Chapter 198: Chapter 198

As the midnight bells chimed, Jenkins felt a sudden jolt in his heart. The motes of light representing his abilities appeared before his eyes automatically. At the very center were the green [Contact Healing] and the purple [The Unknown Path], symbolizing the origin of his soul.

And now, the red mote of light representing [Twin Demons] automatically joined them, the three orbs of green, red, and purple forming a perfect equilateral triangle.

"I remember now! It's the legend of the Ashiash family—the Twin Demons!"

Someone in the crowd shouted, but in the center of the square, only an empty suit of armor remained, standing perfectly still.

The red and blue twin moons finally emerged from behind the clouds, casting their strange light over the darkened square. A faint golden radiance descended from the heavens, and the surviving Enchanters simultaneously traced their holy emblems over their chests. Fine golden motes of light merged into their bodies as spirit from the world surged into every one of them.

Jenkins came to his senses the moment the strange phenomenon with his [Twin Demons] ability ended.

"What was I just doing?"

He took a breath amid the flames and immediately choked on the stench of sulfur. While the chiming bells held everyone's attention, he had shed the armor clinging to his body, activated [Cat's Grace], and slipped away.

He circled around, blended back into the crowd of Enchanters, and collapsed to the ground, feigning unconsciousness. Just then, the divine gift descended from the sky. These points of light were the purest form of spirit, and the great author, having only just advanced to the second level, felt himself take another step forward.

"Not so different from me, then."

He kept his eyes closed, thinking, as he heard someone call his name. It sounded like a friend from the Church. He didn't open his eyes, a new worry creeping in: had any of the six gods who departed noticed that a single drop of divinity had fallen to him?

"Meow, meow, meow~ Hic!"

Chocolate let out a hiccup, its small, cute mouth twitching. The cat had also secretly snagged some of the food and was now contemplating whether it could trick another drop out of its master. At the same time, it was quite pleased that the high-dimensional gods, busy fighting over that divine domain, hadn't had time to notice any of the creatures on the ground.

Jenkins was utterly exhausted. Just looking at that giant arm had nearly broken him, and the strain of using that half-Bestowal, half-Cursed Item had pushed him to his limit. With his eyes closed, he drifted off to sleep before he even realized it.

His body felt as if it were plummeting into a thick fog. Dimly, he saw a familiar figure appear in the distance.

Jenkins instantly understood his situation. He couldn't move. A sacred hymn grew louder in his ears, and thoughts praising knowledge and the Sage filled his mind, carried by the music.

The familiar sensation returned. He was kissed again, in the same spot on his forehead. Get full chapters from noⅴelfire.net

At the same time, a strange woman's voice sounded in his ear. It wasn't the common tongue, nor was it Loqi, and he couldn't even be sure it was a sound at all. "You have done well."

Jenkins finally screamed as a torrent of maddening knowledge flooded his mind. Endless visions and strange, meaningless patterns flashed before his eyes.

The voice of the great being shattered the last vestiges of his consciousness.

(Chocolate is digesting...)

"A ceiling I don't recognize."

Jenkins turned his head. He wasn't the one who had spoken.

"You said last time that this is what you're supposed to say the moment you wake up."

Papa Oliver shrugged, set down his teacup, and picked up a wooden box from nearby. He slid open the lid to reveal colorful, sugar-like granules.

He carefully spooned some of the granules into a cup of water and stirred. They dissolved instantly.

Jenkins accepted the cup, fighting a splitting headache. Seeing the small, parchment-shaped carving on the handle, he immediately realized he was at the Church.

He took a sip. A sour, bitter taste flooded his senses. He choked down the nauseating liquid, and a warm sensation spread from his chest to his limbs. The dull ache in his head vanished, and his mind cleared instantly.

"Don't waste a single drop. That's a specially processed product from the Kingdom of Klaive, Dolicar sugar. It's worth thirty thousand gold pounds a pound."

"The Kingdom of Klaive?"

Jenkins frowned, enduring the disgusting taste, but his hand holding the cup was perfectly steady. This stuff was worth several times the price of chocolate.

"A small country to the north of the kingdom, wedged between us and the Hamparvo Kingdom. This sugar is their main source of income. For ordinary people, once processed, it's an extremely precious health food that maintains the body. For Enchanters, specially treated Dolicar sugar has a nurturing effect on the soul and spirit."

The old man spoke with a pained expression as he looked at the box in his hand.

"This stuff is priceless, practically impossible to buy. This is the entire supply for the Nolan diocese. Miss Bevanna sent a letter back saying you could use it as you please."

"A letter? How long was I asleep? Is the Reading Festival over?"

he asked hurriedly. He couldn't afford to miss the things he'd promised the professor and Hathaway. They were the only friends he had.

"What did the Sage mean just now?"

he wondered, his eyes scanning the elegant bronze gas lamps on the surrounding walls. A young nun carrying blankets walked by and nodded at Jenkins in his sickbed. Jenkins smiled back, and she immediately blushed and hurried away.

"Why is she blushing? How strange... Wait, she couldn't be some cultist or a criminal, could she?"

The strange thought crossed his mind, and for some reason, he thought of Hathaway. Another odd idea popped into his head:

"She doesn't have a crush on me, does she? The nun's taste can't be that bad."

The being he saw in his dream was undoubtedly the Sage; a great entity like that was unmistakable. The Sage's attitude toward him had been quite good, but those words...

"She's found me out?"

"You've only been asleep for a day. By now, pretty much every Enchanter from the Orthodox Churches across the continent knows that a massive divine grace event occurred in Nolan City. I'm so envious of you all. Every Enchanter present last night received a divine blessing. The great ones were very pleased with this matter. It's been so long since something happened. What on earth did you do?"

"I don't know either."

Jenkins muttered to himself, shrinking back carefully into the corner of the bed, terrified that Captain Bincy or someone else would burst in and arrest him on the spot.

As for the divine grace, it was probably because the Righteous Gods had reaped a good deal of divinity and decided to hand out some bonuses to their followers on the ground.