Chapter 427
Let’s Celebrate the New Year Together
“Will you celebrate the New Year with me tonight, Eivass?”
After lunch, Isabel immediately invited Eivass.
Tomorrow was the Candle-holding Ceremony on January 1st. A few days ago, when Bishop Mathers came to the Silver and Tin Hall to move Queen Sophia’s coffin, Eivass had returned the key to St. Genevieve’s Chapel to him.
Otherwise, Bishop Mathers wouldn’t have been able to open the chapel door, let alone have Queen Sophia rest there first.
And tomorrow, Bishop Mathers would summon the Crown Lord’s apostles and the deceased members of the Du Lac family to bestow their blessings upon Avalon. This was Avalon’s most important festival, and it would inevitably be presided over by the bishop, who held the highest rank, status, and sacredness in Avalon.
After the Candle-holding Ceremony concluded, it would be Queen Sophia’s funeral.
According to Avalon’s customs, burial was usually seven days after death. However, because the national funeral day coincided with the Candle-holding Ceremony, the Queen’s funeral had to be postponed by one day.
In most countries in this World, the Candle-holding Ceremony was the grandest day of the year. It was also the beginning of the New Year.
Although Candlemaster had been a Pillar God of the Path of Devotion since before the Dragon Era, most people did not know what kind of devotion Candlemaster had performed to firmly hold the position of Pillar God since ancient times.
According to the version circulating in Avalon, Candlemaster was said to be the primordial god who created the heavens and the earth, illuminating the world in a sunless and moonless existence. In the legends of the Star Antimony people and the Iris people, Candlemaster was the origin of all sentient life. And the mages and monks of the Path of Wisdom believed that Candlemaster’s greatest achievement was finding the source of the River of the Dream Realm and distributing the other eight rivers to other gods.
In short, everyone had their own version of the story.
But this was normal.
After all, all true knowledge directly pertaining to the Nine Pillar Gods was the highest form of esoteric knowledge. Whether it was the Beast Lord falling in love with Hengwo, or the Crown Lord defeating Supreme Heaven, these were impossible things to put down in writing, merely secrets passed down orally among a very few people.
Yet, even so, people still respected Candlemaster. And Eivass even knew that other Heavenly Envoys of the Path of Devotion greatly respected Candlemaster. Neither Heavenly Candlemaster Envoy nor Xi Tian Si was interested in the position of Pillar God. Even Flame Heavenly Envoy, who possessed the Power of Transcendence and ranked second in the Path of Devotion, harbored no hostility towards Candlemaster.
Because of this, Eivass believed that the Church’s version was the closest to the truth.
The Church of the Nine Pillars God believed that Candlemaster ignited a great fire in the Sin Thorns-filled, ice-cold, and barren Dream Realm, illuminating the eternally dark and lightless Dream Realm and causing the nine rivers of the Dream Realm, drained by the Sin Thorns, to flow again. From then on, material realm beings with “souls” began to be born in this World.
Because among all the Pillar Gods Eivass knew, the time they became Pillar Gods naturally came later than Candlemaster. Only Hourglass and Twin were uncertain… If Candlemaster was the first Pillar God, then all of this would make sense.
Due to varying customs in different countries, the content of the Candle-holding Ceremony differed. Candlemaster did not care about these things, and would not blame them even if the ceremony was not held.
This was merely a festival for people to politely express their reverence for this Pillar God—or rather, to express reverence for the elves who believed in Candlemaster.
In Avalon, people returned home as much as possible the night before the Candle-holding Ceremony. If they could not do so, or if they had conflicts with their families, they would spend time with their friends.
Just like Sherlock.
Even the poorest citizens would try their best to cook something delicious and indulge a little on this day. It was not only to pay homage to Candlemaster but also to reward themselves.
The most important ritual on the eve of the Candle-holding Ceremony was to cook a large pot of hot soup.
Any kind of soup would do. The rich had their ways of cooking, and the poor had theirs. At the very least, one could boil a pot of water.
After the soup boiled, each family member could throw in something they liked, and then the whole family would share and drink the soup together. This soup contained Candlemaster’s blessings to the people… Even the gravely ill would be granted a few more days in this world.
Although Candlemaster did not care about people’s respect, He would especially protect believers who prayed for peace on this day. If there were homeless people, they only needed to light a candle, or even just strike a match, and Candlemaster would bestow some strength upon them, allowing the flame to burn continuously, their bodies to gradually recover, and preventing them from freezing to death in the cold wind, enabling them to safely see the morning sun.
Because of this, even the most ruthless assassins would not commit murder on this day.
It was not only a restraint of conscience but also reverence for the Pillar God.
And obviously, Edward would not be working overtime.
If Eivass stayed at the Silver and Tin Hall, only Yulia and Edward would be left at home. If Eivass brought Yulia along, then only Edward would be left at home.
—That would be too lonely.
“Yulia will definitely be fine,” Eivass mused, “But what about Edward… Can I bring him with me?”
“I don’t have any objections, anyway.”
Isabel shifted nervously, sat up straight, and said nonchalantly, “I’d like to meet Brother Edward too.”
“He’d probably only dare to call you Her Majesty the Queen,”
Eivass teased, “He wouldn’t dare call you his sister.”
After saying that, the two of them exchanged a smile.
Lixia, holding her hot beer, took small sips, her dead fish eyes watching the two of them.
After that natural kiss, the atmosphere between them had subtly changed.
The most obvious change was that Isabel had become noticeably bolder.
Before, she clearly didn’t dare to joke with Eivass or act spoiled. She only dared to approach Eivass when discussing serious matters. At other times, she waited for Eivass to find her.
And Eivass had previously maintained a respectful distance from Isabel. Rather than friends, they were more like elder and junior or teacher and student.
