Yarra's Adventure Notes-Chapter 1409 - 195: In Front of the Temple

"Ladies and gentlemen, we will take our leave here," Shiela and Saen stopped in front of the massive temple’s main gate, pointing towards it, "We won’t be going inside."

"Oh?" Catherine asked in confusion, "Why not? The temple, as far as I know, shouldn’t refuse entry to believers. Why can’t you enter?"

"Older sister, this is not an ordinary temple. If you compare it to the churches of other deities, oh, let’s use the Earth Church as an example, this is akin to the Holy Sanctuary of the Earth Church located in Neville City", Lina explained in a low voice to Catherine. "The Earth Church is relatively people-friendly, allowing believers access to the outer parts of the Holy Sanctuary, while many church sanctuaries are closed and only open to the core believers during very special times."

"Uh, maybe that is indeed a custom among you beings, but that’s not the reason for us," Shiela’s denial made the priestess blush instantly, and although the ghost noticed, she continued, "Actually, this can no longer be considered a temple. Over these years, the master has lived continuously in his Divine Kingdom, accessible only through a central gate in the temple. Only when descending to or returning from the Divine Kingdom does the master appear in the temple, therefore the temple has lost its original purpose. Now the king resides here continuously, partly to guard the gate to the Divine Kingdom for the master, and partly because it is more convenient to communicate with the master, so rather than calling this a temple, it’s more like the Royal Palace, which we generally do not enter, since it is the king’s territory."

"What about guarding the gate or making communication convenient, it’s probably just because it’s spacious enough here," Pannis remarked with a wry smile. "That way, your king can save a lot of trouble."

"You know too much," Shiela mimicked Pannis’s earlier threatening gesture toward Lina, making the same motion, "We never said that."

"Thank you both very much then," Catherine bowed solemnly to Saen and Shiela, "It has been an honor to become friends with both of you. Should we have the chance to leave, we will surely visit you again."

"We sincerely look forward to it," Shiela nodded, her expression surprisingly tender, "You are interesting people, I like you, and I hope we do not become enemies."

"I hope so too," Catherine struck her chest with her right hand, responding with a knight’s etiquette, "Then, I hope we can meet again."

"Okay, let’s go, come on in," Pannis forcefully turned Catherine, who was watching the two undead leaders depart, "The person who wants to see us must already be impatient."

"I can now be sure," Catherine said thoughtfully, "you are truly not worried at all anymore."

"Because we have to face it anyway, so by now, there’s no need to worry," Pannis shrugged, "Just face reality."

"No, I’m not talking about yourself," Catherine shook her head, "Even though you entrusted Saen and Shiela, you must know that it’s not possible to guarantee my safety absolutely, theoretically, you shouldn’t be unworried like you are now, unless, you have found a new reliance that makes you no longer worry whether the angry undead will kill us."

"Um, guess so," Pannis was taken aback, not expecting Catherine to be so sensitive. He could only offer a wry smile and said, "I won’t deny your guess."

"Then let’s go," Catherine playfully blinked, wisely not pressing further. Instead, she took Pannis’s arm and said, "Didn’t you say he couldn’t wait anymore?"

"Alright," Pannis said with a wry smile as he rubbed his nose. Powerless against the cleverness of the young knight, he could only sigh and say, "You’ll know the answer soon enough."

Turning around, they crossed the square to the familiar steps in front of the temple’s main entrance. The square was empty; although undead often passed near the temple, none had ever entered its precincts. Even if it meant taking a longer route, they would not cut across the square. Clearly, not just Saen and Shiela, but all undead seemed reluctant to enter. Although the girls found this strange, they didn’t explore the truth and climbed the stairs as though nothing was amiss. Over the years, they had ascended the identical stone steps to the mirror-like temple countless times; they almost knew by heart the height and number of the steps.

As everyone reached the final step, the temple’s firmly closed heavy doors came into view. The lines that had been carved on the doors in Pannis’s story, which had previously demonstrated the Grimreaper’s dignity, had vanished. In their place was another line, not written in divine script but in common language, which all the girls could understand. Understanding the maxim on the door brought a slight smile to their lips. The inscription was clear and its meaning simple: "Even in sleep of death, never give up hope."

"It really is like something Lady Nellie would say," Catherine said with a look of admiration, kneeling on one knee in front of the door with the spine of her one-handed sword pressed against her forehead. This was the highest form of respect followers of knights showed to the knights they served.

"Yes, classic knight style," Pannis shook his head and sighed, stepping forward to gently touch the door, his voice gentle, "So, you haven’t given up on hope, but do you really have the confidence to maintain it forever? I hope you truly can, but perhaps I’m overthinking."

"How do we get in?" Catherine rose from her knelt position and asked, "There doesn’t seem to be anything like a doorbell to alert anyone inside."

"Yes, indeed there isn’t," Pannis nodded, "In theory, this door should just push open with force, but these two doors are very heavy. Though Mina appeared to open the doors easily back then, it was with the strength of a dragon. Even if I wanted to open them, I would need to enhance my strength with Aggression to do so."

As they discussed, the jade doors suddenly shook violently, followed by continuous trembling of the ground. The two doors then slowly began to open. Although the process seemed slow and heavy, oddly no sound came from the hinges, giving an eerie sensation.

"The friend who welcomes guests for the master has already arrived," Pannis commented as he watched the doors slowly open, "How surprising."

Actually, there was nothing surprising about it. Inside the doors, several skeletons were spread out on either side, pulling the doors open. With the skeletons’ strength, the doors were slowly opening.

"Is it you guys?" Through the widening gap of the doors, the skeletons tugging at the doors appeared in front of the girls. The instant they recognized them, Vivian’s hands were already in her work group’s pockets, ready to fight at any moment.