Chapter 2386: The Priest’s Fairy Tale

Iluna stood beside Shard and introduced, this weapon is indeed quite renowned:

“But unlike the [Night Watchman], which is essentially a Ritual Sword, the [Pale Justice] is a proper melee weapon in terms of its traits. You must be aware of this sword’s power, such as allowing the bearer to be immune to almost all abnormal states, amplifying positive states, enhancing output of energies like the sun and light.”

“I remember the negative traits are, depending on the character of the bearer, the sword will exhibit different weights, and for an evil person, the moment he holds the sword, it will drain his flesh and spirit. Also, during the time one holds the sword, they must not do anything that betrays justice, and almost all of this sword’s recorded long-term bearers ultimately sacrificed themselves… Why would the church let you use this sword?”

Shard asked in confusion, seeing that the young lady beside him didn’t have any intention to look at the sword, he sheathed it back and handed it to Iluna.

Iluna sighed:

“What choice did I have? When I was called to select a weapon, as soon as I grasped this sword, I obtained the Whisper-[Pale Justice]. Even if I didn’t want to use this sword, the people of the church wouldn’t allow it. But I truly don’t like using swords; after the Moon Bay incident ended, I returned it. Compared to cold weapons, the Holy Bell our diviner friend gave me is much more useful.”

That was the Artifact she used in the Chosen One Ceremony to symbolize the Balance of the Ancient God.

“This talent really is enviable.”

The Countess said from the side, Iluna shook her head:

“But it also burdens one with fate. If it weren’t for Shard and Luviya, I wouldn’t have been able to get by with a peaceful mindset until today… But enough about that, what happened here just now?”

A few simple words sufficed to explain the recent events; Iluna had heard some rumors about John Flynn’s collaboration with the church. As for the notebook that the fleeing “Light Chaser” dropped, Iluna felt it was too deliberate:

“As long as the problem is solved, that’s good. Shard, you should head back first, the church’s team should be arriving soon. As for that bone, I won’t mention it; when I was coming here, The God Summoner was just about to leave.”

“Alright, come to the manor when you have time, our diviner is also preparing to do a divination again.”

Shard said, then asked the nun:

“Sister, can you open the portal here?”

“Yes.”

Sister Delphine nodded gently, her scythe making a slash in the fog, quickly expanding the black rift, revealing the western bridge deck of the yet-to-be-completed Moon Bay Bridge in the real world.

Tonight, the real world was also shrouded in thick fog, and it was impossible for the Moon Bay Bridge to still be under construction, so the bridge deck was deserted. After saying goodbye to Iluna and returning to reality, Grace and Helen cheerfully bid farewell to Shard and left, then Shard didn’t join the other ladies:

“You all go back first, I’ll handle the matter with this bone.”

Even though the core issue of the “Edge of Life and Death” has been resolved, the fog in the city showed no sign of dissipating. Miss Belindel and Miss Sylvia obviously weren’t comfortable with Shard acting alone, but seeing Miss Eles and Sister Delphine say nothing, the two Eleventh Rank witches also refrained from persuading Shard:

“Your cat is still with me, remember to return after you’ve dealt with everything.”

This was the only reminder the Countess gave Shard before they parted.

Although Shard could transform while carrying a Relic like the [Night Watchman], he couldn’t change with the bone. He didn’t want to carry the bone in cat form, so he traversed the foggy night in Moon Bay as a human.

Of course, his objective was Priest Augustus, who was skilled in handling skeletal remains. Nonetheless, considering the priest’s psychological issues, Shard had no intention of immediately handing the item over, merely seeking advice on how best to securely seal it.

Shard only knew that Priest Augustus currently worked at an orphanage in Moon Bay City, but didn’t know his address, so he decided to try his luck at the orphanage located on the edge of the Lower District.

His luck was pretty good that night, for not long after unlawfully entering the orphanage, he saw through the window outside the small dining room on the first floor that the priests were holding storybooks and storytelling to a large group of children.

Priest Augustus’s Casenric Language was fairly proficient, and among the more than ten children listening to the story, there were both boys and girls, all around ten years old. The priest sat by the long dining table, while the children clustered scatteredly in front of him.

In the dining room, besides the candle holder and the kerosene lamp by the priest’s side, there was also a hearth with a cauldron of soup on the wall. On such a foggy night, gathering by the fireplace to listen to the “old grandpa” tell stories with childhood friends would become an unforgettable warm childhood memory for many of those children when they grew up.

