Episode 105
An hour before midnight, the temple would dim its lights. It was the duty of the knights responsible for security to dim the lights and conduct a comprehensive inspection of the temple’s interior. On the day of Theo and Lilian’s plan, coincidentally, Theo and the knight with the scar on his face were on duty.
“That’s why I had to keep Sir Damon out in the bathroom. He didn’t even know the grapes were laced with a drug and happily ate them?”
Lilian giggled at Theo’s casual explanation of how he switched duties.
“You’re really something…”
“He always gives me all the mundane tasks just because he’s a bit older than me. Well, I’ll use my good heart.”
With a smirk, Theo draped a robe over Lilian’s shoulders. It was a robe worn by apprentice priests.
“Since not many people know your face, just pretend to be an apprentice priest in case someone sees you. Say I’m guiding you because you got lost.”
“When did you prepare all this?”
“If you run away, it’s not good for me. If we’re going to do this, we need to be sure.”
“Do you know the way?”
“Yeah. Guiding you there is no problem. There’s no one else on duty at this time but me.”
The next part is crucial. While Theo can guide Lilian to where the Platinum Chalice is kept, he can’t help after that. If Lilian fails, there’s nothing he can do about it. And Lilian knew this well. Despite pretending to be calm, her heart raced as she followed Theo.
“If I mess up, I could put Theo in danger too.”
No, Theo will be fine. Once Lilian enters the room where the chalice is kept, Theo agreed to wait for a while and then leave. At least, suspicion of Theo being an accomplice can be avoided.
The problem was Lilian.
‘The Platinum Chalice has a limited number of uses. If I miss this chance, I may never get another. I can’t use it in the name of Maynerd, and there’s even the risk of theft. Security will be even tighter. This is Lilian’s only chance to learn about the past.’
With each step, her heart pounded. Whether it was mere tension or the impending truth, she wasn’t sure. If there was anything to make Lilian excited, it was only one thing.
‘If luck is on my side, I might see Swan’s face again.’
Perhaps that was just a passing thought.
Theo’s steps, which had been leading ahead until he almost forgot to breathe, came to a halt.
It was a tall building where even if you stretched your neck, you couldn’t see the seam between the ceiling and the walls. Designed to prevent anyone from seeing the tops of the pillars that embraced the ceiling, similar to when one looks up at the gods, the building exuded a sense of reverence.
Dimming the light of the lantern, Theo spoke up.
“As far as I know, this is the most heavily guarded place in the temple. I haven’t seen this door open in the past three years, so if there’s a relic, it’s probably here, as you said.”
Lilian reached out towards the door handle. While ordinary people wouldn’t feel it, a strong wave that only those with divine power could sense passed through Lilian’s fingertips. Lilian cautiously withdrew her hand and spoke.
“…I can definitely sense a strong barrier. There’s definitely something here. I’ve never felt such a thick barrier before.”
Though Lilian’s experiences in Boswick weren’t particularly remarkable, she understood how much divine power was required to create and activate such a barrier. But a barrier this strong—was this really in the central temple?
Theo’s expression stiffened at Lilian’s words.
“Are you sure you can go in? You might cause trouble if you touch something wrong—”
“You don’t know everything, Theo.”
Lilian reached out her hand again. A faint light emanated from her fingertips, spreading and flickering throughout the entire building before disappearing.
“The stronger a barrier made of divine power is, the simpler it becomes. To even touch it, you need someone with even stronger divine power.”
People with such strong divine power were exceedingly rare. So, there was no need to complicate things unnecessarily, as security would be maintained internally. Manipulating powerful divine power was as difficult as manipulating a strong current, so there was no need to undertake difficult tasks unnecessarily.
And among the rare individuals, Lilian was exceptionally strong in divine power.
‘Thanks to that, divine power training is a bit difficult.’
Unlocking such a barrier was simply a contest of strength, so it was nothing for Lilian, who had strong divine power. It was akin to bending steel wire.
As Lilian withdrew her hand, there was a click from inside the door. It was a device operated by divine power, so when the barrier was lifted, the lock also opened. As evidence, when the handle was tilted, the door opened smoothly.
Then Theo’s voice came from behind.
“Don’t forget the agreement. Five minutes.”
Theo agreed to wait for five minutes and then leave. The first plan was for Lilian to find and come out with the Platinum Chalice. If Lilian couldn’t find and bring out the Platinum Chalice, the second plan was for Lilian to use it alone and come out with it. The key was to leave this place as soon as possible. Theo still couldn’t shake off his worries, and his brow remained furrowed.
“Don’t stay in there too long.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll just take a quick look and come out.”
“No, you won’t.”
Theo’s hand grasped Lilian’s hand.
“You want everything in the past, Lilian. I’m worried about that.”
It was a fleeting touch. Theo’s hand quickly let go, leaving only a strange warmth behind.
“Don’t stay too long in the past, Lilian.”
Remember that I’m waiting for you.
* * *
Click.
With a small sound, light emanated from Lilian’s fingertips. It wasn’t the divine light Lilian herself created as before. Lilian was inexperienced in handling divine power, so she couldn’t even maintain the common practice among priests of ‘creating light with divine power’ for long periods.
Ironically, the stronger the divine power, the more difficult it was to handle. Creating light with divine power was commonly referred to as ‘materialization,’ the most basic stage. Passing through this stage would reveal the nature of the divine power, making it the longest and most challenging stage of practice.
The problem was Lilian’s attribute of divine power.
―Lilian, it’s probably best for you not to maintain materialization of divine power for too long. You haven’t used it much, have you? Think of it as a stroke of luck. If you had manifested divine power earlier, you might have killed someone and still been alive.
Lilian’s divine power was too aggressive.
As a result, even if she maintained materialization for a short while, it would instantly burst out in all directions, destroying the surroundings. Because of this, Lilian had to struggle more than others in practicing divine power manipulation.
―You need to pass through materialization to know what attribute you have, so it’s difficult to move on to the next stage like this. Since divine power is greatly affected by the mind, try to keep your mind at ease as much as possible.
―I’m very comfortable.
―But your divine power disagrees. Think about it carefully.
Perhaps Lilian’s aggressive divine power was a manifestation of her high wariness, as one priest put it.
So, Lilian avoided using divine power as much as possible. The item she held in her hand was a tool for Lilian, designed to distinguish between genuine and counterfeit relics.
A lighter received from Asher, which could distinguish between genuine and counterfeit relics.
‘As expected. Counterfeits are mixed in.’
Lilian illuminated the interior with the lighter. Then, a dim light faintly illuminated the path among the counterfeits, leading to the true relic.
