Before leaving, the group once again passed the beach ravaged by the great battle.
Without corruption, both the sky and the sea were purely beautiful in blue. Even the desolate ruins left by the great battle had become peculiarly shaped "shells" on the beach. Compared to the wreckage, they were more a part of the landscape.
Nol didn't want to leave too many clues for others, especially for the Temple of Life and the Eternal Church. The blue flame burned, turning cloth, metal, and wooden charms into ashes.
He left only a little bit at the edges—the honey-colored plastic eyes of a teddy bear, the snow-white fragments of weapons, the dark red splinters of wood. They were combined and magically carved into a round, tricolored bead.
It had no power. Nol simply couldn't bear to destroy them all.
It was part of the three creators' hard work.
Nol struggled to unfasten the pendant around his chest and threaded the bead onto it. It lay quietly alongside the key to Paradise and the wedding ring, increasingly resembling a handmade trinket by a young girl.
"Teest, give me a hand."
His hair was now slightly longer, and he was wearing clothes he wasn't used to. Nol didn't want to mess up the heavy headscarf, so he called on his knight and asked Teest to retie the pendant.
Teest scrunched up his nose at the bead, seemingly having some opinions about it. Eventually, he took the necklace with reluctance.
Carefully lifting the headscarf, Nol tilted his head down slightly, making his longer black hair part smoothly.
Teest's warm fingertips searched the back of his neck for a moment. The movements were ambiguous and dangerous. The pendant's cord wrapped around the neck like a Valentine's Day necklace from a lover or a noose of extraordinary beauty.
"All done."
Teest left a warm kiss on the back of Nol's neck, then casually let the headscarf fall back into place.
"Thanks." Nol hid the pendant beneath his clothing.
"When our adventure comes to an end, your neck might jingle with decorations," Teest said with a smirk. "Our Miss Noli really puts a lot of thought into things."
'As if you never hang anything around your neck,' Nol thought, remembering the "Blessed Tooth" Teest had obtained in Night of the Hunt, which was hanging beside his ring. He wondered what was bothering that guy.
But facing the young "Mad Nun" before him, Nol lost the urge to retort. He hesitated for a few seconds, trying to guess Teest's unpredictable thoughts. "Should I make another one for you?"
"No need." Teest crossed his arms.
A few steps away, Painter displayed an unconcealable, kind expression. He cleared his throat. "Teesti, Noli, we can set off now."
Teest and Nol climbed onto Ben's back, one after the other.
Previously, Nol had hugged Teest's waist, perfectly leaning on the broad and sturdy back. Now… Mr. Mad Monk seemed like a wool sweater that had shrunk in the wash, with Nol hugging him from behind, almost completely enveloping Teest.
It was a novel sensation; one that Nol quite liked—now they could hug even tighter.
Fortunately, the Mad Monk didn't mind the trivial matter of height. He intentionally leaned back, visibly more relaxed.
The group didn't choose to cross the mountain range immediately. They headed north along Brick Shadow, with Ben galloping swiftly on all fours.
Winter had arrived in Tahe, and the Brick Mountain Range was perennially snow-covered. The air was bitterly cold, and Nol's breath came out in white puffs. He hugged Teest tighter, intentionally raising his own body temperature a bit more.
With a warm lover in front, and the hot fur of the shadow wolf beneath, Nol rested his head on Teest's shoulder and fell asleep.
This time, he didn't dream of work or the company. Nol dreamt of his home.
It was a weekend. The snow had fallen day and night, making the roads terrible, so he didn't go to the office, choosing instead to work remotely from home.
Come lunchtime, he decided to cook instant noodles to get by. While waiting for the water to boil, Nol took a cup of coffee and admired the snowy scene through the living room's floor-to-ceiling windows.
The sky was gloomy, and the snow fell thickly. Even with the curtains fully open, the room was still shadowed.
Nol's house was large, but he wasn't very concerned with decoration. The floors and walls came as part of the property's high-quality finish, and the furniture met only the most basic needs—Nol had planned it well, intending to properly decorate once he achieved financial independence and retired. Now wasn't the time.
