Divine Grace Church

Divine Grace Church

The newcomer wore a white robe adorned with simple patterns. With a slightly androgynous, refined face and sharp, short blonde hair, he was the sort of person who inspired immediate goodwill.

"Austin, you finally arrived." Chris let out a sigh of relief.

The newcomer was none other than Chris's close friend within the Divine Grace Church and the client for this mission: Bishop Austin of the Divine Grace Church.

Behind him were two priests and three Divine Grace Knights clad in armor and carrying knightly swords. Each of them had undergone professional knightly training and possessed a Divine Gift, allowing them to exert power far beyond that of a mortal.

"Divine Grace Church, do you intend to harbor this sinner who murdered leader Komoro?" Adre asked with a cold face.

"The so-called charges are merely those you have defined yourselves. No one is clear on the specifics of the situation, so this hardly convinces the masses, wouldn't you agree, Gelosk?" Austin said with a smile, his tone entirely natural.

"Indeed, Lord Adre, I am of the same opinion." A slightly portly middle-aged man stepped out from the side, offering a wry, sheepish smile. "Such actions would make us feel very insecure."

Gelosk was one of the merchants from the Interkami Kingdom who traveled to Reastmia. Wherever there were people, there were factions, and the merchant class was no exception. In the realm of border trade, Gelosk was the implicit leader, or rather, the representative, of all Interkami merchants.

These border traders—or smugglers, rather—were ultimately backed by the nobles of the Interkami Kingdom. Following a series of power struggles, these representatives of the smuggling trade had been forced to step forward to support the Divine Grace Church and apply pressure to the rulers of Rea.

"We share that sentiment as well." Another voice rang out. A group of people in uniform attire emerged from the other side. Based on their facial features, it was clear they were from the Kingdom of Roas. Behind them stood a merchant-like figure, the representative of the Roas trade merchants.

"So, because you have exposed a significant portion of your strength, you have decided to unite?" Adre frowned. This was the situation he least wanted to see. In the region of Reastmia, Negary's influence was naturally the most formidable, but once the forces of two kingdoms united to target Rea with the backing of their respective nations, it would become truly troublesome.

"The top priority is to let our Lord survive the dormant period, especially given what happened just now." Adre recalled the image of himself speaking those words against his will, then let out a cold snort. "We will conduct a separate investigation into the death of leader Komoro, but Chris, as a suspect, must have his movements restricted until the truth comes to light."

"No problem. Let us call a truce for now." Chris nodded. Negary's strength was unfathomable; although he desperately wanted to strike while the opponent was in this so-called dormant period, it was difficult to guarantee success with their current power.

"Then please remain in this courtyard. If you leave without permission, it will be taken as a confession of guilt, and the enforcers of Rea may execute you on the spot." Adre had Chris confined to a courtyard. It wasn't that he hadn't considered arresting and detaining him outright, but with the support of the Divine Grace Church and the Interkami merchants, Adre could not easily have his way.

"I hope your side can catch the true culprit soon." Austin stood to the side, a gentle smile on his face. "May leader Komoro rest in peace."

Before long, a knight from the Divine Grace Church arrived at the small courtyard with Isabella and her daughter. The young knight looked toward the streets in the distance, which had quickly returned to a state of prosperity, a look of bewilderment flashing in his eyes.

Even in the capital of the Interkami Kingdom, many people still died from disease. The priests of the Divine Grace Church possessed the Gift of Salvation and could cure most illnesses, but there were only so many priests who could receive the Gift, and using it required a great deal of physical and mental energy. It was impossible for them to use the Gift to treat the commoners for free every day.

What made the knight curious was that as he traveled through Rea to collect Isabella and her daughter, he found that most of the people here were in good health, as if disease did not exist in this place at all.

"Melsen, what are you thinking about?" A voice startled the young knight. He turned to see one of the priests in their party, Luen Dona, a disciple of Austin.

"Oh, it's Luen. Thank you for coming with me to treat those poor families." Melsen thanked him sincerely. He had been born in the slums of the royal capital and had only left after being diagnosed with a constitution suitable for the Gift.

Even now, he remembered what had happened during that time. That year, an epidemic had broken out in the capital, hitting the slums the hardest. People died every day, and rotting corpses were everywhere.

Melsen had been on the verge of death himself at the time. To suppress the epidemic, the priest corps of the Divine Grace Church had entered the slums to clear it out. It was then that Melsen was saved and discovered his aptitude for becoming a Divine Grace Knight.

Regrettably, his aptitude was for combat-oriented Gifts; he could not adapt to the Gift of Salvation and could only become a Divine Grace Knight. Whenever he had time after completing his training, Melsen would return to the slums to help those who were helpless.

He would also invite priests who possessed the Gift of Salvation to go to the slums for volunteer work, but most were unwilling to waste the time. Treating nobles could earn them a great deal of money, whereas the slums were dirty, chaotic, and reeking of filth, with excrement and even corpses visible everywhere. How could those priests who considered themselves "upper-class" be willing to go there?

"That is what I ought to do. The glory of the Lord should not be limited to nobles and wealthy merchants." Luen Dona replied with a smile. Unlike Melsen, he was born into a noble family and had received a high-level education. He was extremely devout toward the Lord. With a confident and ambitious smile, he added, "If I am elected to the upper echelons of the Divine Grace Church in the future, I will certainly set a rule to include volunteer treatment as a mandatory duty for priests."

Compared to Melsen, Luen seemed more passionate about power due to his noble upbringing, but Melsen could feel that Luen genuinely wanted to spread the glory of the Lord to everyone.

"Then you must work hard, Luen. I am looking forward to it." Melsen said with great sincerity. Because of his good family background, his status as Bishop Austin's disciple, and his own capable nature, many people expected him to become a high-ranking member of the Divine Grace Church in the future.

After parting ways with Luen, Melsen felt a slight sense of unease. He looked at the prosperous streets in the distance, feeling a bit lost. "Negary, the heretical Evil Spirit who controls disease?"