Chapter 41

The weather was especially terrible today, with fierce winds, heavy rain, and dense clouds.

Especially in the direction along the Cogit Sea coast, the sky was covered in a mass of dark clouds that grew ever dimmer and lower.

The gale whipped up towering waves and hurled them violently against the foot of the cliffs, instantly spraying layers of mist and foam with deafening crashes.

Grove Qiao and the other priests had been sent to the Desinia lord's castle in this extreme weather.

Bana glanced at the priests, who looked no different from drenched chicks, and said, "Get inside. Lord Desinia is waiting for you."

He needed to hurry back and report to Lord Walker.

With a loud clang.

A piece of ironware, blown from who knew where by the wind, suddenly struck a corner of the wall, making everyone jump.

The Thorn Rose banner rustled atop the castle, unfurling in the wind.

Behind it lay an increasingly dark and gloomy sky.

The entire castle seemed shrouded in heavy shadows, making the already terrified priests feel that this place was even more frightening.

Another loud crash rang out.

Grove Qiao and the other priests shuddered.

Just then.

The castle gates creaked open slowly.

A maid holding a three-pronged candelabrum appeared in the doorway and stepped aside. "Gentlemen, please follow me inside."

Grove Qiao could not help swallowing.

After watching the trembling priests enter the castle, Bana turned and left.

Soldiers stood guard inside the castle.

They held spears and stood on either side of the corridor. Cold light reflected off their black armor, and the sharp spearheads alone made people shiver.

The soldiers were expressionless and did not so much as glance at the arriving priests.

Listening to the constant howling wind around him, Grove Qiao barely managed to suppress the frantic pounding in his chest.

He and the other priests were eventually led by the maid to a room.

After the door was knocked on, it opened.

The maid said, "Steward Judas, the priests have arrived."

Judas nodded and looked at the priests standing behind the maid. "Please come in."

Grove Qiao took the lead and entered.

Affected by the dreadful, gloomy weather outside.

The room was somewhat dim. Soft, fluffy carpets covered the floor, while candles burned along the walls, their flames flickering.

Judas led them through the outer room and further inside.

Silent lightning flashed outside the window, causing the room to brighten and darken for an instant.

Grove Qiao had merely closed his eyes for a moment.

When his vision returned, he saw a figure seated behind a long table in the inner room.

However, what terrified the priests was that—behind the figure, two enormous bodies slowly rose to their feet.

Even in the dim light.

Grove Qiao was absolutely certain—these were clearly two fierce, majestic tigers!

They had rare fur colors, one black and one white. Their bodies were sleek and powerful, their markings beautiful... and they had thick limbs and sharp teeth. Two pairs of bright tiger eyes stared unblinking at them.

Grove Qiao had no doubt that a single swipe of a paw could take half his life...

He was already scared stiff, his face pale and his legs shaking. He was probably only one step away from going straight into the Creator God's embrace.

"L-Lord Desinia, spare us! Spare us!"

At last, one priest could no longer hold himself up and fell to his knees on the carpet, his face full of fear.

The other priests immediately followed suit, unable to help themselves as they begged for mercy without stopping.

Cyrus, who had not even said a word yet: "???"

What was going on?!

"Awroo?"

Coalball tilted his big head as well. His thick, steel-whip-like tail swayed leisurely behind him, and he rested his tiger head atop the long table.

Snowball slowly licked his paw, then sat down elegantly.

Hearing the tiger's cry, the priests shook even more violently, nearly burying their heads in the carpet.

Cyrus immediately understood and rubbed Coalball and Snowball's heads.

The two of them had grown rapidly recently, and their size had now fully reached that of adult tigers.

Even if Cyrus wanted to ride on Coalball and Snowball's backs, it would not be a problem at all.

He pushed Coalball's big head off the table and patted him, telling him to behave and stop being naughty.

"Aw aw."

Coalball rubbed against Cyrus's arm coquettishly.

Cold sweat streamed down Grove Qiao's face as he stammered, "I-I do not know why Lord Desinia had us brought here. What are your orders...?"

Cyrus: "..."

There was really no need to be this afraid.

He said, "Stand up first."

The priests trembled. Only after Cyrus repeated himself did they support one another and stand.

Their legs were still weak, after all.

Cyrus said, "I had you brought here because there are some things I need you to do."

Grove Qiao said, "P-Please give your orders."

"Judas, give them the things."

"Yes, Lord Desinia."

Judas picked up a stack of paper and enough pens from the table, walked over, and handed them out to the priests. "You need to fill in the information truthfully. Once you are done, hand it back to me."

"There are tables over there. Go write there."

"..."

The priests looked at one another, unable to understand what this was about or where it was going.

But they did not dare ask anything. After taking the paper and pens, they immediately went to one side and began filling them out obediently.

