The girl was in new clothes, her face scrubbed clean. Combined with the church's als, which were far better than what she was used to, Jenkins almost didn't recognize her.
Just as the bishop paused in his speech, Jenkins seized the opportunity to ask in a low voice:
"That girl over there, is she also receiving aid from the church this year?"
The bishop squinted in that direction and nodded. The middle-aged priest on his other side explained:
"Her na is Fini Faithford. She's one of 104 children receiving aid this year. Her parents were residents of Nolan City, living in the slums, and they died of illness early this spring. She has no relatives. She once had a younger brother, but he was abducted by human traffickers two years ago..."
It was a story all too common in the slums. The girl's experience wasn't the most tragic one could imagine, as she was at least still alive and unhard.
After listening to the explanation, Jenkins pursed his lips in thought for a mont before quietly asking the bishop and the priest:
"After winter passes, could she be allowed to remain at the church? Whether she undergoes the trials to beco a nun or simply stays to help with cleaning, either would be fine."
There was little he could do for the unfortunate souls of the world, but given his profound connection to this girl, he felt compelled to help where he could.
The middle-aged priest glanced at the bishop, though he already knew the old man wouldn't refuse.
"Of course."
He stroked his beard and nodded.
The wealth of the Church of Knowledge and Books was far beyond what Jenkins could have imagined. The bishop knew full well that taking in a hundred girls like Fini wouldn't impact the church's operations in the slightest.
However, this wasn't sothing the church could initiate on its own. For one, the Legacy Sage had taught that one must acquire knowledge and learn to survive through their own efforts. For another, the church couldn't possibly provide for everyone. Setting a precedent would only create difficulties down the line.
But a request from Jenkins was a different matter entirely. He rarely asked for anything, and with his status as the Saint, it was hardly a request at all.
Still, there was one thing the bishop needed to confirm:
"Your future spouse will be a woman, correct?"
He inquired tactfully.
"Of course... Um, have you misunderstood sothing? I..."
"I know, I know."
The old man cut him off, simultaneously giving a pointed look to a nun approaching with a serving cart, silently warning her not to eavesdrop.
"I trust your preference in won doesn't lean toward young girls with whom you have a significant age difference? Jenkins, I must warn you, the Sage explicitly states in the..."
Jenkins felt his reputation suffer a grievous insult once again. He wasn't like his perverted friend, Li Qian, from his past life. Helping the girl was nothing more than a montary act of kindness.
After lunch, Jenkins happened to run into Captain Bincy. It was his squad's turn for duty at the church, so his day was relatively quiet.
Jenkins asked if there was any news, but the captain's replies all pertained to the events of the 31st. And who knew more about that than Jenkins himself? He had no choice but to feign curiosity as he listened, chiming in with a comnt from ti to ti.
The good news was that Boglor Stipe, the captured cultist from the Eye Collector's Association nicknad "the Still Eye," had finally revealed crucial information.
The breakthrough ca thanks to the corpse of the Thousand-Eyed Priest. The mont Stipe saw his companion's body, he finally broke down.
Stipe confessed the association's reason for coming to Nolan City, as well as the structure of their group. More importantly, the church learned for the first ti about a stunning secret within the organization.
"This is strictly confidential. Not a word to anyone else."
Captain Bincy warned gravely.
The middle-aged man they'd t during the Demonic Eye incident had ntioned that not all the collectors worshiped the evil god, the Void-Eyed Demon. In fact, the internal conflict within the association was imnse; the struggle between the two factions—believers and non-believers—had reached a fever pitch.
This was one of the reasons the Eye Collector's Association had all but vanished in recent epochs.
Stipe didn't know exactly when the worship of the evil god began, but he was certain the association had existed long before the Void-Eyed Demon even beca a pseudo-god.
He was one of the rare, clear-headed mbers. He understood perfectly well that refusing to pick a side ant being crushed in the conflict. So he chose an even more dangerous path: he feigned allegiance to the evil god while secretly acting as a spy for the other faction.
"That's quite sothing..."
Jenkins didn't know what to make of it. He could only reflect that so people's lives were even more dramatic than his own.
"Through his actions, Stipe earned the trust of the non-believers and gained access to so of their secrets," Captain Bincy continued. "This is information we never had before. I suppose you could say we got lucky."
With a slight cough, Bincy led Jenkins from the corridor outside the sermon hall into a courtyard. From there, they slipped through a back door into an unused confessional. The space was cramped, but secure.
A tallic bench was the only furniture in the room, so both n leaned against the walls. Captain Bincy reached up and gave the unlit gas lamp a sharp twist to the right. The clash of gears and the rattle of chains echoed from beneath the floor. With a heavy thud, tal plates descended over the door and the screened window, completely sealing them off from the outside.
Jenkins was a little surprised. The original owner of his body had been coming here since childhood but had never known such a chanism existed.
Captain Bincy shrugged. "Stipe told us the Eye Collector's Association is on the verge of splintering, but neither side is willing to give up the thousands of demonic eyes the association has collected since ancient epochs. He doesn't know what the non-believers are planning, but he's certain about the cultists' goal—to summon their evil god into the mortal world."
"Oh?"
Jenkins murmured, a note of realization in his voice. "So that's why they ca to Nolan?"
"Yes. Three mbers of the association ca to Nolan. The Thousand-Eyed Priest was one of the cultists; the one who got tangled up with the New God follower was not. The item they're all searching for is another demonic eye, apparently a Cursed Item, one with the potential to serve as the core of a divine descent ritual. This information is critical. We absolutely cannot allow such a savage evil god into the material world! If it succeeds in descending, half the continent will be in peril."
The information from Captain Bincy left Jenkins deeply concerned. He suspected that the Cursed Item stolen from Papa Oliver's shop—the demonic eye—was the very thing the cultists were after.
But then another thought occurred to him. The only mber of the Eye Collector's Association still active in Nolan was not a follower of the evil god. If he was indeed the one who had stolen the eye from the antique shop, then that would actually make the Void-Eyed Demon's descent even more improbable.
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