Reincarnation Band Magician

This was a formal farewell.

That brave man should not have left alone and in obscurity.

Eternal Journey: 341, No More Fighting

The Central Cathedral of the Holy City, the Hall of Prayer.

The structure of the niche houses a winged stone statue of a goddess, whose pointed ears and beautiful face are reminiscent of an elf.

Unlike the religions of the other world, the goddess's appearance is very clear, and she is a gentle and mature female image.

Compared to Eris and Lady Aqua, whom Qing was familiar with, she appeared more divine, perhaps due to the difference between the statue and the real person.

Qing and Xiangzi sat in the first row, Aite, Xiaomo and Clara sat in the middle. Every seat was occupied, and the corridor in the middle hall and outside the door were also full of people.

This is true of every church in the Holy City today.

The Pope read the "Bird of the Soul" chapter from the Holy Scripture, declaring that the soul of the brave man had left the earth and was taken to heaven by the messenger of the Goddess.

The ceremony was brief and took longer than the wait.

The old pope, wearing a crown, bowed his head: "May he rest in peace."

"rest in peace--"

The neat sound made the church glass vibrate.

Then came the formal farewells.

There were no advance preparations for the funeral of the Southern Brave.

When the news arrived, an hour ago, the church immediately began preparing for the ceremony.

In church and folk customs, when people die, they return to dust. The mourning and wishes of the living will allow them to reach the goddess's heaven as soon as possible.

Simply put, it means to pass away quickly.

Because they were in such a hurry, when Qing and his group arrived, the church people were preparing to look for white flowers for the funeral.

They were going to ask Celia for help because all the white flowers in the city had been picked.

At first, everyone who came to say goodbye held a bouquet, and later they distributed the flowers one by one, but it was still not enough, so some people started folding them with white paper.

Qing emptied his magic power and created a sea of ​​flowers covering the central church and the surrounding streets.

……

White flowers covered the tombstone and the funeral ended.

"It's still hard for us to believe that man is truly gone. Some believe he's still on an unknown battlefield, continuing his battle with the all-knowing Shurahat. I used to hope that was the case, but now I think it's too much...

"Let's hope that the hero has finished his battle and gone to heaven to live a happy and peaceful life. Let us, the living, leave the struggles of this world to us. Let's stop repeating his words and disturbing him."

Qing helped the old Pope out of the cemetery.

As mentioned before, he and the old man got along easily.

Before the tombstone of the Southern Hero, Qing was the first person to lay flowers, holding a nightingale and a swift, and no one had any objections.

The second was a blacksmith.

After the ceremony, everyone will continue to remember the Hero of the South, as many people have previously hoped.

There are benches not far from the cemetery, and relatives of the deceased are often seen crying here.

"Let me, an old man, sit for a while. Qing, you sit too."

　"Okay."

The dead are gone, but the impact caused by the Brave Man of the South is still having repercussions. A mere two months is not enough to quell the situation. It may take several years or even more than ten years to complete the compilation and presentation.

After the battle, Qing not only gave the intelligence he summarized to the Norm Chamber of Commerce, but also asked the church in the city to pass it on. Relying on the highly completed crystal magic as proof of identity, the Northern Diocese also followed up with subsequent deployments.

"A rough calculation shows that we successfully escorted and relocated dozens of villages, recaptured three fortresses, and eliminated several demons and monsters along the way, saving several villages from destruction. This is an achievement that would make even a goddess smile. Feel proud."

"Well, the goddess will definitely praise me." Qing nodded frankly.

The Pope was startled, then burst into laughter. He laughed for a long moment before continuing, "The goddess would be proud of a child like you, but I thought you would say it was the Southern Hero's achievement. I had already prepared some compliments, but you're getting older, and your brain is slow."

Qing responded, "I thought so before, but it's different now. That brave man paved the way. The better we, his successors, do, the longer his name will be known."

"Yes, but it's a pity that such heroes will be obscured by the haze of history. This is inevitable. Even the most outstanding people will fade into obscurity.

"Even if she were a goddess, if she no longer performed miracles, after a few hundred years, she would become nothing more than a symbol, no longer lingering in people's hearts."

"So I need to work harder. However, I believe that neither I nor that brave man will be buried by history." Qing looked towards the east. "I have a good friend in the elf tribe. She will carry these memories into the future."

The Pope looked over and said, "Ms. Fulilian? There are fragments of her in the history of the Church."

"From now on, it won't be just a few words. She, we and she, will do great things."

Qing was extremely sure of this.

The Pope looked at the young man kindly and clapped his hands gently, "I think so too—ah, then... can you mention my story?

"From the time I became the village's deacon until now, aside from doing things within my duties like treating the wounded, I haven't really achieved much. Compared to previous generations, I'm truly ashamed."

He persisted in this duty for seventy years.

Qing was a little curious, "You don't look like someone who cares about reputation."

"I still care," the old man coughed. "When I get to heaven, I'm sure the goddess will praise me more, just like my mother. It's a bit offensive to say, but I chose to join the church because I thought the goddess was like my mother."

