infodatos Chapter 135 Archbishop Antony
Chapter 135 Archbishop Antony
Chapter 135 Archbishop Antony
The Church of the Goddess of Night's headquarters in Backlund, St. Samuel's Church, is located on Pestil Street in the western part of the northern district of Backlund, very close to the Queen's Quarter where Viscount Greenzit resides. So it took Evan less than half an hour to reach his destination.
This is a pure black church, a typical Gothic architectural style, with a bell tower on each side, showing a symmetrical beauty when viewed from a distance.
Because he attended Robert's knighting ceremony and the parliamentary recess ceremony today, and then went to Viscount Greenchett's house without taking a break, Evan was still wearing his military uniform, making him very conspicuous in the large square in front of the church.
However, this was exactly the effect that Evan and Robert wanted. Evan was showing that although Robert had converted to the God of Storms, Evan, as his brother, had not abandoned his faith and remained a faithful believer of the goddess.
Although the idea was good, hoping that Evan could become the spokesperson for the Church of the Night Goddess, Robert was not sure whether the Church of the Night Goddess would accept Evan. After all, judging from the ancient contract, the Horn family and the Church of Storms still had a deep bond.
Evan understood Robert's concerns, but he himself had no hesitation. Evan knew very well that he was a registered believer of the Goddess of Night, a true favorite of the goddess. If he couldn't even become the spokesperson for the church, then would the Church of Night still be the goddess's church? Wouldn't that be going against the natural order?
Evan had been very busy since arriving in Backlund, and apart from visiting the church once on his second day there, he hadn't had time to come back. So Evan was actually a little uneasy.
Upon entering the church, passing through a quiet corridor, and entering the serene main prayer hall, Evan's military uniform indeed attracted a lot of attention. However, with the preaching bishop's steady voice, the believers quickly focused their attention back on listening to the doctrine.
Evan randomly chose a spot, placed his arm on the counter in front of him, clenched his fists and pressed them against his forehead, and then began to pray devoutly.
After the prayer ended, Evan remained in the same position and began to report on his recent situation. He emphasized that he had joined the Aurora Society under the protection of the goddess and mentioned the matter of Tris, especially that Tris had become Triss and had begun to approach the Third Prince Edsak Augustus under the direction of the Witch Cult, believing that the Witch Cult was plotting a big conspiracy in Backlund.
In addition, Evan mentioned that he had already drawn the Aurora Society's attention to Triss's existence, and that he was preparing to incite a fight between the Aurora Society and the Witch Cult.
After waiting for a while, Evan could clearly feel the gaze coming from somewhere, but he did not receive any instructions from the goddess.
Just as Evan was wondering what the Goddess of Night meant, a young priest in a robe woke him up.
He said with a smile:
"Archbishop Anthony wishes to see you!"
Evan remained calm, drew a circle on his chest in front of the huge black emblem in front of the prayer hall, and then followed the priest along the outermost edge of the prayer hall into the core area behind it.
Although it is daytime, the core area behind the church is pitch black, with only the oil lamps lit on the walls providing a sliver of light.
On the way to Archbishop Anthony's office with the young priest, Evan encountered many church members wearing red gloves. They were all surprised that Evan, whom they had never seen before, could come to this core area, but when they saw the young priest leading the way for Evan, they didn't say anything.
Soon the young priest led Evan to an office, opened the door after receiving permission, and let Evan go in by himself. Then he closed the door again and did not go in with him, but stood guard outside.
When Evan entered the office, he found it as dark as it was outside. Behind a large desk sat a man with an extremely clean appearance, no stubble, and deep-set eyes. Even though he was wearing a black archbishop's robe with red accents, he did not give off a gloomy or somber feeling.
But when Evan faced him directly, he felt a tremor in his heart, as if he were infected by fear, as if he were facing the darkest gaze.
But these emotions only dominated Evan for a moment before he suddenly came to his senses, and his heart was filled with boundless peace.
Evan knew that this was the blessing of the goddess at work, and Evan's reaction made Archbishop Anthony Stevenson nod in approval. Nothing could better demonstrate the identity of a favored one of the goddess.
So the archbishop stood up, drew a circle with his chest, and said:
"Good day, Your Excellency."
Evan hadn't expected a demigod to be so unpretentious, and somewhat flustered, he quickly drew circles in front of his chest, saying:
Good day, Your Excellency Archbishop.
After they were both seated, Archbishop Anthony remarked with a sigh:
"Your brother is very talented, and I have high hopes for him. Unfortunately, the Horn family has an ancient pact with the Church of Storms."
