Due to the periodic fluctuations of the magic power surrounding the earth, more stars could be seen on a clear winter night than on a summer night.
In the windless night, the inky blue sky was filled with stars. The starry sky, which had carried the countless magnificent fantasies of mankind for thousands of years, was like a layer of glass covering the world, clear and beautiful but unreachable. Artificial lights flickered in this new city, like a projection of the stars on earth. Veronica stood quietly in this unfamiliar city. A faint holy light surrounded her, isolating her from the cold winter air.
A steady and powerful sound of footsteps came from behind her, followed by the voice of the resurrected Grand Duke. "You don't like the atmosphere at the banquet?"
"Your Excellency," Veronica turned around, showing a quiet and indifferent smile. She drew the emblem of the God of Holy Light on her chest. "May the God of Holy Light bless you. This is a great banquet, but I prefer a quieter environment."
"The God of Holy Light …" Gwen muttered in a low voice, then looked into Veronica's eyes. "Will he also bless those who don't believe in him?"
The "Saintess Princess" in front of him was an elusive figure to Gwen. She was a talented royal child and a devout believer of the Holy Light. She was the youngest living saint of the Church of Holy Light and the most perfect Saintess Princess in the eyes of countless believers of the Holy Light. There were too many halos on this woman, who was not much older than Rebecca, but under those brilliant and eye-catching halos … Gwen could only see nothingness.
He could not see through Veronica's real intentions and actions. Although all of her words and actions were perfectly in line with the "persona" of the "Saintess Princess," all of her words and actions were like exquisitely carved gems, flawless but without flesh and blood. In close conversations, Gwen could never hear any real emotional fluctuations or personal likes and dislikes of the princess. All he could feel was the unchanging "holiness and warmth," but it was this unchanging holiness and warmth that made Gwen feel that the princess's soul was cold.
Was it really because Veronica's faith was so devout that she had become like a heterogeneous holy spirit?
Gwen did not think so, so he decided to use a more direct way to test Veronica's attitude when communicating with her. But to his disappointment, Veronica's expression was still calm and indifferent, and her tone hardly changed. "The God of Holy Light will treat all creatures equally, whether you believe it or not, he will always be there, measuring everything with justice."
"Including the poor who can't afford the ransom?" Gwen asked faintly.
"The God of Holy Light doesn't need the money of the human world, but the Church does. However, a good starting point does not necessarily bring good results. Those priests who are not firm enough in their faith will be corrupted by money. It is also true that the ransom has become a means to accumulate wealth in some areas. We have noticed this and are already working on it."
This was a perfect answer. It was between defending and not defending, and it made a righteous and open-ended promise. Obviously, the Saintess Princess, who was a devout believer of the God of Holy Light, was also skilled in talking in circles like a noble.
Gwen did not continue to dwell on this topic. Instead, he asked directly, "What do you think of what happened in Louen City?"
Even though it was such a straightforward topic, Veronica's indifferent attitude hardly changed. "His Holiness the Pope is very concerned about the situation in the Southern Region. In the past, we have completely lost contact with the Southern Region, and the information that came later was very disturbing. Your Grace, we have no intention of interfering with your rule, but we have to be responsible for the hundreds of thousands of believers in the Southern Region. "
"The hundreds of thousands of believers in the Southern Region are doing well, and they still believe in the Holy Light. Most of the churches of the Holy Light in this land are still functioning as usual. Sermons and ceremonies are still going on as scheduled," Gwen said. "The only difference is that the people have remade the rules with their own choices."
Veronica looked quietly into Gwen's eyes. "Do they make the rules by breaking the churches in Louen City and hanging the priests there?"
"The priests of Louen City refused to obey the new rules and refused to die, which is indeed very difficult. But I still feel sorry for what happened in Louen City," Gwen spread out his hands and said in a calm manner that would amaze Amber and Pitman. "The priests in the cathedral used a lot of bloody and brutal means to maintain their authority and amass wealth. I believe that they are the kind of priests who are 'not firm enough in their faith' as you just mentioned. I should correct their mistakes as soon as possible to prevent them from going further and further on the path of betraying God. But unfortunately, the anger of the people reached a peak first."
Gwen sighed and continued, "When there was chaos in Louen City, my army strictly obeyed the order of 'not to attack the church' and was stationed far away from the city. This was because the priests of the Louen Cathedral had forbidden us from approaching from the beginning. Later, the situation was out of control. My Knight and soldiers tried their best to rescue them, but unfortunately, due to the distance and the high walls, they could not save a single person in the end."
To be honest, for a very brief moment, Gwen was sure that he finally saw a trace of astonishment in Veronica's eyes.
However, the astonishment faded almost immediately. The Adoratrice's tone was still unhurried. "Your statement … has a very novel perspective."
"This is a fact, and the evidence is everywhere. And more importantly, the people of Cecil prefer the current situation." Gwen did not expect Veronica to be so calm in this situation, but this did not prevent him from continuing. "In my opinion, it doesn't matter who establishes the order in Louen City. The survival and interests of the people are always superior to the so-called 'orthodoxy.' I have no prejudice or hostility against the church — any church. I am happy to accept any church to live in my land, but they must abide by the rules here."
Gwen was willing to communicate and negotiate with Victoria slowly because, in his view, the royal army was the next big customer to ensure the rapid development of Cecil, and big customers needed to be carefully maintained. But when he communicated with Veronica, he would directly throw out his attitude because he was impatient with the Church of Holy Light, a huge but difficult group to extract benefits from.
