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#248. The One Who Shines (3)
The light that had covered the scene disappeared.
Those who witnessed the miracle, both inside and outside the cathedral walls, were filled with thrill and awe.
“Light, light! The light has come!”
“Oh my god… I never thought I would see the terracotta shining with my own eyes.”
Even the priests, who always maintained a pious and calm attitude, seemed unable to contain their overwhelming emotions.
In the midst of such waves of confusion.
“… … .”
Ray could see.
I am talking about the appearance of the Bishop of Sector 30, who turned his head and gave the saint a silent gaze.
The saintess noticed the gaze and flinched, then staggered as if acting.
The attendants immediately helped him up, and the bishop stepped forward and spoke to the crowd.
“The power of miracles is not something that can be easily exercised. It takes a lot of energy to the point of exhaustion. I hope you will be grateful to the saint who willingly demonstrated the miracle.”
That I feel exhausted.
‘well.’
Ray thought as he watched the saint disappear into the cathedral with her attendants.
The heat floating in the air gradually died down.
“Everyone, please come this way.”
Afterwards, the transport team was guided by parish to the rooms inside the cathedral where they would stay for the day.
A large group of about 200 people.
But there was no problem with acceptance.
Because the cathedral also boasted a large scale befitting the bustle of the sector.
“I’ve never seen such a large building in my life. And the interior is so luxurious. The main building of the church must be even more magnificent.”
Veronica said, sitting on the bed in Ray’s room and swaying.
The mattress, which looked expensive at first glance, was shaking up and down.
Ray answered, unconsciously following the movement with his eyes.
“I heard that the headquarters is located in Sector 28. The development level of the sector itself may not be that different, but considering that it is the headquarters building, its scale must be larger. By the way, Veronica. Didn’t you say that you act even when no one is watching?”
“That’s right. I forgot for a moment. I’ll be more careful next time. Ray.”
“I think it’s mixed.”
dripping.
Just then there was a knock.
As Ray waved his hand in the air, the door opened silently, and the person who appeared was Solitaire.
“I’m sorry. The rooms of other parishes are connected through the hallways on both sides. I was late because I was trying to avoid their gaze.”
After looking outside and closing the door, Solitaire nodded.
The party was currently paying the utmost attention to avoid arousing suspicion from the Nambit Dawn Society.
Because it was this side, not the Yeomyeonghoe, which was a minority in the current transport unit.
Rustle.
Solitaire took out a notebook from her bosom and wrote down a sentence.
[If you don’t mind, could I take a look around the room before we start talking?]
“It’s okay. I already checked if there’s any wiretapping magic installed. It’s just a regular room.”
“Oh, that’s fortunate.”
The three people sat at the table.
In the midst of the strange silence and tension, Ray opened his mouth.
“The saint is fake.”
The other two asked back.
“Why, my lord? The light I saw earlier seemed like it could only be explained by a miracle. I didn’t feel any trace of magic at all.”
“That is what I have confirmed. The light was clearly the same brightness as the revelation.”
Ray answered without hesitation.
“Because the piece of terracotta the saint was holding was fake.”
Then a small, transparent white stone was lifted from his bosom.
“This is the real thing. Do you see the difference between this and what the saint had?”
“Well, honestly, I don’t know.”
“… I don’t know.”
Why don’t you know this?
Ray, who had been thinking for a moment, explained everything he knew about Terracotta to the best of his ability.
As Solitaire summed it up:
“So, you’re saying that a small amount of mana always flows through a person’s body, and that the type varies depending on their innate personality.”
“that’s right.”
“And a very small amount of mana flows through the terracotta, forming a specific pattern inside.”
“that’s right.”
“The pattern glows in response to the specific mana contained in the creature.”
“that’s right.”
“And finally, the terracotta the saint possesses has a very artificial mana pattern, unlike what you know, Lord Ray. Is that correct?”
“That’s correct.”
Ray nodded.
Veronica asked from the side.
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“Then does that mean that what I saw at the entrance earlier was a fake imitating the real thing?”
“That’s right. It’s a fake that was made so that it could shine at any time depending on the manipulation. The saint simply acted as if she was holding the terracotta.”
Solitaire said, drooling.
“… They made a fake terracotta and put up a fake saint. I really can’t figure out what the Dawn Society’s true intentions are.”
“Movement itself may be the goal.”
“Are you talking about moving?”
“It is very unusual for priests from all the dioceses to move to the main office like this.”
In other words.
There was talk that the Dawn Society might be planning to occupy the headquarters with an overwhelming number of troops.
“… This is definitely not a good situation.”
“It’s not all bad. The fact that they’re trying to invade with this many people means, in other words, that the Dawn Order hasn’t been able to convert that many priests from the main headquarters.”
Ray presented Solitaire with two choices.
“The first is to unite the non-renegades currently inside the transport unit and confront the renegades. If we make all preparations and launch a surprise attack, we can inflict significant damage. However, the difference in numbers is so great that we cannot guarantee victory or defeat in the battle itself. The citizens on the streets are also a problem, and we will have to continue the guerrilla warfare.”
He took a deep breath and continued.
“The second is to continue moving to the headquarters, believing that the faith of the headquarters personnel will remain strong. If we can inform the truth about the traitors and convince them, we will be able to respond better to the situation.”
“But what if the headquarters has also been invaded by traitors…?”
“Then, we would be in a much more disadvantageous situation than if we started fighting right away.”
Solitaire was silent, and Ray spoke in a soft voice.
