"By the way, Agrippina also said at the end, 'Please give my regards to Lord Novia.'" "I see." Novia narrowed his eyes and walked towards the palace. "Excuse me, Seneca, go and rest." "My Lord, what are you doing?" "Since you have sent me your regards, I shall naturally meet this Agrippina." ....... Somewhere inside a Roman palace. A woman seemed to be concentrating on something. Petals were flying lightly from the branches. She just glanced at them and then closed her eyes quietly. The sunlight was faint and refreshing. "Mom, my head hurts. Can I go home and drink the medicine you made now?" Perhaps because of the voice of the young girl in the woman's arms, she suddenly opened her green eyes. Although the surrounding scenery did not change much, the woman looked around as if she was looking for someone. "Because something important will happen today for our future, so be patient, Domitius."
The words spoken by a mother were a bit cruel. The blonde girl trembled slightly like a little animal and turned her head to look at the ground. After a while, she replied softly, "Okay", and she looked a little frustrated. Domitius was Nero's original name, which was changed after her mother married Emperor Claudius I. She lost her father at the age of three and her mother Agrippina was also exiled, so she was raised by her aunt "Lepidus" family in her childhood. Agrippina was also a little anxious. The main reason why she dared to bring her children to see Seneca today was not to say those words, but to let Novia, who was now powerful in Rome, see her. After all, since the death of the previous queen, she had been trying to find a way to meet this fifteen-year-old boy, but unfortunately it had not been smooth, so she had to resort to this last resort. Time passed slowly, which made Agrippina more and more anxious. If she still couldn't see Novia today, how could she enter the palace as the emperor's niece to help with housework... "You must be Agrippina, I am Novea." The sudden sound finally made Agrippina feel a little better, and she set her sights on the silver-haired boy who was walking slowly towards her. "Hello, sir. I am Agrippina, the granddaughter of Augustus, the sister of Caligula, and the niece of His Majesty Claudius." Novia would not be frightened so easily. He turned his blue eyes to Agrippina. His expression was unpredictable even when he was smiling. "Agrippina," the silver-haired boy said. He spoke the woman's name calmly but respectfully. "These external things are meaningless. Under God, all are equal." "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm just introducing my family to you, sir, there's nothing else to it..." "what." Suddenly, Domitius let out a light cry and fell silent again. He covered his mouth with one hand as if he didn't want to be discovered. He wanted to say something, but soon realized that it was meaningless, so he stopped talking. From time to time, there are times when my self-control fails to suppress my headaches, and situations like this occasionally occur. "Haha, this child has suffered from headaches since childhood. I'm really sorry. I heard that you, Lord Novia, are God's messenger. I wonder if you can relieve this child's pain." At the same time, Agrippina deliberately pinched the child in her arms, indicating that she should say something. "Lord Nonovia, I——" Just when Domitius was about to say something, he was interrupted by Novia. The silver-haired boy said with a smile. "No need for that. As a mother, I'm sure you know this disease much better than I do."
017: Christian - Nero "....?" The blonde girl glanced blankly between Novia and her mother, not understanding what this sentence meant. Agrippina's face just darkened, but immediately changed into one full of apology, and she gently stroked the head of the child in her arms. Novia was well aware of the strong desire for control of the woman in front of him. The reason why Nero had chronic headaches since childhood was that she had been taking poison. It was the work of Agrippina. The poison was so terrifying that even after Nero became a beast, he could hardly get rid of it. It could be said to be a poison engraved on his spiritual foundation. In short, Agrippina did not regard her daughter Nero as a "human being", but at best, a puppet. "Yes, sir, you are right. This is my fault as a mother." Agrippina met the boy's calm gaze with eyes that seemed about to cry. "If I hadn't failed to take good care of her since she was a child, perhaps she wouldn't have fallen into this state. It will never be like this in the future." "That would be great, Your Excellency Agrippina." Novia laughed when he heard this. He knew that Agrippina would not be exposed so easily. After all, in the Type-Moon plot, Agrippina even smiled as she watched the hysterical Nero die before she died after being liquidated. She was an absolute lunatic. After that, neither of them spoke, and the silence lasted for a long time. It was not so much that they had nothing to talk about, but rather that they were trying to see who would lose patience first. Novia didn't care at all, because now it was Agrippina who needed her help. Without her permission, she could never get close to Emperor Claudius, and it would be impossible for her to become queen in just one year and let her own child become the next emperor. As expected, as night fell, Agrippina became more and more anxious, and finally stopped beating around