"The survival of the people is superior to the 'orthodoxy' …" Veronica repeated Gwen's words, then raised her eyebrows. "So where did this' rule 'come from?"
"Charlie and I made it 700 years ago."
"Then it seems that this is your attitude," Veronica said calmly after a moment of silence. "It is impressive and quite … bold in this era. I won't comment on this, but I think the Church of Holy Light will probably not be very happy after knowing your attitude. "
"That depends on how you see the situation in the south and the whole Ansu," Gwen said. "But I have a suggestion — if you can't change the situation, it's better to be optimistic. After all, the Church of Holy Light still exists in the south. I have never expelled any priests and priests, they are still active in preaching in this land. At least, no one has declared them heretics."
Veronica looked at Gwen. "… You want the Church of Holy Light to acquiesce to the independence of the Church of the South."
"You have the right to verbally declare that you don't recognize this matter, I don't mind."
Veronica was a little surprised again, then she smiled. "Your attitude is much tougher than the last time. Can't you be gentler to the younger generation?"
"I'm talking to the spokesperson of the Church of Holy Light. The spokesperson has no seniority." Gwen also smiled and softened his tone. "And now I'm talking to the younger generation. Veronica, you can stay here for a few more days and learn more about this land. Your ancestors, Charlie? Moen once worked to create a place where people could live and work in peace. But ironically, I can hardly find such a place in this era, so I have to do it myself. If you stay here for a few more days, you may have the opportunity to understand what kind of ideals your ancestors once held when they rushed out of the wasteland. There should be something worthy of your attention besides the God of Holy Light. "
Veronica was silent for a few seconds. It seemed that when Gwen mentioned the word "ancestors," she was really touched. Then she bowed slightly to Gwen. She said softly, "I will judge with my own eyes."
Then she left.
After Veronica left, a hazy shadow wriggled around Gwen and quickly condensed into the figure of Amber. The half-elf blinked and looked in the direction where Veronica left. She whispered, "I suspect she can see me …"
"She didn't look at you at all."
"That's why I said she saw me. She looked in all directions except for me," Amber said professionally with her hands on her waist. Then she showed a puzzled look. "But then again … what's the attitude of this' Saintess Princess'? You've been so direct with her, but she didn't seem angry. Does she actually approve of you? "
"No, she never showed any attitude." Gwen shook his head. "No matter what I said to her, even if I wanted to burn down the Church of Holy Light or announce my conversion to the God of Holy Light, I'm afraid she would not show any attitude. This kind of person is the most difficult to deal with because it's unpredictable."
"Tsk, that's why I don't like liars." Amber pursed her lips in dissatisfaction. "They're better at deceiving people than liars."
"Compared to that, what's going on tonight?"
"They finally crossed the Rock Fortress and came to your base camp. Of course, they had to 'take a look'." Amber waved her hand casually. "I even saw some familiar faces. But they're still well-behaved. Basically, they didn't overstep their boundaries. The MIB and the Steel Rangers just watched from afar. I'll continue to keep an eye on them."
"That's good."
…
"A home to live and work in peace …" In the courtyard of the liege's residence, Veronica, who had left the balcony but did not return to the banquet hall, walked slowly along the flower bed in the quiet night. She stopped at the edge of a pool and looked up at the thousands of lights in the city in the distance. She whispered to herself, "This city … is so similar …"
After looking around for a long time, she withdrew her gaze from the Magic Crystal Lanterns and continued to walk forward. However, another cluster of light that was different from the Magic Crystal Lanterns entered her eyes from another direction, causing her to stop again.
It was a tall figure filled with sparkling arcane energy. His body seemed to be made of energy, and a large number of runic armor plates seemed to be some kind of seal that maintained his human form. Beside this tall figure, there was a woman with white hair that reached her shoulders.
Veronica's eyes were attracted by the unusual arcane energy. She looked at the figure, and then her eyes fell on the runic armor plates. The ancient metal plates depicted the magic symbols of the ancient Kingdom of Gondor, and some of the plates even had markings of the Sparks Era. Veronica stared at them until they were very close to each other.
Was this the legendary ancient sorcerer? The hidden power of the Cecil family?
While Veronica was looking at Kamel, Kamel was also observing the "Saintess Princess" in front of him, who seemed to be taking a stroll. They observed each other for a long time until Veronica looked away. Kamel took the initiative to break the silence. "Good evening, Your Highness. Is the banquet hall too stuffy?"
Hearing the voice, Veronica maintained her always appropriate smile. She bowed. "Breathing fresh air is good for health. Master Kamel, are you also here for a breath of fresh air?"
"… I haven't been breathing much these years," Kamel said in a low voice, and before the awkward atmosphere spread, he turned slightly to the side. "This is Cecil's rune master, Jenny Perro." "Hello."
Jenny was a little nervous and a little awkward as she lifted her skirt and bowed. Although she had seen Veronica once when she was a member of the "Hundred People Relief Team," she did not have the opportunity to talk to the legendary princess. "Nice to meet you."
"Me too, Miss Jenny."
After a short exchange of pleasantries, the two sides passed by each other.
"I was so nervous just now," Jenny said in a low voice until they were far away. "But Her Highness is really kind …"
"Really? I didn't notice, "Kamel said in a low voice." I just felt a … familiar and uncomfortable aura from her. "
"Aura? What aura? "
"God. She is either related to God, or she has been to the divine realm."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
