#10
In the days that followed, Hereis resumed his daily routine. Even as he remained secluded in his room, lost in solitary anguish, time had diligently pressed on. The day of his formal appointment as archbishop was fast approaching.
“Archbishop Hereis, is the appointment ceremony not merely two days away? And at such a crucial time, you intend to visit the slums for relief work? Even during your time as a bishop, there was considerable discussion regarding your personal visits to the slums, was there not?”
The attendant priest expressed his concern with a worried frown.
“Since the appointment ceremony is still two days away, I am not yet an archbishop, am I? Once I assume the role of archbishop, direct involvement in relief work will become challenging. Thus, I wish to personally extend God’s love until that time.”
Hereis offered a benevolent smile, completing his preparations to depart.
“However….” The attendant priest paused, hesitating, then lowered his voice to a whisper, leaning close to Hereis’s ear. “Whispers abound within the temple that Bishop Irellio, having lost his chance at the archbishopric due to you, is now harboring a deep resentment. The slums are fraught with peril. Should you venture there, you might inadvertently….”
Hereis gently placed a hand on the attendant priest’s shoulder, silencing his unspoken fears.
“I appreciate your concern. Yet, we all serve the same God. While it is only natural for him to feel regret and disappointment, I choose to believe he would not stoop to such actions.”
“Archbishop….”
On one hand, the attendant priest was deeply moved by Hereis’s unwavering faith, while on the other, he sighed, troubled by his excessive purity. Hereis offered the attendant priest a reassuring smile before departing the room.
In the Grand Temple’s forecourt, a dozen or so supply carts, laden with provisions Hereis had procured from his personal funds, stood waiting. The Grand Temple engaged in relief efforts both regularly and intermittently. Inevitably, a slum had formed nearby, where the hungry populace congregated.
Hereis mounted a horse instead of opting for a carriage. He then led the holy knights and priests, tasked with managing the inevitable rush of the impoverished, out of the Grand Temple.
Encarosha, home to the Grand Temple, was a remarkably bustling city. It rivaled, or perhaps even surpassed, the imperial capital where the emperor of the central continent held court.
Yet, where there is light, shadows are bound to follow.
Beyond the avenues lined with grand, opulent mansions, and past the vibrant, bustling commercial districts, lay the impoverished slums where the less fortunate made their homes.
As the bread-laden carts, emblazoned with the temple’s banner, drew near, the slum erupted into a cacophony of sound. The ragged and famished masses began to converge frantically, desperate not to miss their chance. Before the carts had even come to a complete halt, they stretched out rough, eager hands towards the priests, clamoring for bread.
Had it not been for the holy knights in their gleaming armor, the impoverished would have instantly overwhelmed and plundered the carts entirely. However, as the holy knights stood resolute, encircling the carts, those cowed by their imposing presence began to form orderly lines, accustomed to the routine.
The priests, who had initially worn expressions of slight tension, finally relaxed upon witnessing this order, and swiftly untied the sacks of bread. They then began to diligently distribute bread to those patiently waiting in line.
Instead of merely observing the scene from atop his horse, Hereis dismounted and climbed onto one of the supply carts. From there, he began distributing bread to those in line, just as any other priest would. The stark contrast between the impoverished masses and the affluent, high-ranking congregants who frequented the Grand Temple always pierced Hereis’s heart with a pang of sorrow.
“Thank you, Father.”
“May you be blessed, Father.”
“May God’s grace be with you!”
As people received their bread, they offered their thanks and blessings in return. Occasionally, some even requested a personal blessing from Hereis. Instead of recoiling from those whose faces were streaked with grime, Hereis unhesitatingly placed his hand upon their heads and murmured a short prayer of blessing.
Distributing such a vast quantity of bread, one by one, to the ceaselessly swelling crowd of the impoverished was an arduous task. He had to move without pause. How many times had he frantically reached into the sacks, extracting and handing over loaves of bread? It was then that Hereis detected a potent surge of malice, precisely aimed in his direction.
“Father! Father!”
Just as he was handing over a loaf of bread, feigning ignorance of the chilling intent, a grimy hand suddenly seized his wrist. A holy knight, witnessing the scene, moved to intervene, but Hereis subtly shook his head, halting him. He then turned to the young girl, whose earnest face was upturned as she clutched his wrist, and inquired.
“What troubles you?”
