Chapter 75

“Chapter 75: The Crack in People’s Hearts”

A giant black dragon, its wings stretching dozens of meters, let out a low growl as it soared through the sky, creating a powerful gust of wind.

On the broad back of this dragon-like beast, a mesmerizing woman in a red dress leaned against a cushion, delicately playing with her long, jet-black hair that cascaded over her shoulders, lost in thought.

“Your Highness, up ahead is the entrance to the Ruins Mountain Range. The Sealed Item that Duke Tilius mentioned should be hidden deep within the labyrinth.”

Suddenly, a little black cat jumped out beside the woman, speaking human language.

“Got it.”

Ivyst replied nonchalantly, coming back to her senses at Afia’s words.

At that moment, apart from herself, all of Augusta Manor’s subordinates were gathered on the other side of the dragon’s back.

It seemed they were about to undertake some arduous task.

As she watched the endless mountains and dense forests rush past below, Ivyst said nothing.

Other than during times of battle, her subordinates hardly ever spoke to her; everyday chit-chat was limited to queries like, “What does Your Highness want to eat today?”

For some reason, the figure of Lynn flashed in Ivyst’s mind.

If he were here, it certainly wouldn’t be so boring.

Ivyst thought to herself.

This was the third day of her departure from the manor.

And regarding the deadline set with Lynn and Duke Tilius, a full five days had already passed.

Who knows how things were going?

Given his abilities, he must have gathered quite a few thousand gold coins by now, right?

For some reason, the corners of Ivyst’s mouth curled into a slight smile.

Ramonta hurriedly dashed towards the carriage yard.

As a follower of the War God Cathedral, he held a deep sense of responsibility, believing that men should be the pillars of their families.

And as one of them, Ramonta did indeed live up to that ideal.

Though life was not affluent, the laborer who toiled from dawn to dusk unloading cargo could only earn a few silver coins monthly, yet he provided his wife and children with the best life within his means.

At this moment, it was just beginning to dawn.

As a devotee of the War God, he took a slight detour to pass by the City Square.

This was something he had been doing often these past few days.

No ulterior motives, just a smidge of curiosity.

He wanted to see if the twelve donation boxes were still devoid of funds.

He expected the City Square to be as deserted as it had been a few days ago at this hour.

To his surprise.

When Ramonta arrived at the City Square, he noticed from a distance that it was packed with all sorts of crowds, completely overflowing.

What was happening? With a flicker of curiosity, Ramonta, who should have hurried to unload the cargo, suddenly halted and walked towards the square.

There were so many people, filled with a chaotic and strange chatter.

This only heightened Ramonta’s desire to find out more.

Fortunately, his sturdy physique allowed him to push through the crowd, and he finally made it to the front.

Ramonta wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned to gaze at the donation boxes in the center of the square.

And then, he froze.

At that moment, the sight of the originally empty twelve glass boxes was nowhere to be seen.

What replaced them was quite a scene.

The donation box that had been tucked in the corner just yesterday, marked with the “Silan Sect” insignia, had somehow been moved to the center. Not only that, it was perched on a tall pedestal, almost like a prize podium.

This made the donation box representing the Silan Sect tower over the other eleven glass boxes, making it exceptionally conspicuous.

It was as if it gained an obvious advantage in competition with the other churches.

But that wasn’t what surprised Ramonta.

The real shock that left him speechless was the mound of glistening gold coins that had somehow appeared in the previously empty glass donation box of the Silan Sect.

Each coin bore the face of Saint Roland I, signifying that they were authentic pure gold coins.

What an expensive fortune that must be! Ramonta had never seen such an enormous pile of gold coins together, nor could he fathom its value.

But the glass donation box had a label stating its amount.

Twenty thousand Saint Roland gold coins!

But why? Why was it the Silan Sect, which had little presence in Orlen City and had long been oppressed by their War God Cathedral?

Ramonta felt utterly perplexed.

At the same time.

Whether it was his imagination or not, the donation box of their War God Cathedral conveniently sat next to the Silan Sect’s, closely aligned.

Due to the latter’s tall pedestal, the War God Cathedral’s box looked particularly shabby in comparison.

Ramonta felt a twinge of embarrassment creeping into his heart.

Just then, a cheer suddenly erupted from beneath the official notice board far off.

With people discussing, Ramonta vaguely caught the content of the newly published announcement.

“It has been stipulated that starting today, all devout followers of the Silan Sect who have worshipped the Earth God for more than three years will be awarded the title of ‘Honorary Good Citizen’ by the City Council, in recognition of the Silan Sect’s efforts in supporting the welfare of disabled veterans, along with benefits such as tax reductions.”

“Buzz!”

Ramonta’s mind exploded at once.

Why was it them, of all people?

The enmity between the War God Cathedral and Silan Sect was well-known throughout Orlen City.

But today, those Silan Sect followers, perceived as the lowest on the faith hierarchy, had flipped the script and become the main character? Glancing at a small group of jubilant individuals in the distance, Ramonta recognized a few faces—colleagues he had openly mocked for their belief in the Silan Sect.

At that moment, the banner above the donation box looked particularly glaring.

“Let’s see which faith is the most kind and generous.”

If asked a few days ago, the answer would have been uncertain.

But from today onwards, it became an obvious matter.

The Silan Sect was the most kind and generous faith! While all other churches chose silence, it was they who stepped up and generously donated!

For the common folk, they couldn’t comprehend the deep things that nobles considered; they could only receive the surface-level information.

Thus, from this moment on, this conclusion would gradually spread and ferment through countless mouths in the city.

It wouldn’t be long before it swept the entire city.

Looking at his own church’s empty donation box, Ramonta suddenly felt a wave of shame.

So he lowered the brim of his hat and hurriedly slipped away in the confusion.

Not just him.

Similar scenes were happening all around the square.