The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 182 At the Saint-Rozelle Monastery
Upon entering the Saint-Rozelle Abbey, Eric was led to the monastery's cathedral, surrounded by monks and nuns, where an even more solemn welcoming ceremony awaited him.

After all, Her Highness was not just passing through, but had come specifically to visit their monastery, so the ceremony and etiquette had to be impeccable.

Eric walked in front, with the abbot following beside him to guide him.

Stepping onto the carpet and entering the cathedral, he immediately noticed the tapestries hanging on both sides bearing the coat of arms of the St. Mary's Convent. This reminded him of the ancient carpet he had found on the ancient battlefield, which, like his Lille warhorse, had also been abandoned in North Town.

Eric had no time for regret, because he soon saw huge portraits of himself hanging on both walls.

"..."

He himself doesn't remember when he had his portrait painted in that pose.

Although he looks the same, the man in the portrait is more gentle, more handsome, and more sacred, as if he is radiating light.

He was certain that the painting was a pure work of art, and in this world without cameras, he even considered taking one back to the Lord's mansion in his hometown of Dante to hang there.

Passing through the cathedral, they stopped before the altar. The abbot and a group of monks and nuns solemnly bowed, once again expressing the Saint Rozelle Abbey's devotion to God and its loyalty to the saint. The entire abbey was deeply grateful for the saint's visit and felt extremely honored.

Eric felt that there was some sincerity in the abbess's words of gratitude: the saintess had been invited from afar without spending a penny, and this was her first visit since ascending to the throne. The old abbess's eyes were shining as she spoke.

Of course, he had to say something too, and Alena had already arranged everything for him. He glanced at it a few times before getting off the carriage, and now he could speak without hesitation.

He praised their piety and acknowledged their dedication to this arduous practice, then turned the conversation to Saint Rozelle, the founder of the monastery, praising them for truly inheriting his will and spirit.

Finally, the abbot presented the saint with a sacred text once used by Saint Rozelle. In return, Eric gave the abbey a relic—a small piece of a saint's bone, of which the abbey had many.

After the welcoming ceremony, Her Highness was taken to a suite in the monastery that had been meticulously decorated to rest. It even had a private chapel where she could pray to the gods without leaving the room.

"Your Highness, please rest for a moment. The banquet is being prepared."

The old nun closed the door and left his room. Eric let out a long sigh of relief and threw the cold scepter he had been holding onto the bed.

"Your Highness!"

Sophie quickly went over and picked it up, looked around the room, and placed it on a shelf.

"This old nun is really talkative, she's exhausting me."

Eric lay down on the bed. "Finally, I can have a few days of peace and quiet, and I don't have to travel anymore."

"A few days?" Sophie came over again and helped him up, taking off his coat. "Aren't we supposed to stay here for half a month?"

“Hmm…” Eric responded, without saying anything more for the time being.

After taking off his coat, Sophie brought him another formal dress for the banquet, but Eric said he would wear it later.

"This suite is quite large; it looks like it was built specifically to accommodate the Holy Maiden."

Elise walked around the room. "Not only is there a small chapel, but there are also rooms for the nuns who serve the saint. Now we can all stay here."

“After all, it’s the northernmost monastery in the empire, and it has produced saints, so it’s easy for it to be favored by successive saintesses,” Eric said. “Indeed, that is the case.”

“But it’s not the northernmost monastery on the continent.” Elise moved to sit next to him. “You didn’t choose a monastery in the Kingdom of Chinraya because this one is closer to the Black Ice Wall?”

“What else could it be?” Eric rubbed his face a couple of times. “But let’s rest for a few days first. I still have a lot of things to deal with here.”

"We've come all this way just to stay here for half a month, haven't we?" Sophie's gaze darted back and forth between the two faces. "Does Your Highness have other places to go?"

Eric responded, or rather, he made the dumplings just for the vinegar.

"The Black Ice Wall?" Sophie recognized his voice and grabbed his arm. "Your Highness is going on an adventure to the border?"

“We’re just going to take a look, since we’re already here.” Eric looked at her. “But in order to go and come back quickly, we won’t bring many people. Elise, a few guard knights, and I will ride over.”

Sophie pouted and wrinkled her nose; it was obvious he wasn't going to take her along.

"That would definitely be dangerous."

"Perhaps," Eric smiled, "but now it's my decision."

He lay down again, closed his eyes to rest, and Sophie, not wanting to disturb him, got up and wandered around the suite before asking Elise where she wanted to sleep.

"Either is fine," Elise said nonchalantly. "You choose first."

Sophie naturally chose the side room that was closer.

"What about you?"

Elise pointed to an empty room.

"Does living close by mean I can spend the night in his bed?" she asked Sophie. "Does living further away mean I can't get into his bed?"

"I did it so that I could take better care of Your Highness!"

"That's great, I can't get up in this cold."

"..."

Eric had only intended to lie down for a while, but he fell asleep while listening to Sophie and Elise bickering, and didn't wake up until the people from the monastery came to invite him to a dinner party.

When I went outside, it was already dark.

