Chapter Forty-One: The Eerie Master and Servant

With the War God Church’s three hundred thousand, Link wouldn’t have to worry about money for quite some time. Even opening schools and orphanages in other towns would pose no difficulty. As for the few chapels relinquished by the War God Church, Link decided to leave them be for now. Although the Divine Father Church possessed impressive combat strength, its managerial talent was still scarce, and it would be unwise to spread its resources too thin. With the deeds in hand, Link had no fear of anyone trying to seize the chapels.

Only three days had passed before the first batch of compensation from the War God Church arrived: a hundred thousand Sola transported by several wagons, along with the deeds to chapels in several towns. Their contents had been cleared, and the Divine Father Church could take over at any time—a clear sign the compensation had long been prepared. Yet the remaining two hundred thousand Sola was no small sum. Though the War God Church would not renege on its promise, it could not gather such funds in a short time and would need more time. Link understood their predicament and, with “considerate understanding,” declared that Altair would remain a guest of the Divine Father Church until all compensation was settled.

Though frustrated, the members of the War God Church dared not protest. They could only take part of the redeemed captives back to report.

Standing by the window, watching the War God Church’s delegation depart, Link turned to Altair at his side and said, “Those fellows are gone now. They probably never imagined that the captives they brought home are already devout followers of the Divine Father.”

Altair replied in a low voice, “Rest assured, Archbishop. Their status within the church is not insignificant. When the time is ripe, they will help you take the War God Church without a single blade drawn.”

Link nodded with a smile, then seemed to recall something and laughed self-mockingly, shaking his head. “I’m becoming more and more like those scheming villains on television. I wonder if that’s good or bad.” He looked to Altair again. “Well, enough about that. Altair, how goes the matter of the Assassin’s Creed?”

Altair responded, “Archbishop, I’ve gathered some orphans from Kinko Town and nearby areas, intending to train them. I’ve also recruited informants from other towns. With their intelligence, we can obtain first-hand information from surrounding settlements. As for more distant places, I haven’t managed to set up lines yet.”

“Good, no need to rush. Loyalty is most important for those you recruit. We are still weak, and mustn’t be too hasty. Those children you found—if they lack talent or aptitude, hand them to Jack. He’ll make arrangements. The school is nearly finished; let those children be its first students.”

Altair nodded. “Yes, Archbishop. Rest assured, I know what to do.”

Afterward, Link sent Altair off to his tasks and immersed himself in work. It wasn’t long before Jack came to complain—the troublemaker Lingmeng had caused yet another stir.

Since moving into the monastery, Lingmeng pestered Link daily for a job, claiming she needed to earn money, and demanded a salary in the thousands and tens of thousands. Anyone uninformed would mistake her for some high official; even a city lord’s annual stipend was only ten thousand Sola.

Naturally, Link would not hand over money simply because Lingmeng lacked common sense. He had Elia explain some basic knowledge to her, and then assigned her some chores, telling her to earn money by working first.

Lingmeng did the work, but abandoned it after only half a day, complaining it was exhausting, troublesome, and the pay miserably low. Link assumed she’d settle down and stopped paying attention.

But unexpectedly, Lingmeng discovered that the followers continually deposited money in the Divine Father Church’s donation box, so she promptly set up a new donation box beside it.

To put it simply, Lingmeng was openly stealing money from the Divine Father Church.

Naturally, Jack could not ignore this. But when he confronted Lingmeng, she shamelessly argued that if the Divine Father Church could set up a donation box, why couldn’t she? After much debate, Jack failed to persuade her to remove the box.

Since Lingmeng was the High Priestess of the Celestial Spirit Church, Jack could not use force and had to turn to Link for a solution.

Learning of this, Link was beset by a headache. Lingmeng was a super problem child—not only ignorant but utterly shameless, with no sense of propriety. With such a person, reason was useless; only force would make her comply.

Fortunately, though Lingmeng’s behavior was exasperating, she bore the mission of the Celestial Spirit Church and would not oppose Link outright. Thus, when Link sternly ordered her to stop placing unauthorized donation boxes, Lingmeng grudgingly withdrew her box and returned the money to the Divine Father Church—though hardly anyone had donated to it.

After that, Lingmeng frequently wandered into the woods behind the monastery, engaged in unknown activities. When asked, she refused to explain. But as long as she didn’t cause trouble for the Divine Father Church, Link left her be, merely assigning someone to keep an eye on her.

Another day passed, and Sunday arrived. At nine o’clock in the morning, Link entered the Holy Light Cathedral to conduct the weekly prayer class.

