01x23 - Comrades

[bunniefuu]

It's unfortunate,
but you'll have to accept it.

When it comes to you
and the heretics you ex*cuted...

neither of you will be known to history.

Do you understand?

So, in the future,

even if a book that proposes
something like heliocentrism is published,

don't make a fuss.

It's pointless.

Antoni...

I may be ignorant,
but I know what this is.

You speak of faith,
but what you care about is money.

You've always been that way.

And you're the one who tempted him.

The end must be near
when even clergy are for sale.

How much did you offer?

Well...

I don't have
a particular cause to advocate.

We're all moving
toward the same destination.

I'm just trying to get there first.

To the coming age... of money.

Money.

You'd throw away God for that?

As long as it earns money, anything goes.

Do you really welcome such an age?

We witnessed the leader
of the Heretic Liberation Front

blow herself up with expl*sives.

Could you really watch that

and not find it tragic?

That expl*si*n is where
knowledge and technology lead.

Acts done in the name
of civilization or reason

could m*ssacre far more
than those done in the name of God.

Can't you see?

Where will we go when God no longer
provides us with the correct path?

If we lose God,

humankind can only wander.

Yes.

But...

"Surely, morality is something
you find when you're lost."

The leader spoke those words.

Even I don't think peace
is on the horizon.

Just as you said,

the next age may see scores of people die.

But the responsibility
for those deaths is not God's.

It's humanity's.

Sin and salvation will be replaced

by self-reflection and self-reliance.

The wisdom we gain from suffering

will one day enable us to wander.

We can pull
reckless civilization to a halt

and tame abnormal technology.

Your optimism is pathetic.

Yes.

But even so,

I remember what the mentor
who betrayed me once said.

"Think for yourself
in a world with no God."

I want to believe
that will open a path forward.

Plus, you're forgetting
the most important thing of all.

Surely...

Even if God disappears from society,

God can't be erased from humans' souls.

You're as childish as you look.

Careless, headstrong, and selfish.

A child not worth talking to.

Is that so?

In that case, we're done talking.

You did your duty.

But it is out of step with the times.

The winds have already shifted.

You have served well. Be at rest.

I doubt we'll meet again.

If you have any final words, I'll listen.

I don't want to believe it.

Huh?

To think I was right

to plan for the worst...

"Plan for the worst"?

What's going on? I smell alcohol.

You noticed?

I poured several bottles' worth outside.

I also soaked straw with it
and left it out there.

Huh?

What?!

You may be right
that the winds have shifted.

But what will happen

if we all die here tonight?

And what if this whole church
is burned by someone's hand?

And what if I left the following message
with the gatekeepers?

"I'm going to the church
to investigate a heretic."

"The suspect is a believer
in heliocentrism."

If that happens,

who will the citizens blame?

Huh?

Humans misunderstand, don't they?

They jump to conclusions.

Well?

Have the winds shifted again?

W-What have you done?

I had a bad feeling when I heard
a woman had gone to the church.

What would I do if heliocentrism
were somehow judged acceptable?

But even I didn't expect
to witness such a total reversal.

I'm glad I had a backup plan.

Now rumors will spread that
believers of heliocentrism are dangerous.

Do you really think your plan will work?

I'll never know if I don't try.

Are you going to k*ll me too?

To be honest, I don't care either way.

Even if you escape
and tell people the truth,

I doubt anyone will believe you.

But then again,

it would be safer to k*ll you here.

Hi there.

ORB: ON THE MOVEMENTS OF THE EARTH

EPISODE 23
COMRADES

Lord God,

is this some kind of revelation?

No.

Surely, I'm just an illusion

that your dying mind has conjured.

Oh, is that how it goes?

Yes, that's how it goes.

Anyway, long time no see.

How have things been since that day?

Awful.

Thanks to you.

I'm not the only one.

A whole slew of lives were ruined
by you and your stone chest.

That's a bit harsh.

I had a bright future
snuffed out by that too.

Right... I guess that's true.

But it was quite a joke in the end.

They say heliocentrism
isn't even blasphemy.

How could you not laugh?

Oh, that's right.

I kept this.

You can have it back.

I don't need it anymore.

No, it's fine.

Why?

I'm an illusion, so I can't receive it.

And besides,

it no longer belongs to me alone.

I see.

Damn it...

Who'd have thought
it would turn out like this?

What have I...

What have I done with my life?

It is what it is.

