Paladin mentor Duke Grayson Shadonbrek said: "Indulgences are religious ritual items developed by our church, which can effectively atone for the sins of believers."
The Holy Light Church is very similar to Christianity on Earth. They both mention that there is original sin in life, so it seems that there is nothing wrong with the church preparing indulgences, right?
Michaela then asked: "But why do we need to charge?"
The person who answered him was Senior Pastor Lorena: "Because according to the research of the secular faction of our church, for believers, instead of using empty words to educate them, it is better to tell believers in the simplest way that faith is also There’s a price to pay.”
To speak human words is to spend money to buy faith.
After listening to the other party's jaw-dropping speech, Michaela, who was once again shocked deep in her soul, could only look at the other party with a stiff expression.
"Well, can I ask a question?" At this time, Melina the Succubus bravely stood up.
"sure."
Archbishop Benedictus nodded with a charitable smile and did not refuse because of Melina's identity as a demon.
Melina pointed at herself and asked: "I saw that many of the same kind come to the church. Don't you, the Divine Light Church, intend to deal with demons?"
Archbishop Benedictus smiled and said: "The Holy Light does represent light and justice, but the Holy Light also represents tolerance and fraternity, so we secularists believe that the Holy Light should bless all races, including demons. The premise is that they know how to believe price."
"Do you understand the price of faith?" Melina seemed to understand something and looked at the other party with surprised eyes.
"etc."
Michaela, who came back to her senses, seemed to have caught Hua Dian blindly, and asked: "Archbishop, what is the secular faction you have been talking about just now? Are there many factions in the church?"
Archbishop Benedictus smiled and said: "I don't know, Ambassador Michaela seems to have his own views on religion. As an archbishop, I am also willing to provide you with religious answers."
"In the Church of Holy Light, there used to be only the Faith sect, including me, Duke Grayson Shadunbrak and High Priest Laurenna. They were all members of the Faith sect. But as time goes by, we feel more and more about the Faith sect. Due to the shortcomings of the sect, the traditional method of using doctrines to influence believers has gradually failed to keep up with the times, so we have changed."
"Today we no longer believe in the teachings of the Holy Light, but embrace the secular world and use the simplest means to let people gain faith. This is also the origin of the secular faction. Because of our changes, the church has become more and more important in these changing years. Strong, I’m very proud of it and it’s all worth it.”
After listening to the above-mentioned high-sounding words, Michaela's soul was deeply shocked again, and it was also a critical blow.
The state religion of the Kingdom of Storm, the Archbishop of the Holy Light Church, actually gave up the teachings of the Holy Light and began to practice secularism, which meant making money. The so-called secularists are actually unbelievers who no longer believe in religion.
An irreligious archbishop, well, awesome!
This is not over yet.
"Your Majesty the Duke, Your Majesty the High Priest."
At this time, a church servant walked into the room and said, "It's time to teach."
Paladin mentor Grayson Duke Shadongbrick and senior priest Lorena both turned to look at Archbishop Benedictus, who nodded in agreement before the two left.
"Sorry, Ambassador Michaela."
Archbishop Benedictus explained: “Our church is also very busy at ordinary times.”
Very busy?
Are you busy collecting money?
On the bright side, Michaela still asked politely: "Can I know what the two of them are going to do?"
"They are going to teach adventurers who know how to believe."
Archbishop Benedictus told Michaela: "In addition to the business of selling indulgences, our church has also opened courses for civilians to train paladins and priests. As long as those people pay the price of faith, we will Teach them the ways of the Light.”
Protruding!
No wonder it’s so expensive for players to learn skills from trainers in the game “World of Warcraft”. Here’s why!
Michaela then asked: "How much does a course like this cost per semester?"
"Ambassador, you are mistaken."
Archbishop Benedictus told the other party: "We charge according to skills. We only teach one skill or spell at a time, and the teaching is guaranteed."
When Michaela heard this, she immediately widened her eyes and asked, "Are there levels for the same skill?"
"yes."
Archbishop Benedictus nodded: "We charge based on level. The higher the skill level, the more the fee will be."
Charging according to skill level is too honest!
In fact, as a veteran player of Warcraft in her previous life, Michaela knew that Archbishop Benedictus would later betray the Holy Light and convert to the forces of the ancient gods. Who would have thought that this guy didn't believe in the Holy Light for a long time? No wonder he defected immediately when the ancient god came to trick him, without any psychological barriers at all!
Also because even the top leaders of the church no longer believe in religion, the sacred attributes of the church itself have been greatly reduced. No wonder even demons can come in and out freely without any influence...
The visit ended like this, and Michaela walked out of the Cathedral of Light. Looking back at this building that represents mankind's faith in light, Michaela had mixed feelings in her heart:
“Spending money to buy faith is really eye-opening!”
Tessa immediately came up and said, "How about it, now you know how great Stormwind City is!"
Haha, there are no patients and doctors, only civilian hospitals and unbelieving archbishops in the church. What else is there to say!
"It's just that I still don't understand."
Michaela, who was walking on the street, expressed her doubts: "Mrs. Luo Jie from the hospital mentioned that the Kingdom's funding was insufficient, and at the same time, the church was also using its own methods to make money. Is it really the financial situation of the Kingdom of Stormwind? Already?"
