“···.”
“···.”
“···Lord Nemo?”
“Elinor.”
Elinor Dare dared to ask a question.
“I cannot··· I cannot understand. I do not know what it means to act for the sake of people, to act for the sake of humanity.”
“···.”
“Please speak more for us, the ignorant. I cannot know··· uh···”
“In the very act of asking a question.”
Nemo placed his hand upon her head.
“Do not harbor fear.”
“···.”
“The desire to know is the greatest part of your soul. To be ashamed of ignorance and to thirst for knowledge is the greatest mindset you can possibly hold.”
“···If that is so, please tell us.”
At those words, Nemo slowly looked about and spoke.
“The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. (John 1:9) Yet to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:12)
Do you understand? The Lord shines that light upon all living beings. He who came as the Light has become the light of all people, dwelling eternally together with them in their hearts.
The Lord who came as the Light dwells in the heart of every person; nurture that light within you and be saved.
Are you not equal children of the Lord, created when the Lord himself breathed the breath of life into the dust?
Follow the conscience given to you by the Lord.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
The hand of Hewet, who held a pen, trembled.
Everyone fell silent.
The Lord dwells in all their hearts. Be saved by that Lord. Follow your conscience.
This was not merely a pleasing sermon to hear. This was···
A new doctrine.
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
“Truly, the Lord is merciful. Care for the whole of humanity and be made in the likeness of angels. At the time of resurrection, you shall be like the angels in heaven. (Matthew 22:30)
Feed them to fullness so they do not steal from others in starvation; give them love so they do not kill people. That is what it truly means to keep the commandments.”
At the angel’s words, everyone fell silent.
His words were not merely benevolent.
His words were a sharp sword.
Everyone felt it.
A story completely different from anything Nemo had spoken of until now was unfolding.
He, who had simply spoken of loving one another and repenting, was now clearly arguing the Church’s doctrines.
They were now··· standing at a crossroads.
This was Nemo’s will.
They also believed this to be the Lord’s will.
No one could have imagined that this had come from the *Korean Christian Denominations Dictionary* (1997 edition) left behind by Nemo’s “father.”
Moreover, there was a reason Nemo had chosen such a doctrine.
If he vaguely glossed things over with maxims such as “follow each person’s conscience,” without clear doctrine, he would be able to reduce doctrinal conflict within the denomination.
If conflict and debate arose over doctrine, and if questions and answers accumulated among the believers regarding “what then is an angel?” and “how ought an angel to act?”···
That would soon fly straight at Nemo, becoming arrows and shackles whole and undiminished.
Thus, while preventing doctrinal conflict, he emphasized social practice and emphasized inquiry into ignorance, creating an outlet for passion to burst forth in another direction.
In another direction, especially so that the arrows would not turn back toward Nemo himself.
Therefore, this doctrine was for Nemo’s own freedom and safety.
“I, I··· then did you say to care for the whole of humanity?”
“I did. That is the Lord’s will.”
This time, Manteo asked.
“But··· from what I have heard, the Lord is a jealous God. It is said that he punishes those who serve other gods.”
“···.”
“And beyond the east of this land called Europe, there are truly many who serve other gods or worship the same God in different ways. Whom among them must we care for, and whom must we abandon···”
“The Lord.”
Cutting off Manteo’s words, Nemo spoke. The sun shone brilliantly behind him.
“Abandons not a single one.”
“···Ah!”
“He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth. (Acts 17:26)
How can you divide Catholic from Anglican, or Englishman from Frenchman from Algonquin?
You must act only for all the people of the Lord.”
This doctrine was likewise the same.
The fewer doctrinal conflicts between factions within the denomination, the freer Nemo became.
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
Regardless of the inner circumstances, everyone fell silent upon hearing this shocking story.
Hewet’s hand stopped. White’s mouth recited the Lord’s Prayer. Gonzales’s hands folded together piously.
All of them were meeting this wondrous moment with half their bodies trembling.
Original sin, justification by faith, priesthood of all believers, and so on.
From the outside, they seemed like hollow doctrinal disputes.
But that “trivial” argument over how many angels could sit on the point of a needle, or whether ordinary believers should be allowed to drink the wine in the Holy Communion, in fact decided everything.
For the Church, doctrine is like a skeleton. From doctrine extends the Church’s system, and from doctrine extends the Church’s worldview.
And now, that very doctrine was being revealed.
Those such as Hewet and Raleigh could quickly guess in their heads what kind of church would be established.
An egalitarian, democratic, and free church.
Precisely because of that, in ordinary circumstances it was a church that might lack a centripetal force, a church whose believers could scatter and lose strength at any moment.
A church where egalitarianism could become lawlessness, democracy could become disorder, and freedom could become indulgence.
However.
They had an immortal angel as their centripetal force.
This church would neither fall into corruption nor disappear.
