Chapter 24 Temple
◎ With a "pop" sound, the cat meowed and rolled headfirst into the bushes.◎
"Where are you taking the young lady?!"
Taffy was stuck at the intersection, and she and the other slaves of Muala's family were one step slower than the gladiators.
Their bodies were covered in water droplets and blood stains, and it was obvious that they had just woken up from a fantasy world, and perhaps even experienced a thrilling assassination.
Melia sighed slightly: I wonder if there will be any side effects if I take too much magic potion.
Except for Taffy, all those who were armed kept their blades pointed downwards and did not dare to approach the person in charge of the temple.
Whether slaves or freemen, they all had a deep respect for the Pantheon. However, the temple guards were still ringing bells, signaling non-essential people to disperse.
Seeing their reactions, Melia was somewhat relieved that she had not resisted. If she had been resurrected after the resistance, the situation would have been even more difficult.
She glanced at the priest out of the corner of her eye. He was looking calmly ahead, while the followers behind him were making gestures to drive her away.
They disdain to talk to slaves.
In the eyes of the Pantheon, slaves were not human, but like livestock, they were only useful for sacrifice, and not even considered excellent offerings. If Melia refused to stop them, they would directly take action, just like clearing out wild animals that were destroying crops.
Melia quickly understood the priest's meaning and, suppressing her nausea, walked up to Taffy and said, "You go back with everyone first. I need to go to the temple to take care of some things."
"Miss." Taffy knelt on one knee and touched her forehead to her master's knee: "Please let me go with you."
The gladiators were a little far away, but Ronnie's voice still came through: "The temple has its own rules."
Taffy tilted his head to peek at his master, his deer-like moist eyes blinking slowly.
Melia hardened her heart, squatted down, patted her head, and whispered in her ear in a voice only they could hear: "Go back to Idido and ask him to keep an eye on Sura. The old man is definitely going to cheat. I need you to support him outside."
“…Yes.” Taffi nodded reluctantly and watched the young lady enter the temple together with the gladiators.
The young men and women Ophelia had brought with her did not follow the temple people. Instead, they danced and sang as they carried the seated third princess. As they passed the slaves carrying the coffin, some of them playfully threw flowers at the coffin, letting out giggles.
…
The moment you enter the temple, your vision is illuminated by candlelight.
The exterior of the temple is pale and solemn, with chalk and marble forming a broad and neat foundation.
But the inside is different. Ochre powder is used to paint a vermilion base, and pearls, gems and gold are used to decorate the solemn and bright murals.
Pieces of natural crystals hang above the head, reflecting pink and orange polarized light.
Melia looked up and admired the tallest dome in Rome: colorful minerals were inlaid on the dark ceiling, simulating the scene of constellations surging in the clear night sky.
Compared to the abode of the gods, the human dwelling seemed so cramped: there were small wing-shaped doors on both sides of the hall, only high enough for people to pass through with a bent posture, and the height was only up to the legs of the statues. If you were a little fat, you would probably be stuck in the corridor.
The priest walked to the front of the statue and prostrated himself on the cushions respectfully. The others followed his lead, kneeling on the floor and bowing their heads in silent recitation.
Even Elena lowered her head, not looking directly into the eyes of the statue... She was a rare atheist, and she once said in her book that "the so-called gods are just more powerful "humans"."
The situation was stronger than people. Melia closed her eyes, imitated her and chanted the names of the dishes in her mind.
After about three minutes, the priest stood up, took the bell from the attendant, and rang it gently.
Melia quietly approached Elena and pointed at the long table in front of them: "Are we going to have dinner here next?"
Her voice was particularly clear in the silent auditorium, but no one responded to her words.
A servant in white walked out from the crowd. He came in front of them and tapped his forehead with his finger as a greeting.
Before Melia could ask, the servant turned around and walked through the small door on the left.
"Follow him." Elena subconsciously stretched out her hand, then quickly retracted it and quickened her pace.
"Wait for me~"
Melia was the shortest, so she didn't need to bend down, and the corridor was filled with the sound of her slippers.
…
Click.
The white-clad attendant gently turned the key, and a small wooden door of no more than 1 square meter slowly opened.
Melia crawled on the ground and looked inside. The space inside was much larger than she had imagined.
It was a very flat, empty room, at least the size of three or four student dormitories. For some reason, there was very little furniture, and even the bedding consisted of a long blanket in a tiger-skin cake pattern.
Is this a large bunk bed? People sleep in a row from the inside out...
"Come in quickly." Elena kicked her raised buttocks with her head, and Melia rolled over and crawled in.
"Hiss... It's so cold." It was still late summer or early autumn outside, but the temperature inside felt like winter, with icy stings.
The stone slabs on the ground continued to absorb the warmth in her palms. She quickly stood up and looked around the room.
There was really no other furniture. Even the candlesticks used for lighting were fixed near the second floor, and two people might not be able to reach them even if they stood on their shoulders.
The entire room had only one door and one window. The door looked like a dog hole, but the window was actually opened in mid-air and sealed into a lattice shape with thick iron rods. Any mouse with a slightly larger body would be trapped.
"Elena, do you think we've been fooled..."
"You just found out?"
