Gospel of Blood

Chapter 383: Charlotte's Doctrines

“So she was just confused and didn’t really intend to give up her title.”

In the Dark Night Castle, Charlotte ceased her “observation” of Eleanor and murmured to herself.

In retrospect, it was partly her responsibility. After the Borde-Castell War, it was her idea to control Borde through Count Gaston in the shadows, but she had neglected the feelings of the rightful lord.

However, now it seemed not to be a bad thing. Eleanor had already regained her spirit, and under the influence of the werewolves, she had become her follower. The Borde Duchy was now essentially a potential extension of her power.

Of course, achieving that step would still take time. Whether it was strengthening Eleanor’s faith or her control over Borde, it wouldn’t happen overnight.

But Charlotte saw a certain possibility.

A possibility of fully integrating Borde into her own forces.

However, she did not plan to reveal her true identity to Eleanor, at least not for now.

Only her core members could know her identity.

Speaking of which, Count Gaston was an exception, but given his status as a blood thrall, in a sense, he was a “core member” without human rights.

Leaving the Dark Night Cight, Charlotte returned to the real world.

After some thought, she summoned Sebastian once more.

“Great Master, what can Sebastian do for you?”

The red-haired elf butler smiled elegantly and respectfully. Charlotte looked at him, her expression unreadable.

“Sebastian, don’t you have something to say to me about my followers?”

Sebastian paused, thinking deeply.

“Master, what exactly do you mean? Are you referring to the Blood Wolf Tribe in the north?”

Charlotte gave no clear response and directly asked.

“Eleanor has indeed become my follower. Not only that, but her guide is Misha. Did you have anything to do with the way the demi-humans spread faith?”

Upon hearing Charlotte’s question, Sebastian realized and smiled, flattering her.

“Great Master, as expected of you!”

“Sebastian wanted to give you a surprise, but it seems you already figured it out.”

Charlotte: …

So it was him.

She glanced at him irritably and then asked.

“How did you come up with that method?”

Sebastian pondered and respectfully replied.

“Master, this is the current mainstream method for spreading faith. Since you also plan to propagate in the future, I thought it would be best to prepare early. After all, your identity as ‘Charlotte’ will eventually need to merge with the ‘True Ancestor.'”

He scratched his head.

“However, our doctrines and creeds are problematic. Your past followers didn’t actively promote faith, leaving a complete void, and the bloodborne’s spontaneous belief in you isn’t suitable for widespread propagation…”

Indeed!

Just looking at the texts, the historical True Ancestor of Blood treated bloodbornes as food, relying on bloodbornes for extraordinary power and naturally dismissing the need for believers.

A God who feeds on descendants would naturally have an intimidating doctrine shaped by such beliefs.

Charlotte secretly complained.

Sebastian continued.

“Gods never actively promote doctrines. Doctrines are mostly created by followers based on their understanding of the God. So… I’ve been thinking about how to perfect your doctrines and creeds.”

“I’ve read a lot of texts about your past, and I must admit, your past followers’ belief in you was too one-sided and biased, completely different from the you I know…”

“I believe this is partly due to the bloodbornes and the Holy Court’s malicious slander, and partly because your memories haven’t fully recovered. Additionally, you might not have cared about your followers’ beliefs.”

This was indeed a knowledge gap for Charlotte.

Although she had “time traveled” through history, that experience remained a mystery. She still couldn’t determine if it was real, and if so, what role she played in history.

She could only be sure that the brutal True Ancestor of Blood described wasn’t her.

As for whether the True Ancestor of Blood’s history was slandered…

Perhaps she might have thought so in the past, but not now.

She still remembered how terrified Yurst and Albrecht were when they saw her, like mice seeing a cat. That wasn’t just slander, that was genuine, deep-seated fear.

“Of course, every era has its moral standards. Maybe in that era, your style was simply a product of the time…”

“But now, since you intend to spread your faith in this era, I believe you should tailor your doctrines to the current needs and your path.”

“So… I think you can completely break with the past and shape a new faith for the great True Ancestor!”

