The depths of the Temple of Collins are a small labyrinth, with many passages going up and down, going back and forth, and you can't predict where there will be a door that you can see or can't see, or where the road behind the door will lead. Sean didn't hesitate in his steps, but Ed couldn't help but think of the half-elf who had also walked in front of him without hesitation......

- Will he still have a chance to see him, will he also have enough strength to bring back the weary traveler from the torrent of time, or is even such a wish a kind of self-indulgent arrogance and impermissible resistance?

Sean stopped in front of an unremarkable wooden door, and Ed quickly stopped his steps and poked his head out with some curiosity.

The Paladin Master only knocked lightly twice on the door, and pushed it in without waiting for any response.

The sudden warmth from inside the door made Ed shiver. Compared to the crisp and cool air in the Temple of Collins, the aura that slammed into his face was cloudy, and it felt like opening some tomb that had been closed for thousands of years.

But Sean seemed to move forward without feeling, and Ed could only follow honestly.

The room behind the door was bigger than Ed could have imagined, and the countless bookshelves were arranged silently like ancient trees in the forest, stretching infinitely on either side, with no edge in sight. And directly in front of him was a huge desk, so messy with books and scrolls that he couldn't see the man behind it, until Sean exclaimed:

"Icabold. ”

The half-bald middle-aged priest raised his head, his indifferent gaze sweeping over his few visitors. There was no sign of respect for the Paladin's leader, nor the slightest surprise at Ed's appearance.

Ed's face darkened instantly—did Sean do it on purpose?...... He definitely did it on purpose!

He remembered the name and recognized the face. When he heard that a certain priest had almost been gutted by Is, he was nervous for a while, and ran to the temple to make sure. What was heard was the paladins boasting about how "Lord Icabold" had seen how the ice dragon, who had narrowly escaped disguised as a human, had to show its original form......

It was he who forced Isis to transform again.

Even though Baie was the culprit, Ed's resentment towards Icabodd was undiminished, and he even followed Ikabard to his bedroom door in an attempt to avenge Ish.

But at that time, he really didn't have any tracking skills.

The middle-aged priest, who was not unremarkable, had apparently discovered him a long time ago. but when he did not exist. Ed will never forget the scene - Icabold stared into his eyes and closed the door with a nonchalant expression, as if he were transparent......

He didn't even take an angry black-haired boy into his eyes. He doesn't care who he is. It doesn't matter what he wants to do. Ed couldn't figure out how a guy like this, who seemed to care about no one or anything, could become a priest, which was even more puzzling than "Philip Zeri is a paladin". If he had ever questioned Nyo's wisdom because of this. It must not be ...... It's not all his fault!

If you had known earlier, you would have learned how to be a pastor under the "teachings" of Icabard. He'll definitely give another good thought about his options.

But at this moment, no matter how much he roared in his heart, he could only obediently let Sean grab his back collar and push him unceremoniously to the desk.

"This is Ed Singh. Sean pronounced his name in a flat voice, as if suppressing some undeserved emotion, "He wants to be the priest of the water god." ”

And then...... He turned and walked away, leaving not even a word of instruction such as "Teach him well" or "Don't ignore him......

Ed thought very seriously...... Shouldn't my father reconsider his plan to donate this to the Temple of Collins and that to donate a new temple?

- Yes, he won't turn around and leave in a fit of rage!

If Sean Fletcher was counting on that to get him away. It's too much to underestimate him. He, Ed Singh. But he has traveled thousands of miles, faced the undead, and saved the dead...... He also killed people, almost died several times, and was the one who brought back his ice dragon friend beyond everyone's expectations!

Ed puffed out his chest and regained a bit of confidence. But this confidence did not add any warmth to Icabard's gaze or shake his expressionless face in the slightest. Five years have passed, and the chubby middle-aged pastor doesn't seem to have changed at all, and he probably doesn't remember Ed at all......

Ed was ready to be ignored once more, and Icabold did hang his head again, but he held out his right hand and pointed to the rows and rows of bookshelves to his right.

"The seventh bookshelf in the third row, the sixteenth book in the third row from top to bottom. ”

Ed blinked blankly, was this some kind of spell?...... When he realized that Icabold was referring to a certain book on the shelf, he couldn't remember the numbers at all, so he could only ask, "...... Can you say that again?"

