13 Mink Street

“Only suspicion?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll report that detail upward.”

“All right, Captain.” Karon turned and returned to his suite.

On the bed, Fannie and Paige were still fast asleep. Paige had kicked the blanket to the floor. She liked sleeping on her stomach. Fannie was wearing a silk nightgown, the kind that looked better on than off.

They had definitely heard the bell earlier, but because Karon was the one on watch, as long as he did not wake them, they would immediately go right back to sleep. That was the type of trust they had in their squad mates.

Of course, the way they were sleeping reflected an even deeper level of trust.

Standing by the bed, Karon frowned slightly. Now that he replayed the earlier scene in reverse, after he had pushed the cart inside, many details felt deliberately staged.

Delius had been the one to suggest drinking, yet he had taken only a single sip, as if deliberately performing for Karon so that Karon could later testify that Delius had drunk the wine.

Right after that, Delius had immediately lost all interest in talking and had said that he was tired.

Still, that suspicion was not especially useful. It could be interpreted it as deliberate camouflage, meant to gain the trust of the upper ranks of the Church of Order.

It could also be interpreted as Delius being aware that the upper ranks still had doubts about him, so he had deliberately used that method to prove his innocence.

The only one who likely knew the truth was that space worm.

Karon gently rolled his neck and suddenly felt a bit fortunate, fortunate that he did not feel any especially deep sense of belonging to the Church of Order. So long as he did his own work properly, matters that gave the higher-ups headaches and forced them to weigh competing interests could remain their problem.

All that he needed to do was simply to complete his mission and earn credits.

He bent down, picked up the blanket, and covered Paige and Fannie with it again. He then sat back down on the sofa. From the pack of cigarettes that Fannie had left on the tea table, he took one out and idly rolled it between his fingers.

Without realizing it, he had already shaken most of the tobacco out of it. By that time, the first light of dawn was already pouring in through the floor-to-ceiling window.

Karon picked up the receiver beside him. There was no dial tone, indicating it was not possible to place outside calls, but he soon heard movement from the other end as someone picked up. “Hello, hotel reception. Sir, do you need anything?”

“Breakfast.”

“For three people?”

“Yes.”

“Sir, do you have any special requests?”

“Send up some cigarettes as well.”

“Certainly, my lord. Please wait a moment. They will be brought up shortly.”

Paige had taught him that trick. The squad brought clothes with them for these missions, but never too many cigarettes. Any expenses incurred during a mission could be reimbursed by the Church, so if they ran short, they could simply have Ankara Hotel’s front desk send more. Those charges would be added to the room fee, and the squad never had to settle the room bill themselves.

The cigarettes provided by Ankara Hotel contained certain special ingredients, and could not be bought outside. The Church Affairs Building store also sold them, but only for credits.

Still, to avoid looking too greedy, no one could call for whole cartons. They had to take them one pack at a time.

Not long after, Marlow’s voice came through the blue shell at Karon’s ear. “Breakfast.”

Karon left the room and walked to the elevator. When the doors opened, he saw his younger cousin again.

An entire day had passed, and other than a brief trip to the restroom, Richard had apparently remained in the elevator the whole time. Also, since that particular elevator could not be used by anyone except for those traveling to this floor, it meant that he had spent almost the entire day alone in an enclosed space, left to his own thoughts.

Yet Richard revealed not even the smallest complaint. Every time the elevator doors opened, he appeared bright and alert. This was no act, either, because Karon had not seen even the faintest trace of dissatisfaction in the young man’s subtle expressions.

Putting himself in Richard’s place, Karon felt that if he had come from the same kind of family background and, on his very first mission, the team had assigned him to the same position, he would certainly have felt some resentment.

So in terms of ideological awareness, his younger cousin was better than him.

Richard pushed out the breakfast cart, then turned and returned to the elevator. Karon picked up a plate and used tongs to add some bread and sausages. Though it was called breakfast for three, it was not divided into three neat servings. In truth, there was enough to feed six or seven grown adults.

