Chapter 27

A hand reached out and pressed against the thick railing. The next second, light appeared, and a magic circle materialized.

It shattered instantly under Veris's palm; the sound of breaking wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in this underground prison.

The railing that had just blocked the view was instantly reduced to dust. Veris lowered his eyes, looked at the thin boy sitting on the ground, paused for a moment, and then smiled.

This child was born with unusual eyes; no wonder Keith hadn't killed him.

A magic circle that isolated sound and outside prying appeared silently, its light patterns flashing for only a moment. Veris stepped into the cell, which was dimly lit. He crouched down and met the boy's wary gaze.

"What's your name?" He asked with a slight smile. As a bard, he almost never had a cold expression; he always wore a smile that made people feel good.

But in this cell, especially in this dim environment, that smile seemed to carry a hint of coldness.

"Murphy," the boy said, his voice still somewhat thin as his vocal cords hadn't fully developed.

Veris turned his head and stretched out his hand. Several dark orbs of light appeared and quickly condensed into a raven. The raven's eyes were distinctly golden. After meeting Veris's gaze, it transmitted the memories of the prison cell into Veris's mind.

Having learned the whole story, Veris closed his palms, and the raven turned into blackish-gray smoke and disappeared without a trace.

He turned his gaze to Murphy, a look of pity on his face: "Poor child, Keith is dead, you'll be free soon."

"Did you kill him?" The child, having witnessed what had just happened, was certain that Veris was no ordinary magician, and his wary gaze now held a hint of inquiry.

“It was the Pope who killed the heretics on his land,” Veris said.

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a hint of listlessness flash in Murphy's eyes, and a thought struck him.

However, he still had that same smiling expression on his face and asked, "Where are you from? When did you become a magic apprentice?"

"I'm a beggar. I was captured and brought here by Keith as soon as I became a magic apprentice." The boy said coldly. His clothes were not clean, but rather loose. His hair was messy, and his face was pale from days of torture.

Veris lowered his eyes: "You've just become a magic apprentice. If you were from another place, you would be going back to church with the priests... You're from the city."

"You know a lot of stories about the choirs, how the children change the hymns every month, and how you go to church every month to collect charity money, right?"

Murphy paused, then remained silent, which was taken as an admission.

Just as he thought Veris was going to ask something else, a finger tapped his forehead.

A flash of light startled Murphy. He saw the young man's face clearly. Beneath his black, tousled hair were a pair of dark eyes, which reflected the light from his slender fingers. The shape of his eyes was so beautiful that it made one subconsciously ignore his other features.

But the boy immediately realized that the bishop of the Papacy in front of him was young and handsome. No, the word "handsome" was not enough to encompass the shock of observing this face up close. He had never seen such a good-looking person. The shape and combination of his features were flawless. He was simply the most perfect work of the Creator.

His eyes stung from the light, but he forgot even to blink.

Within three breaths of stunned silence, Veris withdrew his finger, the remaining specks of light scattered, and the light in the cell improved somewhat.

Murphy stared blankly as the person in front of him stood up. He tilted his head back and met the lowered eyes. At that moment, he noticed a small black dot on the person's chin, probably a mole.

"The curse in your body has been removed. Now, just focus on your cultivation and preserve your life."

The young man's voice was clear and highly recognizable.

Murphy snapped out of his daze: "A curse? What curse?"

The man smiled faintly: "Naturally, it's a curse that restricts your magical talent. As for your past, if you don't want to talk about it, I won't pry. But from now on, you must serve the church."

His true intentions were blatantly obvious: to help Murphy, he only wanted to strengthen the church.

The boy got up from the ground. He was almost half a head shorter than Veris, but he still stubbornly raised his head: "What's your name?"

"That's not important, child."

Veris turned his head and glanced at the passageway outside the cell, saying, "If you want to find me, go to the Grand Papacy in the capital."

After speaking, he turned around, the sound-isolating magic circle disappeared, and dense magical elements dissipated in the air. Murphy watched as the man walked towards Arnold's cell, his fists clenched at his sides, and his eyes lowered.

Arnold, who had been peering through the bars for a while, finally saw the man in black emerge from Murphy's cell and shouted, "Hey, who are you? What did you do to Murphy?!"

"I'm telling you, Murphy is my good friend now, and once I get out of here, he definitely won't—"

A crisp sound of the magic circle shattering rang out, and Arnold's voice came to an abrupt halt. The railing he was clinging to instantly crumbled into dust, and the boy lost his grip on empty air, falling directly in front of Veris.

Veris shrugged, took a step back, and turned to look at the last cell.

