Acting on Jenkins's intelligence, a Church team quickly located the withered forest where the battle had occurred. They recovered the bone fragments from the snow, along with the complete remains of the high-level undead. These remains would be subjected to rigorous examination and divination to determine the true cause of the incident.
Despite his wretched appearance, Jenkins hadn't suffered any actual loss. In fact, he had gained a new ability: [Contact with Death], a Red Martial skill. When Bevanna and Audrey heard the news, their astonished expressions were identical, as if they'd just been told a god would be stopping by the church for dinner the next day.
Though the ability was rare, nearly every Benefactor had heard of it. There was only one way to acquire it: only those who had truly touched death could receive such a prize from the threshold between life and death.
It was the greatest reward the living could receive from death, a glimpse of the vista only visible to those who had stared down their greatest fears from the very edge of the abyss.
As for its effects, [Contact with Death] rendered its wielder immune to the hostility of undead creatures and the blight of death spirits. It also granted a significant boost when using necromantic items, rituals, or abilities. Furthermore, any hostile attack, even a simple punch, would be imbued with a faint necromantic power.
In Jenkins's mind, it was simple: all his attacks would now inflict bonus necrotic damage. That was his take on it, at least.
More importantly, mastering this ability meant that any activity related to death—such as tending graves, performing burials, preparing corpses, or even killing—would now accumulate Spirit.
For instance, if Jenkins were to touch the soul fragment of the high-level undead now, nothing would happen at all.
This was the ability every Gravedigger in the Church of Death and End dreamed of acquiring. It was even rumored that [Contact with Death] was the key to unlocking the higher echelons of their path.
That was his own explanation, and he genuinely believed it, but both Bevanna and Audrey held a different view.
After a nun escorted the supposedly fully-recovered Jenkins away to rest, only the two women, followers of different faiths, remained in the office. Bevanna was just about to ask the purpose of her visit when Audrey's next words sent a chill through her:
"He's likely the first inheritor of elven blood to ever possess a necromantic ability."
The door slammed shut. Bang! The curtains drew themselves, and in an instant, golden divine runes flared to life, covering the walls. Bevanna seized Audrey's wrist, her eyes stripped of the warmth she'd shown Jenkins, replaced now by a razor-sharp glint that felt almost physical.
"I know Jenkins is an heir to elven blood," Audrey said, her voice steady despite the pressure. "And that he descends from the most ancient and sacred branch of the Middleton line. Apologies, but could you be a bit gentler? I think I just heard my wrist snap."
Despite her words, Bevanna didn't release her grip. They were deep within the Sage's Church; if she chose to kill Audrey right here and now, no one would ever know.
"There's no need to panic, Bevanna. Think about it. Anyone familiar with both Jenkins and the elves could connect the dots. He hasn't shown any obvious signs, but you and Papa Oliver still figured it out from his Soul Trait Ability and the little details of his daily life, didn't you? If you could see it, then of course I could too."
"What else do you know?"
The matter of the World Tree ritual was secondary. The real secret, the one with an unknown connection to it all, was the unformed seedling.
The ritualistic blood of the Middleton family had been diluted to near non-existence over the ages. In this epoch especially, the descendants had shown no unusual traits beyond a youthful appearance and long life. But the connection between Jenkins's extraordinary ancestral regression and his unique soul trait was impossible to parse. Had the power of his bloodline influenced his soul, creating this ability? Or had the power of his soul reawakened his dormant bloodline, bringing the Middleton secret back into the light?
Either way, this was a secret that could never fall into the hands of detestable heretics. No matter how sensitive Audrey's identity was, Bevanna could not let her walk out of this church with such knowledge.
"What matters isn't what I know," Audrey said softly, "but what I intend to do."
Ignoring the pain in her wrist, she leaned forward and whispered a single word in Bevanna's ear. Bevanna's green eyes widened, her pupils contracting as if she'd heard the impossible.
"Are you certain you want to take this path? You know what will happen if you fail. Not even the Church has planned for Jenkins to obtain..."
She released Audrey's wrist and retreated behind her desk. The diviner offered a faint smile, pulling a small pouch from her pocket and rubbing some of its powder onto her injured wrist.
It wasn't nearly as effective as Jenkins's healing, but it would at least numb the pain of the broken bone for a while.
"Of course I know. But I'm not the first to attempt this path, and those who succeeded in the past have proven it's possible."
Bevanna declared. "Only a madwoman would make such a gamble. With your talent, you have so many other paths you could choose."
"But this is the only path that leads the furthest. Bevanna, you're already a demigod. You should know how critical the choices we make at this level are. I'm not like Ale... like my friend, who can forge entirely new paths with sheer willpower and intellect. And I don't want to end up like you and most others, forever trapped in a realm that only appears powerful. The opportunity is here. Why shouldn't I seize it?"
She had unintentionally revealed a shocking piece of information, but unfortunately, the only one to hear it was Chocolate, who had been left behind on the sofa. The cat was waiting for Jenkins to return, and it swore it would be absolutely furious if he didn't come back soon.
"I haven't made the wrong choice."
Audrey repeated, her voice firm. "Especially after getting to know Jenkins. He wasn't born extraordinary—he is destined for it. I would give him everything I have, just for a sliver of that chance."
Bevanna let out a very unladylike snort, crossing her arms as she sat back in the chair behind her desk. The golden divine runes on the walls faded, and the curtains drew open once more.
The tension in the room vanished in the blink of an eye, as if the entire confrontation had never happened. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel-fire.net
Night had fallen outside, but the office was filled with a warm, steady light.