Witch’s Night: Chapter 41 Sister Marytis
Across the Endless Wasteland, the Lifeline whistled past.
In this vast and desolate land, it was like an imperceptible dark thread, slowly inching towards the distant horizon.
Large-scale Teleportation Arrays could indeed send people far away, even ordinary people could withstand it.
But because of their exorbitant cost, very few mega-cities could afford to build them.
Smaller Teleportation Arrays couldn’t carry so many people. A group of forty or fifty people, including the delegation and the Knights, wasn’t something that could be easily teleported.
Therefore, at least one-third of the journey had to rely on the Lifeline.
…Luo Yan had suggested trying Void Traversal to replace the Teleportation Array, but Chris strongly opposed it.
And considering that Luo Yan’s previous Void Traversal landing point had been ridiculously off, spanning almost half a continent, Illusion also didn’t recommend Luo Yan traveling alone.
Arriving in another mega-city was one thing, but getting lost in the Endless Wasteland would be a major problem.
So, Luo Yan could only reluctantly give up.
Several days of travel passed in a blink of an eye. Using the Lifeline and Teleportation Arrays, the group quickly arrived in Noah.
The Lifeline, weathered by the wind and sand of the Endless Wasteland, slowly pulled into Noah’s station. The entire station had been cleared, and many Church guards were maintaining order outside.
The news of the Saint’s visit had already spread throughout the Free Federation in the past few days, and other forces had also heard the wind, let alone Noah.
Even in Noah, the opportunity to see a Saint in person wasn’t common, so many citizens put aside their work to come and join the excitement.
But the Noah Church naturally wouldn’t give the commoners this opportunity. Illusion herself wasn’t one for high-profile appearances. After returning to Noah, she changed her attire and went directly back to the Sanctuary.
The Holy Knights were used as her shield, sent out to deal with these trivial matters.
Chris and Tina had to go home immediately, and they weren’t ordinary people either. Casually appearing in public would also cause a lot of trouble.
The accompanying Lannister delegation had many busy tasks. Whether it was diplomatic procedures with the Noah Church or preparations for the Ten Cities Council, it was enough to keep them busy for a while.
Therefore, after their lively arrival in Noah, soon only Luo Yan, Anna, and Cecilia remained.
Cecilia, needless to say, although she was a representative of the Lannister envoy and an important figure attending the Ten Cities Council, in reality, she was just a mascot; the envoy was the same with or without her.
Anna, as Yan City’s representative… Yan City itself had very little say, so she didn’t have much to prepare for the Ten Cities Council.
As for diplomatic affairs, Lin Cheng had already instructed Anna before she came: just treat this trip to Noah as a business trip.
Yan City wasn’t qualified to have an equal dialogue with Noah yet, so there was no need to go and grovel.
Unexpectedly, Luo Yan wasn’t restricted in any way in Noah, even freer than in Yan City.
Illusion only gave Luo Yan a few instructions about the customs and habits to be aware of in Noah, then let her wander around the city on her own.
When the time was right, she would come and pick Luo Yan up.
This situation made Luo Yan, who had been restricted or monitored almost every moment since leaving Ghost Town, a little uncomfortable.
She stood on the street, looking at the passing crowd with a slightly dazed expression. Anna was cracking sunflower seeds she brought from the Lifeline, and Cecilia was looking around curiously.
“Envy” enveloped the three of them, distorting their presence.
“Didn’t you hear it?” Luo Yan came back to her senses slightly and frowned. “It was a very, very faint voice…”
She couldn’t hear what the voice was saying, but it kept lingering in her ears until it gradually dissipated just now.
“Miss Luo Yan, there are only very loud noises here.” Anna spat out a sunflower seed shell and said, her face full of speechlessness. “Don’t you see where we are?”
After leaving the Noah station, because they weren’t familiar with the place, and no one guided them, they naturally followed the crowd, eventually arriving at the most crowded place.
—A seemingly ordinary market.
