While Martin and Hines were discussing in the box, the auction in the downstairs hall had already reached a conclusion.

To Martin's surprise, the reverse card of "Rose" ended up being auctioned off by someone he knew for a staggering price.

It can't be said to be an acquaintance, but there is a relationship.

It was the tall priest who gave him directions in the cathedral of Capernaum, still like that day, with short brown hair, holding the Book of Blessings, and wearing a white clergyman's robe embroidered with gold thread.

At that time, Martin followed the queen's instructions to go underground in Capernaum's cathedral to look for "things that were familiar to him", but could not find a way to the underground, and finally succeeded in finding it under the guidance of the priest.

He remembered that the tall priest seemed to have the ability to stir people's hearts, allowing him to speak his inner thoughts without thinking.

Not a simple character.

That was Martin's judgment of him at the time.

Seeing Martin staring at the priest with a contemplative expression, Hines asked:

"Do you know Bishop Thomas?"

"Bishop?"

Martin will be a little surprised by Hines's question, this tall priest downstairs turned out to be a bishop?

"Yes, he is the Bishop of the Church of the Light in the Cavides region, Thomas Norton."

After Hines said this answer, the tall man in the hall below raised his head and looked at the box where the two were as if he felt something, saw the warm smile behind the two, and then got up and walked over.

"I met him once in Capernaum, and I didn't expect him to be a bishop."

Martin looked at the tall priest who was approaching and told the truth about his meeting with him.

Thomas's figure disappeared into the staircase on the first floor, and after a few moments, there was a knock on the door outside the box between Martin and the two.

"Please come in."

Hines spoke calmly, the wooden door of the box was opened, and the figure of a tall man squeezed in.

"Mr. Hines."

The man bowed slightly, crossed his hands over his chest and made a standard prayer gesture, politely greeting Hines.

It was only then that Martin reacted a little, and Hines seemed to have become unusual, having been aware of it when he was being examined by Hines on a reporting mission and visiting the shepherds' club's "special advisor" alone, but now a personal visit from a regional bishop had led him to correct his perception of Hines again.

- He certainly wouldn't be naïve enough to think that this Bishop Thomas had come for him.

The sensitive status of the bishop of the Holy Light Church of Thomas and his previous dealings made Martin weigh on the brim of his hat, and he wanted to keep a low profile as much as possible so that the bishop would not notice him.

After all, he is still a wanted man in the Kingdom in the Holy Light Church.

"Bishop Thomas."

"It's rare to meet you in the Sunflower Carriage."

Hines stood up and nodded slightly.

He is from the Fortress of Dawn and Dusk, and does not believe in the Light, so he does not respond with a prayer gesture.

The Fortress of Dusk itself is a mysterious organization with strong beliefs, just like the last time Hines communicated with the fake "Maria", they believe in beings called "omniscient".

They believe that the original creator left behind the "omniscient eye", and after a long period of time, the "omniscient eye" awakened its independent consciousness and continued to examine everything that happened on this continent for the creator.

At this point, the Garden of Eden is a bit unusual, whether it is the name of this huge organization or the various titles and names in it, they all reveal a strong religious color, but the fact is that the Garden of Eden does not have a clear belief, but is more like a purely commercial organization.

It can be seen from the last time the administrator of the [Sunflower Carriage], the fat gentleman Pleschis, made a prayer for the Church of the Holy Light in front of Bishop Thomas.

At Hines's beckoning, the tall bishop sat down on the sofa not far from the two of them, and said to Hines with a warm face:

"I'm here mainly for that rose card, which was left by an old friend of mine."

Bishop Thomas paused at this point, and Hines bowed slightly:

"No wonder you're interested in this low-tier rose."

Thomas continues:

"Also, I would like to ask you about the security of the cathedral during the 'big service' mentioned last time."

"I was planning to visit you in the afternoon."

Hines replied equally unhurriedly.

"I have already discussed with Mr. Pleis, that the relevant shepherds have been assembled, that the club will provide security services as in previous years, and that the process and remuneration matters can be referred to in previous years, after all, this cooperation has been going on for many years."

"That's good."

Thomas nodded.

"I'm also worried that the recent loss of the shepherds will affect this cooperation, and it seems that I am too worried."

Martin was aware of the word "loss" and recalled Shirley's previous description of him as "a lot of veteran [shepherds] don't know where they went", and it seemed that the club had experienced a big blow before.

I just don't know why.

In addition, the bishop's mention of "old friends" reminded him of the "Bishop Thomas" mentioned by Henry Goode when he first arrived at the country estate, and that the bishop had praised the mortuary of the Shepherds' Club.

Combined with Thomas's strong interest in roses, it is likely that the "old friend" he refers to is Henry Goode.

Of course, it should be Henry before he was reincarnated by his father, the middle-aged man who was a little gloomy.

Thinking of this, Martin lowered his head even more, but he saw Henry Goode possessed by the spirit of the old knight, and he did not believe that the bishop had no interest in what was happening in the manor.

He didn't want to have anything to do with the Church of Light.

"After the last excavation, the shepherds did lose some money, but not to the extent that it affected the mission."