After setting the heaped plate down, Karon walked back and pressed the elevator button. The elevator had not yet gone down and was still on the same floor. When the doors opened again, Karon stepped inside with the plate and a large glass of orange juice.

The doors shut, and Richard stared at Karon in confusion. “You haven’t had breakfast, right?”

“No.”

Karon handed a fork over and sat down. Seeing that Richard remained standing, Karon waved at him. “Sit. Eat first.”

“Oh. All right.” Richard obediently sat down and began eating.

Karon took a sip from the large glass of orange juice, then handed it over. Richard took it and drank a big mouthful as well.

“Bored?” Karon asked.

Richard shook his head. “This is my post and my duty.”

“Mm. Keep working hard. The captain and the others will definitely notice your attitude. Next time there’s a mission, you’ll probably be assigned a better task.”

“But I think guarding the elevator is a very important post. There’s a ritual array around the outside of the hotel, while inside, every floor is separated from every other floor, and every room from every other room by ritual arrays and wards. Even inside this elevator, there is a ritual array. Everyone who enters this floor has to pass by me first. This place is very important.”

“Yes.” Karon nodded.

Richard bit into a sausage and continued, “When Bishop Byrne went down, he seemed to be thinking about something. His mood was unsettled.”

“Oh?” Karon was a little surprised. His younger cousin had actually been actively observing every single person, and more importantly, he was willing to share what he noticed. That meant Richard had truly regarded Karon as one of his own all along.

“Bishop Byrne. Grandfather mentioned him once. He said that although Byrne is a lower-ranked Class 1 Bishop in the York City district, his real influence isn’t as simple as it appears. His position as a Class 1 Bishop in York City may only be a convenient identity he currently needs.”

Bishops were ranked from Class 1 to Class 9, increasing in order. Though in practice, this was largely a matter of status and privileges. In truth, the Church of Order, and most churches in general, shared a structural problem. Position, realm, actual authority and responsibility, and personal influence were four things that could not be neatly ordered into one hierarchy.

From Divine Servant, Divine Seeker, and Divine Shepherd, to Inquisitor, Adjudicator, and Expositor, then to Bishop and the higher-classed Bishops, for instance, York City’s district was equivalent to that of the entire nation of Swillen, while the district of the nation of Veyn ranked above that of Swillen. The difference was a bit like the difference between a city civil service system and a state-level one.

The reason it felt confusing was that in the Church of Order, or rather in many churches, one’s personal strength and their official position often overlapped; The same title could indicate both rank and realm.

In the most extreme cases, if someone had made enough contributions or held enough status, even a Divine Servant could serve as an Inquisitor or a higher position, because even in the Church of Order, the church with the hardest fists, the people whose job was purely fighting were not the majority.

For example, Karon’s own grandfather Tiz had always been an Inquisitor, yet even Rasma had felt fear upon arriving in the city where Tiz resided.

Or take the current example: Richard was a Divine Shepherd, but his papers identified him as a Divine Servant. Karon himself had already reached the Inquisitor realm, yet he still carried Divine Servant credentials.

Only above the level of Expositor did realm and rank diverge, each with its own designation.

The reason for this tangled system was that the development and expansion of religion had never been orderly. It had not been like dropping ink into clear water and stirring it until the color gradually shifted. Rather, it had taken shape only after a very long period of struggle and back-and-forth conflict among different religious forces, until a relatively stable, but still dynamic condition, had emerged.

When Karon had first learned about this, he had mentally compared it to the age of warlord conflict. This marshal here, that commander there, some bandit chief could gather a gang of outlaws and start calling himself a colonel or major general, claiming titles of brigade commander or division commander. Position, military rank, territory, influence, fighting strength, it was all one sticky mess.

But no matter what, a Class 1 Bishop of the York City district was already a very high post. If even that was merely a temporary identity, then just how high was Bishop Byrne’s true status? After all, he was someone who had sent his own son undercover into the Church of Pamireth, and ultimately raised him to become that church’s Divine Progeny. Byrne had certainly helped Delius along the way.

“I think Bishop Byrne may be harboring doubts,” Richard said. “And after seeing his son, that doubt seemed even heavier than before he got into the elevator.”

