CA – Chapter 37
Chapter 37
The position of priest in the Holy See could not remain vacant for long. Monica made her selections without seeking Bishop Ralph's opinion, and after the Light Baptism on Sunday, she announced the new priests to everyone.
Grace Barton and Linda Mancini.
The answer was expected. After all, any cleric who had been to Vandent could see the importance Monica placed on the golden-haired cleric, and her Power of Light was indeed astonishing. Her promotion to priest was only a matter of time.
But... had the golden-haired cleric even been in the Holy See for more than ten days?
How enviable. Whether they were stealing glances at Tang Qiu or staring at her openly, the same thought surfaced in the minds of all the clerics.
After the Light Baptism concluded, Tang Qiu left the hall with the crowd. Jennifer bypassed the clerics in front of her to walk by her side. Though her heart was filled with mixed feelings, she still offered her congratulations. "Congratulations."
Jennifer had originally been a popular candidate for priest. It was one thing to lose to Linda, but she had also lost to Tang Qiu, who had just joined the Holy See, forfeiting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The clerics all guessed she must be feeling bitter. Seeing her approach Tang Qiu, they all looked over curiously, some with worried expressions, fearing they might start a fight.
However, to their disappointment, although Jennifer was very upset, her blessing for Tang Qiu was sincere. She had no intention of causing trouble.
Tang Qiu turned her head to look at Jennifer, smiled slightly, and nodded. "Thank you."
Jennifer was slow to warm up and said nothing more after her congratulations. Tang Qiu, who usually took the initiative to liven the atmosphere, seemed to have something on her mind and was rather absent-minded. After the two walked in silence for a while, Jennifer frowned and deliberately slowed her pace, trying to put some distance between them.
"I'm very sorry about what happened to Priest Cecia." Tang Qiu sensed Jennifer's discomfort. She gathered her thoughts and took the initiative to start a conversation. "It all happened so suddenly at the time. None of us noticed."
Jennifer had also been one of Priest Cecia's attendant clerics.
"It's not your fault. It's the vampires' fault."
Speaking of the vampire who killed Priest Cecia, Tang Qiu frowned. "I wonder if the vampire who killed Priest Cecia was the one hiding in Kafu Town." She described Lola's features.
Jennifer's face turned ugly. She gritted her teeth and said, "It was her."
Tang Qiu's eyes widened slightly, a hint of confusion flashing in her sky-blue eyes. If it really was that sixth-generation vampire from Kafu Town, then why did she appear at Rose Manor?
Was she just hunting there by chance?
Tang Qiu frowned, feeling that the timing of Lola's appearance there was very strange. She pondered for a moment, and just as she was about to say something, a voice interrupted her. Linda left her circle of clerics and came to walk alongside them.
"Congratulations, Grace." Linda's face was pale. Although the wound on her neck was no longer swollen, it hadn't fully healed, which made her movements look very stiff when she turned her head.
Tang Qiu smiled gently. "Thank you. I should congratulate you as well."
Linda smiled faintly, then lowered her head. After a moment's hesitation, she said in a low voice, "Actually, I came to apologize to you."
"I said some unkind things to you before and did some wrong things. I didn't offer you any help when you first arrived at the Holy See."
Linda looked up, an expression of remorse on her face. "I regret it very much. I'm sorry." She raised a hand to touch her neck and gave a self-deprecating smile. "Perhaps this injury is the Light Goddess's punishment for my narrow-mindedness."
Tang Qiu glanced at her in surprise, then smiled and shook her head. "There's no need to apologize. I didn't take it to heart." She truly hadn't paid any mind to Linda's petty actions.
To her, they weren't significant enough to warrant her attention.
"Thank you for forgiving me." Linda thought Tang Qiu had accepted her apology. She placed her right hand on her left shoulder and bowed slightly, her tone sincere.
Tang Qiu bowed back to her and watched her retreating figure thoughtfully. Beside her, Jennifer looked in the direction Linda had gone, her expression somewhat moved. She said in a low voice, "She was just blinded by jealousy."
Tang Qiu turned her head and looked at Jennifer with a subtle expression. Jennifer noticed her gaze and frowned back. "What is it?"
"Nothing." Tang Qiu shook her head, paused for a moment, and then said with a sudden smile, "Would you be willing to be my attendant cleric?" Each priest could choose two attendant clerics.
She hadn't been in the Holy See for long. While she knew a few clerics, she didn't have a thorough understanding of their personalities. In contrast, Jennifer, with whom she had little interaction, had left a rather good impression on her.
However, Tang Qiu's sincere invitation was met with a cold look from Jennifer. "No."
Tang Qiu looked at her with a smile. Jennifer averted her gaze, a little uncomfortable. After a moment of silence, she said in a low voice, "...I need to think about it."
They had just reached the door to Jennifer's room. After saying she would think about it, she turned, opened the door, and went inside. Before closing it, she glanced back once more. The golden-haired cleric's features were gentle, the corners of her mouth slightly raised. She wasn't angry at her refusal.
Promotion to priest required a special Light Baptism, which, in the Bill Holy See, was conducted by Bishop Ralph.
Tang Qiu didn't have a strong impression of Bishop Ralph. Although he had been transferred here from the Central Church, he had no presence at all. Most of the Holy See's affairs were handled by Monica.
Even the king of the Bill Empire would go directly to Monica if he needed something.
Of all the bishops assigned to the various empires by the Holy See, Bishop Ralph was probably the one with the least presence.
Bishop Ralph was already over fifty, his hair tinged with frost. He stood before the statue of the Light Goddess, staff in hand, looking down at Tang Qiu and Linda. He said with a smile, "Don't be nervous. It's just a Light Baptism Spell. Just close your eyes and enjoy it."