The street, only two people wide, was packed with various shops, and there were also many stalls.
Hawkers’ cries rose and fell, and all kinds of smells assaulted their senses, making Luo Yan feel like she was back in Lannister’s Lower District.
Of course, this place should be considered the Lower District of Noah.
“Big Sister, this place seems very remote,” Cecilia tugged at Luo Yan’s sleeve and pointed to a certain place. “Look, it’s so far from that big ‘Sanctuary’…”
Luo Yan looked up. The place Cecilia pointed to was a notice board near the market entrance.
In the center of the notice board, among a bunch of incomprehensible text, was a conspicuous map, with their current location marked in red pen and annotated in the common language.
“Noah Church, Tara Parish, Second Division, Eastern Retail Trade Area…”
Luo Yan read it out loud, and Anna froze for a moment and said,
“So it’s just a market?”
“Mm, it seems so.” Luo Yan nodded.
“There was also a market near Cecilia’s old home!” Cecilia chimed in.
“I’ve been there.”
Luo Yan rubbed Cecilia’s hair and looked up at the sky again.
The sun was high in the sky; it was almost lunchtime.
“Shall we find a place to eat?”
Luo Yan suggested. Although she wasn’t very hungry, she felt that Cecilia and Anna might want to eat something.
“Sure, I still want to try Noah’s specialties!”
Anna’s expression brightened, but seeing Luo Yan’s surprised expression, she immediately froze,
“Wait, Miss Luo Yan, I hope I didn’t misunderstand what you meant…”
“You didn’t.” Luo Yan replied.
“That’s good.” Anna breathed a sigh of relief. “As long as it’s not…”
“I just think it’s a bit difficult to learn how to make Noah’s specialties in a short time, but I can try. I hope you won’t dislike it.” Luo Yan said indifferently.
“You did misunderstand!”
Anna was on the verge of tears. On their short journey earlier, she hadn’t heeded Chris’s warning and had risked trying Luo Yan’s cooking.
After eating it, Anna felt like she saw a river, and all her deceased friends were on the other side, softly calling her name, smiling and reaching out to embrace her.
Although the scene in her mind at the time was quite heartwarming, after waking up, Anna was only left with fear.
Luo Yan saying “find a place to eat,” Anna thought she meant finding a restaurant, while Luo Yan actually meant finding a place to cook, she wanted to personally cook…
Of course, after some struggle, Luo Yan was finally persuaded again.
…Again.
But then again, Miss Luo Yan was quite easy to persuade. As long as they clearly expressed their objections, she wouldn’t insist, unless the situation was extremely urgent.
Since there was a market right in front of them, there was no need to look for another place.
And neither Luo Yan nor Anna was picky, and Cecilia didn’t mind either.
So, they followed the bustling crowd towards the market.
…….
In a bright church, a gentle nun and a kind priest listened attentively to the confessions of their believers, comforting them softly.
The believers listened devoutly to the teachings of the Saint, their faces full of gratitude… such scenes were common in Noah.
As the birthplace of the Noah Holy Church, churches were numerous in Noah, with hundreds, large and small, in each parish.
Church services, worship, prayer, these were almost inseparable parts of the lives of Noah’s citizens, something every Noah citizen experienced from birth.
However, this church, also located within Noah, was somewhat different. It wasn’t built in a densely populated area, but in a deserted field.
This was a wasteland abandoned because the soil had been contaminated by some Calamity phenomenon and couldn’t support crops. Logically, no one would choose to build a church here.
Although it sounded a bit worldly, building a church had costs, and only enough donations from believers could maintain the church’s operations.
There weren’t many churches built in such remote locations, and most of them were dilapidated.
This church seemed to be no exception. It was a day for preaching, but there was only one nun and a few believers.
“The Gods let us seek knowledge, let us save…”
A pleasant voice sounded softly, its strange charm captivating those who heard it.
The nun wore a simple, pure black nun’s habit, a very loose-fitting and old-fashioned style that completely hid her figure.