After seeing his own son, he had become even more burdened? Karon believed Richard’s observation, because even the finest actor could not maintain a performance at all hours of the day, and Richard’s position was so ordinary that most people would simply ignore him. Those who rode the elevator up and down probably could not even be bothered to stay tense in front of him.

“And the captain too.”

“The captain?”

“The captain came up early in the elevator.”

“Mm, I know that.”

So the captain really was hiding on this floor the whole time, waiting for the medicine to take effect.

“When the captain went back down, I could feel that he seemed to be smiling.”

“Smiling? You heard the captain’s voice?” Karon remembered that the captain had been wearing a mask.

“His shoulders. They were trembling very slightly,” Richard explained.

“Oh, so that’s what you meant.” When Nio had gone down, it had been right after he had finished his conversation with Karon, and Karon had also shared his suspicions. So what exactly had the captain been smiling about?

“Your observations are very important,” Karon said. “If there’s another mission in the future, I’ll arrange for you to stay by my side.”

“All right.” Richard smiled brightly.

After finishing breakfast with Richard, Karon stepped out of the elevator and pushed the cart back to his suite.

The blanket had once again been kicked off the bed by the two women. Now that sunlight had poured in from outside and replaced the room’s dim warm lighting, the scene on the bed was clearer. And yes, whiter too.

Fannie herself was already very fair, with a fullness that belonged uniquely to her. If one ignored the scars across Paige’s body, she was also quite fair. From Karon’s current angle, and with this backdrop, the scene on the bed looked like an oil painting; two women, two different forms and textures of beauty.

He rested his hand on the cart and quietly admired the sight for a while. Since it looked good, then he would look at it normally. In any case, neither of them would mind.

Paige opened her eyes and sat up, then stretched lazily at Karon. “I smell food.”

“Mhmm. Wash up and eat breakfast,” Karon said.

Still completely naked, Paige got out of bed and walked to the cart. “Can I pretend I’m still groggy from just waking up and steal a kiss first? That way I can start the day’s work in a very good mood.”

“Then my own good mood for the day would be ruined.”

“Why?”

“Do you have any idea how bad morning breath is when someone first wakes up? Especially when that someone smokes and drinks.”

“Hoh... heh... hehehe!” Paige glared at Karon with widened eyes, furious. “Karon, the thing I regret most now is that I didn’t force you right then and there on the sofa in the captain’s office the first time we met!”

“What a pity. You no longer have that chance.”

Paige turned around and bent over with her back to Karon. She swayed twice. “But I wouldn’t mind if you use that greatsword Miss Ophelia gave you to leave a few red marks here.”

Fannie sat up on the bed and laughed. “Oh? Are we starting first thing in the morning now? A game where someone desperately tries to salvage her wounded pride and the fragments of her shattered charm?”

Paige looked at Fannie. “I’m not the only one who needs saving. Haha, I don’t remember you wearing that kind of underwear last time. Looks like you care just as much.”

“Eat your breakfast. There’s a welcome banquet this morning. Since we’re under gag orders, I think the banquet will be very simple, with very few participants. We probably won’t be qualified to even eat there,” Karon said.

“You’re right,” Paige replied.

“That’s exactly how it’ll be,” Fannie agreed with a nod.

The two women went to the washroom to clean up. Karon sat down on the sofa. He leaned back slightly while looking out the window. For some reason, Eunice’s image surfaced unbidden in his mind.

Fannie came out of the washroom, washed and fully dressed, eating breakfast as she smiled. “Thinking about your girlfriend?”

“No. I’m thinking about what happened last night.”

Paige happened to come out of the washroom right then and cursed, “Oh, damn it! So the two of us don’t even have the power to make you think of your girlfriend anymore?”

Karon replied, “After all, you’re not from the same age bracket.”

“Damn it!”

“Fuck!” The two women cursed in unison. Fannie raised her middle finger at Karon, while Paige viciously bit through a sausage.

After that, it was simply a matter of waiting.