He thought he would not get an answer, but Ikabard did not raise his head, and repeated slowly and clearly, word by word: "The seventh bookshelf in the third row, the sixteenth book in the third row from top to bottom." ”

It doesn't sound the slightest bit irritated or impatient...... He was so calm that it was as if he were reading out a passage from a book.

Ed walked to the bookshelf speechlessly, beginning to wonder if the priest was inherently incapable of making any expressions.

He found the book called "The Names of the Gods" and carried it back to Ikabard's desk with great difficulty, guessing that he would probably be taken for a free errand, being asked to carry one old book after another for a priest immersed in some great study that had not been touched for hundreds of years......

"After reading it. ”

The priest commanded, apparently not having time to look up at him again.

Ed was stunned for a moment, and without saying a word, he dragged a chair across from Ikabard, buried his head in his book, and a thought came to his mind helplessly—if his mother knew that this was the way to learn to be a priest, she would be deeply gratified. After all. Let him sit down obediently and read, but what she has not been able to do in more than ten years.......

The days of sharing a room with Icabold weren't particularly difficult. The priest was quiet, as Ed grew obsessed with the legends of the gods. Barely aware of his presence.

He had a small room to rest in, and every day when he returned to his room, he had food brought by someone who had brought him to the bedside. The food was simple but not coarse, like his plain but comfortable bed. Every night he slept unexpectedly soundly, and the only way to learn when he woke up was to read a book—the first time he had accidentally blurted out a question that Ikabard hadn't expected to answer, but the priest gave him another number...... Another book.

In the huge library, he could clearly remember where each book was placed. Knowing the contents of each one surprised Ed. He even secretly swapped a few books to see what would happen...... The next day. Each book returned to its original position, and Icabold looked like nothing had happened - no, Icabold would always have only one expression, and that was no expression.

"Is that your magic, or is that magic on a book or a shelf?" Ed finally couldn't help but ask curiously.

Icabard's answer was another string of numbers. Guiding him back to another, larger and older book, The Source of Magic.

He never seemed to mind if Ed gave up halfway and opened a book before he finished reading another book, or had a new question before he could find the answer, leaving the original question behind. The books that piled up at Ed's feet every day would always disappear the next morning, even if he took the books back to his room and fell asleep on his chest...... It's like they have to go back to their bookshelves every night to rest. But if he wants to retrieve them, Ed will have to rely on his own memories. There are many times. While looking for a certain book, his eyes were involuntarily attracted to another......

For the first time in my life. Ed Singal felt the joy of reading. There is no definite purpose, no tasks that have to be completed, and you can swim in it as you like according to your own interests. Occasionally, he was a little apprehensive - could he really become a priest in this way? Are Sean and Icabodd deliberately wasting his time waiting for him to fail in the legendary "trial" and then roll himself home?

He did learn a lot from the book, such as the priest's spells and the mage's spells are actually fundamentally different, their power comes directly from the gods they believe in, and the mage's power comes from this world, but they must follow the rules of the god of magic, otherwise they will be eaten by their own spells. Another example is the name of the gods, different races often have different names for the same god, and no one is their real name, and legend has it that if you can know the true name of a god, you can have all his power......

He didn't know if it would be useful in a trial - hell, he didn't even know what it would be, and that was the only question Icabold wouldn't answer with a string of numbers.

He could only eat one meal a day, one apple at each meal, based on the apple he had nibbled, and fifteen days later, Sean Frecher reappeared in the library, where no one else had visited.

"How?" he asked.

Ed pricked up his ears nervously.

Icabold silently closed the book Ed was opening - "The Name of the Gods".

That's right, Ed moved it back again, because there were some things he hadn't figured out yet...... Is that also wrong?

Sean's silence was solemn and cold, like a stone wall separating Ed from afar.

It was a long time before he muffled out another question, "Are you sure?"

"Nope. Icabold replied coldly, "That's not my job. ”

Ed was confused, looking at this and that, wondering what the hell the two guys were doing with a hundred years old.

Sean's head finally turned to him.

“...... Follow me. He said.

(To be continued......)

PS: Happy New Year~~ Unconsciously, it has been half a year, thank you to every friend who has voted and written a comment and clicked to read, I will also work hard to fill the hole in the new year!