"Documents, you say?" He repeated their demand, checking his pockets.
He had nothing but that note given to him by the silver woman.
Err…!
'...'
"Check your list, my name should be on there," He had to leverage his name yet again.
Eve had advised against this.
But as his sponsor, this entire thing was on her.
"What list?" They asked.
A sweat broke down his forehead.
This wasn't the question he expected from them.
Weren't they supposed to ask him about his name?
And he would reply by saying his name, emphasizing his surname.
And they would gasp in awe.
'Since when was I such a fucking loser?'
Being irresponsible and wanting to hang on to Eve's name for everything.
Even back then.
It seems he was a bit too reliant on her.
"I… forgot to bring it here," He sounded defeated, his shoulders drooped.
Pfft!
"Then what are you even doing here?" One of them chortled.
"Having a pleasant morning stroll, aren't we?" The other guard chimed in.
Guh!
He felt firsthand embarrassment, all thanks to his sister.
She most definitely had his documentation.
"Have a good day, gentlemen. I will see you again," He bade them farewell, heading outside the basement.
Tak! Tak!
Suddenly, another pair of footsteps echoed from the front.
He looked up to see a beautiful lady's figure become apparent from the darkness of the tunnel.
She had a bored expression adorning her pretty face, her sapphire eyes standing out in the dark.
Her hair was a grape purple, which really suited the moon around her.
Her tunic and attire looked simple on the surface, but surrounded by luxuries himself, he immediately realized she wasn't of a commoner background.
Their eyes met mid-way, as they sized each other for a second or two before diverting their gazes away.
'I should head out to Eve soon,' He went on his way quietly.
'He wondered how strong she was, and what the average level of the participants in this was?'
But regardless, the first thing he wanted to do was to find Eve.
He didn't know how long it would take for him to find her, or how early he had to be at the venue.
Just to be safe.
He made his way outside while appreciating the beauty and exited the main door.
"Now, where could she be?" He wondered, not knowing anything about this alien city.
He only had a bit of emergency money and nothing else.
He walked down the cathedral's stairs, only to see a rather barren street.
"Excuse me?" He called out to a random stranger on the street.
"Hmm?" It was a young man with stubble.
"Do you need something?" He asked, his accent a bit alien.
"Can you point me in the direction of the biggest church in this city?" He asked, politely.
He reckoned, what better place to find a cardinal than the biggest church in the city?
"There!" He pointed South-east, "Just keep going there, and you will reach there."
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I am in a bit of a hurry."
"Is there something going on?" Raven asked, curious about this whole city.
He had a faint suspicion that it might be linked to his sister.
"The same reason as you." He chuckled at this question. Was he a bit slow?
"Cardinal Eve and Cardinal Mark are personally visiting the Orient Cathedral, so we were hoping to catch a glimpse of them."
"Oh!"
Of course, it was them.
Maybe because he was her brother, or that he was surrounded by both of them for the last week, he really tended to underestimate the level of a Cardinal.
The level of influence they held over the general public.
In this world without fast transportation or communication, they were still massively popular.
In the modern world, they would be equivalent to some global superstars.
"Haha! Everyone had the same idea, it seemed," He acted dumb, his chuckle dry..
The guy was not amused at all.
'Gosh, people are so uptight in this period of time.' He thought, remembering his colleagues from the Earth.
"If you want, you can follow me," He turned around and went on his way, as he was heading there.
Raven decided to follow him.
He didn't want to risk being lost in this unfamiliar city.
It took them a good few minutes of walking to reach their destination.
The crowd was substantial, but the real eye pleaser for him was the Cathedral itself.
A grand, bright church with golden engravings etched all over it.
It felt bright and warm, unlike the gothic, abandoned church he had exited a moment ago.
It had four massive steeples erected in all four directions, with a larger, more intricate one right in the center.
The Sun's rays drowsed the devotees with its warm light, further boosting their morale.
'Damn!' Raven doubted he would get to meet his own sister with a crowd like this.
He noticed his carriage under a tree not too far from him, which was relatively less packed.
But he doubted waiting there would be optimal, since the crowd would move there as she moved.
Ugh!
This is why he hated idol-worshipping culture.
But he spotted someone rather unstirred there.
The coachman.
He made his way to the coachman and called him out, "Yo!"
A rather unfitting greeting for this time, but the coachman immediately gave him a bow of courtesy, "Do you need something, young master?"
"Yeah, do me a favor and when she returns, ask her to give me my documentation." He asked, taking something out of his pouch.
It was a few coins, a few Sols as they called it here.
The official currency of the Holy State.
Pocket change for him, but quite a substantial amount for the general public.
"Make sure to convey the message to her to find me in some inn near the chapel."
Handing out the coins to him, "And go get yourself something good to eat."
It was merely just a gesture he remembered from Raven's memories.
Stuff like this not only made it almost impossible to forget their tasks but also built a certain level of loyalty towards him.
"I would be honored, young master." Sliding the coins in his pockets sneakily.
"You and your friend have a good day," He nudged him.
"Friend?" But he was confused and followed the coachman's line of sight.
Someone was behind him.
"You!?"
His eyes widened at the sight of the familiar face he had just come across not long ago.
It was the girl from the chapel's basement.