A few seconds later, a scream piercing the air, a mixture of shock, anger, and the despair of being on the verge of collapse, rang out:
"Bertney!!! You, you dare to blaspheme against Eternity! To glorify the world-destroying lord?! Do you know that this is apostasy?!"
Swish!
A beautiful figure emerged from behind the window and grabbed Botenis's collar.
The first thing that catches the eye is her long, pale golden hair, woven like the first rays of sunlight. A few strands brush against her fair cheeks as she moves quickly, then gently fall onto her shoulders.
A light, semi-transparent veil was draped over her head, delicately secured in her hair, vaguely obscuring the lower half of her face.
Beneath the veil, her skin appeared almost flawlessly white, seemingly glowing faintly in the dimly lit confessional.
What was most captivating were those eyes, with pupils as clear and beautiful as the blue sea.
Botenis found it hard to believe that such a beautiful and holy priest could come up with the underhanded trick of putting laxatives in the Knights' food.
What's this called? You can't judge a book by its cover...
"As expected... studying medicine can't save the Church of Eternity. I will now, on behalf of Lord Yite, send you to prison to be imprisoned alongside those two Gentiles who blasphemed His sculpture!"
Saileni became more and more enthusiastic as she spoke, and with her other hand she had already taken out the Book of Eternal Virtues, ready to use the power of knowledge to defeat Botenis.
"Hey, hey, hey~ What does this mean?" Botenis was not afraid at all, but instead put on an innocent expression and pointed to the bottle in his hand.
"I was just rambling after drinking. I was just joking. You don't actually want to start a war with me in this sacred church, do you? Ha, come on... don't end up with us both locked in a dark room by Chair Blake Black."
"On the contrary, you have failed in your duties as the Acting Priest, and now you are even preparing to kill me. What will happen if Yite... no, Lady Fulisina finds out?"
Saileni thought about it carefully and realized that she did seem to be in the wrong, so she let go of Botenis.
He escaped unscathed by claiming he was drunk; what a ridiculous excuse he came up with.
"So... logging into my account and posting an article about [ the Lord Ravager ] was really a joke, right?"
"Well, putting the first one aside, this one is definitely fake. If I were to post anything, it would be something like, 'The little-known secrets of the Lord Ravager and the Masked Fools,' or 'Why there is no Lord Ravager who Destruction [ Destruction ].'"
"Wait... you mean let's leave the previous one aside for now?"
Saileni stared at Botenis. That bastard actually drank several of her prized Amber Era vintages?!
Just as she was about to continue speaking, a knock sounded on the door. Botenis reacted quickly and darted into the confessional, while Saileni switched to her professional voice instantly.
"Please come in."
"Um... excuse me, my name is Lante, and I'm a priest at the Church."
Welcome! Is there anything you'd like to see...?
"Priest, please hear me!"
Before Saileni could finish speaking, Lante answered prematurely, showing that he was really anxious.
Lante closed his eyes tightly and said sincerely, "I have long been a believer in Lord Yite's [ Eternity ], however... ever since I saw that portrait of the Lord of Abundance made by His followers, I have felt possessed by a demon, constantly tempting me!"
"Please forgive me for being tempted by other Aeon, for my grave sins!"
"Turn right after you leave and look for Chair Blake. No need to see me out."
Before Priest Lante could react, he was blasted away by Saileni.
"Huh? They're not even pretending anymore?" Botenis looked completely bewildered.
"The issue of faith... is exactly the same as your apostate words and actions just now. The priest's words only treat the symptoms, not the root cause... Besides, I'm just an imposter. Everyone has their own expertise, so at this time we need to seek help from the almighty Chair Blake."
"That priest needs some serious training. How dare he neglect his faith in Lord Yite, allowing the demon of [ Abundance ] to invade his mind? I hope Chair Blake can enlighten this lost priest."
Great minds think alike.
That concludes the content about Dream Bubble. Morning Dew Mansion
Sunday was still completely bewildered. This method of 'repentance' was so different from what he had expected... no, it was completely different!
"I apologize, Mr. Blake... I am simply ignorant and cannot comprehend the story of these two clergymen."
"Sigh~ The point was to share. Like Saileni and Botenis, there's no problem that can't be solved by talking things out, including but not limited to differences in beliefs or family relationships."
"Ideals and barriers were things we experienced hundreds of years ago, like the Amber Era. Otherwise, how could we have the [ Church of Eternity ] we have today?"
Blake flipped through the Book of Eternal Virtues, explaining it to Sunday:
"After all, [ Eternity ] encompasses everything and respects the choices of all beings. The little Melodi-Dove I found on the street in my childhood were torn between being caged or flying freely... Why didn't we consider letting these young creatures make their own decisions?"
"The exalted Lord Yite It has never interfered in the affairs of the Church, but rather listened carefully and left the choice to us."
"Ahem!" Blake cleared his throat, continuing from where he left off, "[ Eternity ] is not only inclusive, but also welcoming to all. After all I've said, have you ever thought about joining the Church?"
"No."
Meanwhile, Clock Studios Paradise
Gallagher led the group to a relatively secluded spot, where they could conveniently see the Clockie statue not far away.
"This spot is fine. We can see him perfectly... [ Clockie ]."
"If these animated characters were to have real-life counterparts, then the one corresponding to the Clockie would undoubtedly be the [ Clockmaker ]."
Himeko speculated, "He was a partner of the Hanu Brothers and one of the original members of Dreamville. Could this be interpreted as the historical ' Clockmaker ' also personally participating in that war and siding with Asdana?"
Gallagher had his back to the crowd, his arms crossed over his chest.
"It was a massive war of independence, fought by the Masked Fools, the Nameless, the History Fictionologists, the Mourning Actors, the Omen Vanguard... Hanunu, with the help of his companions and extraterrestrial visitors, quelled the rebellion."
"Naturally, some of them would later become Clockmaker."
"But if you calculate it that way... wouldn't the [ Clockmaker ] have lived for several hundred years?" March 7th asked.
"I don't know. When I met Mikhail, he was already a [ Clockmaker ], or perhaps it was a title he inherited."
March 7th was silent for a moment, then took the liberty of asking Gallagher, "... Sheriff, how old are you?"
Gallagher turned around and answered without changing his expression:
"... Thirteen years old."
Upon hearing this, Xing stumbled and almost lost his balance. This unshaven, burly sheriff was only thirteen years old?!