Steam Age: I Fight Against Divine Authority with Otherworldly Tales

Chapter 48 Saint Karl

"I am a saint now!"

Karl's voice echoed in the corridor. Suren's eyes widened, her eyebrows twitched, and a look of surprise appeared on her face.

"I didn't expect you to actually be a genius." Suren's tone was somewhat exaggerated.

Unlike his usual carefree self, Carl scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly.

"Thanks to your and the professor's guidance, I've been reflecting on the doctrine during this time, treating every alchemy session as a practice of it." Some excitement still lingered on his face. "This morning I understood: the essence of the doctrine is balance! At that moment, the key point in my mind became clear."

At this point, he looked at Suren and asked with some confusion, "What I don't understand is, you clearly thought of these things first, but you didn't become a saint."

"That's because I'm not devout enough, you know, I've never believed in church stuff." Suren shrugged and chuckled.

Karl pursed his lips, about to say something, when he looked up and saw Suren's serious expression.

Suren leaned forward and said solemnly, "Remember this: if anyone asks about this, answer always—it's because you are devout enough."

If the church knew that Professor De Went had made you a saint with a simple suggestion, who knows what kind of sins he would be accused of afterwards.

Karl was taken aback, then realized the seriousness of the matter. After all, the fact that a suggestion from a non-church member could turn a "Deathbird" into a saint was hard not to make one think of something.

He nodded vigorously.

The streets were still a bit chilly in the early morning. After a quick breakfast, the two headed towards the duty station. Suren turned her head and saw Karl's expression, which seemed to say "I am a saint" in big letters, making Suren almost burst out laughing.

Pushing open the door of the duty station, you'll find a few scattered Deathbirds and hunting dogs whispering and discussing something in the lobby.

Suren and Karl didn't exchange pleasantries with the others and went straight to the second floor. After all, saints could receive significantly better treatment, and they needed to report to Corrigan as soon as possible.

Standing in front of Corrigan's office door, Carl took a deep breath and knocked on the brown oak door.

After receiving a "Come in" reply, the two pushed open the door and walked into the office.

Upon entering, Suren noticed two extra people in the office. The obnoxious Edmund was standing against the wall, while opposite Corrigan sat a man Suren had never seen before, who was now looking at her sideways.

The man sat upright, with dark brown hair parted neatly in a 3/7 ratio, neither too thick nor too thin, and his sideburns were trimmed very cleanly. His hazel eyes were fixed on Suren and Karl, as if assessing something.

He was dressed in a finely tailored tuxedo and wore a top hat, looking like a noble gentleman.

What's most eye-catching is the cane in his hand. The cane is dark brown all over, and the material looks like ebony. A scale pattern is carved on the top of the cane, and two gray-blue gemstones are inlaid on the sides.

Suren noticed that the scale pattern was not as figurative as a typical holy emblem, but rather resembled a magic circle from an ascension ceremony.

"Could it be that the ritual has other uses?" Suren wondered to himself, but remained outwardly calm as he gently closed the door.

Corrigan looked up, his gaze falling on the two of them, and asked, "What is it?"

Carl opened his mouth, his gaze sweeping around the room, unsure whether to speak.

Corrigan seemed to sense his hesitation and waved his hand.

"Just say what you need to say." He said, turning his gaze to the man sitting upright. "This is the 'Frostblade Saint,' Priest Leonard Esmond."

Suren felt a chill run down her spine. Priests had a high level of authority and could usually directly manage a town.

As Corrigan had previously stated, this saint had only been a member for two years, yet he had already risen to such a position, which was indeed not to be underestimated.

Karl exhaled and said, "Steward, today, I was able to clearly sense all the nodes in my consciousness."

As he spoke, Karl took a step forward, extended his right hand, palm open, fingers slightly spread.

His right hand emitted a pale blue light. He made a grabbing motion in the air, bringing his five fingers together. Then he gently opened his palm, and some fine sand slowly fell down.

Suren knew that this was the ability of [Matter Conversion]; Karl had just directly converted the components in the air into these fine sand particles.

Suren nodded to himself. He had to admit that Karl's ability to use this skill so proficiently in such a short time was indeed a testament to his exceptional talent.

Corrigan looked at the pale blue light in Carl's palm that had not yet completely dissipated, and suddenly stood up.

He laughed loudly and slammed his hand on the desk, making the pen on the desk jump. Suren could tell that he was genuinely happy for Karl.

"Karl, you said you'd become a saint the day you arrived, and I didn't believe you. I can't believe you actually did it!" Corrigan's voice still held a hint of surprise. "You've only been here for less than three weeks, right? I'll be right back in a bit..."

"Knock knock knock".

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by the sound of a cane being tapped in the room.

Leonard stood up, his movements unhurried, his clothes swaying gently, a gentle smile on his face, his gaze fixed on Karl.

"A saint in three weeks? Even in the Holy See, that's considered genius." His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone in the room. "Your name is Karl, right? Interested in learning from me?"

Karl paused, his right hand still in the same position.

Being able to study under this newly minted genius saint of the church means that his future path will be very easy. He will not only have the best guidance, but also a better future, which is exactly what he hopes to obtain.

He nodded excitedly, with a slight force.

Leonard looked at him, nodded in satisfaction, and a gentle smile remained on his face.

"For the time being, you will continue to act as the 'Deathbird.' Feel free to ask me any questions." He raised his cane and tapped the floor. "Once I've finished dealing with things here, I will take you back to the Holy Court. The master-disciple ceremony will be held there. If you perform well during this time, you may even be directly granted the rank of deacon."

Deacon. The word sent a shiver down Karl's spine. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found himself too excited to speak, so he could only nod vigorously again.

Edmund stood to the side, maintaining a straight posture, his face expressionless, seemingly indifferent to everything.

However, his clenched fist was still trembling slightly, betraying his feelings.

"This guy must be furious. The person he despises the most is about to ride roughshod over him," Suren thought with a hint of sarcasm.

Suren then looked away, only to find that Leonard had been looking at him at some point.

To be precise, it was looking at the "Mandala Ring" on his hand.