Helena checked with Vanna several times to make sure whether she was hallucinating.
"So, what you mean is that Captain Duncan Abnomer, the shadow of the warp, the master of the Lost Homeland, began to rebuild the 'Lost Homeland Fleet' after the Frost Incident, and the first action he took to do this was to let you find a loophole to apply for a pass for his new ship?"
Vanna had an embarrassed look on her face and a hesitant tone, but she still had to nod stiffly: "Yes...that's what he told me."
"And the purpose of him asking you to apply for this pass is to allow the new members of the Lost Homeland Fleet to continue to run the cargo business on the Infinite Sea?"
"...Yes, that's what he told me."
Helena looked up at the direction where Vision 004 sank to the ground, then looked at Vanna standing in front of her, and looked up again. After scanning back and forth several times, she finally couldn't help but said: "The Tomb of the Nameless King even updated the vision list today! Because of Duncan Abnomer's actions, this world now has three more unnumbered visions! The Church of the Four Gods will be busy in the future. We may have to use a lot of manpower and a lot of time to figure out what those unnumbered visions mean - including the 'Lost Home Fleet'!"
"Yes," Vanna lowered her head, "but... he really hopes that the Deep Sea Church can issue a special pass for the White Oak."
Helena raised her head and looked quietly into Vanna's eyes.
Vanna lowered her head, trying hard to express her embarrassment and guilt through her gesture.
Yet her efforts at posture had little effect.
After all, the Pope is 1.7 meters tall, while she is nearly 1.9 meters tall.
Helena took two steps back calmly.
"Two things," the pope seemed to take a deep breath. Her face was calm, and she regained her usual graceful and elegant demeanor. She said to Vanna, "First, you cannot issue this pass. Even though you still retain your official status as an inquisitor and a saint, you are also a member of the Lost Homeland. This does not comply with the rules of avoiding suspicion. Vanna, you should understand this."
Vanna's face suddenly showed embarrassment and regret, and she subconsciously said, "Then the second one..."
Helena closed her eyes slightly, as if to calm herself down: "Second thing, I'll sign the pass."
Vanna seemed to be unable to react for a moment, and stared at the Pope in front of her with wide eyes.
Helena didn't seem to care about the momentary surprise and doubt on Vanna's face. She just exhaled and said lightly: "So, what kind of pass do you think Duncan Abnomer would like?"
Vanna continued to stare in amazement.
She only heard the Pope's voice continue: "The pass will be ready soon. I will pray in the Storm Cathedral and listen to the Goddess's revelation. If there is really no problem, this pass will be delivered to you in a mysterious way. Maintain the ceremony site on your side and wait for news."
As these words fell, Helena's figure gradually dimmed and disappeared in the assembly square.
Deep in the boundless sea, somewhere in a secret route twisted and hidden by supernatural forces, the majestic and solemn Church Ark is slowly cruising in the territory of civilization.
The steam core outputted surging power, and the sacred steam condensed into a lingering cloud above the church ark. The melodious bells rang, announcing the successful conclusion of a psychic gathering.
In the deepest part of the church's ark, immersed in the "bottom cabin" of the boundless sea, braziers were burning, the flames dispelled the darkness and shadows, and the pope standing between two braziers slowly opened her eyes.
The elegant lady took a deep breath, a complex and tangled expression appeared on her face, and almost at the same time, an old and hoarse voice came into her ears: "Oh, you look like you are troubled, little girl."
Helena raised her head and glanced at the place not far away. The flickering firelight illuminated the area. She could see a "pillar" that seemed to be made up of a tangled network of blood vessels and nerves standing in the depths of the darkness. Various artificial tubes and electrodes were connected to those thick nerve cords, and there was a faint light flickering in between.
"Have you been awake all this time?" Helena calmed herself down and spoke politely to the mythical beast.
"I don't want to wake up, but it's too noisy," the giant beast carrying the church ark said, "Every time you use that psychic channel to gather, it's always noisy, and today it's especially noisy."
"…I'm sorry, something happened. I'm not very calm this time," Helena said, "Next I need to pray and seek enlightenment from the goddess."
"Do you have something to discuss with the Queen?" The old, hoarse voice sounded, "Okay, I won't bother you anymore. I hope you can hear a clearer answer this time. By the way, please give my regards to the Queen."
Helena hummed, then turned around, faced the brazier closest to her, closed her eyes, and began to pray with all her heart.
In the huge dim space, silence enveloped the surroundings and time seemed to have stopped flowing. Only the light and shadow in the brazier jumped, as if invisibly constructing an exchange across the curtain. After an unknown amount of time, Helena finally finished praying and slowly opened her eyes.
