Felghana

Slient Adjudicator

Overview

Once an orphan raised by the Church. She later entered the Inquisition and became the Chief Battle Nun, known as the "Mourning Bird."

Chapter One

(18058–18135, Era of Frost Veil)The nuns often say, "God loves all." "God loves all"—this phrase was, of course, no stranger to Felgana. Orphaned young and raised by the Church, Felgana was deeply familiar with the scriptures and teachings, as one's environment shapes them most. For over a thousand years, God's grace has guided all, with 123 generations of Popes receiving divine revelation. Born in the Holy Theocracy, Felgana grew up immersed in its religious atmosphere, learning much. Even if her life had taken a different path, she would have still been a devout believer, like any other citizen. But—clearly—she wasn't. She could honestly admit that she wasn't. It sounds a bit perplexing, doesn't it? Exactly. Until she left the Church for the Inquisition, Felgana was seen by the nuns as a quiet, diligent child who never missed a prayer and excelled both in scripture and combat. She was regarded as one of "God's most faithful followers." So, how could this be? If Felgana wasn't a devout believer, then how many others in the Church could be considered worthy of praise? If the emotions Felgana held weren't those of reverence for God, then what were they?...Actually, they weren't anything else. True to her nature, Felgana would likely answer—after a brief pause—"To live." Yes, she would answer that. If pressed further, Felgana would explain that she wasn't hiding anything. Perhaps she saw answering for herself as no different from answering for others, or maybe she lacked the drive to push further. Other reasons could exist as well. But the truth is, throughout her life, Felgana never forgot the disease that claimed the lives of so many, including her parents. In a way, perhaps the prayers to God spoken by the sick and dying were the first true memory Felgana had of this world—"God loves all." She noted them saying this, but she also noted that, in the end, not everyone who had said those words was still present in their original place in life. Had they done something wrong? Was it something as simple as secretly breaking off half a piece of bread? Had she done something right? Was it as simple as closing her eyes with her parents in front of an idol? Is the life or death of one person the same as God's constant grace or its withdrawal?...Felgana didn't think she could answer all these questions. Despite repeating "God loves all" over the years, Felgana always harbored a doubt, as if a mist lingered each morning when she opened her door. She knew God existed, but she couldn't grasp the mist or understand God, let alone anything more. Both God and the mist felt too ethereal, unlike hunger, exhaustion, drowsiness, and pain—real, tangible things in Felgana's experience. If you don't eat, you get hungry. If you don't drink, you get thirsty. Falling hurts, but treatment brings relief. People understand the world through experience, and Felgana was no different. When Felgana realized that she knew how to deal with these things, and that the same methods could help others who were troubled, she stopped thinking. Living in the Church was a pretty good life. She thought. Bishops, Cardinals... the Pope. She probably wouldn't understand God as they did, so she avoided thinking about it—work, rest, prayer, charity… Since the Church's founding, people had lived this monotonous routine, year after year, as if eternally. If this was eternal, it meant God approved. For someone who didn't understand God well, that was enough. With such simple thoughts, Felgana spent her first peaceful ten years in the Church. Due to her simple, unwavering approach, not long after, an invitation from the Inquisition arrived, accompanied by the nuns' birthday wishes on her 15 birthday. Felgana accepted it with calm acceptance. As for the "Inquisition"—the scriptures say that those who defy the will of God shall be judged and punished. As the name suggests, the Inquisition existed to carry out this very purpose. The Inquisition was harsher than the Church, but calling it a bloodthirsty execution ground would be an exaggeration; it was more like a thorn on a stem. After joining the Inquisition, Felgana saw it this way: only a firm grip pricked by thorns. The Inquisition's goal was clear—only the deserving faced its sharp edge. For ordinary people, there was no reason to be afraid or anxious... At least Felgana had never felt that fear or anxiety herself. So, from the Church to the Inquisition, in the end, it was just a shift in form—what one should do and could do remained the same. Felgana embraced her new identity as a Battle Nun and quickly adapted. Under her seniors' guidance, she completed her first mission with ease. Felgana felt no hatred, sympathy, or regret for those judged—it was like removing pests from a tree or fixing a broken clock. The pests gone, the tree would grow better; the gear replaced, the clock would keep more accurately. The logic was simple, and with simple emotions behind it, Felgana carried out her duties, believing in it. In the Church, Felgana imagined she'd seamlessly join the other nuns, like a cog in a clock, working together to drive the Church from dusk to dawn. Until the memorial hymn was sung for her, and day and night would mark her final journey. Now, in the Inquisition, Felgana had the same thought. But...This sentence clearly marked a major turning point: "Felgana, who do you think should be the next Pope?" "

