Chapter 1663: Chapter 1663

The rest of the day passed without any interesting events. In the evening, Jenkins met with Dolores and Miss Windsor. In addition to discussing the promises made by Earl Hersha and Marquis Mikhail, they also went over the details of the Tri-King Summit scheduled for the following Wednesday.

Miss Windsor wanted to arrange for one of her own people to sit at the negotiating table as Fidektri's representative alongside the Queen. This was no simple task, but fortunately, their funds were quite ample at the moment, so they hadn't run into any major difficulties yet.

Jenkins was perfectly content to entrust the matter of his bid for the throne to the two ladies, and he barely asked about any of the finer details. When it came to arranging the tulip scheme, however, he inquired about most of the particulars and, feeling uneasy, offered a great many suggestions.

"I know I said to get it done quickly, but don't rush so much that someone notices something's off," he cautioned, then asked Miss Windsor curiously:

"Aren't you curious about what I'm actually planning to do?"

"Whatever you do, I will support you," Miss Windsor told Jenkins. Dolores pursed her lips but said nothing. Julia gazed at Miss Windsor's back, convinced that those words held an emotion that went far beyond a simple alliance.

The flower market had been doing quite well recently. A growing number of outsiders were flocking to Nolan from all over the world, causing the city's prices to soar. The large influx of nobility had driven up the cost of common luxury goods, which meant business was booming for the flower sellers. By standing at a busy intersection during the early morning and sunset hours, they could sell out the entire stock in their small baskets within half an hour.

Jenkins learned this piece of information from Fini at the church on Monday morning. He had received an urgent summons from the Church that day, with only enough time to say a quick hello to Julia, who was up early preparing breakfast, before rushing over.

It turned out not to be anything terribly important. A rather troublesome Cursed Item had been discovered the previous night, and its containment had failed that morning. Worried about further danger, the Church had called Jenkins in.

Fini and the other church Enchanters stood by Jenkins's side, watching as he used six golden plates engraved with the Sage's holy emblem to seal the black stone.

This was A-12-2-0322, The Eyeless One's Stone. It was commonly found in extremely low-altitude canyons or abysses, forming only in places completely devoid of light. If a creature with sight stared at the stone in the presence of light for more than ten seconds, it would permanently and irreversibly lose its vision. Then, within half an hour to an hour, the afflicted creature would gain the ability to cause temporary (and treatable) blindness in any being that met its gaze.

Viewing the stone in the dark using an ability like darkvision would not trigger its properties.

The stone had been unearthed the previous night by miners at a quarry east of Nolan. Normally, events there wouldn't fall under the Legacy Sage Church's jurisdiction, but the stone had been buried in a pile of coal, transported into the city by carriage, and within the next half hour, had caused all twelve workers in the boiler room of the Henride Museum of Natural History to go permanently blind. During their transport to the hospital, they in turn affected over fifty other people.

After it was brought to the church for containment, and before it could be properly identified, The Eyeless One's Stone was exposed to light for too long. It unleashed a blinding assault that affected the entire church complex, leaving no corner untouched.

Fortunately, the church was protected by the Sage's power, so aside from two Keeper of Secrets apprentices who had been too close to the stone at the time, no one else was harmed.

"There, that should hold it," Jenkins murmured, carefully checking one last time that the six interlocking metal plates fit together perfectly without any gaps. Only then did he slowly infuse his own spirit into them, allowing the holy emblems on the "holy gold" plates to activate. Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on novel-fire.ɴet

His power was so overwhelming that, as it resonated with the power of the church itself, the indoor temperature began to rise. This was not a welcome development. Summer in Nolan, though it arrived late, was swift. Even in late June, the mornings were already quite hot.

"I remember Papa Oliver telling me that these stones are only found in the deepest abysses. Are Nolan's coal mines really that deep?" Jenkins asked with lingering doubt after he finished. For the moment, no one could answer him; the stone's origins were still under investigation.

By this time, there was no point in going home for a meal. Hathaway and Briny were busy with end-of-semester affairs and wouldn't be home during the day anyway.

So, Jenkins had breakfast with Fini at the church, during which he heard about the flower selling. Fini also told him excitedly that, as it was now summer, it was a church tradition to organize for the choir children to work outside the church and experience life.

The children in the choir were usually prospective priests and nuns. The Church worried that if they lived their entire lives within its walls, they would become disconnected from the outside world, so they organized similar group activities every year.

"This year, we're selling flowers!" Fini was thrilled. "It was my suggestion. I heard that last year they sold newspapers, the year before they helped out in a bookshop, and the year before that they went to a stable on the outskirts of the city to take care of the ponies!"

