Chapter 129: The Temple of Priests
On the streets of Luxen City.
Vivian continued dragging Mrs. Belfair by the hair on their way to the Temple of Priests.
At first, when they stepped out of the Adventurer's Guild building, the old woman tried to struggle and cry out for help. But after noticing that no one dared to even lift a finger but just watch, she eventually gave up resisting.
After all, Vivian was a Priest. The Brown Cloak draped on her body and the gold necklace with a vertically stretched-out sun pendant around her neck were proof. And no one was stupid or brave enough to impersonate one.
For normal people, it was out of the question that they would risk their own lives to help Mrs. Belfair.
Meanwhile, for adventurers, technically, they weren't allowed to participate in political matters or they would lose their license.
There were also the city guards. But they too didn't help. Some of them even pretended to not notice. Their morale was also currently low due to the betrayal of the Supreme Captain Ronaldo.
"YOU! STOP! LET GO OF OUR MOTHER!" a male voice shouted.
If there was anyone who could help Mrs. Belfair at this moment, it was her own family.
Vivian stopped and turned to face the person who shouted.
It was a man in his early 40s carrying a sword on his waist and had a Gold II Rank pendant around his neck. He was accompanied by two other men -- one in his late 30s who didn't carry any weapon and the other in his early 30s with a pair of daggers on his thighs and also had a Gold II Rank around his neck.
And although they weren't wearing anything fancy but just normal clothes, based on the quality of their clothes, it was above average.
When they saw their mother's face which was covered in tears, snot and other bodily fluids, the faces of the man in his early 40s and the other one in his early 30s twisted into a murderous intent.
The man in his late 30s who wasn't carrying any weapons stepped forward.
"Honored Priestess, what has our poor and old mother done to deserve such treatment?"
"She's suspected of being a demon-worshiper!" Vivian answered loudly to make sure that everyone around watching heard her. "And as a Priest, a devoted follower of the God of Light, it is my solemn duty to protect humanity and this world from such heretics!"
"LIES!" the man in his early 40s shouted and pulled out his sword. "I, RAMUS, AND MY FAMILY HAVE KILLED DEMON-WORSHIPERS AND THEREFORE CANNOT BE DEMON-WORSHIPERS!"
The man in his early 30s pulled out his daggers.
The man in his late 30s quickly turned to his companions.
"Ramus, Ranz! Do you want to condemn our entire family?! Put down your weapons!"
Mrs. Belfair, on the other hand, her face was painted in terror.
Although she hated Vivian down to her very core right now, she knew that if their family clashed with the Temple of Priests, they would have to leave Luxen City or any place that the Temple of Priests resided in.
And that was assuming that they could escape.
Vivian let go of Mrs. Belfair and her lips slowly curled up into a smile.
"As expected of a family of heretics!"
"WAIT!!!" the man in his late 30s shouted but it was already too late.
Vivian charged and specifically chose not to use her full speed.
Ramus activated a skill.
[Battle Cry].
Ranz activated a skill as well.
[Lesser Presence].
Both men then charged with their full speed.
Vivian's brows knitted together because she felt an invisible force brush against her but felt nothing odd.
And when she was about to enter Ramus and Ranz's attack range, she suddenly turned blurry in front of their eyes.
Psssh!
Thud.
Vivian appeared on Ramus' side and touched him with [Poison Strike], causing a green mist to explode and weakening him. She then grabbed his arm and threw him towards Ranz.
Bam!
Thud!
Thud!
The two men collided against each other and were blown away by the impact, knocking them out.
Vooom.
"Aeeey!"
Vivian suddenly appeared in front of the man in his late 30s, causing him to yelp in surprise and take a step backward.
"Now what can you do?" Vivian asked and tilted her head to the side.
"W-W-Wait...! I-I'm not a fighter...! I'm a merchant!"
He quickly got down on his knees and bowed his head.
"Please spare our family! No, even if it's just mine!"
Vivian's jaw dropped.
Even the bystanders watching had the same reaction.
In Vivian's case, she didn't expect that this man would toss the others aside to save his own family.
"Really? I mean -- Ehem!" Vivian said and cleared her throat. "Then drag your own mother to the Temple of Priests."
He raised his head.
"I will, as long as you will guarantee my own family's safety! Just like you I believe that all heretics must be punished!" he said and then bowed once more.
Vivan subconsciously took a step back.
She felt something inside of her.
Fear.
"A-Are you serious?"
He raised his head.
"For wife and daughter's sake, I'd do anything to protect them."
"I-I…" Vivian didn't know what to say.
She turned to Mrs. Belfair who was kneeling and her eyes staring blankly on the ground.
Did I go overboard…?
