St. Margaret's Convent

As we go straight through the sixth ring, the conditions of the houses are gradually getting better.

That's not to say they are good, but at least they no longer look like a little push can cause the roof to collapse. Even though, they are still wooden sheds covered in filth.

Soon, we reach a wide brick road going perpendicularly to the street we are on. I saw this when I was up at the peak of Cimavetta. Between every two rings, there is a road bordering either side, and these roads go all the way around the entire city, creating five hoops, physically dividing the Holy Capital into its six ring districts.

The ramshackle sheds of the scrums end before this hoop, and on the other side, the situation improves drastically.

When we cross the hoop into the fifth ring, I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that we are still in the same city.

Again, the fifth ring is no suburbs, but I can see how the living environment here could be manageable, even for me.

The houses are neat, some reaching two or even three floors, and the streets are relatively clean. There are no homeless people roaming around. Children are chasing each other down alleyways. A few shops and animal pens appear here and there. It's starting to resemble the lower-middle class.

A few hundred meters into the fifth ring, I see a mansion towering above the other houses not too far away.

"Is that a convent?" I ask Astra.

"Yep, right there," she says.

"Alright."

I steer the horse off the main road and head toward the mansion. In these side alleys, I can see through windows families gathered around dinner tables. They are poor, there is no way around that, but they look happy.

It's a little saddening to see how much fewer elves there are in the fifth ring.

A few turns later, we arrive at the front gate of the convent. It sticks out like a sore thumb in the middle of this neighborhood. Unlike any other house I have seen so far in the capital, this convent has a front yard, and by the lack of buildings behind it, a backyard as well. The opened gate is grand and intimidating, and that's not even considering the convent itself.

It's a quintessential Victorian manor with different segments. There are four floors in total, taller than everything else around here. The walls are made of brown uniform bricks, and the afternoon sunlight reflects off its colored window panes. A terrace balcony skirts around the second floor. On it are tea tables and sun umbrellas.

The lawn in the front yard is well taken care of. A statue of a beautifully depicted, naked woman offering an embrace stands on top of a white water fountain sitting in the middle of the yard. Trimmed shrubs decorate the rest of the space.

No one is present on the grounds of the convent, and the gate isn't big enough for our carriage to go through, so I am assuming we have to go knock on the doors ourselves.

"Are we here?" Faye asks and looks out the window of the cabin.

"Yes," I say.

Since we are in the middle of some remote alleyway, there is no traffic. I get off the carriage and walk through the gate into the front yard of the convent.

Astra jumps off the back of the cabin, and the other girls follow.

As I stroll past the water fountain, Astra catches up beside me and asks with a smug smirk, "You know who that is?" She points at the statue of the woman.

"Let me guess, you?"

"Ding ding! Aren't I beautiful?"

I take a good look at the face of the statue. It's clearly an adult woman.

"It looks nothing like you," I say.

"Yeah, what do you expect? People who see my face in Heaven don't really get to tell everyone else what I look like."

Why did she even bring this up, then?

Above the door is a stone sign with a name carved into it. "ST. MARGARET'S CONVENT," the name reads.

"Who is St. Margaret?" I ask.

"A former pope. A really smart woman, and an absolute beast in the bedroom. She had twelve children," Astra says.

"That's way more information than I needed."

Faye also catches up to us. "Is this where we are going to live?" She asks.

"Hopefully," I say.

Once we all reach the front door, I step up the stairs and pick up the knocking handle to give it a few taps.

A minute later, I hear footsteps approaching the door from the other side, and it swings open.

An old lady in a nun's outfit appears at the doorway. She quickly scans us with a warm smile.

"Hello there, youngsters, what can I help you with?" She says in a cracked voice.

"We would like to find a residence in the convent," I say.

"Oh? Did you come seeking to join us? How surprising. You don't look like someone in need of the Church's assistance."

Before I can answer, I hear Astra's voice in my head. I glance over at her. She is not speaking or praying, but her hand is faintly glowing.

"Tell her we are fallen nobles from the city of Pesaridge," she transmits.

"We were once nobles in the city of Pesaridge," I say, "but unforeseen events caused us to lose our status, so we ask for the kindness of the Church to get us through these rough times."

"I see. I am sure Her Excellency Cecilia wouldn't mind. However, I will ask for the donation of your horse and carriage as a contribution to the cause," the nun says.

"Sure."

"Well, come on in, then. Welcome to St. Margaret's Convent," she says and steps back from the door, inviting us in.

"Thank you."

We step through into the mansion. Lohikaarmi closes the door behind her.

I take a look around the interior. The lobby is huge. Everything is made of shiny wood, and I can smell it in the air. The floorboards creak beneath my feet.

A wide staircase is right in the middle, and three hallways head to each of the different directions in the convent.

A gorgeous chandelier hangs from the ceiling, lighting up the first floor. I can see two other nuns walking together around on the second floor. Their eyes overlook us, and they stop to chat with each other.

"Please follow me," the old woman says, "Her Excellency needs to handle the formalities before you can be a part of the convent."

"Okay."

We follow the nun to the hallway on the left. She knocks on the door of the first room we see.

"The door is open," the voice of a woman calls from within.

The nun opens the door.

"Your Excellency. We have a group of guests wanting to join the convent," she says.

"Let them come in."

The nun nods and gestures at us to enter the room.