Secret: The undead do not die in the fire

Chapter 186 The Lord Cares
Wednesday, January 1, 5:9 a.m.

Klein, with a gray scarf wrapped around his neck, arrived at Rose Pier carrying a suitcase and a cane.

The White Agate was anchored there. It was unusually large for humans and was said to be able to carry hundreds of passengers. It had a strong characteristic of this era, with chimneys and sails standing side by side, and 12 cannons and corresponding gun positions on each side of the ship, which was necessary to guard against pirates and fellow travelers.

Under the arrangement of Captain Ellankag, the selected strong sailors and crew members lined up at the gangway, some even deliberately showing their legal revolvers, rifles and sabers. This made the guests who boarded the ship feel more secure and no longer afraid of the next nine-day journey.

Klein stood below, looked up, and walked up the ladder in the undulating blue water.

As soon as he stepped onto the deck and before he could enter the cabin, Klein saw a lady standing on the deck, independent of the crowd, out of the corner of his eye.

She had chestnut hair that reached her waist and fell naturally, and she wore an olive green long skirt and an old-fashioned black soft hat, with a thin tulle hanging down to cover her face. Although her face could not be seen clearly, from her beautiful figure, it could be judged that she was definitely an outstanding beauty.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but Klein always felt that she seemed to be observing him intentionally.

Just as this thought popped into his mind, the next second Klein saw the other party leave the deck and enter the cabin.

"Maybe I'm overthinking it."

Klein shook his head without getting too hung up on it.

He probably read Russell's diary too much, which made him have such irrelevant thoughts.

On the other side, a lady with waist-length chestnut hair had entered the cabin, entering room 310 in the top first-class cabin.

The first-class cabin is the best guest room on the ship, with a living room of about 30 square meters, connected to a master bedroom and three servants' rooms, a separate bathroom, a standard wardrobe and a mahogany desk.

The lady sat down on the sofa in the living room, leaving a noticeable dent in the soft cushion.

And on the lady's shoulder, a small blue doll wearing a pointed hat quietly flew out and sat down on the edge of the coffee table.

Bernadette looked at the petite doll in front of her and asked softly:

"Why are you paying attention to him?"

The petite doll raised its head, revealing its eyes under the pointed hat, and said calmly:
"He is blessed by the golden tree, but he is not a faded one, and this is not a borderland."

Bernadette didn't know what the Faders were, nor did she know about the border, but she still understood and said softly:
"His name is German Sparrow, but it's a fake identity. Is he related to the king?"

The petite doll put its two arms together and said calmly:
"The king trusts him."

"Do you need me to do anything?"

“Just watch.”

Bernadette nodded slightly. They had not originally planned to go out to sea on this ship.

It was only because he happened to meet that German Sparrow on the way that he bought the ticket from a generous lady. As for the true identity of German Sparrow, it was not difficult to find out. After all, this identity was forged by Bernadette.
-
Backlund, North District.

Ember took a carriage to Pacefield Street in the North District.

There is a pure black church here, with a bell tower on each side, presenting a symmetrical beauty. It is the headquarters of the Backlund Parish of the Church of the Goddess of Night, Saint Samuel Church.

Yu Jin did not teleport, but walked into the church, passed through the quiet corridor, and came to the large prayer hall under the sunlight shining through the stained glass, which was rare in winter. It was very dim here, which made people feel peaceful involuntarily. The believers sat on rows of black chairs with backrests, concentrating on praying to the goddess with their eyes closed.

Time passed minute by minute. After listening to the sermon, the believers slowly stood up, walked to the altar, bowed to the bishop with short black hair, and then went to the offering box next to it and put in the prepared cash.

This is not a compulsory behavior, but it has become a routine. And believers are also happy to donate to the church, which makes them feel that they are pious enough. However, the amount of donations varies from class to class. The common people donate about a few pennies each time, the middle class donates three to five soles, and the rich and nobles donate in gold pounds.