I didn't expect things to reach this point…
I can't back out now or I'll be the one in trouble…
"Okay, you drag your mother and I'll drag the other two. When we get to the Temple, I'll inform my brothers and sisters that you helped me apprehend them."
"Thank you for your kindness, Honored Priestess!" he said and bowed.
"What was your name again?"
"Rook Belfair."
***
Vivian and Rook along with the suspects finally arrived at the Temple of Priests.
When Vivian entered the building, she immediately went straight to Joshua who was behind a counter and talking with a customer.
"Brother Joshua, please forgive me for the interruption. I've apprehended some people who I suspect are heretics."
A serious expression immediately flashed on Joshua's face.
***
Vivian and Joshua along with two other Priests wearing White Cloaks stepped out of the building.
Rook was there waiting outside along with the three suspects who were on their knees.
"Brother Joshua, this kind man here is Rook Belfair," said Vivian. "He helped me in apprehending these people who are suspected of being demon worshipers."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Honored Priest Joshua," Rook said and bowed. "I was simply doing my part as a good citizen not only to this city but also to the rest of humanity."
"Thank you for your efforts and may the God of Light continue to bless you," Joshua said and smiled.
"Thank you!" he said and bowed once again.
Joshua then turned his attention to the suspects.
Vivian pointed at Mrs. Belfair.
"I will admit, brother, I owe this woman a favor back when I was still part of the Temple of Thieves and I treated her like a dear friend. That is until I noticed something.
"Yesterday, she asked to meet me to ask for a favor. She wanted me to accompany and provide healing magic for her grandson in his training for 1 week. I explained to her that as a Priest I couldn't just heal anyone for free every time someone asked me to because not only is it one of the most important streams of income of the Temple of Priests, but it will also affect the merchants whose business is selling Healing Potions.
"I also tried explaining to her that I could lose my license and I was also busy in participating with the teaching and feeding Holy Mission.
"But despite all that, she still wouldn't listen and was hell-bent on using me to help her grandson regardless of how it would affect other people.
"And today, she asked to meet me again and she was still as stubborn as yesterday.
"And that's when I finally realize that maybe this person is a heretic who wants to cause pain and suffering to everyone else around her."
"SHE'S LYING!" Mrs. Belfair said and then break down in tears. "I would never dare to hurt anyone…!"
"Priest, that woman unlawfully framed our mother!" said Ramus.
"Yes! Everything she said is --" said Ranz.
"Silence!" Joshua commanded and activated [Halo].
The 3 suspects became docile.
The Class Magic [Halo] has two effects: It has a passive one that boosts mana recovery and an active one that work's like a charm effect.
Regarding its charm effect, it's wasn't like an actual mind control effect. It only makes the owner appear a little more trustworthy so the target will be more inclined to follow the owner's commands. Also, it only works on targets with lower Magic Force compared to the owner.
Nevertheless, although it wasn't exactly a prohibited magic, most people who are aware of the skill's active effect, wouldn't take it kindly when a Priest uses it on them, even the Priests themselves.
Joshua focused his gaze on Mrs. Belfair and his face held no emotion at all.
"Answer my question. Did you ask Sister Vivian to accompany your grandson for 1 week to help him train?"
"Yes…! But that was yesterday…! Today I was planning to have her attend an upcoming family event with my grandson to boost his status within the family…!"
Hearing her explanation, Ramus, Rook and Ranz almost coughed out blood.
Joshua continued asking questions.
"Do you have any involvement with demons, demon-worshipers, the forces of darkness or anything that goes against the teachings of the Temple of Priests?"
"Never…!"
Joshua felt his head starting to ache.
He already had a lot of things on his plate and this just added another one.
He was well aware of the 2 main goals of the Temple of Priests.
Firstly, to rid the world of the forces of darkness.
Secondly, to learn the Class Magic of Priest, the main mantra is to ease the pain and suffering of others.
Unfortunately, the world wasn't that simple.
There's politics, there's logistics, there's desires, there's personalities and many other things that all organizations have to deal with.
And because of these things, they had to set rules and regulations -- some were good, others were questionable.
As a matter of fact, in the early years when the Temple of Priests was first founded, they were simply operating by easing the world from pain and suffering.
However, as the number of their members grew and the Temple gained more power and influence, it led to a lot of their members falling into greed and corruption. In addition to that, factions within the organization started to form which eventually also led to many civil wars.
Even today there were still factions within the Temple of Priests. And occasionally, civil wars would still pop up here and there.
Nevertheless, at the very least, their organization was more united and stable now compared to before.
Joshua turned to the two White Cloaks.
"Take these 3 to the holding cell."
"Yes, brother," the Priests said and then escorted Mrs. Belfair, Ramus and Ranz.
He then turned to Rook and Vivian.
"The both of you, please follow me."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone