Chapter 38: Craftsmen's Guild
In the basement of St. Amanda's School, Dorothy was a little surprised listening to Aldridge's words. She didn't think at first that Aldridge didn't destroy those excellent works to absorb spirituality just because he couldn't bear to do so.
"Is he closer to a craftsman than a master craftsman?"
Dorothy silently repeated what Aldridge had just said in her heart, as if thinking about something, and then she opened her mouth and said to Aldridge.
"According to what you said, the extraordinary people of 'Stone' have a close relationship with the craftsmen..."
"Yes, we are usually all kinds of craftsmen, stonemasons, blacksmiths, jewelers...even mechanics...Although there are some alternatives, the impression of craftsmen has been firmly connected with us."
Aldridge answered naturally. Listening to his words, Dorothy nodded in understanding, and then spoke with emotion.
"Craftsmen and craftsmanship? Anyway, the way extraordinary people with the spiritual power of 'Stone' absorb spiritual power is much better than that of 'Cup'..."
"Absorbing the 'Cup'... Haha, I'm glad that Miss Meshhos still possesses the most basic moral values. I hope you can keep this in your future life. However, I need to correct you on one point. Don't think that all extraordinary people related to the 'Stone' have this way of practice because of me. There are also taboos in the practice of the 'Stone'." Aldridge corrected Dorothy with a smile, and Dorothy was slightly stunned after hearing it.
"The taboo of 'Stone'..."
"Yes, the Red Communion you came into contact with before obtained rich spirituality by devouring human flesh and blood, but don't forget, how could humans, as the most intelligent creatures on earth, only have spirituality in their flesh and blood? I can tell you that human bones contain much higher spirituality than ordinary rocks. In the associations that worship 'stone', there are also many who kill people for their bones and carve tools out of bones. They are not necessarily much more noble than the Communion."
Listening to Aldridge's words, Dorothy couldn't help but be startled. She didn't expect that even the seemingly peaceful "Stone" could have a bloody and cruel side.
"It seems that no matter what kind of spirit it is, there may be inhuman ways of practice. And Aldridge also said before that the current mainstream practice of the 'Cup' is to devour flesh and blood, so it is possible that there are other ways of practicing the 'Cup'?"
Dorothy was thinking silently, while Aldridge sat back in his chair leisurely, and urged Dorothy to continue speaking.
"I have finished my answer. Do you have any questions?"
Dorothy paused slightly after listening to Aldridge's words, and then continued.
"Then what I want to ask you next is, are you willing to offend the Holy Communion to protect me?"
Dorothy said slightly seriously that she could clearly feel Aldridge's kindness towards her, but she couldn't figure out where this kindness came from.
"Offend the Holy Communion? Humph... I said before that they were the ones who broke the rules first and made trouble on my territory. We white stone masons will not take the initiative to interfere in other people's affairs, but we will never allow others to act wildly over us..." Aldridge said with a cold snort, and Dorothy spoke directly after hearing this.
"Whitestone Masons Guild?"
"Huh? You don't even know this? Haha... It seems that Miss Meshhos is really new to the secret..." Hearing Dorothy's puzzled tone, Aldridge smiled slightly and then spoke.
"As I said before, most of the extraordinary people associated with 'Stone' are craftsmen of various kinds. Craftsmen... all have the need to exchange experiences, become apprentices, trade materials, etc., so there are various associations. Among them, the White Stone Craftsmen's Union can be said to be the largest one...
"The Artisan Guild is very large, and can be considered one of the largest secret societies. It has all kinds of extraordinary people like me who are related to 'stone', and all kinds of craftsmen. Its influence spreads across the entire continent. For example, I am the head of the Artisan Guild, Igwent."
"One of the...largest secret societies..." Dorothy was stunned when she heard what Aldridge said. She didn't expect that the power behind this old man was so strong.
"Haha... don't be so surprised. Although the Artisan Guild is large in scale, its structure is relatively loose, and the organization's constraints on members are not strong. Compared to those strict associations, we are actually more like a craftsman alliance."
Aldridge said this with a smile, then drank another cup of tea and continued.
"Our Artisan Guild has members all over the continent, and they can be found in basically any larger city. Compared to other associations, the Artisan Guild adheres to the principle of eternal neutrality and will not side with any party in terms of stance, whether they are the country, the church, or other associations. As long as they do not take the initiative to offend us, we will not take action.
"We rarely interact with any forces, except for trade, of course. Our works are coveted by other forces. As long as they can afford the price, we can trade with anyone. In fact, many forces are happy to do so...
"Although I usually don't like the people in the Holy Communion, I can't take the initiative to cause trouble for them due to the rules of the society. But this time, since they came to my territory and broke the rules first, you can't blame me for being polite. I just cleaned up the people who broke the rules, and saving you was just a byproduct."
Aldridge explained. Listening to his words, Dorothy felt that the White Stone Masons were an association of craftsmen and merchants. Indeed, both craftsmen and merchants could make a living anywhere, and remaining neutral was indeed the best choice. According to the report from Greg, Igwinter's official security bureau also had dealings with Gray Hill.
"Whether it was incidental or not, sir, your helping me is real, and I still need to thank you very much, not to mention that you are so generous to share so much secret information with me?"
"Secret information? What kind of secrets are these? They are just common sense and worthless. You are a student of my school, and I admire your performance. Telling you these is a little reward..." Aldridge waved his hand and said. In his opinion, the information he had shared with Dorothy before was nothing.
Listening to Aldridge's words, Dorothy made up her mind, and then after hesitating for a while, she spoke.
"I see... Then let me ask you one last question now, sir. Do you... know the initial promotion ceremonies of various spiritual paths?"
Dorothy asked while looking at Aldridge. At this time, her enlightenment was about to accumulate to 10 points, and it was time to consider promotion. Now she finally met an old senior in the secret world, who was neutral. Although he was not of the same spirituality as her, she still had to ask him.
But to be on the safe side, Dorothy did not ask directly what kind of spiritual initiation ceremony it was.
"Promotion ceremony..."
Listening to Dorothy's words, Aldridge looked at Dorothy and then spoke slowly.
"I don't know whether you have accumulated enough spiritual power or you just want to ask, but I can tell you that if ordinary people are promoted to apprentices, the ceremony is actually very simple and highly homogeneous, with only minor differences, so I know everything."
"I know everything..."
Dorothy's eyes lit up when she heard what Aldridge said. Just when she wanted to continue asking questions, Aldridge said again.
"Yes, I know everything, but if you want to know, I can't tell you directly."
"Ah... why?"
Dorothy asked in astonishment, while Aldridge continued to speak with a smile.
"Although this information is not worth much, a little is still money. Although the promotion rituals of the initial stages of the various spiritual realms are somewhat secretive and known to those with experience, it has not yet become 'common sense' that can be shared casually. According to the rules of the Artisans' Guild, anything of value cannot be given away for nothing, even if it is only of a tiny value.
"Ms. Meshhos, I am a person who strictly abides by the rules. I cannot break this rule of the society. You must give me enough chips before I can tell you the ceremony."
Aldridge dusted himself off, leaned back in his chair, looked at Dorothy in front of him and raised a finger.
"100 pounds, fixed price."
Listening to Aldridge's words, Dorothy was stunned. At this moment, she felt as if she was back to the secret meeting a few days ago.
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