The young girl, impoverished and unlettered, who had likely never been addressed with such deference in her life, flinched at Hereis’s gentle inquiry. Hereis offered the girl a soft, reassuring smile and reiterated his question.
“Would you like me to offer a prayer of blessing for you?”
At Hereis’s question, the girl seemed to snap out of her daze, nodding frantically in response.
“Yes… yes, yes! Not for me, but for my mother! My mother is terribly ill! I fear she will pass away soon. Father, please, I beg you, offer a prayer of blessing for my mother! Give her a final prayer so she may ascend to God’s side when she dies! It is my mother’s last wish to receive your blessing before she departs! Please, I implore you!”
“Venture directly into the slums? Absolutely not.”
The holy knight standing beside him immediately moved to object. The gazes of the priests distributing bread, and those of the holy knights guarding them, all converged on Hereis.
“Is it not the final wish of one who is soon to return to God’s embrace? I shall merely go, offer a prayer, and return immediately.”
“But—!”
“Thank you! Thank you, Father! Thank you!”
Before the holy knight could even formulate a retort, the young girl cried out her thanks repeatedly. The attention of the impoverished masses was now entirely fixed upon them. Exclamations and cheers erupted from the crowd. To receive a final blessing from a priest, clearly of high standing, just before death, was considered a profound blessing indeed.
“Thank you, Father! May God’s blessing be with you!”
“Thank you, Father!”
The crowd shouted their thanks aloud, each voice rising in fervent appreciation. Given the circumstances, it became clear that Hereis’s refusal to go would only create an awkward predicament.
The holy knight, who had been contemplating the situation as he watched Hereis descend from the cart, stepped forward and offered to accompany him. Hereis met the knight’s gaze for a moment before giving a concise nod.
****
“Hurry! Quickly!”
The young girl, tightly clutching Hereis’s wrist as if her life depended on it, began to weave and dart through the throng of people. Her pace was astonishingly swift. Hereis, acutely aware of the killing intent directed at him, followed the young girl through the narrow, winding alleys of the slum.
They ran for a considerable distance. Though the slum district itself wasn’t expansive, its labyrinthine alleys, lined with tightly packed, narrow dwellings, were tangled like a spiderweb, making navigation disorienting. As they darted forward, then abruptly veered right, then left, navigating the perpetually twisting paths, the holy knight who had been trailing them vanished without a trace.
The young girl’s frantic sprint abruptly ceased.
She had stopped before a small, ramshackle building, so shoddily constructed that it appeared on the verge of collapse.
“Is this the place?” Hereis inquired.
At his incomparably gentle inquiry, the young girl’s small shoulders visibly flinched.
“I… I’m sorry.”
The young girl mumbled, unable to meet Hereis’s gaze. She then released his wrist, which she had clung to like a lifeline, turned, and fled as if escaping into the maze of alleys. Hereis watched the young girl’s retreating form for a moment before slowly surveying his surroundings. The throngs of impoverished people that had filled every alleyway were now nowhere to be found, and the area was eerily silent, as if dead.
From various corners of the deserted alley, faint stirrings could be perceived. Hereis remained perfectly still, his gaze subtly lowered, awaiting their full emergence.
Upon confirming that Hereis stood alone, figures began to emerge without hesitation. These men, of varying ages, were clad in the typical attire of the impoverished. However, the pristine cleanliness of their hands, which clutched sharp weapons, quickly betrayed that they were no ordinary paupers.
“This is what happens, Father, when one allows their compassion to be so easily exploited.”
The man who appeared to be the leader among those encircling Hereis spoke with a sneer. He then turned his head, casting his gaze to one side, and called out loudly.
“Are you certain there will be no repercussions for this?!”
From the direction the leader had addressed, a figure emerged. It was the very holy knight who had accompanied Hereis, now impeccably dressed in stark contrast to the ragged figures, and who had mysteriously vanished during their pursuit.
“The advance payment has already been settled in full,” the holy knight stated in a flat voice, “so all you need to do is complete the task and swiftly disappear from here. The cost for this deed will be borne by the foolish paupers who dared to harm the Grand Temple’s Archbishop.” His face, slightly rigid, seemed to betray a flicker of guilt.
He was likely meant to be the one to “discover” Hereis’s body, murdered by the poor. Hereis offered the holy knight a faint, knowing smile.
“Don’t waste time; just get it done quickly.” The holy knight commanded, turning his head away as if unable to bear witness.