The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 46 or can be entrusted
The next morning, Eric woke up early, washed and ate, then returned to his room to wait. The saint's messenger did not come until the sun was halfway up in the sky.

"Mr. Eric, Her Highness the Saint has summoned you. Please follow me into the palace."

The person who came was not Alena, but a convent lady who had come with the saint yesterday but was unable to enter the room. She was in her forties or fifties, with a dull face that looked a little stern.

Eric bowed his head in return, "Please lead the way, Sister Gabi."

"Do you know me?" The female official was a little surprised.

"The Saint mentioned it to me yesterday," Eric said.

"I see." The female official said nothing more, bowed her head again, then turned around and walked ahead.

The saint actually never mentioned her. Eric found her face and name in his past life memories.

Sister Gabi is a very important NPC in the Holy Lady Monastery. In the absence of Saint Irene's defection, many monastery-related tasks were issued by her, so he was quite impressed by her.

Following Gabi downstairs, they boarded the carriage and left the residence where they had stayed overnight. The two knights guarding the door automatically made way and watched them get closer and closer to the inner city.

At the entrance to the inner city, even the carriages from the Convent of the Holy Virgin had to be inspected - the main target of the inspection was Eric.

The two knights searched his body to confirm that he was not carrying any weapons, then took a step back at the same time and saluted him, their heavy armor clanging as they moved.

After passing the inspection, the carriage passed through the inner city gate and carried Eric into the holy city of Lesser.

"..."

Noticing the mysterious smile that suddenly appeared on Eric's face, Sister Gabi looked at him inquiringly.

Eric came to his senses and quickly adjusted his expression, returning a normal smile.

Gabi didn't understand and didn't ask any more questions.

He just suddenly remembered that when he entered the inner city from here before, the screen would pop up with "Lesser left bracket, inner city right bracket..."

The inner city scenery seen through the car window quickly brought Eric's mind back to the present. What he saw with his own eyes at this time was the real holy city.

After entering the city, a long avenue connected directly to the Holy City Square, at the other end of which was the Holy City Cathedral. The inner city was not very large, and it appeared spacious visually, mainly because there were no extra buildings besides the three major building complexes.

The Cathedral complex is one of them, and the second is the sacred temple of the Holy See on the other side of the square - the Palais de la Relais, also known as the Apostolic Palace and the Apostolic Palace.

The Pope's Tower is the tallest building in the entire Holy City, reaching into the sky. Opposite to it is the shorter Virgin's Tower on the other side.

The carriage was moving at a moderate speed, enough for Eric to see the entire city. When he looked away, the carriage had just stopped outside the Convent of the Holy Virgin.

"Mr. Eric, we're here."

Eric got out of the car and looked up.

The Convent of Our Lady of Lesire, also known as the Palace of the Virgin, is the third largest building complex built in the inner city of Lesire. Facing the main facade is the Cathedral of Saint Sagitarius, named after the original saint, and backing onto a vast monastery with nearly a thousand rooms. The Virgin's Tower sits midway between the two, second only to the Pope's Tower in height.

"Mr. Eric, please follow me." Gabi was waiting for him at the church entrance.

Eric followed the elder sister into the church and into a wide vaulted hall.

Above the dome is a painting of the creation of Yela, and below is a statue of Saint Sagitari. Sunlight shines in through the colored glass. The contemporary Saint Morwenna Tullus sits on the high altar, holding a scepter and wearing a pure white saint's dress that is different from yesterday's.

At the foot of the altar, several cardinals in red robes stood on both sides, and they turned their eyes to Eric when he came in.

After Gabi brought the person over, she stepped aside. Eric stepped forward and bowed respectfully at the altar as if they were meeting for the first time.

"Dear Saint, Eric Kimino from Dent County sends his greetings to you. May the light of God always bathe you."

After the ceremony, he bowed again to the unknown red-robed cardinals.

"Oh, here we come."

The old man was much more casual, perhaps because he got up early, but he didn't look very energetic. He waved the scepter in his hand and only looked at him straight in the eye after a while.

"Boy from the Kimino family, the Saint's heir whom I have chosen is your sister. What are you doing here?"

"I am ordered by Yela to replace Irene as your heir," Eric replied.

The Saint asked, "How dare you use Yela's name?"

Eric replied: "It is not a pretense. Yela sent me a divine oracle, ordering me to replace Irene and eliminate the disaster."

The Saint asked, "What proof do you have?"

Eric said, "Yela once told me that she would send down a meteor shower in the night sky of Dent County. This was predicted in the greeting letter I sent to the Saint."

