The Way of Redemption Lies Within!

"Clack... clack... clack..."

Strolling back onto the bustling street, Irene's steps were visibly lighter than before.

A faint smile played at the corners of her lips.

This undoubtedly showed that she was in a rather pleasant mood.

She had only gathered a highly one-sided account from the paperboy; essentially, it was just a little fangirl's brief summary of the Black Dragon Empire's commercial development over the years.

Still, it was enough to put the lingering worries in Irene's heart to rest.

For her, after sleeping for so long, she was incredibly grateful that the empire's development hadn't fallen into chaos.

Now that she knew the empire was not only on the right track but thriving commercially, her mood was naturally excellent.

However, Irene could also tell that the girl probably only knew about this specific area. Asking further would likely yield vague answers. Rather than wasting more time, she might as well go see her long-lost subordinates.

She figured that by now, her adorable subordinates had probably realized she was missing from the dragon's nest. They might even be suspecting that their Grace had been abducted by some unknown entity.

“Hmm... maybe they're rolling around on the ground in a panic right now.” This strange thought popped into Irene's mind, making her chuckle to herself. Her pace quickened slightly.

But as she strolled along, stopping occasionally to admire the changes in Black City over the years while tracking her long-lost subordinates through their bloodline connection, a bell suddenly tolled in the distance.

The tolling of the bell was so loud and resonant, like a massive stone cast into a tranquil pond, sending invisible soundwaves rippling through the entirety of Black City in an instant.

Most of the pedestrians who heard the bell couldn't help but stop and look in one direction, their eyes filled with awe.

Irene, blending into the crowd, was no exception. Drawn by the sudden tolling, she stopped, slowly turned her head, and looked curiously toward the source of the sound.

Through an incredible distortion and focus, her golden eyes instantly traversed a vast distance, clearly seeing what was making the sound.

It was a massive golden bell.

It looked as if it were crafted from pure gold, suspended high atop the tower of a cathedral-like building. Obscured by other structures, only half of the bell was visible, radiating a brilliant golden light against the backdrop of the setting sun and evening glow.

Struck by an invisible force, the long, resonant chiming radiated outward from the golden bell, echoing throughout the city.

As if summoned by it, some pedestrians turned around, pulled out black-covered books from their clothes, and walked toward the cathedral with the golden bell, chatting and laughing.

On both sides of the street, windows were pushed open from the inside. Various beastkin and half-beastkin poked their heads out. Once they heard the resonant chiming and confirmed they hadn't misheard, they slammed their windows shut, pushed open their doors with excited faces, and ran toward the source of the tolling, each clutching a black-covered book.

Their frantic excitement made them look less like devout pilgrims and more like a crowd of housewives who had just heard about a massive supermarket sale.

As the sound of chaotic footsteps and heavy breathing rushed past her, Irene hesitated for a moment before masking her presence slightly, blending into the crowd as they made their way toward the cathedral.

She wasn't drawn to the golden bell because of a chromatic dragon's innate greed.

After all, dragons possessed an extraordinarily sharp sense of smell for precious ores and treasures. Even from such a distance, Irene could tell in an instant that the bell was merely plated with a paper-thin layer of gold leaf; its actual core was made of incredibly cheap brass.

Even the poorest dragon would turn their nose up at such a stingy "golden bell." A dragon with particularly bad manners might even raise a middle finger and yell, "You think you can bait a sucker with this?! Who are you trying to fool, a white dragon?! Eat shit!"

What truly drew Irene was the pure power of faith that surged from the cathedral along with the tolling of the bell!

Without a doubt, she was the one enshrined in that cathedral.

The so-called Goddess of Redemption!

...

Fortunately, the walk wasn't long. Over the years, the streets of Black City had been widened significantly, so even though the sheer number of beastkin and half-beastkin heading toward the cathedral resembled a massive parade, it didn't cause any traffic congestion.

Before long, Irene, walking amidst the crowd, successfully reached the main entrance of the cathedral.

The cathedral wasn't as grand as Irene had imagined. In fact, aside from the gold-plated brass bell at the top, the entire building embraced a minimalist style.

