The first snowfall of early winter had just ended.
The black carriage sped along the smooth road, leaving a trail of white snow in its wake.
The frost on the evergreen leaves on both sides of the street danced as though the originally green trees had changed into winter clothes overnight.
Currently, Geoffrey was relatively quiet. Due to the heavy snow and frozen lake, they couldn't go out to fish for the time being. Most people stayed at home or whispered in the taverns.
Of course, the focus of their discussion was nothing more than the eternal night that happened in the Western Wilderness.
No one knew what exactly was going on.
Rumor had it that the overlords of the surrounding areas had sent scouts to the Western Wilderness more than once, but most of those scouts had gone missing. Those who could return had basically become lunatics and inarticulate fools who attacked anyone they saw.
No one knew what exactly happened in the Western Wilderness. Some said that an evil wizard was trying to conquer the entire wilderness, some said that it was a harbinger of the destruction of the world, and some thought that someone in the wilderness had summoned a demon and had now turned it into a terrifying hell.
But no matter what, there wasn't any good news.
For the residents of Geoffrey, this wasn't a good thing.
This town relied on fishing for a living, and most of their business came from the surrounding areas. The rest came from the Western Wilderness.
If something really went wrong in the Western Wilderness, their livelihood would also be affected.
In fact, some people were already considering whether to move their entire family and leave this place.
This was the scene that Jenn saw from the carriage. It was a quiet but slightly decadent town.
The carriage slowly stopped in front of the temple in the middle of the town. Its appearance immediately attracted the attention of many people.
There was no other reason than that this was the first carriage to appear in front of the temple since the beginning of winter.
For a moment, many residents were curious about it. After all, just from the appearance alone, it was definitely not something that ordinary people could have.
Whether it was the magic lantern hanging outside the carriage, the majestic warhorses used to pull the carriage, or the luxurious carriage, they were definitely not something that ordinary people could have.
Perhaps even the mayor of Geoffrey didn't have such a good thing.
Which big shot is it?
At this moment, the guards stationed in front of the temple gate apparently noticed the carriage and hurriedly came forward.
Then, the carriage door opened and a young lady in a blue shirt and white skirt alighted.
She had a head of beautiful blonde hair tied with a big white bow on top of her head. She looked beautiful and cute.
The young lady smiled at the two guards, then turned around and gestured for them to enter.
"My lord."
Following Alice's call, Jenn slowly walked down the carriage.
He narrowed his eyes, gazed at the temple in front of him, and took a deep breath of fresh, cold air.
It was already early winter. Strictly speaking, this was not a suitable time to carry out any operations.
Even seasoned adventurers would not choose to venture out at this time of the year.
After all, just the cold itself was enough to weaken their combat power, not to mention that it was quite difficult to hunt for food in this season.
However, Jenn knew that the inflexible holy knights wouldn't care about this little trouble. They would only think of it as a 'trial'.
In fact, if it was possible, Zayen hoped that the Church of Holy Light would delay entering the Western Wilderness until next spring. By then, he would have controlled the entire wilderness. Not to mention a few hundred Holy Knights, even if the Church of Holy Light mobilized three legions of Holy Crusaders, he would not be afraid. But now …
I'll take one step at a time.
At this thought, Jenn turned sideways and gave way. Shortly after, he saw Tinidale alighting from the carriage.
The Dark Fairy Princess was still wearing her large, pitch-black cloak that wrapped her body completely.
It made her look like a daughter from a rich family who was traveling. She got off the carriage, tilted her head curiously, and glanced at the temple in front of her. But she did not say anything, and just followed quietly behind Zayen.
It was Jenn's decision to choose Tinidale and Alice as his followers after much consideration.
Jenn wasn't worried about the Chaos creatures, but he was worried about the holy knights. For safety's sake, he needed a powerful helper to help him. If anything were to happen, he could eliminate them in the shortest time possible.
Since Pattilina wasn't a consideration, Tinidale was the only one left.
As the Princess of the Dark Fairies and the ruler of the Dark Element, Tinidale was like a fish in water in the darkness of the Evernight Sky. She could unleash her greatest power.
With her by his side, Jenn felt more at ease.
As for Alice, she was responsible for serving Jenn. After all, the journey was long and there was always someone to serve tea and water.
As a noble, Jenn definitely wasn't behind in terms of enjoyment.
In this aspect, he had the same bad habits as other noble children. However, Jenn didn't think that there was anything wrong with having everything he needed at his fingertips. Wasn't this what many people yearned for their entire lives?
"Excuse me, you are …"
The guards seemed rather nervous as they gazed at Jenn and Tinidale.
After all, they could tell from their dressing that they definitely weren't ordinary people. Their luxurious robes and mannerisms revealed their background, and it seemed like they were the descendants of nobles.