—“Follow the conscience given to you by the Lord.”
This light was not a powerless firefly, but a flame that would set the world ablaze.
The Lord had once again delivered a new commandment to them.
Humanity.
Devotion.
They were now burdened with the duty to spread this word to the four corners of the world, like the apostles upon whom the Holy Spirit had descended.
They had been chosen for that holy duty.
For this, the angel had descended to Croatoan, a remote corner of the world.
For this, the angel had saved thirty English people and the Spanish army.
For this, the angel had converted Walter Raleigh and revealed miracles before countless people.
Elinor Dare, Thomas Hewet, Manteo, Vicente Gonzales, John White, Walter Raleigh.
These six.
Exactly half of the Lord’s twelve apostles.
Walter Raleigh, feeling ecstasy at that fact, shed tears··· then···
“···Huh?”
“Walter Raleigh, what is it?”
“No, I, that is···”
He suddenly thought of something.
He began to squirm and sweat cold drops profusely. While everyone looked puzzled, Walter Raleigh squeezed his eyes shut and asked the angel.
“Th-this is a trivial question. I am truly ashamed to dare utter such a worthless and childish question at this moving and holy moment, but···”
“Just speak.”
“Th-that··· uh···”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
Thomas Harriot.
Why did he plant this curiosity in my heart, only to let it smolder and grow at such an important moment?
Walter Raleigh thought this to himself, squeezed his eyes shut once more, and cried out,
“Are Adam and Eve not the ancestors of humanity?”
“Hmm.”
“And, th-that! Among Adam and Eve’s descendants, Cain, Abel, and Seth—do not these three appear in the Bible!”
“Indeed.”
“How did they have children!”
“···.”
“···Uh, so then, was it, was it incest? Or were there other created humans not spoken of in the Bible?
If the former is correct, then humanity inevitably committed a sin, so are they all not sinners··· No, would it not mean the Lord pushed humanity onto the path of sinners···.
If the latter is correct, then why do those who did not even eat the forbidden fruit bear original sin···.”
When Walter Raleigh carefully finished speaking, the angel smiled faintly.
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
Immediately, the surroundings fell silent.
The others sent Raleigh blaming gazes, asking why he would pose such a question now, yet having grown curious themselves, they all pricked up their ears and focused their attention on the angel’s lips.
‘···Why?’
‘Come to think of it, that’s true?’
‘Now that I think about it, who did Cain marry? His sister?’
‘It is said Adam lived nine hundred and thirty years, so it seems likely he had children not mentioned in the Bible.’
‘Was incest not a sin in the beginning?’
Thus, in the hall now filled with impious curiosity, before long the angel’s voice rang out.
“You··· are foolish.”
“···Pardon?”
Sir Raleigh opened his eyes wide at the sudden words and looked up at the angel.
There was not much change in his expression, but a peculiar disappointment was laced in his voice.
“I had thought you clever; how is it that you disturb the Lord’s holy and quiet time with such wordplay?”
“···I am deeply ashamed.”
“There is nothing so difficult as returning a meaningful answer to a meaningless question.
However.”
The angel grinned.
“I have a story to tell you.”
“Wh-whatever it is, please speak. My ears are open to you!”
“Do you truly believe that the Lord created the world in seven days?”
“···Pardon?”
At the completely unexpected question, Raleigh was suddenly at a loss for words. The others too trembled, as if their minds had gone blank at the angel’s words.
Just now, the angel, with the angel’s own mouth, had denied Genesis Chapter One.
“N-no··· then··· then what of the Sabbath···”
“You.”
Cutting off Raleigh’s words, Nemo’s holy voice resounded.
“Do you know by what means there is day and night?”
“···They exist by means of the sun and the moon.”
“Indeed. Then on what day did the Lord create the sun and the moon?”
“It was on the fourth day, after God brought forth light, divided the heavens and the seas, and created vegetation and fruit··· Huh?”
“You. How did you count the fourth day?”
“···Ah.”
This was the teaching of Origen, the Church Father of the third century.
“The Word is infinite, yet human speech and writing are finite. The Word is infinite, yet the human intellect and hand that transcribe it are finite.
Holy Scripture is of course a gathering of the Word, yet the Word is infinite and cannot be fully contained in finite things. Therefore, there are so many metaphors in Holy Scripture.”
Ah.
“As you read Scripture, revere it, yet do not cling to each and every letter and stray far from the Word. He who is obsessed with the letter is he who worships the letter as an idol.”
“Ho-how dare I have tried to confine the Lord’s will to the letter; my sin is great!”
“If you have realized, that is enough. Then···”
“···But I do not well understand how this connects to the question of whether there were people other than Adam and Eve. This too is due to my ignorance; please have mercy on me.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
Raleigh slightly raised his head, which had been bowed tightly, and looked up at Nemo.
