Chapter 68 68: The Goddess
From the moment Eileen received the call until Brian rushed over with bags full of supplies and provisions, it probably took less than ten minutes. Brian arrived out of breath, carrying a large bag of supplies, and appeared in front of Eileen.
After a brief inspection of the girl, and confirming that she had no missing limbs or broken bones, Brian rushed into the inner room. When he saw Nolan lying on the bed, pale and weak but with steady breathing, Brian\'s anxious expression finally eased.
After coming out of the inner room, he saw Eileen sitting on the sofa in the living room, seemingly lost in thought despite having rescued Nolan. Brian realized that someone was missing.
"Where\'s Renji?"
"Huh?!"
"Ah, him? He said he had some things to do, so we separated," Eileen\'s voice grew quieter, her gaze dropping, her expression dimming.
Seeing the girl like this, Brian understood a lot in an instant. He sighed internally, didn\'t ask any more questions, and changed the subject to comfort her:
"Alright, you must be starving. Let me show you my cooking skills this time!"
After a while, the aroma of porridge filled the room.
Perhaps influenced by the scent of the food, there was some movement from the inner room. Eileen immediately rushed over and found that Nolan, who had awakened, was trying to sit up on the bed.
"Mom!" Eileen hurriedly helped and supported her mother, and tears flowed uncontrollably as she nestled in Nolan\'s arms.
At first, the woman on the bed, upon seeing her daughter\'s changed appearance with her hair untied, was momentarily stunned. But soon, Nolan reached out and gently stroked Eileen\'s back, indicating that she was okay.
After comforting each other, Nolan seemed to muster the courage to ask the girl:
"Eileen, I\'m not entirely sure if it was just my imagination, but at the time, there were two other people besides you, right?"
Seeing Eileen nod, Nolan\'s face suddenly lit up with excitement. It even covered up her previous weakness and exhaustion. She turned to look out the window and murmured:
"I knew it. Goddess Suthia hasn\'t abandoned us. She has never abandoned her faithful believers."
Eileen, however, became somewhat irritated when she heard her mother\'s words. What did the Goddess have to do with this? Clearly, it was them! It was Renji and Maria\'s doing!
She disliked her mother\'s "stubborn" faith. Clearly, six years ago, they had been betrayed by the Church, and now, six years later, a similar situation had happened again, even worse, to the point of being terrifying!
The Church was already completely finished! The Goddess no longer existed! Eileen rarely got angry with her mother like this. She hoped her mother wouldn\'t be so stubborn anymore. She didn\'t want to see her mother get hurt by the Church again!
"No, My dear child. I might admit to being wrong about other things, but not about the Goddess\'s light. That light is the same as the one I\'ve felt for the past six years. I can\'t be mistaken," Nolan shook her head.
"Six years... ago?"
"Yes, actually, I had a premonition about my illness a long time ago. But every night, when I prayed to the Goddess and fell asleep, I would feel a faint holy light washing my body. Although it was very weak, it still helped me withstand the pollution in my body. I think, if it weren\'t for that faint light, I might not have been able to hold on until now before the illness flared up?"
"I know you\'re probably going to say that these are just Mom\'s illusions. I used to think the same way, so I never told you about it. But last night, in that dark sewer, I really saw... Goddess Suthia"
"Wait, Mom! What are you talking about? The Goddess last night??"
Eileen was more confused than ever.
Or rather, from her mother\'s words, Eileen\'s sense of unease, which had grown stronger since parting with Renji, intensified.
"Yes, at that time, Mom had a dream of becoming a monster just like the ones around her, wandering in the sewer. A nun appeared in front of Mom and used holy light to reverse the pollution in my body. Even though I had already mutated at that time, I returned to human form. Now that I think about it, that must have been Lady Suthia\'s messenger, right?"
As Eileen looked at her mother nodding and reminiscing, if her mother hadn\'t lied and it wasn\'t an illusion...
So, actually, even before they arrived today, a nun had found her mother in the sewer and helped her suppress the pollution? Thanks to the nun\'s help, her mother was able to hold on until they arrived?
"Mom! Tell me quickly, is the nun who saved you last night the same as the one with me today!?"
A very bad thought came to Eileen\'s mind, making her think in horror. She anxiously asked Nolan, who, although unsure, told Eileen that their "holy light" abilities felt the same.
"That\'s right, it\'s the same person"
Realizing this, Eileen\'s hair stood on end.
Because by sorting out the timeline, it was clear that Maria had contacted her mother before contacting them, and had even "partially healed" her mother.
Why did she do that?
The answer was self-evident
She used her mother as bait! She deliberately lured them into the Church\'s underground!
This explained Maria\'s incredible divination ability, her unbelievable teleportation ability, and why they had been so smooth all the way.
Now, there was only one question left.
\'Why did Maria do this, what was her goal?\'
Obviously.
The nun\'s target was not Eileen and her mother, otherwise they wouldn\'t have been safely transported back.
So, by the process of elimination, there was only one final conclusion.
\'Maria\'s target was...\'
\'Renji!\'
"Damn it, Renji is in danger!!"