Bellona's eyes were cast on the elderly, wrinkled face of the man standing before her, "Archpriest Rougen?"
The priest was a tall man with short, neatly combed blonde hair and blue eyes, with a thin wipsy beard dusting his chin. He had a broad, serene face etched with wrinkles and deep lines. He wore a simple, dark peach cassock that had black and white trims. He smiled generously at Bellona.
With purposeful steps, Aerian and Kanito advanced towards the priest. Rougen handed Bellona an opaque, silver flask and said, "This is the nectar we were talking about the other day. Give this to your brother." Bellona with a subtle smile accepted it and analyzed the vessel. She turned towards a statue that stood in front of them to bow respectfully.
It was a gold sculpture of a tall man having shoulder length hair and unclear, inconspicuous facial features. He was dressed in a gorgeous, royal robe. One of his hands was holding a tall staff that leaned against his shoulder and another one was stretched forward and was offering a fruit. One odd feature about the statue was that it had a huge hole in its chest.
'Perhaps the statue of the Sun God, Akhmis?' Kanito wondered, 'The sceptre in his hand is probably symbolizing kingship over heavens. The strange orb in his hand...'
To blend in with the scene, Kanito decided to copy Bellona, he bowed in a similar manner, ensuring that Priest Rougen saw him, "Dazzling God of Sun, he who brings day!" Kanito made up a respectful chant.
Archpriest Rougen smiled at Kanito's efforts, "Well... that is done by the virtue of the God of Dawn, Logos. Don't stick to the primeval thoughts, child. God of Dawn is no more manifested by the help of our Sun God. Have you not heard the myth?" Rougen pointed to the 'fruit' the statue of Akhmis was holding in his hand.
"Here, Lord Akhmis is giving away the Gospel of Day to a human from mid-Toesh era. This human ascended to godhood and became known as the God of Dawn, Logos. He was still a half-deity and had to take the help of Lord Akhmis in order to use his gospel. However, after possessing the Gospel of Earth, Logos became an independent god, free from Lord Akhmis' help."
Kanito asked in a quizzical tone, "How did the God of Dawn get the Gospel of Earth?"
Rougen slipped his hand inside the collars of his cassock and pulled out a necklace, it carried a pendant which resembled the sun, "I think a priest of the God of Dawn would be more qualified to answer this question." He rubbed the sun-shaped pendant gently to emphasize the fact that he is a priest of the Sun God.
'Just like Earth, people of this world also wear different accessories to distinguish themselves from others. Humans, no matter what world they are in, will have some common traits.' Kanito showed a polite smile to the outside world.
'Anyways, so I guess this artefact named Gospel of Day was something embedded inside the Sun God's heart? That would explain the hole in his chest. The Gospel of Earth... that is probably an artefact providing control over land, soil and minerals? Basically geokenisis. This was possessed by the God of Dawn later on. I will remember that.'
Bellona nodded thoughtfully and added, "But that is of course according to the revelations of St. Promius right? Other Sun Temples argue that this portrait of the lord is actually when he tricked the Night Queen, Saana with the fake Gospel of Sun and sealed her inside the Fable of Jarvis. They argue that this is where the myth of Asrunius originates from."
Rougen was extremely agitated by Bellona's words, he gave her a cold gaze and replied, "The edict passed by the Holy Sun Pilgrimage deems St. Promius' interpretation as the correct one. The word of the headquarters is far more valuable than the word of those wayside shrines. Those puny shrines are popping up everywhere these days, I hate to call such a shrine a Sun Temple."
Aerian crossed his arms and said with a witty face, "Devotion matters more than traditions, Archpriest Rougen. Besides, our country had passed the Secularity Act decades ago, you are still upset about it?"
Knowing well that Kanito being an outsider was totally unaware of the context of the conversation, Aerian added, "As you know Kanito, according to the Toesh era traditions, temples can only be built with the historical backing of a recognized saint. However, modern era skeptics would argue that faith inside the heart matters more. What are your views?"
