Chapter 41: Exchange Between Old and New Drivers
"Ooh ooh ooh ooh!!!"
Seeing their comrades restored to their original state within the divine wind, the Roman soldiers who witnessed this resurrection-like divine power cheered in unison. The deafening volume nearly shook the ground.
This continued for a long time, right up until they escorted Aisha to the church in the city of Lauriacum.
In this era, Christianity was already the state religion of Rome, widely embraced by the Roman people. Traditional Roman religion had worshipped the spirits of the hearth, the home, the tribe, and the city—gods that protected the collective interests of social and political groups. When Christianity spread from Palestine to Rome, this mystical sect aimed at solving individual suffering and fulfilling personal desires swept through the spiritual world of the Romans with irresistible force, having survived the peaceful decline of the 2nd century and the anarchic chaos of the 3rd century.
The Romans' interest in the present world gradually vanished, turning instead toward the afterlife. The elegance and worldly culture once prized by Roman aristocrats tended toward mysticism and the world beyond, becoming increasingly elusive. Strong dissatisfaction with the human world and intense spiritual longing achieved Christianity's victory in Rome.
The old gods were first abandoned in the Roman cities. Initially, the local provinces—especially the vast rural areas—maintained their faith in the old gods; the Latin word for "farmer" (paganus) was even derived into the term "pagan." But by the era Hikigaya now occupied, whether people lived in the cities or the villages, they had all become Christians.
The church in Lauriacum had become the residence for Aisha, the "Saint" in the eyes of the Romans. Architecturally, it didn't differ much from his memories, though it bore distinct marks of its era. The church where Aisha stayed still maintained the rectangular colonnaded hall style of Ancient Rome. The priests and bishops who were originally the celebrants and administrators of this church had all fled before Aisha arrived, leaving only low-level clergy. Now, these people spontaneously took on the task of serving the Campione.
Although Aisha did not need their service, it did not stop their enthusiasm, and Aisha was not someone who knew how to refuse others.
At Aisha's invitation, Hikigaya entered the church. After taking a moment to appreciate this late-Roman style building, he began to continue their previous conversation in the chapel.
"Does Mr. Hikigaya also enjoy traveling, like I do?"
"Does Madame mean traveling to different eras? Yes, I like history. Unfortunately, my power in this area isn't mature yet; it's far less convenient than Madame's. I need a medium to reach a destination with relative accuracy."
Hikigaya decided to keep addressing Aisha as "Madame." After all, they weren't very close yet, and being overly casual would be impolite. Furthermore, although her way of thinking was a bit problematic, Aisha was indeed a genuine "bleeding heart."
"Then Mr. Hikigaya is quite impressive, being able to choose where you want to go." Aisha didn't seem to notice the change in his form of address, but expressed envy toward Hikigaya's method of travel. It was clear she likely had a specific point in time she wanted to visit but never could.
"But a method where the journey can start at any time is also wonderful, isn't it? And unlike mine, Madame's passage is very stable, without any interference. Madame also mentioned liking travel, right?"
"That's true. I really dislike living in one place for a long time. For that reason, I treasure this Authority... however, what did Mr. Hikigaya mean by 'instability' and 'interference'?"
"Instability refers to the timing. If multiple people enter at the same time, they might appear at different times and locations. Interference happens occasionally; things might jump out, and they're hard to kill, but fortunately, they aren't very strong, so it's not a hindrance."
"In that case, although I haven't encountered the interference Mr. Hikigaya mentioned, the timing aspect is the same." Aisha first expressed a bit of surprise, then explained, "Although my Corridor sends travelers to the same location, the time cannot be synchronized."
"I see..." Hikigaya was somewhat disappointed. "It seems this isn't a problem that can be solved by controlling the Authority."
"Mr. Hikigaya shouldn't be so discouraged. Perhaps it's just because our experience is still shallow."
Regarding this attempt at playing the "naive newcomer" by an old hand like her, Hikigaya could only give a hollow laugh. He might be shallow, but Aisha was a veteran Campione who treated time travel like a daily routine. How could she not know the depth of her own experience?
"But Madame, walking through different eras, you must frequently encounter hostile locals, right?" Not wanting to dwell on the previous awkwardness, Hikigaya changed the subject. He felt this topic was practical; beautiful women in ancient times always triggered local security incidents.
"You don't need to worry about that, because I have an Authority to gain the favor of others."
"Do you mean that healing Authority from earlier?"
"That is a power I was forced to seize from the Spring Goddess, Persephone. While it can share life force with all things and heal wounds or illnesses, it isn't used for gaining favor."
Aisha waved her hand, looking quite embarrassed as she said, "The favor aspect is something I was forced to take from a Patron Saint of Catholicism. Fortunately, with this ability, I don't encounter strange things no matter which era I go to."
'No, you're encountering one right now. Your ancient colleague wants to drag you back to fill his harem.
By the way, the reason you think you haven't encountered 'strange things' is surely because a Campione is the very source of strange events, right?'
Considering that Aisha's self-perception was quite skewed, Hikigaya decided not to voice these thoughts and instead questioned the Authority.
"But for an Authority, isn't that too simple? Are there no other abilities?"
How could an ability taken from a deity, especially one from the Catholic system, be so "lazy"? Aisha's answer did not disappoint him, though her expression looked quite troubled.
"Well... about that..." she said hesitatingly. "Actually... if I'm not careful, I might accidentally make everyone's emotions run too high, to the point where they'd sacrifice their lives for me... Ah, I am controlling myself well! I definitely must prevent such things from happening!"
She made a nervous clenching gesture with her fist.
But... Hikigaya didn't believe a single word of that. Recalling the healing and the fanatical emotions of the Roman soldiers in the plaza...
'Control, my foot. This is clearly a mad cult already!
And it's a cult of religious fanatics with infinite HP and MP regeneration!
Terrifying, isn't it?! Incredibly useful, isn't it?!'
If Hikigaya had possessed such an Authority back then, he could have just summoned the people of "Yomi" and blasted them with it, saving himself a lot of trouble.
For the first time in his life, Hikigaya felt envious of someone else's Authority.
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