Then, for the first time, a troubled light rose upon his face.
Nemo remained silent for a long while. So much time passed that everyone gradually became conscious of the sound of waves and their uncomfortably kneeling posture.
Then, finally, Nemo opened his mouth.
“···A faithful man’s question pleases the Lord.
When the Lord received Peter, James, and Thomas, what did He say to them?
He is the King of all people and the King of all things. Yet when He descended to this earth, when He gathered people, what did He call them?
Did He call those who followed Him servants?”
“N-no.”
“Then what did He call them?”
“···He called them disciples.”
“Your words are indeed correct.”
Nemo’s voice was solemn, yet his smile remained gentle. In that smile was the majesty of a great king, and also the kindness of a mother.
“A disciple is one who learns and asks questions. The Son of Man received not servants but disciples; is this not proof that He desired people to ask questions?”
“Ah, aah!”
“Ask. Then I shall answer. Seek and seek. Strive to know, and be enlightened.
Ask.
This is the second commandment I give unto you.”
“···Ah! How truly foolish I was···”
“Therefore, I shall now give you an answer.”
Lollie, who had been momentarily overcome with emotion, briefly forgot what question he had asked before barely recalling it.
Ah, that was it.
He had asked how the children of Adam and Eve had multiplied.
Was humanity the product of incest?
Or had there been another humanity?
If the former, had incest not been a sin in the beginning?
If the latter, why had original sin been passed down?
Nemo answered.
“···Have you seen that moment of the beginning, nay, a past so distant that no one could remember it?”
“···.”
“A time when living things and minerals were still difficult to distinguish, when the divisions among all other living things were faint···
Have you seen the time when the father of the monkey and the father of man were the same?”
“Monkeys and humans··· what?”
“It is so.”
“Aah··· what?”
“It is so.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···This universe is far older than you think. Between this heaven and earth, there exists far more than your philosophy has imagined.
Rejoice in that truth. Rejoice that there is still much more to discover than what you have learned until now. Praise the Lord, who is more eternal than those eons.”
“···What? Uh, u-uh, yes?”
“Therefore, do not be obsessed with the story of Adam and Eve. Keep only the meaning of the sins and pride they committed, and of the great love the Lord bestowed.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
Faced with such shocking words, no one dared speak further.
“···By this, you shall gain wisdom.”
Nemo continued speaking before the devotees, who were completely devastated.
“Within scripture there are words of truth, yet scripture is not the Word itself. The Word is infinite, and scripture is of man; therefore, you must always seek.
Seek and ask for the knowledge of the Word laid across this entire world created by the Lord, and of His will! Illuminate ignorance!”
“···Ah, amen.”
Eleanor, having dazedly imagined people crawling about in trees like monkeys, added blankly. Nemo nodded toward her.
And then.
“Ah, aah···!”
Vicente sprang to his feet and strode toward the rear. Everyone was startled and bewildered, but Vicente’s footsteps did not stop.
The man from Spain said.
“Come out now. I know all that is there.”
“···.”
Crack.
A man who had been hiding behind a tree trunk slowly rose and came forth, then knelt before Nemo and the apostles.
“I-I am sorry. I-I could not bear my curiosity, and so in the end···”
“···.”
“I-I am called Francis Bacon.
Thank you··· for s-saving me. I shall never forget that grace. I wished so much to see you again···.”
At those words, Nemo walked through the people and arrived before Bacon. Francis Bacon still trembled in fear.
Trembling all over, he repeated things like, “The Lord truly exists. Truly, truly···!”
“It is alright.”
“···.”
“You have the look of one who wishes to ask something.”
“···What? No, th-that is··· there is something I am curious about···!”
Bacon asked, half-sobbing while on his knees.
“Why, why··· did you save me? Am I not one of those responsible for your assassination?”
Nemo approached him and whispered.
“···Do not seek a reason for one person saving another.”
Bacon’s eyes opened wide.
He bowed his head and trembled many times.
“Th-thank···”
A certain man who approached Bacon’s side held him up as he was about to collapse, sobbing. Looking at that man, Nemo asked again.
“Who··· are you?”
“Yes? I am merely an actor. I came here for sightseeing, hoping to gain inspiration as well, and the physician here suggested it, so I came···.”
“An actor? Are you not a playwright?”
“H-how did you···?”
“Because I have seen your portrait.”
Nemo, who had seemed to see a somewhat familiar face, finally smiled and nodded as he spoke.
“Then, Mr. Shakespeare, please take good care of Mr. Bacon.”
Shakespeare, who had never expected to hear his name from an angel, trembled slightly for a moment, then nodded blankly.
“You are the light of humanity.”
“···.”
“···.”
“···.”
“Fulfill your duty.”
They offered up prayers to the angel.
Hewett finished recording everything.
A new gospel is written.