After rising to his feet, the White Robe Figure swept his gaze over the surroundings, finally letting it rest briefly on Laina. Then he slowly stepped out of the crowd and moved forward along the wall, deliberately pausing beside Laina's row as he glanced over the profiles of everyone seated there.
At the same time, Laina tightened her grip on the black dagger hidden in her sleeve.
The White Robe Figure's gaze lingered for a moment on Laina's dirt-streaked, devout-looking face before continuing onward. He circled the entire wall, emerged from the other side, and headed toward the church entrance.
The old man crouching on the ground also gathered up the surrounding scraps of flesh, wrapped them in a damaged sack, and tied it shut.
At the same time, Laina, seated in front, seemed only then to notice that something had happened behind her. She immediately turned around and tried to come over, but the old man stopped her with a wave.
Then the old man put away the sack, straightened up, and continued looking at the White Robed Man on the podium.
Everything had happened silently. Most people still had their attention fixed on the White Robed Man at the podium; only a few had noticed that several people seemed to have passed by.
By then, the several White Robe Figures had all returned to the church entrance.
"What happened?"
The leader in white looked at the White Robe Figure who had just gone to the old man's area.
He had watched all of the White Robe Figure's movements.
"There was a faint smell of blood over there, but it seemed to be coming from rat meat carried by an old man," the White Robe Figure said slowly, looking deeper into the church. "However, I found someone who looks