Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 928 - 45 Margaret

Chapter 928: Chapter 45 Margaret

Lina’s tearful smile left the old man’s expression marvelously complex, an emotional maelstrom shaping into a complicated smile as his hand trembled atop Lina’s head, his hoarse voice saying, "It’s good you’re back, it’s good you’re back. As long as you could return, even if tomorrow I were summoned by Lady Denia to return to the depths of the earth, it would be worth it."

"Archbishop Grandpa, please don’t say things like that," the young priest wiped away her tears and said with a laugh, "You’re too big, Lady Denia probably hasn’t prepared a space big enough to accommodate you deep in the earth yet, so she won’t summon you that soon. Rest assured, hehe, given your current size and growth rate, it will take a long time before there is a place for you, haha."

"You child," the old man said with a mix of annoyance and amusement as he patted her head in punishment, sighed, and continued, "No matter how long it has been, no matter what has occurred, this is your home. As long as you return, Aunt Margaret and I will be incredibly happy. Ah, right, Margaret, it’s been so long, I almost forgot, I haven’t told her yet, oh no, she’s going to nag again. Child, go find your aunt quickly and tell her you went to see her first upon returning, otherwise, I’ll suffer for months."

"Uh, not to disturb your moment, but I think there’s something I must tell you," Pannis, who had been resting his chin in his hands sitting beside them, suddenly interrupted the old archbishop’s flustered request, grinning as he spoke, "I think, considering all this now seems a bit late. Yeah, about thirty seconds ago, someone hurriedly rushed into this building, estimated time of arrival here, three seconds, wait, no, right now."

With a "bang," the outer door was rudely pushed open, and a sharp, piercing voice came from outside: "Cain, Cain, I just heard someone say, near here, they saw Lina, supposedly it was Serina who said it. Though that girl likes to gossip, she would never speak without reason. Since she said so, it definitely can’t be wrong, haha, you old geezer, Lina really did come back, hahaha, I told you she would come to see us. Come on, hurry up and tidy up, don’t let the kid see this mess..."

The person outside spoke incredibly fast, spewing a lengthy speech that took less than two seconds to near completion, and those two seconds were merely the time it took for her to just step into the outer room. However, upon entering, she couldn’t continue, because she had seen the three people inside through the open door.

The intruder was a woman, a woman in her sixties, dressed in the simple garb of a nun, her modest grey cloak and mantle devoid of any adornment. This woman appeared very thin, giving the impression of just skin wrapped around bones, and just by watching her walk, one might conjure the click-clack of an Undead skeleton moving, though this was, of course, an illusion. The woman’s thin face was also covered with wrinkles, her narrow lips and sharp chin conveyed a naturally harsh first impression, which would make most people instinctively keep a good distance if they saw such an old woman on the street.

However, she showed not a hint of harshness now; from the manic joy upon entering to the bewildered confusion upon first sighting Lina, to slowly realizing and then glaring discontentedly at old Archbishop Cain, before finally tossing aside her dissatisfaction to revert to her initial ecstatic state. She rushed to Lina’s side with a swiftness that would startle a demigod, yanked her up from the ground to hug her, her kisses raining down on the girl’s forehead like raindrops, as did the tears from her eyes.

"Good child, good child," choked the old woman, barely able to articulate a complete sentence, she stammered, "It’s so wonderful to see you again, sob, I’ve missed you so much. Let me take a good look at you, sob, you must have suffered over these past years. All these years, I kept saying to get that old man to bring you back, but he just wouldn’t agree, always saying the child has her own mind, sob, he just doesn’t care about you, he’s just that heartless, sob, you’ve been suffering for ten years, yet you just walked away on your own the day you returned home. Who was cooking for you when you were out there, who was holding you when you were afraid of the dark, sob."

"Archbishop Margaret." Lina’s expression softened, gently embracing the woman she called aunt, and whispered comfortingly, "Don’t cry, be careful not to trigger your asthma again. Look at me, I’m fine now, and I’ve even gained quite a bit of weight since the day I left."

"Gained weight? You still look so thin to me." Archbishop Margaret slightly pushed Lina back to take a closer look at the girl’s face, muttering to herself, "Your face is still so sharp, and your physique so frail, but you have grown a bit taller and stronger than before, well, it’s acceptable. That old man is lucky; if I found out you were not doing well, he’d never hear the end of it, don’t think I don’t know where he hides his liquor, hmm."

"Cough, cough." Priest Cain coughed innocently, not daring to retort a word, while Pannis looked at him with sympathy, shaking his head. The two unfortunate men almost instantly found a common ground, silently communicating their shared hardships through their gazes.

"You should stay at home for a good few days now that you’re back." Archbishop Margaret caressed Lina’s fair cheeks with affection, saying indulgently, "We know you’ll be heading north in a few days, but at least while you’re in the city these days, you’re not allowed to wander off. Let us have a good look at you here at home."

Clearly, unlike Marquis Snape, the elderly figures before her—one the highest leader of the church, the other in charge of internal affairs in the church—had received detailed arrangements. Even though they knew that the priestess’s journey was fraught with danger, they had no intention of dissuading her because they knew all too well that this was exactly what she should be doing as a powerful Demigod professional.

"Of course, I’ll be here to spend time with you these days," Lina nodded vigorously, adding, "And, I’ll definitely come to visit you more often in the future, don’t worry."

"If you’re too busy, there’s no need to come see us," Archbishop Margaret shook her head and said, "Just knowing you feel this way makes us happy, don’t wear yourself out."

"It’s okay, Archbishop Margaret, from tomorrow on, I will be back to spend some good time with you," Lina said in a low voice, biting her lip, "But today... I still want to see her." (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)