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"I think that's wrong. Every spellcasting profession has the ability to connect to the Ley Lines. Naturally, the Arcane energy around them will be more active, but that doesn't mean they're a mage. The greatest difference between priests and mages isn't the energy they use, but the source of their power," Elufiel retorted.

The mage moved his hand. Elufiel saw a tiny point of light flash from his ring before vanishing almost immediately.

"Of course. That's why, to avoid detecting divine spellcasters, the Holy See needs dedicated divine casters to monitor things personally. Surely they can't mistake the spell energy they use every day," Odovish said. "And that gives us a way to deceive them."

"A simple isolation barrier. I've already entered the Saint tier. As long as the person monitoring the crystal ball isn't of a higher rank than me, they'll never see through my barrier." Odovish was extremely confident. So long as Terrence did not act personally, they could stand here openly and watch their "monkey show."

Would Terrence act personally, then? Clearly, the answer was no. Fifty years ago, Terrence had become one of the three chief inquisitors of the Heresy Inquisition. He was an absolute devotee of divine arts and had always been ruthless toward Arcane casters. The Arcane casters who had died in his purges could fill an entire scroll. Years of easily attained success had made him complacent. The arrogant chief inquisitor did not believe a town like this could possibly harbor an Arcane spellcaster above the eighth tier, so he did not even deign to act himself.

The crystal ball shimmered with beautiful seven-colored light. The audience below merely assumed it was some ritual of the Holy See and exclaimed in admiration. Seeing nothing unusual, Terrence nodded in satisfaction. He raised a hand, signaling the divine casters to begin the blessing.

The crowd erupted completely. They shouted "Praise the Light God" and "Thank the Light God." After Terrence smiled and signaled for silence, they suppressed their excitement and prayed quietly like devout believers.

Odovish stood motionlessly where he was, his head slightly lowered. From appearances alone, he looked more like a believer than anyone present—pious and humble, the very model of a priest. Yet only the elf noticed the mocking curve at the corner of his lips.

The divine casters behind Terrence began chanting the Holy Word. Pure white light spread from the podium toward the audience.

Elufiel sensed the power contained within the divine spell and found it to be nothing more than an utterly ordinary spell meant to invigorate the spirit. It could not even cure a simple illness. She could not help grumbling inwardly, The Holy See is really stingy.

Odovish caught sight of the elf's disgusted expression from the corner of his eye. He seemed able to guess what she was disdainful of, and the mocking smile on his lips turned into a knowing one.

"When can this end?" As the white light gradually faded and the Holy Word neared its conclusion, Elufiel lightly tugged on the mage's robe and asked.

"Soon," Odovish said. "It should be over after the blessing. Terrence isn't a patient man."

Just as the mage had said, once the blessing of the Holy Word ended, Terrence offered a couple of grandiose remarks—"May the light endure forever" and "The goddess is with us"—then stepped down from the podium. Several squads of temple knights escorted him away from the square at the center of town.

Odovish watched Terrence's carriage gradually disappear into the distance, his gaze cold as he pondered something unknown.

Only after the crowd began to grow noisy again—some leaving in groups, others carrying money pouches to seek help from the divine casters still standing at the edge of the square—did Elufiel tug at the mage's sleeve again. "Od? How much longer are you going to stand here?"

"Let's go," Odovish said, coming back to his senses.

Elufiel looked at the mage for a long while. Her emerald eyes reflected his handsome face, now devoid of its smile. "What do you want to do?"

The mage merely met the elf's gaze in silence.

After a long moment, Elufiel turned away. "Whatever you plan to do, don't forget to come back for dinner. Otherwise, I'll eat all the apple pie."

"I think we can enjoy not only dinner, but a delicious lunch together as well. How about roasted potatoes and lamb chops?" Odovish said.

The elf shrugged and headed straight toward the inn. Without turning back, she raised a hand in a perfunctory wave. "Lamb chops, then. If you don't come back, no one will pay the bill."

Odovish watched the elf leave and said softly, "Of course. How could I let a lady pay the bill?"

After hesitating for a while, Eugene chose to remain where he was. However, Odovish had no intention of taking Eugene with him. "Go back first. Your sixth-tier abilities would be far too easy to expose in front of Terrence. Watch for any other members of the Judgement Tribunal, and don't rashly reveal your whereabouts."

"Understood," Eugene said with a nod. Indeed, his strength was not even enough to be worth Terrence's attention. Acting rashly would only cause trouble for this lord.

Elufiel did not return to the inn immediately. The streets were especially lively today. Children chased and played happily in the streets, merchants shouted out their wares, and most of those who had come to see the archbishop chose to stroll through the market after the sermon. The already narrow streets were packed with people.

With earrings bearing an illusion effect, the elf no longer had pointed ears and looked no different from an ordinary human, aside from her extraordinary beauty. She was especially, exceptionally beautiful.

Nor was the elf stingy with her smiles. One vendor after another was left staring blankly beneath her smiling assault, then offered her extremely low prices so she would buy their interesting little trinkets and distinctive local snacks.

Following the elf all the way, Eugene watched helplessly as she bought things while walking. Before long, her arms were full—a doll dressed in an apple-patterned gown, an exquisite little pipe that could not be used for smoking, an oddly shaped candlestick (Eugene could not understand what was appealing about that strange, twisted stand), dried apple slices, colorful fruit candies... and a cloth bag for all the things the elf could no longer carry.