The mass was over, the believers left one by one, and the nuns began to busy cleaning up the hall.
Bishop Flora stood in front of the statue of the goddess, bowed her head and closed her eyes in prayer.
At some point, the door of the church opened, and the cold wind rushed in.
Flora opened her eyes, drew a crescent moon on her chest, and walked straight out of the church.
The gray moon hangs lonely in the sky, the dark ink blends the sky and the earth into one, and the poor bright stars lead the way under your feet.
There was no sound around, it was more peaceful than a silent night, as if there were no living things, not even wind.
This road is so long and yet so short. Time becomes confusing when walking on it. Whether it is fleeting or a hundred years old, long and short are just concepts.
Twisted and ferocious roots emerged from the ground and continue to this day. The path weaving through countless roots becomes strange, sometimes rising and falling, sometimes quiet and sometimes moving. It has life. Perhaps, it has always had life, but it has never been deliberately shown.
.
The man in black robe stood in the middle of the road, and the road he stood on was the end of the journey.
Flora saluted respectfully, "Sir."
"One month later, the Principality of Bayer will ask the kingdom for help, and Red Rose summoned the abyss monster." There was a red apple in the man's hand.
In this space dominated by black, a touch of red is so eye-catching.
"All the people in the three towns of Bly, Kumara, and Korol are dead. The principal knight 'Cage' died, and more than half of the 'Red Flame Knights' were damaged." The man said plainly, as if these lives had been lost.
Just a string of numbers.
Flora's body trembled, her soft face tightened, and her slender hands clenched into fists at some point.
In the silence, a slender root rose up from the ground, lifting the apple lightly.
"Flora, do you know why the dawn is so dazzling?"
"Because of the long night." Flora replied.
"The goddess is the embodiment of wisdom. Her will is the direction for you and me. To practice the goddess's will is not just to talk about it. The suffering and bitterness involved are beyond what ordinary people can bear." The man raised his hand and saw the space between heaven and earth.
The wind and clouds were changing, and the darkness covering the world was like water being stirred. Without a sound, the two of them were already in the center of the whirlpool.
"Two months later, you will join the Kingdom's army in the expedition against Red Rose. After this battle, you will be promoted to archbishop." After saying that, his black robe gradually turned red, and a black scepter appeared in his right hand, with a black gem inlaid on the top.
A luxurious crown appears on the top of the head, and two streamers move automatically without wind.
"Practice the will of the goddess! Follow your teachings!" Flora saluted respectfully.
In the darkness, Flora was the only one left, holding the fresh and tender apple in her hand, with a praying two-winged angel engraved on it.
A crisp voice suddenly sounded.
Flora opened her eyes.
The sound came from behind. It turned out that the glass of the dome was broken, and a beam of white light fell down.
Flora looked along the beam of light, and her heart moved.
The light illuminates the book of the goddess, and the shadow hides the sword of the goddess. She is the mother of wisdom and kindness, the beacon of hope that guides the lost in the vast darkness, and the judge of punishment and guilt.
At this time, a nun came over and saw the debris on the ground, so she found tools to clean it up.
"I'll do it." Flora whispered.
"Okay, Bishop"
The nun put down her tools and left.
Flora was cleaning up the fragments, and accidentally saw a line of writing on one of them. She was confused, so she picked it up and looked at it carefully.
It was a very small line of words, which should have been engraved in advance when the glass was originally installed.
"Goddess of Mercy, bless your poor children, let them stay away from suffering and grow up carefree, your devout believer - Kelly Moretti".
The fragments scratched the palm of her hand, and the bright red blood lost the words. Flora suddenly remembered that the nun was also an orphan...
…
Under the big tree in the backyard of the orphanage, Liam was sitting on a bench, hunched over, his hands crossed on his knees, and his eyes staring blankly ahead.
This ethereal state has been going on for some time.
The little mouse quietly climbed down from the tree. Its clumsy look was very funny.
Climbing a tree is a very difficult challenge for the little mouse. It is rarely able to get down gracefully from the tree. Every time, it loses its footing and falls halfway. Although it survives the fall, the posture is not very good-looking after all.
But this time, the goddess of fate still did not favor it.
His hind paws failed to kick, and he turned over in the air and fell.
The head turned downwards and the body faced upwards. It moved its limbs randomly and it took a lot of effort to turn over.
The little mouse came to Liam's feet and crawled up his trouser legs.
