I really don't want to date a girl addicted to the internet!

Shen Xi frowned and glared at him fiercely.

As soon as he finished speaking, the dimly lit church became so quiet that only the faint sound of the wind could be heard.

"So many people have come?!" the girl in the red scarf exclaimed in shock.

1069. Land in the Lake

Cheng Fei and the short girl in the red scarf stared at each other.

"Don't you recognize the Celestial Queen?" The boy pointed to the broken statue behind him, then to Shen Xi, "That is, her."

"She's the Celestial Queen?" The girl in the red scarf stared wide-eyed, scrutinizing the aloof girl from head to toe.

Shen Xi frowned slightly and kept her mouth shut without moving.

“That’s right.” The boy nodded emphatically.

"What empress? Never even heard of her." The girl in the red scarf remained unmoved, then turned to her companion, "Eileen, have you heard of her?"

The silver-haired girl, known as Eileen, hesitated for a moment, then shook her head. "Never heard of her."

"How is that possible?" Cheng Fei said incredulously, turning his questioning gaze to Nagasaki Asuna.

"Is it really true that I don't know?" the sweet girl pondered for a moment.

The boy was silent for a second. "Teacher Shen, your title is completely useless. How did you become an empress?"

"Shut up, how would I know?" Shen Xi kicked him without any politeness.

Eileen frowned as she looked at the three of them, paused thoughtfully for a moment, then bowed her head in farewell, "We have something to attend to, so we'll be leaving now. Goodbye."

As soon as he finished speaking, the girl with the red scarf took a few steps back, turned around and quickly left, her intention to get rid of the three of them was obvious.

"Wait!" the boy's voice came from behind.

Eileen's gaze shifted, and the girl pulling the red scarf quickened her pace, almost as if she were fleeing.

Cheng Fei watched the departing figure, cleared his throat solemnly, and said in a low voice, "We need you here..."

The silver-haired girl suddenly stopped, turned around, and her eyes trembled as if she had seen something unbelievable.

“We came here because we received this summons. I don’t know if you know the person who issued the summons.” After the boy finished speaking, he stared at her and shut his mouth.

In the dilapidated church at midnight, the air was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The girl in the red scarf paused, then turned sharply to the silver-haired girl, "Eileen, you before..."

"Shh!" The silver-haired girl made a shushing gesture, her gaze fixed on the three people with an inscrutable expression.

The girl in the red scarf tiptoed close to her ear, covered her mouth with her hand, and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Didn't you always pray to the idol like this before? Did it work?"

“Not necessarily. What if they are spies of the Order who just overheard what I said?” Eileen leaned close to her ear and whispered warily, “These three people don’t look like the legends at all.”

"It seems so, but maybe the legend isn't accurate?"

"But you can't possibly wear a neck ring, can you? That's something the cult invented."

"That makes sense, doesn't it? She really is a spy, pretending to be crazy and claiming to be an empress."

"Well, let's hurry up and leave, it's too dangerous here."

"By the way, we were here a few days ago, and we even went to the nearby parish. The Queen was wearing her necklace that day because the cult members tested her and confirmed she was a traceless person." The boy's voice suddenly rang out behind the two who were whispering to each other.

The two were startled and quickly moved away from him.

"When did you get here? Why do you look like a ghost?!" The girl in the red scarf looked terrified and adopted a defensive stance.

Eileen, standing beside him, also looked grave.

Cheng Fei looked on with feigned confusion and shrugged, "Isn't it because you guys got too engrossed in your conversation?"

"How can you prove that you were summoned, and that she is the so-called, empress?" Eileen took a deep breath, her brows furrowed.

"The Celestial Queen," the boy added at the opportune moment, stroking his chin, "and proving it is quite simple."

He snapped his fingers without turning around and said, "Little Yi, say something."

The broken statue stood silent, quietly overlooking everything inside the church.

"Let's run," Eileen said, pulling the girl in the red scarf closer and lowering her voice.

"Tsk, Xiao Yi, if you don't respond soon, I'll format you!" Cheng Fei was a little annoyed and raised his voice.

