Only God

The moon hung high in the sky.

The camp was still filled with the sound of cheerful drums.

Eden toyed with the misfortune coin in his hand.

At first glance, the coin appeared rough and rudimentary; however, upon closer inspection, one could see the carved patterns on the side of the coin, which were likely the reason for its magical effects.

"According to Mona, such coins are not uncommon among wizards, but ones with such finely and intricately carved patterns are indeed rare," Eden remembered Mona's words as he examined the misfortune coin.

"If sold to a Witch Gathering, they would be willing to pay a high price of 160 gold coins, whereas an ordinary misfortune coin is usually worth a single gold coin or just three to four silver coins if of poorer quality. The one in my hand differs in price by hundreds of times. But I need this, so how could I possibly sell it?"

One hundred sixty gold coins was not a small sum; it could approximate the purchase of over twenty milk cows or more than two hundred sheep, enough to establish a sizable estate. If spent on warhorses, it could buy six high-quality steeds or nearly thirty common riding horses.

But Eden knew that this coin meant more than just 160 gold coins to his future self.

"Why not give it a try?"

Thinking this, Eden allowed himself to enter a state of Spiritual Cultivation and tried to establish a Spiritual Link with the coin in his hand.

Under the realm of the soul state, the patterns on the coin began to glow.

Eden raised his hand, and fine threads separated out within his soul. Then, he gently followed the patterns on the coin. After some time, the threads seemed to be engraved into the indentations.

"Like this... should be sufficient."

Eden set the coin down, glancing around,

"It seems like there's no change."

This was not surprising; after all, luck was an elusive thing.

Eden thought this and exited his state of Spiritual Cultivation.

He turned his head to look at the Stone Pendant scavenged from Lodzmer.

No one in the Witch Gathering knew what this small shattered stone was or its origin.

However, Eden, who possessed the Stone Pendant, saw a connection between the two at a glance.

Still, he wasn't certain if there truly was a connection.

He mused to himself, feeling as if he was gambling.

If these two had no connection, he would have hugely lost out.

He had risked his life to kill Lodzmer and had he returned with halved spoils, he'd have nowhere to even cry.

The Priest inhaled deeply, picking up the stone shard with one hand, then grabbing the pendant on his chest with the other, searching for a spot where they fit together.

Carefully, Eden joined the larger and smaller stone pieces.

He held his breath, waiting.

Nothing happened?

Eden was taken aback.

Thinking it through, he recited Scripture and decided to enter Spiritual Cultivation State to examine further.

Under the state of Spiritual Cultivation, one could see things invisible to the naked eye.

The two stone pieces, appearing unchanged to the naked eye, now revealed tiny spiritual threads at their junction, sticking and intertwining with each other.

These tentacles were finer than human hairs, nearly invisible even in the state of Spiritual Cultivation without meticulous observation.

Eden patiently continued to observe.

To his surprise, although the spiritual threads on the two stone pieces tried hard to adhere, they would disperse after a while due to all kinds of mishaps and then start over, always nearly there.

Eden keenly sensed something.

It was as if... luck was just a little short.

"These two stone pieces naturally fit each other, and it seems that with enough time, they could merge into one, but... the threads keep failing to adhere. Could it be... the misfortune coin is at work?"

Eden boldly speculated, as in this situation, there was nothing else to suspect but the influence of the misfortune coin.

Looking at it this way,

He should have first fused them, then used the misfortune coin.

Eden felt somewhat disheartened.

He'd used the misfortune coin first, causing part of his luck to be stripped away, a state that would last several days.

"However, it's likely just a matter of time before the two stone pieces fuse into one. The misfortune coin takes away as much luck now as it will eventually return; luck often conserves itself."

Eden thought this, his heart clearing of its gloom,

"Once the Stone Pendant is completely fused, its power will probably undergo some change. I hope it's a beneficial one. If so, reaching Fourth Rank Holy Chorus is not far off."

The Stone Pendant had the ability to traverse the future.

The future held great uncertainty; materials that are incredibly rare now might be worthless then, while something insignificant now could become incredibly valuable.

By traversing to the future, reaching Fourth Rank Holy Chorus wasn't impossible.

Eden forgot how few Fourth Rank Holy Chorus existed in the world, or if there were any at all.

He'd heard rumors of one or two priests who might be Fourth Rank Holy Chorus, but those were just rumors, which often don't hold up under scrutiny.

It could be that those priests exaggerated, or the rumors became more incredible as they spread. In any case, very few had reached Fourth Rank Holy Chorus in the world.

As for Fifth Rank Holy Chorus...

Honestly, speaking of Holy Chorus, those capable of reaching Fifth Rank could be counted on two hands in this world.

According to Belvan's theory, a Fifth Rank Miracle Worker might possess powers rivaling the Divine themselves.

For the past Eden, reaching Third Rank was already considered fortunate.

But for the present Eden, Third Rank was far from sufficient; he must strive towards Fourth Rank.

