We were guided through the giant cathedral, past several praying rooms, statues of their imaginary gods, and so many holy artifacts, until finally, we arrived in front of a giant gold-plated door.
The paladin stepped forward and knocked.
Exactly five seconds later, the door opened and a tall golden-haired man stepped out.
He wore a white robe with a golden sun embroidery on his chest.
An embroidery which signified soone’s belief in the Sun God.
Smiling at the paladin, he said:
"William, you may leave us."
The paladin’s eyes widened.
Then, he bowed and quickly made his way back.
Just then, the golden-haired man turned to both of us, and with his chin, gestured inside the room.
Clentine and I exchanged a glance before stepping inside and sitting down on the warm sofa.
The man walked over and sat opposite to us.
For a mont, he stared at us as if he was evaluating us.
But finally, he spoke.
"My na is Fivien, and I am the Arch Priest of the Harper Citadel. You are Mikael and Evangeline, correct? Your reputations are quite astonishing, so I’m glad the two of you could make it here safely."
A faint smile appeared on my face.
"You flatter us. We’re the ones who should be glad we have the chance to et soone as esteed as you."
Clentine flashed a puzzled glance at .
She was probably wondering why I was talking like so bootlicker.
And it was simple.
I just wanted to see how genuine Fivien was.
Would he move straight to business nervously, or would he consider this whole issue as sothing that he just happened to find, and isn’t involved with the demon at all.
"Hahaha. Flattery is often best in the morning, but so is breakfast. Could I get you two anything before we get started?"
"I’d like a whole chicken and a side of salad."
I subtly elbowed Clentine, and she followed along.
"Two pizzas, two burgers, two salads, two potatoes... Maybe one potato? Yes, one potato."
Fivien’s brow twitched.
But even then, he maintained his composure and stood up, approaching the door.
"Wait there a few minutes. I’ll be back with your food, my esteed guests."
With that, he left the room and locked the door behind him.
I waited until I couldn’t hear his footsteps to finally speak.
"He seems like a regular priest so far."
Clentine nodded.
"His soul isn’t dark either. He might not be involved."
I shook my head.
"No, I ant he seems like a regular priest. He’s an Arch Priest. Soone with enough authority to order 1,000 Paladins to assemble on a whim. He’s not an errand boy like the regular priests."
Her eyes widened.
"You’re right. I didn’t even think about that... Does that an he’s desperate?"
"He’s either desperate, or he’s soone’s puppet. Just play along with whatever I do. I’m trying to evaluate his personality."
"Got it."
Her eyes bead in determination.
A few minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
Soon enough, the door opened and Fivien walked in with a cart of food.
With a smile on his face, he placed the food in front of us and sat back down.
"Please enjoy."
"..."
Don’t mind if I do.
Instead of using the fork that he gave , I ripped the whole chicken apart with my hands, dirtying myself and my face.
Just like soone with no tact.
And since I told Clentine to do that as well, she soon dug into her food.
We began eating like beasts, and throughout all this ti, I was keeping track of Fivien’s expression.
And when we eventually finished eating, I wiped Clentine’s face, then my own, before leaning back and eting his eyes.
"Tell us more about the mission."
A relieved expression appeared on Fivien’s face.
"Very well..."
"Nearly a month ago, we eradicated a few demons that had broken into the Harper Citadel. We aren’t sure how that happened, or how they bypassed the templars’ vision. But it did happen, and it happened again two weeks ago."
He leaned in slightly.
"Another batch of demons broke into the cathedral this ti. They killed 7 templars, and over 50 paladins before disappearing again."
"Just this ti, one of the templars off duty managed to catch a glimpse of a Marquess-ranked demon. What’s strange is that when the templar tried to track the Marquess Demon, it was already gone without a trace."
Strange indeed...
But I’m seeing a pattern.
"The first attack happened a month ago, the next, two weeks ago, yes? Was it on the sa day?"
Fivien nodded.
"Both happened close to 10 P.M. on Friday."
Today was Thursday.
The morning of Thursday.
Since I didn’t believe in coincidences, I needed to prepare for the worst tomorrow.
"Anything else you noticed?" Clentine chid in.
Fivien fell into thought for a mont, then shook his head.
"Nothing that I feel is worth ntioning."
Hmm...
Using Blood-Sight, I could see his heart rate speed up a little when he replied.
That ans he’s lying.
"Even if you don’t feel like it’s worth ntioning, tell us if you noticed anything strange before or after the accidents."
"..."
"Well... There have been a lot of pigeons migrating to the north as of late. It usually happens much later, definitely not in winter. As I said, it’s stupid and not worth ntioning."
Clentine deadpanned, and began bombarding Fivien with many more questions.
On the other hand, I blanked out for a mont, recalling one particular detail that had sothing to do with pigeons.
They were ordinary birds, and they followed an ordinary cycle.
The world didn’t change that much to the point their habits would change as well.
And if I eliminate the natural causes for their migration...
"Right..."
I tapped Clentine on the shoulder, causing her to stop her questioning.
Then, I turned to Fivien.
"Give us a map of where the demons attacked, and where they ran. A map of which areas in the cathedral they were potentially aiming for as well."
"Right away."
Fivien took out a map of the Harper Citadel, and quickly marked down a few areas, before pushing it toward .
I morized the locations, stored the map, and stood up alongside Clentine.
He might see my actions as abrupt, but I had a really urgent reason, and I needed to be 100% sure before coming to a conclusion.
But right as I placed my hand on the door, Fivien’s voice rang out:
"I take it you can take care of it?"
"..."
I turned my head slightly, eting his calm gaze.
And yet, his heart was beating incredibly fast.
He knew more than he let on.
That much, I was sure of after this conversation.
And after testing the waters a little, I was also sure that he was a puppet for soone, and not an actual Arch Priest.
Still...
I needed him clueless.
"Sure. We’ll take a look around and co back here before nightfall."
And with that, Clentine and I left Fivien’s room.
We silently walked through the empty corridors.
And when I finally felt like no one was watching us, I pulled Clentine away into one of the darker corners and decided to tell her what I found out.
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