Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 30 Chloe

The church didn't put up any resistance, just a verbal protest?

This is not right. This is very wrong.

You must know that the church is not a soft persimmon that can be easily bullied. As the state religion of the empire, the Candlelight Society has a history even longer than the empire itself.

The church's control over various parts of the empire is no less than that of the royal family. Even a small island like Castel has a church - the church here is not newly built. When the pirates were in charge here, the Candlelight Society had already extended its hand.

In many remote areas, farmers may not know who the emperor of the empire is, but they know how many priests and nuns there are in the small church next door.

In any case, the church's reaction is not what a giant like this should do. There must be some unknown secrets.
"We're here, sir." Connor pulled the reins and stopped outside the church yard.

Hughes pulled his horse back and looked up at the church in front of him.

This is a tall building with a spire. Except for the metal sign on the top which is barely new, the whole church is covered with traces of time.

To put it simply, it is quite dilapidated.

"Master, there used to be a bishop priest here, but he died unexpectedly, and the church no longer sends anyone here. Now there's only a nun taking care of daily affairs."

The bishop priest is actually the manager of the church in the remote area and belongs to the third level in the church system. The bishops of small churches generally have little contact with the church. It is unclear whether the church knows about the situation here.

Zeus's eyes fell on the shattered glass and the hastily nailed wooden boards inside the church, and he walked in without comment.

He had not informed anyone of his arrival in advance, so naturally no one was there to greet him. Walking down the road and looking at the vegetable fields in the yard, Xiusi felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

It was a little shabby, but it was kept very clean and tidy, reminding him of his hometown on Blue Star.

Unfortunately, that was a long time ago.

Pushing open the church door, the rotten bolt creaked, and a clear female voice came from inside, saying anxiously:

"Don't push! Lift the door up a bit before pushing! This will push the door panel down."

A girl in a black nun's uniform ran over, glared at Hughes, and moved the door panel to the side.

"How many times have I told you this? Why are you still...huh? You are?"

The girl stuck the door panel on a triangular wooden block, then looked over with her hands on her waist.

Then a hint of confusion appeared in her eyes. She looked up and down at the exquisite clothes of Xius and the other man, paused at the emblem on Xius' collar, and was stunned for a moment.

Then she clapped her hands as if she had thought of something, revealing a look of sudden enlightenment: "You are the new lord, huh."

"Hughes."

"Yes, yes, Hughes. I've heard from people who came to confess that you said you would impart knowledge to them for free."

Then she realized that her questioning gesture of pinching her waist seemed inappropriate, so she quickly put her hands down, closed her legs, and discreetly hid her muddy leather shoes behind her. "My Lord, I am very happy, well, honored that you can come to the church to confess." She tried to lower her voice and act as soft as possible - at least not too fierce, and be careful not to scare the new Lord away, after all.
"Are you here to deliver a donation?"

Of course not, get out of here, I’m going to die of poverty.

"Yes." Hughes smiled elegantly, motioned Connor to take out his purse, and counted out a few coins as Connor looked at him with pained eyes, handing them to the nun in front of him.

The nun wanted to take it immediately, but after hesitating for a moment, she turned around, took a booklet, and made a note of it before taking the money.

"Thank you for your support of the church. The candlelight in the darkness will always guide you on the way forward. May you be fearless and pursue the light." The nun crossed her fingers and saluted Hughes.

Looking at the serious-looking girl in front of him, Hughes was a little amused: "Are you the only one in the church now?"

"There's an assistant priest, but he was injured before and can't take care of church affairs, so you can come to me if you have any questions." She raised her head. "My Christian name is Chloe."

Chloe, the storm-petrel, comes from a 72-line poem describing the creation myth. Few people would use this word as their own name. It itself carries a tragic color. The storm-petrel chases the storm all its life and finally sleeps forever in the storm.

Xius smiled, but remained noncommittal. He paced a few steps in the church, looking at the benches that were worn but clean, and asked Chloe, "What activities are going on in the church now?"

"Activities?" Chloe tilted her head in confusion. "There are only two of us in the church right now. If we can get enough people together, we'll hold a service. You know, the believers here are mostly fishermen. They rely on the weather for their livelihood. When the weather is good, they need to go out to sea to fish, so they can't come over."

"I remember there seemed to be more artisans brewing sweet fruit wine on the island?"

"Yes, but they are much more stable. There is no shortage of wine-making fruits on the island. As long as you work hard, you can make wine. You can control your own destiny. Why come to the church?"

Hughes was startled and turned to look at Chloe. The girl looked nonchalant: "This is the truth, sir."

Hughes really didn't expect that the nun saw things so clearly. Indeed, people only pray when faced with things that are completely beyond their control, and those who are dying in the hospital are often more pious.

This is one of the reasons why priests often work part-time as doctors.

But it was a bit strange to hear these words coming from a nun.
Xius looked at Chloe deeply and skipped the topic: "Are there any activities to explain the doctrine?"

This was his real purpose for coming here. He didn't know much about the church, so he might as well start with the doctrine and see how the church described other races, which basically represented their attitude.

"Doctrine." Chloe hesitated, biting her lip lightly before speaking. "I'm just a nun. I don't know much about doctrine. I usually just hear people's confessions and keep the church running smoothly."

"Isn't there another priest in the church? A priest, I think?"

Those who can be called priests are at least second-level priests. They must have basically passed the relevant examinations on doctrine and have a certain understanding of the scriptures. Isn't it easy for them to explain doctrine?

"His situation is rather special." Troy said hesitantly.

Suddenly, the door on the inside of the church opened and a tall man opened the door.

Hughes's gaze was fixed on the priest's robe.

(End of this chapter)