Chapter 31: Not Religious
Walking into a church carried such heavy weight to Irene since she was married in one in the life that she saw. She grew up with her mother forcing her to attend whenever she went, but after a while it felt performative because none of what they said resonated with her.
As she stepped into the large grey brick structure with Sir Gunnar at her side, it felt no different than it did as an adult. She found no comfort as religious imagery looked down upon her.
At best, it felt eerie.
Once they were through the front vestibule, they passed another doorway and found themselves in the wide open nave, pews lining either side of the path they walked on. There was a dark red rug underfoot.
The man who had sent them to the mages in the first place was sitting in the front row, staring at the altar. His cane was in both of his hands and his chin wasn't far from that. His posture was horrible when he was sitting down.
They were quite close before he heard them. It seemed that his shouting before could have been from both urgency and bad hearing.
As quickly as someone that old could, he scrambled to stand up.
"Father, please don't bother yourself for our sake," Sir Gunnar spoke first. "You ought to remain seated. We have arrived with a message from the mages."
"Oh?" the priest mused, already seeming riled up even though he remained seated. "What did those thieves have to say? Where is the item?"
Sir Gunnar took a deep breath that was certainly silent for the priest but Irene could hear it loud and clear. She wondered just what the knight was going to get up to. Her curious expression said as much.
"I have reason to believe the mages are the original owners of that relic," the knight admitted.