Chapter Two

From her perspective?The Pope?Yes, it was an incredible thought. Felgana remembered the moment she was asked. It was a typical dusk—after finishing her practice and chores, she walked through the courtyard as the setting sun cast long shadows. Someone called her name. The Pope's age was no secret, known throughout the Church and beyond. Naturally, it was only to be expected that they speculated on who the new Pope would be—if, of course, they were really just "speculating." Felgana felt a strange, unfamiliar emotion flicker in their gaze, one she didn't quite recognize. That feeling soon became all too real, clearly laid bare in the days that followed. There was only one "Pope," and "Cardinal" was not. "What? Sorry, why did you ask this? As far as I know, the Pope is chosen to receive the divine oracle. During the election, the Holy Chalice—linking the Heavenly Realm to the Theocracy—shines with divine glory in the new Pope's hands, before all.""Oh, right, right… I completely forgot. You don't know yet." When Felgana later reflected on that conversation, she wondered if it was the moment everything changed—when she gained a new understanding. She'd never considered how her choices affected others. Raised with the belief in "God's love for all," she assumed everyone shared her perspective. But now, she realized—she had just said it, hadn't she? "She doesn't know yet." What was it that she didn't know? Was it the intentions of the different Cardinals? Was it the secret that the Holy Chalice hadn't shone with light in over a century? Or was it the truth that, for more than a hundred years, a mage has silently stood behind the Pope, head bowed? Felgana felt the world spin around her. Before this, she'd never seen herself as a devout believer. But in the days that followed, each new piece of information—taken from various "messengers"—left her reeling.Maybe it was a blessing she'd never seen herself as one of the faithful. Felgana later reflected on this with a bitter, almost self-deprecating thought. How else could she have processed it all? How could she ever have come to terms with it? With the fact that the gods had turned their gaze from the world for at least a century? Thank the gods, she was not one of them. Felgana quickly moved past her confusion. Simple logic and clear emotions propelled her forward, and the opposite was also true. Felgana couldn't let this truth go unnoticed. She knew she couldn't carry on as if nothing had changed, not with what she now understood. And she didn't believe she could erase a century of wrongs in an instant. So, she thought deeply and acted. Much like the Inquisition choosing the next Pope, Felgana took her time. In the process, she realized that people with differing views naturally drift apart, while those with shared beliefs are drawn together. In her fourth year with the Inquisition, as a secret message warned of the Pope's declining health, Felgana made her recommendation. The Inquisition officially chose who deserved their support: Es, the "Saintess" from the slums. Everyone who saw Es believed she was the one to bring hope to the Holy Theocracy. Talented yet humble, kind-hearted and devoted, she helped the sick, prayed unwaveringly, and lived among the poor as if sent by the Lord. Through the Inquisition's careful maneuvering, Es' influence grew stronger among the people. Within the Holy Theocracy, the call for the "Saintess" grew deafening, and Es became a figure both feared and resented by the other candidates. As planned, Felgana and her Inquisition allies watched over Es day and night, ensuring her safety until the election. Felgana clearly remembered that day. Surrounded by the crowd, Es moved toward the church, while a hidden mage prepared to stage a false Holy Chalice miracle. The distant noise grew like fog, a chorus of angry shouts from the Inquisition locked in the church's inner chambers, their frustration mounting with every moment. Felgana stood at the right side of the sacred path, weapon in hand, a silent warning to anyone considering defying the plan.. Everything was set. Then, the unexpected happened. As Es neared the end of the path to take the Holy Chalice and receive the divine oracle, Felgana noticed the mage who should have been chanting. Instead of words, the mage smiled twistedly—what should she do? Without the false glow, the spectators would be forced to confront...But just as everything seemed to unravel, and failure loomed over them, a miracle unfolded.The Holy Chalice, silent for a century, burst into radiant light the moment the girl known as the "Saintess" touched it. In that moment, the church fell silent, leaving only the sacred chimes echoing in the stillness. After a long pause, Felgana closed her eyes and, for the first time in years, joined the others in reverent prayer. In 18077 of the Era of Frost Veil, Estaria, the divine chosen, ascended as the 124th Pope of the Order of Jancis, ushering in a new chapter for the Holy Theocracy.

