Chapter 63 The Righteous
Spring is coming to an end.
Instead, the weather is getting hotter and hotter.
The inhabitants of Argos are dressing more and more lightly, neatly hiding their heavy, warm robes or fur coats under their beds, and changing into light, cool clothing, including sandals made of grass and hard leather...
Argos's stagnant economy, however, has been revitalized by reforms and alliances.
The cold winter has gradually passed.
As the weather gradually warmed up, and even in late spring and early summer, the capital's economy had already recovered to its previous prosperity...
After Ara became the head of the Hall of Heroes, a joint temple of Athens, Argos, and Memphis, this matter inevitably delayed him for a long time.
Although he doesn't need to handle most things personally, as a hero and messiah, he still needs to personally endorse many claims and the cornerstones of institutions...
So he stayed in Argos for several months.
During this time, he also discussed matters of faith with Dick...
"The Hall of Heroes, they recognize heroes and Yara."
"And the Temple, they want to acknowledge God and the Messiah..."
Ara and Dicttis walked together beside the temple that was being rebuilt.
Bare-chested, people carried bricks and stones under the scorching sun, painstakingly rebuilding the magnificent temple piece by piece, according to the instructions of the priests...
Most of these people were decent young men who had climbed up from the shantytowns to the downtown area. They had no bad habits and were hardworking.
However, due to some prejudices or other reasons...
They struggle to earn a stable income and live on the edge of poverty.
Although, due to institutional reforms, they will not fall into slavery.
But once they breathed clean air, they found it hard to accept being relegated to the lower classes of the shantytown...
As one of them, Dickies naturally took notice of this group of idle laborers.
So, the clever Dick used a work-for-relief approach, making these people the main force in building the temple. These people were struggling to make a living, so they naturally agreed and cheered for the king's wisdom, and excitedly joined the construction team.
"The Nine Commandments will be the biggest difference between the Holy Church and other faiths..."
Yara watched the buildings being built bit by bit and chatted with Dick...
"Mortals believe in the gods in order to obtain certain blessings from them..."
"But the Lord is not..."
"Because faith in the Lord is itself a gift."
Dick listened attentively to Yara's sermon, nodding solemnly.
It also records Yara's words and deeds at the same time...
The plan is to compile these into a book in the future...to become the core of the doctrines of the Catholic faith...
Just as the two finished inspecting the temple's reconstruction work and were about to head home—
Something that no one could have predicted happened...
The ropes of the huge rock that was suspended and about to be placed on the arcade suddenly snapped, causing it to lose weight and crash downwards.
The rock was huge, almost half the size of a carriage, enough to crush a person to death...
And coincidentally, a laborer was standing there dumbfounded below, seemingly terrified, watching the boulder fall until it was right in front of him.
He only realized it in a daze.
But it was too late; as soon as he lifted his leg...
The next moment, the boulder crashed down...
The entire construction site shook; the loud noise drew everyone's attention...
Everyone looked up...
They discovered that the man had been struck in the lower body by a boulder; bones were protruding from his flesh, blood was gushing out, and a gruesome wound ran down his abdomen, with even his writhing intestines faintly visible...
After a long pause, the laborers quickly put down their work, rushed over, and together lifted the boulder, trying to free the person trapped underneath...
However, after the boulder was moved aside and the man's horrific injuries were seen, everyone involuntarily took a few steps back, sighed deeply, and could only feel sorry for him...
"His leg is broken, and his intestines are sticking out. He's beyond saving."
"Zack is a good man. He never drinks or gambles... and he often helps his neighbors..."
"Last winter, Zack lent me a blanket and a lot of firewood, which helped me get through the winter... Later I found out that he himself was also short of firewood, and he was freezing during the coldest days of late winter..."
"Yeah, Zack fixes my roof and windows, and he never charges me..."
"The gods are truly blind... Why is fate so cruel to him?"
"Zack's life is tough. His wife died in childbirth, and he's left with a child..."
"He was the sole breadwinner for the family, but now he's going to die too..."
The injured man, named Zach, seemed to have a good reputation among the laborers.
The man struggled on the ground, his face contorted in pain.
But his struggles were to no avail...
No one can survive having both legs broken and their stomach ripped open...
The more Zack struggled, the more blood seeped from the wound on his lower limbs. He felt his body gradually growing colder and harder, but he gritted his teeth, tears streaming down his face...
He wanted to survive.
There are children at home...
If he dies...
What should I do about my child?
The cold wind rushed into his body, and fresh blood flowed from his entire body...
However, his fellow laborers were completely helpless...
Someone please save me...
Zach sank into despair, his consciousness fading, his limbs growing stiff and numb...
However, in the last moment before Zack's consciousness completely succumbed, he heard a voice—
"I'll do it."
...
When the laborer, Zach, opened his eyes from his coma...
However, the moment he opened his eyes—
He was stunned.
What came into view was a man's face...
And this face... he had seen it before...
Before he could even remember the person's name...
He suddenly realized that his injured legs and abdomen had inexplicably healed...
Was it all just a dream?
Zach was filled with doubt and unease.
He tentatively asked:
"This...this is..."
Then the man's loud voice came—
"I have healed your wounds..."
As he spoke, the man gently poured a bottle of something resembling wine into his hand...
Zach was stunned, his mind not yet fully clear.
Then, the man gently pressed his wine-stained fingers against his forehead—
One horizontal line, one vertical line.
Zach involuntarily closed his eyes.
He felt a cool sensation on his forehead, but after that coolness...
A strange, cool, spring-like energy slowly spread from his forehead...
A strange sense of relaxation, a strange sense of comfort...
It was as if every inch of skin and flesh, every inch of soul, had been cleansed.
When he opened his eyes again.
His mind cleared.
And Zach recognized the face of the person in front of him in an instant—
"Hero...Yara?!"
The majestic bronze statue standing in the square... the legendary hero who slew monsters...
How come he doesn't recognize him?
A strange emotion suddenly welled up in Zach's heart, as if something was stuck in his throat.
He wanted to cry...
The man before him smiled, a smile that didn't resemble that of a nobleman or a warrior at all...
Instead, he seemed like a kind farmer?
Compared to heroes...
I'd prefer you to call me—
"Messiah."
Tears were already streaming from Zach's eyes...
He knew that the Messiah must have saved him by using that unknown and precious divine water...
But...why?
"Messiah..."
"I'm just a laborer, a complete and utter inferior..."
"They are the lowest and most despised of all people..."
"Why did you save me again...?"
"They even went so far as to use that divine water?"
And just then, the sunlight shone upon the Messiah's head...
It was as if the light originated from him.
The sun and clouds seemed to be his servants...
Thus says the Messiah—
"I know your story; you are a righteous man..."
"God once told me—"
"Do justice, love mercy, and be humble..."
"Because of your righteousness..."
"I will save your flesh and redeem your soul..."
"I baptize you..."
"Make you my follower, that you may proclaim my righteousness..."
"So that the glory of God."
Beneath that unfinished temple...
Among the many laborers and the King of Argos—
That doomed Zach rose from the pool of blood.
Messiah, with that blood-red wine...
He was spared his inevitable death.
...