The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 105 Irene
Before Leslie went back into the house, she glanced discreetly at something on the path.

After closing the door, he said, "Young master, you went out to have some fun... You might have been watched while you were out strolling around. Did you accidentally show off your wealth?"

Eric was taken aback at first, then realized that the person Nightingale had sent to stalk him must have given himself away.

How can you be so bad...

He had noticed it on his way back, and Leslie, who had been indulging in debauchery in the capital for over a year, was still able to keenly observe that person, clearly indicating that he was not an expert.

“It’s nothing, just a ‘friend’ who just wanted to know where I live,” Eric said.

Aside from reminding him to be careful of his so-called friends, Leslie didn't say much else.

The two went to rest. Back in his room, Eric looked out the window for a while but found nothing. The person had probably already left.

He lay down on the bed and slept until dawn.

After changing his clothes, Eric prepared to go find Eileen.

"Young master, let me take you there. This is your first time here..."

"It's okay, I can remember this road even with my eyes closed."

"Ok?"

Even so, Eric still brought Leslie along; if he didn't find something for the captain of the guard to do, he'd get fatty liver disease.

I rode my horse out of Lutia through the west gate. The environment here was quiet and peaceful, and I didn't see many refugees.

Leslie explained that since the Exorcism Anniversary was approaching, a carnival would be held at the Lake of Elf Tears, where most of the nobles and even the royal family from the capital would be present. To prevent the compassionate nobles from being saddened by the sight of those poor ghosts and ruining the festive atmosphere, they had driven them away beforehand.

Eric rolled his eyes, speechless.

The magic academy in the suburbs wasn't too far away; after riding for a short while, the two could see the towering spire of the magic academy's mage tower.

After turning through a grove of trees, most of the Imperial Capital Magic Academy came into view before Eric.

Eric took a deep breath. Seeing this, Leslie assumed he was shocked by the scale of the magic academy and said, "The mages who built this academy were really bold. Although I've never been inside the palace, it looks pretty much the same."

“Yes,” Eric replied casually, urging his horse forward.

The Lutia Magic Academy is actually situated on a tall stone island in the Lake of Elf Tears, its ground level at least tens of meters above the lake surface. A similarly tall stone bridge connects the academy to the outside world, and at one end of the bridge, which connects to the lake, stands a bizarrely shaped giant statue.

“Miss Eileen said that they are gargoyles created by combining magic and alchemy. When the academy is invaded by foreign enemies, they will come to life and guard the academy.” As the two approached, Leslie introduced them to Eric.

“Is that so?” Eric glanced at the gargoyle wielding a giant stone axe; in his more familiar timeline, this thing had already been smashed to pieces…

Near the lake, academy students dressed in lake-blue mage robes can be seen everywhere, leisurely and carefree, their faces showing more or less pride when faced with the gaze of outsiders.

There were no restrictions on entering the academy, but dismounting was the most basic etiquette. The two found a place by the lake to tie their horses and walked across the bridge.

Lake Elf's Tears, located on the western outskirts of Lutia, is actually quite large. Eric and Leslie, walking on the bridge, could barely see the other side of the lake.

"The exorcism anniversary is in a few days, and the carnival will be held on that big flat area over there." Leslie pointed to a place for Eric. "Young master and young lady can go and take a look."

As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something, "Oh right, young master and young lady's..."

“Tomorrow.” Eric smiled and continued walking.

After crossing the bridge, you reach the main gate of the magic academy. Although the stone island on which the academy is located is tall, the area at the top is not very wide. Therefore, the dense buildings on the island are all crammed together. Although there seem to be many buildings, they are actually a connected whole with countless entrances and exits underneath, and only a few spires that pierce the sky.

In front of these interconnected buildings are several weathered statues of moon elves, the founders of this ancient magic academy.

After staring at those familiar yet unfamiliar faces for a while, Eric asked, "Where should we look for Eileen?"

Leslie was also bewildered for a moment. "I used to wait outside for Miss to come out."

Eric, feeling helpless, looked around and found a female mage who seemed easy to talk to, asking her if she knew Erin Kimino.

"..."

The other person stared at his face for a moment, then asked, "Eileen...Eileen's brother?"

It seemed they knew each other. Eric thought to himself that he was lucky, and then asked her to call Eileen out.

The female monk stared at him a few more times, asked him to wait a moment, and then hurriedly left.

Standing before the moon elf statue, Eric waited, one minute, two minutes, time slowly passing, and he suddenly felt a little nervous. Although they had been corresponding, he had never actually seen the now-normal Eileen.

Seeing his slightly awkward expression, Leslie seemed to want to say something.

"Do not talk."

"……Yes."

Eric deliberately avoided looking at the entrances and exits of the college buildings. After waiting for an unknown amount of time, a very familiar voice rang out.

"Eric!"

He turned around, and Eileen, who was watching from a short distance away, immediately pounced on him when she saw his face.

"Eric—"

He opened his arms and caught his sister who rushed towards him, his body spinning around in the process.

"Eileen..."

The two, who looked remarkably alike, gazed at each other. Eileen was overjoyed, her face beaming with smiles, while Eric, while smiling, suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

He had never seen Eileen so healthy in over a decade.

He finally saw his sister grow up normally instead of becoming a witch.

Regardless of what happens to the world, at least he saved Eileen...

“Eric?” Eileen looked into his eyes and easily noticed the change in his emotions.

“It’s nothing.” Eric took a deep breath. “I’m just so happy to see you.”

"I'm glad too!"

Eileen smiled, hugged his waist, nuzzled against his chest, and looked up at her brother, who wasn't much taller than her. "Eric, why did you suddenly come here? Can you leave the Holy Capital now?"

He only wrote to Leslie about his trip to Lutia, just to surprise his sister.

“The saint has granted me permission to leave for a while,” Eric said, “so I have come to see you.”

"Ugh, Eric—"

Eileen was so happy that she hugged him again and spun him around.

Seeing his sister so lively and healthy, Eric felt his eyes well up with tears again.

The two cheered and jumped for joy, attracting a lot of attention. Eileen didn't care. She greeted Leslie and then pulled Eric into the academy.

"Come and see my room. I've only been in the academy for a little over a year, and I already have my own room!"

"I know, you already told me that in your letter."

Eric turned his head and glanced at her, while Leslie gestured to indicate that she would wait outside.

Following Eileen inside, Eric was no stranger to the structure of this magic academy. When playing as a mage, he would inevitably run around here and the Star Origin Academy in Castelfel hundreds or thousands of times.

However, watching it on a screen is one thing, but experiencing it in person is another. Just like when he first walked into the convent, everything felt familiar, yet nothing felt quite familiar.

"Don't we have class today?" Eric asked.

"You have class," Eileen said, pulling him along. "But it's in the afternoon; there's a magic attack and defense simulation class."

Eric was taken aback. "Eileen has only been in the academy for a little over a year, and she's already taking courses like this?"

“The teacher said I could take this class, so I signed up,” Eileen said.

Eric thought for a moment, "May I come and see?"

“Sure,” Eileen smiled. “Spell demonstration courses are meant to be observed. Eric isn’t a member of the academy, so I’ll just tell the teacher.”

Eric nodded; he also wanted to see how much Eileen had grown since she hadn't taken the witch route.

(End of this chapter)