He walked over, raised his hand and placed it on the railing, injecting a massive amount of magic power that instantly shattered the magic circle that was functioning normally.

The railing disappeared, and Allen stood there, looking at the black-robed youth in front of him. His gaze fell on the badge on the other man's chest, and his eyes showed surprise and doubt.

Veris raised an eyebrow at him and said, "Since the two freshmen from the academy are alright, my final mission is also complete. Goodbye."

“You—” Arnold got up from the ground and was about to call out to Veris when he found the corridor empty.

The blond boy's eyes widened as he looked around before fixing his gaze on his companion: "Where did that person go? How did they just disappear like that?"

Allen's expression was complicated, but the cell was poorly lit, and Arnold couldn't see Allen's expression. He only heard Allen say, "He's gone. He was a bishop of the church. Judging from the insignia... he was a cardinal."

"A cardinal?" Arnold's eyes widened. "Isn't that amazing?"

"He is a member of the Papacy."

The sudden interruption of the boy's voice made the two of them turn their heads at the same time to look at the disheveled boy who walked out of the cell. Murphy looked up, and in the dim space, coupled with the fact that Murphy's bangs were too long, the two of them did not notice that the boy had a pair of almost completely white pupils.

Pure white pupils are extremely rare on this continent, both during the time of the Seven Gods and now.

It has reached the point where even if someone has completely white pupils, people will guess that the person is sick or blind, rather than thinking that the person has an extraordinary background.

To this day, Veris knows of only a handful of people who possess the full white eye.

One is the lord of the dragon race, whose true form is a giant white dragon, and whose human form also has completely white eyes.

One of them, said to be the progenitor of the elves, was born with completely white eyes, which later gradually turned golden.

There are two more, whose backgrounds are even greater than the previous two. They are two of the seven great gods, the twin gods—Time and Fate. These two gods also have a completely different perspective.

After the new era began, Veris never saw All White Eyes again. His eyes and ears were all over the continent, and unless All White Eyes never contacted the outside world for the rest of his life, it was impossible for him to escape his notice.

He walked down the street, where soldiers stood motionless everywhere, and a chilling aura wafted over him from time to time.

Veris walked along, lost in thought. He could recall the general outlines of his memories from the past few hundred years, but he still needed to think about the details to be certain.

He felt there were more than four people with white eyes, but he couldn't remember them for the time being.

After walking for quite some time, he patted his head in frustration, unable to recall anyone else. He decided to put the matter aside for now and focus on retrieving his horse and trunk from the church.

Surely those ten or so people wouldn't throw his things away.

Muttering to himself, Veris stood by the roadside, looking at the church ahead.

As the county cathedral of Mercury, this place is naturally much more grand. However, due to the intervention of Keith and the Duke, it has become quite deserted recently, with many priests and servants choosing to hide in order to avoid the limelight.

Magicians working in the church, however, were not so lucky.

Keith tortured all the magicians he couldn't persuade to surrender to to death, and during this process, he also received a lot of slander from the magicians who admired him.

"This is terrible," Veris thought, pursing his lips and sighing inwardly.

He never expected that so many things would happen in just a few days.

The black cloth hanging at the church entrance is a sign of mourning for the innocent souls who died.

Veris walked over. There were actually quite a few people at the Mercury Church. He had been there a few years ago. It wasn't much different from what he remembered. However, there was no one at the entrance. He walked into the front hall before he saw a few people.

It was those two magicians, along with a few people tidying up the tables and chairs in the front hall.

People from the Duke's mansion came to the church and caused trouble. Some things in the front hall were smashed and damaged, and the fixed tables and chairs were lying crookedly on the ground.

The two magicians originally wanted to follow the priests, but the priests solemnly told them that there were many dangers lurking outside, and that their esteemed magicians should return to the church to rest.

However, the rest of the horses were given to them.

Magicians, especially fifth-tier magicians, are highly sought-after figures everywhere. Although the two of them weren't exactly arrogant, they were usually quite pampered. Yet, tonight, facing twenty horses, they felt a little lost.

“It’s good that I learned the spell to soothe animals.” One of them led over Veris’s horse, his face somber.

The other person gave him an annoyed look: "Who hasn't learned it? That's an introductory spell for magic apprentices. Why are you being so eager this time?"

"That's a cardinal! And his rank must be at least seventh level!"

"Move aside, I'll carry that box. And can you even hold it properly?"

The two magicians huddled together, discussing Veris with great enthusiasm. They arrived at the Mercury Church, handed the horse over to the priest who was staying at the church, and rested in the foyer. Veris's trunk was left aside to prevent it from being taken away.

