01x20 - I Love Heliocentrism

[bunniefuu]

Take this to the next point.

It includes Draka's recollection
of the manuscript, type,

punches, matrices, and hand molds.

With those, you can recreate
any letters that break.

What about the book's contents?

Was she lying?

No, I believe her.

In that case,

the girl has served her purpose.

Shall we dispose of her?

Right.

I thought of that too,

but I promised
to loan her the printing press.

Is that safe?

We only just met her.
We don't know her background.

People like her deserve a chance.

Support doesn't come easily for them.

Is that so?

Also, regarding the organization's future...

I leave it to you.

This is as far as I go.

You're really willing
to do all that for this book?

Yes.

Enabling this book...

No, enabling books
of all kinds to be published

is what I've dreamed of.

ORB: ON THE MOVEMENTS OF THE EARTH

Nowak!

EPISODE 20
I LOVE HELIOCENTRISM

We did it!

I asked local craftsmen

and gained information
on a suspicious barn where--

Muster some troops.

It's time to settle things.

Oh!

- Here you go!
- Huh?

Frei picked up supplies from town.

Make sure to savor it.

Th-Thanks.

- If I may...
- Huh?

Why have you thrown away your life
and your place in heaven

to do all of this?

Death.

I do it so I can accept death.

I had a younger sister once.

At age ten or so,
she collapsed from disease.

Well, I suppose
everyone's got a story like that.

At the end of her young life,
she managed some final words.

They were very brief.

A quiet, ultimate question.

"Why was I born?"

Here's what I thought.

It's on God's behalf.

It was so she could ascend to heaven.

If humans die, why are they born?

God and religion exist
to answer that question.

But I couldn't say it,

and she died before I could say anything.

Ever since that day,
I've thought about what I would need

to confidently say it's on God's behalf.

What I do now
is the end result of those thoughts.

At the very least, it's not God
who persecutes the heretics.

It's humans.

If no one else is gonna say it, I will.

If I don't, I'll never be able to tell
my sister that it's on behalf of God.

I won't say this in front of the captain,
but religion is important.

Without religion,

humans could never be this strong.

Even in some far-off place,

there is someone else
who believes in the same God.

That alone is great moral support.

But even so,

a long time has passed
since the Church was founded.

It's inevitable that rot sets in.

More and more contradictions emerge,

and you can hear the gears
of change grinding everywhere.

We're surely living
in a period of transition.

That's why I've tried
to find my mission in life

and carry it out.

I have faith that doing this
will allow me to accept my sister's death.

I don't want to shirk death.

I want to affirm it.

That is my life's theme.

- Oh? Perfect timing.
- Huh?

You know, I'm surprised
you use machines like this.

Don't you despise technology?

Of course!

I merely use technology
to overcome technology.

What makes you hate
man-made things so much?

It's simple.

In my place of birth,

people k*lled one another
over their interpretation of God.

My family was k*lled too.

Things like that are happening all over.

It can't be natural.

The problem must
be dealt with at its roots.

All these disasters
are the result of man-made things.

Man-made society, man-made rules,
and a man-made God.

The things humans make
can only ever be ugly imitations.

Looking at the vastness
of nature makes that clear.

We are no match.

Humans can't make something from nothing.

And when they do borrow
the power of nature,

they make carriages,
crossbows, and expl*sives.

Nothing but ugly weapons.

According to Plato,

the imitations humans make
are merely a form of play.

They are not to be taken seriously.

Only God's creations are real.

To think our technology

reflects an understanding of nature
is a meaningless conceit.

I'll say it again.

I don't believe in human intellect.

Good. This will do.

Thanks for your help.

Yeah? Well then...

Think.

That process is where the truth lies.

- Aristotle said...
- Huh?

Aristotle said that technology
is an imitation of nature too.

But he also said this.

"Technology in some cases completes
what nature cannot bring to a finish."

This fabric and these bloodstained coins

are keepsakes of my father.

When I look at them,
I remember my conviction

and him.

These two things didn't grow naturally.

They were made by human hands.

That doesn't make them worthless.

Imitations made by humans at times

complete what nature
cannot bring to a finish.

Anyway...

Observing the heavens?

Yes.

But since I don't know the exact time,

the records will be useless.

Is that so?

It seems we're about to leave.

I came to say goodbye.

That's awfully polite of you.

Do you have a motive?

O-Of course not!

I'm not that greedy.

Oh, but since you asked,
this hood is rather fine quality...

- Yeah? Then you can have it.
- What?

I won't be using it anymore.

Oh, and there's something else
I want to give to you.

A vial? What is it?

There's a letter inside.

When the book is published
and distributed,

mail it for me.

What sort of letter?

It's an obligation to my predecessors.

What?

It was written in the book
that you relayed to me, remember?

A portion of the profits
should be set aside.

Then again,
there's no plan for profits just yet.

But why me?

What? Is it a hassle?

You burned something precious to me.

Isn't this the least you can do?

No, that's not what I mean.

Can you trust me with this?

I have nothing to do with your past

and all the history that transpired.

Shouldn't you ask Schmidt and the others?

I might burn this too
at a moment's notice.

So why me?

Because you're young.

