Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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Anos stood at the gate of Floria Manor, staring at the manor, with undisguised surprise in his blue eyes.
It wasn’t that there was something wrong with the manor, on the contrary, it was just too ordinary. There wasn’t a trace of sacredness, it just seemed like an ordinary manor.
This was actually wrong.
Even within the light domain, there were also resentful souls, evil spirits, goblins, etc. that would disturb ordinary people. Most of them were not intelligent life forms and are closer to some natural phenomena. Therefore, they could not be completely purified by the divine arts of the Holy See. It was necessary to arrange large-scale divine magic arrays and provide long-term support of divine power to ensure that certain places were completely unaffected.
Lakeside, forest, cemetery, etc. were places where these evil spirits were likely to be encountered.
Since the Archbishop Ellis was recuperating here, why didn’t he set up any magic array?
Anos’ face was as gloomy as water. He made a cross on his chest and then walked into the manor.
The manor’s buildings and soil were relatively new, as if they had been built in recent years. There were only a few servants in the manor, which was completely different from the style of the ordinary aristocratic manors, which were largely redundant and showed the nobleness of the owner.
According to Anos’s observation, none of these servants belonged to the Church, but were more likely hired randomly from the countryside.
Seeing Anos coming in, several servants were stunned for a moment, whispering to each other for a while, and then pushed one person out: “My noble lord, who are you looking for?”
“I am not a nobleman,” Anos replied, “I am looking for Archbishop Ellis Podoval.”
The servant put his hat on in a hurry and said, “I’ll go and inform them. Please follow me first.”
Anos waited in the reception room for a long time before Ellis Podoval showed up.
The archbishop was wearing a thick black scarf and a light gold sleeveless coat, revealing the pure white wide-sleeved bishop’s robe underneath, a standard bishop look.
Although his appearance was not as beautiful as that of an angel on earth like Anos, he was still handsome, with slightly curly black hair, a pair of deep green eyes full of the nobility of a person in a high position, and thin lips adding a bit of arrogance.
Ellis Podoval, at the age of twenty-nine, was the youngest regional archbishop in the entire Vatican.
The Vatican’s power hierarchy division was not complicated, because it upheld the concept that “all men are created equal.” In the division officially recognized by the Vatican, there was actually only one class above ordinary clergy, which was “bishops.”
“Archbishop” was the title of those bishops who had special powers. Similarly, cardinal or red cardinal was just a title. Even the Pope, who stood at the pinnacle of theocracy, was still classified as a bishop.
——Of course, actual power was another matter.
Regional archbishops were bishops who served as leaders in a large cathedral in a large region. They stayed in the local area almost all year round and only went to the Holy City to report on their duties once every few years.
The last time Anos saw Ellis Podoval was three years ago. He was still young at that time, but relying on his natural memory, he still compared the Ellis Podoval in front of him with the one in his memory.
Compared to the last time they met in the Holy City three years ago, Ellis was obviously a lot thinner and his complexion had become much paler. He wondered if it was because of the injury.
What made Anos feel strange was that the sacred aura around Ellis seemed to have diminished a lot.
After he and Ellis exchanged polite greetings, he got straight to the point and asked, “I heard that Sir Ellis was injured.”
Archbishop Ellis sat on the chair, his slender waist straight, his wide bishop’s robe seeming even emptier, as he said calmly and distantly: “Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It’s just that my old illness was accidentally triggered. I just need to recuperate occasionally.”
Anos’ blue eyes fell on Archbishop Ellis without blinking, and he said slowly: “The bishops are the backbone of the Holy See. If His Excellency Ellis has difficulty recovering, why don’t you ask for support from the Holy City?”
Ellis’s thin lips moved slightly, and he gave a cold smile: “I can handle it. Your Highness the Saint Son, did you come here today to care about my health?”
Anos looked at him deeply and did not continue the topic: “I want to know why Sir Ellis did not report the witch trials in Reed County in the past two years to the Holy City in a timely manner?”
Ellis was silent for a moment before he said, “During the first few witch trials, I ordered the local church to clear up the rumors and protect innocent civilians. At first, the local dignitaries were willing to cooperate, so I thought it was just ordinary ignorance and superstition. Later, when the number of witch trials increased strangely, I realized something was wrong. It just so happened that I was not in good shape during this period and ignored this. This is my fault.”
Among the reports received by the Holy City, there were very few reports on witch trials in the previous two years, but there was a sudden increase in the most recent one. This was consistent with Ellis’ logic of reporting it immediately after he discovered something was wrong.
But Anos still felt something was wrong: with the skill Archbishop Ellis had shown in the past, he shouldn’t be so easily manipulated.
He continued to inquire: “What role did Balk Sheen play in this?”
“Although I don’t have direct evidence, the witch trial and some other things that reduced the influence of the Church should be his work.” Archbishop Ellis’s pale face showed a trace of blood, and his thin lips were tightly pursed. “I caught some people who could identify Balk Sheen, but he never left any evidence of direct orders. He either insisted that it was a false accusation or pushed a scapegoat to convict… In addition, Duke Krenzo Sheen’s operation has not brought him down so far.”
Anos frowned: “Why didn’t you tell me all this directly?”
Ellis raised his head, his deep green eyes piercing like a knife: “Because I can’t be sure whether the honorable Holy Son has been bewitched by a succubus.”
Anos looked straight at him without bias and said calmly: “Lian is a devout believer, and so am I – I have never betrayed God.”
Ellis’s sharp eyes slowly withdrew as he stared at Anos, leaving only a cold snort: “Your Highness is still too young. Demons are a filthy race born in the Demon Realm. They are absolutely incompatible with God’s servants. Even with God’s mercy, he can only send down thunder and fire to eliminate these demons!”
Anos knew that Ellis Podoval was a radical in his attitude towards the Demon Realm and demons, so he did not argue with him at this time: “In any case, Sir Ellis cannot escape the blame for the incident in Reed County. I hope that in the next period of time, we can work together to investigate the weirdness here.”
Ellis was silent for a moment. “I need to rest here for a few days. Your Highness, go ahead and investigate. With the Silver Knights here, I don’t think you need me to do anything.”
Anos frowned slightly: “In that case, please Sir Ellis introduce it to me in detail…”
Before he could finish his words, Archbishop Ellis coughed violently twice, and blood oozed from the corners of his lips.
Anos was startled: “Sir Ellis?”
The Vatican’s cross emblem on his gloves lit up, and a ball of soft holy light appeared in his palms.
Ellis, who was coughing up blood, opened his mouth to say something, but suddenly a trace of horror and disbelief flashed in his eyes.
His arm suddenly rose up, as if it was pulled up by an external force!
An iron pistol appeared in his hand and was aimed at Anos who was performing the healing spell!
Then his fingers trembled wildly, as if two forces were pulling them, and finally he pulled the trigger.
“Bang!”
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