On a new Monday, Ansu spent his time under the watchful eyes of many students...
To be precise, they were watching Freya next to him, and him by extension.
After Freya, the Holy Maiden of the Church, officially became a guest student at the Benalu Royal Academy, she quickly caused a sensation.
At this moment, the lecture hall in the South Campus was packed to the brim. It was the first time Archbishop Paul's class had so many students, with even the aisles and the outside corridors completely filled...
"Um... class, my topic for today is Religious Traditions and Contemporary Life..." Paul looked at the students on the podium, who had no intention of listening at all, and tapped the blackboard helplessly.
"I know you are all full of curiosity about student Freya, but you should also know that elective courses in the theology major are not for playing house. The school has academic credit assessment standards."
After saying this, some students finally began to back down.
After all, not many people really wanted to listen to an old church man talk about those dull and tedious theological classics; these credits would not be easy to earn.
Archbishop Paul asked the teaching assistant to close the door. "Those who have not registered for the course, please do not come in. For those who have registered, I will also give you time to consider."
As a buzz of discussion rose in the lecture hall, Freya, sitting next to Ansu, quietly glanced at him.
"I'm sorry, Ansu. I didn't think it would be like this..."
Freya gave an apologetic smile.
Her original plan was to attend the same school as Lord Ansu so that they would have more time to spend together.
As it turned out, because there were too many people today, someone was staring at her wherever she went, leaving her with little time to talk and chat with Lord Ansu...
"There should be fewer people joining the fun in a few days." Ansu was also helpless. If this continued, he would be rumored to be the 'scandalous boyfriend' of the Holy Maiden...
Freya couldn't help but cover her mouth and giggle. She glanced at Archbishop Paul on the podium, whose expression was already a bit strained, and lowered her head to start writing and drawing in her notebook.
After a moment, the note was pushed to Ansu.
Ansu looked at the elegant and beautiful handwriting on the note, which also featured a cute smiley face she had drawn. He couldn't help but smile, inexplicably recalling his campus life in another world.
Secretly passing notes behind the teacher's back was truly a youthful experience.
「Student Ansu, the Council of Bishops has now granted me permission to go out freely! Archbishop Paul and Archbishop Leonard both encouraged me to go out and do what I want to do!」
「It's really great, I finally don't have to stay in the cathedral anymore!」
「(^○^)!」
Ansu looked at the excited little Holy Maiden. Although he didn't want to dampen her spirits, he still wrote a passage in the notebook.
「Why do I feel that this matter is not as simple as you think?」
Freya beside him froze for a moment, her beautiful almond eyes blinking blankly.
Ansu thought to himself. He had heard her say earlier that Archbishop Leonard was the first to suggest granting the Holy Maiden freedom of movement, which was very strange...
「Think about it, Paul is now Archbishop Leonard's biggest competitor. The old Pope is dying, and the election for the next Pope is imminent. At this juncture, that old man Archbishop Leonard is definitely up to no good!」
「~ˍ~*」
Freya looked at the words Ansu had written, her brow furrowing as the realization hit her.
Indeed, with such a track record, every move of Archbishop Leonard could not be understood simply.
That was exactly what Ansu was thinking. At this critical juncture, a problem for either of the two main candidates would be an opportunity for the other.
So... Archbishop Leonard letting Freya go might be waiting for her to cause some trouble, which could then implicate her direct supervisor and guardian, Archbishop Paul...
Ansu could think of Freya's biggest weakness right now, which was her hidden demihuman identity.
The Church of Holy Light was already very conservative. Archbishop Paul, an enlightened bishop who didn't care about Freya's lineage, was an outlier. If Freya's identity were suddenly exposed and caused an uproar, Paul, who insisted on bringing her to the royal capital, would inevitably bear the primary responsibility.
「Who else knows about your family's information besides Paul?」
Ansu quickly asked again.
「Only Mr. Paul knows, and he destroyed the evidence from back then long ago. My parents have also moved. They are under the protection of Mr. Paul's old friend, very safe and hidden.」
「Oh.」
After the class ended, the two finally didn't have to pass the notebook anymore.
Leaving the teaching building, the two destroyed the note and then walked together among the towering Gothic buildings of the South Campus.
"You must try to avoid fighting during this period to prevent your identity from being exposed."
Ansu cautioned the little Holy Maiden beside him. "I remember that when you fight, it's hard to continuously suppress demihuman characteristics. Watch out for that guy Archbishop Leonard conducting a sting operation."
Archbishop Leonard could be called a master of the sting operation. If it weren't for Ansu's existence, he would catch someone every time he cast his line, rarely ever failing.
"Mm!" Freya nodded. Lord Ansu's concern for her made her smile happily.
"By the way, Ansu."
Freya suddenly said, "I have one more thing to report today."
"What is it?"
"It's about that demon army's treasure you asked me to look into a few days ago..." Freya said in a low voice as she walked.
"I went through many internal documents and archives of the Church and found that a squad from the Inquisition of Heresy has been ordered to search for this place. They will have another operation soon. If you want to know the details so badly, why don't I help you ask them?"
Ansu told her to continue, and then learned that this inquisition squad had already searched six times during Archbishop Terry's tenure, all to no avail. Now that a new leader had taken office, the mission had been restarted.
Of course, the Church of Holy Light's persistent search for the demon army's treasure was naturally not for the priceless treasures inside; the Church was not so short of money that it needed to 'strike it rich by looting'.
The Church's goal was not exploration, but destruction.
Ancient ruins represented non-human civilizations and heretical faiths. The Church of Holy Light had already demolished many of them before. This demon 'holy land', which attracted countless people in legends, would certainly not be spared.
"Ansu..." Freya looked at Ansu, who had fallen into thought without giving an answer, and asked expectantly, "So, what are we doing next?"
She had just transferred and hadn't adapted to school life yet; the only person she knew was Ansu.
So wherever Ansu went, she wanted to follow.
"I..." Ansu looked at her, suddenly hesitating because he had intended to go to Professor Duncan's place.
By himself.
However, after seeing the little Holy Maiden clasping her hands together, blinking her big eyes pitifully with a 'please' expression...
He still softened and nodded. "I'm going to Professor Duncan's place in a bit."
"Then Ansu... can I go with you?" Freya asked softly and carefully.
"Fine, you can come with me," Ansu sighed.
Freya's pale gold eyes instantly became lively, and she nodded happily.
"Yay!"
Rate on N.U.
