate that the prince was not interested in Toriholi Village. If he had noticed the existence of a reincarnated person, he would have stopped by that village. The fact that he still hasn’t gone there means that he hasn’t noticed his existence. It seems that they had met before, but he didn’t notice anything at that time.

“The pastor is getting too close to Toma. At this rate, Toma may become wary of the church.

Was it a mistake to send that guy? No, no matter who went, they would have gotten too close to him and been exposed.

For now, I have no choice but to look at the reports from that fool.”

So saying, he sighed.