Southwest of Prit, Glamorgan.
In the morning, Glamorgan, one of the important cities in the southwest of the Wind Stone Kingdom, was as peaceful as ever today. Under the overcast sky, sparse drizzle fell upon the streets. On the unpaved sections of the road, the hooves and wheels of carriages churned up damp earth. Scattered pedestrians hurried along the sidewalks, holding umbrellas. The unpolluted air revealed a sense of freshness in the rain.
On the corner of a certain intersection in the city, on the second floor of a cafe, Dorothy and Naifnis sat as usual by a window seat facing the street, sipping coffee while exchanging information they had gathered over the past few days.
"These are the legends about the 'Full Moon Water Demon' in this city. They first spread among the fishermen of Dazzle Star Lake and eventually became a folk horror story throughout Glamorgan. They are quite widely circulated locally, and adults usually use them to scare children.
"I originally thought the story might become a clue to solving the secret of Dazzle Star Lake, but I didn't expect Miss Dorothy, you had already found the temple and even figured out the truth of the story along the way. That was truly unexpected..."
Sitting across from Dorothy, Neff spoke to Dorothy in front of her. After speaking, she picked up the cup on the table in front of her, took a sip of the black tea, and after drinking, showed a slight look of disappointment. She had originally thought she had found an important clue to share with Dorothy, believing it would add to the clues for solving the secret of Dazzle Star Lake, but she didn't expect Dorothy had already solved the secret in one go.
"The reason I was able to solve the secret of Dazzle Star Lake so quickly is largely thanks to your information, Senior Nefelnis. If you hadn't provided me with the clue that the so-called Silver Peak is Mount Guanhu, I wouldn't have been so smooth. The Eight-Pointed Nest people are still stuck on this clue and haven't figured it out yet." Sitting steadily in her seat, Dorothy smiled and said to Neff in front of her. Hearing Dorothy say that her clue had still played a crucial role, Neff couldn't help but feel pleased and then continued to speak.
"Was that clue really that important? I guess so... I got this from an old Ghost. He himself was a figure from a hundred years ago. Only old locals like him would have occasionally heard rumors about that mountain. It's probably very rare for people of this era to know about these things..."
Neff murmured thoughtfully like this, then she changed the subject, looked at Dorothy, and asked again.
"So... judging from the current situation, as long as we can successfully deal with the Eight-Pointed Nest entrenched here, the mission will be considered a Stone success, right? Miss Dorothy."
"Yes... but how easy is that? This time, the other side sent out two Scarlet. It's not an easy task to deal with them..."
Dorothy said this. When talking about the Eight-Pointed Nest that monitored Dazzle Star Lake every night, the smile on Dorothy's lips disappeared, and her expression became serious. As she spoke, she picked up the coffee cup in front of her and drank her hot sweetened coffee, while Neff, on the other side, said thoughtfully after hearing Dorothy's words.
"Two Scarlet, that's a bit troublesome. I didn't expect the Eight-Pointed Nest could deploy such strong forces here. It seems they really value the temple you mentioned, Miss Dorothy. But I think we can still find a way to deal with them in the end. After all, Miss Dorothy, you have dealt with so many Scarlet before. This time, there's one more, which adds a bit of a challenge, but I don't think it should be too difficult for us."
Neff murmured naturally like this. Hearing Neff's words, Dorothy, who had just put down her coffee cup, twitched her mouth slightly, unsure of what to say for a moment.
'Good heavens, two Scarlet have become just a bit of a challenge in your eyes. If you reach Scarlet, are you going to say the Seven saints of the Church are nothing special?'
Dorothy complained inwardly like this. Because she had been following Dorothy around and getting involved in many incidents, Neff's understanding of the extraordinary world was based on Dorothy's experiences. Due to Dorothy's somewhat outrageous 'achievements' over the past six months, Neff had developed a feeling that Black Earth were less than dogs, Chalk were everywhere, and only Scarlet had some real strength. Seeing that Dorothy had handled multiple Scarlet, she naturally didn't doubt that she could handle two more.
