Chapter 7: The Altar of the Three Saints
The three young guards guarding the gates glanced at her, and then each of them blushed. The leader was embarrassed to search, waved his hand, and let Grisenda in.
"Miss, don't you need an umbrella?" Grisenda heard a guard shout behind her.
Grisenda paused, tilted his head slightly, didn't say a word, and left.
"What a strange girl," muttered the guard, who had been dozing off in the morning, "but she's really good-looking." ”
"If only I could meet such good-looking travelers every day...... said one of the fat guards.
Grisenda didn't hear their conversation, she just walked silently. The rain was pouring down, the wind was howling, the streets were empty, and the few lights that were left were completely extinguished. Grisendar heard that in the distant kingdom of Imare, there was a forest called the Forest of Holmes. There, ghosts will appear on this terrifying night, attacking every traveler who passes by. Eventually, not many people were willing to go to that horrible place, and only a few towns that had settled there were still struggling to hold on. Located in the Plains of Lanega, this is probably the safest place on the entire island of Varana, if you don't count the goblins. However, once you go all the way south from here, you will get close to the territory of the orcs, and it will be difficult for even a powerful knight to survive the siege of multiple orcs.
Grisenda thought of herself. With her strength, she wasn't really worried about creatures like orcs. Humanity's fear of orcs probably stems from the widespread spread of rumors about farmers who are powerless.
"May the Three Saints guide your steps, traveler. A voice as still as water came. Grisenda stopped.
The middle-aged man with black hair and black beard in front of him sat under a tent that looked like it was about to be crushed by the torrential rain, with a rudimentary altar behind him and some stone pillars engraved with dense runes around him.
Glicenta nodded slightly at him.
"It's so late, and it's raining so hard, is there anything you need help with, miss?" said the man, smiling.
"No, you don't. Glicenta replied calmly.
"If you need to stay overnight in our small city, I suggest you wait until dawn to rent a room at the Salrest Hotel. The man pointed to the end of the road, "There it is, near the back gate, follow this road until you turn left." I'm afraid the Salrest Lodge isn't open, it's Wednesday...... Well, according to the regulations of the Three Holy Sects, shops are not allowed to open on Wednesday nights. The owner of the inn believes in the Three Saints, may the Three Saints bless her. ”
"Uh-huh......" Glicenta replied numbly.
"What are you doing there? Come here, come to the altar. The man's face was still very calm, and Grisenda felt that he really wanted to help him shelter from the rain. "It's raining so hard outside, aren't you afraid of catching a cold when you're alone......?"
Glicenta snorted and walked under the tent.
When the man saw her walk in, he didn't pay any more attention to Glicenta, but closed his eyes, crossed his legs, and meditated with his hands on his knees. Grisenda stared at him with some curiosity.
Glicenta's knowledge of the Three Holy Sects only came from the books in the Storm Fortress. She hadn't been anywhere in her life except for the Storm Fortress and certain battlefields. She had never seen an altar like this. Although she had already guessed that this was the place of the Three Holy Sects, she never imagined that such a mysterious and great church would only have such a small piece of land in a city that could accommodate it. She originally thought that the Three Holy Sects, which glowed with fantasy in ancient books and classics, had a majestic church in any city.
Finally, she spoke.
"Mr. Reverend, who are you?"
The man slowly opened his eyes and looked at her with a smile on his face.
"Dear Miss, you can call me Janus. ”
"Janus, can I ask you some questions?"
"Please. In this humble place, all people are equal. He held out a hand in respect.
"I ......" Glicenta had never spoken to a stranger except for a few people in the castle, and she blushed a little when she spoke for the first time. "Why...... Well...... Why can't this altar be built any bigger?"
Seeing that Janus wanted to speak, Grisenda quickly interrupted him.
"I mean...... I thought that the churches of the Three Holy Religions would be the kind of large-scale spire buildings. ”
"Dear young lady, if you have been to my hometown of Nivaran, the capital of the great kingdom of Imaray, then you will see the true Church of the Three Saints. As for the majority of Vasiliyas, although they also believe in the Three Holy Religions, the country still has its own state church, which was once the Andarian Cult of God. ”
"Andarian Cult?"
