The radiant barrier that had enveloped the Cathedral of the Holy Light for several days began to gradually dissolve, countless specks of pale gold drifting away from the slowly lting energy field, dispersing into the depths of the night. anwhile, the ringing of bells continued to resonate within the diminishing barrier.
The chis rang, as if issuing an invitation.
Gawain and the two Guardian Dukes stood on the square in front of the cathedral district, watching the scene by the cathedral. Duke Baldwin frowned slightly, "Strange... The priest Clergy should be coming out to et the believers now... Why is the cathedral district so quiet?"
Gawain looked up, seeing amid the drifting Holy Light dust, the cathedral district maintained an odd sense of quiet solemnity. He could see no bishops or high priests erging, only so ordinary priests and attendants rushing back and forth between the buildings, while so panic-stricken figures could be seen moving through the corridors of the cathedral’s upper levels. The situation appeared most unusual.
As the three speculated about what might be happening inside the cathedral, the solemn, heavy door, adorned with depictions of divine miracles and runes, was finally opened.
However, erging from within was neither the bishop team nor Pope Saint Ivan III, but Veronica Moen clad in a simple white gown—she walked out of the church slowly towards Gawain and others, holding the platinum scepter that belonged to the Pope.
Whether it was a re illusion or not, in the instant he saw this ’Saint Princess,’ Gawain felt a faint sense of dissonance. Though Veronica appeared the sa as when he last saw her, there was a slight incongruity about her that he couldn’t quite identify.
This feeling was unclear and quickly swept away by a shocking revelation—
"The Pope has been summoned by The Lord, and the bishop team sacrificed themselves in the God descent ritual," Veronica stated in her usual gentle manner, with a calm and steady tone.
Gawain and others were montarily stunned.
... Indeed, soone was shocked, but it was the people outside the cathedral—once the door opened, the Pope was gone...
"All... sacrificed themselves?" Baldwin seed unable to believe his ears, stepping forward to ask, "Was it an accident during the God descent ritual?"
"The power of the God descent cannot be borne by mortals; the Pope was too aged to withstand till the end of the ritual. The bishop team sacrificed themselves to prevent the ritual from going uncontrolled, becoming vessels," Veronica explained, slightly turning her body aside, "The cathedral is open, and the Great Hall of Radiance remains unchanged from the event."
This was an invitation for the three to enter and observe.
Baldwin and Victoria exchanged glances before hesitantly stepping towards the cathedral’s main door. Gawain erged from his mont of astonishnt and thought, a multitude of guesses and ideas instantly appeared in his mind, eventually converging into a profound look directed at Veronica.
The Saint Princess maintained a tranquil expression, responding straightforwardly.
Before turning back to the cathedral, Veronica noticed so changes outside the cathedral district—
The streets were filled with soldiers of the Cecil Legion, and the Anzu Royal Banner above Silver Castle had vanished; the Sentinel Tower that was once permitted to fly only the royal family’s flag now had the Cecil emblem of a sword and plough illuminated by a beam of light, swaying gently in the night breeze.
Connecting the presence of Gawain Cecil himself in this place, the Saint Princess’s expression finally showed a change; she raised her eyebrows slightly and asked aloud, "What happened in the city?"
"There have been significant changes, the Anzu royal authority has ended, but it was a peaceful transition," Victoria stated in a cool voice, "The current ruler here is His Majesty Gawain Cecil."
"I will explain everything to you," Gawain said to Veronica, "A lot has indeed transpired, and we need to process it all slowly."
Veronica bowed her head, tracing the symbol of Holy Light across her chest, speaking softly, "I have pledged allegiance to the Holy Light; I am no longer a Princess of Anzu. The transition of royal authority does not concern ... What matters is that this city has survived."
Gawain gazed at her for two seconds but did not say anything and proceeded towards the nearby cathedral.
Within the Great Hall of Radiance, the power of Holy Light had already cald, a misty light reford into a sea of clouds, slowly drifting above the hall. At this mont, the sacred seat of the Pope was empty, not even a trace remained. The only remnants within the hall were the dozens of piles of ashes surrounding the sacred seat—these gray-white ashes marked the crucial nodes of the God descent ritual, serving as all that was left of the forr bishop team.
This indeed appeared to be the marks left after raging Holy Light burned human bodies, and there were no signs of battle or external invasion within the Great Hall of Radiance.
However, Baldwin and Victoria, responsible for rebuilding the inner order of the city and maintaining stability in the Empire’s core district, only felt a throbbing headache at this mont.
They couldn’t help but envy Wales who tily took leave and couldn’t resist whimsically guessing—did His Majesty the King foresee the spectacular upheaval within the cathedral, thus decided to withdraw so resolutely?
"Oh Goddess of Night..." Baldwin’s face turned grim, "I’d rather deal with those Crystal Cluster Monsters..."
Victoria glanced at him quietly, her voice placid, "Would you care to guard the city once more?"
"I didn’t an it like that..." Baldwin quickly gestured in denial, then eyed Victoria, "How co I never realized you had a knack for sarcasm?"
"Just curious, that’s all," Victoria comnted casually, then turned to look at Veronica, "So, now there’s no bishop-level clergy within the cathedral? How many high priests remain?"
"Indeed, the bishop team is entirely sacrificed, but the high priests remain unhard, and the cathedral can operate normally," Veronica replied, slightly raising the platinum scepter in her hand, "I have gained recognition from the platinum scepter and can temporarily manage the cathedral, but the royal authority has changed; the order of St. Soniel needs reorganization, and the congregation must find peace in the new environnt. Many matters likely require discussions between and His Majesty Gawain Cecil to make decisions."
