[Perhaps an Existing Spacetime] Church

Outside the church gate.

Varos stood at the bottom of the steps, soaked to the bone. His tattered clothes clung to his body, dripping water that pooled at his feet. Strands of hair clung to his forehead, and water droplets trickled down his cheeks and stubble.

He looked up at Clematis inside the door.

"Please have mercy."

Clematis stood inside the doorway, his black priest's robes hanging neatly to his ankles. He glanced at Varos's soaked appearance, his gaze lingering on the puddle of water.

"Why are you soaking wet? What happened?"

Varos remained expressionless.

"I fell into the river."

Clematis looked at him and remained silent for a few seconds. His right hand unconsciously rose, the fingertips lightly touching his lower lip, as if he were thinking about something.

"... That's truly unfortunate."

He stepped aside, making way for the space inside the doorway.

"It's cold outside, come in and warm up. Please come in."

Varos climbed the steps. His soaked boots left clear watermarks on the stone slabs. He entered the church, bringing with him the damp, cold smell of the river.

Clematis closed the door behind him.

The heavy wooden doors closed, shutting out the noise of the street. The church fell silent, with only the faint crackling of the eternal flame Burning before the statue of the Goddess in the distance, and the dripping sound of water droplets falling from Varos's body.

"What's the situation inside?" Clematis asked.

"The refuge passages from the Unified Empire era are still in normal use."

Clematis turned to face him. The interior of the church was softly lit, with light filtering through the stained glass windows casting dappled patterns of color on the floor.

"Really? That's completely different from the report I received. Iris clearly said, 'Oh dear, the passageway below is completely flooded and impassable!'"

He Imitation Iris's tone, gesturing casually with his finger in the air.

"Lutine believes it's due to Melt snow, and I think that's very likely. After all, she's a learned person; reading more books, especially good books, is always beneficial."

Varos raised his hand and wiped the water from his face. The action caused a few more drops of water to fall from his sleeve onto the clean stone floor.

"That's why I went to check. Soldiers can easily cross that level of floodwater. As long as they don't get lost in complete darkness, they can reach the other side in about twenty minutes."

He lowered his hand, and water droplets slid down his wrist.

"Although it's pitch black inside, sometimes you can't even tell up, down, left, or right, and there are monsters that seem to eat piranhas, and the snow water is freezing, as long as you rely on your aura..."

Clematis suddenly opened his arms and smiled. It was a perfect smile, the corners of his mouth curving upwards just right, but there was no real joy in his eyes.

"Ah, that's great news--"

He lowered his arm.

"--Yeah, right."

The smile vanished from his face.

"Listen to yourself, are you even speaking human language? I already know I can't get through anything but you."

Lore walked over from the side corridor. She kept her eyes closed, held a clean white towel in her hand, and walked very lightly, the hem of her nun's habit barely making a sound.

She walked up to Varos and placed the towel precisely within his reach. Her movements were steady, and her face was expressionless.

Varos took the towel and began to dry his hair. The rough towel absorbed the water and quickly left dark, damp stains.

Clematis pointed to an ornate sofa next to the church pews. The sofa was covered in deep red velvet and looked quite expensive.

"Please, have a seat here."

Varos dried himself off, walked over, and sat down on the sofa. A small patch of the velvet immediately became damp and darkened in color.

Clematis sat down on the sofa opposite him. He placed his hands, fingers interlaced, on his lap, with an upright posture.

"Let's revise the battle plan. You are the strongest fighter in the Shadow Warriors; sending you behind enemy lines will give us a huge strategic advantage."

He leaned forward slightly.

"I'd like to decide together how to use you as a chess piece. Let's chat over a cup of hot black tea."

He turned his head and looked at Lore.

"Lore, serve tea."

Lore stood still. Her eyes were closed, but she precisely straightened the wrinkles in her nun's habit cuffs, then turned and walked towards the door.

"Please do it yourself, I need to go out and buy the wine for the ceremony."

