People became busy again, after all, Aisoke died in Gear City. Despite the notorious reputation of this young master, Falmont, the founder of the Imperial Military Industry, had only one son, and he was a father who overly doted on his child.
Next, many people will be driven to distraction because of Aisoke’s death, but this does not include Ethan.
Before returning to the apartment, Ethan received an invitation from the Chief Priest, inviting him to visit the Saint Hilman Cathedral. This is one of the most famous holy places in Gear City, named after Saint Hilman at the founding of the Empire, who became the first Pope of the Empire.
Ethan did not refuse the invitation. After all, he was facing the Empire’s collective fond of making big issues, where a misplaced word could potentially result in accusations like "You seem to have disrespected the Goddess of Life Goxia."
Putting aside his stance, he was actually quite interested in the development history of the Imperial Church Court. The Goddess of Life is the most revered deity with the most followers, and the path of the priests born from this faith has become the most respected profession in everyday life, especially in the Empire’s major cities. Before a person’s faith is completely destroyed by reality, they still pray to the Goddess of Life in times of difficulty.
The local priests would also solve the doubts of wandering sheep, after all, the original teachings of the Goddess of Life were about saving suffering souls during the dark ages.
Only under the "interpretation" of the current Pope, many doctrines have been extended to carry numerous era-specific meanings.
The Chief Priest of Gear City is a middle-aged woman, kind-looking, giving people a friendly impression. She led Ethan into the prayer hall, which was empty, with chairs neatly arranged, and the pattern was exactly the same as the churches in Ethan’s memories from his previous life.
The Chief Priest introduced to him the origin of Saint Hilman Cathedral, telling the admirable stories of how loving and remarkable Saint Hilman was.
Ethan listened drowsily, the only difference in the stories that calloused his ears were the names of the speakers, the adjectives describing them, their ideals, and grand goals, which were like consistent themes in a composition exercise, all with the same old content.
Teacher Cat didn’t even bother to pretend and directly leaned against his face, dozing off.
Fortunately, years of work experience from his previous life had already taught Ethan to automatically filter out unimportant information. This skill had been honed to perfection, so much so that he could appear to be interested while his mind wandered.
The Chief Priest was precisely ; she quickly lost herself amidst Ethan’s occasional praises, her smile never ceased since returning to Saint Hilman Cathedral.
Their last stop was the prayer hall, not far from the lifelike statue of Saint Hilman, who, like all devoted believers, clasped hands in prayer to the goddess.
The dry topic about Saint Hilman finally came to an end, and the prayer hall suddenly fell silent.
The Chief Priestess smiled and handed Ethan a silver pendant, "This is a pendant I personally blessed. Your work frequently involves dealing with dark creatures, it should deter low-level dark creatures from approaching you."
"This is too precious, I can’t accept it."
Ethan hurriedly declined. The Chief Priests in every major city of the Empire are fourth-tier clergy, and according to Teacher Cat’s introduction, these items blessed by a High-tier Priest are called miracle creations. If put up in Fireplace Bay’s auction houses, this pendant could fetch a sky-high price.
Although the Chief Priestess’s words seemed light, creating miracle creations is akin to crafting top magic scrolls, requiring numerous precise procedures, and even the High-tier Priests in the church cannot casually perform a miracle creation cost clearance.
Ethan was no longer the inexperienced rube from the past; he knew that accepting this pendant would mean owing a huge favor.
"Take it, you’ve made a great contribution to Gear City. It’s what you deserve."
"No need, this is my duty."
Ethan waved his hand solemnly, "As an investigator of the Reception Bureau, our daily work involves resolving risks from anomalous cases. I believe any investigator would make the same choice as I did!"
Back in Ximu Town, folks already knew Ethan was a helpful young man, easy to get along with.
The Chief Priestess laughed more joyfully, suddenly licking her lips—which was somewhat unbecoming for clergy members—and her gaze at Ethan grew increasingly aggressive.
She saw a pure soul, savoring it must be unique.
"How about having it as my gift to you?" Her gaze swept past the solemn statue, landing on Ethan’s handsome face, "Do you want to explore life’s mysteries with me?"
Teacher Cat woke up instantly.
His fur fluffed up, tail raised high.
Ethan couldn’t immediately adapt to the rapid shift in topic, cautiously asking, "What do you mean by life’s mysteries?"
Perhaps Teacher Cat was too sensitive; after all, they were in the Saint Hilman Cathedral, still in the prayer hall, with Saint Hilman’s statue watching them. The so-called life’s mysteries likely referred to a blessing-related ritual.
"Life’s mysteries, ah, is letting everyone return to their primal state, fully merging souls together in utmost honesty."
The Chief Priest slowly reached for the buttons of the priestly robe, "If you’re interested, I can personally guide you. It will benefit you greatly!"
But it would definitely have no benefit for you!
Ethan almost jumped from his chair, knowing that if he didn’t act now, Teacher Cat might evolve into a white tiger and swallow the Chief Priest whole.
Teacher Cat was already baring claws.
"No need, I suddenly remembered there are some tasks at the bureau that need handling!"
Initially, he thought he was overthinking, but never expected that followers of the Goddess of Life would be open to such an extent.
The Chief Priest wasn’t angry; seeing Ethan about to leave, she didn’t forget to say, "I’m staying in Gear City for a long time. Whenever you change your mind, just come here to find me, or if there’s anything unsettling, you can pray to me."
"I’ll take my leave first!"
Ethan quickly made his exit.
The Chief Priest stared directly at Ethan’s retreating figure, seemingly accustomed to this kind of situation.
Occasionally, boys she had set her sights on would awkwardly flee, but eventually, they’d return. Although this new investigator seemed to possess a clean soul, remaining in this city for too long would inevitably stain him.
She looked forward to that day.
Ethan dashed out of Saint Hilman Cathedral, only starting to breathe heavily once he reached the street.
Teacher Cat hooked his tail around Ethan’s neck and bared teeth fiercely, "Do you think the Chief Priest of the Church can be made into soup?"