However, despite the few items, none were cheap or filler. Each piece was valuable.
Next to the teal and red-patterned curtains, Nol sipped his steaming coffee, watching the children play happily in the snow below.
The pristine white snow was breathtakingly beautiful. Unfortunately, he was past the age for snowball fights. Seeing the snowflakes, he could only think of the terrible road conditions and anti-skid chains.
A little girl in a red down jacket ran around in the snow, joyfully throwing snowballs. Her parents stood not far away, busy building a chubby snowman.
Nol remembered the child—the daughter of a family in Building 8… Her parents had turned into the Five-Eyed Crow and the Banshee, and she herself had become a Ghost. She wasn't shy at all then, jumping higher than anyone else.
The little girl waved her hands, trying to catch the flying snowflakes. Her red clothes were so eye-catching, it was like a bouncing spark. Nol watched her happily run toward Building 7, unable to help but smile.
Just then, an unexpected event occurred.
The girl fell down without warning.
It definitely wasn't a slip. Before she fell, her body went limp. She had undoubtedly passed out.
The child's parents weren't far away. Upon seeing this, her mother screamed. The parents ran to the child. The father frantically dialed on his phone, while the mother knelt by the girl, holding her tightly in her arms.
In front of Building 7 was the community garden, right next to Building 5, where Officer Luo and Dr. Zhu lived.
Nol remembered clearly. When the girl's mother screamed, Dr. Zhu, who had just bought eggs and was chatting with an elderly person at the entrance, threw the eggs down and ran toward the community garden.
She stumbled to the little girl's side, quickly assessed the situation, and began performing CPR on the spot. Nol's good mood vanished. He returned to his desk with the empty coffee cup.
After that, he never saw the girl downstairs again.
The cold wind outside that day howled ceaselessly. Amidst the advancing wind, Nol opened his eyes—he faced Teest's drifting hair, heard the wolf's paws stepping on the snow-like white sand, and saw the blue sea retreating from his view.
A brief winter memory that Nol almost forgot.
Now, thinking back, something seemed off… Nol pondered vaguely for a moment, but the thought vanished as quickly as snowflakes melting on the skin. So, he leaned on Teest again and closed his eyes.
This time, Nol dreamt of nothing.
When he opened his eyes again, Nol truly saw the falling snow. It followed the gentle night, drifting into the sea, beautiful like an illusion. The shadow wolf stopped, and Teest poked his nose repeatedly.
"Wake up, honey."
"Crossing that mountain, we'll reach the border of Shiva and the territory of Gratice." Painter sneezed, pointing to a nearby mountain peak. "The mountains within Gratice are particularly steep, not for ordinary people to traverse. We have to cross here and enter through the official channels."
"In other words, we have to deal with the dogs of the Temple of Life." Fischer scoffed. "North of Shiva… If I remember correctly, stationed here is the First Brigade of the Investigation Knights. Their captain is quite old and doesn't have much brains."
[The First Brigade?] Nol curiously asked Teest. [Sounds impressive. I remember Eugene was only in the Fifth.]
[No, the higher the number in the Investigation Knights, the stronger the force. The First to Fifth Brigades are standard combat units, while the Sixth and Seventh consist of older, more experienced knights, focusing more on rear work.]
[Eugene Malloy, with less than eleven years, can't enter the Sixth or Seventh Brigades. Now, reaching the captain of the Fifth Brigade is as high as he can go in the Investigation Knights. The only thing left is to wait out time.] Teest muttered.
Nol realized. That is, the First Brigade of Investigation Knights consisted entirely of rookie newcomers, placed in such an undesired corner for experience—
As far as Nol knew, the current situation in Shiva was closest to the original setting of "Tahe World".
The residents here were mostly non-human races, with beliefs following racial legends, believing in various gods. Both the Temple of Life and the Eternal Church couldn't gain much here.
Shiva was vast, with eighty percent of it covered by forests. To its north lay only Gratice. In a sense, it acted as a protective shield for the headquarters of the Eternal Church, making it difficult for the Temple to directly intervene.
Unable to deploy elite troops to Shiva, the Temple had to settle for the next best thing: sending in the relatively harmless First Brigade.
