Chapter 20 Bishop Mathers

The Cathedral of the Candle Master in the Red Queen District is Avalon's most orthodox Nine Pillars Divine Church, as well as the highest-status cathedral.

The coronation ceremonies of successive Avalonian kings and queens have all been held here, and it is also where the royal mausoleum is located. Other "great" individuals in the Kingdom of Avalon are also buried here following their state funerals.

Its daring to take the name "Candle Master," the Guardian Pillar God of the Path of Devotion, is sufficient to prove its sanctity.

"Please come this way."

An elderly man turned his head, wearing a solemn, floor-length red robe and a mitre. He spoke politely and gently to Aiwass.

This man, with his sideburns and glasses, appeared to be in his forties based on his skin and features, exuding an aura akin to that of a stern head teacher. Yet, there was an inexplicable sense of "agedness" about him, causing one to instinctively view him as an elder. Perhaps it was due to the unnatural paleness of his hair, not as one naturally grays, but as if faded by age.

The old man looked up and warned Butler Oswald, who was pushing a wheelchair behind Aiwass, "Be careful, there's a slope ahead."

The design of his mitre resembled a ceremonial and sacred candelabra with intricate detail.

In fact, it could indeed hold candles — although they wouldn't actually insert and light candles except on important occasions.

According to the design of this mitre, it could accommodate up to three candles. The large candle in the front and the two smaller ones on each side indicated that this elder's clerical rank was quite high.

Counting from the top down, even including the Pope of the Eternal Theocracy, he would be considered the third tier.

Strictly speaking, all high-ranking clergy, including the Pope, were "bishops," and all bishops had three candles on their mitres and were the only ones entitled to wear red robes. The Pope's mitre could fit three large candles, whereas a bishop of the lowest rank could only have three small candles.

One tier down, a priest would have two candles, and an acolyte at the lowest rank would have just one.

Although the churches in this world all worship the Nine Pillar Gods, the church itself has its preferences. Most clergy follow the Path of Devotion, hence the Nine Pillars Divine Church reveres the "Candle Master" and the "Red Candle" that signifies 'burning oneself to illuminate others' as its sacred emblem.

While Aiwass was also a priest, he had not yet graduated, and therefore had not been conferred his own mitre. This meant he was not considered part of the religious system, was not on the church's payroll, and was not bound by its rules.

"Thank you, Bishop Mathers."

Aiwass expressed his polite gratitude, "And thank you for personally teaching me the Sacred Arts."

"It's no trouble at all. My election as Clergy Councilor was largely thanks to Professor Moriarty."

Bishop Mathers clasped his hands in front of him, linking his fingers. He walked alongside Aiwass on the east side path of the Cathedral of the Candle Master.

He chuckled good-humoredly, "I read this morning's paper — you did well yesterday.

"Those Demon Scholars have done myriad evils, recently sacrificing an entire village. Including a dozen elders and over forty children, all were used as material for their rituals. Their crimes are outrageous, so much so that His Holiness the Pope was alarmed. Now they are wanted not just in the kingdom, but also by the punitive hall in the Holy Nation."

"Without an official mastery of the Path's power, you found them using your own wisdom and defeated them with only a handgun... Your victory against the stronger adversary was remarkable. The Pope has not seen the newspaper yet. But I believe if he does, he would praise you as a 'youthful hero'."

"It wasn't all that impressive," Aiwass smiled modestly, "Without Senior Hayna's protection, I might have found them but likely would have already fallen victim."

"Hmm, that girl did quite well too," Bishop Mathers concurred. "Brave and strategic — and most importantly, willing to trust others.

"She is much stronger than you and even older, yet she did not blindly rely on her strength and was willing to trust your judgment... When she couldn't handle the problem before her, she passed the ball to someone who could. I suppose that in itself is a form of wisdom."

"You follow sports too?"

The one who suddenly spoke up was Butler Oswald from behind Aiwass.

The old elf asked with keen interest, "Which team do you support?"

"Of course, the Mistletoe Club."

The bishop answered without hesitation, "The newcomer they brought in this year, I think there's something to say about him."

"What about the unicorn? How do you see the unicorn's performance this year?"

"I am Avalonian, so of course, I support Avalon's sports teams. You are an elf, so you support the Holy Nation's teams. This is normal."

The bishop chuckled as he spoke, lightly glossing over the topic.

He looked at Aiwass and said seriously, "Although you have proven yourself capable of overcoming stronger opponents with less—defeating an enemy who is close to reaching the third energy level without having gained any supernatural powers—it would be remiss of us elders to simply set you aside with confidence.

"Although it may not be by the book... according to the regulations issued by Her Majesty forty years ago, Avalonian citizens must achieve an excellent result in their cultural exams after coming of age and have a good moral assessment with no bad habits or criminal records before they can formally begin on the Path and step onto the transcendent road.

"But there is only one month left until your final exams this term. You have already proven your integrity and rationality, I will speak with Her Majesty about this later."

At this point, Butler Oswald, who was pushing the wheelchair, suddenly gave a light cough.

"Archbishop Your Excellency," the aged yet still elegant elf butler asked earnestly, "Is there something wrong?"

Bishop Mathers kept chuckling, hands clasped, but did not immediately respond to Oswald's words.

It was not until the trio had arrived at the small chapel on the east side of the cathedral, and Bishop Mathers produced a key that looked even bigger than Hayna's short sword to unlock the tightly closed door, that the old bishop leisurely began to speak:

"—Today, St. Genvieve Chapel opens just for you.

"Aside from teaching you the Sacred Arts of 'Rite of Fire,' 'Illumination,' and 'Blessing,' I will also assist you with your first advancement. Don't be too nervous, the first advancement does not require entry into the Dream Realm. The situation in Avalon is not good right now, and I think you need some ability to protect yourself."

"So, what exactly has happened?"

Oswald persisted in asking.

Bishop Mathers closed the doors of the chapel and turned on the light switch.

The next moment, the chapel, which seemed like a university lecture hall in its construction and size, suddenly became brightly lit.

On both sides, the statues stored within the niches became illuminated, as if awakened by that light, silently beginning to move ever so slightly and gradually turning their gaze towards them.

Bishop Mathers gently tapped the three candles on his mitre and respectfully greeted the sacred images:"The seventy-three trailblazers.

"May the Candle Master watch over your flames."

Aiwass and Oswald also slightly lowered their heads in respect.

These seventy-three sacred images represented every figure in Avalon, including past monarchs, who had been buried here with national funeral honors since the founding of the kingdom. Each one's name was etched in Avalon's history books.

When Queen Sofia passes away, she would become the seventy-fourth.

Aiwass had already noticed that a new niche without a sacred image had appeared in the corner of St. Genvieve Chapel.

Noticing Aiwass's gaze, Bishop Mathers kindly explained to him, "This is the spot prepared by Her Majesty for herself. Her sacred image was commissioned five years ago and completed two years ago. It is now kept in the Hall of Silver and Tin."

Then, he turned back to Oswald.

"The Round Table Hall probably doesn't know about this yet, but I have reported it to Her Majesty," he said.

Bishop Mathers spoke gravely, "There has been important intelligence from the Holy Nation.

"They captured a spy from Star Antimony and got something out of him.

"—It is said that there are traitors within the high levels of the kingdom. They plan to incite an ongoing chaos on Glass Island, with the timing, scale, and location all unknown. The ultimate goal is to 'obtain or get close to some kind of Holy Entity'.

"The Royal Capital is likely to fall into chaos soon, and I think there is no need to wait for Aiwass to finish his final exams.

"Just in case, he must immediately embark on the transcendent path."