Chapter 44: Light
The sound of bells chimed deep in the morning light, and dewdrops trembled faintly on the delicate petals of the golden lilies. The magnificent, majestic carved archway of the Church of Light slowly opened. Guards stood in awe, and believers slowly entered. The people of Port Morris, watching from afar, occasionally let out quiet exclamations.
"The Earl and Countess of Sayre, the presidents of the Navigation Association and the Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Carter, a high-ranking council member of the city council, Judge Weiss, the editor-in-chief of the Port Morris newspaper... Oh my God, is that the mayor and his wife?"
The distinguished guests were well-dressed, and whatever their intentions, at least their faces looked solemn and pious. Bishop Lagaza, who had been standing at the gate to greet the visitors, wore a cautious and considerate smile, but in fact, he had a lot on his mind.
Bishop Lagasha had no idea of the Red Bazaar's true power, but he vaguely knew it was a massive beast, thriving wildly within the Empire, and he was merely a blood vessel within the fortress. If he could block the breathing and breathing of this ravenous beast, it would be easy for the person behind it to sever a damaged blood vessel.
But he couldn't afford to offend the Royal City Church either. After all, no matter how they profited behind the scenes, the Radiant Church had to maintain its public appearance. Lagasa had always been excellent at this. He had a reputation for being charitable and generous, and he maintained good relationships with people from all walks of life in high society—until late last night, when Mr. Brody's eyes were fixed on him. Anyone with an eye could see that he was just short of explicitly saying that the incident before the Cardinal was related to him.
After thinking it over again and again, he quietly ran to knock on Bishop Miller's door, knelt down and cried bitterly, saying frankly that he knew about the existence of the Bloody Market, but he was powerless to do anything about it. However, he never participated in the illegal slave trade - at most, he helped to find candidates, open up various connections, and add fuel to the fire. Of course, he would never say a word of these words - and he had no impression of the handsome blond boy.
——But to be honest, if he really came across something of this quality, he would definitely take action.
"...Go back, everything is in accordance with the will of our God."
The night was dark, and Lagasha could only vaguely catch a glimpse of the Cardinal's cold profile. His fingers caressed the scepter, and for a moment, he felt that the "Dustless Light" of the Glorious Church was so cold and terrifying.
Bishop Lagasha, who was a little distracted, suddenly met a pair of smoky gray eyes. The pupils in those eyes were like the sharp spears in the hands of the goddess of fate. Something cold and inorganic that pierced the bones frightened him so much that he almost cried out on the spot.
The owner of the eyes looked at him expressionlessly - Lagasha had to admit that when the other party completely looked away, he realized that he had lost the ability to breathe on his own at that moment.
The rest of the people's attention was all on the person behind the black-haired young man.
A boy so perfect and exquisite that he could be called a masterpiece of God.
The gentle, brilliant sunlight loved him, kissing his hair; the ocean, like a dream of rolling mountains, splendidly illuminated his eyes. He stood in the morning light, under the gaze of the statue of Zephyr, the god of light and glory. Although he was dressed simply, his body still revealed the brightest and most dazzling radiance in the world.
A vague thought emerged in the hearts of all believers - he should stand on a high platform and look down at the world, just like the light showing mercy to all living beings.
The Cardinal stepped onto the pulpit, glancing at the "believers" below him, who were clearly of high status. He then gave Bishop Lagasa a suggestive look. He said nothing, but after Bishop Lagasa finished his opening remarks, he calmly opened the Holy Book of Light and led the believers in prayer. The prayer was unfamiliar; none of them had ever heard it spoken by any other clergy of the Glorious Church.
That was the prayer that the priests who were in despair during the divine war at the end of the century prayed for the coming of the gods. Nova looked at the cardinal on the pulpit with a cold expression.
No matter whether it is praise or supplication, the last sentence of the prayer must be added:
"—my soul belongs to you."
Nova didn't recite, and neither did Azuka. The dark-haired young man simply stared at the cardinal with a chilling calm, carefully observing every movement of his facial muscles—and then he suddenly blinked slowly.
The professor heard another voice - a male voice, hoarse and strange, with a completely undisguised, superior arrogance.
"Both of them, bring them forward." said the voice that sounded like the God of Light.
But apart from him and Miller, no one present seemed to hear any sound. Nova even wondered if this was just his own illusion, like the struggle and despair of being hunted by those pale and twisted shadows.
But what he saw the next second made the professor suspect that this was not just his imagination - or was it the product of a brain problem?
A human figure that looked extremely familiar, exactly the same as the hallucinations he had had before. The face was grotesque and distorted like a ghost, and it was blurred like a melted oil painting. Some gray mist dripped from the face, making it look like a highly decomposed corpse.
In any case, it has nothing to do with the majestic statue of the God of Light.
That "thing" vaguely appeared on Miller's body. As Miller walked down the pulpit holding the Holy Book of Light and blessed the believers one by one, the shadow of the past that should not exist in this world was getting closer and closer to the two of them.