"Oh, you've asked the right person about this."
Tessa has been sneaking into Stormwind City for many years and does know a lot of things: "Stormwind City's financial problems can be traced back to the First Orc War."
After the orcs passed through the Dark Portal and launched an attack on the Kingdom of Stormwind, King Llane, the leader of the kingdom at the time, issued a batch of public bonds worth five million gold coins in order to raise funds for the war, known as the Llane Bonds in history.
"Michaela, do you know what public debt is?" Tessa asked.
"Of course I do, I'm not a financial idiot."
Mikayla replied: "Government bonds are also a type of bond, with a face value, maturity time and annualized yield."
"Well, that's good, I don't have to waste my time explaining it to you."
Tessa nodded and continued: "That batch of public bonds is the beginning of everything."
Issuing public bonds to raise funds is one of the country's normal financial methods, and there is no problem in the first place. But the key is that the first Orc War resulted in the death of King Ryan and the destruction of the Kingdom of Stormwind, which directly resulted in the batch of public debts being unable to be redeemed because the debtors disappeared, and they all turned into waste paper.
However, someone saw an opportunity in it, and that was none other than Levigaz, the boss of the goblin conglomerate in Booty Bay.
Goblins are strange humanoid creatures with green skin, long ears, pointed noses, and a height comparable to that of a dwarf. They are naturally sensitive to money, so among the goblin forces, countless wealthy plutocrats were born, including the big boss Riverega. This is one of them.
Although the Kingdom of Stormwind perished in the First Orc War, Levigaz saw further. He knew that humans had not fallen. There was a powerful human kingdom in the north of the Eastern Continent, and they would definitely take revenge on the orcs. !
As a result, Rivergaz secretly ate up all the Lane bonds at the price of waste paper, and then quietly waited for the opportunity.
Soon, time came to the Second Orc War.
Everything was as Rivergaz expected. The humans counterattacked successfully, the orcs were defeated, the Kingdom of Stormwind was restored, and Varian Wrynn, the son of King Llane, was crowned king.
Rivergaz, who had been waiting for a long time, immediately slapped all the Ryan bonds on the head of the new king Varian, demanding that all of them be cashed in with interest.
"Wow!"
Michaela couldn't help but sigh: "The public bonds collected at the price of scrap paper are redeemed according to the face price and interest rate. Isn't this a waste of money! Rivera is so ruthless."
But the succubus Melina didn't understand: "Why didn't Varian choose to default on the debt?"
Sorry, no.
At that time, Varian had been crowned king, and his actions directly represented the entire Kingdom of Stormwind. In other words, if King Varian chooses to default on his debt, it will seriously damage the credibility of the new Kingdom of Stormwind.
Just imagine, are you willing to be loyal to a king who defaults on his debts? There was no other way, Varian could only grit his teeth and admit it.
Michaela, who had had similar experiences, immediately asked: "Wait a minute, did Stormwind City have that much money to pay off its debts at that time?"
As soon as the words came out, Michaela reacted and spoke again: "Could it be that Varian started issuing public bonds like his father?"
Tessa nodded and said, "Of course, does he have a choice?"
The cost of rebuilding the Kingdom of Stormwind can be imagined. After being robbed by the goblins, Varian's funds have shrunk significantly. It is not enough to rebuild the country. He can only continue to issue public bonds to raise funds, known as Varian Bonds in history.
Obviously, this is a way to quench thirst by drinking poison, and it is destined to not last long.
"Because the human nations are not united." Tessa said.
Since the birth of the Seven Kingdoms of Humanity, the Kingdom of Stormwind in the south and the Kingdom of Lordaeron in the north have long stood side by side, vying for leadership among the kingdoms. Now that the restored Kingdom of Stormwind has triggered a financial crisis and forced King Varian to issue massive public debt, then why would the Kingdom of Lordaeron on the other side not intervene?
"As a result, the then King of Lordaeron, Terenas (Arthas' father), immediately took action to 'distribute wealth' and purchased a large amount of Varian public bonds, becoming the largest creditor of the Kingdom of Stormwind in one fell swoop."
At this point, Tessa, who had already crossed the bridge to the trade area, turned to look at Mikaela and asked deliberately: "Mikaela, do you think King Terenas is a good person?"
What a good person you are!
Michaela rolled her eyes and said, "I think Terenas wants to use this debt to take advantage of the Kingdom of Stormwind!"
"That's right!"
With a smile on her face, Tessa continued: "Soon, the Kingdom of Lordaeron became the largest creditor of the Kingdom of Stormwind. This huge debt also became the most powerful weapon in the hands of King Terenas, suppressing the Kingdom of Stormwind and causing the Kingdom of Lordaeron to be suppressed. The Menethil dynasty of Danron became the leader of all human kingdoms until the Scourge War.”
Michaela understands, as long as the public debt is still in the hands of the Kingdom of Lordaeron, the Kingdom of Stormwind will never be able to turn over...
Um!
Suddenly, Michaela felt sight, as if someone was watching her.
"who……"