The priest must have noticed Shard “peeping” outside the window, but he chose to finish the story first. Shard was also not in a hurry to disturb them, but listened quietly.

Coincidentally, the story Priest Augustus was telling the children was that classic fairy tale, “The Mermaid Princess.” By the time Shard arrived, the story was nearing its end, the Mermaid Princess having exchanged her voice for legs and was ready to come ashore.

And the version the priest narrated was the closest to what the Outlander remembered. In the end of the story, the Mermaid Princess dissolved into foam under the sunlight all alone.

After finishing the story, the priest smiled while closing the book, but did not immediately stand:

“Children, this is the story of the Mermaid Princess. What did you understand from this story?”

The Outlander was very familiar with this way of questioning, and evidently, the children who had no experience of the kind of cultural education Shard had, eagerly raised their hands to answer.

From the way they raise their hands instead of speaking out directly, it’s clear that the children in the Moon Bay City Government-supported orphanage have received basic education:

“Grandpa Augustus! We should listen to our parents!”

“That’s right, that’s right. I’ll reward you with a candy. Oh, but don’t let Madame Bovary know.”

“Grandpa Augustus, we shouldn’t trade things with bad people! Last time, Little Oliver traded my glass bead for his paper airplane and then gave it to Sister Lina! Mr. Stan, who delivers food to the kitchen, is right—merchants are always bad!”

“Hmm… Here’s a candy for you too, and afterward, I’ll talk to Stan about what he said to you all.”

“Grandpa Oliver, all men are bad! Why didn’t the Prince choose the poor Little Mermaid! I won’t be with men in the future either…”

“Ah, ah.”

Priest Augustus quickly interrupted her with a cough. He glanced out the window at Shard, who was suppressing laughter in the thick fog, and patiently explained:

“In the story, the Prince didn’t even know what the Little Mermaid had done for him. But you’re also right; we need to understand that doing good deeds or doing things for others must be within our ability. Before we act, we need to carefully think about the costs and consequences, and we must never make decisions lightly or blindly.”

He diligently educated the children, who listened intently with wide eyes. Priest Augustus, while using the power of death, was far more approachable than Sister Delphine. If Sister Delphine were sitting here, Shard suspected that the children wouldn’t even dare to take a deep breath.

“But stories are sometimes just stories, children, and you don’t need to think too much about them. Go to sleep now; it’s already late. If you don’t sleep, Madame Bovary will complain about me.”

“Good night, Grandpa Augustus!”

“Grandpa Augustus, can you tell us the story of the Matchstick Girl again tomorrow?”

“I want to hear the story of the Dwarves and the Princess, where the dwarves’ kiss turned the princess into a toad!”

“You fool, Isaac, it was the poison apple that the princess ate, and the dwarves’ kiss cleared the deadly poison!”

“How do I remember that it was the Prince who woke the Princess with a kiss?”

“No, that was the Sleeping Princess story; you all got it wrong.”

In the midst of the children’s lively discussion, a little girl with braids holding a rough-sewn princess doll finally looked at the smiling Priest Augustus and asked again. The doll’s eye-buttons weren’t even aligned:

“Grandpa Augustus, is love always this difficult?”

The priest pondered for a moment, then lowered his head to reply:

“These are questions that are a bit too early to answer for you. But how did you come to think of this question?”

The little girl with braids was holding her doll as she said:

“Because the Prince and Princess in the stories always have to go through lots of hardships to be together.”

She widened her eyes innocently:

“If adults’ feelings are so dangerous and painful, then why do they still want love?”

“Because…”

The priest probably was thinking about how to explain it in a way that the children could understand. He certainly couldn’t talk about love and reproduction, nor could he explain what love between people truly is; the children didn’t understand these things yet.

“Because, not everything in this world necessarily ends badly.”

He finally said:

“That’s why we need to carefully distinguish between good and bad people, think clearly before acting, and not make decisions easily. Stories often include such twists just to capture attention… Children, go to bed; it’s indeed too late. We can talk more tomorrow about distinguishing reality from stories.”

The little girl nodded in bewilderment and returned upstairs to their rooms with the rest. Priest Augustus then exchanged a few more words with the kitchen helpers before quietly leaving the orphanage, meeting Shard at the corner of the courtyard near the stables.

The orphanage’s stable housed a horse commonly used for transporting goods. Sometimes, the orphanage’s director would also use it for pulling a cart during outings.

“Priest, it was you who said—the world doesn’t always yield bad results.”

Shard said with a smile, and Priest Augustus glanced at him:

“Those are words to soothe children, Detective, are you a child too?”