"I hope it will be as you say then..."
Facing Neff's words, Dorothy responded with a light chuckle. Then she didn't say anything more, but picked up the local newspaper from the side of the table. After unfolding it, she looked at the headline on the front page. There, a bust of a figure familiar to Dorothy was printed.
"Major News! The youngest Holy Relic Bearer in Church history, a New Century saint born in Prit! Sister Vania Chafilun will be conducting a domestic Holy Relic pilgrimage in her hometown, Prit. Our city has been selected as one of the pilgrimage cities. Mayor Lehman Mr. has..."
Looking at the headline report on the newspaper, silently calculating the date in her heart, Dorothy picked up a biscuit from the table and ate it, nodding silently as she ate.
...
Several days later, in front of the city Church in Glamorgan.
The continuous rainy weather of the past few days gradually dispersed, and the sky finally cleared up after a long time. Bright sunlight shone down on the streets of Glamorgan. Under the sunlight, countless citizens were now leaving their homes and gathering on the streets around the not-so-large city Church.
Cheers and noise rose and fell. In a fervent atmosphere, eyes were directed towards the center of the street, where a path had been specially cleared by the police from the crowd. On that path were the priest and Mayor familiar to the locals, and between them was another white figure that attracted everyone's attention.
With a constant smile, Vanya, wearing a white Sister's habit, slowly advanced towards the Church ahead amidst the enthusiastic welcome of the citizens of Glamorgan, accompanied by the local municipality and the Church.
This Sister, who enjoyed a certain reputation both domestically in Prit and internationally, undoubtedly ignited the enthusiasm in the hearts of the residents here upon her arrival in Glamorgan. The number of citizens who voluntarily came out to welcome her or watch the spectacle temporarily exceeded the local municipality's expectations. Countless citizens gathered, blocking roads and affecting traffic. Facing the current situation, the Glamorgan municipality could only mobilize more reinforcements to maintain order.
On the streets of Glamorgan, Sister Vanya walked towards the Church amidst the welcome of the surrounding crowd. All sorts of attention converged on her from all directions, not only from the surrounding people but also from outside the populace, in certain secluded corners.
On the side of the crowded street, on the rooftop of a building along the street, two figures were silently standing here, overlooking the scene on the street from above. The two high-ranking members of the Eight Point Nest in Glamorgan, Bo Ade and Gothsmore, were currently gazing at the street below with dangerous eyes. Their gazes were like sharp spikes, firmly fixed on the white-clothed Sister, not moving an inch, as if they wanted to pierce the Sister with their eyes.
"Vania Chafilun... the most prominent young generation in the Church in recent years, a celebrity in North Wu and the Central Conquest Sea, even someone who can make scumbag pirates voluntarily help repair Churches. Why would such a figure suddenly appear here?"
Gazing at Vanya below, surrounded by the crowd, Bo Ade said slowly with a somber face. Meanwhile, Gothsmore, who was by his side, was casually speaking while playing with a spider in her palm.
"What else could it be? Of course, she's just passing by coincidentally. Didn't you see in the newspaper that this little Sister is conducting some kind of Holy Relic pilgrimage? Naturally, if it's a pilgrimage, she's going to be traveling around. It's not strange for her to come here, is it?"
Gothsmore said this. Hearing these words, Bo Ade turned his face to look at Gothsmore and spoke again.
"I know she's here for a pilgrimage, but isn't it a bit too coincidental that the pilgrimage route happens to be set in Glamorgan? We are currently carrying out such an important mission here..."
"Coincidental? Prit is that little Sister's hometown. It's reasonable for her to pilgrimage in a few more cities here. Glamorgan is also a relatively important city in the southwest region of Prit. There's nothing wrong with the pilgrimage route passing through here. What are you worried about when you say it's coincidental? Are you worried that the Church has already detected our presence and sent her over?"
