Krafft's Anomaly Notes

Chapter 338 Holy Object
"They walked away. Did you really prepare a midnight snack?"

"Of course, this is thanks to the generosity of His Excellency Baron Priyère, who provided fresh ingredients that were not cooked using the exotic local methods." Kraft dusted off his robe and was once again thankful for his good habit of carrying gloves with him.

Some people say that dust is the snow accumulated by time. Then this place should belong to Wendeng Port in the realm of time. If it were a little more off, it would have fallen out of the edge of the civilized world and been buried by the snow.

In just one generation, the sturdy nest that humans had worked so hard to build has become a den of demons that makes them tremble with fear.

"Let's check and see if there's anything special. Let's finish early. I'm feeling a little hungry."

This place is about the size of a regular bedroom, and all the small odds and ends have been moved out long ago. If we finish checking it out quickly, we'll probably still be able to make some hot soup.

"What do you think we are looking for?" Brother Raymond glanced at the corridor that had returned to silence.

"I'm not sure. It would be best if it had left or simply dissipated, but if not, you might feel a sudden enlightenment when you see it, like you suddenly figured out a difficult problem or understood a piece of unfamiliar text."

"I guess you mean words like 'illumination', 'revelation', 'enlightenment', etc., which are already in the scriptures."

"Thanks for the reminder. Actually, there is a difference. Unlike things you figure out yourself, you can't accurately convey that feeling to others afterwards." Kraft put down the account book and pulled open the drawer of the reliquary with both hands. The movable structure seemed to be rusted somewhere.

"But there is another possibility that you didn't feel anything until much later when you connected it to new clues."

"So is there really any point for me to be here?"

"Of course, you can help me keep accounts." Kraft shook the drawer up and down and finally pulled it out. As expected, there was nothing inside. "Oh, okay, don't look at me like that, I was just kidding.

“Actually, you need to recognize certain symbols. I don’t recognize these fancy decorations. What if there is something in it that requires a theology degree to understand?
"There are many people here who have a background in theology, but there is only one person who is suitable to know the inside story. There is no second choice."

"Young people don't know what they will face yet. Is this appropriate?" Raymond said, only to find that he had fluently excluded the other party from the category of "young people" and classified him into Green's generation.

"The truth is we don't know what we're going to encounter, and we'll be in this state of ignorance for a long time. It's hard to explain storms to inland people who are going out to sea for the first time. You have to wait for the thunder to roar and point to the approaching wall of cloud to tell them that's what they're going to face."

"What if someone gets scared?"

"Then at least there's still time to get him back to shore." Kraft checked every side of the drawer in his hand over and over again, then threw it to the monk who was stroking his short beard thoughtfully.

"Help me check these first. Have some faith in these good boys. If all else fails, you can go to the farm at the foot of the mountain to collect rent for the Knights. At least they will count."

"Don't tell anyone in advance, or you'll end up reaping the rewards of twelve farmers."

"Why, don't they want to be true knights of the church?"

"What is the ultimate goal of the Knights?"

"It's a fiefdom."

"What is the fiefdom used for?"

"Collecting rent..." Oh no, now I can skip the process and go straight to the goal, saving myself from half a lifetime of detours.

The most comfortable option must not be put out in the open. The two reached a tacit agreement on this issue and continued to work on counting the Knights' property.

As the inventory progressed, Kraft initially gave up the idea of ​​selling the precious metals directly. On the one hand, it was because the economic situation of the Knights was good, but more importantly, these things had considerable artistic value, and the intact ones were obviously more valuable, but it was difficult to sell them.

He rummaged through every accessible place, feeling around in the backs of drawers, tapping on structures that might be hollow, looking for hidden objects.

The design of these things is quite ingenious. After taking out several drawers of the reliquary, they can be assembled in the preset slots on the top to form a small exhibition stand for close viewing and worship. The walnut cabinet has a deep and warm color, and the edges are wrapped with precious metal foils, and the cloud patterns inlaid with giant clams are outlined, making the tabletop seem to be in the sky with surging clouds.

The rest of the decoration is relatively simple, with light linings that flow like rain or silk and merge down to the foot, making a claw-ball style between the claws of a bird and the palm of a primate, grasping the spherical bottom of the foot.

The holy objects inside were of course no longer there, but judging by the size of the drawer, they should be no larger than a fist, and there should be at least three or four of them.

Raymond seemed to have some doubts about this thing, "They actually have a reliquary."

"Is there anything strange about it? I thought every monastery or church had one. Even the church in Wendeng Port has one. I went to see it when I was a child and heard that it was St. Simon's thing." The distance was too far at the time and there was no tour guide. I only saw a gorgeously decorated cabinet from a distance and couldn't see clearly what was inside.

A professor unintentionally exposed how often he went to church.

"At least it's not that common." Raymond looked at the thing from a distance, trying to reconstruct the items that had been stored there.

"Generally speaking, only places with a certain scale and history can have holy objects, and there are also standards. The most glorious ones are of course the holy objects that have had direct contact with the Heavenly Father. The Cathedral of Our Lady has a collection of the cups that the Heavenly Father used when he incarnated and descended to earth. Occasionally, they are taken out during ceremonies."

"I heard that the Crown of Thorns is still preserved in the Holy City, but I don't think I will ever have the chance to visit the continent and see it with my own eyes."

"That's a stretch. Most of the collections are actually relics of famous people, or some 'miraculous' items, but these generally require a connection with a monastery."

"It has to be an important relic of the founder of the order, or even the patron saint who has been canonized. It also has to be consistent with the functions and missions of the order, such as education, missionary work, and poverty relief. For example, our Knights Order is suitable for collecting relics related to healing deeds. You can indeed consider related matters."

During the explanation, Raymond did not forget to discipline the new leader who had no sense of urgency, saying that it was time to buy some things that had no practical use to decorate the house.

“Sometimes, objects related to the history of the order or important achievements are also preserved as holy relics. But these things generally have one thing in common – they are famous.”

The monk approached the spliced ​​stand, hoping to find traces of brackets, photocopies, etc. "It's not just famous, it's very famous. The churches and monasteries that own it will actively promote it to attract more people to make pilgrimages."

"Moreover, these holy objects need to undergo special verification and review before they can be recognized and issued with a certificate with a signature and seal. In other words, they will be notarized and archived in Dunling."

As an important item for the church to conduct business, the identification standards are much stricter than outsiders imagine. It must be reported by the regional bishop, reviewed by the Congregation for the Canonization of Saints, consulted with scholars of history and theology, publicly reviewed by the cardinals, and finally confirmed for legal compliance. Each step is recorded in documents and handled by people.

"But you haven't seen it?" Kraft guessed the problem.

"No."

"Maybe it's because the bishops have sold too many holy relics wholesale over the years, so you have no impression of them."

"This monastery was the original diocesan center and was only used for a dozen years before it was abandoned. How could there be any religious orders with a long history and famous figures around it?" This is obviously illogical.

"There is another question. Where did they take the holy relics? The relocation needs to be reported and approved, and the worshippers must be informed. Even in an emergency, it must be explained afterwards. These are not private belongings..."

"Unless they never submitted it to Dunling for certification from the beginning, there would be no archive at all, and there would be no migration application and destination." Kraft took the initiative to add the second half of the sentence.

"In other words, there is a high probability that an extremely important item that is closely related to the local order has been illegally transferred to an unknown place?"

Raymond nodded heavily.

"Is there any way to find out?" This seems to be a clearer breakthrough.

"They can't possibly erase the entire parish's past records. If you look carefully, you'll always find some traces somewhere. If you're lucky, maybe it's in that pile of unfinished books."