After everything that had happened recently, they had more or less noticed that something seemed to be wrong with the god they worshiped.
This was also why His Holiness the Pope had chosen to leave the Church in the first place. Of course, it was also possible that he had secretly received a divine revelation and was acting upon it.
During the days when His Holiness the Pope was absent, the Church appeared no different from usual on the surface, but there was always something strangely unsettling about it.
At the time, they had simply assumed that too many things had happened recently, causing people's hearts to become restless. Combined with the absence of His Holiness the Pope, the pillar who normally held everything together, it was only natural for such a phenomenon to occur.
They never expected that the entire Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun had nearly been hollowed out from within.
The evil god who dared contend with the Eternal Blazing Sun had already secretly extended its tendrils into this place.
More importantly, God had not given them the revelation they should have received!
Did this mean that their god was already powerless to concern Himself with what was happening here?
The four bishops who were still alive wore complicated expressions, each harboring different thoughts, while miserable screams rang continuously in their ears.
The Pope's stake was different from an ordinary execution stake. It would not easily burn a sinner to death. Instead, the flames would gradually work their way from the outside inward, burning and scorching everything from the flesh to the soul.
Cleansing the soul and cleansing sin were not empty words to His Holiness the Pope.
The two bishops who had abandoned their faith did not endure the flames for long. After only five minutes, the shrill screams coming from their throats gradually faded until they were almost inaudible. Their bodies were completely burned away, and their spirit bodies turned into wisps of smoke within the golden flames before dissipating.
When everything was over, Ross Hurley did not put away the execution stakes. Instead, he looked toward the other four bishops.
"The firmer your faith in God, the less likely you are to be bewitched. Only those with impure thoughts will be tempted into depravity. They are your warning. I hope that in the future, I will not have to personally send any of you to the stake."
"Praise the Sun!" The four bishops simultaneously bowed toward the divine statue and shouted loudly.
"The seeds of impurity have already begun to spread. Find them, then send them to the stake one by one. This is the greatest loyalty you can show to God."
Ross Hurley then taught them how to identify the heretics within the Church whose faith had been corrupted.
What they worshiped was the newborn Sun, not the Eternal Blazing Sun.
All they needed to do was bring them before the divine statue, have them drink the holy water that cleansed corruption, then recite the Church's canonical hymns and praise the Sun.
Any believer whose faith was impure would reveal themselves before God.
After the four bishops left, Ross Hurley finally put away the execution stakes and let out a heavy sigh.
Ultimately, this was only a way of treating the symptoms rather than the root cause.
The corruption was permanent. No matter how pure one's faith was, under continuous erosion accumulated over time, there would eventually come a day when it was completely devoured.
Moreover, carrying this out on a large scale would also unsettle the believers, instead giving that evil god an opportunity to exploit.
But they couldn't simply leave things alone either. Otherwise, the rot would eventually corrode the heart. Cutting away flesh was still better than cutting into bone.
Solving this problem at its root was something only the gods could handle. All he could do was slow the process as much as possible.
At the very least, before the god fell, His temple must continue to shine brilliantly.
Ross Hurley remained silently alone in the temple for a long time. Only when he sensed something did he finally leave.
On the outskirts of Trier, Bernadette, who was sitting inside a carriage that had yet to pass through Trier's gates, glanced at Cattleya, who sat quietly beside her.
"Find somewhere to stay on your own first. I'll come find you again when I have time."
"Where are you going..." Before Cattleya could finish speaking, Bernadette's figure had already disappeared.
Looking at the empty seat, Cattleya silently sighed and pulled aside the carriage curtain. The capital, Trier, was already right before her eyes.
The carriage entered Trier without encountering any obstacles. Cattleya got off and walked along the streets, taking in the unfamiliar scenery of her homeland while searching for a suitable place to stay.
Her original plan had been to purchase a suitable villa as a place for the Queen to stay, but now that she was alone, temporarily staying at a hotel seemed more appropriate.
In the end, she chose a hotel with the finest décor that also looked particularly grand. She deliberately booked only one room so that she wouldn't miss the opportunity to meet the Queen.
When she followed a staff member to the door of her room, the door of the room opposite hers opened, and a young couple walked out.
The man had dazzling golden hair. From his clothing and overall bearing, he was clearly from a noble family, but judging from his appearance, he didn't seem to be from Intis.
The girl wore a black dress that was completely at odds with Intis fashion, along with a small black soft hat. She looked delicate and beautiful. They were quite a well-matched young couple.
Cattleya merely gave them a brief glance before withdrawing her gaze. She entered her room and closed the door.