Martin thinks about himself, and Hines responds to Thomas.

"What's more, the 'Great Worship' is an important annual ritual in Cavides, and the club will find a way to make up for it even if it is short of manpower, so the Bishop doesn't have to worry."

Martin then noticed that the two of them repeatedly mentioned the "big prostration", which seemed to be an important event, and both of them took it very seriously.

Thomas smiled kindly again when he heard Hines's firm words, and then said:

"There have been a lot of miscellaneous things in Cavides recently, and I can feel that under the light of the holy light, some dark aura is about to move, and this time I have photographed the 'Rose' card, and I believe that the Rose Society, which is watching in the dark, will also make a move."

"I'm afraid we all need to be vigilant for this 'big worship.'"

Hines nodded solemnly.

"I suppose this is your student, the young shepherd who stopped the Rose Society's conspiracy when he first joined the club."

Martin thought that the conversation between the two was over, but he didn't expect Thomas to mention himself.

"I heard that the 'Rose' card was brought back by him."

Under the gaze of the tall bishop, Martin could only stand up stiffly, and bowed slightly to the bishop with an expressionless face, which was regarded as a greeting.

"Good morning, Mr. Bishop."

"We seem to have met before."

Thomas looked at Martin with a playful smile.

"Yes, at Capernaum's Cathedral, I asked you for directions, but I didn't expect you to be the bishop."

Martin kept his tone as calm as possible, showing no emotion.

"I didn't expect you to be a shepherd."

Bishop Thomas turned to Hines and said:

"Mr. Hines, may I give a small suggestion about the security of the 'Great Worship'?"

"Of course, the club is open to any suggestions from clients."

At this moment, Hines looks like a businessman with a slick mouth, which is very consistent with his current identity.

"If I could, I'd like to involve the young shepherd in this security effort, after all..."

Thomas stared at Hines.

"The Rose Society, which has disappeared for many years, has reappeared, and we don't know what kind of means they have now, and I heard that the rumored 'Vine of Desire' has appeared in that manor."

At this point, Martin could clearly hear the concern in Thomas's tone.

"And this gentleman, he brought back the 'Rose' reversal card, and I think we are not as good as him in terms of understanding this card and the methods of the Rose Society."

"So, my suggestion is: include this young gentleman in the security team."

Although it was a "suggestion", it was strange that Thomas's words had an irresistible persuasiveness, and even Martin felt that he should join the so-called "security team" according to the bishop's instructions.

A cool sensation came from the top of his head, and Martin felt a chill on his scalp, and instantly realized that he was once again affected by the bishop's words as he had done last time, without knowing it.

Only this time the impact was more pronounced than the last, and Thomas's words seemed to carry an ineffable command, cloaked in a cloak of gentleness.

"The security of the 'Great Worship' is at the Silver Wool level, and normally, this is not a task that he has access to now."

Hines replied slowly, judging by his performance, that he didn't seem to be affected by Thomas's words.

"But I agree with you, and we will seriously consider your suggestion, of course, all this will ultimately depend on his own opinion."

After thinking for a moment, Hines gave his answer.

"Of course."

Thomas didn't say anything more, and after making another gesture of prayer, he turned and walked out of the box.

Martin quietly breathed a sigh of relief as the man's tall figure appeared in the hall on the first floor and then disappeared behind the door to the hall of sunshine.

"Sir, what kind of ritual do you call 'prostration'?"

Martin wanted to know Hines's attitude on the matter, after all, he didn't even know what this so-called "big worship" was.

"As the name suggests, it's essentially a big service."

Hines picked up a grape from the fruit bowl and put it in his mouth, and sat down again.

"The Church of the Light considers December 12 to be the day of the birth of the Light, and on this day, the Church holds the largest annual service in several fixed cities, presided over by the bishops of the regions, who call it 'the bathing of devout believers in the light and the washing away of their sins'."

"Every 'big worship', followers of the Light from all regions of the kingdom go to these cities, which promotes the prosperity of the cities, so the royal family has always been supportive of this, and even the royal family will send representatives to attend this service."

"Correspondingly, the huge flow of people has also brought a lot of unstable factors, which can be much greater than the impact of the [reindeer market], so on this day every year, the club will receive the security task of the church, and the items and impacts involved in the task are unusual, so they are classified as 'silver wool', and the participants are basically some senior shepherds."

"I think Thomas came up this time, I'm afraid not to see me, but to see you, and he wants you to be involved."

Speaking of this, Hines looked solemn, not as relaxed as he had just faced Bishop Thomas.

"As he said, there has been a marked increase in violence in Cavides recently, and the Rose Cross is watching in the dark, and this 'big service' is not destined to be smooth."

"So you think I'm going?"

Martin saw that Hines's face was solemn and expressed his concern.

"Why not?"

Hines changed the gloom on his face and gave Martin his familiar gentle smile.

"Shepherds' Club deals with this kind of complex situation, where opportunity often hides risk."

"I can vaguely see that this 'big worship' is a rare opportunity for you."

Hines smiled, and he picked up a grape and put it in his mouth again, and now he was less of an old gentleman and more of a prophetic stick.