When Veris entered, he saw two people using basic magic to help set up the tables and chairs while whispering to each other about something.

The two stopped abruptly when they heard footsteps, turned their heads, and their eyes lit up when they saw Veris.

They stepped forward, about to offer a few flattering words, when Veris asked, "Where are my luggage and my horse?"

"There they are. The priests have taken the horses to the church stables," one of them quickly answered.

Veris nodded, walked past them to pick up the suitcase, and headed towards the side door.

The two magicians exchanged a glance, and the other magician, who hadn't been able to answer earlier, mustered his courage: "Is Your Excellency leaving this place?"

Veris stopped and turned to look at them. His appearance had returned to the handsome one he had been as a poet. He nodded and said, "Stay here for a few more days. There is an extraordinary child who will be joining the church."

This is incredible!

The two magicians looked at each other in bewilderment.

As if remembering something, the cardinal placed his backpack on the table, opened it, and took out a long staff.

The two mages tensed up, staring at the staff, their breaths slightly held.

The staff looks ordinary, but could something from the hands of a high-level mage be anything ordinary?

Veris snapped the backpack back on, looked up at the two mages who looked like they were facing a formidable enemy, and was a little puzzled, but he still continued to instruct: "That child is called Murphy, and he is a newly selected magic apprentice. Tell him to go to the Royal Academy to study. Consider this staff a gift from the church."

One of the magicians asked cautiously, "Sir, what is the grade of this staff...?"

"I haven't tested it, but it's probably around level eight. It's a bit of a stretch to match that child, but I don't have any good materials right now," Veris said, looking down at his staff.

Eighth rank is barely acceptable?!

The two mages' pupils dilated in shock: "Then, what is that boy's level—"

Veris looked at them, a smile spreading across his face, quite pleased with their reaction: "That's right."

He was worried that it was getting late, so after handing the things to the two magicians, he picked up his suitcase and hurriedly ran off. The two magicians, who had a lot to say, didn't dare to call out to Veris again.

Once Veris's figure had completely disappeared, the two quickly surrounded the table where the staff was placed, wanting to reach out and touch it, but immediately shrank back.

This is an eighth-tier magic staff!

Although they were only at the fifth rank, the staff was clearly extraordinary. The magical elements flowing through it were incredibly pure, and the quality of the crystal at the top was unclear, but it was certainly no ordinary object.

What excited the two even more than the incredibly precious eighth-tier staff was the boy the cardinal had mentioned.

Above the eighth rank, that is the ninth rank. As long as that boy grows up, he will surely have a place as the future archbishop of the Papacy!

“No wonder a cardinal appeared at Mercury’s place; it seems he came for this chosen one,” a magician remarked.

His companions wholeheartedly agreed; otherwise, why would such a powerful magician and cardinal appear in Mercury, a place with relatively little church faith?

—As expected of the mysterious Cardinal!

Veris had no idea what the two men were thinking. He carried his backpack, led his horse, and left the church.

After walking through a dimly lit street, when he emerged, he was wearing a straw hat, the badge on his chest was gone, and he had become that lazy, wandering bard again.

The hotels along the roadside were still lit up, but their doors were closed due to the dramatic changes that had occurred that night. Veris found a hotel, and soon someone opened the door. It was a middle-aged man with a curly beard that looked like the hair on a goat.

He glanced at Veris, said nothing, but opened the other door and turned to tell the servant to take Veris's horse to the stable.

With the city in turmoil and many people changing hotels, Veris's appearance is not surprising.

It's not far from the church, so it's relatively safer. The hotel owner has already hosted several guests tonight.

Veris asked for a guest room and then bought dinner, asking the waiter to bring it up later.

The hotel didn't look very big, but it had quite a few rooms inside. Veris walked down the corridor on the second floor. The interior decorations of Mercury's hotels were all pretty much the same, and even the room layouts were very similar.

Most of the rooms had signs indicating that there were guests inside.

The lampshades on both sides enclose the flames to prevent the lampstands from being extinguished by the wind stirred up by guests walking by.

The floor was covered with a carpet with a beautiful pattern, but it didn't seem to be in the style of Lortheran; it was probably a product brought by overseas merchants.

The passageway was rather dim, even somewhat eerie, but the room was much brighter, with minerals embedded in the ceiling for lighting, and lamps placed on tables; if you needed to light other lamps, you had to do it yourself.

Veris closed the door, put the suitcase on the ground, hummed a little tune as he walked to the table, preparing to light another lamp.