As he spoke, he raised his staff and began to chant in a low voice. The incantation was very long. Tang Qiu looked up at him three times in confusion before a soft white light slowly descended upon her and Linda.
The bishop's Power of Light was very pure, making her feel as if her body and soul were being cleansed.
The Power of Light within her was washed over and over again. Tang Qiu calmed her mind to feel it and could clearly sense her Power of Light becoming purer.
Time passed bit by bit. By the time Bishop Ralph finally put away his staff, his forehead was beaded with sweat. The Light Baptism Spell consumed a great deal of the Power of Light. He raised a hand to wipe away the sweat and immediately took out two bottles of Holy Water of Light and drank them.
Tang Qiu and Linda politely thanked him one after another. Seeing Bishop Ralph wave a weary hand at them, they tactfully took their leave.
Newly appointed priests had many things to attend to. Besides choosing their attendant clerics, they also had to assist Monica in handling the affairs of the Holy See. Until they found their area of expertise, new priests had to be involved in everything.
Tang Qiu was busy for more than ten days straight, not even having time to look at her intermediate light magic books. When she finally had some free time, she realized the night of the full moon was fast approaching.
In a small tavern in the main city.
Tang Qiu propped her chin on one hand, while the other idly swirled the pale green liquid in her glass. A wide cloak concealed her priest's robes. Her long golden hair lay smoothly against her back, with one mischievous strand escaping to the front as she leaned forward, its end slightly curled.
On the table in front of her were more than a dozen bottles of Holy Water of Light, and the number was still growing.
Erin very generously took out two teleportation scrolls and handed them to Tang Qiu. "Your payment."
Tang Qiu raised an eyebrow. Her long fingers picked up one of the scrolls to play with it as she said with a smile, "It seems your gains in Vandent were quite satisfactory."
She hadn't missed the sight of Erin excitedly stripping the white robes off the witches in Vandent, though she didn't know what purpose those robes served.
Erin nodded readily, in a very good mood. "Indeed, very satisfactory."
The robes worn by witches represented their status in the witch world. Although a white robe only symbolized the third generation, due to the mysterious nature of witches, it could still fetch a good price at Mark's Grocery Store.
Not to mention, Laurel's Space Gem contained many uncommon materials. Selling any one of them would be a fortune.
Erin's nearly empty Space Gem was full again, which made paying Tang Qiu, Eva, and the others not so painful.
Tang Qiu shook her head with a laugh. Noticing that people in the tavern were secretly eyeing the items on their table, she raised her hand and put away all the Holy Water of Light and the scrolls. Then she asked casually, "What are your plans now?"
Erin sighed and said, "I might have to leave the Bill Empire."
"Oh?" Tang Qiu was surprised. "Where to?"
"I haven't decided yet." Erin blinked. "Probably to other countries."
"I am a free-spirited bard. Wandering through different countries is my destiny." Just as Erin was speaking profoundly about her ideals, a small gray furball suddenly leaped out of her hood, landed on top of her head, and looked down at Tang Qiu with its gray eyes.
"Hey, didn't I tell you to hide?" Erin grabbed the furball and said indignantly.
This was the little furball they had picked up at Rose Manor. Tang Qiu reached out, took the furball, and examined it for a few moments with curiosity. "What exactly is this?" she asked, puzzled.
The furball was still as small as when she first saw it, and its eyes were dazed and a little silly.
Erin glanced around nervously, hesitated for a moment, then leaned in and whispered, "I suspect it's a demonic beast."
Tang Qiu's hand paused. She lifted the little furball's chin with her thumb to examine it carefully, musing, "...A lion-man?"
But the color and appearance weren't quite right.
Erin shook her head. "Actually, I don't know what kind of demonic beast it is either. There's no record of it in the summoning book."
Tang Qiu handed the furball back, her tone flat. "Since it's a demonic beast, just kill it." No need to guess its species.
Erin's hand tightened around the furball. She stammered, "...Don't you think it's cute?"
She had also thought about just killing it, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
Tang Qiu glanced at it and shrugged. "It's alright." She wasn't a fan of fluffy things.
Erin silently placed the little furball back into her hood, deciding to move on from the topic.
Since Erin was leaving the Bill Empire and it was uncertain if they would ever meet again, Tang Qiu didn't rush to leave and instead chatted with Erin for a while.
Ever since she had transmigrated, the first person she had met was Erin. She had been wary of her, suspicious of her, but in the end, they had gotten along quite harmoniously.
This person was full of mysteries. Tang Qiu was curious, but she didn't want to reach out and dispel the fog. So, she accepted Erin's story of wandering through various countries and offered her a sincere blessing.
By the time she said goodbye to Erin, the sky was already growing dark. Instead of returning to the Holy See, Tang Qiu went straight to Lucille's manor. She had been at the Holy See ever since they parted ways in Vandent and hadn't contacted Lucille yet.
The manor was in a somewhat remote location. Tang Qiu passed through several streets and walked for a while before arriving at the gate. A few rose bushes had grown through the white fence, flaunting their beauty to the outside world. A maid, having just finished tidying the manor, was about to leave. She looked up and saw Tang Qiu, startled for a moment, then asked cautiously, "May I help you, Your Excellency?"
Tang Qiu took off her hood and smiled at the maid. "I'm here to see Lucille."
The maid recognized the golden-haired cleric. She let out a small sigh of relief and replied, "Lord Lucille is not at the manor."
Tang Qiu paused for a moment, then asked gently, "Could you tell me where she went?"
"I don't know." The maid shook her head. "Lord Lucille left more than ten days ago and hasn't been back since."
"She might have returned to Edry."
The smile on Tang Qiu's lips faded slightly, and her brow furrowed. Lucille had actually gone back to Edry?
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