She frowned, as if the feeling of praying this time was a little different from usual.
The revelation from the goddess... was as vague as ever, but in the vague "guidance", there seemed to be something like... emotions.
She couldn't tell what that vague and strange feeling was, but after thinking for a long time with her head down, she confirmed the main part of the revelation: it was permission and recognition.
So Helena exhaled, then turned her head to look at the nerve cord covered with pipes, cables, and electrodes: "The goddess has given me a revelation, and I also conveyed my greetings."
There was no response in his ears - the Leviathan carrying the Ark seemed to have fallen asleep again.
Helena was used to this, and after saying hello, she casually reached into the darkness beside her and a blank pass appeared out of thin air in her hand.
After simply confirming that she had taken the right document, the Pope picked up a pen and quickly signed her name and some necessary content. Then she walked to the nearest brazier, lowered her head, silently recited the corresponding prayer, and threw the document into the fire.
In the blink of an eye, the original and duplicate documents and certificates with her name on them were engulfed by flames, turning into specks of light and dust, and dissipated in the real world.
※※※
Vanna opened her eyes in the cabin, and as soon as she regained consciousness, she subconsciously gasped for breath.
The ritual site that was temporarily constructed with crude means was indeed not as good as the "Tide Chamber" in the church. When she returned, the feeling of being submerged in the sea water was extremely strong, which even made her, a Storm Saint, a little uncomfortable.
But at least this psychic gathering was successfully completed.
Vanna took a few breaths, calmed herself down, sorted out the process of this meeting in her mind, and prepared to patiently wait for Pope Helena's reply and the "pass" that would most likely be delivered to her through the "mysterious ritual".
In theory, the Pope needs to conduct a series of prayer ceremonies before the pass can be prepared - even if the step of "inspecting the ship for the pass" is omitted for various reasons, praying to the goddess is still necessary.
However, the next second, when the corner of her eye caught sight of the temporary altar that had been hastily set up, Vanna's expression suddenly froze.
The few thick candles that served as the ritual brazier had burned out without anyone noticing. The candlesticks that were theoretically enough to burn for a whole day were now reduced to piled-up ashes and wax wax. In the last wisp of dissipated smoke, a "pass" that still emitted a faint glow was lying quietly on the floor.
So fast?
Fanna frowned, walked forward puzzledly, picked up the documents, and looked through their contents carefully.
A standard permission document, which records the basic information of the White Oak and the supernatural factors involved, as well as the church's seal, an original pass, and a copy of the pass for routine customs inspection.
They were all signed by Pope Helena.
There was nothing wrong with the documents—there couldn’t be any.
It just happened too quickly. I had just returned from the meeting place when the document had already been delivered.
Fanna carefully examined the documents and certificates for a long time. After a while, she suddenly heard a voice in her mind. It was the voice of Pope Helena.
"What Captain Duncan wants has been sent through the 'Secret Ceremony'."
Vanna looked down at the thing in her hand and dispelled the little doubt in her heart: "Yes, I have received it."
Then she exhaled, thanked the Pope and said goodbye, then put away the documents and hurriedly left the cabin.
Duncan was still waiting on the deck at this time. When Vanna appeared on the deck in a hurry, he smiled and said, "You've been gone for quite a while. Did the meeting go well?"
"The meeting went very... smoothly," Vanna hesitated for a moment. The first thing that came to her mind was the three "unnumbered visions" that appeared on the parchment she brought out from Vision 004. She looked at the smiling "party" in front of her with mixed feelings, and then handed over the pass that had just been delivered from the Cathedral of Storms. "But please take a look at this first, the pass you asked for."
"Pass?" Duncan was stunned for a moment. He did tell Vanna about this matter, but he didn't expect that she would take out the pass after returning from the rally. Such incredible efficiency made him a little dazed.
However, he still reached out and took the documents and certificates. He glanced at the documents and sighed casually: "You are really efficient... You carry all these things with you?"
"This... Actually, things are a bit complicated," Vanna said with embarrassment, "These things were not signed by me, but by Her Majesty Helena. She heard about it..."
She was interrupted by Duncan when she was halfway through her words. The latter suddenly raised his head and said, "Wait, who signed this?"
Fanna was stunned. She didn't know why the captain had such a big reaction: "Yes... Your Majesty Helena, is there any problem?"
Duncan did not answer. He just looked into Vanna's eyes. After a long time, he lowered his head and stared at the words on the pass documents.
His eyes fell on the signature at the end of the certificate.
Signed by - Gemona.
Documents, original and copy of certificate, three signatures.
It's all like this.