Holy Sound

Adam did not go out that night. He was still too weak and knew far too little about the extraordinary.

He planned to learn more about Otherkind from the Church before beginning his own plans. After all, compared to the Otherkind themselves, Adam was more familiar with the Church's methods.

Early the next morning, Adam found Brother Fula waiting for him at the door, just as he had hoped.

The brother forced a smile. "I spoke with the painter Alva. Go see him with me later. He'll take you on as an apprentice."

"Thank you, Brother Fula!" Adam was delighted. Seeing the smile on Adam's face, Fula let out a breath. Perhaps he had been too inflexible before?

Setting those thoughts aside for the moment, Fula led Adam toward the South District Church.

"Brother Fula, you seem to have been busy lately?" Adam was fixing his hair, as though he wanted to make a good impression on the teacher he was about to meet.

In the end, he used his shoulder-length bangs to cover the scar beneath the corner of his left eye. Fula might have been too young to know, but the other brothers at the South District Church might not have been entirely unaware of it.

"Yes, I've been dealing with some trouble," Fula said.

"Those monsters?" Adam guided the conversation. "That day, I saw you kill that monster with a single sword strike, Brother Fula. You must have wiped them all out by now, right?"

"I'm not that capable." Fula smiled shyly, utterly unlike the decisive figure who had thrust out that sword before.

"Otherkind are not so easy to eradicate. Adam, you need to be careful if you see anyone suspicious." Fula raised his hand and looked at his palm. "Those monsters are far too dangerous."

"The most common Otherkind are Werewolves, Ghouls, Wendigos, Banshees, and Sirens along the coast. Of course, there are other kinds as well, such as Vampires."

Fula did not explain in detail, merely giving a rough description of the traits of those Otherkind.

What interested Adam most was the Vampire. According to some legends from his previous life, Vampires were the natural enemies of Werewolves.

The two also shared a deep connection in this world.

Vampires had not originally existed. They were the result of human sorcerers studying Werewolves in pursuit of long life. The birth of every pure Vampire required the sacrifice of a Werewolf, so the two races did not get along.

Ghouls and Wendigos were similar, but neither could remain hidden among humans for long. Once they reached adulthood or developed to a certain stage, they had to leave human settlements, no longer able to conceal their abnormalities. Banshees lived deep in the mountains and forests.

Thus, among human society, the Otherkind that hid most successfully and posed the greatest danger were still Werewolves.

Fula only briefly introduced the characteristics of the common Otherkind so Adam could be more vigilant, then said no more. By then, they had already arrived at the South District Cathedral.

Entering through a side door, Fula felt as if everyone was looking at him with surprise. It gave him the urge to lower his head and hide his face.

He was too young. Adam curiously examined the interior of the cathedral. Catching sight of Fula's embarrassed expression, he felt a small measure of guilt.

Perhaps Fula's bottom line would continue to fall over time, but that was his own affair. Lowering someone's standards under his own guidance only made Adam realize that he truly was scum.

"So all Holy Sound Churches are built more or less the same?" Adam slowly committed the cathedral's layout to memory.

Though most people simply called it the Church, Churches differed from one another.

The god of every orthodox Church was the same: the Creator God, No, the deity depicted in Divine Word.

However, different Churches saw different aspects of that god. As a result, the Churches that developed from them differed completely, from their doctrines to the image of their god.

The relationships between different Churches also varied. Some were relatively harmonious, while others were like fire and water.

The Churches of the Holy Sound Kingdom were mostly Holy Sound Churches devoted to Holy Sound. They were considered relatively close to the people, and among the Churches across the continent, they were also comparatively large in scale.

For Adam, what he needed to do was stay far away from the Holy Sound Church. Before that, however, he needed to obtain more from this place.

From afar, Adam spotted a middle-aged man crouching in a corner, slowly tracing the patterns on the wall with his fingers.

He had an unkempt beard, dry long hair tied into a simple ponytail, and a white robe that had turned brown. Yet he did not smell bad. His hands were stained with the colors of various paints.

"Alva Ratu," Fula quietly introduced beforehand. "A master painter who came to settle in Roa several years ago."

"Master Alva, this is Adam." Once they had approached, Fula pulled Adam forward and introduced him.

"Brother Fula, go take care of your work. Just leave him here." Alva did not put down what he was doing. He continued feeling along the wall, occasionally knocking on it and listening to the sound.

"Then I'll be going. Adam, study hard. If anything happens, come find me!" Fula patted Adam on the shoulder, then turned and headed deeper inside. He had plenty of matters to deal with as well.

With Fula gone, only Adam and Alva seemed to remain in that corner. Yet Alva had no intention of speaking to Adam and continued examining the wall.

Adam did not idle around either. He observed it alongside Alva. The mural depicted the events in Divine Word, where the god created the world and saved all living beings. By now, parts of the mural had faded and peeled away.

That was not strange. Although the Holy Sound Church had not actively hunted down sorcerers or witch doctors, those gray professions were still heavily rejected. Therefore, Church items were only of somewhat better quality and contained no extraordinary power.

What the Church valued was always communication with the god. The easier that communication was, the more divine arts one could obtain.

Following behind Alva, Adam discovered that Alva's examination was strange. He touched, stared, listened, and even pressed his nose close to sniff.

"You there, go tell whatshisname to buy an extra bottle of strong liquor with the materials." Alva spoke without any context.

Adam looked around. Since he was the only one there, he said nothing and headed elsewhere. He found a passing brother, asked who handled the cathedral's purchases, and went to find him himself.

For a considerable period of time, apprentices were essentially unpaid labor. What a teacher chose to teach depended entirely on luck.

Adam did not care about that. It was a good chance to walk around the cathedral and listen for some of the Church's secrets.

The Church's purchaser was a fat middle-aged man. When Adam asked to add an item to the materials, the man was extremely impatient and even seemed to regard Adam with disgust.

"Strong liquor for painting? Could it be that that slovenly painter just muttered it and you didn't hear him clearly? Go back and ask properly before coming again." Upon hearing that an extra bottle of strong liquor was needed, the fat man was practically telling him to get lost.

"I'm certain I did not mishear. Please..." Adam glanced at several documents on the desk before saying, "Please add this item to the materials, Brother Jim. If you have any questions, you can ask my teacher."

"Brother Jim, Sir Rube has arrived." Someone knocked on the door and spoke, making the middle-aged fat man even more impatient with Adam.

"Go back first. I'll add it to the materials later." Brother Jim looked as though he could not stand Adam anymore. He waved a hand as if agreeing to Adam's request, only to find that Adam had not moved and was still standing there.

Only then did Jim carefully examine Adam. He pulled out a document from the side and added one bottle of strong liquor to it.

"Thank you for the trouble, Brother Jim." Adam smiled, turned, and left.

When he returned to the corner, Alva was still there. For the rest of the day, Adam followed behind Alva, watching him continuously measure different areas of the cathedral.

"You there, come early tomorrow!" As the sky gradually darkened, Alva finally turned to Adam. He still had not remembered Adam's name.

What Adam had not expected was that, as he walked down the corridor and was about to leave through the side door, someone called out to him.

It was the white-bearded brother who had pronounced the sentence at the execution that night.

At this moment, he looked kind and benevolent. He beckoned Adam over, smiling with narrowed eyes. "Adam, right? There are a few things I'd like to ask you."

I saw someone asking about the update schedule in the review section, so I'll mention it here: updates are usually around one to two in the afternoon.