"She fainted," Regulus uttered under his breath.
There was obviously a flash of concern in his eyes as it reflected my and Sophie's sorry state.
I gazed down, and I was softened by Sophie's serene face.
'If only she would have this expression throughout my journey,' I wished.
However, it was impossible.
Since after this moment, we would face together the thorny path I have taken.
It couldn't be helped, for there was no choice but to proceed on the plot line.
After all, I needed to survive, and as the supposed main villain, even though I was only a first-rate villain, I needed to contribute a lot to the main character's growth.
If not, how would I survive?
I have to live.
"Will she be able to accompany you?"
I gazed at her, gently brushing the hair on her forehead, and replied, "She has to. This will be her first blessing."
If I remember correctly, Sophie always let the previous owner of this body be blessed by the Churches, except the God of War, considering that it would only commence in the afternoon, while the others were in the morning.
If he didn't receive the blessings, then Sophie wouldn't want to have the blessings, too.
He, Luke, even insisted, but Sophie was persistent that she would only receive her blessings until she reached sixteen.
Of course, Luke was aware that Sophie was only making that promise, hoping that every four years he would finally receive the blessings.
Now, Sophie couldn't take back her promise.
She couldn't be blessed next year either, for the peak years that an individual must try his luck to receive a blessing was once every four years.
The author was inspired by the leap year idea.
"All right. Then, I'll call the Archbishop."
He was referring to the bishop from the Church of the God of Sun, for they also practiced mind cleansing and other forms of cleansing any psychological and mental attacks.
Of course, other churches have such types of practitioners, too, but they couldn't be compared to the Church of the God of the Sun.
In reply to Regulus' question, I shook my head in rejection.
"There's no need. It is much better for you to bring us to the Church of the God of Earth, instead."
"Huh?" He was surprised, as expected. "Do you mean you have finally awakened the earth's affinity?"
He was still hoping about that, huh?
"No, it is for Sophie."
"Then?"
"I'll only be visiting the Church of the God of War to receive his blessings. I don't mind waiting for hours."
He smiled.
"All right."
He knew that I was being considerate to Sophie.
"Then, we must go."
We are running out of time, after all.
Regulus faced his back on us, and suddenly, there was a fiery aura suffusing him, slowly enveloping us, too.
'How warm and gentle,' I thought to myself, closing my eyes.
However, due to the Emotionless traits, I couldn't totally perceive the gentleness, as though it was hitting a stone heart.
I shook my head, tossing those unnecessary matters aside.
My eyelids opened, as I gazed at Sophie, caressing her hair.
She needed to feel safe and cared for.
I must let her know that I was always there for her.
Unknowingly, Regulus peeked at me and beamed a warm smile before continuing to fly upwards, and bolted towards the destination.
The wind wasn't distracting us, as though the fiery aura enveloping us appeared to block even the monstrous winds.
We passed by many buildings and saw many people dressed in Victorian clothes and carriages – as the first Victorian mana cars hadn't been invented yet.
It was an intriguing view, providing me with fresh air after that battle.
It even seemed that I just came out from something annoying, not even minding the parasite growing inside my body.
Time passed by, and we saw a grandiose building, with pillars rising to the clouds, and in the center, the symbol of the God of Earth stood in mid-air imposingly and eye-catching.
***
We levitated atop the entrance of the Church filled with people.
Most of them painted their faces with excitement, even though their shivering bodies betrayed it.
Parents continued to soothe their children by offering them words of encouragement and assurance, and then giving them hugs and stroking their hair.
There were also stalls adjacent to the church, but not in the area of the church, for it was banned as it tainted the Church with temptations – wants and needs.
Regulus arrived secretly.
That's why no one paid their respects to him.
This was the right decision.
After all, Regulus also knew that the citizens, even when they hid it, held contempt for me.
It couldn't be helped, some bastards were spreading rumors, dirtying my name.
Even when the title, Arcane Mage, didn't help a bit.
After all, most of the citizens didn't choose the path of the Mage but rather focused on earning money in many other ways.
Furthermore, they also believed that becoming a Mage needed heavy resources, believing only nobles had the privilege to choose the path.
To become a Mage was also meant to put your entire life on research, cultivating magic circles to possess a spell, and putting your life in peril.
After all, to become a strong mage, you need to experience battle.
A life-and-death battle.
Thus, for them, becoming a Mage was too risky and held no future for them, only leading to death.
"Let's just wait for the Church to open Father. It wouldn't take much time, anyway."
For some reason, my tone was a bit casual, surprising him.
I didn't even notice it, but thankfully, he wasn't bothered by it.
It even appeared that he was elated.
He nodded.
"Yeah. I don't want to pull unnecessary attention anyway."
…
Five minutes later, the grandiose gate, filled with many engraved by hand designed for the God of Earth, opened as they were welcomed by approximately fifteen priests.
They wore all brown, for it represents the celebration of the blessings by the God of Earth.
As a result, the priests wore bright expressions.
One priest was old, one was young, and most were nearly old and middle-aged.
Numerous were bald, while some had clean cuts, but their hair was so short by men's standards.
They were indeed similar to a priest I saw on Earth.
Suddenly, they divided themselves into two and moved to stand in line with the opened door.
There, the citizens saw the Church once again.
Similar to the earth, the Church also held mass once a week for those believers of the God of Earth.
Of course, others were welcomed, too.
As they marveled once more at the noble beauty of the Church's architecture, a tapping noise resonated, silencing the people.
At the same time, the door at the Church opened as it welcomed the appearance of the Archbishop…
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