Chapter 33: The Advisor Mage
"Looking for a scholar to provide literacy enlightenment?" Yara furrowed her brows. "The lord’s advisor scholar and advisor mage left just a few days ago."
"If a scholar is needed for enlightenment, then this might indeed be a bit troublesome."
"If a scholar is unavailable, someone literate can teach him instead." A scholar would be better, but it was not necessary. Corleon only needed George to be literate.
"That might not be possible," Yara said, her expression subtly shifting. "Only a scholar can perform enlightenment, and only those who have been enlightened can learn and understand written language."
Of course, some esteemed high nobles could hire advanced scholars to perform enlightenment on babies still in the womb, and such infants would be more precocious upon birth.
However, Yara did not voice this thought.
In her heart, she was increasingly inclined to believe the rumors circulating in her circle—that Corleon was the illegitimate child of some great noble.
After a slight hesitation, Yara’s gaze turned resolute, and she said:
"Of course, if the priest trusts the Daniels family, I will send someone to Greenfield City and hire a scholar from the Scholar’s Guild to enlighten Brother George."
Greenfield City was the main city of the Principality of Patlin, and it was called so because the principality was primarily composed of plains and forests—excellent land for cultivation.
For that reason, the Principality of Patlin was also known as the Greenfield Principality, and the surname Patlin carried the meaning of abundance.
"I certainly trust the Daniels family. You are devout believers, so I’ll entrust this matter to you, Miss Yara. The Church will cover the expenses of hiring a scholar."
Corleon pretended not to notice Yara’s expression and hesitation, and naturally steered the conversation forward.
He truly had no idea that one must be enlightened by a scholar before becoming literate.
In his own experience, learning to read had come quite naturally in this world.
However, though the memory was a bit fuzzy, he recalled the surprised look on the old priest’s face when he had written something.
Corleon now more or less understood the reason.
As for Yara’s initial reluctance and later willingness to help, Corleon could also guess the general reason.
It was simply because of the rumor in their circles—that Corleon was the illegitimate son of a great noble.
Of course, the rumor had recently settled on him being the illegitimate son of Sir Pegira.
Perhaps Yara was reminded of something else as well.
But Corleon didn’t explain, nor did he ask for the details.
After all, he was the beneficiary now.
After the matter was settled, Yara took Ando and the guards, nodded, and said her goodbyes.
She still needed to hurry to York Town.
"Quite a beautiful woman, isn’t she?" a sudden voice said. "She might be the most beautiful woman in York Territory."
His entire body tensed instantly. He took a sharp step back, eyes wary as he looked at the man who had suddenly appeared beside him.
"If Cicero hadn’t lost interest in women, perhaps she could have become his new wife." Staring at Yara’s departing figure, Aivas then turned his head, smiling cheerfully at Corleon.
"No need to be so tense. I am the lord’s advisor mage, Aivas Edros. You can call me Mage Aivas."
"So it’s Mage Aivas. May I ask what brings you to the Church?" Corleon asked, glancing around—but George was nowhere in sight.
"I’m simply here to deliver the lord’s decree, and to have a look around," Aivas said, unfazed by Corleon’s wariness.
"No need to look. That monk of yours, while physically fit and nearly at the level of a knight, finds magic to be an entirely foreign realm."
"I wanted to speak with you undisturbed, so I used a little bit of magic." Aivas gestured with his thumb and forefinger.
He was angry, but he couldn’t let anger cloud his judgment.
Corleon took a deep breath and forced his body to relax.
"What do you want to say?" Corleon asked.
"Haha, perhaps you should first look at the lord’s decree." Aivas smiled and raised his hand.
A yellowed sheet of paper floated out from his sleeve as if blown by wind, drifting over to Corleon.
After a moment’s hesitation, Corleon grabbed the paper. Its texture was pleasant, and it emitted a faint fruity aroma.
He scanned through it quickly.
Besides the usual duties of the Church like burial rites, the major change was that all land surrounding Flower Church would now belong to the Church, and expansion of the Church was authorized.
At the same time, they were allowed to build a small chapel within the village, staffed with one priest and one monk.
As for Flower Church, it would be allowed four priests (excluding Corleon), twelve monks, and an armed force of twenty.
His breath grew slightly heavier, and his grip on the paper tightened.
The idea of a small chapel had only come to Corleon last night, and he had just brought it up with Yara.
He lifted his head to look at Aivas.
"Well, is the lord’s sincerity to your satisfaction?" Aivas asked with a smile.
"…I want to know, what does Sir Pegira need me to do?" Corleon asked after a brief silence.
"Nothing for now. You’re not in a position to be of use to the lord yet," Aivas replied.
"And don’t try to use your foolish intellect to guess the lord’s thoughts. That’ll only make you seem more foolish."
"You just need to accept his gifts and do what you’re supposed to do."
"Didn’t you say your Lord said that life is about realizing one’s value? And as His servant, you ought to spread His teachings. That is your purpose for existing." Aivas spread his arms and spoke the latter half as if in hymn.
"…I understand." Corleon nodded.
"Then, Mage Aivas, what else would you like to discuss?"
"Hahaha, my curiosity has been satisfied," Aivas chuckled.
"If possible, I would like a copy of the scripture you’ve written."
"Of course, the lord will need a copy as well."
"After I’ve transcribed it, I’ll send the scripture to the lord’s castle."
"No need for all that. Since Priest Corleon permits it…" Aivas waved his hand, and a sheet of paper flew from his sleeve into the Church, soon returning with two identical copies of the scripture.
"As a token of gratitude, I will send the Church a batch of stone blocks. Perhaps they will be useful during the expansion." Tucking away the scripture, Aivas gave a slight bow.
Then, before Corleon’s eyes, his body dissolved into shimmering light.
"By the way, Cicero will be coming to the Church in the next few days. He carries your cross. You promised the lord that you would baptize Cicero and make him a priest of the Church."
"As for his child, Olivia will be sent once the expansion is complete. Right now, this Church is unfit to house my little darling." The voice faded, and Aivas’s figure disappeared.
In the next instant, three towering piles of stone appeared in three directions around the Church, excluding the main entrance.
Each stone had been precisely cut into blocks, stacked high enough to nearly block out the sun.
Corleon now understood why nobles didn’t believe in the Lord.
When a single mage could do such things, how could the nobles be expected to believe in the existence of an all-powerful Lord?
Only commoners, whose access to knowledge was monopolized, might believe that such an omnipotent Lord truly existed.