“After all, your past slumber could be seen as a rebirth!”

Sebastian spoke passionately, clearly having thought deeply about this.

Listening to him, Charlotte’s thoughts stirred, and she fell into contemplation.

Sebastian was right. If she wanted to spread her faith, she needed a doctrine suitable for the times and herself.

She hadn’t considered this before, mainly because of her deep binding with the “True Ancestor of Blood”, which made her cautious.

But now, Sebastian had given her a new perspective.

If the past was unsuitable, then she could start anew and redesign everything.

This made sense.

After all, the “True Ancestor” had never valued faith in history. So, when the “True Ancestor” started preaching, it was only natural to reshape the doctrine.

For Charlotte, this was also an opportunity to sever ties with the past “True Ancestor of Blood.”

She was deeply bound to the “True Ancestor”, her fate intertwined. Now, her body and powers were almost entirely like the “True Ancestor.”

This powerful, easily obtained strength was addictive but also frightening.

After all, who knew if she was merely making a wedding dress for the “True Ancestor”?

Thus, Charlotte had to be cautious.

In this light, trying to establish her own mark and sever ties with the historical “True Ancestor” became very meaningful.

Although Gods in this world didn’t need faith to maintain their existence, they needed directed external forces to awaken from slumber.

When Charlotte changed people’s perception of the “True Ancestor”, directing all targeted information toward herself, even if the true “True Ancestor” existed and intended to return through her, it might not be possible.

Because Charlotte would have completely replaced it.

With this thought, Charlotte had a plan in mind. She nodded and praised.

“Well said.”

“Since you have this idea, go ahead. I do need a more suitable doctrine for preaching.”

Sebastian’s face flushed with excitement upon receiving Charlotte’s approval.

He took a deep breath and bowed respectfully to the girl.

“Great Master, rest assured, Sebastian will quickly come up with a doctrine that will satisfy you!”

After speaking, he hesitated and added.

“However… Master, Sebastian has a question related to your faith.”

Charlotte nodded.

“Go ahead.”

Sebas paused and asked.

“Master, what should be the core of your doctrine?”

The core…

Charlotte fell into deep thought.

A God’s doctrine must have a core. The core of Mithra, the God of Contracts, was contracts and justice. The core of Harald, the Creator God, was holiness and creation.

The core must be related to the God’s essential power, allowing the God to connect with believers and benefit from their growth.

So… what should her doctrine’s core be?

As the True Ancestor of Blood, the core would naturally be the Bloodborne, but that wasn’t enough.

For Charlotte, it was far from enough.

The Bloodborne element could be one of her faith’s tenets but not the only one, as she couldn’t limit her followers to just bloodbornes.

She needed something broader, more easily accepted, yet still maintaining a strong direction.

Charlotte’s thoughts raced, gradually forming a vague answer. After a moment of contemplation, she said, “Darkness and… order.”

“Darkness? Order?”

Sebastian’s mind stirred.

Charlotte nodded slightly and said,

“Bloodbornes are creatures of the dark. Darkness can symbolize bloodbornes. Additionally, darkness is the essence of the Myria extraordinary world.”

“The extraordinary world is dark, cruel, oppressive, and uncontrollable. Darkness is not evil but represents the other side of light, the irrational side of the world. Only by embracing darkness and understanding it can one control it…”

“Bloodbornes are strictly hierarchical and value order. Order can also be a tenet of faith.”

“The world cannot function without order. Controlling the darkness can bring a new order to a gradually chaotic world. With order, one can restrain the extraordinary, the strong, and the mundane, changing the world…”

“Darkness and order…”

Sebas pondered, then nodded in realization.

“I understand.”

He bowed respectfully to Charlotte.

“Great Master, I will draft a suitable doctrine with darkness and order as its core!”

Seeing his serious and eager expression, Charlotte nodded.

“Go ahead.”

…

After her conversation with Sebastian, Charlotte finally had a direction for her future faith efforts.

Now, it was up to Sebastian to implement it.

Unconsciously, another day had passed.

The time for the central meeting had finally arrived.