However, the guards couldn't figure out why they came to a small place like Grava.
In order to prepare for the holy assembly, the temple was completely sealed and outsiders were forbidden from entering.
Hearing the guard's inquiry, Zayen glanced at them, then snapped his fingers. Soon, Alice, who was beside him, walked forward with a smile and presented an invitation.
The guards took the invitation, opened it, and glanced at it. Then, their expressions immediately turned solemn, and they immediately stood up straight and saluted Zayen and Tinidale in front of them.
"Welcome to the Temple of Grava, Sir Bashanon Mens. Please follow me!"
Hearing the guard's words, Zayen nodded. Then, under the guard's lead, they walked towards the shrine.
"Who is that?"
Gazing at Jenn and the others entering the temple, the black-haired holy knight who stood on the open-air balcony knitted his brows and asked.
"Isn't the temple a sealed one?
Why would they allow outsiders to enter?
What are those nobles doing here? "
"That should be the decorated nobles."
A middle-aged priest standing beside the holy knight chuckled and said, "The Holy Church has gathered many people this time.
"This time, the Holy Church has gathered quite a few people. I heard that they did indeed summon all the decorated nobles to work together with us. Looks like that young man is one of them."
"What nonsense."
The black-haired holy knight let out a snort in response.
"These decorated nobles are opportunists. I've always disapproved of the Holy Church's treatment of them as it will only lower the Holy Church's reputation in the eyes of the world.
Besides, those nobles aren't originally street refugees and don't know anything about upbringing.
Their existence will only bring shame to the Holy Church. "
Upon hearing the black-haired holy knight's complaints, the middle-aged priest shook his head in silence.
Regarding the decorated nobles, there had always been two opinions within the Holy Church. Many people felt that this kind of 'extraordinary' conferment would only bring shame to the Holy Church's prestige. Besides, they were disgusted by the use of power to tarnish the teachings of the Holy Church and didn't have many favorable impressions of the decorated nobles.
This situation was especially common among holy knights because holy knights had devout beliefs and firm beliefs. They disliked those selfish people who used merits to gain benefits more than others.
However, the decorated nobles wouldn't have too many dealings with the Holy Church. If it weren't for the Holy Church's recruitment, perhaps they wouldn't have even met once in their lifetime.
Thinking until here, the middle-aged priest couldn't help but shake his head. Of course, he knew that the Holy Church had their own considerations for choosing to recruit the decorated nobles.
However, he always felt that this method was too thoughtless. But as a middle-level priest, he obviously didn't have much of a say in this aspect.
Jenn wasn't clear about the current situation in the Holy Church. But when he walked into the courtyard under the guidance of the guards, he could feel the unfriendly gazes of the holy knights. Most of them were cold, apathetic, and some even had a hint of hostility.
However, Jenn wasn't surprised at all. He was very clear about the status of the decorated nobles in the Holy Church. He didn't even have the interest to respond to such a boring display of hostility.
After bringing Zayen to the atrium of the temple, the guards took their leave. It was only then that Zayen was in the mood to observe everything around him.
There were quite a lot of people in the courtyard. Just the holy knights with golden tassels on their chests alone numbered more than ten. It was certain that these holy knights came from all over the world.
Apart from them, there were also priests and bishops wearing red and white robes. Most of them were men, and there were also a few women. But basically, they weren't young.
It wasn't surprising because the Holy Church was asking for high-rank clergymen this time. Unless these young people were gifted, they definitely wouldn't have the qualifications to join this investigation team.
Taking a step back, if there really was such a young and promising Oracle, it was still a question whether the Shrine he was in would send him to his death.
Apart from that, Jenn also saw a few elves. Most of them were dressed as rangers, but of course, there were also a few wearing mage robes. These elves were independent and separated themselves from the others.
Apart from them, in another corner, a group of mages were resting with their eyes closed.
Judging from the star and moon insignia on their robes, they should be members of the Star and Moon Tower Mage Association.
At this moment, it could be said that every faction in the courtyard had their own faction. The holy knights and priests gathered together, the elves stood at the side, and the mages closed their eyes to rest in the corner.
One had to admit that this time, the Holy Church was indeed generous. Not only did they gather high-rank clergymen, but they also included high-rank mages from the Mage Association. Even the elves who were too lazy to come out from the forest participated in the investigation. It seemed like the Holy Church was indeed planning to go big this time.
However, what caught Jenn's attention the most was the group of people standing at the side corridor of the courtyard. Most of them were dressed differently. Some wore noble robes, while others wore adventurer's leather armor and armor. Compared to the other three factions, this group seemed more desolate as though they were a small group that was ostracized.
However, Jenn had already guessed their identities. If he wasn't wrong, these people should be decorated nobles.
At this thought, a smile emerged on Zayen's face. Then, he walked toward the group of people.