Chapter 77: The Very Naive and Innocent Nun

“I’m going to kill you ungrateful bastards!” Just as Zhou Tian had finished driving all the beggars out of the church with force, Afra suddenly burst in, radiating murderous intent.

“Huh? Where is everyone?” Ready to explode in anger, Afra was stunned when she discovered that none of the beggars she was looking for were inside the church.

Zhou Tian glanced at Afra with curiosity, then asked, “Did something happen to you outside? You seem furious—did those beggars do something especially wicked?”

“Wicked isn’t even the half of it, Captain, you have no idea…” What Afra didn’t know was that before she returned, Zhou Tian had already ordered the serpents to clean up all traces of blood and corpses nearby. Thus, she remained unaware of what Zhou Tian had actually done earlier. When he inquired about the cause of her anger, Afra immediately launched into an indignant account of the beggars’ misdeeds.

After listening to her, Zhou Tian’s expression grew odd.

It turned out that the root of Afra’s fury was, once again, this very church.

Given the wealth of the Church of Light, they had established churches across much of the continent. Though the Forest of Beasts was an area often neglected, the very existence of the church here meant the Church of Light shouldn’t have let it fall into such ruin.

In reality, after purchasing this vast plot of land and building the church, the Church of Light not only stationed a few clergy here to preach, but also regularly allocated funds to ensure the church’s operations. With such arrangements, unless something went terribly wrong, the church—even if it had few followers—should have been properly maintained.

But in making all their plans, the Church of Light never considered what would happen if those tasked with implementation went astray. With the Church’s influence, most would never dare to target them, but the truth was, the Church had always cared too little for this remote forest. When those in the Holy City continued to ignore this church, the attitudes of some clergy began to change.

With certain individuals fanning the flames, most of the clergy in this church died under various “accidents.” The few who remained joined certain interest groups, and so the Church’s original arrangements could no longer be carried out.

The church fell to ruin, while the funds sent from the Holy City each year found their way into select pockets. With the Holy City failing to investigate, and the local powers doing all they could to conceal the truth, the situation here remained hidden.

Of course, Zhou Tian didn’t believe that the Church of Light, with all its power, had truly failed to notice something was off when they sent him here. Clearly, someone with real authority in the Church had tampered with the situation. Unwittingly, Zhou Tian realized he’d been set up once again.

These events were enough to anger Zhou Tian and his companions, but they hardly explained why Afra would storm in, bellowing for blood. The real reason for her outrage was the story of a very naive, very foolish nun.

Even with Church resources being siphoned away, and the church left in shambles, it shouldn’t have become a den of beggars. That it had come to this was due to one particular, hopelessly kind and innocent soul.

When the profits vanished and the windfall was divided, nearly all the clergy left the church to enjoy life elsewhere. There was one exception: a nun who was not even an official member of the clergy. Her unwavering faith kept her tending the church after everyone else had left.

She worked to support herself while striving to maintain the church, hoping that someday the Holy City would learn the truth and send someone to set things right.

This in itself wasn’t a problem; after all, this was Church territory. The local bosses, for all their greed, would never dare cross the church’s threshold. But the nun’s soft heart changed everything. Seeing so many beggars suffering outside, she took pity on them and invited them into the church.

At first, things went well. The nun gave them shelter and shared her food, earning their reverence as a saint. But this could not last.

The nun supported herself through her own labor. She could manage her own needs, but not those of a crowd of beggars. Logically, the beggars had no right to complain if she could no longer provide for them. But with no other clergy present, when the nun’s resources ran dry, the beggars’ gratitude quickly turned to malice.

In the Forest of Beasts, true beggars were a rarity. Those unable to fend for themselves rarely survived long enough to beg. The crippled died by monsters’ claws, while those with strength, even if maimed, would not fall so low.

Just as Zhou Tian had suspected, the beggars in this region were less genuine beggars and more a band of loafers and vagabonds. Lacking skills, they became mercenaries, but, too cowardly to hunt monsters, they ended up jobless and destitute, eventually earning the label of beggars.

Such people, unwilling to risk anything even for survival, might seem timid, but in terms of selfishness, they were unrivaled.

Perhaps a few retained a shred of conscience, but most saw only immediate gain. The nun’s kindness was not enough to change them.

Thus, a drama of betrayal was enacted.

Had a patrol not passed by in time, the nun would have been assaulted by the very people she had sheltered.

Though disaster was averted, the beggars took over the church. The local bosses, not wanting the nun to remain and risk the Holy City learning the truth, encouraged her removal. She was not an official clergy member and held no right to the church, and with the locals’ machinations, it became what Zhou Tian now saw.

Zhou Tian, knowing the beggars were no good, had sent Vivian and the others away so he could expel them. He hadn’t anticipated that while Vivian and the rest were out, their clerical robes would attract attention, leading, through a combination of money and force, to the truth being revealed. This was why Afra had returned in such a state.

As for the nun, Zhou Tian could only think of her as “hopelessly naïve.” Yet, one couldn’t help but feel sympathy for such a person—unless one was utterly devoid of feeling. Besides, she was technically his subordinate, and though he found her foolish, he could hardly speak ill of her.

In the end, Zhou Tian could only shake his head in resignation and change the subject. “Where’s Vivian and the others?”

“They went to find that nun. I wanted to come back and teach those wretches a lesson, so I didn’t go with them.” Realizing something, Afra quickly asked Zhou Tian, “By the way, where are the beggars? After what they did, I won’t let them off easily!”

“You’re too late. I already drove them out.”

“What? You drove them out? How could you do that? I haven’t even had a chance to punish them. You let them off far too lightly.” Realizing she’d missed her chance, Afra complained repeatedly.

“I admit my punishment was too mild. But I’m sure they’ll come looking for us again. We can settle the score with them then.” Zhou Tian replied offhandedly, then began to wander leisurely through the church…