Chapter 41

The weather was exceptionally terrible today, with wind and rain raging beneath a sky blanketed in dark clouds.

Especially in the direction of the Cogit Sea coast, where the clouds hung black and heavy overhead, growing ever darker and lower.

Gale-force winds whipped up towering waves and hurled them viciously against the base of the cliffs, instantly exploding into layers of mist and foam with deafening roars.

Grove Qiao and the other priests were brought to Desinia's lord's castle in this extreme weather.

Bana glanced at the priests, who looked no different from drowned chicks after being soaked by the rain, and said, "Get inside. The lord is waiting for you."

He needed to hurry back and report to Lord Walker.

Clang!

A piece of ironware blown loose from somewhere suddenly slammed into a corner of the wall, making everyone jump.

The Thorn Rose banner snapped in the wind atop the castle.

Behind it loomed an increasingly dark and gloomy sky.

The entire castle seemed shrouded in heavy shadows, making the already frightened and uneasy priests feel that this place was terrifying beyond measure.

Another loud crash rang out.

Grove Qiao and the other priests shuddered.

Just then.

The castle gates slowly opened with a creak.

A maid holding a three-pronged candelabrum appeared in the doorway. Stepping aside, she said, "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. Their black armor reflected a cold gleam, while the sharp spearheads sent chills down one's spine.

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

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

The maid eventually led him and the other priests to a room.

After a knock, the door opened.

The maid said, "Butler Judith, the priests have arrived."

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

Grove Qiao led the way inside.

Because of the terrible, overcast weather outside.

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

Yudi led them through the outer room and farther inside.

Silent lightning flashed beyond the windows, briefly illuminating the room before plunging it back into darkness.

Grove Qiao had only closed his eyes for a moment.

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

What terrified the priests, however, was that two enormous bodies behind the figure slowly rose to their feet.

Even in the dim light.

Grove Qiao was absolutely certain—they 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 unblinkingly at them.

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

He was terrified as well, his face pale and his legs trembling. He was probably just one step away from going straight into the Creator God's embrace.

"M-my lord, spare us! Please spare us!"

One priest finally collapsed to his knees on the carpet, his face filled with terror.

The other priests immediately followed suit, unable to stop themselves, and began pleading for mercy as well.

Xia Zuoyi, who had not yet said a word: "???"

What was going on?!

"Roar?"

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

Snowball, meanwhile, unhurriedly licked his paw before sitting down with elegance.

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

Xia Zuoyi immediately understood. He rubbed Coalball and Snowball's heads.

The two of them had grown incredibly fast recently. Their current size was already that of fully grown tigers.

Even if Xia Zuoyi wanted to ride on Coalball and Snowball's backs, there would be absolutely no problem.

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

"Roar, roar."

Coalball rubbed against Xia Zuoyi's arm coquettishly.

Cold sweat streamed down Grove Qiao's face as he trembled and said, "I-I do not know why my lord had us brought here. What are your orders...?"

Xia Zuoyi: "..."

There was no need to be this frightened.

He said, "Stand up first."

The priests trembled with fear. Only after Xia Zuoyi repeated himself did they support one another and rise to their feet.

Their legs were still weak, after all.

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

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

"Yudi, give them the materials."

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"Yes, my lord."

Yudi 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. Hand them back to me once you are done."

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

"..."

The priests exchanged looks, unable to understand this arrangement or where things were heading.

But they did not dare ask anything. After taking the paper and pens, they immediately and obediently went aside to fill them out.

The papers asked for names, ages, former positions held in the church, areas of expertise that could be selected in multiple categories...

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Several categories were listed beneath the areas of expertise: mathematics, music, astronomy, medicine...

But why was handicraft included, while theology was not an option?!

The priests gritted their teeth and selected several options they knew well or had some understanding of, then filled out all the information on the papers with conflicted thoughts.

Afterward, they handed them to Judith.

Yudi then gave them to Xia Zuoyi.

"Roar."

Coalball again came over, unwilling to be ignored. He rubbed his big head against Xia Zuoyi's head and casually placed one thick tiger paw on the chair.

The size difference between man and tiger was obvious.

The tiger's close proximity made Grove Qiao involuntarily take a deep breath, his heart pounding wildly.

However, after spending so much time in the room, he had realized that although the two tigers looked fierce and majestic, enough to frighten anyone.

They were actually very obedient toward the lord seated in the chair.

Grove Qiao cautiously stole a closer look at Xia Zuoyi, and an inexplicably familiar feeling rose in his heart.

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

Where had it been?

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

That child... wasn't he the very lord now sitting before him?!

Grove Qiao's mouth fell open in shock.

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

After reading the information in his hands, Xia Zuoyi nodded in satisfaction.

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

He raised his head and said, "You will be temporarily housed in the castle. What you need to do will be explained later. Until then, do not leave or wander around carelessly. Understood?"

Grove Qiao and the other priests replied respectfully, "Yes, my lord."

Whether it was spreading news of the mayoral selection or preparing questions and examination papers, everything needed to be arranged and planned in advance.

Moreover, there had never been any precedent for studying through practice questions and preparing for examinations on the Western Continent. He had to give those wishing to participate in the selection some time to adapt and prepare.

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

The written examination was one aspect, and the interview was 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 intended to prioritize Papermaking first.

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

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

Examination paper.

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

What an excellent method of promotion.

Xia Zuoyi began preparing how to "develop" Papermaking.

Previously, he had asked Yadai to find plants other than papyrus that could be used to make paper.

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

Under Xia Zuoyi's subtle hints, he had already found four or five materials that could be boiled into pulp.

At the time, Xia Zuoyi had only revealed a tiny bit about the raw materials used for Papermaking. There were still many key steps missing before finished paper could be produced.

Now was the time to reveal Papermaking.

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

Xia Zuoyi conducted several experiments with Yadai, crushing bark, hemp waste, straw, old fishing nets, and other materials before putting them into pots and boiling them thoroughly into pulp...

He also had Reinog make tools for scooping and pressing paper.

Suitable tools were needed to scoop up the pulp. After filtering out the water, it would form a sheet of paper, which then had to be layered, pressed tight, and squeezed dry... before finally being dried and aired out.

During this time, the fires in one of the castle's side courtyards never stopped burning, making the priests living in the castle very curious.

Still, they did not dare go take a look or ask around carelessly. They stayed peacefully in place every day, and gradually, their hearts began to settle.

It was just that the large tigers frequently wandering around the castle remained frightening.

One month later.

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

Xia Zuoyi sat on a sofa, gently brushing Snowball's fur. Coalball squeezed in beside them miserably, trying to use his thick paw to push his younger brother away.

"Roar."

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

Xia Zuoyi calmly pushed Coalball farther away, then reached out to touch Snowball's teeth and closed his mouth. "Don't make trouble or fight, or there won't be any meat for lunch."

He had already brushed Coalball's fur first. That huge black pile beside them was all the fur Coalball had shed. He was clearly the older brother, yet he was nowhere near as steady as his younger brother.

Xia Zuoyi sighed, exhausted.

He stroked Snowball's fur, raised his head, and smiled at the priests. "Starting today, you will begin training."

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

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