She vaguely heard a few lines of conversation from the young couple outside.
"How interesting."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean exactly that. It's interesting."
Cattleya frowned slightly. What kind of conversation was that? It left anyone listening completely confused.
People who loved speaking in riddles like this were truly annoying. They always liked acting mysterious and couldn't even speak a complete sentence properly.
She didn't think too much about it. Walking over to the windowsill, she opened the window and leaned slightly forward, gazing out over this city with its distinctly different style.
The customs and culture of Intis differed from those of other countries, and even the buildings here were particularly distinctive. She had heard that when Emperor Roselle was still alive, he had single-handedly pushed through nationwide reforms.
But after his sudden death at the White Maple Palace, the Sauron family, which subsequently rose to power, did everything they could to alter the various laws and traces left behind by Emperor Roselle.
This back-and-forth caused the architectural styles of Intis to become sharply polarized. Coupled with the free-spirited customs and strong individuality of the people of Intis, the country didn't possess the same kind of unified style seen in other nations.
Cattleya gazed into the distance for a while before lowering her head to look down at the street.
The young couple who had brushed past her earlier were strolling along the street. The girl was entering a clothing store to pick out clothes, while the man remained at a café outside the store, ordering a cup of coffee while he waited.
Perhaps it was merely her imagination, but the man seemed to be observing her as well. Yet when she shifted her gaze toward him, he was leisurely savoring his fragrant coffee.
She looked a few more times and only withdrew her gaze after confirming that she had been mistaken. She then looked toward an execution square in the distance.
Intis had always maintained the tradition of executing criminals publicly in front of ordinary citizens.
But today's execution was somewhat strange. All eight criminals were believers of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, and they were even wearing the white robes issued by the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun.
Furthermore, they had been sentenced to death for the crime of blasphemy.
The piles of firewood were ignited, and roaring flames quickly engulfed the believers of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun who had committed those sins.
...
That night, Cattleya still hadn't seen Bernadette return when she heard another commotion from the room opposite hers.
She wasn't someone who enjoyed eavesdropping on other people's privacy, but the commotion and voices from across the hall were quite loud.
After listening for a while, Cattleya finally understood what had happened.
Tonight, she had coincidentally encountered a patrol squad that had come to this hotel to investigate suspicious individuals. From the descriptions given by the two soldiers, they were searching for a priest who had escaped from the Church.
Knock, knock.
Cattleya's door was also knocked on. She had no choice but to open it and cooperate with their questioning.
"If you encounter anyone suspicious, remember to report it. If the information proves accurate, you'll receive a considerable reward."
The two patrol soldiers continued on to knock on the doors of other rooms, comparing each person with a portrait they held as they searched.
"Looks like something serious has happened inside the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun. We really came at just the right time," the man suddenly said.
"You've always had pretty good luck," the beautiful girl calmly replied.
"I'll take that as a compliment."
As he spoke, the man turned and glanced at Cattleya.
"Miss, have you just come to Intis for sightseeing?"
"Mm." Cattleya nodded indifferently. Having no desire to converse, she closed the door.
After that brief interlude, everything returned to calm.
She had thought the night would simply pass like this, but late at night, Cattleya, who was lying awake in bed unable to sleep, suddenly sensed the Queen's aura and immediately got out of bed.
What puzzled her was that the Queen's aura was coming from the room opposite hers.
Could the Queen have gone into the wrong room? After only a moment's hesitation, she opened her door and walked over to the door of the room opposite hers.
Looking inside, she saw that the room was brightly lit, with three figures faintly silhouetted within.
The most familiar figure among them was Bernadette, who she had been waiting for all this time. The other two figures should be that young couple.
Bernadette knows them?
They're discussing something. Should I avoid disturbing them right now?
Otherwise, Bernadette might think I'm immature, too clingy, and still haven't grown up.
While Cattleya's mind was overflowing with thoughts, Bernadette's voice came from inside the room.
"Are you planning to stay outside the door until dawn?"
Cattleya no longer hesitated. She pushed open the door that hadn't been fully closed and walked inside. She then silently moved behind Bernadette and stood there without speaking, merely sweeping a curious gaze over the young couple.
"You should have met earlier today, right?" Bernadette said to Cattleya. "Hastur, Sharon. They're from Backlund in Loen, and they're my friends."
"Cattleya, a follower of the Queen."
Cattleya gave a brief introduction.
Hastur naturally recognized Cattleya, the Admiral of Stars who roamed the seas, also known as The Stars in a certain club.