Silver Ring City, St. Co's Cathedral, 4:30 a.m.
Bishop Fabian arrived early at the foyer, holding a letter from the church post station, and read aloud softly: "Seventeen boxes, one hundred and forty-one pieces..."
He put away the letter and turned to the assistant priest beside him: "Where is the carriage?"
Looking at the sky outside the window, the latter respectfully replied, "Sir, we should be at the South Gate now."
The bishop nodded and then instructed, "The matter of Crystal entering the city must be kept secret."
The assistant priest nodded in agreement.
As they slowly approached the church doors, Bishop Fabian remained uneasy and reiterated to his trusted aide, "During the last palace banquet, the steward asked me about this matter, and I pretended not to know. In short, it must not be made public; the fewer people who know, the better..."
The bishop, who had just stepped out of the gate, was so startled by the scene before him that he slipped and nearly fell to the ground.
Before dawn, the square in front of the cathedral was crowded with carriages and hundreds of people. Upon hearing his voice, they all turned their heads in unison.
"Your Excellency! Are you alright?" The deacon hurriedly helped his superior up, helping him steady himself.
With trembling steps, he entered the crowd. Seeing many familiar faces, an awkward smile appeared on his face. As he walked, Bishop Fabian greeted them, "Mr. Chief Internal Affairs Officer Schubert, it's rare to see you so early."
"Your Excellency, please don't mind me. I'm just here to watch the sunrise."
"Good morning, Justice Dinova. I remember you retired to your estate last week, didn't you?"
"Yes, it was a bit boring staying at the farm, so I came here to watch the sunrise."
...
After exchanging greetings with everyone, the bishop felt as if he had swallowed a dead fly.
A bunch of hypocrites, as if they had made a pact, said they wanted to watch the sunrise, but they all turned their faces south. Could it be that the direction the sun rises is different today than usual?
They had clearly heard the news of Crystal's arrival in the city, but they insisted on pretending to be unaware of it.
Little did he know that ever since Todd's performance on the western coast, various versions of descriptions of the treasure had already spread throughout the entire royal city. At the beginning, the rumors might have been seven parts true and three parts exaggerated, but they became increasingly outrageous as time went on. Some people even believed the absurd claim that "drinking water infused with the sacred object can prolong life."
In this situation, Bishop Fabian was at his wits' end, but he couldn't very well order people to leave, so he could only wait there like an ant on a hot plate and join the "sunrise watching" group.
At 5:20 a.m., a carriage guarded by papal knights appeared in everyone's sight.
The carriage was equipped with shock absorbers at the axles and had a thick layer of straw on the deck, but even so, the speed was still not much faster than walking.
A small commotion was caused in the crowd.
"Finally here."
"Keep a close eye on them, don't lose them..."
The constant stream of such words made the old bishop's face grow increasingly grim.
The carriage finally arrived at the cathedral square, driven by a church coachman. He saw a group of richly dressed, menacing-looking nobles and officials blocking the front of the carriage, their eyes fixed on the cargo box behind it. Terrified, he clutched his whip and cowered in his seat, trembling.
The papal knights, who were supposed to maintain order, looked at each other, hesitant to step forward. Some of the people in the crowd were their superiors, friends, or even relatives. In such a situation, ignoring them was naturally the most reasonable choice.
Bishop Fabian could no longer stand it and opened his arms to the crowd: "Please listen to me! Please make way for the sacred relic."
A moment of silence.
Perhaps realizing that they should be mindful of their behavior and manners in such a public place, the crowd slowly stepped back, leaving some space.
The carriage slowly drove into the cathedral's rear courtyard, with the nobles and dignitaries of the Silver Ring Kingdom following behind, maintaining a distance that was neither too close nor too far.
The church clergy opened the back door of the prayer hall, removed the back panel of the carriage, pushed aside the thick straw, and carefully carried out the crates one by one, heading towards the main hall.
The crowd followed the unloading team and squeezed towards the back door, entering the lobby.
The bishop watched as the crowd filed in, closed his eyes, and shook his head helplessly.
Seventeen wooden crates were laid flat on the church floor.
Before the wooden crates were opened, Fabian felt it necessary to emphasize the importance of order and sequence to the crowd: "Ladies and gentlemen! These crystal artifacts are sacred objects of the Church, inscribed with the words of the Father. They should be handed over to the Archbishop of the Western Diocese, and then presented to His Holiness the Pope!"
After saying this, seeing everyone nodding in agreement devoutly, the bishop felt somewhat relieved and nodded to indicate that the wooden box could be opened.
The Basilica of St. Coeur features a dome design reminiscent of ancient Tero architecture, with deep vertical windows at the top that allow a small amount of morning light to enter, while the majority of the light comes from the candles on the shelves.
Sunlight, candlelight, and glass reflect each other, creating a wondrous optical phenomenon. The pure glass surface is coated with a layer of golden shimmer, and the light in the hall is refracted by the transparent crystals into a rainbow of colors.
This scene was like falling into a fairyland, like ascending to heaven.
Even the bishop, who had been somewhat prepared, was so stunned by the beautiful scenery that he forgot to speak.
After a long while, when he came to his senses and looked around, he saw pairs of eyes in the crowd gleaming with a greenish light. His heart skipped a beat, and he gasped inwardly.
"Oh no!"
Fabian raised his arm and shouted to the clergy behind him, "Close the boxes and take them away..."
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