Gold Pound Knight (Seeking Monthly Votes~ Seeking Follow-ups~)

"A Dream Awakener, is it..."

Ivan felt a slight tinge of regret; given Gais's oratorical skills, he would certainly have been more adept at utilizing the abilities of a Whisperer.

However, since he currently had no control over the outcome, he recalled the notion that different auxiliary materials could yield different ability inclinations.

"It seems if I want to cultivate specific paths, I must find a way to obtain information on Magic Potions and consume some supplementary materials in tandem..."

Seeing that his Lord had remained silent for a long time, Gais continued his report:

"Great Lord, I believe this ability is quite suitable for me. After all, I can already manifest some of the effects of a Whisperer on my own, allowing for simple induction.

This Dream Awakener ability perfectly compensates for the Church's lack of intelligence gathering. I will strive to uphold the Code of Conduct and ensure this ability is utilized to its maximum potential!"

Ivan was somewhat surprised; he hadn't considered that point. The Church was not lacking in combatants, but it was indeed lacking in means to acquire intelligence.

If it were truly as Gais claimed, his Dream Awakener ability could indeed play a much greater role.

"Not bad. You should be able to see the staircase of the Heart-Dream Aspect within your own spiritual body.

The Secret Rite is precisely the ritual used to break through certain obstacles."

Ivan bluffed, following his own conjectures to guide Gais.

Gais closed his eyes, furrowing his brows as he carefully sensed something within his body.

"Yes, Great Lord, I see it—a staircase extending vertically, obscured by clouds and mist.

Currently, I can only see the end of the third step, and there seems to be a transparent wall at the end...

Great Lord of All Spirits, your most loyal servant, Gais, is grateful for your grace and revelation!"

Gais lowered his body and knelt in worship.

Ivan nodded inwardly; his guess was correct, which explained why Little George had never mentioned any rituals.

It turned out that a Secret Rite was only required to break through at the end of the third step, and it was a transparent wall—only the meticulous Gais had discovered this.

"Sigh... Diana's Secret Rite and Code of Conduct are easy enough to handle; I just need to get another bottle of God Blood to find out."

However, the Natural Aspect, Secret Rite, and Code of Conduct that Little George obtained from himself were very difficult to ascertain. Perhaps during the next differentiation, he could try touching the Book of Rituals with his own spiritual Remnant Corpse?

Ivan felt it was somewhat feasible, but for now, the most important thing was to absorb faith energy!

He entered the church alongside Gais, and as he felt the faith energy transmitted by the believers, Ivan's tentacles felt so comfortable they were nearly dancing.

"...Praise the great and merciful Lord of All Spirits."

As Bishop George finished the final prayer, the day's worship and communion came to an end. Even the new believers were infected by the atmosphere, contributing quite a bit of faith energy to him.

Ivan felt satisfied with his faith energy accumulation, which had already passed the halfway mark.

"Not bad, not bad. This week's hard work was not in vain, though the main credit goes to Little George and Gais..."

He scratched his head and looked at Little George, who had finished the service and was on the verge of fainting again.

He hurriedly differentiated a small bit of his spiritual Remnant Corpse to restore the boy's vitality.

"The Lord's power is truly great and miraculous," Diana, standing to the side, exclaimed as she watched the scene.

It was her first time attending a Holy Spirit Society service, and she realized the main difference from the Church of Divine Grace was the people sitting below.

The believers of the Holy Spirit Society were all impoverished people from the bottom of society.

As for the flow of the ritual and the differences in communion, Diana did not pay them any mind.

"Right! The Lord told me that joining the church requires donating some Gold Pounds!"

Diana pulled a palm-sized wallet from the inner pocket of her skirt.

The wallet was made of pale apricot lambskin, the leather soft yet durable, and both sides were adorned with rice-sized pearls that swayed gently with her movements, looking exceptionally exquisite.

Gais and Little George watched the hand opening the wallet and couldn't help but swallow hard.

"It seems there is no... um!" Before Little George could finish his sentence, Gais, who was smiling beside him, gripped his hand tightly.

Fortunately, his voice did not interrupt Diana's actions.

"The offering box... where is it?"

She looked left and right, failing to find a box for believers to donate, only then realizing that the Holy Spirit Society's service had no segment for congregants to offer money.

Diana slowly pulled ten paper bills from her wallet and placed them on the table.

The bills were larger than those usually seen; Little George frowned, as he had never seen such paper currency before.

As for Gais, though he maintained his smile, his heart was already pounding wildly.

"Here is one hundred pounds. I don't know if it's enough... this is all the pocket money I have for this month.

I will continue to donate to the Church next month!" Diana felt a bit uneasy, unsure if this money met the Lord's requirements.

Hearing this, Little George felt dazed. He looked closely at the table and realized that the number on the slightly larger bills was not a simple 1, but a dark golden 10.

"One... one hundred pounds!" Little George covered his mouth to keep from crying out; he had never seen so much money in his entire life.

Gais tried to keep his voice calm as he accepted the bills:

"Respected Gold Pound—no, Lady Knight, thank you for your generosity."

"Your sponsorship will allow our shared Holy Spirit Society to develop even more rapidly."

Ivan twitched his tentacles on the side, thinking with disdain.

Look at how inexperienced you all look; anyone who didn't know better would think our Holy Spirit Society was destitute!

Even if we were in the past, we won't be in the future, because we have a Gold List Knight, Miss Diana!

In truth, when he first saw Diana's spending, he had been just as shocked as Little George was today.

It was just that by now, he had grown numb and accustomed to Diana's extravagance.

Little George still hadn't recovered from his shock, his hands trembling slightly.

Having been busy scrambling for a single pound just a week ago, he was now faced with such a windfall that he didn't even know how to spend it.

Gais watched Little George struggling to find his voice and smiled, speaking on his behalf:

"With this money, we can buy more holy communion in the future, and trade up for better wheat bread and mid-range wine."

Little George nodded vigorously; with this Knight lady, he and Gais would never have to worry about the survival of the church again.

From now on, he could have more time to train his abilities, improve himself, or work with Mr. Gais to develop more believers.

"Tha-thank you, Miss Diana!" After struggling for a long time, his words finally distilled into this single expression of gratitude.

"As a member of the church, this is only what I should do!" Diana responded with great energy; she had been busy all day, yet she felt no fatigue at all, remaining spirited instead.

Watching the harmonious scene in the church, Ivan was also genuinely happy.

Truly not bad. With a few more believers, my next breakthrough won't be far off!

At this moment, in a tavern at the East District docks.

Many drunks were sprawled out, snoring away across the main hall.

In a room on the second floor, the candlelight on a wooden table illuminated a man's face.

He wore a dark blue coat and was currently looking at a letter with a thoughtful expression.

"More than fifty people will participate in the strike...

The number is certainly enough, but he would never guess that the content of the agitation letter wasn't spread as he had written it.

Trying to complete a cognitive modification, heh."

His low, hoarse voice carried a hint of mockery.

"I hope he fulfills what he promised me; that way, I can return to the embrace of the sea all the sooner..."