Chapter Three

In 18093 of the Era of Frost Veil, the Holy Theocracy marked the 16th year of Pope Estaria's reign.A long or short time, depending on your perspective. Stretched, it seemed long enough for much. But tightly held, achievements vanished, returning everything to before—or before there was even a "before." That year, the Rogue Squad entered the Abyss and uncovered the world-shaking "truth." The Divine Dragon is Jancis.Faced with this revelation, Felgana...Felgana didn't even know what to think. Sixteen years later, she saw the Holy Theocracy improve under the new pope. Walking familiar streets, she heard growing optimism about the future. She also remembered the moment the Holy Chalice, after a century of darkness, shone with light again—a true miracle, wasn't it? Then why...Why must it be this way? "Felgana, after I die, you must hide the Holy Chalice. Never let anyone find it." "Die? But..." But what? This was merely a prelude, but Felgana said nothing. She lowered her gaze, accepting her final task from the last pope: to hide the Holy Chalice. Later, when Felgana reflected on it, she couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. What could she have done? Sharp and intelligent, but lacking passion and the skill for complex matters. In 18094 of the Era of Frost Veil, Felgana, 36, saw the fields as beautiful and breathtaking as in her youth. But the Holy Theocracy, once a colossal power, had suddenly plummeted to the status of a third-rate nation—or perhaps worse than that. The consequences of this decline spread beyond political struggles. Having lost millions of pilgrims and foreign donations, this barren land was now suffocating beneath the weight of crushing debt. Rifts were evident from politics to the economy, with unrepairable fractures and complex relationships tearing the ancient nation apart. While Felgana hid the Holy Chalice, factions within the Holy Theocracy reached a fragile consensus and initiated a "reconstruction" movement for the kingdom. They chose two rulers one after another, but both reigns were brief—the first lasted only a year, and the second didn't even make it two months. An hour before the second ruler abdicated, the Inquisition urged him to continue resisting, but he refused to walk the bloody path. But in the end, it hardly mattered whether he accepted the bloodshed or not. Various factions emerged: land-hungry groups, proponents of self-governance, those seeking amnesty, conservatives advocating for Estaria's old policies, radicals pushing for reform, secularists aiming for a godless state, the Church of Divine Will versus the pro-alliance Evangelicals, isolationists within the Glorious Order, and those pushing to abolish the monarchy for a pure theocracy.All these factions, who once reluctantly allied, now found themselves unstoppable. Among them were those who did not hesitate to resort to violence. Felgana had always known this. And yet, the fact that she was stabbed in the back with a poisoned dagger while returning to the Inquisition after hiding the Holy Chalice still felt beyond belief. Many, including Felgana herself lying in bed, did not believe this was a premeditated murder. It was just… after this incident, many key figures started speaking out, without caring how their statements would irreparably damage their relationships. The only message this released was that war was inevitable. The Summer War began. Felgana lay in bed, waiting for death. More than one doctor came, looked at her, and confirmed she was about to die. But this wasn't the most desperate moment of Felgana's life. As someone on the edge of death, she had no resolve. She felt she had lived long enough, but fate had its own plans. Miraculously, she survived. The sunlight had been unusually bright that day. For the fact that she had lived, Felgana only thought that she shouldn't die on such a beautiful day. But that beauty vanished when she saw the hellish pit. Countless corpses lay in the bright sunlight, waiting to be thrown into the burning pit, thick with smoke. If the corpses weren't dealt with soon, disease would spread quickly. The war raged on, and the living had no time to bury the corpses, one by one. Instead, they focused on digging a massive pit and burning the corpses. Why they did this, Felgana almost understood, but also found it utterly incomprehensible. The soldiers were in such dire conditions, so it was easy to imagine what the landless farmers must have been enduring. Every day, countless farmers struggled on the brink of death, brewing crises and intense hatred. No one needed to provoke them—they could fight on their own. This ancient land was in unprecedented chaos, reminiscent to Felgana of the volcanic craters formed after the Storm of Sorrow. Like all born in the Holy Theocracy, Felgana carried a sense of fatalism, believing her survival meant she still had a purpose to fulfill. For the next four years, the Holy Theocracy, a volcano ready to erupt, became a stage for countless people to rise and fall. With their many radical, even extreme orders, civil wars flared up again and again. Often, before one battle died down, another began elsewhere. Felgana avoided discussions about whether the past had been good or bad. But in her eyes, these eleven civil wars had undeniably revealed a harsh truth.The Holy Theocracy's land was inseparable from the Church; without faith, it would cease to exist, leaving only Veyia, Neyham, and Helleron—no Holy Theocracy. And then, Felgana began to understand things clearly: 1. It wasn't about faith. She had tried to believe the Church's claim—that war could serve civilization's greater good, and in its chaos, humanity might find a solution to unite the world. But now, she believed war was senseless, its costs the heaviest, and its outcome meaningless. 