The paper asked for things such as name, age, previous positions held in the church, and areas of expertise that could be selected in multiple categories...

Below the expertise section were several categories: mathematics, music, astronomy, medicine...

But why did it include handicrafts, yet have no option for theology?!

The priests gritted their teeth and checked several options they were familiar with or vaguely understood, their minds tangled as they filled out every section of the paper.

Afterward, they handed them to Judas.

Judas then gave them to Cyrus to read.

"Aw."

Coalball came over again, unwilling to be left out. He rubbed his large head against the top of Cyrus's head and casually placed one thick tiger paw on the chair as well.

The difference in size between man and tiger was obvious.

The tiger's close proximity made Grove Qiao inhale sharply, his heart pounding wildly.

However, after spending so long in the room, he had also discovered that although the two tigers looked fierce and imposing, enough to inspire fear.

They actually listened very well to the lord seated in the chair.

Grove Qiao carefully stole glances at Cyrus, and an inexplicable sense of familiarity rose within him.

It seemed like... he had seen this young lord somewhere before.

Where was it?

Grove Qiao suddenly remembered Kaies, the royal capital, when the church had still stood intact... that child who had told him he wanted to ask the Creator God for a little money!

That person... no, was that not the very lord sitting before him now?!

Grove Qiao's expression turned shocked as his mouth fell open.

No wonder... even the steward beside him had seemed somewhat familiar.

After reading the information in his hands, Cyrus nodded in satisfaction.

Not bad. These priests knew even more than he had expected. They could be trained for their positions ahead of schedule.

He looked up and said, "You will be temporarily housed in the castle. The work you need to do will be explained later. During this time, do not leave or wander around carelessly. Understood?"

Grove Qiao and the other priests replied obediently, "Yes, Lord Desinia."

Whether it was spreading the news about selecting mayors or writing questions and preparing exam papers, everything needed to be arranged and planned in advance.

Moreover, there was no precedent on the Western Continent for drilling questions in preparation for an examination. Those who wanted to participate needed time to adjust and prepare.

After all, there had to be a review period before the exam.

Written tests were one aspect, and interviews were another.

During this period, Papermaking and beet sugar production, which had been delayed for so long because of the duke's rebellion, needed to be arranged again.

He would prioritize Papermaking first.

Once the paper was produced, he could use the mayoral selection examination as an opportunity to widely spread word of the new paper and its benefits.

After that, it could be sold through the Thorn Merchant Guild.

Special examination paper.

Paper that mayors had once answered questions on—once people used it, they would know just how good it was!

What an excellent promotional method.

Cyrus began preparing to "research" Papermaking.

He had previously asked Yadai to find out what plants, aside from papyrus, could be used to make paper.

After the duke's rebellion occurred, Yadai had not been idle.

With Cyrus's subtle hints, he had already found four or five kinds of raw materials that could be boiled into pulp.

At the time, Cyrus had only revealed a tiny bit about the raw materials used in Papermaking. There were still many key steps missing before they could obtain finished paper.

Now was the time to reveal Papermaking.

Knowing the method of Papermaking by heart was one thing; putting it into practice was another.

Cyrus conducted several experiments with Yadai. They crushed bark, hemp scraps, straw, old fishing nets, and other raw materials, then boiled them thoroughly in pots until they became pulp...

He also had Reinog make tools for lifting and layering the sheets of paper.

Suitable tools had to be used to scoop out the pulp. After filtering out the water, it formed a paper sheet, which then needed to be layered, pressed tight, completely squeezed dry... and finally baked and air-dried.

During this time, the fires burning in a courtyard on one side of the castle never stopped, making the priests living in the castle curious as well.

However, they did not dare take a look or ask around carelessly. They stayed quietly in their rooms every day, and their hearts gradually settled somewhat.

It was just that the large tigers wandering through the castle from time to time remained terrifying.

One month later.

Grove Qiao and the other priests were brought to the previous room again.

Cyrus sat on the sofa, gently brushing Snowball's fur. Coalball squeezed in beside him miserably, trying to push his younger brother away with one thick paw.

"Aw."

Snowball suddenly turned and bit Coalball's paw, baring his sharp white teeth to scare him.

Cyrus calmly pushed Coalball a little farther away, then reached out to touch Snowball's teeth and closed his mouth. "No fussing, no fighting, or there will be no meat for lunch."

He had already brushed Coalball's fur first. That enormous black clump beside them was all the fur he had shed. He was clearly the older brother, yet he was not nearly as steady as his younger brother.

Cyrus sighed, exhausted.

He stroked Snowball's fur and looked up at the priests with a smile. "Starting today, you will begin your training."

After all, the teachers had to take up their posts first before they could come up with questions and prepare exam papers.