This is based on family conditions and is also a symbol of class and status. Therefore, the middle class and the wealthy are usually happy to donate more money to show that they are in a different class from the common people.

But Yu Jin is not a believer of the goddess and has no intention of donating money.

So he just sat there, quietly watching the believers line up to donate and then leave the church.

As time went by, even the bishop with short black hair had left, and Yu Jin was the only one left in the church.

But soon, another figure came out from the door at the back of the prayer hall.

He was an old man, wearing a black and red clergy robe, with a clean-shaven face and deep eyes. It was Archbishop St. Anthony.

Saint Anthony walked towards the same row of seats as Yu Jin and sat down next to him. He smiled and said as if he was chatting with a good friend:
"Sir, you seem to need help?"

Archbishop St. Anthony could sense the confusion of the embers, a kind of helplessness and loss of direction and motivation. He had seen many such people, most of whom had their lives in a mess due to changes in their family and career. They didn't know what to do, and came to the church in confusion to seek confession and guidance.

Of course, this is just a metaphor.

Saint Anthony could clearly feel that Yu Jin was different from the others. He was a little confused, but he had not lost his direction. This was undoubtedly a bit contradictory, and it also made Saint Anthony a little surprised and puzzled. He didn't know what the follower wanted and what he was looking for.

The embers stared at the altar. The bright sunlight piercing through the stained glass cast pure and faint spots on it. They connected with the almost dark environment around them, interweaving light and darkness, and transformed into a lofty starry sky.

He suddenly asked:
"Archbishop Anthony, can outsiders enter the church's painting world?"

"of course can."

Archbishop St. Anthony smiled and nodded. "As I said a long time ago, you can enter the church's painting world at any time. No additional application is required. I will inform the church in advance of the situation."

"Do not."

Yu Jin shook his head slightly and said slowly, "I mean the painting world of other churches."

Archbishop St. Anthony was stunned for a moment, and immediately realized that Yu Jin still did not want to enter the painting world kept by the church.

Apart from the church, there are a total of five painting worlds owned by other forces, belonging to the three major orthodox churches: the Church of Mother Earth, the Church of Steam and Machinery, and the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, as well as the two major secret organizations, the Aurora Society and the Dawn of the Elements.

Saint Anthony fell silent, feeling somewhat puzzled, but he quickly responded, saying slowly:
"I will try to contact other churches, but if you want to enter the painting worlds held by other forces, I suggest you start from the Dawn of the Elements."

"Elemental Dawn?" Yu Jin turned his gaze away from the altar and asked in surprise, "Why?"

Among the forces that own the painting world, the Dawn of Elements is undoubtedly the weakest. Even among secret organizations, the strength of the Dawn of Elements is ranked last.

After all, the original purpose of this organization was to fight against the Moss Ascetic Order. It mastered the Hermit Path and the Wheel of Fortune Path, blended elements of various schools of mysticism, had its own set of theories, and its members were good at casting spells and mastered many ancient witchcrafts - but they did not have their own gods.

This also means that the members of this organization will not and cannot obtain the protection of God, and it will be quite difficult to recruit members.

But because of this, this organization is particularly low-key compared to secret organizations such as the Aurora Society. Because they have no gods to believe in, they have no need to spread their beliefs and recruit believers, and they rarely come into contact with other organizations, which has led to many people never even hearing the name of "Elemental Dawn".

But Ember wanted to enter the painting world rather than rob it, and as for a little-known secret organization like Dawn of the Elements, Ember didn't even know who was in this organization or where they were. Naturally, he couldn't contact them, nor could he enter the painting world they owned.

In comparison, even the Aurora Society is easier to enter than the painting world of Elemental Dawn.

However, he had already been to the Aurora Society's painting world once, so the other three orthodox churches should be his first choice.

Archbishop St. Anthony smiled and explained:
"Your Excellency, you should still remember Bernadette Gustave. She is the founder of the Dawn of Elements."

There was a glimmer of understanding in Yu Jin's eyes.

