After filling up the information sheets we hand it over back to the receptionist together with five hundred rio. He then gave us a red small tablet that says Baptismal Candidate.
He points us over to a long corridor and we continue on our way.
He said to hand these tablets over to a Baptismal Priest. But how do we know which priest is a Baptismal Priest?
While thinking like that, I continue on admiring the passing paintings hanging on the corridor hall. They must be depictions of tales or events about a certain woman.
Must be the first mother, Rinon.
In them, it depicts that the first woman is created by a Goddess. Which I have reason to suspect is the Goddess of Fertility. And another God created the first man.
Upon seeing each other, the first thing they did was to actually fight with one another. That is until, the first woman saved the first man from possible death upon eating a poisonous plant. Since then the first man has been thankful to the first woman and never again quarelled with her.
In the next picture, it shows the woman engaged in a battle with a mad bull. The man saved her from the bull, thus starting the first budding of the feeling of love.
They fell in love with each other. And well... You know what happens next.
The next picture depicts the union of a man and a woman.
Yeah, they had sex. And I can't believe I'm finding this kind of picture in a church.
Anyways, they had many children as the next picture illustrates. I didn't care to count exactly how many. I didn't want to get left behind by Lana and Myka.
Anyways, the next picture depicts the woman dying in order to save the man and the kids from a pack of giant wolves. Making the first noble sacrifice made by humans. The man and the kids escaped death but by the next day, the man in his grief prayed to the Gods and demanded justice. He asked for the power to avange his spouse and that is the first time magic was seen in this world.
There was a whole painting illustrating the gifted strength of the man. He was able to use all kinds of magic. He thought one kind of magic to each one of his children, so I guess that means they had six kids.
Once he deemed them powerful enough, they set off to the territory of the pack of giants wolves. The battle took a whole day and the leader of the wolve finally showed up. It is illustrated as a humongous wolf able to breath fire. With a final prayer for additional strength towards the Gods, the man used a powerful magic in exchange for his life and took down the last wolf together with him.
The last picture is that of their children burying their father, and one of their mother's belongings together and praying to the Gods.
Huh? Interesting story.
"Aziel, come on!"
When I look at Lana's and Myka's way, they are in front of a huge double door and above it has a red tablet sign that says Baptism Ritual. In front of the room is a child I guess is at the age of ten to twelve, he must be an apprentice or something. Since he dons a white gown that reaches up to his ankle.
"Please give me your tablets." He cutely hands a palm over to us.
We did as he ask, and he knocks twice on the door gently then slowly enters.
"Please come." He says, holding one of the double doors open for us.
We slowly walk pass the child and with a slight peek we finally enter.
Inside is like a consultation room of a hospital. Not really, but close. There are couches to relax, another set of intricate double doors, there is a desk and behind it is an old man in ceremonial gown. He must be the Baptismal Priest.
Like the child he is donning a white long ceremonial gown, the difference is that it is with these black intricate patterns at its ends, it also reaches up to his ankles. And at the center of his chest is an image of a woman's silhouette. He is a little over my height but I can say he's skinny with how baggy he made his clothes look like on him. Atop his head small biretta, this one too has black linings, I couldn't see any hair on his covered head that I fear the small piece of garment would fall off his head. The old man's eyes is a cloudy grey, despite that he still has that striking glare as if he could see through your soul.
There a few more people in the room. All of us would make ten in total.
I hear a click behind, I look back to see the child hanging a sign on the door he is holding before closing it. He then walks over to the priest over the table and hand him our tablets.
He scans the three of us one by one, until his eyes lay on me and lingers. It feels like he is looking through me with that sharp grey eyes. And yet it also feels like he isn't me he is looking at. As I stare into his eyes, I get even more lost at its foggy glare.
"Go on and sit lads, I have something discuss with you all before starting the ritual." He ushers towards the three of us finally breaking off him glare at me, his voice sounding raspy and aged but still with an edge of authority in it.
So we walk over and sit down on the remaining spaces on the couches. I feel an elbow jab at my side and I look to find Lana giving me a confused look and Myka also rising a questioning brow at me.
