The Church
A few days after Aila's arm was healed, the incident seemed to have ignited the enthusiasm of the local population.
Not only were the workers who were already on the construction site working even harder, but other members of the public also spontaneously offered to help.
This meant that what Fran had originally planned to take a week to complete the church renovations was finished in just three days.
Fran stood before the stone platform where the statue of the Divine Statue was to be placed, looking at the scene that had been restored.
The walls and floors have been completely renovated, with almost no damage or dirt visible, and several rows of seats have been added in front of the stone platform.
Even the stone platform in front of Fran had been polished to a shine.
Just then, a heavy footstep came from the doorway. Fran looked up and saw a stone about two meters high being carried in horizontally.
The person carrying the stone pillar was none other than Anna. She carried the stone pillar step by step from outside the village, holding it up with both hands.
Because the stone pillar was quite far from the village, even Anna, a First Order Profession, couldn't help but feel a little out of breath.
"Just put this thing upright on the table," Fran instructed Anna.
Anna glanced at it, quickly assessed the situation, and said.
"Let me rest for a while. I'm afraid I'll mess things up if I wait too long." Anna was also exhausted and wanted to rest before continuing the work.
But when she tried to put the stone pillar down, she suddenly couldn't feel its weight, which made her panic, wondering if she had let go.
But she didn't hear the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground, which made her look down at the statue in confusion.
Only then did she realize that it was Fran had grasped the stone statue with both hands and lifted it into the air, making a faint sound as if the air was being cut.
Then she saw Fran hold the statue in one hand and rotate it with the other, adjusting it to an upright position.
Anna stared wide-eyed at Fran's movements, completely surprised that Fran, a mage, possessed such strength.
"Are the mages of the Sword Chant School different from other mages? How come they seem to have more power than me?"
Anna's eyes were full of doubt, although she already knew that Fran was actually quite strong. She had felt that Fran's attacks caused a lot of damage when she attacked the skeleton with her sword.
However, Anna assumed that Fran had used some kind of spell that was particularly effective against undead, or that the longsword was specifically designed to counter undead creatures.
But now it seems that Fran doesn't need to do that at all; she only needs to swing this sword, and the powerful force will tear those undead creatures to shreds.
Fran carefully placed the stone pillar upright on the platform. As she released it, Fran gently gripped the statue to make sure it was stable before letting go.
Fran turned around and saw Anna already sitting on the bench, staring wide-eyed at Fran's actions.
Fran said somewhat helplessly:
"You're a bit slow; I've been waiting here for a long time."
Anna continued to stare wide-eyed at Fran, which forced Fran to say:
"Alright, you rest here. I'm going to start sculpting the Divine Statue."
Anna raised an eyebrow, somewhat confused about what Fran meant by that.
Anna had passed through White Dragon Port before and had naturally seen the Divine Statue of the Goddess of Ocean Currents there. She knew very well how difficult it was to carve such a Divine Statue.
First, the raw materials for this Divine Statue are placed in a quiet room and sculpted by professional Artisan from the Church of the Goddess of Ocean Currents.
After the Artisan finished carving, the followers of the Church of the Goddess of Ocean Currents had to be very careful during the transportation process, because if it was dropped or bumped, the Artisan would have to carve it again.
They wouldn't send the Divine Statue directly to the church to be carved by Artisan, even though it would be much more convenient that way.
However, the followers of the Church of the Goddess of Ocean Currents consider the place where the Divine Statue are placed to be sacred, so they do not allow Artisan to enter.
Furthermore, before the Divine Statue arrives, many believers of high status pray to the Goddess of Ocean Currents, and you can't afford to waste their time.
Therefore, before the Divine Statue arrived, a small Divine Statue was used as a substitute. After the Divine Statue was carved, it was then transported inside.
Fortunately, this is a Magic World, and those Church Warrior can lift the five-meter-tall Divine Statue by themselves. Otherwise, just transporting it safely and without damage would be a problem, let alone putting the Divine Statue inside the church.
Fran's words puzzled Anna, because they not only violated Anna's knowledge of the Divine Statue -making process, but Anna also didn't know if Fran could sculpt the Divine Statue properly.
