Work Prophet
Chapter 501 - 119 Cornelia

Chapter 501: Chapter 119 Cornelia

Li Yu arrived in the city, asked around briefly, and then made his way straight to the Temple of the Life Goddess in the eastern part of the city.

As the largest sect in Lion Heart Castle, Valria’s Temple was surprisingly not very large and appeared somewhat old and weathered.

The two wind wolves sitting cross-legged at the entrance seemed somewhat out of place.

"This used to be the Temple of the Wind God Papagani."

The man clad in a dark green robe with a thorn branch embroidered on the chest spoke, "Unfortunately, the Wind Church had completely declined, and its last priest died of old age ten years ago.

"When the Priest of Cornelia arrived at the Royal Capital, this place was already empty and abandoned, so we made some minor modifications to use it for worshiping the Life Goddess."

"You don’t need to explain to me," said Li Yu, "I am not from the Wind Church, so I won’t come to accuse you."

"I know who you are," the man smiled, "Prophet Merlin from the Double Rest Sect, the representative of Saturday in the mortal world, also known as the Cursed Dispeller, Miracle Hand, Miracle Planter...

"On your journey here, you attracted the following of tens of thousands, and even the Priest of Cornelia speaks highly of you.

"And you’re very bold, daring to come here alone."

"The messenger of the True God does not fear death," Li Yu said indifferently.

"I have no doubt about your piety, please relax a little," the man continued, "The Priest of Cornelia merely wants to have a chat with you and Sir Irelia, and there’s no ill intent."

"Irelia is busy preparing for tomorrow’s contest. If there’s something you want to say, you can tell me," said Li Yu.

"Alright," the man nodded, "According to the information we have, the girl from the Arias family trusts you a lot, even to the point of obeying your every word, so her coming or not really doesn’t matter."

He paused and then continued, "I told you the history of this Temple not because I fear retribution from the Wind Church, but to demonstrate that we’re reasonable people.

"You must have already heard some rumors about us before coming to this city, where these tales always tend to depict us as villains who bewitch His Majesty the Emperor and many Noble Families.

"But the truth is not like that. The Priest of Cornelia only became the trusted friend of His Majesty because she helped resolve some long-standing troubles troubling him.

"Some sects, unable to stay in the Royal Capital, left and have been slandering and spreading rumors about us ever since. But that’s just how people are, isn’t it? Slandering opponents is far easier for people to accept than admitting their own incompetence.

"I believe you can relate to this as well. Oh, I haven’t introduced myself yet. I am Ludovic, the scribe of the Life Church, assistant to the Priest of Cornelia, but those children prefer to call me ’the messenger’."

"The messenger?"

"Yes, because I often pass on messages for the Priest of Cornelia," Ludovic shrugged and then gestured for Li Yu to follow him with an inviting hand motion.

He led the way ahead, escorting Li Yu into the Temple, "The Priest of Cornelia is quite busy with daily affairs, and I help share some of her burdens, especially dealing with those children.

"Generally speaking, they are all good kids. It’s just that due to their past experiences, they each have their own issues and don’t always act on command. Sometimes they can be quite a headache for both the Priest of Cornelia and me.

"You must have already met two of them, Greta and Selena."

The interior of the Temple was as simple as its exterior, with only a statue of the Life Goddess. Besides that, there were almost no other decorations or furnishings.

However, the natural lighting was quite good, the main reason being that half of the roof was missing, allowing the evening sun to shine down from directly overhead.

Li Yu saw a woman dressed in the same style of robe as Ludovic, teaching a group of children how to recognize words in the center of the hall.

But judging from the children’s clothing, they were most likely not from Noble Families; the majority of them seemed to be commoners, and there were also some street urchins and little beggars.

When the woman saw Ludovic and Li Yu approaching, she gestured for them to wait a moment at the side.

After she finished teaching the last two words and checked the children’s homework, she distributed bread to them amidst their expectant gazes.

Each received one piece, freshly baked with a lingering warmth and the fragrance of wheat, causing the children to leave the Temple joyously with their bread.

Only then did the woman stand up again.

"Prophet Merlin, at last, we meet," she said.

"Priest of Cornelia."

Li Yu looked across at the woman who in recent years had risen to prominence in the Royal Capital, stirring the Empire’s political scene and even sparking some rumors with the Emperor—she wasn’t particularly beautiful.

She was just a bit prettier than the average person, with ordinary features such as her nose, mouth, and ears, while her skin was somewhat rough, except for her eyes which were peculiar. Looking into them was like staring at a black hole, as if one could be sucked in at any moment.

Li Yu remembered some rumors about Cornelia, many saying that the Female Priest could read people’s hearts, unearthing the deepest secrets buried within.

This made Li Yu feel slightly wary.

Reading into what Li Yu was thinking, Cornelia said, "I indeed would like to delve into your mind, but rest assured, I never intrude on a person’s inner thoughts without permission."

"So does that mean the Emperor also invited you to delve deep into his heart?" Li Yu asked.

"Correct, longing to be understood is an instinct of all living beings," Cornelia answered pensively. "Prophet Merlin, don’t you wish for someone who can understand you completely?"

"No one can truly understand another person," Li Yu shook his head. "Let’s discuss the real matter at hand, shall we? Did you invite me here because of the female assassin?"

"I didn’t expect you to view the world so pessimistically," Cornelia seemed surprised. "I’ve heard many stories about you, not only from recent times but also when you were in the west. I always thought you were a person of compassion.

"However, after meeting you, I realize that my previous opinion might have been somewhat off. But you guessed correctly, I invited you in the hopes that you would release Selena, the female assassin as you call her."

"The reason?"

"I didn’t order her to attack Irelia. The first time was her own initiative as a warning to you, and the second time was after hearing that Irelia had a Holy Artifact capable of unleashing Thunder and Poison Fog, she wanted to steal it for my research.

"But none of this is important anymore. Consider it as if I had directed her to do these things. We can make a deal—if you agree to release Selena, I will also persuade the Earth Bear to spare Irelia’s life."