Chapter 145: Turns Out to be an Acquaintance
Facing the questioning, William showed a look of "obvious hesitation."
Seeing this, Joran narrowed his eyes.
"You've seen it yourself; I am a relatively easy-going person."
He adjusted his sleeves.
"For the sake of stopping the sacrificial ritual, if your reason is convincing enough, I can plead with the Church on your behalf."
William took a breath and finally "made up his mind."
"Please forgive my offense, Archbishop."
He bowed again.
"When I was still a deacon, the old priest taught me not to get involved in the struggles of Church factions."
Joran was stunned upon hearing this; he didn't seem to expect this reason.
The conflict between the Sacred Society and the Exorcism Academy was indeed becoming sharper and sharper, giving the Vatican a headache as well.
"I remember that at Saint Jehovah, you stood on Archbishop Fabio's side."
He stared at William.
"Looking at it this way, you seem to have already chosen a camp."
Seeing this, William showed a "helpless" expression.
"Old Father Harlem Parsons once said that sometimes not choosing is also a mistake, so I chose the side that could get me Holy Oil."
"Harlem? Harlem Parsons?" Joran raised an eyebrow.
"Does the Archbishop know my teacher?"
"We worked together in the Vatican for a period of time. He was a respectable priest."
The face of an old man appeared in Joran's mind.
Harlem Parsons dedicated his life to the practice of Church faith and helped believers in difficulty many times.
Although he did not possess powerful Holy Power, few could match his piety.
The Vatican praised him as a "Priest who truly possessed faith."
"No wonder this kid has such high theological talent." Joran understood in his heart.
To be favored by that priest, this guy had good luck.
At the same time, he also lowered his guard against William.
With Harlem's moral character, the student he taught would certainly not be bad.
Joran silently put back the Holy Nail in his hand; this was an artifact specifically used to seal a priest's Holy Power.
"Since the ritual has been destroyed, I won't stay any longer. The Church will issue rewards to you in a few days."
"Regarding this, could you please emphasize praising those three?" William pointed to Silas and the others.
"You don't want to be famous?"
William nodded.
"Do you know how many priests crave such an opportunity?"
Joran smiled and shook his head.
"I can agree, but in exchange, you must participate in the selection for the Clergy Group."
"Now that all parties are restless, the Church needs capable people like you."
"The Holy See is a 'Special Department', and our actions are very covert."
Since the other party had said this much, it would be disrespectful for William to refuse again.
Therefore, he nodded: "I obey the Archbishop's order."
"Very good." Joran nodded. "You will receive a notification one month before the selection begins."
Then he pointed to the side: "I will make those three keep their mouths shut."
"That would be great." William bowed slightly and crossed himself.
Subsequently, he also informed Joran about the "specialness" of the demon Valakh.
But the other party indicated that such a demon was not recorded in the Church classics.
"I will report this matter." Joran nodded: "Any other discoveries?"
William narrowed his eyes and said: "Before accepting this commission, I heard a rumor—someone is targeting the Dei Exorcism Academy..."
He mentioned the matter regarding the "Tampered Commissions."
But he did not reveal the matters regarding Flora and Wynn.
Although this Archbishop Joran seemed trustworthy, William decided to wait a little longer to see how the other party would handle it before considering whether to hand over the evidence left by Wynn.
"There is actually such a thing."
Joran frowned tightly, and an extremely oppressive momentum emerged from his body.
"I will arrange for someone to start investigating. If there are other clues, you can take this amulet and go to St. Peter's Cathedral, where someone will receive you."
As he spoke, he took out a silver round token and gave it to William, engraved with a Gold Lion Cross emblem.
"St. Peter's" was the only Diocese-level cathedral in Philadelphia, and all local churches were under its jurisdiction.
After this, Joran indeed found the academy trio.
The latter looked terrified and nodded repeatedly, and their eyes looking at William also held a few more points of respect.
A few days later.
The farm commission event had ended, and the commendation from the Vatican was issued by the church.
The announcement highlighted the praise for the three priests Silas, Bent, and Zar, praising their dedication and bravery in preventing a disaster.
At the same time, another priest, William, was also mentioned.
This person possessed rich theological knowledge and wittily saw through the demon's "trap" in the sacrificial ritual.
It advocated that all priests in the Church learn from William and criticized textbook-style exorcism.
Thanks to this commendation, the business of the holy artifact shop was much better than before.
Many people came to commission William because of his fame.
Regarding this, he cursed Joran quite a bit behind his back.
The other party must have done this deliberately to prevent William from slacking off during the selection.
As for the matter of "Tampered Commissions," the Church only warned academy students to conduct detailed investigations after accepting commissions to avoid misjudging the difficulty level.
At the same time, the Church also strengthened the commission review process.
However, there was no news of anyone being arrested.
It seemed that Joran had not found key clues yet.
But judging from the fact that William could still move freely now, this Archbishop should be trustworthy.
He decided to observe for a period of time and then find an opportunity to hand over the evidence to the other party.
During this period, another thing happened—the Warren couple was seriously injured in an exorcism commission.
When William went to the hospital, Ed had completely lost consciousness.
His whole body's joints were twisted, and he could only rely on a ventilator to maintain his life.
And Lorraine was not much better; a deep wound was left near her eye, almost causing total blindness.
"Ed did this to protect me..." Lorraine covered her face and sobbed.
Listening to the other party's description, William learned that the two also encountered a "Sudden Mutation in Commission Difficulty."
If not for the holy artifacts he gave them beforehand, Judy would have become an orphan by now.
Fortunately, the rescue was very timely, and Ed's life was saved, but he would have to spend the next few months in a hospital bed.
William was about to say goodbye when an uninvited guest arrived in the ward.
"Archbishop Hermann, why are you here?" Lorraine looked surprised and hurriedly stood up.
"Oh, just call me Hans."
Hans looked apologetic and bowed deeply to Lorraine.
"I'm sorry, Lorraine, it was I who let you two become like this..."
His eyes were red, and he kept praying.
Seeing this, William narrowed his eyes.
If he hadn't known the other party's character beforehand, he might really have been deceived.
"Lorraine, please accept this." Hans took out a bottle of one-year vintage Holy Water.
"How can we do this? We didn't complete the commission!" Lorraine shook her head and refused.
Hans held Lorraine's hand: "Please accept it; only in this way can the guilt in my heart be alleviated."
Seeing that she couldn't refuse, Lorraine nodded: "Thank you for coming to see Ed."
"This is what I should do."
Hans said as he looked to the side.
"And this is?"
Lorraine hurriedly introduced: "Father William, a friend of mine."
"Hello, hello."
Hans greeted enthusiastically.
Knowing that William opened a holy artifact shop next to Dei Church, this Archbishop even proposed to reduce William's rent.
But the latter declined politely; he didn't believe the other party would be so kind.
"I originally came to invite you to participate in the Memorial Day event the day after tomorrow, but..."
Hans sighed.
"Archbishop Hermann, only orthodox priests participate in Memorial Day; we are just acting..." Lorraine felt flattered.
"Anyone who can solve difficulties for believers is worthy of respect by the Church."
William clicked his tongue secretly; this Bishop really knew how to win people's hearts.
"Many people will come to the city during Memorial Day, and I might be very busy then."
Hans said seriously.
"However, I have arranged for priests. They will guard outside the ward. If you have any needs, you can mention them."
"This is really too much trouble for you."
"Please let me do something."
Listening to Hans's words, William narrowed his eyes.
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