"We can start talking right now," Gawain promptly said, "if that’s alright with you."
"Very well," Veronica gently nodded, and looked at the two Guardian Dukes, "You both may wait in the lounge for now."
Gawain noticed that the "Saint Princess" seed to have sothing she wished to discuss with him privately, so he said to Baldwin and Victoria, "Perhaps you should return to the castle and rest; we can talk about anything tomorrow."
"Alright." Victoria nodded briefly and then led the seemingly preoccupied Duke Baldwin out of the cathedral.
Once they stepped outside the cathedral, to a place where the Holy Light did not reach, Baldwin couldn’t resist looking back. He said to Victoria, "Don’t you feel that sothing about this is strange? Though Saint Ivan III is indeed old, he isn’t yet incapable of supporting the divine descent... And for the entire bishop team to all die as martyrs? I do believe their faith is devout enough for martyrdom at any mont, but for not one person to survive a divine descent ritual... It’s far too coincidental."
"It is indeed strange," Victoria replied, "But there are no leads."
"Princess Veronica surely knows more..." Baldwin hesitated, "But it seems she isn’t planning to reveal it, at least not in front of us."
Victoria was silent for a mont, then turned around, looking in the direction of the cathedral.
The fine snowflakes scattered through her hair, and her voice ca through the breeze, "Overall, it’s a good thing."
Baldwin was stunned, his expression turned subtle, and after a few seconds of silence, he showed an expression unsure if it was a cry or a laugh, "Yes, a good thing... Just that so many things happening simultaneously, it’s really hard to be at ease."
"The turning point of an era... I guess that’s how it is."
Inside the cathedral, Gawain and Veronica stood in the Great Hall of Radiance. The forr looked around sowhat uneasily, "Shall we talk here?"
"Rest assured, there aren’t any superfluous eyes here," Veronica replied softly, "Including the eyes of the Holy Light."
Gawain looked deeply at Veronica, "That statent... doesn’t sound very devout."
Veronica only smiled faintly and gently raised the platinum scepter in her hand, "The platinum scepter, a bridge representing the Holy Light’s divine will, is already under my control. No one who believes in Him would doubt my devotion."
"But I do not believe in Him," Gawain stated, "Did Saint Ivan III really die from the divine descent? Did the bishop team really die as martyrs?"
"They gave their lives for their faith, which, by definition, is martyrdom," Veronica said calmly, "Do you truly regret their deaths? For you, as soone about to reshape the national order, the sudden decline of the church should be favorable."
In everyone’s normal impression, such words would never have co from Veronica, from this pious "Saint Princess"!
Gawain stared into the eyes of the Saint Princess, finally confirming that the discord he sensed from Veronica was not an illusion, but a discord that had always existed within her, always concealed by her.
For so reason, this special aura from Veronica was particularly obvious today, and Gawain, being particularly sensitive to a certain "inhuman" elent, noticed it.
He looked into Veronica’s eyes, feeling like he was gazing at a doll, sothing very close to human, but different upon closer inspection. This doll-like trait... he vaguely felt it before on her.
"I don’t want to play guessing gas anymore; who exactly are you? — You know what I an — And what exactly are you planning?"
"Have you ever heard this saying..." Veronica smiled slightly, saying word by word, "— Human beings will endure, even if they defy the gods."
"The defied Plan!" Gawain blurted out, finally feeling astonishnt, an astonishnt that shattered the calmness he maintained until now, "You... How do you know that phrase?!"
The devout Saint Princess was privy to the defied Plan? Why would she know? Did she acquire ancient knowledge? Was there a defied Plan legacy within the Moen Royal Family, or... was there an ancient survivor like Kal?
A multitude of questions exploded in Gawain’s mind, and what shocked and puzzled him most was that a defier (if Veronica were a defier) could beco a "devout" believer of the Holy Light and even rise to the upper echelons of the church. But upon further reflection, he suddenly found this developnt to quite fittingly match the aning of "defier."
An organization that could dissect gods for research and extend its power into the most devout church, there indeed was no small amount of defiance in it...
"The defied Plan never ended; as long as humans continue, we will not stop," Veronica said under Gawain’s gaze, "You don’t need to be so surprised — isn’t there already a living defier by your side?"
"Kal..." Gawain frowned, "Then who exactly are you?"
"That question isn’t particularly important, but if you are curious, I can give you a na," Veronica said softly, "’We’ were once called Ophelia Norton. You might not be familiar with the na, but you surely know the surna."
"Norton? The surna of Gondor Royalty?!" Gawain’s eyes widened, suddenly feeling that today’s information was a bit too overwhelming, "Ophelia... I’m indeed not very familiar... But what did you an by ’we’ just now?!"
"This involves soul division and reorganization, involves so secrets, and I’m not sure if now is the right ti for you to know. As for the na Ophelia Norton... when you return, you can ask Kal, and he should give you a satisfactory answer."
Gawain could tell that the defier behind the identity "Veronica Moen" still didn’t completely trust him, still wasn’t ready to reveal all secrets, but he didn’t forcefully inquire, instead asking, "By telling this, what do you intend to do?"
"To accomplish sothing that defies the gods," Veronica smiled, gently raising the platinum scepter in her hand, "For instance... returning the Holy Light to mortals."
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