The monastery prepared a lavish banquet to welcome the saint—the expenses of which were covered by the monastery itself—which made up for Sophie's disappointment at not being able to have a few good meals along the way. The banquet was held in the monastery's dining hall, and all the monks and nuns participated, creating a lively atmosphere.

Of course, as Eric had requested before his arrival, this was the only lavish meal he was supposed to have. So, the monks and nuns in the monastery were even more engrossed in their meal than Sophie. Eric felt a little guilty watching them eat – this monastery in the snow and ice may be large, but the conditions were just so-so, and the transition from luxury to frugality probably wouldn't be so easy.

"Hopefully this won't shake my resolve to continue my practice..." Eric muttered, taking another small sip of wine.

The food was plentiful, but the wine was limited, and the saint was no exception. After all, clergy could drink but not get drunk, although the abbot hinted that if the saint liked to drink, a few more bottles of wine could be sent to his room.

Eric finished eating and went back to his room first, since many people would feel uncomfortable if he was there. Elise quickly followed him.

"Has Your Highness had enough to drink?"

“I didn’t drink enough, but now is not the time to drink as much as I want.” Back in his room, Eric took off the coat he had worn to the dinner party. “I really miss the adventures on the ancient battlefield.”

Elise also expressed her nostalgia, and then asked, "Shall I get His Highness a few bottles of wine?"

"If you go to ask for alcohol, the dean will definitely know that I want to drink. I just rejected her hints earlier. Image management is very important. Besides, it's too cold, and I don't want to drink too much... I didn't expect that it's almost May, and I would still say something like 'it's too cold.'"

Elise laughed, took the coat from his hand, and casually hung it up. "There's never a time when it's not cold here."

"That's true... after all, the snow and ice are the defining features of this map."

"What is Your Highness saying?"

"Nothing... I wanted to ask how you plan to warm me up?"

The two looked at each other and smiled at the same time.

Elise glanced at the closed door, pulled him into one of the smaller rooms in the suite, and knelt down in front of him.

“This is the room Sophie wanted, right?” Eric said, watching her tuck her hair back.

"So Your Highness heard it back then?"

"I don't fall asleep that quickly."

Elise helped him untie his restraints and said, "I'll borrow her room for a bit. Sophie won't mind."

"You're bullying her again... um..."

When Sophie was almost done, she returned to the room. Another round of warm-up exercises to warm each other up had just ended. Elise lay on her bed with her hair disheveled, and the sheets beneath her were in a terrible state.

"Elise!"

"Is the door closed?" She opened one eye. "If it's closed, lie down."

"..."

Eric didn't return to his bed until midnight.

Unlike the small monasteries along the way, the knights who followed him had their own places to rest and didn't have to wait outside his quarters. That's why he was able to indulge himself on the two of them for most of the night, completely releasing the desires he had accumulated along the way. But this excessive release also brought considerable fatigue, and he almost fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

But the next morning, Eric still had to get up early in the freezing cold.

As part of the arrangements for the saint's visit, he was required to participate in the monastery's spiritual practices—starting with morning prayers in the chapel from his early morning awakening.

Although he could pray in the private chapel at his residence, participation itself was meant to be seen, and if he really wanted to pray in his room, he might as well not get out of bed.

Eric yawned almost every minute, while Sophie, kneeling beside him, kept falling down and waking up with a start. Fortunately, the nuns in the convent were focused enough during their morning prayers, otherwise they would have noticed the commotion long ago.

As for Elise, she didn't get up at all. She was extremely flexible in her understanding of her own identity and never regarded herself as a real nun.

As Sophie fell over again, Eric took the opportunity to help her up, and with a light touch through her nun's habit, he gave her a deep, penetrating touch to perk her up.

"..."

She tensed up almost instantly, all sleepiness vanished, and her face was redder than ever before.

She didn't dare to move for a long time. Eric prayed as usual for a while before she dared to glance behind her. When she found that no one was paying attention to her, she relaxed.

“Do your morning prayers well, Yera is watching you.” Eric continued to pray with his head down.

"..."

Sophie looked up at the statue of Yera in front of her, her cheeks burning. She then slowly turned her head to look behind her. The two of them were kneeling at the very front of the chapel, with nuns on both sides and behind them.

She felt no sleepiness whatsoever and stayed awake until the morning class ended.

Sophie only dared to complain to Eric quietly when it was time for breakfast.

"What if someone sees us..."

"At most, they will be seen by the people they brought with them from their own monastery."

Eric calmly ate his bland bread. As a saint, his breakfast was slightly better than others, with a steaming cup of milk and cereal. "They saw it, so what?"

Sophie glanced at the nuns who had come with her; they were quietly eating their breakfast, showing no signs of distress.

After breakfast, Eric, accompanied by the abbot, toured the monastery's facilities, including the library and the nuns' quarters.

The conditions at the Saint-Rozelle Monastery were not great, but they weren't too bad either. After all, it had the aura of a saint and occasionally received donations from nearby nobles, who would also send a few children from unpopular families to study there.