'Getting on the bad side of the priests would be a bad idea, traditions have to adapt to the changes of the modern world, however saying the opposite of that would cater the priest's ego.'
Kanito assumed an annoyed face as if he strongly disagreed with Aerian, "Toesh era traditions must be followed. A temple is not a bakery that can sprang up anywhere."
Archpriest Rougen smiled in amusement and said in a satisfied voice, "Aerian, your friend is a noble and learned young man," he turned to Kanito and asked, "Are you the one seeking Baptism? What is your name?"
"Yes, Archpriest Rougen. I am Kanito Aramishi." Kanito bowed low and smiled elegantly, knowing that his polite, courteous facade is maintained.
"We were looking for Archpriest Lucius for my Baptism, might I inquire as to his whereabouts or availability?" Kanito asked in a respectful tone. He noticed that Bellona was giving him a probing gaze, as if she was trying to decipher the sincerity behind his words, she quickly looked away as Kanito stared back.
Despite being a wise and experienced priest, Rougen was unperceptive of the growing cruelty that remained hidden under Kanito's affable exterior.
Rougen smiled and directed his eyes at Aerian, "I must admit, I was less than thrilled when I learned that I have to conduct your friend's Baptism now since Archpriest Lucius is away for two days. But, what a relief! At least your friends don't share your... spirited nature."
Turning to Kanito, Rougen asked, "I hope you won't have any problem with it, Kanito."
'Problem? Even if your were Lucius, would it make any difference? No one in this temple... except Aerian, is of any importance to me. I just want my Baptism. I just want to ablute myself of the scent of a refugee.'
Kanito immediately assumed a devastated face as if he was hit by a storm of tumultuous tragedies. He closed his eyes and placed a hand on his chest, "May the beating heart within," he poked his forehead twice, "And the thinking mind inside, both become numb, if I were to have a problem with that."
Opening his eyes, Kanito intentionally showed Bellona a clever smile, subtly making her aware that he was insouciant about whether Bellona saw through his deceit or not.
Aerian only rolled his eyes away from the situation, "A temple dedicated to the God of Drama should be erected right next to this one." He hushed the words rapidly and slowly.
Aerian cleared his throat and distanced himself from Kanito, "Shall we proceed to the lake now, Archpriest Rougen?"
"Yes, now we should." Rougen reached to the wall on the left side and grazed his fingers on a magnificent mural, the mural depicted a figure who wore sacred robes and held a staff in his hands, his face was poorly visible due to the temple's insufficient illumination, "St. Promius, watch over us."
Moving away from the mural, he slid his into the left pocket of his cassock and retrieved a worn brass book.
Next, he pointed the book in front of him and a section of the wall behind the statue of Akhmis rippled and took the shape of a gigantic gate. The gate swung open immediately, letting orange light, wind and various soft and serene sounds enter the temple, the light made all the murals, carvings and intricate stonework show their faces. A fleet of grey, granite steps led down to the lake below.
This phenomenon mystified Kanito, it was him seeing supernatural events for the third time.
'Did the priest summon a gate or was it always there hidden by some sort of concealment spell? Isn't sun based magic always about fire manipulation, revealing truths and purifications, well atleast, that's what the webnovels and video games taught me. Concealing powers seem totally opposite of the sun, so I guess he summoned it.'
"Let us go." Rougen proceeded to the steps and started to climb down. Bellona stood behind the three of them as she watched them descend down the pyramid's slope. She turned to leave the temple, however, after stopping herself twice, she went near the newly formed gate and finally asked in a hesitant tone, "Can I observe the Baptism?"
"Feel free to do so." Rougen said without turning around.
Bellona felt a little couraged and smiled gently. Aerian who followed Kanito down the steps, abruptly halted in his path and turned to Bellona, "You secretly aspire to be a mythologer too, don't you?" He said coldly and then quickly resumed his descent.
Ignoring Aerian's jab, Bellona began her descent down the stone steps, slowly and carefully placing her feet.