Chapter 107
High Priest Holna knelt on the ground, wailing in agony. His graying head repeatedly struck the idol, and soon, the pure white robes of the Spring Goddess were adorned with tiny specks of blood.
One by one, those behind him also fell to their knees with a thud. The devotees of the Spring Goddess prostrated themselves, murmuring prayers.
The sacred spring in the temple symbolized the goddess's blessing to her followers and her glory. Now, this spring, meant to bring divine favor, was tainted with a plague. Wasn't this a sign of the goddess's anger, a divine punishment?
Confronted with this tragedy, the visiting guests involuntarily slowed their steps. The bald bishop's face turned solemn, and Elder Elwin Wilkinson discreetly averted his gaze, feeling a sense of shared sorrow.
Both serving the divine, they could empathize with High Priest Holna's plight.
The bald bishop imagined praying for the War God's protection before battle, only to find that all the weapons inexplicably rusted.
Elder Elwin envisioned praying for abundance and harvest to the god of nature, only to witness the entire forest wither and die inexplicably.
Both shivered simultaneously, exchanged a glance, and turned away.
If they were in such a situation, being stripped of their sacred roles was the least of their worries. Even death might not be enough for redemption.
Inside the main hall, the cries were loud. However, an untimely voice emerged at the temple's entrance.
"Um... Teacher..."
Garrett Nordmark, waiting patiently, felt he had given them enough time for mourning, but no one paid him any attention. Helpless, he had to make his presence known.
"There's something we need to discuss later," whispered Elder Elwin, trying to silence his disciple. Unexpectedly, Garrett not only refused to be quiet but also raised his voice:
"Teacher, I believe the spring is contaminated. It might not be the goddess's divine punishment!"nove(l)bi(n.)com
Garrett never thought it was a divine punishment. The reason he spoke up now was a mix of the inappropriate atmosphere and the wild ideas the High Priest had conjured.
What in the world was this divine punishment? Why would the Spring Goddess deliberately introduce a bunch of disease-causing bacteria into her own spring?
Even if she wanted to, could you tell me which god in this world would engage in bacterial cultivation?
High Priest Holna, panting heavily, arrived, ignoring the blood on his head. He stood there, gazing at Garrett with a mix of resentment and hope.
Any clergyman who thought they were under divine punishment and was told "maybe not" had to cling desperately to that hope. He panted a few breaths, pointed forward:
"In the temple, where the water source connects, and there has been an incident recently, it's right here."
The crowd surged in. Priest Donald stepped in and immediately stoppedeven though he had seen it dozens of times, the scene before him was still shocking. The black inverted pentagram deeply engraved on the stone, despite days of prayer and cleansing, remained vivid. Not to mention, at the center of the pentagram, a human-shaped recess was deeply formed...
Thinking about the fact that this was once a living person, someone he had interacted with, someone who had protected him, Priest Donald's throat bobbed up and down uncontrollably.
He felt like throwing up again.
Garrett, on the other hand, felt nothing. Inverted pentagrams, humanoid figures in the middle he had encountered more disgusting things in games and animations from his past life.
He squatted down, curiously examining the black traces on the ground. With a wave of his hand:
"Samples! From the ground, walls, cracks in the stone. Where does the water seep down from? Sample everything in the pipes that carry water!"
Half an hour later, a large group of priests surrounded Garrett as he conducted three sets of bacterial culture experiments. He used water from outside, fountain water, and black water from the secret room, scraping off black spots on the secret room walls. He then performed bacterial cultures, smears, staining, and microscopic examinations.
"The results are clear." Garrett raised his head from the microscope. Across from him stood Lord Joane Vaughn, the bald bishop, Elder Elwin, and High Priest Holna, all in a line. Garrett pointed to the culture dishes in front of him with confidence:
"The bacterial count in the black water is at least ten times higher than in the fountain outside. The black spots scraped from the walls have a bacterial count ten times higher than that in the black water. Since there are no other water sources leading to the secret room"
"That scoundrel Roman!" The High Priest spat out angrily. He glared at Lady Deya, disheveled and held captive on the side, his eyes red with an intense desire to tear into her:
"He refused to sincerely repent and, instead, committed suicide in the secret room using a dark ritual! He must have summoned a demon! The body turned into black water, polluting the water source and triggering the plague! Lord Joane! The temple has been working tirelessly to purify the water source!
You've seen it yourself, the depth of the imprint on that stone before our prayers and purification!"
I knew something bad would happen. Garrett silently complained. I was worried when that knight died, and now, here it is, just as I feared...
You guys, with all your prayers, purifications, and divine arts, why didn't you throw some lime into the water source?
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