Although they had not formally confirmed their relationship in terms of words, the actual atmosphere and way of interacting had changed.
This change in atmosphere was something Lixia easily noticed.
She wasn’t inexperienced in love when she was young. Looking at the smile on Isabel’s face, she only felt a slight sourness.
—Tsk, this beer has too much lemon, it makes my teeth ache. Lixia thought.
As for Eivass, he had actually accumulated some work, waiting for Isabel to handle.
After the new king ascended the throne, he toured the country for five days. After returning, he would inevitably have a backlog of work.
This half-day he returned early was used to deal with this piled-up work.
The contract with Grandet, Emma’s matters, the new Trade Minister killed by Eivass, the pressure exerted on Camelot’s ministers, the gifts bestowed upon her by those ministers… Eivass had originally saved these tasks for Isabel.
Because in Eivass’s previous view, the monarch-subject relationship between him and Isabel had to be maintained.
Isabel trusted Eivass enough, so Eivass could not carelessly deplete that trust. Therefore, although he could do some things based on his personal will, he still had to go through the proper procedures upon his return.
… But in the current Eivass’s eyes, he felt he could be a bit busier.
For matters that, in principle, required Isabel’s nod and approval, he could finalize them in advance and sign them himself. For example, the commercial contract with Grandet.
The main reason was that Eivass began to feel a little sorry for Isabel.
After all, this was the last day before the New Year. He might as well give her half a day off… She would have to work for another two days tomorrow and the day after.
Let her rest well this afternoon. He would summarize and report to Isabel after she was completely free.
“Lily,” Eivass instructed, “You’ll go to the Inspection Department later. Tell Edward to come directly to the Silver and Tin Hall after work… or you can give him a call. Never mind, just call him directly; that way, you won’t have to make an extra trip.”
“Understood,” Lily nodded in agreement.
“Lulu, have you decided where you want to go play this afternoon?”
Eivass turned to Isabel and reminded her, “However, it’s still a mourning period, so it might be difficult to find entertainment like opera. And with the New Year approaching, you might not find many orchestras on Glass Island.”
“No need.”
Isabel shook her head slightly and said obediently, “I want to spend time with my teacher.”
“Master Janis… ”
Eivass realized with a start, “Speaking of which, where did she go today?”
He suddenly realized that he hadn’t seen the usually boisterous elf today.
Normally, he could hear her cheerful and elegant laughter from her paintings.
Today, he and Isabel had even kissed in the bedroom… If it were usual, Janis would have popped her head out with a smiling face.
And she didn’t even show up at the lunch gathering.
After the funeral the day after tomorrow, Master Janis would be leaving.
And now it was before the New Year… Where had she gone if she wasn’t at the Silver and Tin Hall?
“I don’t know.”
Isabel shook her head, “But I guess… she might be at the place where she first met her grandmother. It should be in the Red Queen District, but I don’t know the exact location.”
“Then I’ll accompany you to look for her.”
Eivass chuckled, extending his hand to Isabel, “And while we’re at it, let’s pay a visit to our teachers…
“But you’re not suited to walk outside with this appearance. By the way, when you went to investigate information from those people, you weren’t under this guise, were you?”
“Of course not!”
Isabel proudly puffed out her chest, as if seeking praise, “I have already mastered the power of [Resilient Illusion]… My appearance can be changed at will.”
As she spoke, a green Path Radiance shone in her pupils.
Isabel placed her hand on her face, and the pale pink radiance bloomed between her fingers. As she lightly wiped her face, Isabel directly changed to another appearance.
Under the influence of the illusion, Isabel’s hair turned white, and her pupils turned blue. She looked a few inches shorter overall.
—Except for the color of her eyes being blue instead of red, she looked very similar to Yulia.
Eivass tentatively reached out and stroked her head. Isabel smilingly leaned her head forward, allowing Eivass to touch it.
It was very strange, there was no clipping, and he didn’t touch an invisible head in the void.
Eivass was indeed at a lower position than Isabel, and he felt the same texture of hair as Yulia’s.
It was evident that because Isabel had interacted with Yulia so much, she could accurately transform into her likeness.
“… Is this Resilient Illusion?”
Eivass marveled, “If I hadn’t watched you use the illusion, I might have been fooled for a moment.”
The reason he said “for a moment” was because Yulia would never have such narrowed eyes, or show such a coquettish smile like a little cat.
“I deliberately left a loophole,” Isabel said a little indignantly, “If I transformed into a complete Yulia and played the part wholeheartedly, I don’t think you would necessarily be able to see through it—I am a ‘jack of all trades.’ Acting is also a field I excel in.”
But as she said this, Eivass suddenly realized, “Then who did you impersonate when you asked questions before? Don’t tell me it was Yulia?”
“… Eheh?” Isabel suddenly began to feign ignorance.
“It wasn’t me, was it?”
Eivass immediately guessed.
Isabel defended herself, “I made quite a few modifications! If they meet you later, at most they’ll think you look familiar, they definitely won’t recognize you!”
—If it were in the past, she would probably be cautiously apologizing now. How could she have had such energy to argue with Eivass now?
But this way of interacting made Eivass more relaxed.
So Eivass smilingly reached out and ruffled the hair of Isabel, who was impersonating “Yulia,” “Then we’re even.”
Isabel hugged her head and, in a contortion, returned to her original form. Her hair was already messy.
“… Hmph,” Isabel wrinkled her nose, but she couldn’t help but laugh.
She didn’t usually laugh so much, but today she couldn’t stop smiling. It was like seeing a bright sunny day, her heart filled with joy.
I’ll use your face again next time!
Isabel thought fiercely, covering her head.
Another update of nearly seven thousand words, update complete!
Requesting double monthly votes~