"Whoa, what are your orders, Your Excellency? I was just spacing out, I'm sorry!" A delicate, childlike voice seemed to come from the clouds.

The two people on the other side stared at the statue in disbelief.

A second later, the girl in the red scarf cried out in surprise, "Eileen, did you hear that? The statue is speaking!"

"Don't rush." ​​The silver-haired girl immediately tugged at her, lowering her voice, "It might all be a trick by the cult."

“Oh right, that makes sense. Wasn’t that the same voice used in that broadcast that preached dogma last time?” The girl in the red scarf nodded blankly.

"What do you want me to believe?" Cheng Fei slapped his forehead, feeling powerless.

Eileen and the girl in the red scarf exchanged a glance.

“Since you say you were summoned, then… demonstrate how you descended.” Eileen hesitated for a moment.

"You should have said so earlier, it would have been a piece of cake." Cheng Fei breathed a sigh of relief.

Next, he led Shen Xi and Nagasaki Asuna in a performance in front of the two of them, disappearing and reappearing from the foot of the statue.

"Do you believe it now? This really is the Celestial Queen." The boy patted Shen Xi on the head.

As expected, he was glared at with displeasure.

"Eileen, it seems to be exactly the same as the legend, what should we do?" The girl in the red scarf whispered to her companion.

"Don't rush, what if this is just another trick by the cult?" The silver-haired girl's vigilance remained undiminished.

Cheng Fei stared at this scene, wanting to say something but holding back.

It must be admitted that this level of anti-fraud awareness is top-notch, even on Earth.

"Why don't we take them to ask Karl? He might know something about the Queen," the girl in the red scarf thought for a moment.

"Okay... fine." Eileen nodded reluctantly.

After the two finished their discussion and looked back at him, Cheng Fei sighed silently, "So, still don't believe me?"

“We haven’t heard of any empress, but we can take you to see someone who knows a lot of legends, and might even know the truth,” Eileen said cautiously.

"You should have done this earlier. Don't let Her Majesty's seemingly ordinary age fool you; she's actually tens of thousands of years old. It's normal that you young people haven't heard of her." Cheng Fei patted Shen Xi's head casually.

The aloof girl seemed to have heard something incomprehensible; her brows furrowed, and she suddenly glared at him with murderous intent, a chilling aura spreading outwards.

"Teacher Shen, why is the child suddenly unhappy? I'll buy you candy at the parish when it's light, don't be angry." The boy shivered and gently patted her head.

"Shut up, trash!" Shen Xi delivered a vicious blow to him.

Nagasaki Asuna, standing next to her, tried to purse her lips, her eyes curving into two crescent moons.

Eileen looked at the three of them, but in the end she didn't say anything. She took the girl in the red scarf's hand and pointed ahead, "Let's go then."

So, under the night sky adorned with an unfamiliar Milky Way, the five of them left the dilapidated church and headed together toward the parish.

"By the way, my name is Lily, and this is Eileen. What are your names?" The girl with the red scarf, walking briskly, placed her hand on her chest, seemingly no longer doubting the three of them.

“Cheng Fei, Her Majesty the Empress’s regent,” the young man said calmly. “She is Asuna, the inspector.”

"She's Shen Xi, right? That sounds weird. If she's the empress, why are only the two of you with her?" The short-haired girl who called herself Lily asked curiously, her red scarf swaying with her steps.

Eileen didn't participate in the conversation. She walked with her back straight, silently watching the three of them out of the corner of her eye, her hands half-hidden in the sleeves of her work clothes.

"It's a long story, but in short, Her Majesty the Empress has been asleep for too long, and now only a few apostles remain to follow her," Cheng Fei said seriously.

"I see." Lily drawled, turning her head. "Eileen, have you ever heard of the Apostles?"

The silver-haired girl silently shook her head.

Meanwhile, the aloof girl at the center of the conversation was engrossed in reading a beautifully crafted book by the faint starlight.

"Teacher Shen, what interesting thing are you looking at?" Cheng Fei peeked out, curious.

"The Origin and Development of the Order." Shen Xi raised the cover expressionlessly.

