Chapter 223

Chapter 10 Falling Flowers and Flowing Water – Part 1

The leaves above rustled in the wind.

“What are you thinking about?”

Hearing Victoria’s question, I shifted my gaze from the burning ship to her face.

“It’s very hot.”

That was the truth.

Victoria could probably feel the same as she had already taken off her helmet; her golden hair, disheveled by the wind, was dripping with water.

I also took off my helmet and held it beside me, running my hand through my sweat-soaked hair to straighten it out.

This felt much better.

“What about the children at the orphanage?” I asked softly, looking at her flawless profile.

“They are temporarily staying at the church.”

“What about… in the future?” I paused. “Will it be like before?”

“It will be better.”

Her answer was simple, almost dismissive.

But I understood that this was the promise given by Her Majesty. If she said so, she would definitely help the children, both in their current lives and their future hopes.

I felt slightly reassured.

After a moment of silence, I asked again, “What about that bead?”

“I lost it.”

“Lost it?”

I frowned.

“While you were still in the basement, Teresa handed it over to someone else and brought it out of the city.”

“…Handed it over to someone else?”

“To the gatekeeper of Cataroma, Pierce Leonard.”

Gatekeeper?

Isn’t that the thin old man who guided me when I first went to Cataroma?

“He is the Gatekeeper of Truth…”

“I had people check his background. His name, identity, even his age, are all fabricated, but he has been hiding in the city for ten years.”

Ten years…

Suddenly, I remembered Teresa’s notebook. The messy records in it… now it seems they were using human blood for some kind of experiment. It started several years ago. The bones mentioned in the notebook likely refer to the vertebrae I saw.

“Damn heretics… They’ve been preparing for this for a long time.”

The Gatekeeper of Truth has been plotting for so long; it can’t just be about destroying the shell. The key lies in that blood bead, which Teresa was willing to die to get rid of.

I guess it might have something to do with the land of dragons.

“What exactly is that blood bead, the Goddess’s Tear?”

“I don’t know.” Victoria shook her head. “Let’s not talk about these things for now. Come to my mansion early tomorrow morning.”

“Alright.”

It seems we won’t be able to return to the academy anytime soon… That’s fine, I don’t really have the energy for it anyway.

Although the disaster in the city has ended, so many people died without explanation, there are too many things I don’t understand… But I have a feeling that something bad might happen, which makes me uneasy.

The Gatekeeper of Truth…

For the sake of the children who died at the orphanage, I will find you.

…………

The distant singing had already ended unnoticed.

The ships, not yet fully destroyed, had already drifted away, turning into specks on the river. The ceremony came to an end, and Margaret, having finished her prayers, walked back.

“Her Majesty, Miss Silviga, it’s done.”

Victoria nodded.

She remounted her beast and turned to ask me, “Where are you going?”

I tilted my head in thought.

“Back to the church.”

Elle is still there.

According to Margaret, while I was unconscious, she cried and said she wanted to do something for me. She has been taking care of me diligently for the past three days, so I want to go and talk to her, see if there’s anything I can do…

Let’s not say thank you.

Actually… After going through something like that, I was a bit worried about her mental state. Although Elly still seemed lively and healthy when she woke up, thinking back to the scene… That was really something a child shouldn’t have to endure.

“Alright.” Victoria nodded decisively at me. “Then let’s go together.”

I looked at her with some confusion.

“Are you going to the church?”

With the city in ruins, she must be swamped with things to handle these past few days… Why go to the church?

Victoria didn’t directly answer me. She just reached out her hand. “Get on.”

“No.”

I quickly took a step back, shaking my head vigorously.

“You guys go first. I’ll… I’ll go there later.”

Victoria blinked her golden eyes and gazed at me calmly for a moment before blurting out, “Coward.”

Hey, why suddenly insult me…

I immediately widened my eyes to deny it. “I’m not!”

“Then get on.”

“I… I suddenly remembered I have other things to do. I’ll go first!”

After saying this, I didn’t wait for her reply and ignored Margaret’s somewhat incredulous gaze. I hurried off as if my feet were greased.

If you want to laugh, go ahead… I’m just scared, okay?

When I reached the main street, I put my helmet back on. I originally wanted to find a carriage to take me there, but found out that due to the ceremony, several streets nearby were blocked off, and there were guards in silver armor everywhere; there wouldn’t be any vehicles passing through.

… Forget it, I’ll walk. It’s not too far.

By the time I took a shortcut and returned to the church courtyard, it was almost noon. The heat inside my armor, combined with the clothes underneath, was almost unbearable.

Most of the people here had already dispersed, but many Church Knights were still gathered around the church. The large doors were tightly closed, and many members of the Canyon Sword were also loitering nearby.

The ceremony has ended, why haven’t they left? What are they doing…

With confusion, I walked up to the door, intending to ask, when two knights approached me.

“Excuse me, is Miss Silvija here?”

I took off my helmet and shook my long hair.

“Yes. What’s going on?”

“Please come in, Her Majesty is already inside.”

The knight didn’t explain further, but respectfully pushed open the door and gestured for me to enter.

… What’s going on?

With some puzzlement, I stepped into the church, and then heard someone speaking.

“Do you think I wish you dead…”

I recognized this as the voice of the Empress Dowager.

Click.

The door behind me closed.

The church hall was still bright, sunlight shining through the colorful stained glass windows, casting long shadows on the disheveled woman in the center.

The original participants of the prayer ceremony had long since left, replaced by a chaotic scene. Many rows of chairs in the hall were now lying on the ground, a middle-aged wealthy man was groaning beside them, clutching his chest.

In the center of the hall, Margaret, Reckt, the Church Knight Commander I had seen before, along with over a dozen Church Knights in golden armor, surrounded the disheveled woman.

And in front of the woman stood Victoria’s icy-cold face.

“Mother, what you’re saying now… does it even make sense?”

I walked forward and, upon seeing the woman’s face clearly, realized this was Victoria’s mother, the Empress Dowager of the royal city.

What happened here…

“Sense?”

The Empress Dowager laughed.

“Victoria… you’ve always been so smart, too smart. There are many things that people spend their whole lives trying to understand, but you can see through them at a glance… Do you know, you resemble your grandfather very much.”