"Selling flowers, that sounds wonderful," Jenkins said with a smile to his young follower.

"You've done this kind of work before, so I'm sure it will go smoothly for you this time, right?"

"Yes, yes! The head nun said we can keep the money we earn. Whether we become clergy for the Church in the future or leave to marry an unbeliever, she said the money will be very useful."

Hearing this, Jenkins nodded and smiled again. He first winked at the little angel who was hugging Fini from behind, then said to the girl:

"Well then, Fini Faithford, I bless you with great success in selling your flowers."

He patted the girl's shoulder. She paused for a moment, then looked up at Jenkins and broke into a radiant smile.

Since Jenkins was free for the day, Miss Bevanna didn't let him leave, instead keeping him at the church to help handle some troublesome matters. The ever-increasing number of people pouring into Nolan had added countless new dangers to the already perilous city.

As the most skilled local healer and the Saint of the Sage, Jenkins's presence at the church was a great help.

When Papa Oliver saw that Jenkins hadn't shown up for work all day and had only sent a letter explaining the situation, he stormed over to the church in the evening to argue with Miss Bevanna. He contended that Jenkins was still his apprentice, and how Jenkins's time was managed should be his decision.

Jenkins didn't listen to their conversation. He sat in the courtyard behind the church, watching the sunset. Before long, Fini came to find him, looking cheerful and in high spirits.

"Sir, this is for you."

Fini had gone to sell flowers that evening and had saved a beautiful white carnation for Jenkins. He accepted it with a smile and asked:

"It was wonderful! Everything went well, except that it was a little too hot."

With that, she waved goodbye to Jenkins and ran off to join her friends. Jenkins twirled the flower in his fingers. Perhaps because the blossom came from a "Flower Seller," the power of his divine domain allowed him to trace its origin.

A vision born from touch showed Jenkins the story of the flower and Fini. Her day had indeed gone very well. It might have been due to his blessing, or perhaps her own past experience as a flower girl. She sold many flowers and encountered no difficult customers.

However, Jenkins did notice that quite a few people had asked Fini if she had any tulips. Fini had explained that all the tulips in the vicinity of Nolan had recently been bought up. Since Nolan and its surrounding cities weren't suitable places to grow tulips to begin with, the flowers would be hard to find on the market for some time.

"It's going smoothly enough..." he murmured. He stood up, scooped up the cat that was cooling off in the shade of a tree, and went to say his goodbyes to Papa Oliver and Miss Bevanna.

It was Monday, and the Tri-King Summit was set for Wednesday, two days away. Although this had little to do with the Church, Jenkins, as a member of the royal family, would certainly have to be present. The Church was naturally interested in a meeting of secular kings but had no intention of interfering.

Just as Jenkins was preparing to leave the church, however, Bishop Parrold instructed him to return the next day.

"There are some important documents you need to look over. While Queen Isabella is unlikely to let you speak at the conference, it's best to be prepared, just in case. You should familiarize yourself with some matters, so at least you won't be awkwardly silent when talking with people the day after tomorrow."

The last ray of sunlight was about to vanish from the western sky. Leaving the church, Jenkins yawned, wondering what Julia would make for dinner. The maid's culinary skills were quite impressive, far more palatable than the ordinary meals Jenkins could "draw" into existence. Even the cat, who was notoriously picky about its food, was very satisfied.

He had just left the church and hadn't yet reached the intersection to look for a carriage when he saw one approach rapidly from behind, speed past him, and then stop a short distance ahead, clearly waiting for him.

Jenkins assumed it was Miss Windsor again, as she often did this. But when he walked up to the carriage, the face he saw through the window was that of Dolores's father, the King of the North.

"Are you looking for me?" he asked, stating the obvious. The man in the window nodded, then lowered the curtain. Puzzled, Jenkins thought for a moment before stooping to enter the carriage under the coachman's watchful eye.

It was just an ordinary carriage; from the interior decor, it seemed to be a rental.

"This kind of carriage doesn't quite suit your station," Jenkins remarked after taking a seat, without any hesitation or awkwardness, as if speaking to a familiar neighbor.

"I'm sneaking away from everyone, after all. I can't very well make a grand affair of it," King Salsi II replied. "I came here specifically to find you, Williamette."

Despite the stuffy heat of the summer evening, the king still wore a vibrant red greatcoat inside the carriage. Just looking at him made Jenkins feel hot, and he wondered if King Salsi II was truly on his last legs.