When he mentioned the "Great Mother," Priest Raymond wore an entirely different expression from when he praised the "Eternal Blazing Sun." The latter carried a hint of holiness and fanaticism, as though he were gazing directly at the sun, while the "Great Mother" seemed like Raymond's actual mother, someone he worshipped and felt close to.
A priest of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun was actually proclaiming another being's name deep within his own church, calling her great!
Yet this blasphemy brought no punishment. Raymond seemed to have expected that outcome. He composed his expression, rose from his chair, and turned back toward the room's only window. Looking at the sun, he spread his arms and recited once more:
"Great Eternal Blazing Sun..."
Then, robes and all, he became a grayish-white stone statue in the sunlight.
The statue's expression remained holy and fanatical, its mouth slightly open and its arms outstretched, like a stone cross.
The sunlight before it dimmed as a figure appeared outside the glass window. It was Angel, who had previously left the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun for the forest to the west.
The door behind it opened from outside. Bernadette, wearing a women's shirt and fitted trousers, walked slowly into the room. Looking at Raymond, who had been completely petrified and showed no trace of life, she said solemnly:
"I never expected that power to have infiltrated the Blazing Sun's church. No wonder more than a month has passed without any news reaching the outside world... The village administrator has probably suffered something similar, perhaps even worse, since he doesn't have to worry about the church discovering it."
Then she looked at Angel, who was silently staring at the statue. Her expression softened somewhat as she asked:
"Is the 'Great Mother' the source