The Holy Church Begins with Bestowal of Blessings

Chapter 255: Eternal Sleep

"I will help you ask those scholars, see if any of them are willing to go." Oscar finally said. "But I think it will be difficult. After all, you also know, right now only York Territory is the place that scholars long for within the three Principalities of Greenwood."

"By now, the number of scholars in the Monastery has already reached forty-seven. This is more than twice the number of resident scholars compared to when the Association still existed."

"The exchange and collision between the knowledge held by this many scholars can give birth to more new knowledge. Now, apart from me and your great Lord, no one knows what kind of knowledge the Monastery has mastered."

Marl said, "Knowledge also needs practice."

Oscar said, "Practice requires materials. Adrian has no such materials."

Marl said, "Adrian has countless Fishmen."

Oscar laughed, stood up, leaned against the table, and looked at Marl. "You want scholars to specifically study Fishmen?"

Marl said in a deep tone, "And living Magical Beasts."

Oscar laughed even louder. "Would that Earl Richard be willing to let the scholars dissect that Dragon-Eagle?"

Marl fell silent for a moment, then said, "Once, York Territory was also barren."

Oscar shook his head and said, "I will try my best to persuade them, but don’t hold out too much hope."

Marl nodded, stood up, and said, "That is enough. As long as the scholars know Adrian is inviting with sincerity, that will suffice."

Oscar suddenly said, "There is a Magician named Vallo, who seeks your protection."

Marl was stunned. Just as he was about to leave, he halted his step and said, "There really is someone named Vallo. I saw him holding the Sacred Cross coin and accepted him. He is a Magician?"

"Yes. He once helped Agamemnon, so I gave him a coin." Oscar replied, and then asked, "Did you baptize him?"

Marl nodded and said, "There was no Darkness, and no Sin."

Oscar said, "Then perhaps you can communicate with him."

Marl frowned. "Communicate with him about what? He is a Magician."

Oscar said, "Magic is powerful, and its main manifestations have three directions—controlling the elements, mastering souls, and altering matter. Scholars have their scholarly systems of knowledge, while Magicians have their magical systems of knowledge. Unfortunately, the great Bishop here does not like Magic."

Marl spoke with some resistance. "You mean for me to recruit these Magicians?"

Oscar spread his hands. "That depends entirely on you."

Marl hesitated but did not outright refuse.

……

The Monastery had later been expanded, and Oscar’s study was in one of the newly built wings.

Marl walked into the very first building, and on the third floor, he found Agamemnon.

"You need to take a proper rest." Agamemnon looked at the weary Marl and said.

Marl replied, "I will rest well after I finish handling these matters."

Agamemnon advised, "Matters will never be finished."

Marl said, "Then you should ask the Fishmen whether they will let me rest."

Agamemnon opened his mouth, then finally sighed and asked, "Then, what did you come to see me for?"

Marl said directly, "Adrian lacks Priests."

Agamemnon shook his head. "Everywhere lacks them. Even the Diocese of Rod is still short of Priests. Earl Gregor has also made a request to the Church, hoping to establish a new Diocese in Doyle Territory, and the Bishop wants Priest Jeremiah to serve there."

Marl froze and said, "I never heard of this matter."

Jeremiah currently belonged to his Great Church.

Agamemnon said, "This was a request Earl Gregor made directly to the Church."

Marl asked, "And what was the Church’s decision?"

Agamemnon said, "Of course, they agreed. An Earl voluntarily invited them, and he even asked for Priest Jeremiah to be his advisor, promising absolute trust in him—just like Richard’s trust in you."

Marl’s eyelid twitched slightly, and in his heart, he felt a trace of pity for Jeremiah.

He himself was in a better situation. Richard had Magical Beasts, and he himself was strong enough to suppress the nobles. Later, the Fishmen destroyed much of Adrian, creating external pressure that let him insert Priests there more quickly.

But Doyle was nearly a complete Earl’s territory.

Moreover, in Richard’s description, Earl Gregor was a cowardly and brainless fool.

Seeing Marl did not respond, Agamemnon took the initiative to ask, "Do you still need support on your side?"

Marl shook his head. "Not for now. The Fishmen have retreated, and Richard and I are currently setting defenses at the front."

Agamemnon asked, "What about the catapults? After this expedition, Councilor Julian said these used catapults and crossbows will all be discarded."

Marl hesitated, then said, "Give me some crossbows. Two catapults will be enough. The Giant Catapults I bought before needed new sinew ropes after every launch, which is far too costly for Adrian now."

Agamemnon said, "They are Medium Catapults, not the Large Catapults made with Dark Creatures as material."

Marl breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Then give me all of them. While the Fishmen have not attacked, set them up at the front lines."

Agamemnon nodded. "I will inform them. Do you still have enough gold coins?"

Marl pondered, calculated, and said, "Now I should be able to gather five thousand York gold coins."

Agamemnon said, "That amount will not be enough. I will find a reason for the Church to fund this sum instead. Use those five thousand coins to purchase basic supplies and equipment first."

Marl hesitated. "Is that appropriate?"

Agamemnon said, "For the Church, gold coins are nothing but numbers."

Marl still shook his head. "Consider these coins as Adrian borrowing from the Church. Adrian will repay this debt later—if Adrian can withstand the Fishmen’s assault."

Agamemnon comforted him. "Once Jeremiah is firmly established, he will ask Earl Gregor to support you."