2. The people she had crushed were more complex than she ever imagined. She had never considered before that cowardice and greatness, cruelty and kindness, hatred and love could exist together in the same heart without contradiction. In 18098 of the Era of Frost Veil, Chief Judge Green was assassinated by an unknown mage while discussing church raids in Neyham's countryside with a cardinal. This turned the Inquisition's trust in each successive cardinal into suspicion. During this time, assassinations and acts of vengeance between the factions continued to rise. The Inquisition, unable to find a trustworthy figure to back, had no idea whom to arrest or whom to set free. Then, after another intense civil war that nearly obliterated the entire city, the chaos within the Inquisition became uncontrollable—waiting for a rallying cry.As unrest spread, Felgana's position strengthened, and she seized the moment. She had learned that there was no such thing as eternal friendship, only eternal interests, and she no longer hesitated to use violence and betrayal. Felgana struck first, sparking the twelfth civil war of her life—the Two-Tone Rose War. The elite Cantrella Legion, stationed in Neyham, joined her cause. The "rebels" advanced through Neyham like a storm, seizing control of the region in a single day. The next day, the Church rallied its army and followers, turning its focus toward Felgana. They issued a decree: The Church no longer trusted any deceivers or traitors from outside. The Paladin Guards and the Red Knight Guards were ready, with General Felgana in position to restore order. The Church called upon all those willing to fight for the Holy Theocracy's revival. In response to the crisis, the Church's enemies quickly mobilized, rallying over 400,000 to Veyia to defend the new nation. The once fragmented Holy Theocracy began to recover, only to be swiftly cleaved in two. The anti-Church faction now controlled nearly all of Veyia and much of the land north of the River Rey in the Helleron Mountains. Meanwhile, the Church controlled Neyham, southern Helleron, and major cities like Dumring and Roman, splitting the anti-Church forces into two regions. The territories of both sides interlocked in a checkerboard pattern, leading to a deadlock. In the first clash, just six days of fighting resulted in over 30,000 deaths. Neither side was spared the costs of war. What was supposed to be a decisive battle turned into a cruel and drawn-out war of attrition. By the winter of 18099, Era of Frost Veil, both sides agreed to a temporary ceasefire, but within the anti-Church camp, a "civil war within the civil war" erupted. Meanwhile, the Church faced power struggles, but its turmoil was mild compared to the chaos on the anti-Church side. Before the protracted war reached its conclusion, Felgana knew that, no matter who was right or wrong, to control this nation, one must win a decisive, unquestionable military victory. And in the end, victory would always belong to the side that remained calm and composed. As predicted, despite the Holy Theocracy's view of justice, her wronged enemies failed, while she, though unjust, triumphed. The Cardinals sent Felgana a letter, thanking her for "everything she has done to secure the Church's victory." But the civil war was far from over.After a "great victory" that claimed 700,000 lives, the country was left divided, hateful, and in ashes. Felgana betrayed the Church, betrayed the Inquisition, and ignited the 13th civil war. This betrayal began with internal discussions within the Church on how to treat the army and soldiers after the war. After military training, farmer's children became soldiers, sent to battle with promises of land after the war, but ultimately received nothing. They could no longer return to their former lives as farmers. Their lives had been irrevocably split into two distinct parts by the war. Amid rising anti-war sentiment, Felgana and her supporters were labeled war criminals. In the midst of pain and despair, only the war hero—Felgana—answered the call. And they granted her supreme power over the nation. With the army backing her, the 13th civil war ended just two months after it began. As Felgana and her army marched into the city, people flooded in, bowing before her. The Church lost the Inquisition and its power, as the Holy Theocracy became a monarchy with church-state separation. "You can be the monarch now." "Please, hold the coronation." The army demanded. But only once her rule was firmly in place did she finally address their desire for a monarch. She would not take the throne herself—she would become the regent instead. Her goal was to trade the throne of the new Holy Theocracy for the alliance's sympathy. The response was cold: it wasn't enough. If she refused to become monarch and agreed to appoint the alliance's candidate, negotiations might continue. This was the most desperate moment in Felgana's life. She won the civil war, became