At this time, Liam also came to his senses, picked up the other person and put him on the bench.
"Happy, have you ever looked up at the sky?" Liam asked.
The little mouse tilted his head to show that he didn't understand.
Liam leaned back, "Ordinary people, in front of people with powerful extraordinary abilities, are just chess pieces that can come and go at a moment's notice."
At this point, Liam suddenly laughed at himself, "I'm so stupid, I talk as if I can decide my own destiny... I'm not the same, I'm not even qualified to touch the chessboard, I'm a chess piece at the mercy of others.
"
Just today, a powerful and mysterious being rewrote everything about Liam being bewitched by the cult, and Jack became the scapegoat.
This sense of helplessness and the humiliation of being arbitrarily manipulated, the two emotions mixed together are the fear of the unknown existence.
However, there is an unexplainable bottom line deep in my heart. This stubbornness of not succumbing to fate is like an ant looking up at the sky.
The haze of death has not dissipated. It is the sword of Damocles hanging above your head, and it may cut off your head at any time.
Liam doesn't know the other party's identity, his strength, and his purpose. The only thing he knows is that he has become a pawn. Should he stand up and fight to the death? Or should he bow his head and accept his fate?
Perhaps his best efforts to resist were just a farce, a note of discord when the other party was pulling the strings of fate.
When an elephant tramples on an ant nest, it is an earth-shattering disaster for the ants, but for the elephant it is just a matter of wiggling its toes.
Taking a deep breath, Liam's eyes shone like never before.
"The Necronomicon is what helped me transform from a chess piece to a chess player. Even if there is a glimmer of hope, I should not give up." Liam doesn't want to be played and manipulated. If he wants to leave this world, he must control his own destiny.
.
The Necronomicon contains endless knowledge, and perhaps there is a way to return to Earth.
A drowning person should hold on tightly even if it is a straw.
In the darkness, a beam of light is enough to drive people crazy, because the name of that beam of light is hope.
The little mouse didn't know the other person's inner activities. He just felt that the owner in front of him seemed to be different. The specific difference was hard to say.
"The afternoon sun always makes people feel good, especially for patients."
Perhaps because he was so absorbed in his thoughts, Liam didn't even notice that someone had come to him.
"Hi, Jiao Li, I...my illness has been cured..."
"Shh!" Jiao Li suddenly put her index finger on the other person's lips. The two were so close that they could even smell each other's breath.
Liam's cheeks suddenly turned red.
"Listen...what?"
"Did you hear that? Someone is singing."
"ah???"
"Listen carefully."
Liam was so focused that he still couldn't hear the singing.
"No."
"I heard, she is here." Jiao Li put her hand on her chest and slowly took out a small cake from behind. "Happy birthday."
Liam froze on the spot, the muscles on his face losing the ability to control his expression. Unexpectedly, today was "his" birthday...
Jiao Li leaned over, placed the cake in her hand on the bench between the two of them, leaned over and kissed the other person's cheek.
The necklace hidden in the twin peaks slipped out, and it was a delicate silver skull butterfly.
"This is a gift for you..."
Her pretty and fair cheeks were flushed, her gorgeous blue eyes were flowing, and the warm sunshine shone on her long golden hair, which was dazzling. She closed her eyes, waiting for her lover's response, and her bright red lips were tightly closed.
Liam's mouth was dry. This picture was so beautiful. He raised his hand and wanted to hug the girl opposite him into his arms.
A cold touch came from the back of his other hand, and he came to his senses.
The little skeleton came out of the mouse skin. It stared at Liam blankly, pressing its small and exquisite bone palm on the back of Liam's hand.
Liam understood what the other party meant, and at the same time he no longer hesitated in his heart.
"Jiao Li, thank you. If I hadn't told you, I would have forgotten my birthday." Liam picked up the cake and took a bite, "It's delicious."
Jiao Li opened her eyes and tried to hide her inner regret, "Thanks to Ms. Kelly's help, otherwise I wouldn't be able to make the cake."
"Well, when Ms. Carey comes back, I must thank her properly." Liam said with a smile, and inadvertently glanced at the necklace on the other person's chest. He was confused. This necklace is very delicate, but its meaning is not suitable for women to wear.
....Of course, these words cannot be said casually, after all, everyone has different preferences.
"Yes... thank you very much, Ms. Kelly..." Jiao Li murmured, smiling sadly.