"I think that's enough now. Both the goddess and your mother will be waiting in heaven to praise you."

"If you say so."

Enough of the small talk.

"Your team doesn't seem to have enough outstanding monks. The outstanding monks of the church are all on the front lines recently. Look at me—"

"You can't. Don't bother with the team. I know a young monk who should be good enough by now."

Qing looked back a little embarrassedly and saw Aite and the others under the shade of trees in the distance.

"Actually, my sister also aspires to become a monk, and Xiang and I also hope to further study divine arts."

"That's great! You're obviously suited to learning this. I'm pretty good at healing magic, and the others... there's also crystal magic. My development record over the past few years..."

……

A month after the death of the Southern Hero, the situation in the North had stabilized again, and there was enough time for a rotation of defense.

Monks on the front lines returned one after another, sharing their skills in using divine magic in battle, learning from others' experiences, and teaching new batches of monks, thus learning from each other.

Those who are good enough will also go to their battlefield.

Learning divine arts is not a difficult thing. In addition to the Pope, outstanding monks from all over the mainland who come to report on their work will even give lectures directly in the church.

Many people came to learn, but not many could master the divine arts other than healing.

Having good intentions is the foundation, and to go further and more advanced in the art of magic, one needs to have enough courage and awareness.

Several members of the adventure team followed suit and studied diligently, absorbing knowledge like bread soaked in soup.

That day, I met an acquaintance.

Long Journey: 342, The Most Important Decision

"Haita! Haita!"

A newly ordained monk, dressed in a black robe with a bronze winged medal on his chest, was wondering if he could pester the old priest in the village to have a drink in the evening. At this time, he heard someone calling his name, and it sounded very familiar.

Turning back, the brown and blue colors made his eyes widen.

"Mr. Qing! Ms. Xiangzi!"

It is really a pleasant surprise to meet an old friend in a foreign place.

Qing, who had just called out, came over and found that the shy young man wearing glasses four years ago was now taller than him, estimated to be over 1.8 meters tall.

This... is understandable. After all, the other party's body is probably that of a 17 or 18-year-old Qing, while Qing is still the height of a quasi-DK who graduated from junior high school.

But it's still growing so fast...

【It doesn’t matter, I will still grow. 】

I have a little height anxiety.

Qing maintained a smile as he talked to the monk, whom he had a good impression of.

"Why is Haita here?"

"The old priest from the village church asked me to come here and listen to a class. It's been ages since we last met. The children in the village have almost forgotten your faces. Isn't Ms. Fulilian here?"

"Well, she's in the forest. We'll be back soon. Since we've met, let's have lunch together. It's my treat!"

"I can't. I'm really sorry..."

Qing said enthusiastically, "Every unexpected reunion is worth a drink. Come on, come to my place. Don't refuse. I just happen to have something to discuss with you."

"Let me go and talk!"

……

The old priest in Haita Village is a good man, and I saw that four years ago.

Although the church will provide relief to orphans, it ultimately depends on the ability of the person in charge at the local level. It is a very difficult task to place and take care of those many children.

He also trained Haita and gave him many opportunities to make extra money.

After seeing the clear sky, the old priest took off his glasses, wiped them, and put them back on.

"It's been four years since we last met, and your names have spread far and wide."

After a polite greeting, Qing smiled and said, "Maybe it will spread to even further places in the future."

The old priest looked at him and then at Hatta.

"I understand. Goddess bless you."

He again warned Haita.

“Don’t drink too much.”

"Don't worry, this time will definitely not be like last time!"

Looking back, Qing asked Haita what happened last time. He said it was nothing. He and the old priest drank too much and fell into a pit together on the way back.

……

Aite has a house in Saint City, but its presence is so low that she almost forgot about it.

I bought it when I first arrived. Later, Celia built a palace and I lived there. Some time ago, because it was inconvenient to stay in a hotel, I thought about this again.

Aite went back to take care of Celiai these two days, caring for the empty-nest elderly, even though she repeatedly said it was not necessary.

Su Shi has already learned the basic magic and recorded many techniques of monks in releasing magic. He started practicing in the spiritual space in the past two days. Xiao Mo played with Clara at home and learned the common language together.

“So high—”

Little Clara couldn't even look up to see Haita's face.

"Taller than my brother!"

“I will grow longer.”

Qing picked her up and placed her on his shoulders, introducing her, "This is my niece, her name is Clara. Isn't she cute?"

"Well, a lively little lady."

Haita studied under the old priest and was considered a cultured person, so he praised him in this way.

"Thank you," said Clara, a polite child, now taller than Hatta, and shook herself contentedly, "my brother is taller too."

"Clara, do your brother a favor and go shopping with Xiao Mo later. This is your brother's friend Haita, who will stay for lunch."

"Good~"

Miss Metis trotted over, stretched out her hands, and looked expectantly.

Qing handed her two Sutral silver coins. What was left after buying the ingredients was pocket money, probably enough to keep her and little Clara happy for a week.

Although he is not short of money, Xiao Mo cherishes the opportunity to get pocket money. When he was a child, such a little money was enough to buy happiness, so he should enjoy it.