A thick veil covered most of her face, and an opaque cloth covered her eyes, making it even more difficult to see the nun’s true appearance.
However, from the devout expressions of the believers, it could be seen that they didn’t care about her appearance; they were immersed in her sermon.
Just then, the church door was slowly pushed open, interrupting the nun’s sermon.
The uninvited guest was an old man. From his appearance, he looked like an old farmer returning from the fields.
But the nun quickly recognized him, and a faint voice sounded,
“Hamid, long time no see.”
Hamid, defeated in Lannister, had set foot on this land he hadn’t seen in decades.
“…Marytis, I met her.” Hamid walked in directly, his muddy footsteps on the clean floor revealing a hint of weakness. “Let these fellow travelers leave first, I have something to tell you.”
Marytis nodded and said softly,
“Everyone, that’s all for today, please leave.”
The believers stood up and left the church.
Soon, only Hamid and Marytis remained in the empty church.
“The God of Hope… has fallen.” Hamid’s eyes dimmed slightly. “This is the oracle she brought, containing the destined end of the Gods’ death.”
Marytis was silent for a moment, then said softly,
“I had a premonition. A few days ago, my Lord… the Witch of Sorrow, bestowed a prophecy upon me.”
Hearing this, Hamid frowned slightly, a hint of displeasure in his tone,
“Marytis, you’re still the same as before, always using these disrespectful titles for the Gods.”
Within the Church of the End Gods, they didn’t acknowledge the ten names humans gave to the Primordial Demons, because they felt it was an insult to the Gods.
The only exception was Marytis. She was also one of the three Bishops, but she particularly liked using these disrespectful titles.
But no one was qualified to criticize her, even Hamid, also a Bishop, could only express his displeasure.
Because Marytis was known as the mortal closest to the Gods. Before Luo Yan appeared, she was the only living being who could hear the oracles.
The oracles of the Gods—or to be more precise, the oracles of the Witch of Sorrow.
“We have to acknowledge the facts. The current Gods have fallen, and destroying civilization is the only original intention left in Their mad consciousness.” Marytis said softly. “We bathe in the grace of the Gods, so we must not only save the world, but also seek salvation with the Gods.”
“…Forget it, let’s put aside our differences in beliefs for now.” Hamid shook his head helplessly. “The Errant has appeared in Lannister, and… they’ve taken her to Noah.”
“If she has truly reappeared in the world, it’s not surprising that the Errants took her to Noah. After all, ‘Luo Yan’ is the one the traitor of the Gods longed for.” Marytis said softly. “Don’t worry, I’ll find an opportunity to take her away, I won’t let her come into contact with the traitor of the Gods, even if it’s just remains.”
“Very well.”
Hamid said gravely.
Actually, he didn’t get along with the other two Bishops, otherwise he wouldn’t have been away for decades without returning.
In his eyes, Marytis was a venomous snake disguised with a gentle face, and the other Bishop, Wen Hua, was a capricious and cunning villain.
Of course, Hamid himself wasn’t much better. In the eyes of many followers, he was a madman who was also rational.
After all, being able to ruthlessly kill his classmates without hesitation, even within the Church of the End Gods, Hamid was considered the most extreme.
But under the guidance of the Gods, a few flaws were tolerable.
“Would you like to stay for a meal? It’s almost dinner time.” Marytis smiled slightly. “I happened to get some very good meat the other day… I’m still keeping it in the backyard.”
“No, no,” Hamid shuddered at the words. “I don’t dare to eat your meat.”
“It’s meat I raised, Hamid, but if you want to eat me… that’s also fine.”
Marytis’s tone was quite flat. Although her words seemed to have a suggestive meaning, her tone seemed to lean more towards the literal meaning.
“Farewell.”
Hamid decisively stood up and turned to leave.
Marytis watched his departing back, the faint smile on her lips not disappearing.
“My Lord, did you hear? She’s back.”
“Yes.”