After looking around, Eric said that the Convent was willing to fund the renovation and construction of new dormitories for the nuns, and to add a copying room for the nuns to copy some of theological texts he had brought, such as a complete set of scriptures annotated by Archbishop Baldwin.

The abbot was extremely grateful and naturally could not refuse.

Subsequently, some senior monks and nuns in the monastery were given the opportunity to meet and speak with the saint. Eric chatted with each of them for a few minutes, following topics prepared by Alena in advance.

Of course, there are also some of his own problems involved.

"I've heard that the demons from the North are about to march south, and the Saint Rosell Monastery is almost right on their route. When the demons arrive, will you still continue your cultivation?"

“The gods protect me. Even if my physical body is destroyed, my spirit will not dissipate. Instead, it will become even closer to the gods.”

"Hmm... alright, you can continue your cultivation. Next."

Another monk sat down in front of him.

As usual, Eric first asked about his experiences in the monastery and his daily life, and then asked again what he would do if the demons came.

"Though my body is dead, my spirit will live on."

"..."

Eric rolled his eyes inwardly, preparing to let the next person in.

These people speak as if they are unmoved in the face of the demon invasion, but when the demons actually attack, most of them will probably flee for their lives immediately.

Of course, he did not despise this behavior. He had no ability to resist, so why not escape and wait to die?
He just wanted to hear a more honest, or more defiant, response.

"Of course, my cultivation is not yet sufficient. If there were enough time, I would prefer to survive," the cultivator added.

Eric glanced up; he was ready to kick him out.

"So how do you plan to survive?"

“This is already the far north of the Empire, and the environment is not much different from the Demon Realm. The demons probably won’t stay here… Their goal is likely the more prosperous and warmer places in the south.” The cultivator paused for a moment. “What I mean is, the demons won’t invest too much effort along the way; taking Lutia as soon as possible is the most important thing.”

Eric sat up straight.

In an empire where people are either ignorant or avoid confronting the demon race, this person's understanding of the demon race is that of a sage and prophet.

“As long as everyone in the monastery puts up a fight and holds off the first wave of the demons’ attack, there is a chance of survival,” the monk said.

Eric nodded. "Go on."

“My father is a nobleman in Frostwind City. Although he looks down on me, he shouldn’t let me die out there… he shouldn’t… I can go back to Frostwind City and hide.”

The Frostwind City he mentioned is the largest city in Northria, located further south. Eric passed through its outskirts on his journey north.

He waited a moment, then asked, "Is it done?"

The cultivator was taken aback for a moment, then quickly nodded.

"Why didn't you ask your father to organize the people in the city to resist the demons? They've taken Lutia, and they'll turn around and kill you all," Eric asked.

The monk paused for a moment, then said, "If even Lutia can't hold them off, Frostwind City has even less chance of stopping the demons' attack."

And that is indeed the case.

After the demon army's southward advance was halted at Lutia, they turned their attention to conquering the major cities of the empire's northern border, while simultaneously spreading eastward, threatening the three smaller kingdoms of Chinraya, Varane, and Riel in the northeast. By the time the game launched, the area north of Lutia had essentially fallen completely.

"So you mean you want to find another place to wait for death?" Eric concluded.

The monk paused for a moment, then said, "What else... can we do?"

"Resisting as soon as possible gives us a chance to survive. When the demons have the resources to deal with the human cities behind them, that will be the real catastrophe," Eric said.

"If we continue to resist, will the Holy City's guardian knights come to our rescue?" the monk asked, almost offensively.

Finally got to the point.

Eric met his gaze. "All I can say is that I am willing to rescue you, but my power is limited. I have brought all the guardian knights belonging to the Saintess Convent. You should have seen that there are only so many of them."

The monk snapped out of his reverie, quickly lowered his gaze, and couldn't help but ask, "What about the other guardian knights of the Holy Capital...?"

"His Holiness believes that the focus should now be on the Church itself."

Eric said just that, and the monk lowered his head, falling into a long silence.

"What's your name?"

“My name is Longfellow, Your Highness.”

“Alright, Longfellow, I will speak with your abbot and have you appointed as the person specifically responsible for liaising with the Convent of Saintess.”

"Your Highness?...Yes, Your Highness the Holy Maiden."

Longfellow left, and Eric went on to meet the other monks and nuns of the monastery.

For the next two or three days, he focused his attention on the monastery, holding small meetings with the monastery's senior members, meeting with ordinary monks and nuns, inspecting the monastery's environment, and even making a large donation, completing all the tasks that the saint should have done during her visit in one go—in the past, these activities were usually spread out over the two-week stay, so neither side would be too busy.

After all the matters were settled, the saint remained in the monastery and suddenly announced that she wanted to reflect on the gains from this trip in her room and would not appear in public for a while.

After such a commotion, the saintess was probably exhausted, according to most people at the Saint Roselle Monastery.

Few people noticed that the number of guards who had accompanied Her Highness the Holy Maiden had suddenly decreased.

The swirling snow continued to obstruct the monastery's view of the outside world. Outside the monastery, Eric, mounted on his horse, glanced at Elise, then at the knights guarding the monastery beside him, and flicked the reins, "Let's go."

(End of this chapter)