Only God

At that time, Xilan and Schiller each held their own opinion, the former believing that miracles should not be shown unless absolutely necessary, while the latter thought quite the opposite. The fear brought about by miracles, he argued, was much more effective than persuasion.

Solamus immediately stood up from the midst of the clouds, his voice grave as he said,

"God, I must find him, I must stop him, I cannot let him continue like this.

If necessary, please do not consider his free will any longer, and destroy him!"

The words of the Great Angel hung above the Cloud Sea, and suddenly, the clouds ceased to move.

The Cloud Sea no longer flowed gently like subtle waves, but instead stopped abruptly, as still as a block of iron forged and cooled to quiet immobility.

God sat upon His throne with a never-ending Spirit Light displayed behind Him. At this moment, He faced Solamus, His feet above the infinitely blissful Holy Realm, and below the Cloud Sea was the land of descent, the Holy Mountain of the Logos people. Tens of thousands of years ago, the world was wild and barren. Now, the great earth was laid with vast expanses of ruins. Among the universe, the Mortal World was not utterly good and beautiful. There was sin, and forces that supported sin. There was pain, and trials that brought pain. And yet, no matter how much sorrow befell mankind, the vault of heaven remained a brilliant blue.

He sat on the throne, as if contemplating for someone.

Finally, He spoke,

"Solamus, I bestow upon you a mission."

The Great Angel stood erect upon the Cloud Sea, looking up at God on the throne.

He knew that his suggestion had not received a decisive response from God.

But with these words from God, everything was already enough.

"God, what is my mission?" the Great Angel asked softly.

A gentle and sacred voice descended from the magnificent throne,

"When the lamb is hungry, and life calls, call Me to return to this earth."

............

Once again, God had bestowed a mission upon Solamus.

Since the most ancient era of the Logos people, countless True Believers had claimed to be given a mission by God, but very few had truly been granted one.

And those who were given two missions were even rarer, one in ten thousand.

As for those who were given three missions... perhaps only Solamus was such a one.

It seemed that God had special affection for His Great Angel. Among the eight Great Angels, only Solamus and Schiller had been given missions, the remaining six had yet to encounter one. Solamus, the millennium Prophet who had sounded the horn, was once again given a mission.

And this time, God gave him two missions at once.

One was a mission of calling.

The other was to have him return to the Mortal World.

God wanted him to return to the Mortal World for Schiller.

"Solamus, go, and on that land, act so that Schiller may see," Chen Yi instructed,

"You will have a long time, a lengthy lifespan. You go there, follow in his wake, forsake paradise, glory, joy, to be a persecuted person. You go there, and even become his Prophet."

Solamus received God's command, and he had many questions, all of which God explained to him.

After hearing the explanation, the Great Angel understood; he was no longer puzzled but willing to accept the mission.

Solamus was to return to the Mortal World.

Before, he had come to the Mortal World for the arrival of Heaven, sounding the horn. Now, for the sake of Schiller, he was to return to the Mortal World.

And this time, unlike the last, Great Angel Solamus would lose almost all his memories and abilities, much like Maisy had.

This was undoubtedly a highly risky undertaking.

Maisy had gone to the Mortal World and suffered persecution. With such a precedent, anyone would feel panicked and afraid upon hearing this.

But Solamus was neither panicked nor afraid. To avoid causing chaos among the angels, he did not tell anyone about the mission, except for Maisy, who could keep the secret.

Solamus told the mission to the purest Angel.

Upon hearing this, Maisy was astounded; he could not believe that Solamus would return to the Mortal World in such a manner,

"You're going to be like me before, a newcomer on Earth?"

Maisy said in a panic,

"No, it cannot be like this. Go and implore God!"

The Great Angel remained calm, indicating to Maisy not to panic,

"Settle down, Maisy.

How can I haggle over God's mission when I am already prepared?"

Maisy recalled the cruel memories, shuddered, and softly advised,

"You haven't experienced it firsthand; you don't know how disappointing mortals can be.

You've been to the great land, you should know, the Mortal World is different from here. Once you go there, you will be persecuted, and those tribulations are not what you should suffer."

"The sufferings are not meant for me..."

Solamus repeated these words.

A flicker of hesitation passed through the eyes of the Great Angel.

Schiller was jealous of Solamus, but how much affection could Solamus possibly have for him?

Therefore, before God, the Great Angel pleaded with God to disregard Schiller's free will and utterly destroy him.

Just as a broken, harmful tool should be quickly discarded, or a poisoned limb should be amputated with a heavy heart.

For God, the Great Angel could regard Schiller as an enemy who warrants no common ground under Heaven.

However, God still wanted to make the greatest effort for Schiller, commanding Himself to return to the Mortal World.

And this journey to the Mortal World would no longer be as smooth as before.

Not to mention the loss of memory, the loss of capability to travel to the Mortal World,

even a moment in the vast lands for an angel accustomed to the glory of Heaven is suffering.

In fact, Maisy's warning wasn't an exaggeration; the Great Angel had his own personal experience.

At that time, how pure and kind he was, yet the people of Logos still executed him.

Such a journey to the Mortal World, it seems that suffering is a predestined affair.

Thoughts swiftly shifted, and soon, that flicker of hesitation vanished,

Solamus took a deep breath and slowly said,

"You're right, those sufferings are not meant for me.

But for Schiller's sake, for God's mission, I am willing to endure them."

Maisy's face showed astonishment; he couldn't believe that Solamus was so resolute, and he was unable to convince the Great Angel to change his mind.

Thus, Maisy no longer tried to dissuade Solamus and swore to the Great Angel that he would guard the secret with his life, and would never disclose it.

Not long after that, Solamus, like Maisy before him, set off for the Mortal World.

Nobody knew whether that flicker of hesitation had been resolved by a lofty sense of mission or merely suppressed for the time being?

Perhaps, even he himself didn't know.

And his name was Eden, meaning paradise, brilliance, and joy.

…

…

Whether God truly manifested or not, maybe He did, maybe He didn't.

Veldor himself couldn't say for certain.

He couldn't confirm if the passion surging within him was from his heart or God's arrangement, but regardless, he wanted to do something for that young priest.

Veldor followed the advice, finding Bade of Lorondo, the one who opposed elevating Pastor Danschel to a higher status.

"It's you, the one who has seen the Prophet, what brings you to me?"

Faced with Bade's question, Veldor recounted his request, asking Bade to join him in an effort to free Eden.

After hearing Veldor's words, Bade furrowed his brow; he wasn't a fool. Despite sympathizing with Eden, he felt powerless and wouldn't act as impulsively on a whim like Veldor.

"The one who has seen the Prophet, first answer me this, what vote did you cast at that time?"

Bade asked.

Veldor hesitated for a moment, then said,

"An abstention. In the name of God… I neither agreed nor disagreed."

Bade sighed and said,

"Veldor, you are not one to falsify, worthy of one who has seen the Prophet.

But with that, it's hard for me to assist you, especially since it concerns a priest who is suspected of heresy."

The relationships between individuals often involve the exchange of favors, and despite the Church's demands for selfless dedication, at crucial moments, priests often cannot escape convention.

To seek benefits and avoid harm is the instinct of all creatures.

"For the sake of the Lord, I beg for your mercy, as God has mercy on us."

Veldor implored.

Upon hearing these words, Bade hesitated, and the Pastor weighed his options before finally saying,

"Alright, but I won't get involved personally...

I've heard that the Queen is a kind person, also very devout, never missing Mass; I will help you make connections to seek her assistance."