"…Even though the First Brigade isn't very impressive, it's still better not to let our guard down too much," Painter said casually. "Given the special circumstances this time, the Temple will definitely disguise a few elites to infiltrate Shiva to assist in the search—honestly, we don't have many places to run to, and the Temple surely has a contingency plan."
Nol nodded.
At most, Painter could turn the situation from a "Temple's home field" to "relatively fair". If they could easily slip away, the Temple of Life, being the largest religion, would be too incompetent.
"Pretending to be an Evergreen Nun is a good idea." By now, he had to admit this.
"You flatter me." Painter chuckled twice, looking again at the towering Brick Mountain Range. "Everyone knows, women and children are the best at lowering people's guard."
...
Eternal Day City, Evergreen Church.
A slightly portly middle-aged man leaned against the wall. His small mustache under his bulbous nose was turned upwards. He wore custom-made knight's armor but looked more like a tin can filled with lard than a knight.
"What do you mean?" He grumbled discontentedly. "You called me, the captain, here just to escort this guy back? …What do you take me for?"
"Calm down, Lord Richard…"
"Don't tell me to calm down!"
The man known as "Richard" cursed and swore. "Isn't Malloy just fond of chasing after the Saints? What, got dumped and now using colleagues as stepping stones? Tell him to calm down first!"
"Lady Anakin is missing, and Solo hasn't come out since entering the Black Forest." Eugene entered the reception room with a smile, pretending not to hear Richard's derogatory comments. "We can't restrict the Saints' freedom. It seems now, the Alva Merchant Group has taken the lead."
To begin with, he had no expectations that Anakin would cooperate in finding people—regarding the so-called "mainline NPCs", the contradiction between Players and the Temple was difficult to reconcile.
But that didn't matter. If it was just about finding someone, Players might not necessarily outperform the Investigation Knights.
"The Alva Merchant Group?" Richard gave him a sideways glance. "What about the Alva Merchant Group? If they really find the person, we can simply negotiate with them—we haven't stopped them from making money. Why should they offend the Temple?"
"They will definitely join forces with the Players and have already reached an agreement in advance. There aren't many forces that have the strength to offend the Temple. Sadly, the Alva Merchant Group is one of them," Eugene explained confidently.
Richard scoffed. "Then you investigate those Players! Maybe the Players have already found them. 'Amazon' hasn't withdrawn yet. Who knows what those faithless have up their sleeves."
"With that face of yours, you'd be better at deceiving those women. Running north—what's that about? The First Brigade can't handle a big shot like you."
"I believe they will choose to head north." Eugene continued gently, "I just need to disguise myself as your servant to enter, to obtain identity verification. If it's inconvenient for you, I can stay away from the Evergreen Church."
"North? Shiva is so vast. Who knows where they'll stop. Just knowing 'north', what's the use?"
"I'll find a way."
Richard's gaze turned more sinister. "Come on, be honest. Did you receive a tip from your great godfather…"
Before Richard could finish, Eugene's sword tip was against his throat. The young knight's smile vanished, and Eugene's icy gaze flowed down the blade, chilling Richard's skin.
Richard swallowed hard, goosebumps covering his skin—he hadn't even seen Eugene draw his sword.
"I have no godfather." Knight Eugene's voice was still gentle but devoid of warmth. "On the seventh day after the sinner Godfrey Painter baptized me, he betrayed the Goddess. I do not acknowledge him, and neither does God."
"Alright, alright, I was just joking. Captain of the Fifth, can't you take a little joke?" Richard's lips twitched, trying to force a smile.
A Pope as a godfather should have been a glorious mark in Eugene Malloy's life. But this Pope committed an unprecedented betrayal, becoming a stain in Malloy's record.
It was only because Eugene Malloy's oracle was significant that he could become a captain.
'This kid's luck is truly enviable,' Richard thought bitterly, unlike himself—nearing the end of his career yet still babysitting the First Brigade. As he aged, he'd surely be dispatched to some small city as a bishop.
Simply because he wasn't a Chosen One.