the bush. "Lord Novia, as your Majesty's niece, I deeply feel that your Majesty is busy with government affairs day and night. Can you tell your Majesty for me?" At the same time, the woman licked her lips, revealing a pair of canines on her upper right jaw, and with her eyes, which she had long since mastered, she flattered Novia with affectionate eyes. "Sir Agrippina, the God I believe in is still watching over the world." Novia remained unmoved. His deep blue eyes were always as calm as the sea water in deep winter at all times, as if he was looking up from the deep seabed, which was enough to calm Agrippina down in an instant. "I see." At this time, Domitius observed that his mother's expression was more dissatisfied than calm, but she no longer cared about it. She just wanted to go back quickly because her head really hurt. "But what will happen to my child in the future? This is such a pain..." The woman lowered her eyes, as if she was thinking about something. "I think there is no need to say more. Good-bye, Lady Agrippina." Under the cloud-filled night sky, Novia was about to get up and walk back to his residence, and his footsteps made a clanging sound on the ground. "...Wait a moment, my lord." This was a voice devoid of emotion. The woman's cold eyes stared at Novia who turned around. This time she had really made up her mind, and Novia had fully sensed it. "I am willing to convert to Christianity, and my child, Domitius, has believed in God for many days, and I beg you to baptize her." In theory, to become a Christian, you don’t need to do much, you just need to believe in “justification by faith”. For Jesus Christ said, "I came not to be served but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many." Novia could naturally see that Agrippina could not really believe it now, she was just expressing her attitude. Once he accepted it, Agrippina would naturally announce it publicly. However, for Novia, the most important thing was Agrippina's child Domitius, who would become Nero in the future.
If this woman, who was called a tyrant for suppressing the original historical Christianity, were accepted as a believer...what would happen? What's more, it is extremely special in itself. According to the setting of the Beast of Sodom, it is a disaster that turned against the will of God after its destined death... While Novia was thinking, Domitius' pupils were flickering, revealing an uneasy look, and his breathing might have become disordered. "......" The blonde girl looked at him with eyes as if she had just woken up from a dream. Then he nodded with a vague look and said, "That's right." He nodded once, and for some reason, after more than ten seconds, he nodded again and said, "Please baptize me, sir." Baptism is not just a ritual; it is a testimony, a public demonstration to the world that one obeys instructions and follows an example. It is also a covenant of commitment. "Yes." Novia faced the woman's delighted gaze, "Also, her chronic illness should be cured and handed over to me." These words froze Agrippina's body. She was sure that she was the only one who knew that she was using poison to control her child, but she didn't understand why the silver-haired boy in front of her knew about it and asked her to hand it over... But in the end, the woman chose to nod silently. Before leaving, Novia saw Agrippina holding the blonde girl's head and muttering to herself. "I love you, it's for you, Domitius, I love you, I love you very much." The mother expresses her love for her child. It is an extremely heartwarming scene. The only chilling thing is that the "mother's" eyes seem to swallow up everything, like eyes like black mud. The night is deep and the dew is cold, the sky is vast and beautiful, the scenery tells of the end of a day, and yet, a day is never the same. The next day, Agrippina was appointed secretary to the emperor. On the third day, Novia stayed in a house in Rome. "Your Excellency........." "tell me." Novia poured a bottle of water over the blonde girl's head. Domitius didn't frown, nor did he show any surprise. He just listened quietly. Then Novia handed her the remaining half bottle and asked her to drink it. This can barely be considered baptism, because normal baptism requires the whole or half of the body of the person being baptized to be immersed in water. “You should do something.” In fact, Novia certainly knew what Domitius was going to say, after all, he had just read it specifically to the girl. In fact, Novia had kept this message hidden for a long time, and Domitius was the first to hear it. But when there is an opportunity in the future, it should be publicized on a large scale. “People have had ideals and fantasies, they have been comforted and insulted, they have stopped trusting others and themselves.” “As we grow older, we realize the value of truth. Although truth can be embarrassing at times, a country that faces truth is a mature country, and people who face truth are strong people.” "Nothing can easily move people except the trumpet of justice." The blonde girl read word for word, which was completely different from the Christian books she got at home. Although she was confused, she did not ask. “When you face the helpless weak who have been wronged, when you face the tyrannical evil, when you face the injustice that can affect a person’s life, you should understand how much justice costs and how much courage justice requires.”