"What was that all about?" She ask in a soft whisper.
"I'm as confused as you are." I reply back in a whisper.
"Alright, you are here to perform your Baptisim Ritual. But there are a few things you need to understand... First off is that, once you get your baptism here in the Church of Fertility, you will forever be known as the believer of the Goddess of Fertility. So for those who doesn't want that may leave the room now, you can get you money back from the receptionist you talked to." He look at us over one by one with that sharp glare of his, and when he saw nobody moving to take a leave he nods approvingly.
Ho! So that's how it is huh?
When you get your baptism from a certain church, that would mean you would be joining them as a follower of that certain church and their God.
"Very well. Then you should also understand that even though you will become one with us in the Church of Fertility, we do not mind if you also start serving the other churches. It is very common for people who get their baptism here to also serve the Church of their element for obvious reasons." He states accordingly.
Makes sense, I guess. Since this world considers the type of magic one have to be from a blessing from a corresponding God of that element, it would be wierd for mages to not serve the God of their element. Joining the Church of Fertility simply means that they also agree to the teachings of this church.
In this city, more than that, in this nation, there's no problem serving any God of any element as there are other churches here other than the Church of Fertility. This is the only nation in this world in which, they have a branch of the other churches scattered throughout the nation.
I think that's great.
"Then you all should remember to not use your acquired power to harm other people, as it would be a great sin towards the Goddess of Fertility to hurt your fellow brothers and sisters. Because according to her teachings and belief, all of us are children of the Goddess." He preaches.
I also would like to learn some teachings from the Goddess of Fertility. For the obvious reason that it was her that reincarnated me. And also I have a curiosity to know what I truly have done for the Goddess to hate me so, according to that angel.
"Finally, your details and acquired element will be recorded in a kiosk. All results from the baptism has been recorded there and it has been part of the ritual ever since. You shouldn't mind this too much. Now then, follow me. " He wave his hand in dismissal, then finally stand up from his sit.
We all stood as per ordered and follow him as he went through that other set of intricate double doors with the child apprentice.
Behind the doors is a long corridor with many doors leading to elsewhere on each side I couldn't even see the end of them.
On the door there are signs that says 'occupied', and the priest continued to walk along the corridor until he finally found one that doesn't have a sign hanging on it.
He opens the door and ushers for all of us to go in.
The room we go to is completely devoid of any furniture except the chairs on the corners, instead there's a huge rune drawn on the floor using a material I don't quite recognize.
Must be a stuff original from this world, I can search about it later.
There are three other priest in the room, they stand in attention from their sits at our entrance.
I hear a click behind me and the priest from earlier finally enters after us.
"Okay let's begin... Ladies first shall we?" He say and ussers for anothet female in the group.
"You lads and lasses, take your sits first as you await for your turn." He says again and signals for us to go to sit on the chairs.
The three priest went to the three corners of the rune and the priest from earlier made the girl kneel in a praying position at the middle.
The three priest starts reciting a mantra I don't understand and the rune beneath their feet starts to glow in radiance.
Woah! Now this gives me the feeling of fantasy I was looking for!
All of sports faces of amazement at the event. Moreover, there's this distinct mysterious feeling oozing out from that rune.
But, this weirdly feels familiar...
"Ah...!" I silently exclaim in shock.
"What's wrong?" I hear Lana's voice beside me asking in a whisper.
Oops...
"Ah... No. This is just amazing..." I reply while awkwardly scratching my cheek.
"Yeah! I know right? The air here feels somewhat divine." Comments Myka.
Lana just nods in agreement.
With the room's white interior, the priests' robes and the glowing radiance coming from the rune, this room does give off that feel.
What I suddenly realize though is that, this feels somewhat similar to that time I was talking to the angel. But that experience obviously gives off a couple hundred times more divine feel than this.
The feeling I get while I stare towards that rune is somewhat the same when I look towards the angel at that time, only this extremely fails in comparison.
The priest took out a vial from a pouch he hid in his robe and sprinkled a drop of what ever is inside it towards the forehead of the girl.
The moment the droplet meets the girl's skin, the radiance of the rune dims.
