Abyzarai POV
Next, we will turn our attention to Abyzarai.
After separating from Ventair, Abyzarai headed to the eastern side of the village.
Her silhouette glided past many people and many houses.
After walking for a while, she reached the edge of the village, and in front of her stood a clean church.
Around it, children were playing, and some priests were nearby, observing them.
From the outside, it appeared to be just a normal church, but in her perception, a terrible surge of negative emotions clung to it. In her perception, the church was enveloped by wisps of black smoke, with human-like faces, mouths stretched wide to their ears, and eyes as black as the deepest shadows.
Her face behind the mask remained cold and calm as she approached the church.
An old priest, seeing her approach, stepped forward to greet her.
"Greetings, madam, how may I help you?"
Abyzarai spoke in a cold voice.
"I am a new adventurer to this village and am exploring the area."
Then she looked towards the church where the children were, and asked: "Why does this church have so many children?"
The priest, hearing her female voice, changed his form of address and replied:
"Madam, our church also serves as an orphanage."
The priest spoke with a sad tone, looking at the children playing.
"They are unfortunate souls who have been abandoned, so we have adopted them under the protection of the gods."
As he spoke, the man raised his hand in a gesture of prayer.
Abyzarai asked: "So, who is the god that everyone here believes in?"
The man seemed a bit surprised by her question but still replied.
"The god we believe in is the god of light and compassion. Thanks to him, light is everywhere, and protection and shelter are everywhere."
"But aren't you a follower of his? This surprises me a little, as eighty percent of the empire's people are his followers."
"And in this village, the villagers as well as the adventurers I've met have all been followers of the god of light."
"A follower of another god, like yourself, is quite rare in the empire."
"May I ask who the god you believe in is?"
Hearing the question, the image of Ventair appeared in Abyzarai's mind: his majestic, handsome, and gentle figure, as she had seen him during her time with him, and the only and absolute creator in her heart. She offered a slight smile on her cold face behind her mask.
"The god I believe in is known only to a few, but he is the only and eternal god I trust."
Hearing the mysterious person in front of him speak with such devoutness, the priest was a bit surprised that a little-known deity could have such a devout follower.
But he didn't care what that god was; as long as it wasn't an evil god, everyone had the right to their own beliefs.
He then asked: "Would you like to come in and sit for a while?"
Abyzarai nodded without hesitation, as she wanted to enter to find the source of the emotions and absorb them.
Afterward, the priest led the way, and Abyzarai followed. As they passed the children, they curiously looked at the new visitor.
Upon entering, she found the space filled with a sense of calm and solemnity.
Gentle sunlight streamed through the tall, stained-glass windows, creating a harmonious scene.
Long wooden pews were arranged in two straight rows, quite well-preserved, likely by magic, so they hadn't worn down over time.
In front of the main sanctuary, a few priests were kneeling in prayer before a five-meter-tall statue, depicting a figure that combined the beauty and charm of a woman with the handsomeness and majesty of a man.
The statue stood upright, with two hands plunging a sword into the ground and its face looking towards the door.
When Abyzarai looked at the statue, in her perception, this was the source of the intense negative emotions.
More precisely, it was behind the statue, indicating a secret passage behind it.
'This place doesn't seem as simple as it appears,' she thought.
She was then led to a room with a large table surrounded by wooden chairs.
She sat down on a chair, and the priest offered her a steaming cup of tea, seemingly freshly brewed.
He sat down opposite Abyzarai.
"I apologize, I forgot to introduce myself earlier. My name is Alias, a priest of this place. May I know your name?"
"You may call me Aby, a new adventurer."
"So, madam, what do you think of our orphanage?"
"Mr. Alias, in my opinion, the atmosphere in the orphanage is very harmonious. The children are all energetic and cute."
Alias offered a slight smile. "Thank you for the compliment."
Then he looked out the window where the children were playing with each other, his hand fumbling with the teacup he hadn't drunk from yet.
He then spoke with a nostalgic tone:
"About seven years ago, one evening while heading home, I came across a child of about ten years old lying in the middle of the road. I then rushed the girl home, laid her on the bed, and took care of her, and then I went to the living room to sleep."
"The next morning, I returned to my room and saw that the girl was awake and seemed scared, so I immediately went closer and reassured her."
"When I asked, I learned that her name was Li. Her family was struggling too much and didn't have enough money to support three people, so her parents sold her to a slave trader. But she didn't want that, so that evening she secretly ran away from her home and reached this village. After two days of running without food or water, she was exhausted and fainted there."
"Hearing the girl's story, I felt sorry for her, so I gave her a hearty meal and brought her to this orphanage."
"Although she had just arrived at the orphanage, she quickly became friendly with everyone here. Both the children and adults loved her, and I considered Li my own daughter, always doting on and loving her."
Abyzarai remained silent, letting him continue his story.
"At that time, I wanted to adopt Li as my foster daughter, but I believed she would be happier and more joyful in another home than with this old man."
Then Alias sighed, looked down at his teacup, and said with a sad tone:
"But one day, about two years ago, when Li was fifteen, a middle-aged couple came here and wanted to adopt her."
"At that time, I was very sad to be separated from her, but I knew it would be better for her than staying at this orphanage, and this couple seemed to have money, so they would probably treat Li well."
"Afterward, we quickly completed the procedures and let the girl go with the couple. As she left, her eyes sometimes looked at me, but I ignored that gaze because it was better for her to focus on her new family."
"Then she got into the carriage with the couple and left the village, and I could only watch her figure until she disappeared from sight. In all my years as a priest, I have witnessed many children leave, but that was probably the most heartbreaking and sorrowful time for me."
"Since then, I haven't seen her again. For the past two years, I thought she would come back to visit me and this orphanage, but I never saw that child again. Sometimes I think how much better it would have been if I had adopted her back then."
After finishing his story, he looked up at Abyzarai and smiled apologetically.
"I'm sorry, Miss Aby. It's been a long time since someone sat here with me, so I wanted to tell some old stories. Please forgive this old man's rambling."
Abyzarai shook her head. "It's alright, sir. Your story is very touching, and I feel regret for you."
Afterward, the two talked for ten more minutes, and then Abyzarai stood up and said she would be leaving.
Abyzarai then bid farewell to Mr. Alias and left the room. When she saw the statue again, she observed the surroundings carefully and noticed four armored knights, whose aura indicated they were rank 0, level 8, guarding the statue.
But she detected a smell that a fallen angel like herself couldn't mistake:
THE SCENT OF BLOOD
All four of them carried the smell of blood, and it was so strong as if they regularly bathed in it.
She decided she would return and tell Ventair about this, letting him decide the next course of action.
She wouldn't act rashly.
After that, she left the church and went to absorb other negative emotions.
Only that church's negative emotions she couldn't absorb.
The other negative emotions she encountered afterward were quite simple to absorb, such as anger, lust, jealousy, etc.
However, when these emotions were converted into basic faith energy, it wasn't much.
But on the other hand, the quantity of these emotions was vast, almost everywhere.
So she would continue to search for her targets.