Marl shook his head. "Unless they have a Holy Relic or Sacred Relic, or someone as powerful as Knight George or Richard, otherwise facing the Fishmen is meaningless."

Agamemnon said, "The southern Sacred Relics are all carried under the lords’ command. They had no Holy Relic or Mystery at hand. Knowing this, the Senate decisively sent troops to attack the south. Otherwise, just a single Sacred Relic would have been enough to resist the Senate’s army."

"Councilor Bevan said that originally, the territories of the southern border marquises and earls under the Patlin Family had already been blasted into ruins by all kinds of Sacred Relics. Only a few remote villages still had survivors, while the rest were all taken away and used. Perhaps the lord’s used Sacred Relics to clear the way, directly piercing through the Ackerman Principality."

Marl asked, "Human Sacrifice?"

Agamemnon said, "Perhaps."

Marl frowned deeply. "That does not align with the Church’s Holy Scriptures."

Agamemnon said, "Perhaps the lord never intended to return."

Marl looked at Agamemnon.

Agamemnon sighed and said, "Cicero has been missing for a long time."

Cicero was the lord’s child, something these core members all roughly knew.

For a moment, the two of them fell silent.

At last, Marl stood up and said, "I will go to the Clock Tower."

Agamemnon asked, "Do you need me to go with you?"

Marl shook his head.

……

The first floor of the Clock Tower was very quiet. Most only came here when a monk became a priest, or when a priest became a bishop.

Closing the door of the Clock Tower, Marl stood beneath the wooden platform, lifted his head to look at the cross on the wall, took a deep breath, and said, "Marl wishes to ask for your help."

Corleon’s calm voice sounded. "If you wish to be like the Virtue Knights, then their hearts must first have Faith. With Faith, they can endure, and they can stand firm."

Marl asked, "The oath Richard proposed—courage and fearlessness, protecting the weak, and spreading justice—can that become Faith?"

Corleon replied, "It can."

Marl asked again, "Teacher said that scholars may not go to Adrian to establish a Monastery, and suggested I seek the help of Magicians. But Magicians are what you despise. I should not have dealings with them. Yet now Adrian is fragile and needs more power to aid it. So I ask you—should I do this thing?"

Corleon replied, "You should ask yourself. Your Faith is steadfast. You are the Bishop I have chosen. Therefore, whatever you do and act upon is already permitted by me."

Marl knelt on the ground and said, "I understand. I will think carefully on this matter."

Corleon said, and this time his voice carried some gentleness, "These years have been hard on you."

Marl felt a sudden sourness in his heart, and with a choking voice said, "This is the path I chose for myself, and it is the work I am willing to do."

Corleon said, "When next year’s bells toll, I shall be crowned as Pope."

Marl said, "I will sing praises for you."

Corleon said, "When I am crowned Pope, I will invite the nobles. After they return, they will gather their knights to drive out the Fishmen."

Marl lifted his head and said, "I will make preparations in advance."

Corleon said, "Before then, you may need to spend some time with Sarah and your child."

Marl froze.

Corleon continued, "Sarah has already been pregnant for three months. Perhaps not to disturb you, she has kept silent."

Marl’s heart felt complicated, and he thought of his father.

Marl asked, "Is it a boy or a girl?"

Corleon said, "Life is unknown, and it is also a surprise. After your child is born, bring him here. I will baptize him."

Marl could not help but smile and said, "That will be my honor."

Corleon said, "But for now, you need to rest well."

Hearing this voice, Marl suddenly felt drowsiness overwhelm him. His eyelids grew heavy, and then he closed his eyes, his body collapsing onto the floor.

On the fifth floor of the Clock Tower, within the space that gradually turned into light, the smile on Corleon’s face faded away, his eyes turning cold as he looked at the person before him.

It was none other than Pegiraov Lundex, who should originally have been fighting in the Ackerman Principality.

"You have reached this step so soon?" Pegira said with some sigh. "I thought I would have to die before you came this far. It seems after losing the eyes to see the future, my judgments on some things still go wrong."

Corleon’s voice was calm. "When I descended into this world, all futures were already determined."

"When the old one gave me his eyes, I too once had such a thought." Pegira said. "This is our understanding, and it is our pain."

He paused, then continued. "I am already dead, and now, I must ask for your help."

"I originally wanted to leave everything to you, but seeing you now, it seems you no longer need my decayed things. So I will take them with me into Eternal Sleep. But there is one thing I must leave with you. This is the last thing the old one left me."

As Pegira spoke, he placed his hands in front of him. From his heart, a light orb slowly floated out.

Holding the orb with both hands, he gently tossed it toward Corleon.

Pegira said, "The Holy Spear, named after me—Pegiraov. After my first death, the old one used this spear to mold my second body along my spine."

"He said this Holy Spear connects to the root of this world. With this spear, I could be like those primordial gods. Now I give this Holy Spear to you. From this moment on, nothing in this world will be able to obscure your eyes."

"I killed many gods. I also set many, many rules for this world. When I step into Eternal Sleep, those gods will return. The rules I established will dissolve."

"Aivas was once my knight, but the old one killed him and sealed him into the source of this world’s magic, hatching his body. He too, like me, killed many gods and set many rules."

"He has not died yet. He is only in slumber. But when I die, he too will gradually enter Eternal Sleep. When both of us gain the release of Eternal Sleep, those slain gods will return, and the truths hidden by our rules, the past covered up, will once more reappear."