Just as he picked up the candle and brought it close to the flickering flame, the curtains by the window moved without any wind. Veris paused, but he didn't look up and continued to light the candle.

But he said aloud, "Your spatial teleportation array seems to have made great progress."

His handsome face was illuminated by the bright yellow candlelight. He straightened up, fixed the candle to another lampstand, and covered it with a shade.

Then he turned around, looked at the figure by the window, and smiled: "Sylvain."

The newcomer was none other than the Holy Son, who had just finished his prayers. He was still wearing the same magnificent clothes, his white hair hanging down. He looked at Veris standing by the table, and his fingers trembled slightly uncontrollably.

Veris was surprised for a moment when he saw the clothes that he hadn't had time to change. Although Mercury's matter was not small, it didn't need to be teleported over so urgently, did it?

And wasn't this person sulking just a few days ago?

He watched Sylvain approach, his face still tense, and thought to himself with amusement: Well, he's still angry, actually.

Sylvain stopped in front of him and spoke in a low voice, "You gave away my staff, didn't you?"

Veris: "?"

The black-haired youth's smile froze as he frantically tried to recall what the staff he had pulled out looked like. He had taken all the staffs from the attic storage room with him, and it seemed that the staffs Sylvain used to practice with were also stuffed in there. He vaguely remembered those staffs.

He felt beads of sweat starting to appear on his forehead.

...No way?

Sylvain looked at him with displeasure.

"To be able to use my staff, one must possess a talent of at least the ninth rank. You've lingered in Mercury for so long because of this person, haven't you?" Sylvain lowered his eyes, his voice somber.

Veris: ...

He really didn't! He didn't know that a ninth-tier mage would appear in Mercury—that's right, it must be the hero's fault. Once the hero appears, other prodigies will also flock to him. That must be the reason!

Veris felt he had found the problem, and sincerely grasped Sylvain's hand, saying, "Of course not, it was just an accident. I'll go get the staff back tomorrow. I was so busy tonight that I mixed up your things. It's my fault."

Sylvain, whose hand was being held, stiffened. He looked up and met those heterochromatic eyes. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, but he still opened his mouth and, after a moment, said, "Everything I have belongs to you. You don't need to..."

“That’s not the same, Sylvain,” Veris corrected seriously. “Your things are yours, how can you say they’re mine? Of course, if you want my things, I’d be happy to give them to you.”

Sylvain: ...

He shut his mouth, the hand held by his beloved lost its warmth, his face gradually cooled, and he turned his head to the side: "I understand."

"It's just a staff; the future ninth-tier archmage is more important." He paused, then added.

As Veris looked at his head turned away, he felt a chill run down his spine, and a long-lost, familiar feeling washed over him.

He looked down at his hand that was holding Sylvain's, then awkwardly let go, assuring her, "I'm going to the church first thing tomorrow morning. I have several eighth-tier staffs in my trunk, all of which I made myself last year when I had nothing else to do."

Last year, Sylvain had already gone to the Royal Academy.

The Holy Son's face seemed to be covered with frost. He took a slight breath, stepped back, and said, "No need, let him use my staff."

He would rather someone use a staff that Veris had made than let them use a staff that he had once used.

He didn't want to dwell on the topic any longer, and instead stared at Veris: "When are you going back to the Papacy?"

Veris blinked, thought seriously for a moment, and then said, "I'll be staying here for a while longer."

The Mercury affair has caused such a stir, it's excellent material. He plans to find a place to stay for about ten days and record the Mercury affair in detail, keeping one copy for the Papacy and using the other as new material for his upcoming wandering chants.

The intricacies of royal gossip still have an audience, such as businessmen with some assets or minor nobles who enjoy listening to such upper-class gossip.

The church will be the biggest beneficiary of spreading this news.

We can't waste the effort he went to so much trouble to do. Normally, if you want to kill someone, you don't need such a large-scale magic circle to appear.

Besides that, there is another very important matter.

Keith's words were not entirely without merit. Although the complex spells in the church's revised magic book could greatly reduce the erosion of the brain by magical elements, they were far too limiting for actual combat.

If things get urgent, the enemy might strike before you can even finish the incantation.

Revising the spellbook has been a major task for the church for the past decade, but with little success.

Veris looked at the young man in front of him, a smile spreading across his face, and said, "Sylvan, you stay here and assist me."

"I can't refuse."

He added with a smile.

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Author's Note: Veris: Finding Colleagues to Do Work

Sylvain: A World for Two ////

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Xiao Wei is actually very handsome [let me see], but when he's out in public, he tends to tone down his stunning good looks. What Murphy sees is his true appearance, but with darker eyes.