"That's right, dear miss, don't you know our history?"
"I know," Grisenda hastily explained, "that we were once exiled people from the Andalian continent. ”
"That's why the Valranari natives of Varana Island call us 'Vault Dwellers' and the four nations established on this land 'Exile Kingdoms'. Vasilia, a state founded by ancient nobles and knights, naturally believes in the ancient sect of the past, which is now the state church. The king and the nobles did not want the Three Holy Sects to gain power, so they could only let us have such a small area for prayer. Janus said, smiling gently. But even so, all the people who are protected by the Three Saints will not be affected by the size of the altar to change their faith. ”
"So what is the Three Holy Sects...... I've only seen explanations of these things in books, but they're all very messy and varied......"
"That's right, dear miss, there is information about the Three Holy Sect and the Three Holy Sects, even the archbishop knows very little. Some people can't even figure out whether the Three Sages are male or female. But it is widely believed that they were Seram the Wise, Anubis the Warrior, and Nivarel the Ruler. They defeated the Lost Witch in Mount Til and established the kingdom of Ilmar. For example, Seram is still alive in the Crystal Castle of Nivaran. It is said that he changed a person's life with just one word...... However, only the archbishop and the queen could see him......"
"Why are they called holy, do they have divine powers?"
"Yes, dear miss. Janus smiled and nodded, "As long as you believe in the Three Holy Sects and get their protection, you have the ability to activate divine power. We are born nemesis of the undead and have a gift for healing damage. But once we betray the Three Sages, we will also lose everything we have. So, Miss, the Three Saints are the source of our strength, they are the gods, the real Lord ......"
"What about magic?" Glicenta thought of Mage Dnzour.
"They just rely on some innate talent to play little tricks, and they are vulnerable to really powerful priests. Janus shook his head.
"Can anyone be a priest or a magician?"
"No, only those who have been blessed by the Three Saints in their lifetime can become priests. As for magicians, it is said that they also have to have some talent. ”
"What about magic runes?" Grisenda thought of the magic runes carved into every inch of her skin, but she couldn't perceive them, the things that made her as powerful as she was now.
Janus shook his head.
"I'm sorry, I'm not a magician, I don't know these things. ”
"Okay......" Grisenda sighed.
"Miss, dare you ask ......"
"Gricenta. ”
"Where are you going?"
"Go...... A cemetery...... Clay's Tomb ......"
"Oh, that needs to go west...... But Miss Glicenta, the tomb has long since been abandoned. ”
"No, no, no, I'm just going to the cellar there to look for something. ”
"Maybe you can get some people to accompany you in our village, it's too dangerous for you to go there alone. He pulled a philosopher's stone out of his pocket. "Miss Glicenta, could you please do something for me. ”
"Hmm...... ...... casually" Grisenda didn't know how to refuse, so she had to agree with her head.
"In those abandoned cemeteries, there are often skeletons and zombies, I want you to help me bring some zombie meat, I can study how to deal with these undead......"
"What?" Glicenta was taken aback.
"Although we do not believe in magic, this philosopher's stone is still given to you. Rest assured, all you need to do is urge this Spatial Storage Magic Stone to put the dead zombies inside. ”
"I ......" Grisenda touched the philosopher's stone in his cloak pocket, and wanted to refuse, and even had a sword to kill the man to prevent future troubles. But in the end, she gave up and reached out to take what Janus had handed her.
"Thank you, Miss Glicenta. Janus saw the armor inside her cloak and raised his eyebrows, "Armor made of blue steel is very luxurious, and I'm afraid even Baron Storm can't equip all his soldiers with this kind of equipment." I've seen the coat of arms of the Storm Fortress, but you're definitely not your average Storm Knight, are you?"
Glicenta looked at him.
"So, thank you, Miss Glicenta, and may the Three Saints bless you with a safe journey. Janus smiled and took out a thick, but brand-new book from the altar. "Allow me to give you one more thing, great knight, in the future adventures, if you encounter any pain and difficulties, please open this "Moon Book", it is the doctrine of our Three Holy Sects. It will guide you forward, and once again may the three saints bless you, miss......"