The priest signals the girl to stand back up and he ushers her to our direction. That's when the child apprentice taps on Myra's shoulder and signals her to go next. And we give her our support with a smile.
This went on for a good twenty minutes until it's finally my turn. I am the last one in our group. Myra and Lana gives me a supportive smile and I go to the center.
"The baptism is the closest you will ever be to the Goddess so make sure to offer your sincerest greetings and prayer." He whispers to me.
He must've said the same things to the others.
I, like the others, kneels and closing my eyes I assume a praying stance.
What should I say really?
I can see a radiant glow beneath me through my closed eyelids. That's when everything went white...
Wh-what should I do?
The mortal's soul I am looking after left its body.
In my panic, I unintentionally let out a slight surge of my power.
The priest who is about to pour blessed water to the body of the mortal, Aziel, freezes on his spot so do the other three priests activating this rune. They're eyes widen in both confusion and shock. The priest in the middle in particular narrows his eyes at Aziel, but I'm pretty sure he is sensing my divinity that lingers on him.
They are not able to see me but they must've felt that. These priest are sensitive to divine power after all.
But still...
What did they do to him?
Unconsciously, more divinity pours out of me.
The three priests starts shaking in fear on their feet. The priest in the middle, must be sensing the slight hostility oozing from my power, backed off a step on his spot.
The other mortals in the room started to make a little ruckus in their confusion. Most notably, the two females with Aziel.
I walk around and check Aziel's body. I put a hand over his head...
No. His soul really isn't here... What-!?
That's when I felt the Goddess' Divinity from the rune.
The priests must've sensed the presence of the Goddess as well, as they started to exclaim in either confusion, joy and surprise.
They are priests serving the Goddess. Mortals that dedicated their utmost loyalty and love for the Goddess of Fertility. They must've done many ceremonies and rituals to be well acquainted to the Divinity of the Goddess.
I control myself and keep my power from surging.
It must've been the Goddess that took the mortal's soul. But I haven't received a message for me to return.
Then, I shall stay here and continue my mission.
"So this is the mortal you were talking about, sister Fertility?"
"Hm? He is rather ordinary than I expected..."
"All mortals are the same sister Wind, what could you have expected?"
"But this soul is rather peculiar..."
"What do you mean by that sister Light?"
"From what sister Fertility told us, this soul has committed countless sins. But this soul is strangely devoid of any wickedness."
"..."
"Ho? You're right, very interesting."
"..."
"..."
"Moreover, isn't there still tiny traces of brother Fortune's power on him?"
"About that, I already lifted those remaining misfortunes on him."
"Ahh! Very good, we can't let a repeat of that mistake after all."
"Well then, brothers and sisters. Please do as I have asked."
"It is for sister Fertility."
"Hohoho! That world is also close to me, it makes me very interested in the changes he will bring!"
"I as well."
"It is time for that world to change after thousands of years of stagnation..."
"I want to see what he will do with these powers."
"Very well, I shall also give him my guidance..."
"... Fertility is very thankful to brothers and sisters..."
"It is just granting power to a mortal, we do it every time."
"That is correct."
"Sister Fertility should just be at ease. Hahaha!"
"It was not a bother at all."
"..."
"Sister Fertility is our sister. This small favor is nothing."
At last, after what felt like forever, I feel a droplet of water drop on my forehead.
What took him so long?
I finally open my eyes and stand back up.
I wonder how I did?
I feel intense stares fixed on me and I look to it from the priests.
What is it?
"Alright! We will now go to the kiosk and enter your records." The priest from earlier announce as such.
The child apprentice holds opens the door for us.
I make my way towards Lana and Myka but I notice these people giving me wierd looks.
What's wrong with them?
"Hey, is something on my face?" I ask Lana in a hushed whisper.
"No. Nothing at all." She just answer like so and Myka nods her head a little to intensely.
Okay?
We finally went out of the room, I look back to see the four priests coming out with us after exchanging wierd looks at each other.
Aren't the other three in charge of this room? Meh...
"Follow me." The priest that guided us to here says as such and walks deeper into the long corridor.
Alright! Time to find out which element do I have!