“At this moment, we may be speechless and can only give blessings; empower the powerless, enable the pessimistic to move forward, enable those who are moving forward to continue moving forward, and make the happy people happier; and we need to keep working hard.” For some reason, the girl felt more and more joyful the more she read, and at the same time she developed a kind of admiration for Novia. "There is always a force that brings us to tears, there is always a force that lifts our spirits, there is always a force that drives us to keep searching for 'justice, love, and conscience'." “This power comes from me and from every living person in the world.”
018: Gems and Fire "Today, we are studying the Law of the Twelve Tables." The morning sun shone through the extremely simple curtains and onto his hair, sparkling in the blonde girl's blurry vision. That kind of light is like moonlight, or the light shining on rice ears. It keeps changing when you look at it at different times. It was as if this man was the embodiment of the elusive mystery, and so Domitius' day began. Since Novia had already baptized him, as a duty and out of selfish desire, he had planned to try his best to tip the psychological balance of Domitius, the future Nero, towards himself before Agrippina ascended the throne, so as to facilitate his quick execution after Claudius' death. Although Agrippina had been humble before, he never underestimated this woman's plan. After getting close to Claudius, it was inevitable that she would become the queen. This was not to say that the sixty-year-old Claudius was greedy for beauty and liked to marry his uncle and niece, but that he rationally needed Agrippina's bloodline and origin as a tool to consolidate his legitimate rule. Claudius was pushed onto the throne after Caligula was assassinated. No previous emperor had confirmed him as an adopted son or heir according to the prescribed procedures. He had not even been a consul before. In terms of bloodline, Claudius did not have the blood of Augustus. His blood relationship with the Yuli family was maintained through his grandmother, Via David, which means she was a "side branch" and a "small clan". Agrippina had both of these absolute advantages that he lacked. After all, the fundamental reason was that Rome did not have a legal inheritance rule, the right of interpretation was uncertain, and the First Dynasty itself was too dependent on Augustus's reputation. All of these combined created an extremely embarrassing situation for Claudius. This was largely the reason why the old emperor hoped that Christianity brought by Novia would replace polytheism. Unfortunately, he could not control his cheating wife, nor could he control Agrippina, who was very good at taking advantage of her. "After all the lectures today, there is still the study of Christian doctrine that I mentioned. Now it is time to start the next stage. In a few days, I will send you to a nearby place to try it alone. This is a necessary benchmark, Domitius, please do your best." "I understand, Mr. Novia." The blonde girl studied seriously, and upon hearing this, she dropped her head on the book written by Novia, then moved to the next room. There was no other furniture except a bed, a white wooden square table and four straw chairs. Above, where a mirror was usually hung, there was a silver copper cross nailed to a black line and mounted in a dark golden wooden frame. There is nothing luxurious in here; its simplicity makes it a more solemn space. "Sir, do you have time?" There were other voices coming from outside the room, and Domitius guessed that it was someone else who was going to ask his teacher about doctrine. Hearing the voice, Novia glanced at the blonde girl and found that her eyes were wide open and she was reading out the contents of the book word for word. She seemed to have noticed his gaze and gave him a questioning look. "Just study on your own. I'll be back soon." After saying that, Novia walked out. After making sure that there was no magical fluctuation in the room, Domitius put down the book and ran to the window on the second floor. Although he couldn't peek outside through the window, he could still barely overlook the scene in front of the gate through the lattice. As expected, it was the people whom Domitius loved from the bottom of his heart. Perhaps because of her childhood experiences, the blonde girl loved the unknown people more than the nobles. That was why she respected Novia, who was only two years older than her but was responsible and loved by the people. Ever since Domitius realized that Novia was loved by the people from the bottom of their hearts, she vowed to become a person like her, who could smile from the bottom of her heart as long as thousands of people were looking at her. In order to achieve this small yet ambitious goal, she would keep working hard. And a few days ago, after drinking the water given by Novia, maybe it was because the headache was relieved for a long time, or maybe she was too young to keep the words in her heart, anyway, she told Novia this declaration truthfully. “That’s what you think.”
At that time, Novia narrowed his eyes and smiled slightly. The sound he made blended with nature, giving the girl a feeling that he had already known. The girl, who was about to say something more, nodded silently involuntarily when he asked her this.