"Where did you get it from?"

"I borrowed it while you were away."

"Where did you borrow it from, the parish library?"

"No."

That's stealing.

"I said it's a loan, so it's a loan." She kicked him, her cold voice leaving no room for argument.

"Yes, what exactly does it say?" Cheng Fei asked, putting his hands in his pockets and relaxing.

Shen Xi paused for a second before speaking softly, "Long ago, a race called the Witch People were bewitched by someone whose name cannot be mentioned, and they ruled the Lake Land with bloodshed. Until the Order discovered a special mineral deep underground, from which they extracted a component called mercury. The Knights of the Round Table obtained powerful strength from the mercury and finally defeated the Witch People. In order to protect the hard-won peace, the Order established the parishes we see today. That's roughly how it is."

"So the place in the lake is the name of this world?" Cheng Fei thought for a moment.

Shen Xi nodded and turned to the last page of the book. "This is the place in the lake."

It appears to be a world map, with a lonely continent surrounded by ocean.

"Why does it look like the moon?" the boy asked in surprise.

The continent's overall shape is crescent-shaped, with a neatly shaped gap. He wasn't sure if this was for aesthetic purposes in the drawing, or if the coastline of this landmass was truly a smooth arc.

“That’s right, this must be the origin of the name of the land in the lake. There is a large circular lake in the middle of the land that connects to the outer sea,” Shen Xi said thoughtfully.

Cheng Fei looked again and asked, "What are those pieces on top? The country?"

The crescent-shaped continent is further divided into many small pieces by straight lines.

“No, the entire lake area is now ruled by the religious order. These are different dioceses, similar to provinces. We are here, bordering the diocese to the south.” Shen Xi pointed to a certain area in the lower half of the crescent moon.

“I understand. What does the cross on it represent?” Cheng Fei pointed to the top of the crescent moon.

“That’s the central diocese, the core of the order,” the girl said again.

"Teacher Shen, I didn't expect you to have gotten so much information!" the boy asked in surprise.

"That's obvious nonsense." Shen Xi made no attempt to hide her disdain.

Eileen and Lily walked beside them, silently listening to their conversation. They looked at each other but didn't offer any opinions.

After some time, the five people successfully passed the gate check and entered the so-called South Ridge Diocese.

It was already dawn, and the city was gradually awakening. Carriages with carved decorations sped through the streets, and the giant buildings deep in the city rumbled with a deep rumble, while chimneys reaching into the clouds emitted choking black smoke.

Led by Eileen and Lily, Cheng Fei and his two companions entered an area they hadn't visited before.

In the dilapidated streets where the buildings became cluttered and crowded, ordinary people gradually disappeared, replaced by witches wearing neck rings and work clothes.

A closer look reveals that each person has silver lines of varying shades in their pupils, and they cast strange glances at Cheng Fei and Nagasaki Asuna, two ordinary people.

“Pure people don’t usually come here, so don’t look around.” A serious expression appeared on Lily’s youthful face.

The term "pure people" is the official name used by the religious order for ordinary people other than shamans.

Cheng Fei nodded, then recalled the information he had received from the Knight of the Round Table named Isabella that day, "Wasn't it said that unclaimed witches were under the unified management of the Order? How come there are still so many here?"

"Tch, do you think the Order is so kind as to provide food and lodging for so many witches? The doctrine is all for show. They only summon witches to work when they need them, and don't care whether you live or die the rest of the time." Lily curled her lip.

Cheng Fei and Shen Xi exchanged a glance.

"Teacher Shen, no, please be my slave instead." The boy said seriously.

"Shut up, no one here is your slave." The girl gritted her teeth and struck him hard.

In this casual conversation, the group wandered around and eventually came to the end of a street, where they entered a low wooden building.

Judging from the small tables in the lobby and the pungent smell of cheap alcohol in the air, this appears to be a pub.

As dawn broke, the tavern was deserted except for a few unconscious sorcerers lying on the ground.

Lily rushed to the bar, leaned over it, and stood on tiptoe to look inside, calling out, "Karl!"