Eboton Cathedral, prayer room.

The knight of the guard waited intently for Faness, kneeling under the statue of the Holy Cross in front of him, waiting silently, like a stone statue in armor.

Nearly three hours have passed since dawn. Phaness, kneeling on the cold stone slab, still didn't move, his head bowed and his hands folded, the solemn atmosphere, the candle flame reflected on his cheek, as if even time was frozen at this moment.

"Bang ——!"

The panicked servant slammed open the door and rushed into the quiet temple with a pang: "Bishop Fanesis, I have something to tell the ...... of Bishop Fanenes."

The words and the people stopped halfway, and the servant who had just reached into the door with one leg trembling and stayed in place, the snowy blade of the sword stopped in front of his neck, and there was not a trace of tremor on the narrow sword.

"Your Excellency the Bishop is praying for Ebolden, and no one is to disturb him. Under the helmet, the voice of the guard knight was cold: "Who allowed you to come in?"

"I, I ......"

"It's okay, let him in. Fanecis slowly got up, his gentle voice echoing through the narrow prayer room: "We are mortal beings with great sins, and we depend on the forgiveness of the Holy Cross to survive in the world, forgiveness is a gift, and it is a virtue that the Holy Cross teaches us. ”

The knight of the guard, who bowed his head, withdrew his sword, and the servant, who was relieved, hurriedly ran to Fanesis, and a "poof" knelt on the ground: "I'm sorry, but ...... This is a very important matter, Bishop Fanesis, I did my best to escape and report to you!"

"And you are safe now, and evil has nowhere to hide in the light of the Holy Cross. The mild-mannered Farnesis gently patted the servant on the shoulder and wiped the blood from his face with his palm: "Say, what happened?"

"I ...... ......The frightened servant swallowed his spit and looked at the bishop with a pleading gaze: "There are two probationary priests in the church, a new nun, both children, twelve or thirteen years old, and one of them is a relative of the priest.

The younger clergyman was not very obedient, and liked to bully and play tricks on believers who refused to donate money, but he was actually a good boy, and the older one was quite sensible, and the priest liked him very much, and often taught him to read and write, and told him stories about the saints of the church;

The girl was the niece of the priest, and the poor people in the neighborhood knew her, and she was a kind person, and she always went to the almshouse to visit the homeless poor, and often asked us to look for her everywhere, and the priest told her several times, but she always did not listen, and did not want to squeak when she was beaten......"

"They are good children, and the Holy Cross protects them. The smiling Farnesis patiently caressed his cheek as he muttered trivia: "Have a chance to bring them to the cathedral, I want to meet them." ”

"You'll never see them again. ”

Fanesis's smile froze, but the trembling servant continued, "They were all eaten by the priest...... Eaten by our chubby, a little money-grubber, and always fond of drinking red wine!

Before that, he had a big mouth full of fangs, eyes on his face, and six arms...... Then one bite at a time, piece by piece, and ate the children all!

I still remember him... How did he pry open the child's skull and drink the child's ...... like soup?"

"Say no more! You're tired and need a good rest. Before the servant could fall into fear again, Phanesis quickly interrupted him: "I will have a room prepared for you, rest in peace, and then pray to the Holy Cross!"

"Yes, yes!" the frightened servant looked blankly ahead and nodded in a daze.

"Before that, tell me, how is the priest?" asked Fanecis softly.

"I killed him. The servant recalled with some distraction: "Before he rushed out, he smashed his head with the sculpture of the Holy Cross, and the eyes that were full of heads!"

"Well done, the Holy Cross rewards you for your bravery - who else but you knows about it?"

"No one. The servant shook his head: "I'm the only one, so I dare to come in and report to you, so that you can ......"

A cold and painful touch came from his heart, and he had an extra dagger in his chest!

"You, why are you ......?"

"Go and report it to the Holy Cross...... No. When the servant looked up again, he saw a frosty face of Farnesis: "You will take this secret and go to hell together!"

The dying servant raised his trembling hands, as if trying to grasp the throat of Farnesis, desperately opened his mouth wide, and exclaimed with a hideous expression: "You, you...... You deserve to go to hell!"

"I am a servant of the Holy Cross, and my fate can only be judged by him. ”

The indifferent Farnesis stretched out his right hand and pushed the still dying servant down in a pool of blood with one palm, watching him glare at him angrily, his body gradually softened and stopped convulsing.

Throughout, the loyal knight of the guard guarded the gate without saying a word.

"You seem surprisingly quiet this time. Fanesis, who took out his handkerchief, wiped the blood from his hands and looked at his guard knight indifferently: "I thought you would be like the wandering wizard last time, what is your name......"

"Karan. ”

"You warned me not to trust him that time—why didn't you advise or stop me this time? I can see that you didn't want me to cooperate with the Bellini family in the first place, and now this is happening...... That Holy Blood Elixir was not a miracle that cured all diseases at all. ”

"It's a curse capable of turning humans into monsters. The knight of the guard slowly raised his head: "And you have spread this curse throughout the city with your own hands, and sooner or later it will be scattered to more places." ”

"You think I'm doing something wrong, but you're not going to stop me?"

The Guardian Knight shook his head: "You are not a person who is keen on needless killing, and since you are unwilling to correct your mistakes, perhaps because there is a higher purpose - I am your knight, and my mission is to serve you." ”

Farnesis smiled slowly, but there was still a bit of fatigue in that smile.

"You're right, the whole thing started out as a mistake, a mistake too big to be undone. Lost in a daze, Phanesis looked into the distance: "But in fact, it's because you don't know a lot of things.

Within the Church of the Holy Cross, there are many truths that have not been told to the world, even by ordinary clergy and priests, and only have a little access to them after becoming bishops.

Why is it necessary to build a cathedral in the capital of every principality—is it really just to guarantee the authority of the Church, or to honor the Holy Cross?

No, more than that, those churches are not just pillars of our faith, they are fortresses, they are the front lines of war, the last refuge to defend the faith and us humble human beings!

The masonry of the chapel, the walls of the town could not resist the ancient evil gods, nor could the swords forged of steel and the flames that burned - only the cathedral that had really poured its heart for decades or even centuries, shrouded in the will of the Holy Cross, could stop them!

In our eyes, missionary work is just a sacred cause, but for the clergy hundreds of years ago, it was a war!"

The Guardian Knight shook slightly:

"That'...... So now, are you also ready for a war?"

"Of course, since it's a war, you have to do everything. Fanesis stared at his guard knight tightly: "The Corona family and the Nine-Pointed Star Wizard Tower think they are very smart, but they have forgotten where they took that thing from - every church in Lothair is the eye of the Holy Cross, watching over these people who are never grateful!"

Since they have their own little plans, let's take advantage of their pride to purify the city and destroy their Holy Grail!

I have a very clear hunch that this must be the real goal of the Wizard Tower!"