“I will respect your judgment. You probably know more about the religious order than I do.”
Tick. Tick. Tick.
In the silence, only the sound of the second hand could be heard.
After a while, Solitaire opened her mouth in a firm tone.
“I trust the people at the headquarters.”
“okay.”
After a few more conversations, Solitaire said as he left the room.
“We will share any new information as it becomes available.”
Squeak─ bang.
The door closed, and Veronica spoke in a worried voice.
“There must still be more people with pure links in the main office?”
“I can’t be sure, but I think it might be.”
From sector 37 to sector 30.
During the not-so-short journey of about two weeks, Ray kept a close eye on the renegades teeming on the transport.
With their murky blue rings, they perfectly portrayed devout religious figures.
No information related to the Dawn Society was leaked.
Even magic spells that should have been blue due to the transformation of the ring were given a normal color thanks to special devices such as rings.
But there was one thing they couldn’t hide.
That’s right.
─I made it to Circle 2 this time.
─If it’s explosive magic, it should be able to blow away rocks like that in one go.
It was a display of power that was expressed unconsciously.
In fact, there was no problem in itself.
Wizards are originally beings who pursue power, and are seekers of knowledge who always wish to advance to a higher level.
If there’s just one problem.
‘Their basic status is priesthood.’
A priest who must live an ascetic life with humility as a virtue.
Even if we just look at Solitaire and the Eight Priests, there is no sign of arrogance at all, and the topics of conversation are not limited to those related to faith.
But the traitors were different.
It was as if the desire for power that had been suppressed by religious beliefs had been released haphazardly.
That’s what I thought.
‘Could it be that someone from the Dawn Society approached the priests and stimulated their desires?’
Didn’t you recommend the mixed ring procedure with a sweet voice?
So, as the medicine spread, wouldn’t traitors begin to appear within each cathedral?
“… … .”
Although the situation was dire, it was worth pinning hope on the headquarters.
The Pope and other people in the main office are said to be so devout that it would be difficult for the Dawn Society to approach them.
‘I need to gather as much information as possible before arriving at the headquarters.’
Ray closed his eyes.
Woohoo─!
I moved the mana in the ring to cast a spell, and slowly matched my breathing with the mana flowing in the air.
At the end, you feel as if your whole body is relaxed, as if you were immersed in warm water.
“Huh? Huh? Raya? Master? Where did you go?”
Ray’s presence completely disappeared from the room.
A stealth magic used by raising mental power to its limit with 4 circles of mana.
Even Veronica, who had a special sensitivity to mana, could not recognize Ray, who was right in front of her.
“Wait a minute, I’ll go see the saint.”
“I can definitely feel it here…? My brain feels like it’s being tormented. Wait a minute, but who are you meeting right now?”
“Saint.”
Ray turned away Veronica’s hand that was stroking his cheek, opened the door, and went out into the hallway.
After that, I went around the cathedral, but no one noticed Ray’s presence.
‘Where is the saint’s room?’
Ray thought as he drew a mustache on the face of a stern man in a religious painting on the wall.
Bishop Basel of Sector 30 seemed reluctant to expose the saint to the outside world for long periods of time.
Moreover, the saint was a commoner without a ring, and she felt no small amount of fear when she saw Basel.
That means,
‘Saint, there is a high possibility that she is not a member of the Nambit Dawn Society.’
I wonder if he was being held forcibly.
If we just have a friendly conversation over a cup of tea, we’ll probably find out a lot of information.
Knock—knock—knock—
The secret steps led deeper and deeper into the cathedral.
‘It’s like that place.’
At the end of the long hallway, a luxuriously shaped door appeared.
However, there were gatekeepers guarding the entrance to the corridor, who were the bishops of the dioceses of sectors 33 and 34.
Both are skilled in the 4th circle.
The sense of mana tends to develop together with the number of rings.
‘If you get too close, you might get caught.’
Can you get through there?
While I was pondering, a man in chef’s uniform appeared carrying a tray of food.
“This is dinner for the saint.”
“Is it that time already?”
The two bishops’ nerves were divided.
Ray took advantage of the gap and walked quickly.
Wheeee …
A small breeze wrapped around my feet, making my steps feel like feathers.
It was made so that not even a single bit of body odor could spread around the entire body.
widely.
He stopped walking, following the chef like a shadow.
Breathing, body tremors, movement of mana.
Every single element was controlled.
“Try a little bit of the food I brought.”
“Oh, I understand.”
The cook was a little taken aback, but he followed the instructions with familiar movements, as if he had done this many times before.
“Okay. Go ahead. We’ll deliver the food ourselves.”
“Yes, yes, thank you. Then I will step aside!”
The bishop, who had received the tray, turned and walked down the hallway, and Ray followed behind him.
Then suddenly.
“hmm?”
The bishop stopped walking.
I turned my head and stared at the place where Ray was standing.
Swish.
I slowly reached out my hand.
Ray stopped moving and pulled his face back to avoid the outstretched hand.
Hold your breath, slowly, very slowly.
So as not to make any noise.
“hmm.”
The bishop, who had been trying to squeeze and release the air, soon took his hand back and said.
“I guess it’s my imagination.”
The bishop ended up laughing at his own delusion.
Someone sneaked in to avoid the aura of the 4th circle wizard.
Where in the world can such a being exist?
Knock—knock—knock—
The bishop’s footsteps grew distant.
After some distance has been created.
“Phew.”
Ray, who let out the breath he had been holding, also started walking again.
In the distance, the saint’s room was approaching.