Black and white bricks made up most of the structure, with the remaining areas adorned with minor decorations and relief carvings, barely lending it a sense of sacredness.

The residents of Black City who had arrived early were already lined up in a long, orderly queue, entering the central hall of the cathedral.

Irene keenly noticed that among these beastkin and half-beastkin, there were a few scattered figures of human children.

This surprised her slightly, but the surprise was quickly pacified by her powerful dragon heart as she quietly waited for the line to move forward.

The queue moved quickly. Before long, Irene walked up the steps made of white quartz and reached the cathedral entrance. But before she could step inside, a rough green hand suddenly blocked her path.

Irene turned her head and saw a female green-skinned beastkin wearing a nun's habit.

The black-and-white habit, which was supposed to be quite loose, was stretched tight across her bulky muscles.

It gave off the distinct impression that she might rip her clothes to shreds at any moment.

As if noticing Irene's gaze, the beastkin nun lowered her hand, bared her two sharp fangs, and offered a very "benevolent" smile. In a soft, cute voice that contrasted sharply with her rugged appearance, she said, “Young lady, is this your first time coming to worship the Goddess of Redemption?”

“Uh... I suppose so,” Irene replied hesitantly. She could feel a thread connecting her to this beastkin—the thread of faith.

Without a doubt, this beastkin nun was also one of her believers.

Hmm... judging by the strength of the thread, she was at least a loyal believer.

But for a loyal believer to block the "deity" they worshipped outside the cathedral doors... if word got out, it would probably make the clergy of other churches choke.

At the same time, it made Irene curious about the inner workings of the church. Logically, every church had a statue of its deity. Just what kind of statue did they have for a loyal believer to not even recognize the very "deity" they worshipped?

“Oh~” Hearing Irene's answer, the beastkin nun wore an "as expected" expression. She raised her hand, flipped her palm, and retrieved a baby bottle from her storage ring. With a solemn face, she said to Irene, “You see, young lady, those who come to worship the Goddess of Redemption for the first time can receive a free copy of the Holy Scripture of Redemption...”

Then, looking at the baby bottle she had extended, her eyes suddenly widened.

“Oh! My Goddess of Redemption!”

Finally realizing she had pulled out the wrong item, the beastkin nun's voice turned rough again. She casually tossed the baby bottle aside, gave Irene an embarrassed, apologetic smile, and said, “Sorry about that, grabbed the wrong thing.”

She then began frantically rummaging through her storage ring.

Various miscellaneous items were tossed everywhere as she kept muttering to herself:

“A stool? No!”

“Diapers? No!”

“Chicken wrap? No, not that either!”

...

Under Irene's watchful gaze, the beastkin nun finally pulled out a flowerpot filled with soil. Holding the flowerpot in one hand, she awkwardly scratched her bald head hidden beneath her habit with the other. “Damn it! I wore the wrong storage ring. This one belongs to my husband.”

Right at that moment, a minotaur with a nose ring standing behind Irene seemed to lose his patience. Two puffs of white steam snorted from his nostrils as he raised his hand and shouted, “How much longer is this going to take, auntie? My little calf is about to get out of school. I still have to pick up my kid after worship.”

A sudden flowerpot was the minotaur's only reply.

With a loud thud, the minotaur collapsed to the ground, sleeping peacefully.

The beastkin nun stepped forward with a fierce expression. Bending down, she snatched the black-covered book from the minotaur's hand while cursing in an incredibly rough voice, “Who are you calling auntie?! I'm only eighteen this year!”

When she turned back to Irene, her face shifted instantly into a benevolent smile, looking every bit like a saintly figure. She presented the black-covered book to Irene with both hands, saying in her soft, cute voice, “Here, this is the Holy Scripture of Redemption. The way of redemption lies within!”

“Uh...” Irene was completely dumbfounded by this display. Her eyelids twitched. Hesitating for a fraction of a second, she accepted the book, thanked her, and cast a helpless glance at the minotaur snoring on the ground, completely unconcerned about catching a cold.

A thought involuntarily surfaced in her mind: Is this church even legitimate? Don't tell me it's some kind of cult?