Huff! Huff!
It was the middle of the night in the Orient City, and the only people in the empty streets of the city were the guards or the thieves.
Amongst them was another group of people.
Two completely wasted drunkards, being supported by a black-haired individual.
It was Raven, carrying Pevon and Janet back from the bar to their place of residence.
Which was a problem for him, since he neither knew where they both resided.
And he wasn't sure how safe it was here in the middle of the night.
So he was just dragging them to the nearest inn he could find.
There were a lot, but many seemed sketchy to him.
So he skipped them all entirely.
Fwoo!
The cool, quiet winds of the night felt quite nice and refreshing, though.
Despite carrying two people on his shoulders, Raven felt he was all alone in this night.
"Raven!" Pevon was completely wasted, and even his voice sounded woozy.
"Hmm!?"
Raven replied.
"Do you think I can handle such a job myself?" His drunk voice had a hint of sorrow and dejection intgrated to it.
Raven looked at him, his eyes sombre.
He was just looking down, since none of his body was in his complete control right now.
And he was partially in a state of sleepiness.
"I am not sure either," He answered honestly, "I am not sure if I can do anything I want to do either."
The surroundings got silent again.
"Then,-"
Pevon's words were immediately interrupted by Janet, as she interjected in the conversation, "But I know, we would do our best."
Pfft!
Raven chuckled, not because it was funny, but because she said exactly what he wanted to say, "You heard her, Pevon."
"We have no choice but to do our best."
He looked above, in the colorful night, lit by seven different moons of different colors.
"This world has beings beyond the common sense, and beings beyond our knowledge."
"And us humans, we have no other choice but to move forward."
He remembered something from his life back on Earth and said in a tired voice.
"That's all the control we have over ourselves and our fates."
…
A few days later, inside one of the biggest and most luxurious inns of the city, a few rooms were especially busy.
It was Raven, who was changing his clothes after a fresh bath.
Raven was getting ready for something.
An event.
He was donning his official church Cassock, layered with a green Chasuble over it.
The clothing had crosses on both shoulders and a crest of the Sun in the middle.
It was the official uniform for their jobs.
Well, for the public it was.
The new Order of Arbiters.
And today, it was the ceremony for the inauguration of this new Order of the Church.
For the public, this was simply an Order that worked as inspectors under actual inquisitors.
But only the Church knew what this Order was actually for.
"Crisp!" Raven complemented his attire as he finished putting those on.
Knock! Knock!
Two consecutive knocks echoed on his door, and two voices came from outside.
"Are you ready yet, Raven?"
"Come out, Raven."
They were obviously Janet and Pevon in the respective order of their calls.
"Almost out," He replied, fixing a few nooks and crannies of his fit.
Clack!
He opened the door and was greeted by two people who were absolutely shining in their new uniforms.
Pevon, with his tall stature, fit body, and handsome face, was killing it.
In complete honesty, he would really suit anything he wore.
Guh!
It lowkey made Raven jealous.
He was on the taller side in this world, but being a person of Earth, he knew better.
He was of rather average height from Earth's standards, and even his face was above average.
Heavens Above!
And on the other side, the purple-haired, sapphire-eyed girl was also looking pretty.
They suited each other more than he expected.
'I would stick out like a sore thumb here.'
"Looking good, both of you." Raven complimented, fewer words than he judged them for.
"You too, Raven." Pevon dapped him up.
"Your golden eyes are making you look like a proper fellow from the Church, Raven." Janet, being a girl, obviously had a better compliment for him.
"Thank you," He expressed his gratitude politely.
"Here," Janet suddenly took out a pouch of clinking metals.
"What is this?" He inquired.
"It's the inn fee for the days I stayed here," Janet explained, "I feel bad for not paying you back-"
"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Lady, hold your horses." Raven immediately cut her off. "I don't want any money."
"But-"
"Say my name." He said, cutting her off again.
"Raven Marlowe," She answered immediately.
"Exactly!" Raven scoffed and turned towards Pevon, "Tell her, Pevon, about the Marlowe family."
Pevon cleared his throat, clearly hesitating.
"Janet," He said, his tone softer than usual, "His family might very well be richer than most ducal families of our kingdom."
Janet was taken aback.
"What?"
She assumed he was a commoner, only slightly rich, because of his sister.
Church workers didn't make much money.
Clean money!
But being a Cardinal, she would obviously have a high salary.
So she thought she was putting a burden on him.
But this?
"You hear him?" He rebuked her, but then softened, "Just treat me later with something."
"Mm!" She was at a loss for words.
"Now, let's go," Raven said, "We can't be late for the inauguration."
"Lord Inquisitor would eat us alive."
…
Raven, Pevon, and Janet were standing in front of the very same church that the Cardinals had visited not too long ago.
The place was crowded today as well, but not to that extent.
People were curious about the new announcement by the Church.
Apparently, it was going to be big and would make the world a safer place.
Many of them were also attracted by the 3-day feast in the celebration of this event.
That alone was worth it.
The trio was standing in front of the crowd, also eagerly awaiting Lord Inquisitor to make the announcement.
The number of green chausibles in the crowd was limited, but it stood out.
People gave them a few glances, which they either ignored or acknowledged.
It depended on them.
Bump!
Suddenly, someone bumped into Raven's right shoulder.
A person with a head full of red hair.
"Oh, my apologies, respected clergyman." He apologized, bowing down a bit lower than usual.
Raven shrugged, "It's okay, it happens."
The red-haired man raised his hand forward, hoping for a handshake, to which Raven reciprocated.
"Nice to meet you, respected Sire," He paused.
"My name is Jerry Beck."