I Became A Black Merchant In Another World-Chapter 298: Reformation (1)

Humans become unhappy due to comparison.

To put it more strongly, unless one falls into extreme poverty, as long as comparisons are avoided, one can live a happy life.

In fact, Bhutan, which was once ranked as the happiest country in the world, saw its happiness index plummet once SNS became widespread, as the people realized how poor they were.

It’s already scientifically proven that the more people use social media and compare themselves with others, the unhappier they become.

"In the Toscana Empire, as long as there isn’t a famine, the reason there aren’t any uprisings is mainly because there’s no one to compare with."

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Normally, people get by on the bare minimum, but when a famine hits, life becomes much harder compared to before.

A person who used to have two meals a day now struggles with just one, and people in villages start dying from starvation.

The complaints erupt because they compare their previous life to their current situation.

The Donghak Peasant Movement, the Jacquerie, and even the French Revolution were all rooted in this context.

Sebastian listened to my words and coldly laughed.

"What are you thinking this time?"

"I’m thinking about burning the Holy Empire down. And, in the process, I’ll burn away the corrupt followers of Deus as well."

"If you oppose the Church of Deus, you’ll fall into hell. Are you sure that’s alright?"

"If the Church of Deus is still operating smoothly, then yes, I would definitely oppose the Pope and destroy the Church. It’s only natural that I’d fall into hell."

Looking at the state of the Church of Deus, it makes me sigh.

The priests of the Church are so obsessed with money that they gather artisans, merchants, and nobles in the cathedral to preach while stealing their money.

The tithes collected by the Church are supposed to be used to help the poor and supplement the Church’s finances.

But they take the tithes and add them to the Church’s funds, then waste it all on luxury and whores.

If Deus were to descend from the heavens, he’d probably start by smashing the Church.

And after I die, I’ll destroy the rotten Church and normalize the Church of Deus, earning my way into heaven.

"Well, the Church of Deus is already completely rotted. We’re just tearing through those who need to be torn apart. What’s wrong with that?"

"Indeed, the Church has been decaying for a long time."

"I’ll split their bellies, normalize the Church of Deus, and make money from it. How great is that?"

"If that’s your plan, my lord, I will follow you."

There was hesitation in Sebastian’s response.

If you’re someone like me, aware that religious figures can corrupt at any time, and knowing that religion rots when money gets involved—well, modern people might understand this.

But to those living in the Toscana Empire, or even on this continent, religion is a part of their life.

They wake up in the morning, cross themselves, and call out to the Virgin. When they marry, they ask Deus for blessings. When they die, they’re comforted knowing they’ll return to Deus’s side.

For someone who has lived that life, how easy do you think it would be to oppose the Church of Deus?

‘Still, I’m grateful for Sebastian’s decision.’

"What’s the situation in the Holy Empire? Living in that fortress town must be difficult."

"According to the merchants in our caravan traveling to and from the Holy Empire, the people are on the verge of rebellion. The mood is awful."

"With three wars fought, it’s impossible for things to be fine."

"Apparently, the Emperor achieved a bloody victory near the border with the Kingdom of Lyon and regained his imperial authority. However, the citizens, merchants, and artisans are facing much heavier taxes than usual, and they say the common people are suffering in misery."

When we learn about the French Revolution in textbooks, we’re taught that it was a great revolution where people, regardless of status, rose up, wanting freedom and to abolish the class system.

But in reality, the bourgeoisie intellectuals who led the revolution wanted power for themselves and used the masses to incite revolt.

The people followed the bourgeoisie because they couldn’t survive the high prices caused by famine.

Even the world’s first democracy movement was ultimately sparked by hunger and survival issues.

Would the Holy Empire be any different?

"Also, I’ve heard that this year there’s been much less rain, and a famine is likely coming."

"That’s just adding insult to injury. They’re already taxing people heavily, and now there’s a famine coming."

"The Toscana Empire is the complete opposite. We’re focusing on reducing taxes for the serfs."

Next year, or maybe the year after, I plan on proposing another tax cut.

As the serfs’ lives improve, the number of potential customers will naturally increase.

"Sebastian, do you remember what I just said?"

"If you’re referring to your comment that the reason no riots occur in the Toscana Empire is because there’s no one to compare with, I remember it very well."

"What do you think?"

"I believe you’ve expressed human nature very well. The nobles live prosperous and lavish lives, but they are always comparing themselves to others, aren’t they? Because of that, they are always unhappy, spending huge amounts of money to maintain their luxuries and end up in debt."

The man who’s now dead—my older brother—spent his whole life comparing himself to me and ended up in the state he did.

If only he had been content with his situation and lived comfortably.

He should’ve done some work here and there, gone fishing, and lived a life where he just told me how to live, without rushing through life the way I did. Would I have been so generous with him?

"Now, think about ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) it from a different angle. What do you think would happen if the commoners in the Holy Empire were given something to compare with? What if they see that our serfs are living much more comfortably than they are, even though they’re in the same situation?"

The happiest country in the world, Bhutan, was instantly thrown into misery once SNS became widespread.

What’s to say the serfs of the Holy Empire would be any different?

I’m confident they’ll react the same way.

"Both the Holy Empire and Toscana Empire’s serfs should live about the same way, but when they see one side, the serfs eating well because they’ve met a good Emperor, it’ll naturally twist their insides."

"How do you plan on making the serfs in the Holy Empire aware of this? They don’t even have newspapers, do they?"

"True, they don’t have newspapers, but they have traveling troupes and peddlers. I can send some peddlers to spread the news about Toscana Empire naturally."

Unlike the Toscana Empire, which abolished the guild system, other nations on the Albanian continent still operate under guilds.

Because of this, they still use a primitive commercial system, making it very difficult for us to enter their markets.

But they’re not trying to monopolize the small rural villages...

We can certainly send some peddlers.

‘Peddlers in this era also acted like broadcasters.’

"At first, the serfs in the Holy Empire will definitely not believe this."

It’s like when a parent tells a child that there’s no such thing as Santa Claus.

At first, the child refuses to believe what their parents say.

Christmas comes, and they naturally expect Santa to bring presents.

But if this happens two or three times...?

Even a child with undeveloped intelligence will eventually realize that Santa is just a myth created by adults.

"So we’ll have to repeat it several times."

There’s no tree in this world that won’t fall after ten strikes.

To be more precise, if ten strikes aren’t enough, it’ll fall after a hundred, or even a thousand.

"Eventually, their thoughts will change. They’ll come to see the Emperor as an enemy who must be overthrown."

"But what does this have to do with overthrowing the Church of Deus?"

Rebellions and religious reforms may seem like two completely unrelated things.

But let’s think about it.

"The Emperor and the Church of Deus are both exploiting the people. And what if Father Stefano...?"

This isn’t something that might happen; it’s something that will definitely happen.

Father Stefano will create a new Church of Deus to replace the current corrupted one.

Whether it will be called Protestantism or something else, I don’t know...

But if that religion becomes an alternative, what will happen?

"If Father Stefano creates a new Church of Deus, the people will prefer it over the one that’s been exploiting them under the Emperor."

"Would they really turn to a new Church of Deus?"

For the people of this age, the Church of Deus is a part of their life.

But humans, as tricky as they are...

"Once the new Church of Deus removes the mandatory tithe and doesn’t force indulgences, everyone, even the nobles, will flock to it."

Before the Thirty Years' War, Protestantism had already overtaken more than 90% of the Holy Roman Empire.

Why? Because they didn’t extort money for indulgences.

"So let’s send the peddlers to spread the news of Toscana Empire far and wide."