Clematis curled his lips downwards.

Do you think I know where the tea leaves are?

Lore had already reached the door. She grasped the doorknob and pulled it open.

I'm going out.

The door slammed shut behind her with a clear "bang".

The church was silent for a few seconds.

Clematis stared at the closed door, remained silent for a moment, then sighed softly. He stood up from his chair and walked to a row of dark wooden cabinets against the wall.

"Kindness..."

He opened the first cabinet door, inside which were neatly arranged candlesticks and unopened white candles. He looked at them, closed the door, and opened the second one.

The second cabinet contained neatly folded white vestments and sashes, the fabric smooth and without a single wrinkle.

"Looks like I'm disliked."

As he spoke, he opened the third cabinet door. Inside were several thick books, their gilded spines reflecting the light.

"Here? Here? Or here? Oh, black tea, where are you?"

"What's the reason you're disliked?" Varos asked.

Clematis closed the third cabinet and walked to the fourth. This cabinet was higher up, and he needed to stand on tiptoe to open it.

"Who knows? There are too many; it's impossible to know which one it is."

He opened the cabinet door, inside which were neatly arranged silver chalices and plates, polished to a high shine, their cool metallic sheen gleaming in the shadows. There was no tea.

Varos raised his head and looked at Clematis's back.

"You say I'm the strongest fighter among the Shadow Warriors?"

Clematis didn't say anything, but simply closed the door and turned to walk towards the next cabinet.

"Only you would give me such high praise, Clematis. As things stand, that young man named Levi is far superior to me. The passage of time is truly cruel."

Clematis opened another cabinet door. This time, inside were cleaning brushes and cloths, neatly hanging on hooks. He took them out, looked at them, and then hung them back up.

Didn't you say you were still in your prime?

"I don't want to talk like an old man."

Varos draped the towel over the sofa armrest. The velvet was already damp and its color had darkened.

"But if I could be ten years younger..."

"You're still a monster, and instead of that, come find me some black tea."

Varos raised his hand and pointed to a tall oak cabinet on the other side of the church.

"It's in that cabinet over there."

Clematis looked in the direction he was pointing.

How did you know?

"I borrow it occasionally. It gets very cold in winter."

Clematis stepped forward and opened the cabinet door; sure enough, the tea canister stood quietly deep inside. He took out the canister, stood there for two seconds, and looked at Varos with no expression on his face.

"You've tried to steal something. This is in front of the Goddess! You'll go to hell for doing this!"

Varos leaned back on the sofa, gazing at the church's high dome with a somewhat vacant look in his eyes.

How many people do you think I've killed?

Clematis opened the tea canister, took out an appropriate amount of tea leaves and put them into the teapot, then poured water from the kettle next to him into the teapot. Steam rose up, turning into swirling white mist in the light.

"What? You don't understand?"

He put the lid on the teapot and let the tea leaves steep.

"I was just kidding, don't be shy, laugh all you want."

Varos turned to look at him, stared for several seconds, and then spoke expressionlessly.

"Really? That's hilarious. Now I understand why Lore dislikes you."

The tea leaves slowly unfurled in the hot water, and the dark brown tea soup gradually thickened.

"Thanks to you, I need to drink an extra cup of black tea to warm myself up."

Clematis didn't reply. He picked up the teapot and poured the brewed black tea into two porcelain cups. The amber-colored tea liquor was poured into the cups, and wisps of steam rose upwards.

He picked up a glass and handed it to Varos.

Varos took the cup, holding it with both hands. The warmth emanating from the porcelain seeped through his skin, dispelling some of the chill. He lowered his head, blew on the steam rising from the surface of the tea, and then carefully took a sip.

The tea was still hot, but the warmth slid from my throat all the way down to my stomach.

Clematis added two sugar cubes to his glass and stirred it slowly with a small spoon. The metal spoon tapped against the side of the glass, making a regular, soft clinking sound.

The two sat there, neither of them speaking.