The Saint sighed, "Meteors have been rare since ancient times, let alone meteor showers. Who can predict this? It takes the power of a god, and with millions of witnesses, I believe your words."

Eric saluted: "Your Highness is wise."

The two men asked and answered each other with almost no pause. Several cardinals in red robes looked at each other with different expressions, but they did not speak for the time being.

"Did you arrive yesterday?" asked the saint.

"Yes," Eric replied.

The saint asked again, "Where do you live now?" Eric replied, "In my residence in the outer city."

The Saint raised the scepter in her hand and said, "Choosing a man to succeed the Saint is unprecedented. You go back and wait for news. I must pray to the gods about this matter."

Finally the show is over...

Eric breathed a sigh of relief, but his expression remained respectful. "Yes, Your Highness."

He bowed deeply to the saint, not forgetting the cardinals standing beside him, and then followed Gabi away.

The two figures could no longer be seen. The saint looked up at the mural on the dome for a while, then looked at a cardinal in red below.

"Hobbes, how are you going to repay His Holiness the Pope?"

Hobbes bowed his head slightly. "Of course I will report truthfully, Your Highness."

"Don't you have any opinion yourself?" asked the saint.

Hobbes glanced at the other cardinals, who all looked indifferent, and thought to himself, "What a bummer!" "The succession of the Saint is entirely up to you, Her Highness. Although choosing a man is unconventional, it's not our place to have any say."

"Is that right?"

The Saint glanced at them and said, "I heard that when the previous Saint was choosing a successor, many of you felt that my sister was more suitable."

"Your Highness..." Hobbes cried helplessly, "Your succession to the throne was over sixty years ago, and I'm only fifty-eight this year."

"It seems I've lived too long and can't even find anyone to hold a grudge against."

The saint yawned.

"Let's go. I'll go back with you and hear what His Majesty has to say."

The procession from the Holy Virgin Palace back to the Apostolic Palace included another Saint, along with someone carrying her. Compared to the "young" cardinals, the Saint was truly old and couldn't walk much on her own.

When they arrived at the Apostolic Palace, the Pope was on the tower, and several cardinals and saints took the magic elevator up the tower together.

Pope Sergius VI was also a truly old man, several years older than the Saint, with long hair and beard that reached down to his chest and abdomen, and a kind face. He wasn't particularly surprised to see the Saint coming with the Cardinal.

"Morwenna, you're here too."

"Your Majesty." The saint bowed slightly, then sat aside and listened to the cardinals recount the meeting in detail.

After hearing this, the Pope nodded, raised his hand, and several cardinals backed out of the room.

"It seems that you have already reached an agreement with that child last night." The Pope looked at the saint.

The Saint was not surprised that the Pope knew about this and said, "He claims to have received the oracle from Yela. What else can I do?"

"Yela's oracle..."

The Pope quickly remembered the greeting letter that the saint showed him the day after the meteor shower. He still remembered the words pointing to the starry sky.

“It’s a pity that I didn’t get to see that meteor shower in person.”

The Saint leaned back in her chair, her age evident. "The meteor shower fell in such a rural area instead of near the Holy City. This shows that Yela has no liking for us at all, Your Majesty."

"Don't say it so...sadly, Morwenna."

The Pope walked tremblingly to the window of the tower and looked down.

This is the highest point in the Holy City. Windows in several directions allow people to see all the corners below. This is a privilege that belongs exclusively to the supreme Pope.

Sergius VI raised his eyes again. Even at this height, the sky was still out of reach, let alone the kingdom of God above the sky.

“I feel like that day is getting closer and closer.”

The saint said nothing, but she felt the same way every day when she woke up.

"This body has now become a prison."

The old Pope raised his wrinkled hand and looked at it for a moment, then slowly lowered it. "Many things have lost their meaning, and I no longer have the energy to care. I just hope that when I return to heaven I won't look too miserable."

The desire for peace was the first compromise with aging, and also became the final prayer. The Saint sighed with empathy, "Your Majesty..."

"Morwenna, at least you can decide your own successor. Even I envy you for that." The Pope looked at her. "The final moments may be brief, but they can serve as a source of hope."

The Saint shook her head. "It's just a matter of each taking what they need."

The Pope smiled and said, "He is too young. At least let him look like the heir of the Holy Lady."

The saint thought about it and nodded.

After the saint left, the Pope, who was left alone on the tower, was distracted for a while, then sat down at the desk and wrote a letter.

"Send it to Lutia."

(End of this chapter)