Anomaly

Drawn on the floor was something that could only be described as a magic circle and every now and then there laid different sized gray-colored crystals in between the lines.

Around the magic circle on the ground, as well as some balcony"s on the first and even second floor stood endless rows of priests in silent prayer.

Seeing that Cale gulped loud, thinking about the fact that he had just cursed at their G.o.ddess.

There were probably only seven people in the whole church right now who weren"t praying. Shade, who was actually an offer to this G.o.ddess, was also praying, making it the other six heroes and the person who announced their arrival.

He was a middle-aged man in a long white robe, that made him look like had some high position in the church, which was only supported by the fact that he seemed to be leading this ritual.

Slowly, one after another, the priest started to lift their heads, all looking at the heroes.

It was then that the old priest spoke up again:

„I am cardinal Eberhardt, I am truly glad that I am allowed to meet with you, the chosen heroes of our great G.o.d, lady Amaris. Please, tell me, who of you is your representative?"

Before anyone could react Julia spoke up while pointing at Cale:

„That would be him, Cale."

Grabbing his ear, Julia spoke to him in a mix of whisper and hissing:

„No profanities, I warn you!"

Getting pushed in the back, he stumbled a step forward before he caught himself again and took two more steps until he stood right in front of the seven.

Nervous, not knowing what to do with them Cale kept his hands behind his back, giving him in combination with the white robe the G.o.ddess provided, even if unintentional, a very proud and slightly majestic appearance.

„My name is Cale, sir, I am the one who was appointed by the G.o.ddess as the leader."

„No need to be so formal, sir Cale. Please follow me, I"m sure that you have many questions about the kingdom of Loreley as well as the reason which made us summon you."

With a friendly smile on his face, the cardinal left the altar and the pedestal which it stood upon. His slow but strong steps resounded loudly throughout the gigantic church. Without having to say anything the priest parted in front of him, staying at a respectful distance, the only sound they produced throughout the ceremony being the faint shuffling of their feet.

Without caring at all about the fact that the hem of his robe destroyed the elaborately drawn magic circle, the Cardinal strode right through it and kept going towards the gigantic closed main gate. He gave off such a holy aura that even the heroes took a respectful step to the side and then followed after him without another word.

Working like a smooth and quiet clockwork, six priests, three on each of the huge double doors, pushed the gates outward, opening them.

Thanks to the fact that the church stood alone on a hill in the midst of the city, as well as the crystal blue sky, the seven heroes got to see a magnificent view of what was probably the capital of Loreley.

To the left, on the only other hill in the city, as well as the only place that stood even higher than the church, stood a gigantic castle surrounded by two walls. A small one at the foot of the hill, and a second, higher, one at the top. In between those two walls one could see a literal ocean of beautiful flowers, only interrupted by the occasional gravel path, where one could see some people wandering around, some alone but mostly in pairs of man and woman.

A beautiful yet highly practical design, as there was not a single object that would obstruct the vision of the guards on the upper or lower wall, while the meandering gravel paths never got closer than 15 meters to either wall, making every potential trespa.s.ser very obvious.

If one looked a little bit to the right, one would see numerous small and large mansions. The n.o.ble district were the n.o.bles resided that either lived there or visited the capital. There were only two main streets, one on either side of the castle, drawing a long line throughout the whole city, while also being the only street adorned with stores in the n.o.ble district.

While not being in the n.o.ble district, the hill with the grand church stood right outside of it, at the place where the first and second wall stood the furthest away from each other. This was to prevent eventual invaders from using either the walls or the hill to their own advantage when capturing the next target.

The capital had a whole four walls, besides the two castle walls. With each wall, the houses would get smaller and build in a more chaotic manner. And if one looked outside the fourth wall one would see that even there were already new houses getting build, but even then, one would never see a house, no matter how small, that wasn"t built of bricks.

That, as well as the continuously expanding walls, were enough to show the progress and prosperity of this kingdom.

„How do you like the view of our capital city, Lorain?"

„It is certainly very beautiful. And, even though it is not the same as our modern society, this city seems have progressed very far and looks very clean. Considering that I just hope you also have decent plumbing."

„Hahahaha, no need to be concerned, though only around every second household beyond the second wall, and only a rare few beyond the third wall have it, we are constantly improving on that front. And we are very proud of the fact that Lorain is one of the most sanitary cities on the whole continent. And you are?"

„Allan Walker, though I won"t be fighting on the front line I will do my best by providing weapons and armor worthy of the other heroes. And although this city is already on a very good way, I may be able to provide some support in that aspect as well."