We each did what we could
under the circumstances.

Both of us.

You're wrong.

There's a big difference
between you and me.

We played different roles.

When I heard heliocentrism
isn't blasphemy, I finally realized it.

Something that had never
occurred to me before.

I'm...

I'm the villain of this story.

Damn it. How could I not see it?

Yes.

It's true that we were on opposing sides.

The world is full of all types of people.

Some are honest, and some are liars.

Some are pitiful, and some are brave.

And perhaps most surprising of all,

a single person can contain
all of those qualities within them.

They might change from day to day.

There are so many of us,

and yet no two are the same.

It's no wonder we never stop fighting.

But... despite that,

when the people of the past or future
gaze across the span of time,

they'll merely see us all
as people from the fifteenth century.

We found ourselves in this day and age,

though we may have been
better off in another.

That is a mere coincidence.

But it is also miraculous

and destined to be.

More than those born
with similar philosophies,

I feel much closer to those
who were born in the same era as me.

Though it may seem absurd,

and thought and feeling may deny it,
I'd like to believe this.

I feel that we,
who happened to live in this day and age,

even if we hated one another
enough to k*ll,

are comrades who built an era together.

"Comrades who built an era together"?

Are you trying

to reassure me?

Of course!

After all, I'm just an illusion
that you created.

Thanks.

But I can't accept your generosity.

After all,

I felt something toward you.

A feeling that I should never hold
for a heretic like yourself.

I pretended to forget it
and carried on with my life.

What was it?

Pain.

I felt pity seeing the choice you made.

"You mustn't choose death."

"You're too young to be k*lled by beliefs,
be they your own or those of others."

That's what I thought.

Is that so?

We do think differently then.

But I'll keep that in mind.

That may have been

the first and final chance God gave me.

But the feelings were a nuisance,
and I ignored them.

And so, it's beyond doubt.

I'm the villain.

Do you have anything else to say?

This building will probably collapse soon.

You'll die too.

You know things, right?

Then tell me.

It's my final request.

Did my daughter

make it to heaven?

Who knows?

I told you back then.

No one knows what happens after death.

Still, if you want that for her,

while you're still alive,

please do what's appropriate.

Finish what you started.

Now then, farewell.

Now I see.

You found something too.

Something worth

the risk of descending to hell.

Lord God...

Lord God...

My daughter's sins

all stemmed from my misunderstanding.

They're all my sins.

If heliocentrism does not defy your will...

Please...

Please.

Please accept her into heaven.

Into... heaven...

Damn it all.

That b*stard...

He didn't have to stab me.

I'm... gonna die.

Damn it.

I was wrong.

When I die, it all ends.

No God, no afterlife.

The money I earned,

the knowledge I gained,
and even the future I foresaw.

They were all a waste.

It ends for me

in a place like this.

What was my life...

even worth?

1468, URBAN DISTRICT
IN THE KINGDOM OF POLAND

Okay, everyone!

Please get in line!

This is my first time here,
but it's as popular as they say.

Why, thank you.

May I take your order?

Oh, are you his son?

Uh, no. I'm just someone in his care.

Oh? Where are you from then?

Um...

Sorry to keep you waiting!

The bread is ready!

Come and get it!

You worked hard again today.

You too, sir.

That reminds me, Albert.

I have something to tell you.

Do you mind?

I'll cut to the chase.

You can go to university!

Huh?

Surprised, eh?

But don't worry. Just listen!

As you know, we bakers
must sell bread at a price and weight

proportionate to the cost
of the wheat bought by the authorities.

You're a clever boy.

You can anticipate market changes
and make estimates.

Your numbers help me make
just enough bread at the perfect ratio.

Thanks to you, my shop is a great success!

You've distinguished yourself!

And that's why

I'm happy to pay your entire tuition!

Thank you very much.

However, I decline.

Huh?

Did I ever say

that I wanted to attend university?

Well, you're smart,

and you used to love to learn.

I have no use for academia.

It's meaningless.

No, worse. It's evil.

Curiosity swallows humans.

Research will always
turn into ambition and run amok.

It's best to avoid it.

It's true

that I don't understand
what you went through long ago.

I should have been more considerate.

Well, I appreciate the offer,

but I'd prefer to forget the past.

As long as I can make a living,
I'm satisfied.

I don't want anything else.

Wait a second!

If that's the case, why haven't you
thrown away your astrolabe?