Elena didn't bother to look at her dazed look and simply grabbed the blanket and rolled herself in. The flickering lights were dim and the room suddenly fell into silence.
After a long while, Melia's trembling voice came from the dim light: "I'm hungry, where is the food?"
Elena closed her eyes and didn't want to answer:
Anyone who attended a couple of lessons with their tutor would have known the temple's rules. They only had two meals a day, and at night they would sit in meditation in darkness and hunger. Only on holidays could they feast on barbecue with wine.
Bang, bang, bang, bang. The wooden door was slammed hard by the small fists, making a wail of being overwhelmed.
"I'm hungry, where's your food?"
The sound of slow and steady footsteps was heard in the corridor, and a crack slowly opened above the small wooden door, and a bowl of vegetable soup was handed out from inside.
The white-robed attendant's voice came through the wooden door, a little dull: "Please use it."
Melia took the bowl tremblingly, her eyes full of anticipation: "Is there meat?"
"No." The door snapped shut.
She didn't even dare ask about the fruit—! Melia looked at the vegetable soup angrily and licked it. Ugh, let alone poison, there wasn't even a drop of oil. Skim off the floating leaves and it's just water.
I didn’t eat anything after breakfast today except that glass of poisoned wine!
Slurp! She sipped the liquid from the edge of the bowl, finishing most of it. Melia wiped her mouth with her fingers: "Elena, do you want some?"
“…Do you think I’ll drink what you leave behind?” Elena’s fists hardened as she seriously considered whether or not to lift the blanket and give this guy a common sense punch.
"If you don't want to drink it, then forget it. I'm just worried you'll get dehydrated." Melia put the empty bowl by the door, walked back to the blanket, and crawled in. She first pulled up a corner, and soon rolled around with the blanket, and with a thud, she bumped into Elena's back.
"Mei, Li, Ya."
"What's wrong?"
"You asked me what happened?"
Elena was furious for a moment, not knowing whether she was more angry at her brainless enemy or her unresponsive body.
"Yawn, are you going to sleep or not? Don't disturb me." Melia rolled over while mumbling, rolling the quilt on the left side onto herself.
Seeing her fearless appearance, Elena sneered, "How can you sleep? I will be sent to the battlefield. Do you think you can live to see that?"
“!”
After a few seconds, the quilt trembled timidly: "You, you still want to kill me?"
"Of course."
"Don't kill me, wait until tomorrow - I don't want to work in vain -" The chubby ball let out the wail of a corporate slave. No matter if he continued to be killed after killing others, or returned to the wine glass after killing others, it was too devastating!
"...I want to kill you, but I won't be the first to kill you." Elena was so annoyed by her noise that she pressed her forehead and explained, "Do you think Sulla asked the high priest of the Pantheon to take action just to get a little gold from you?"
"What else? They arranged for assassins to come and kill me..."
"It's possible."
"Alas!"
Beijuan jumped up with a snap and rubbed against her side: "Your Highness~~Please save me - you are the only one who can protect me here -"
Elena quickly blocked the man's furry little head and pushed him back hard: "Tsk, don't bother me. Stay away when the assassin comes, and don't let your blood splash on me!"
"ruthless--"
After a rolling and struggling, the long quilt changed from horizontal to vertical and broke into two pieces in the middle.
Melia hugged the flowered quilt tightly and buried her head in it. "Forget it, if you don't help me, I will find a way~"
"What method?" Elena was really curious.
No matter how close Muala's personal relationship with the high priest was, a dead man couldn't compare to a living Sura. What bargaining chips did she have to persuade the high priest to let her go?
Not to mention that she had no idea about Sura's conspiracy. How could one crack a situation that one didn't know about?
"Huff~Huff..." The sound of even breathing came from behind.
She turned her head and took a look. The girl's sleeping face was cute and peaceful. It was hard to imagine how vicious this guy had been and how noisy he was when he woke up.
"Be careful! Don't fall!"
"You'll catch me, right?"
The shepherdess in the dream gradually overlapped with the sleeping girl. She muttered to herself sarcastically in confusion, "Oh, Elena, would you forgive such a person?"
Of course not.
"If I manage to survive the funeral, can we get to know each other again?"
How could it be possible—you would surely die.
It’s just that the person who kills you is no longer me, that’s all.
She closed her eyes and sank into the darkness with peaceful breathing.
…
Click, click.
What's that sound?! Elena opened her eyes suddenly and reached for the hilt of the knife at her waist.
It seems to be the window, someone is sharpening an iron rod with a sharp object... Is it the assassin who came to kill that guy?
For some reason, my mind and shoulders didn't relax.
She should just lie back down and continue pretending to sleep. It had nothing to do with her anyway. No, it wasn't completely irrelevant.
Who allowed him to kill in front of me?
Her fingers suddenly clenched, she counted the time and lifted the quilt, first looking at Melia beside her: Very good, sleeping very soundly, almost dead.
Then he leaped towards the window, looked up, and his pupils contracted violently.
"Meow, meow?" A pink paw was raised weakly: "Help me, help me push it, thank you."
The little white cat was stuck in the window, with its head outside and its body inside, and was squeezed like a little sausage by the iron bars.
"Tsk." Elena stretched out her finger and pushed her little butt.
With a "pop" sound, the cat rolled headfirst into the grass.
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