Chapter 266: The Descent of the Holy Sword (6)
Pasika froze when he heard her name, and for a heartbeat, all the air seemed to leave his lungs.
The Sun God’s Church was smaller than the Earth Goddess’s Church if one counted raw numbers, yet most people still called it the strongest religious order on the continent, and for one reason only: where other faiths had breadth, the Sun God’s Church had height.
It gathered monsters in human skin. The Chief Inquisitor, the Commander of the Holy Knights, the Pontiff himself, all stood in the highest level of the Transcendent, and even a single fighter at that level could tilt the scales of judgement for an entire institution.
Other churches boasted a few at the same tier, so the difference by itself was not crushing, but Sun God’s Church had something no one else did, and she stood in front of them now.
Once in a thousand years, the Hall of the Gods chose a mortal and laid a hand on that person’s life. That person could meet a god’s gaze and hold a conversation without a veil. She was that person, the Saintess of the Sun God, Helia. She was a Hero, and Ketal felt his chest loosen with honest admiration.
“The Saintess of the Sun God...,” Ketal said, and the joy inside the words could not be hidden. He had seen strength, more than most mortals ever would. The Tower Master existed, yes, but the Tower Master was a lich and thus a thing apart. Among humans, he had not met anyone like this.
“Saintess, it is a pleasure,” he said.
“Aquaz and Seraphina owe you a great debt,” Helia replied in a voice as calm as water held in a bowl. “I came to convey their gratitude, Ketal.”
“We are friends,” Ketal said with a laugh that dispelled solemnity before it could settle. “There is no debt to speak of.”
“Even so, expressing thanks is my duty. And as a servant of a god and a citizen of this continent, I will thank you as well. We have heard what you have done,” Helia said. She studied him with eyes that seemed both gentle and exacting. “You came here to draw the Holy Sword.”
“I am interested,” Ketal said. “I plan to try.”
“I see.” Something unreadable crossed Helia’s face, not displeasure but curiosity with a shadow under it, as if she could not quite understand why someone of his standing would seek the sword at all.