“Empire, empire?”
Xiya felt as if she were dreaming, and after thinking for a moment, she really seemed to be in a dream.
“Is this strange?”
Bernice placed the lantern on the table, and then the grand walls rose from the void below, the stained glass flew back to its rightful place like broken shards returning, and the holy image of the Goddess appeared behind Bernice.
Bernice stood up and bowed to the holy image of the Goddess behind her, and Lavian also followed in bowing.
Xiya was perplexed by the restrictions of the Night Sanctuary and did not understand the faith in the Goddess, but she knew that this holy image was definitely not that of the Morning Star.
Moreover, this church was absurdly real; even after seeing it, the long table of the Night Sanctuary left in the middle of the church looked so shabby.
Only that long table made Xiya realize that she was still in a dream. If not for this seemingly genuine scene, she would have thought she was hallucinating from drinking too much.
Along with Lavian, who knelt on the ground like a dog… no, rather, with unparalleled piety, Xiya truly began to doubt whether she had woken up from the Night Sanctuary, only to fall asleep again under the influence of alcohol, dreaming of something absurd.
After all, the other party’s power was indeed exaggerated. In Xiya’s understanding, that group could weave dreams for themselves, but could not create things that were not in their dreams, let alone such a magnificent church.
Meanwhile, Lavian had just promised the Pope this grand church in her dream, but a significant number of Morning Star Apostles were required, and this would sacrifice thousands to build such a grand chapel, yet under the actions of this Sister, the church seemed to be completed effortlessly.
“The second prince of Castia, Xiya, sends the most sincere greetings to the Empire.”
In the end, Xiya still bowed to Bernice in an exceptionally humble manner, even daring not to call herself a king.
Although her body had been immersed in alcohol these days, Xiya’s mind was clear. If this was not her illusion, then the nun of the Empire not only intruded into the meeting venue of the Night Sanctuary, but even Lavian, a star rising from the Night Sanctuary, was now behaving like a loyal dog in front of her.
Looking at this magnificent church constructed in her dream, Xiya even suspected that Lavian’s promotion was also due to this nun’s efforts behind the scenes.
The strength of the Empire might far exceed everyone’s imagination.
“You actually have a bit of brains.”
The sound of boots stepping on the cobblestone road rang in Xiya’s ears.
Xiya indeed had a bit of brains, but not much.
Or it could be said that after being controlled by the Night Sanctuary, as long as she could break free from that control, even if it were an illusion, she wanted to give it a try.
“As long as you can help me break free from the control of the Night Sanctuary, I am willing to convert to the Church of the Empire.”
The Night Sanctuary not only held control over the entire palace of Cartiel but imposed the strictest control over Xiya, turning her into a prisoner sitting on the throne, so that Xiya could only numb herself with alcohol every day.
There was no other choice; although the Night Sanctuary could invade dreams, it did not have the power to captivate the heart, so it could only use the most brutal methods to control Xiya. Especially since Cartiel’s geographical position was extremely important, under such brute control, Xiya could be said to be unable to seek death.
Even strictly speaking, Xiya had a vendetta against the Night Sanctuary, after all, when she staged a coup, she never intended to directly kill the old guy.
Now, Garcia had no ambition, only seeking to be liberated as soon as possible.
“I was also eavesdropping on the meeting just now.”
At this, Garcia’s cold sweat began to flow down; the other party’s tone seemed as if they had always been present at the meeting, yet no one from the Night Sanctuary noticed.
“The Night Sanctuary is under your responsibility to capture brain servants… or rather, the so-called Morning Star Apostles, correct?”
Bernice’s emotionless voice rang in Garcia’s ears, while the kneeling Garcia dared not raise his head and replied:
“Yes, I am the one who takes the lead in the captures, bringing those displaced people and slaves to the specified locations; if there are no displaced people, I will have to create some.”
“Not only that, but inside and outside Cartiel, I also set up a dedicated guard to capture citizens, and the number of this guard is even greater than the number surrounding the palace.”
It was clear that all of this was authorized by the Night Sanctuary; otherwise, Garcia wouldn’t be able to issue commands to mobilize the guards at all.
“I understand. Continue collecting apostles for the Night Sanctuary, but from now on, those so-called apostles need to be sent to the designated location I specify, understood?”
Hearing Bernice say this, Garcia became hesitant and said, “But, great emissary of the Empire, I am now trapped in a cage, completely under the control of the Night Sanctuary; even commands must first go through the Night Sanctuary to be conveyed.”
Garcia said sorrowfully: “I am also powerless.”
“Do as I say.”
Bernice came to Garcia and used the toe of her boot to lift Garcia’s head, forcing him to look at her.
“As for those people from the Night Sanctuary, you need not worry; they will still monitor you, just not for me.”
The smell of the boots mixed with the fragrance of the weeds under the cobblestones, and coupled with the pressure of the toe, made Garcia doubt whether he was indeed in a dream. However, at this moment, Garcia showed a smile that was more difficult to bear than tears.
This smile was sincere because that group of Night Sanctuary’s priests loved to scare themselves in dreams, even monitoring and controlling their own dreams. Even though Garcia knew it was a dream, he completely couldn’t resist, yet this real dream instead excited Garcia. Everything about the Empire was so grand that even the pain given to him was equally real.
Garcia didn’t care who among those faithful of the Night Sanctuary in the palace was from whom; he just tearfully said: “Alright, great emissary of the Empire, I will send all the Morning Star Apostles to the location you specified.”
“No need for all; just according to the previous quota will suffice. I am slowly replacing those faithful in the Night Sanctuary, without startling the snake.”
Then Bernice turned to leave.
“Specific tasks will be discussed with Lavian.”
Watching Bernice leave with the lantern, Garcia turned to look at the finally standing Lavian.
“Come on, Lord Garcia.”
Lavian changed back into the composed and respectful cardinal.
“Let us dedicate ourselves together to the great cause of serving the Empire.”