At ten-thirty, Karon led Paige and Fannie to knock on Delius’s door. The man opened it, still wearing the same priest’s robe from yesterday. He appeared to be in excellent spirits, carrying a solemn, sacred aura. It was difficult to imagine the expression he had worn last night.

The welcome banquet was held in a small hall. Karon, Paige, and Fannie entered, only to find three long tables arranged inside.

One table was for Delius, Byrne, and the other red-robed Bishops. The second and third tables were occupied respectively by the people Delius had brought and the negotiation team from the Church of Order.

The three members of the security detail could only stand off to the side. Forget eating, there were not even chairs for them to sit on. They could only serve as part of the backdrop. Fortunately, they had made a point of eating a very full breakfast.

For a matter involving the merger of two churches, both sides’ display seemed rather small. However, when considering that the final result of the negotiation would be delivered to the true leaders of both sides for approval, what was happening suddenly felt quite normal.

There were no long speeches and no statements of sentiment. The banquet moved very quickly. Everyone seemed merely to be going through the motions.

After the banquet, the negotiations, which had originally been scheduled to begin at two in the afternoon, were moved up to start immediately.

The conference hall was also not large, but this time, there was no isolation treatment, because no one present was allowed to leave the hotel before the negotiations were concluded. Naturally, there was no need for secrecy.

The contents of the contract also did not need to be kept secret, because if the negotiations succeeded, the Church of Pamireth would be absorbed into the Church of Order, making them one family. At the same time, if the negotiations failed, the Church of Pamireth would simply be erased by Order, leaving only one family anyway.

During the last meeting, Fannie and Paige had been constantly nodding off, finding the whole thing a form of mental torture. They had even made Karon pinch their thighs to keep them from snoring when they fell asleep.

But this time, neither woman showed the slightest trace of fatigue. They sat upright and listened with great seriousness, as though they had suddenly become deeply concerned about the future of the Church.

Delius spoke first on behalf of the Church of Pamireth. In summary, their demands were roughly these: outwardly, the Church of Pamireth would declare itself subordinate to the Church of Order, they would revise the records in the Mythic Overview portion of their scriptures, and in their dealings with the secular world and with other churches, they would act in step with the Church of Order.

Speaking for the Church of Order was Leon’s grandfather, the Archbishop of the York City district. In summary, the Church of Order’s demands were these: it would take over all of the Church of Pamireth’s mission chapels, doctrinal content would henceforth center on Light of Order, and the doctrines of the Church of Pamireth would be placed into an additional volume within that book.

The Church of Pamireth’s administrative institutions would be dismantled and absorbed into the various departments of the Church of Order. Special emphasis was placed on the Church of Pamireth’s greatest specialty: its spatial Arts and the forging of spatial holy relics. A special branch department unique to the Church of Pamireth would be added beneath the departments of the Church of Order.

The Herald’s Domain had to be opened to the Temple of Order. A permanent transmission ritual array would be constructed between the two spaces, and the Church of Order would hold operational control over that ritual array.

The demands of the two sides did not merely differ; They were worlds apart.

But just like doing business, only by starting with an outrageous asking price could there be room for bargaining afterward. The two sides proceeded to descend into a fierce argument and debate. Paper and pens were flung at one another. There was not the slightest trace of priestly dignity to be found. Even fishwives in the market quarreling over herring would have looked more civilized than these negotiations.

At the height of the conflict, three priests negotiating for the Church of Pamireth directly tore off their robes, dropped to their knees, and shouted, “If it comes to this, I would rather die than submit!”

On the Church of Order side, two Expositors rolled up their sleeves and roared, “Then what’s the point of merging at all? We should march straight into the Herald’s Domain and wipe out Pamireth!”

Still, both parties were dragged back by other members of their respective negotiating delegations, and they then continued quarreling.

At first, Karon found it all highly entertaining, but as he watched Delius, who was leading his delegation in fighting the Church of Order for the best treatment and the greatest retained rights for the Church of Pamireth, Karon remembered how that same man had once shouted in front of him, “Are you questioning my loyalty to Order?”

Karon let out a quiet sigh. Right now, what is Saman doing? Most likely, he’s discussing the details of his own funeral with Alfred.