the kingdom's most powerful figure, yet remained lost and uncertain, like a child, with no clear path. The civil wars drained the nation, leaving key questions unanswered and deepening divisions. How could the new Holy Theocracy survive? Felgana could not become the monarch, and the military grew more unstable by the day. Increasingly, officers felt it was time to replace this stubborn and outdated general. Her army was now dominated by a larger proportion of "noble" types. Having betrayed her own forces, only her homeland remained—one she had yet to betray. This was the most severe test of Felgana's rule. She must not be overthrown, and she must find a way to unite this fractured nation. From 18101 to 18111, Felgana survived fourteen assassination attempts. The Holy Theocracy suffered an unprecedented drought that lasted for centuries. She fought 19 civil wars while skillfully navigating the two major factions of the alliance, choosing sides and leveraging grievances to secure vital economic aid. At times, she shifted allegiances, declared neutrality, or supported one side with an exit strategy. Behind closed doors, the alliance dubbed her an "opportunist." Nearly every citizen of the Holy Theocracy despised Felgana, yet they could not do without the delicate balance she maintained among the various factions. This balance often evoked memories of the Holy Theocracy's past, as if time had been forcibly rewound. The 19 civil wars in the past decade reminded the Holy Theocracy's people that under Felgana, all were victims, none victors. They said Felgana had no love for the people. Felgana didn't care to respond to this. She had chosen what she believed was the best course for the Holy Theocracy. It may have served everyone's interests, but it satisfied no one. In the summer of 18115, just before the 33rd civil war, the Long-Legged Brotherhood, already in rebellion, laid down their arms, pledging to fight for peace. Felgana imprisoned the Brotherhood and their followers, inciting fierce public backlash. This effectively neutralized threats to Felgana's reign from within and beyond its borders. The tyrant had proven something through nineteen internal wars and a bloodless rebellion: Despite waning support, she would not be overthrown and would maintain an iron grip on the nation. "But time will not spare her. Just wait and see." "The Bloody Crown Felgana has only ten years left to live, at most." By 18135, Felgana's health had rapidly declined. She lay in bed, unable to rise. At this point, the self-sufficiency policy she had long championed, along with her reliance on skilled bureaucrats, had begun to show some results—barely. As the domestic situation stabilized and international conditions improved, those intending to end her suffering hesitated, fearing she might awaken. By the time of her death, the first monarch of the new Holy Theocracy, chosen by the Alliance, had already taken the throne. This monarch grew up under Felgana's reign, and though she had only heard of the monarch's many ideas and actions, she found them distasteful...."Remember… the Act of Forgetting and Silence…""Tell them that I only ask for them to agree to one thing, and the rest can go to hell." Now, the moment for her final judgment at the hands of fate had arrived. Staring at the ceiling, Felgana reflected on that lingering comment— Felgana did not love people. No one could love everyone forever. Human love had limits…She would not love those who sought to destroy the Holy Theocracy; her duty was to protect the living.She had no love for the dead and those still waging war against the country. But…Over the past 34 years, despite being relentlessly opposed by everyone around her, she had reluctantly changed. It was, in fact, the combined effort of Felgana and her adversaries that kept the Holy Theocracy stumbling forward. Without Felgana, her enemies would have certainly torn the Holy Theocracy apart; without their fierce resistance, she would have never changed. And so, she now admitted that they, too, were part of the Holy Theocracy. She prayed for their forgiveness. She also prayed for the forgiveness of fate, for this nation, because most of its people had been struggling simply to survive. In her last moments, Felgana hoped that everyone would embrace each other once again. In the autumn of 18135, Era of Frost Veil, Felgana, the Bloody Crown, passed away. Years after the Act of Forgetting and Silence, rumors spread of a black-market seller with a copy of her lost holy scripture, its edges yellowed but pages intact. A feather, likely from a bird, marked the forgotten book. It disappeared in an instant, lost to time.

Historical Notes

Holy Chalice: Once humanity's sole sacred artifact, the Holy Chalice was crucial in electing popes in the Old Holy Theocracy. It was lost after the death of Pope Estaria in 18093 of the Era of Frost Veil and now rests in the Sanctuary of Truth. The Act of Forgetting and Silence A legal decree by the New Holy Theocracy, forbids discussion of the losses and suffering caused by both factions during the civil war. The act denies the Felgana regime's legitimacy, banning commemoration of its activities (except for honoring victims) and granting citizenship to its persecuted and their descendants upon returning to the New Holy Theocracy. Once drafted, the act was swiftly enacted and remains in force to this day.