Chapter 85: Saint Baptism Ritual (2)

Rooney looked at the multitudes of fanatical believers of the Church of Light crowding the streets. He deeply felt the influence and control of the Church in various countries.

Before, these things would only be gossip, totally unrelated to him. However he had frequently relied on the power of the Church of Light when he was building his empire.

Now, things were different. He was now the King of the Kingdom of Rosa d’Oro. As a monarch, he certainly did not want to have such an overbearing presence controlling him to their whims. Even the succession of the throne and the coronation ritual were controlled by the Church of Light!

But the influence of the Church was extremely dominating. Under such a circumstance, countries could not resist it, only being able to acquiesce to all things. In light of these circumstances, the influence of the Church of Light upon the people was naturally tremendous. Even kings seemed to become complete puppets, bowing down to the Church’s authority.

“The Church of Light.”

Rooney sat in the carriage, silently murmuring the name, his eyes closed. This Saint Baptism ritual was said to allow the Church to grasp the power of God through a technique called divine incantations. If this was true, the power of the Church of Light would expand again. If this continued, would there still be a place for the king and nobles a few years later?

Rooney was extremely concerned. Now that he had another role which brought along more responsibilities, he had different things to take into consideration. While he was on his way to St. Sarl City, Rooney developed a strong aversion to, and dislike of, the Church.

The selection for saints in St. Sarl had just concluded. There were winners and losers within this hidden struggle. This also served as a reshuffling of the highest leadership of the Church. Many failed candidates chose to step down, while others were banished in exile.

As the ceremony and the New Year approached, the entire city was decorated with lights for the festivities. Within the great hall of the Temple of Light, as well as in the surrounding plazas, countless believers knelt in prayer.

These prayer rituals had begun over half a month ago. The prayers weren’t only conducted by the clergy, but also were led by devout believers from the city itself. Glancing down from the top of the temple, one could see that the stream of believers was endless. Yet, even with so many people, there was absolute silence, as if the entire city was enchanted.

Music resounded within the temple, as the holy hymns continued endlessly, their melodies being carried out for miles around the temple. It seemed like a true paradise on earth. The people seemed to be able to feel the light of God blessing them as they knelt in prayer.

Even at night, the temple and surrounding streets remained brightly lit. The believers were extremely reluctant to leave. The serenity at the scene increased during the depths of the night. All of the new visitors to the city could sense a quiet thrum of power.

After Rooney arrived at the city of St. Sarl, he left his cavalry outside. He then entered the city with a few guards. A black-robed priest attended to him and showed him his living quarters. Rooney immediately expressed his desire to meet the legendary Pope Hodap and Her Holiness, the Saintess, but the priest told him to await the summons from the Pope, which should occur the next day.

Although the black-robed priest was quite polite in expressing this, and there were no problems with his quarters, Rooney still felt humiliated. As a king, and the ruler of his own country, he had journeyed thousands of miles to become canonized and crowned by the Church of Light, in order to become a true king.

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Furthermore, after arriving here, he was not able to have an immediate audience with the Pope! The person who attended to him was a mere black-robed priest! To Rooney, who had just ascended the throne, this was a huge blow to his pride.

To the Church of Light, his status as a king appeared to be completely insignificant and not highly regarded. After wallowing in arrogance in his new identity in his kingdom, he now found a complete reversal of sentiments here. A sense of complete shame overwhelmed Rooney immediately.

Rooney wanted to turn around and leave, but the chaotic situation in his country held him back. Many of the nobles still disliked him greatly. Rooney needed the power of the Church of Light to help him establish and further stabilize his rule. Rooney was very clear of this. His actions were guided by logic. However, he still felt quite dissatisfied.

“Maybe I should try to meet up with those people who contacted me before…”

———

Pope Hodap sat in the spacious main hall of the temple, meeting with a pale-faced middle-aged man. He was the nephew of Elliot VIII, the current emperor of the Crete Empire, Elliot VIII. Back when he had succeeded to the throne, Elliot VIII was still a demure looking young man. Now, he had become middle-aged, and aging fast.

Compared with his uncle, Elliot VII, Elliot VIII was cowardly, lacking in both wit and courage. In fact, it could be said that he was completely useless. In the beginning, even after Elliot VII was ousted by the Church, then hung in public, Elliot VIII was not slated to become the emperor.

However, Pope Hodap, who had met him at that time, chose him. Amid the protests and rebellions of the nobles of the Crete Empire, the Church had provided him with iron and blood in order to pave his way to the throne, subsequently opening the way for the rise of the Church of Light.

Without the support of the Church, it would have been impossible for Elliot VIII to stay on his throne. Once weakened, countless people would have tried to drag him down. Elliot VIII understood his own inabilities and weaknesses. He knew that his fate was tied to the Church of Light, so he had always clung to its support.

“I’ve heard that the health of his Majesty has been failing lately. That is not good news. You are still a young man, unlike me, with my old bones. You have to pay more attention to your health.”

Holding a staff, Pope Hodap finished the regular daily formalities before guiding Elliot VIII into a nearby conference hall. Elliot VIII and Hodap were quite familiar and casual with one another. “It’s nothing serious. It’s been cold lately, and it has been snowing in the north. My old ailments are just acting up again.”

Elliot VIII peered around, speaking carefully to Hodap, “Has the Pope heard the recent news?”

Hodap looked at Elliot VIII, “What news?”

Elliot whispered, “The news about the Gathering of Nobles.”

Hodap laughed, “Your Majesty, you don’t have to be so careful. You are currently in the Church of Light’s St Sarl City, in the Temple of Light. This is the stronghold of the Church of Light. No enemy can infiltrate here, and besides, our brilliant Church should never fear petty criminals who lurk in dark corners!”

“Of course, I have heard of the Gathering of Nobles. I had sent people to investigate them when they were just established. Although their members remain unknown, they’re still not worthy of much attention. I will let them know that the power of God is unstoppable.”