Shrugging her shoulders, Gothsmore continued to speak, her expression not showing much tension. Bo Ade, upon hearing these words, responded in a deep voice.
"That's not entirely impossible..."
"Huh? Not entirely impossible? I say it's directly impossible. If that bunch of Light Worshipping Zealots knew what we were doing in Glamorgan, how could they just send a little Sister? A Holy Steel ship with a knight order would be right on our heads. Although this little Sister has been very prominent recently, her strength is not even Scarlet. You don't think the Church would send such a person to deal with us, do you?"
Gothsmore continued. Hearing Gothsmore's words, Bo Ade retorted.
"What if... this Sister is just here to scout the situation first?"
"Scout the situation? That's even more impossible. The Church isn't without its own investigation agencies. If they really sensed something was wrong with Glamorgan, they would naturally first send Inquisitors from the Court of Tribunal to infiltrate secretly and investigate. How could they possibly send such a public figure here to alert the enemy? That makes no sense at all."
Gothsmore said this to Bo Ade. Hearing Gothsmore's words, Bo Ade focused slightly, then continued to speak slowly.
"What you said makes some sense, but I still feel that this Sister's appearance here at this time is a bit sudden... I can't feel at ease."
"If you can't feel at ease, then find a way to deal with her? Whether it's directly killing her, capturing her for interrogation, or finding a way to contaminate her with Spirit Sight, it can all solve your worries."
Gothsmore said directly to Bo Ade with a smile. Hearing Gothsmore's words, Bo Ade's expression couldn't help but become serious, and then he spoke directly again.
"Stop joking, Gothsmore, none of that is possible. Although this little Sister doesn't have much power, she is currently one of the Holy Mountain's key objects of attention. If she has even a slight mishap... what comes to Prit later might not just be individual knight orders."
"Oh, so you know that much. Taking action against that little Sister is too risky. Once something happens to her, the Holy Mountain will inevitably directly intervene in Prit's affairs. The Nest's plan for Prit is currently at a critical stage. If the Holy Mountain gets involved at this time, our actions nationwide will be severely affected. We finally dealt with an An Yin Bureau, and now no one wants to attract another Church. This bunch of Fanatics is much harder to deal with than those Black Dog..."
Hearing Bo Ade's words, Gothsmore spoke frankly, stating the key point of the current situation in one sentence. Vanya's level of attention was too high. Taking action against her, regardless of the method, was too risky and could very easily attract high-intensity interference from the Holy Mountain to Prit. This was very detrimental to the Eight-Pointed Nest's overall plan in Prit.
Taking action against Vanya would bring no visible direct benefits to the Eight-Pointed Nest. Instead, the risk is immense, potentially affecting the Eight-Pointed Nest's entire layout in Prit. If the Eight-Pointed Nest's overall plan in Prit is ultimately hindered because of this matter, neither Bo Ade nor Gothsmore can bear the responsibility.
...
Listening to Gothsmore's words, Bo Ade couldn't help but fall silent. What the other party said was indeed very reasonable. He himself could not take such a big risk because of a small worry. After careful consideration, Bo Ade decided to abandon the idea of even low-level reconnaissance targeting Vanya. Finally, he sighed deeply and spoke.
"You are right... taking action against this little Sister now is indeed unwise..."
"It's good that you understand. I've checked this little Sister's itinerary. She's only staying in this city for two days, and then she'll immediately go to the next place. Two days is not enough time to wait for the full moon. As long as we stay calm these two days, we can do whatever we need to do after this little Sister leaves. There's absolutely no need to do anything extra."
Gothsmore continued to respond. Listening to the other party's words, Bo Ade couldn't help but fall silent for a moment, finally murmuring.
"I hope so..."
Bo Ade said this. Facing the highly reputable little Sister at the moment, he made the most prudent choice. Now, he only hoped that the other party would quickly finish her pilgrimage and leave soon, so as not to affect their actions here.