A phantom pain like a needle prickled his exposed skin, but it all seemed to be just his nightmare - until the person next to him calmly held his hand, allowing the gloved fingers to twitch slightly unconsciously.
“…May the light be with you and me.”
The sun was shining brightly, hymns filled the air, and an extremely ugly monster emerged from the holy and handsome face of the Cardinal. Nova saw the sticky mist rushing towards them like the greedy tentacles of a sea creature. He subconsciously tensed up in the dizziness caused by lack of oxygen.
"—Analene! Utoska!"
The thing suddenly roared angrily, looking even more ferocious, and even Miller's expression twisted in pain for a moment.
"How dare he, how dare they!"
The furious "god" became more and more terrifying. Nova saw the mist surging around the two of them, sometimes gathering into a huge human face with unclear features, and sometimes splitting into countless tiny particles, as if it was about to swallow him at any time, but in the end it dissipated unwillingly.
"Are you okay?" After the service, the cardinal was immediately surrounded by an enthusiastic crowd. Nova heard the God-blessed one whispering in his ear in the Natalin language, and his hand was carefully held.
"It's okay, I just saw a...furious ghost." Across the crowd, Nova looked at the cardinal, whose expression was difficult to discern, and squeezed out a few words from between his teeth. For a moment, he even forgot to pull his hand away.
This is what everyone believes in... Is this the so-called "God"?
——And why did the name of the Storm God Utoska come out of the mouth of the God of Light?
“Cousin…cousin!”
It seemed like someone was calling him. The professor, with a lot of thoughts in his mind, didn't want to pay attention to anyone for the time being and simply pretended not to hear anything - but the other party tried to pull his sleeve, but was stopped calmly by the God-favored One beside him.
"Good morning, what's up?"
His tone was probably extremely impatient. Percy, who had finally mustered up the courage again, subconsciously shrank back. His eyes swept over the stunningly handsome young man next to his cousin. While he was amazed, he remembered the other party's origins and couldn't help showing a bit of disdain and hostility towards him, and quickly adjusted his facial expression.
How could someone of such low status dare to cling to his cousin so ignorantly? He had seen that guy deliberately pull his cousin's hand in church, but his cousin didn't immediately shake him off - with an unconscious hint of jealousy, he deliberately raised his chin and nodded gracefully at him.
"Percy Brody, second-year head of St. Bartolomeo's School of Warlocks, may I ask who you are?" He added hypocritically, as if he had just remembered, "Ah, sorry, I forgot you don't understand the Common Language."
The teenager's poor acting skills and little thoughts could not be hidden from the God's favored one at all, but he was too lazy to argue with the kid, and just gave him a gentle smile. The other party was immediately stunned, and a suspicious blush appeared on his face.
"It's okay, I can speak some, but I'm not very proficient - Hello, I'm Azuka, Professor Brody's assistant."
"...Wait, assistant?!" Percy finally came back to his senses from those blue eyes that almost drowned him, and then he heard these words, and suddenly his eyes widened.
Wasn't this guy just a slave that Bishop Miller had casually rescued? Why was he getting involved with my cousin again?!
"Part of my research happens to involve the writing and history of the Karak people, and Mr. Azuka saved my life and wants a job." His cousin gave him a look that seemed puzzled by his overreaction.
"What's the matter with you?" The other party clicked his tongue, and his beautiful smoky-gray eyes were like a mirror, reflecting his embarrassment and panic in every detail.
"...I'm just worried about you." Percy suddenly felt a little aggrieved. He began to regret his impulsiveness. He had finally caught someone in the Church of Light and immediately approached him. As a result, he had to try hard to lower his voice to avoid losing his composure.
Percy had to admit that Cardinal Miller's peculiar attitude toward Nova Brody had given him a sense of crisis. On the one hand, he felt a subtle sense of satisfaction, believing his cousin was truly a formidable figure, even someone as influential as the Cardinal treating him with special regard. On the other hand, he couldn't suppress the dark, damp jealousy and anxiety within him, as well as the nagging fear. If the title, which he had always considered a sure thing, ultimately fell to his cousin because of the Cardinal's favor, Percy Brody's life would become a complete joke.
How would his classmates, his friends... and his father view him?
God knows how his brain was bubbling like a pot of boiling porridge when he heard the news that his cousin was abducted by pagans last night - but when he heard that the other party had returned safely, he felt a sense of relief, but at the same time, he felt ashamed and afraid of his ugly and horrible thoughts.
So much so that I still have two huge dark circles under my eyes.
His cousin looked at him with an unclear expression, and Percy almost thought that he was going to cut open his soul and expose all the shameful filth - but in the end, he just replied lightly.
"I understand." Those smoky gray eyes were cold and calm, as if they saw through all his shortcomings: "One piece of advice, stay away from me."
——Countless disasters and coincidences will "naturally" befall the chosen ones and those around them.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
