"No dinner."
In the evening, when Marvin returned to the church with Yuniya, he happened to encounter Mrs. Cecil with a face full of grievance.
"Priest, where on earth have you been?"
Mrs. Cecil, with her hands on her hips, said discontentedly, "Thanks to you, I didn't even have time to clean my own house today!"
"Ah?"
Marvin looked at her, puzzled, "What happened?"
"You see for yourself!"
Mrs. Cecil slammed a thick registry onto the table, "At least 100 people came to the church today to become followers of the Church of Truth! But since you weren't here, I could only take down their names, and I was busy until the evening! Good heavens, I didn't even have a sip of tea!"
Picking up the registry from the table, Marvin flipped through it casually, and indeed, he saw many new names recorded. At a rough count, there were perhaps around 120.
After a moment's thought, Marvin immediately understood why the number of followers had suddenly surged.
After last night's earthquake, he had publicly offered to take on the costs of house repairs for the followers, and once news of this spread, naturally, many would come in hope of gaining something...
However, Marvin was also aware that among these 'followers' who came in hope, there were probably very few who genuinely wanted to join the church—most were there for the repair funds.
"Priest, although your willingness to bear the costs for the followers' house repairs is very touching, I must remind you..."
Mrs. Cecil said with a serious face, "It is not a small sum."
"I know."
Marvin handed over the tin of honey sweets to Yuniya, speaking calmly, "But no matter what, I don't want to see any follower in danger because they can't afford the repair fees... Every one of them is a loyal supporter of Goddess Yuniya. As for the money, I'll find a way."
Hearing this, Mrs. Cecil suddenly felt an immense headache, "Priest... of the people who came today, how many of them are truly dedicated to joining the church?
"Your action, in their eyes, isn't much different from charity!"
"By the way, Mrs. Cecil, her name is Nia. She is my daughter," Marvin suddenly changed the subject, patting Yuniya's head, "From today on, she will be living with me."
"Daughter?"
Mrs. Cecil looked at Yuniya in surprise, then at Marvin, "Priest, since when did you have a daughter? How did I not know anything about it?"
"Um... everyone has a past, right?" Marvin said with a smile, "Nia, say hello to Mrs. Cecil. She is a senior member of our church."
"Mrs. Cecil, hello..."
With honey candy in her mouth, Yuniya blinked and curiously looked at the other.
"You too, Nia," Mrs. Cecil smiled, fondly taking to Yuniya who looked like a porcelain doll, "So the reason you abruptly asked to borrow children's clothes from me last night was for Nia to wear. Have you both not eaten yet? I'll go prepare some food."
"Okay."
After Mrs. Cecil hurried into the kitchen, Marvin took off his overcoat and hat, hanging them on the rack, and closed the church's main door.
"Daddy, Daddy..."
Yuniya followed him closely, repeatedly asking, "Why was Mrs. Cecil so angry just now?"
"Because she understands human nature and thinks wholeheartedly of the church."
"Oh... So the action you took for the followers, bearing the cost of repairs, was that wrong?"
"Of course not."
"Then Mrs. Cecil was wrong?"
"She's not wrong either,"
In the bewildered gaze of Yuniya, Marvin pulled her to sit on the church bench, gazing at the tall statue in front of them, and said word by word, "In the end, the disagreement I had with Mrs. Cecil fundamentally stemmed from our different positions."
"As a worshipper, her primary concern is whether the church can be maintained for a long time, while I, as the founder and manager of the church, must consider not only how long the church can be sustained, but more importantly, how to make the church flourish."
"Taking on the repair costs, in the short term, might seem like a loss of a substantial amount of wealth, but what we lose is only money, and besides, it is an amount I can currently afford."
Pausing for a moment, Marvin continued:
"If we look at the long term, the benefits this action brings will far exceed the bit of money spent today."
"Yuniya doesn't understand...."
"Reputation, prestige, these are all essentials for development,"
Marvin explained: "I spent a bit of money, and now the words 'Church of Truth' are being passed from one mouth to another. Today, maybe only 100 people know of this, but what about tomorrow, the day after or the days to follow?"
"I dare say that within a week, the name of the Church of Truth will be known throughout all of New Ross City. By then, existing worshippers will take pride in it, thereby deepening their loyalty, and others who are not worshippers will also retain some impression. They will perceive the Church of Truth as a good church that truly seeks the welfare of its followers."
"First impressions are very important, extremely beneficial for our future development, including those nobles; they too will hear of the church's charitable acts."
"Hmm...."
Yuniya, eating her candy and thinking hard, said, "Daddy, you mentioned this afternoon that the orphanage we're going to supports the Fourth Prince in the background. Does your weekly financial support for them aim to establish contact with the Fourth Prince?"
Marvin smiled and said, "Who knows... Yuniya, I have other things to do. Can you go to the kitchen and help Mrs. Cecil prepare dinner?"
"Yes!"
Yuniya nodded, tugging on the arm of her teddy bear, and dashed quickly towards the kitchen.
Watching her leave, Marvin lit the coal oil lamp beside him and gently flipped through the list of worshippers on his knee.
The thick register was filled with names; every follower who had undergone baptism and formally joined the church was recorded here, totaling 807 people.
807 worshippers, that number might sound like a lot, but in Marvin's eyes....
Not enough!
Far from enough!
After last night's inquiry, he found out that Yuniya's power was linked to the number of worshippers; the more worshippers, the stronger Yuniya's power became.
But 807 worshippers, in the eyes of those great churches, weren't even as many as the followers in one of their districts, let alone the Church of the Three Fate, considered the holy church of the Kingdom of Windsor, which boasted millions of followers!
Their deities....
How powerful must they be?
Undoubtedly, in the upcoming changes, every church with a deity will be frantically expanding its sphere of influence, and they will compete fiercely to attract worshippers!
In this process, the relationship between churches will be anything but harmonious, even viewing each other as mortal enemies....
To make more people aware of the truth, the expansion of the church is indispensable.
"This is a clash of doctrines and beliefs."
Marvin caressed the leather cover of the Book of Truth:
"Even in the age of theocracy, I firmly believe that truth will be the only light."
Thinking this, he suddenly stood up, carrying the coal oil lamp in one hand and the Book of Truth and the list of worshippers in the other, heading towards his study.
"Can't drag our feet anymore, we must change our strategy!"