Since Bernadette was the founder of Elemental Dawn, she must be very clear about the location of the painting world controlled by Elemental Dawn. Asking her for help was undoubtedly the quickest way, but unfortunately it was impossible. Because she had already repaid the favor in the Backlund smog incident, she didn't owe Yu Jin anything.

Yu Jin hesitated for two seconds and then slowly said:

"Let's start with the True God Church."

"can."

Archbishop Saint Anthony nodded slightly, without making any suggestions on Yu Jin's decision. He smiled and said, "I will contact the leaders of other churches. Please wait patiently for a while. I will inform you as soon as there is a result."

Although the painting world is one of the heritage of the Orthodox Church and is usually kept in the temples of the major Orthodox Churches, it is not completely inaccessible to outsiders. Especially for the Church of the Night, which is also an Orthodox Church, it is not a difficult task to negotiate.

Of course, even the True God Church has to look at people.

For example, if people from the Church of the Eternal Sun and the Church of the Storm went to negotiate with the painting world kept by the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, they would definitely be driven out by the people of the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom.

After all, these three churches have always been at odds with each other, and they could easily come to blows if they just met. Otherwise, these three churches would not belong to three different countries and never have any contact with each other.

"it is good."

Yu Jin slowly stood up, extended his hand to Archbishop Saint Anthony, and said softly, "Goodbye, Archbishop Anthony."

Archbishop St. Anthony also smiled and stretched out his hand to shake his.

"Goodbye."
-
In a secret house in Backlund Queens District.

In the basement of the house, which was so spacious that it looked like a temple, several candles flickered with yellowish flames, illuminating the altars, chairs, round tables and a nearly 3-meter-tall statue placed around. It was a person hanging upside down with his legs tied with chains. The upside-down person had a giant's unique vertical single eye, and his arms were stretched horizontally, forming a cross.

Mr. A, wearing a black robe with a hood, kneeled in front of the statue, whispering something devoutly in the darkness.

At the edge of the light, in an extremely dark place, a human figure seemed to appear and disappear, sometimes shaking, sometimes stretching, a thin layer, without thickness, like a shadow that came to life.

"The Dark Saint."

Mr. A sensed the arrival of someone and bowed his head respectfully.

The Dark Saint lowered his gaze to Mr. A who was kneeling in front of the statue, and said in a low voice:

"You did a great job."

Mr. A's expression suddenly became enthusiastic, and he raised his hands high:

"Praise my Lord!"

The Dark Saint silently watched Mr. A finish his prayer, and then asked:
"Has anything happened recently?"

"No."

Mr. A recalled carefully and shook his head, "Since George III was assassinated and the royal family cut off contact with us, they have no longer contacted us. I also sneaked into the ruins, but found nothing. It was as if the ruins disappeared out of thin air without leaving any trace."

"In addition to this, the Secret Saint has sent messages several times to hold Mr. X accountable for his death."

The Dark Saint's expression remained unchanged, and he said indifferently:
"Don't worry about him. They crossed the line on their own. Even if they die, it's not our fault. If he comes to ask for accountability again, just let him come to me and I will explain it to him in person. Besides, don't cut off the contact over there. He may need us next time."

After a pause of one second, he slowly said, "This is the Lord's instruction."

Although the Secret Saint and the Dark Saint are both demigods of the Aurora Society, and there is no friction between the two sides. On the contrary, there have been several times of cooperation that both sides are quite satisfied with. However, when it comes to matters involving the "Master", everyone has to stand aside.

Mr. X came to Backlund without permission and crossed the border to hunt down members of the Abraham family, which was a violation of the rules.

What's more, he was involved with that side, so even if he died, it would be in vain—

Even if he didn't die, the Dark Saint would kill him personally to avoid delaying the Lord's plan because of him.

After a brief thought, the Dark Saint suddenly took out a picture frame covered with black cloth from the shadows, handed it to Mr. A, and instructed:

"This is the new entrance. If they contact you again, you can actively invite them in and meet them."

"clear."

Mr. A bowed his head respectfully and had no objection to this.

(End of this chapter)