Chapter 1259: Chapter 1259

Chocolate was also eager, his eyes gleaming as he stretched his head toward the snowman's heart, imprisoned in the center of the space.

"No, no, Saint Williamette," the priest began. "After we reported the situation to Bel Diran, the Holy See indicated they have no plans to destroy it for now. As you know, things are turbulent everywhere. Three days ago, Mount Falix, near the Whirlpool Archipelago off the coast, erupted. A lifeless, giant hand emerged from the earth. The Church wants to use the power of this heart to help seal that hand. The hand's original owner was likely..."

The priest glanced around cautiously, then whispered into Jenkins's ear:

"The leader of the Molten Giants, a race slain by the Lady of the Unlit Moon in the 15th Epoch. You know of them—those exotic species who lived year-round in the offshore volcanoes. They transgressed a taboo..."

This referred to their attempt to elevate their race's bloodline using the power of a Cursed Item, a decision that resulted in a colossal disaster. Even though it happened thousands of years ago, many historical records still document the fact that the sea level of the material world dropped by about 0.1 inches that year.

To reward Jenkins for his contribution to this matter, Bel Diran had originally planned a public commendation ceremony for him. Of course, the official reason for the award would have been something else entirely—this was part of the plan to gradually bring the Saint Son into the public eye.

However, with the material world currently in chaos, most of the Enchanters from the Inherited Sage Church who were qualified to attend the ceremony were busy "putting out fires" everywhere. Therefore, the ceremony was postponed. Instead, the reward was changed: Jenkins was granted the authority to mobilize all the resources of the Ruen diocese. Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs Nove1Fire.net

"Mr. Rosier just left Ruen yesterday. Something came up in the east... He will tell you about it himself when he returns..."

Jenkins waved his hands dismissively. He wasn't ready to bear such responsibility. Besides, he was a guest here and had to consider the feelings of his local hosts.

In addition to the snowman, the bodies of the two demigods defeated by Jenkins and Alexia in the Parliament Square were also recovered.

The body of the puppeteer defeated by Alexia was reduced to nothing but his head. The autopsy revealed that he had indeed come into contact with the "Frost Victory Contract," which was how he had ascended to the rank of demigod. There was no issue with his identity; having been a wanted man for so many years, the Church had long since gathered extensive information on him.

Unfortunately, the Church couldn't find the person who killed him, so the massive bounty went unclaimed. Jenkins suggested donating the money to aid the victims of the recent disaster, but such a thing couldn't be arranged overnight.

As for the one defeated by Jenkins, his body was remarkably intact. The direct cause of death was falling after losing consciousness, his life force drained by the vines of Blasphemous Creation.

This body was also sent to the Church of Death and End for an autopsy, but the results were quite shocking.

"To be specific, more than two-thirds of his body had been turned into gears. Yes, that's how he ascended to demigod status—it wasn't a normal ascension process."

Explaining this to Jenkins in the office were Father Fernando and several Scribes with the title of "Office Director," whose names Jenkins had yet to memorize.

"What's going on? I encountered a strange phenomenon related to gears back in Nolan. Could the two incidents be connected?"

Jenkins wondered, his thoughts turning to the Difference Engine beneath Nolan. He suspected that the strange gear the thief Diwo had stolen from the Gear Artisans' Association was likely one of the Association's discoveries from their underground explorations.

Hearing his question, the men in the office exchanged glances. Finally, the local old Keeper of Secrets answered.

"Saint Williamette, we haven't seen the steam-powered mechanical giant in Nolan with our own eyes, so we cannot give you a definitive answer. However, based on the growing evidence collected over the years, there is no doubt that the Church of Creation and Machinery is conducting similar research. While they are certainly not responsible for these two incidents, the best way to uncover the source of these strange gears' power is to ask them."

There was no branch of the Church of Creation and Machinery here, nor was there one in Nolan. To learn their secrets, the Holy See itself would have to negotiate.

Jenkins was always wary of this unrestrained use of gear power. His instincts—conclusions drawn from the knowledge of a traveler from another world—told him that unrestricted modification of the human body was exceptionally dangerous.

As for the matter of the tobacco, Jenkins had only discovered it in Nolan, so he couldn't submit a report while in Ruen. But the investigation was far from over. The broken crate was his next target. Though the crate was of a common design with no special markings, Alexia said that if he gave her some time, she could trace it back to its previous owner.

Jenkins asked curiously.

"No. Big data fuzzy computing."

The location of the "treasure" provided by the Book Fairy was in the mountains south of Ruen. Though called mountains, they were merely low, rolling hills, nothing compared to the massive range that cut across the continent north of Nolan.

After leaving the church, a carriage took the two of them toward the outskirts of the city. Jenkins had the carriage wait near a small tavern at the city's edge. Once he and Alexia were outside the walls, they mounted the unicorn and took to the sky.

The unicorn seemed particularly fond of Alexia, a level of affection it had never shown even to Hathaway.

They flew south, snow-capped peaks and ravines flashing past below. Though given verbally, the fairy's directions had been incredibly detailed. She had used the number of "flutters of my wings" as a unit of measurement. Jenkins simply had to time the frequency with his pocket watch and do some simple multiplication to calculate the actual distance.

The southern mountains of Ruen were a continuous chain of low hills, and it was one of the few uninhabited areas surrounding the capital. By the time the unicorn gently descended with its two passengers, Jenkins was starting to feel a chill. His cat burrowed deeper into his coat, refusing to come out.

"This is my first time in this area, too," Alexia commented. "According to the map, there should be a small valley nearby."

As she spoke, she wiggled a finger, and a sky-blue halo of light flickered around it. As if she had discovered something, she led Jenkins along the snow-covered ridge.

After walking for less than five minutes, they came to a ridiculously steep, snow-covered slope. They slid to the bottom, walked a little further, and soon saw the entrance to the valley. The valley floor rarely saw sunlight, and the snow was as deep as it had been in the dead of winter.

They trudged inward, their feet sinking deep into the snow with each step. And then, just as expected, his eyes caught the strange glimmer of a spiritual aura on the rock face.