Even the most devout believers had to admit that carving statues of Divine Statue was best left to Artisan, which is why the followers of the Goddess of Ocean Currents had to have Artisan carve the Divine Statue.
But Anna remembers that Fran is a mage, and only one who excels in combat. Can Fran sculpt this Divine Statue properly?
At that moment, Anna saw in her mind a very abstract Divine Statue of a deity sculpted by Fran: a horizontal line for the mouth, a vertical line for the nose, and two eyes that were not round circles with a blackened sphere inside.
The scene made her burst out laughing, which drew a slightly angry response from Fran.
"I'm concentrating on my work, don't bother me. If you want to laugh, go laugh outside!!"
"I'm so sorry! I'm really sorry."
Anna knew her behavior was inappropriate. No matter what Fran ultimately created, she shouldn't have disturbed her while she was focused on making it.
Then Anna looked at Fran with deep regret, and just as she was about to say something more apologetic, she saw a scene that made her wonder if time had been accelerated.
Did a long time pass when she came down and was lost in thought? Anna's face was full of doubt, but she soon realized that time had not sped up and that only a short period of time had passed.
Anna saw Fran's almost solidified Magic Power moving rapidly across the stone pillar, capable of shaving off a large chunk of stone in an instant.
And judging from Fran's movements, she seemed to be very familiar with carving. She only moved a few times, and Anna saw the outline of a face appear before her eyes.
Then, to Anna's astonishment, she saw Fran carve a face in just ten minutes, a face so lifelike it looked like a petrified human face.
What shocked Anna even more was Fran's outstanding carving Arts; during Fran's carving process, there was not a sound of any stone falling to the ground.
It wasn't until a stone fell that Anna saw it caught by an illusory hand that appeared out of nowhere, and then placed behind the statue.
As Fran finished carving the face and began working on the hair, Anna saw two small stone pillars appear behind the statue.
Then, when Fran finished carving the hair, she could see what looked like two pieces of cloth appearing behind the statue, extending from behind.
When Fran finished sculpting the upper body, Anna saw two unpolished wings, resembling feathers, appear behind the statue.
When Fran finished carving the statue, she turned around and saw Anna with her mouth wide open, drool dripping from the corner of her mouth, completely stunned on the spot.
Anna didn't come to her senses until Fran turned around. She stared at the Divine Statue Fran had just finished carving, her heart filled with awe.
"You're Arts in sculpting?!"
"This Divine Statue is really well made."
Anna thought for a long time before coming up with these two sentences, which made Fran, who was looking at her, shake her head.
"Alright, the Divine Statue is finished. Go and inform those who want to come that our church will officially open tonight."
Anna sat up from her chair and looked outside, only to be shocked to find that it was still bright outside and the sun had not yet set.
While the statue was being transported, Anna wondered how many days it would take Fran to finish carving Divine Statue, and she even worried that the first day wouldn't be until dark.
But the truth is, Fran finished carving before the sun had even set, which made Anna look at Fran with a different kind of admiration.
With a touch of trepidation, Aila entered the church Anna had told her about. As soon as she entered, Aila sensed that the Divine Statue in front of her was somewhat different.
She seemed to see something in the Divine Statue before her, but when she blinked, she could only see the Divine Statue reflected in the hut.
Accompanying Aila were several companions from the village. They looked at the Divine Statue inside the house, seemingly wondering why a Divine Statue had suddenly appeared there.
However, when they examined the Divine Statue closely, they were unconsciously drawn to Divine Statue, their eyes not leaving it for even a second.
Before they stepped into the church, they felt the biting winds of the Northern Territory. It was already late at night, and logically, no fool would choose to go out at this hour.
They were among the few who could withstand the bitter cold and make it here, and as they entered the church, they instinctively sought out a fireplace.
But when they looked around, they saw nothing emitting a strong red light or heat. All they saw were candlesticks lit on the walls, their light extremely faint, as if they would disappear at any moment.
Even more amazingly, despite the dim lighting, they could clearly see the condition of the entire house, including the details on the Divine Statue.
"Step forward."
Fran stood below the Divine Statue and addressed the group, who, without hesitation, stepped in front of Fran.
At this moment, the previously dark corner outside the church became slightly brighter, and more importantly, some of the snow around the house had melted.