"Fine, I get it." Seeing Eugene's sword still pressed against his throat, Richard caved. "Sorry! I shouldn't have brought it up… I'll escort you in, alright?"
With a swish, Eugene sheathed his sword. He smiled again, as if nothing had happened.
"Then I'll trouble you," he said with a smile.
...
Just as Nol and his group crossed the Brick Mountains, they were caught red-handed. Not by the Temple of Life, but by the border army of Shiva—a group of furry dog-headed knights.
They wore unusual fur armor, riding tall and strong mountain goats. Their round eyes were full of doubt.
A knight nearly two meters tall with a huge Saint Bernard head approached first. He circled around the four people several times, sniffing non-stop.
"Human scent, human scent… fish scent, and… what is this?" He spoke in halting common language, its gaze finally resting on Nol.
"An honor to meet you, thick-furred guardians of the snowy mountains." Painter curtsied. "I am Sister Holly from the Temple, and these three are children under my care."
"The Temple of Life has only humans."
Knight Saint Bernard pointed out with his tongue, trying to maintain seriousness, but his tail wagged slightly from behind the cloak—he seemed to like the compliment "thick-furred", Nol thought.
But indeed, the knight's fur looked fabulous, likely even better to touch. Seeing his own designed race thriving was a rare moment of relaxation for Nol.
"You and your kin must have detected the anomaly with your golden noses." Painter lamented, "We were practicing by the Endless Sea. Who could have thought the sea would suddenly go mad? My children and I were washed here, lacking food and water. We had no choice but to risk crossing the mountains."
"The sea does smell off."
Beside Saint Bernard, a knight with an Alaskan head agreed. "Boss, we can't just expel them from the country. It's getting colder here, and humans don't even have fur."
"And these two children." Painter nudged Fischer and Nol forward.
"One ate too many boom fish. The other accidentally fell into the Endless Sea, and I just finished cleaning the corruption. Your noses are fine. I assure you!"
"It does smell like boom fish." Saint Bernard sniffed. "Hmm… I thought we might need to contact the Sirens, but it turns out to be boom fish… But this one, even if it's corruption, it shouldn't be odorless…"
"Do you want to leave Noli behind?" Teest hugged Nol's waist with a voice filled with a convincingly crying tone. "Please, we really didn't do anything! We just want to get back quickly… sob… If Noli doesn't go, I won't leave either…"
Nol: "......"
Who are you?!
Not to mention the dog-headed knights, but even Nol himself was confused for a second. Fischer coughed several times, and Painter's face twitched, looking like he was suppressing a smile.
Despite the shock, Nol quickly hugged Teest back, using the latter's head to cover his own face.
At this moment, he noticed Teest, using his body as a cover, took something out of his waist bag. He smeared it on Nol and quickly put it away.
At the same time, the noses of the dog-headed knights twitched.
"Oh, I smell human now. You're right. The corruption must have confused my nose." Knight Saint Bernard nodded. "Alright, alright. We'll escort you down the mountain… To be safe, we'll take you to the Temple's church to verify your identities in person. Is that okay?"
"Of course, of course! I don't know how to express my gratitude." Painter bowed again. "You are truly great knights."
The dog-headed knights exchanged glances, their tails moving modestly.
[What did you smear on me?]
Nol didn't dare to look directly at Teest, his mind in turmoil—his mentality hadn't adjusted since that night. Now, the Mad Monk was acting, well, like this…
["Living Human Fat" I swiped from an Eternal Church cultist—an ingredient for cursed poisons.] Teest released Nol's waist, pretending to wipe away tears. [Works pretty well, right?]
Nol stared blankly for a moment, then quickly calmed himself.
Alright, it's still his Mad Monk.
He decisively stepped forward, gently hugging "Sister Teesti", leaving a moving kiss on the forehead.
Teest's smile froze for a moment. He quickly averted his gaze toward the dog-headed knights.
His cheeks were now tinged with a blush.
A few steps away, Fischer watched everything with satisfaction.
Everything was perfect, he thought, especially his God's acting skill… Even the blushing was so convincingly real—truly amazing!
This was a good start. Their journey was destined to be smooth.