Chapter 88: Teacher and Student

Under a giant tree in the Calamity Forest, an old man with gray hair slowly drew a cross using his blood-red finger.

The cross in front of him gave off a dark red glow. He stood there for a while, then shook his head slightly. His eyes moved, noticing the middle-aged man who had been standing behind him for some time.

“How did things go, Bishop Mosil?”

The old man put down a white handkerchief. The bright red stain on it was shocking even from a distance.

“It’s all done, Teacher Charlie. Were you using blood for divination?”

The fresh blood and the wound on the old man’s wrist made Mosil feel uneasy.

This was too reckless.

The old man waved his hand casually.

“After the incident with the holy light, the church became uneasy. ‘Knowledge’ temporarily took away our ability to use divination. But other methods were not restricted. These old techniques are often used to double-check things during important events. Nothing surprising.”

Mosil took a deep breath, his eyes full of surprise. Even for a bishop like him, blood-based divination felt unusual.

Charlie smiled and brushed the dust off his clothes.

“You’ll learn these things slowly. Now, tell me what you found.”

“I am not capable enough. I couldn’t find where the witch is hiding. But I did sense a trace of her presence nearby. I’m not sure if she has already left… Also, these are my notes.”

Mosil briefly explained everything he had discovered over the past few days.

Charlie shook his head.

“You’re still the same as before. You need to trust your own judgment. My teacher, your grand-teacher, once told me that the purpose of divination is to reflect, not to bind yourself. I think ‘Knowledge’ taking away the power of divination is also a way of reminding us not to rely too much on authority. The witch is powerful. If we don’t improve ourselves, we will only be surpassed by her. And if that happens, the church will lose its meaning.”

“Teacher…”

Mosil pressed his lips together. Charlie had always had a unique stance within the church. Mosil came here because he trusted his teacher’s character.

“What you just said... it wasn't as a high-ranking official of the Church, right?”

Even though he didn’t want to admit it, his teacher was indeed one of the more independent cardinals.

“What? Are you going to report me?” Charlie asked with a smile.

“I wouldn’t dare. I’m just curious what the church plans to do. Since the witch has revived, and they sent you, a cardinal, here, things must not be simple.”

Charlie shook his head.

“Not really. You know my style. The current Pope has clearly changed her approach.”

“The fact that she sent me here means she has chosen a conservative strategy. When she appointed me, she was already prepared for the worst.”

“If it were any more aggressive cardinal, the main city would already be locked down. They would search house by house. Hiding a witch would be a death crime, punishable by burning.”

“No citizen would dare openly challenge that kind of order. But the cost would be huge, everyone would know the witch has returned, and the entire city would fall into panic.”

“Sadly, those people never think about the consequences. The Pope probably considered this and chose me, to prevent the king from interfering and increasing his already growing influence.”

As he spoke, a giant tree suddenly collapsed nearby.

Charlie rubbed his rough beard and smiled.

“Looks like your people are nearby?”

Mosil turned around and saw a bright beam of holy light rising into the sky. He pressed his hand against his forehead.

“These idiots… Didn’t I tell them not to make such a big scene? Are they trying to tell the witch I’m coming for her?”

Charlie chuckled.

“Young people are like that. Back then, when you came to show off your holy light to me, you almost flattened a mountain.”

“That’s different! I got official permission beforehand. They, on the other hand, are delaying important work. Useless fools. If I find out who did it…”

“Haha…” Charlie laughed but didn’t reply. Small matters like this were already very normal to a cardinal like him.

It was like an old man watching his two grandsons fight over a toy—he wouldn’t stop them, but instead enjoy the scene.

“Sorry, teacher, that was embarrassing. About the divination just now… did you find anything new?”

Mosil cleared his thoughts and focused fully on the divination.

“Divination… nothing much. The witch has indeed revived, but it’s not the same as expected. This time, her revival is very different from what the old books describe. Do you remember what a normal witch’s revival looks like?”

Charlie’s expression suddenly turned serious. His sharp eyes stared directly at Mosil.

“A normal one…” Mosil searched through his memory, rubbing his beard as well.

He learned the habit of keeping a beard from his teacher. It made him feel like he could think faster.

When people are nervous, they often do something that makes them feel calm.

Mosil kept rubbing his chin so fast it was almost like sparks would come out.

“I told you, you haven’t changed. Mosil, as a bishop, your judgment must be both accurate and fast. If the witch suddenly appeared in front of you during this pause, what would you do? And what if I were the witch in disguise, how would you respond?”

Mosil froze.

His teacher was right. His old problem had come back, his perfectionism.

“Thank you for the guidance, teacher. I remember now. When a witch is born, strange signs appear around her. I was using that method just now, sending two teams to search widely for those signs.”

“And the result?”

Mosil lowered his head. “I failed.”

“Lift your head. This isn’t your fault,” Charlie said calmly. “From my divination, this witch is different from the previous ones. Don’t try to find her using normal methods.”

“Yes… I also felt that this witch is harder to deal with than any before. Is it because she is the Calamity Witch? You once told me that ‘Calamity’ is the strongest witch so far. Even ‘Knowledge’ itself had to join with other gods to suppress her…”

“...I admit I underestimated her cunning and didn’t prepare better countermeasures in time. But I still don’t understand where I went wrong. I followed the church’s procedures as much as possible. Not only did I find nothing, but even the Ring of Truth you gave me didn’t react.”

Mosil took off the red ring from his finger. The eye inside it moved strangely.

The black liquid from before was gone. Only a restless eye remained, spinning inside the ring.

It looked like it had just gone through something terrifying.

Mosil explained further,

“When it senses danger, black liquid usually flows from the eye. But today, it only reacted a little when we first arrived at the Calamity Forest. After that, nothing.”

Charlie stepped forward and checked the ring. The intensity in his eyes slowly faded.

“The Ring of Truth is a holy item given by the Pope. It carries divine power. For it to fail like this… that’s very rare. Perhaps it really sensed something extremely terrifying.”

Charlie’s eyes moved slightly, as if he thought of something.

“Have you found anything about the holy light incident?”

“Teacher, I’m just a bishop. Why are you asking me? The archbishops haven’t even spoken yet.”

Charlie scratched his head.

“Ah, you’re right. I almost forgot about that. It’s time to eat.”

“Teacher, do you mean the holy light?”

“Mosil, I’m really hungry. Let’s talk while we eat.”

Mosil sighed quietly and chose to support his teacher as they left.

Deep down, he felt that this matter was not simple at all.

It couldn’t be that “Knowledge” was protecting the witch… right?

That would be impossible.

That would be disrespectful to the gods.