Solemn, resonant prayers issued from the cathedral’s open doors. Those followers unable to find seats inside stood outside, eyes closed, listening intently to the liturgy with devout expressions. The atmosphere within and around the Holy Light Cathedral was filled with solemn sanctity.

Suddenly, a small carriage approached. Its body was painted a dark red, adorned with touches of muted gold, exuding a shadowy elegance—clearly the vehicle of someone wealthy or noble. The two horses pulling the carriage were pitch black, tall and powerful, far more magnificent than ordinary steeds, sure to make any horse lover drool.

The driver was a woman draped in a black cloak. Though the cloak concealed her head and most of her figure, the exposed skin was smooth and fair, suggesting she was quite young.

The carriage stopped away from the crowds. At once, a melodious, childish yet authoritative female voice rang out from within, “Starry Night, what’s wrong? Why have we stopped?”

The woman called Starry Night turned and replied in a deep, magnetic voice, “Miss, the outside of the Holy Light Cathedral is packed with followers. There are too many believers in the Divine Father Link here; many cannot enter and are praying outside. The road ahead is blocked.”

“Oh? It seems the Divine Father Church is doing quite well. Its prestige rivals that of the great churches, at least here in its birthplace.” The speaker’s tone carried a hint of interest.

Knowing her mistress well, Starry Night asked, “Miss, shall I disperse the crowd?”

The person inside considered. “No need. Let’s wait until there are fewer people. I’d like to see whether the Divine Father Church’s miracles are truly as wondrous as rumored.”

“Your will is everything to me.”

Starry Night drove the carriage to the roadside, waiting patiently for the crowd to disperse.

By noon, as the bells struck twelve, the weekly prayer session ended. The followers, reluctant to leave yet filled with serenity and fulfillment, departed in droves.

For some reason, none seemed to notice the luxurious carriage at the roadside, treating it as if it didn’t exist. Stranger still, anyone approaching within ten meters would stop and detour around it, as if there were a wall rather than a carriage.

No one noticed this oddity. The carriage remained parked for a long while, only moving toward the Holy Light Cathedral once the crowd had thinned.

A few late-leaving followers were surprised to see the red carriage passing by. One asked in confusion, “When did this carriage appear? Why didn’t we notice it earlier?”

The others were equally puzzled, only able to shake their heads.

Soon, the carriage arrived at the cathedral entrance. The staff in charge of reception approached to ask Starry Night to move it to the parking area. But when Starry Night met the staff member’s gaze, he seemed bewitched, retreating vacantly to the side. Starry Night dismounted, opened the door, and bowed in welcome. “Miss, we have arrived. You may alight.”

The childish, melodious voice sounded again. Next, a girl of thirteen or fourteen, with the appearance of a young lady, placed her fair hand in Starry Night’s and stepped out with her support.

The girl had shoulder-length pale lavender hair, wore a soft pink hat and a pink dress lavishly adorned, with a red ribbon at her neck, all in a darkly elegant Baroque style.

Beyond her attire, the girl’s features were stunning: a childlike yet dignified face, faintly smiling, with jewel-like crimson eyes hinting at something sinister.

Taken together, she seemed a young lady of wealth and nobility—beautiful, enchanting, and extraordinary, yet possessing a dark quality that made her difficult, even intimidating, to approach.

Many who noticed the carriage and its passenger, regardless of gender, were captivated by her, unable to look away; even those who had seen Lingmeng found it impossible to avert their gaze.

The girl ignored the attention, gazed up at the Holy Light Cathedral, and half-closed her beautiful eyes. “So this is the Holy Light Cathedral? A strange feeling—I can’t see through its essence.”

At her words, Starry Night’s eyes flashed with surprise, and she asked in a low voice, “Miss, even you can’t see through it?”

“Hmm, interesting. For such a remote little place to have something I can’t see through, this Divine Father Church is quite intriguing.” The girl’s lips curled into a wicked smile, and she strode toward the cathedral, Starry Night hastening after her.

Once the pair entered the cathedral, the stunned onlookers recovered and began to gossip about the master and servant. The church staff, more surprised than the followers, especially the receptionist, was left bewildered; he didn’t understand why he had stepped aside so easily. Looking at the lavish carriage parked at the cathedral door, he was at a loss, for the horses were tall, strong, and fierce. Whenever he approached, they would let out a warning snort, their sharp eyes not those of domesticated animals but of beasts ready to devour any who came near.

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