The misfortune coin, combined with the Stone Pendant, could undoubtedly provide a substantial boost for him.

The only worry was that during these days of lost luck, no mishaps should occur.

The horn sounded early the next day, with countless people fully prepared, waiting for Princess Arsia to shoot an arrow into the sky before they surged into the forest.

One by one, soldiers and Hunters were full of vigor; they had heard the story of how the Princess had hunted an elk yesterday and how the Hunter who had driven the elk out of the forest had received a bag of silver coins as a reward. With such a generous reward, people brought even more enthusiasm than the day before.

However, compared to the spirited camp soldiers, Eden seemed somewhat exhausted.

For some reason, last night, it seemed like three or four flies had entered his tent, buzzing around his ears, and each time just as he was about to fall asleep, their wings would make the loudest noise.

These few flies had kept him from sleeping well all night; thinking it over, he figured the problem likely came from the unlucky coin.

Eden climbed a hillock, watching people bustling into the forest, falcons constantly circling in midair, and hounds barking wildly in the woods, even fighting with each other over the game.

The Priest watched this scene, closed his eyes slightly, too tired as though he could fall asleep at any moment, but he just couldn't.

There was nothing he could do, so he just lay down on the hillock, closed his eyes in the soft grass, and rested for a while.

Unless unexpected, he wanted to spend the whole day relaxed.

After an unknown amount of time, the sound of the horn woke Eden from his light sleep, he opened his eyes and looked towards the direction of the camp.

It was almost noon; Eden saw a group of Ausenco people dismounting their horses at the outskirts of the camp, slowly entering the camp—probably the Envoys that Arsia had mentioned.

"Coming to participate in the afternoon duel?"

Eden mused to himself.

And at that moment, the bell at his waist rang.

Arsia was calling him.

Eden didn't delay; he brushed the random weeds off himself, climbed down the hillock, and walked towards Arsia's tent.

Arriving there, he immediately saw Arsia.

Today, she had donned a red cape embroidered with gold thread, looking absolutely radiant.

"Good Priest, it seems you didn't sleep well?"

Arsia observed Eden and asked.

"I indeed didn't sleep well, but it's not a big deal."

Eden yawned,

"What's the matter?"

Arsia pointed toward the west side of the camp,

"There's a group from Ausenco, they are here for the duel."

"So?"

"Cassandra said, please guard me this afternoon."

Arsia said so.

"Alright."

Eden instantly agreed.

Arsia, however, looked at him somewhat confusedly,

"Oh... you agreed so readily."

After a moment, she turned her head to look in a different direction and whispered,

"Are you fooling me?"

"I am not, this is the duty your mother has given me, isn't it?"

Eden said.

Arsia nodded, appearing somewhat pleased,

"Then let's enjoy this afternoon thoroughly; there's a splendid banquet at noon, Ausenco's finest chef will take care of the meal. You'll get to eat many things you usually can't; of course, there'll also not be a lack of performances by the Minstrels. Although this place is barbaric, the Minstrels' voices are top-notch, like wild nightingales.

Stick close by my side; I always share the glory, power, and wealth of the Royal Family with those who adore me. I've always been generous, especially to you; anything you want, I'll not hesitate to give you."

"I want..."

Eden unconsciously responded.

But halfway through, he didn't know what to say, it seemed he didn't want anything.

Turning his head, Eden saw Arsia looking directly at him, her eyes shimmering with a hint of expectation.

"I want... your repentance."

After a pause, Eden spoke.

Arsia's face turned cold, she turned her head away, pursed her lips, said nothing—her slender neck gleaming with an icy luster. Eden instantly understood, asking this sinner to repent might be more painful than killing her.

Yes, she had always been like this, no different from when he first saw her; she is a sinner, she had made many mistakes, and had a peculiar fondness for killing. How could his light words change such a person, her mother couldn't do it, let alone him.

If such a person were to change, it would be out of fear of him being a Prophet, because of the power of fear, but he was not a Prophet, and she didn't regard him as one, did she?

As expected, her next reply was not surprising.

"Priest, your request is too difficult!"

This noble woman said forcefully.

Eden slightly nodded, sighing as it turned out exactly as expected.

After a while, as the sunlight fell, the distant forest shone like a mirror, with the mist completely dispersed, scattering light casting the world, the Church always suggested that when the sunlight was at its best, people should pray, bless each other, and bathe in grace.

She turned her face away, her gaze directed elsewhere, whispered faintly like a feeble mosquito:

"... it's not entirely impossible."

Eden thought he had heard wrong.

Turning his head, he looked at Arsia in astonishment.

The latter's face instantly flushed, she lowered her head and walked straight towards the direction of the Ausenco people,

"I'm going to greet those envoys."

Eden hurriedly followed, and as Arsia picked up pace, Eden also sped up, feeling Eden catching up, her pace quickened even more.

It was as if she was competing against something.

Was she really going to repent? Perhaps... his prediction was wrong.

Eden was perplexed, recalling her words.

Was this... a matter of luck?