What?

I'll put it another way.

Right now, young people like you
are history's protagonists.

That's why I entrust it to you.

Huh? Come on.

You can't drag me into things!

History doesn't concern me--

Yes, it does.

People inherit the discoveries
of their predecessors.

It happens naturally, arbitrarily,
and before you know it.

That's why everyone who lives now
carries the past within them.

Why are people so concerned with memory?

Why do we interpret individual phenomena
according to linear time?

Why do our minds compel us
to look into history?

The way I see it,

God has given us a chance to learn.

In other words,

history is an extension of God's will.

God's will?

And what exactly is that?

It's in the Holy Scripture.

"God causes all things
to work together for good."

That is God's will.

God is changing the world
through human acts.

Little by little,
over long periods of time.

The present moment
exists within that great current.

In the end, I think
the meaning of our birth

lies within that plan,
within trial and error.

It's to participate
in the dull, endless task

of crawling toward good.

By accepting and confronting evil,
rather than casting it aside,

we sometimes give birth to a greater good.

It's not that good and evil

exist as two different paths.

Everything is connected
by a single thread.

When I think of it like that,

none of my past hardships
were meaningless.

But without history,
humans lose sight of that.

They succumb to fear

of the finite nature of life.

To ascertain history

is equivalent to ascertaining
where God is guiding us.

That's why we lose our way
when we ignore the past.

That's way too abstract.

For me, it's quite concrete.

How so?

Because awareness of history
influences my decisions.

For example...

My father was an inquisitor.

I've walked a completely
different path from him.

I don't know what he is doing now.

I don't even know if he is alive.

I doubt I'll ever meet him again,

but sometimes I imagine it.

If I were to confront
my father as I am now,

or if he tried to hinder me,

what would happen?

I don't have to think much to know
it would be the worst moment of my life.

I'd probably be confused
and lose my composure.

But it's that moment, most of all,

when I have to make the right decision.

All the misfortunes of my life

have surely existed
for the sake of that moment.

The accumulation of history

will calm my nerves,

crush my fears,

guide my thoughts,

and stop me from running away.

All the winds of human history
will be at my back.

- Why?
- Huh?

Why come up with such twisted reasoning

for the sake of that book?

Because I love heliocentrism.

And... because I want
to celebrate that love.

That's childish.

I agree.

So overcome it.

Leader!

There are two carriages heading this way.

They're knights.

What?

So they've found us already.

It's sooner than I expected.

In that case, please flee
through the rear gate.

When you clear the forest,
there's a carriage waiting.

If all goes well,
you can escape without being noticed.

Head to the destination together.

- I'll stay behind and distract them.
- What?!

As the leader of the organization,

I'm the one they're after.

B-But if you distract them,

what happens next?

That's not for you to think about.

Bye.

We must get moving too.

I swear... I'll avenge you.

I see them!

It's a woman.

It must be their leader!

ORB: ON THE MOVEMENTS OF THE EARTH

Orb.

We are inquisitors from the Church!

I ask you in the name of God!

Are you the leader
of the Heretic Liberation Front?

Indeed.

I'm the leader.

Everyone, prepare to fire!

Huh? E-expl*sives?

Don't tell me... she lit them herself?

N-Nowak!

What does this mean?

Just now... for a brief second...

What?

Nowak, this is...

I can't wrap my head around it either.

But what I do know

is that new technology was just used

to do something terrifying,
right before our eyes.

That and...

their leader is dead.

There's smoke from the barn!

Jolenta must have been attacked!

No, she martyred herself.

Mar... What?

Martyred?

This too was part of the plan.

The expl*si*n provides cover

for us to reach
the printing workshop safely.

The enemy's goal was to eliminate
the Heretic Liberation Front's leader.

They've accomplished that.

They'll be short
on information for a while,

so they can't track us.

Plus, since the Reformation
will be handling distribution,

martyrdom is crucial
to earning their cooperation.

They're considered heretics,

but they're still among the faithful.

They'd be hesitant to join with
an organization like ours.

But the leader's death will change that.

To the public, it will look like
the Liberation Front has disbanded.

By casting ourselves
as a new, unrelated organization,

we can approach the Reformation.

Couldn't you have
just pretended to disband?

Making it factual
is the best way to avoid suspicion.

But most of all,
the leader thought of this

and decided herself.

Even if it's a faint hope,

if martyring herself would raise
the book's chances of living on,

she said she'd make that choice.

And you didn't stop her?

Is that sympathy I detect?

Feelings aren't part of our mission.

If they overtake you, you'll misjudge.

For us, death is a daily reality.

The important thing
is where and when one dies.

God's own judgment is behind her judgment.

She experienced an honorable death
for her convictions.

Convictions...

Didn't you say the same?

Those coins you have
represent your conviction to earn money.

That means you'll face it one day too.

The difficulty of maintaining conviction...

Conviction comes with a price.

If you can't risk your life,
you're all talk.

Where we're headed now,

there's no room for sympathy.

But that's...

Uh-oh.

Huh?

Everyone, stay calm.

It's the knights.
We're about to cross paths.

Hide the type behind your seat.

You in that carriage! Halt!

Come out, all of you!