The church is also a witness, so it could only miss out.
"What's the deal with this contract? I asked my brother, but he absolutely refuses to tell me. Can you tell me?"
Last night, Evan pressed Robert for an explanation from the old count, and what had triggered his passion, but Robert didn't give him a single definite answer.
"This is a private matter for the Horn family. I shouldn't interfere unless your brother has told you."
Evan sighed, knowing that his hopes of getting the Horn family's secrets from Archbishop Anthony were dashed.
"I already know why you're here. This list contains names of marginalized individuals who can be used by you. You can make contact with them."
Evan took the list from Archbishop Anthony, glanced at it, put it down, and then frankly said to the archbishop:
"I am an Extraordinary Hunter, and I will eventually join the military. These people will definitely need a leader in the future. What do you think of Hugh Deercha?"
"Mason Deer's daughter?"
Based on this one sentence alone, Evan knew that Hugh Deercha had been under Archbishop Anthony's protection all along. This also explained why, after Mason Deercha was executed for treason, so many members of his family died inexplicably, yet his daughter Hugh and son remained unharmed. Ultimately, it was the secret protection of the Church of the Night Goddess.
From this perspective, the Church of the Goddess of Night is quite humane, which explains why Klein and Leonard were so determined to seek revenge after the Tingen incident.
Archbishop Anthony hesitated for a moment, then said:
"You should know that Mason Deer's case is not simple. Even now, the Church doesn't know the inside story. Aren't you worried that this choice will provoke a backlash from the royal family?"
Evan understood Archbishop Anthony's concerns, shook his head, and said meaningfully:
"A great change is coming, and the future is bleak. Besides, Hugh is only an 'arbitrator' right now, and no one knows how things will develop in the future."
Archbishop Anthony's heart skipped a beat, sensing that Evan might know something inside. He was about to ask him, but after thinking about it, he ultimately didn't speak, only expressing his support for Evan's decision.
After chatting with Archbishop Anthony for a while, Evan got up to take his leave.
After leaving Archbishop Anthony's office, Evan saw a desk with something written on it, about a young clergyman. He walked over and said:
"Cleric Druid, the Archbishop will be in charge of your communication with me from now on."
The young Drew priest was not surprised at all and said directly:
"I live at 5 Pinster Street in the North District. You can come to me anytime."
After Evan nodded to indicate that he understood, he left the core area of the church along the route he had taken earlier, accompanied by Priest Drew. On the way, Evan saw a woman wearing a black hooded robe, with blue eyeshadow and blush, exuding an eerie and cold beauty.
Evan felt that this woman seemed somewhat familiar, so he glanced at her a few more times, but he didn't expect that this would displease the woman, who glared at him back.
"Madam Daly, this is Archbishop Anthony's guest; please do not be rude!"
"snort!"
Ms. Daly snorted coldly and walked toward the archbishop's office, ignoring Father Drew and Evan.
"So she's Ms. Daly. She's been transferred to the Backlund parish?" Evan thought to himself.
"Ms. Daly has just been transferred to the Backlund parish, and several colleagues are pursuing her, but she hasn't given them any attention," Father Drew said awkwardly, touching his nose. He was also reminding Evan not to waste his time, as Ms. Daly was not a frivolous person.
Evan simply smiled and said:
"I just felt that the woman looked familiar, that's all."
"Oh! Right! Ms. Daly was transferred from Tingen. You two are from the same hometown, so you might have met somewhere before."
Father Drew suddenly realized something and automatically came up with a familiar reason for Evan, while Evan remained noncommittal.
After leaving the church, Evan hailed a carriage and returned to his apartment in the Joewood district.
After changing out of his military uniform in the apartment, Evan rested for a while, and soon after, Miss Audrey sent someone to deliver the materials.
Opening the box containing the materials, I saw a palm-sized gray goat horn, seemingly scaled down proportionally. It was crystal clear, shimmering with light, and had faintly visible layers of unique patterns inside.
After confirming that the materials were correct, Evan immediately prayed to "Mr. Fool" and asked him to tell Klein that he had obtained the unicorn crystal of the gray goat from the Hornachis Mountains and would have it mailed to Swain, the owner of the "Dragon Bar" in Tingen City. He asked Klein to be careful to sign for the package and to tell him that the seller's condition was the recipe for the "Mind Reader" potion.
Not long after the prayer ended, Evan saw the image sent by Mr. Fool showing Klein agreeing to the deal.
Afterwards, Evan changed his clothes and took the materials to the Brave Ones Bar in the South of the Bridge, intending to have them delivered to Caspar Canlinin.