While everyone was silent, Father Hank suddenly said, "Learning is only one aspect; what's more important is his heart. The first time I saw him was at the Church hospital. To prevent the souls of the victims from becoming resentful spirits and losing their chance of redemption, he drank Master Jeros's magic potion. At that time, his stomach was ulcerated, his esophagus was burned, and his mouth was full of pus and blisters. He couldn't even speak. It was very unbearable to watch."
Father Anthony sighed. "Yes, I was there at the time. All the priests had gone to the capital to participate in the Holy Choir selection, leaving only Silas, a novice who had just become a priest for less than a week, in all of Bayne City. The situation was urgent at that time; dozens of people had died in total. He endured inhuman suffering to complete this glorious mission."
Marlene continued seriously, "He is also a very kind and decisive person. He is never soft on enemies, but he is as warm as a spring breeze to his own people. He likes to help small animals and homeless people, giving them clothes and food in winter."
At this moment, due to Ada's issue, she vaguely transferred Ada's memories onto Silas.
With such unanimous praise, the five bishops recorded these situations for future evaluation.
Because they simultaneously realized that Silas Sotos's future achievements were beyond their estimation.
Recording it now might even allow them to curry favor at some point in the future.
Emilia was also quite surprised by everyone's earnest and sincere evaluations.
Although she had just read Silas's detailed resume, the effect of rigid text versus an oral account from those involved was like heaven and earth.
At this moment, Emilia's evaluation of Silas also rose a notch. Others might have elements of falsehood, but Father Walter's words were absolutely trustworthy.
On the other hand, through her own abilities, she could feel that everyone who had just spoken was telling the truth; that kind of genuine emotion could not be faked.
"Then it's settled. The vanguard for the Church's entry into the Kingdom of Guinness will be Silas Sotos," Emilia directly decided.
"Agreed!" everyone said in unison.
Achoo!
Downstairs, Silas, who was waiting quietly, suddenly felt his nose itch and sneezed loudly.
"What's going on? Is someone talking about me, or am I catching a cold?" Silas rubbed his nose and muttered to himself.
At this moment, Father Anthony and the others came down from upstairs in a single file. Upon seeing Silas, they smiled slightly and left without saying anything.
Silas immediately felt a sense of foreboding.
"Logically speaking, promotion and salary increase must be followed by heavier work. My goodness, giving me a promotion and salary increase, isn't it because there's some arduous task for me?" Silas's heart skipped a beat.
At this moment, the nun in white walked over and smiled slightly. "Please!"
Silas smiled in response and followed the two back upstairs.
Sitting in the same position as before, Silas found that the five bishops' attitude towards him had suddenly changed considerably. From being cold just now, they seemed much more enthusiastic, as if he had transformed from a stranger into a good friend.
This change made Silas feel even more insecure.
It was like every time before an important task, the boss would speak to you with a smile on his face.
Emilia smiled slightly. "I know you have absolute loyalty to the Church and absolute faith in the Goddess, right?"
"As expected!" Silas's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained calm as he nodded. "Yes!"
The smile on Emilia's lips widened slightly. "Now there is a sacred mission to help our Holy Blood Church expand its influence and spread the light of the Goddess. I believe you will be very happy to accept it, right? Just as you said just now, taking it as your responsibility to spread the glory of the Goddess."
"Ah!? When did I say that?" Silas looked completely bewildered upon hearing this.
Ahem!
Logan, beside him, suddenly coughed.
Silas immediately came back to his senses, nodded with a serious expression, and said, "Yes! Just as I said just now, taking it as my responsibility to spread the glory of the Goddess. It is my greatest honor to accept this mission, Archbishop."
"Alright, the leader said I said it, so I said it." At this moment, Silas suddenly felt as if he had returned to his working days on Earth.
The smile on Emilia's lips grew even wider, and she said with a satisfied expression, "The Goddess will be pleased with your dedication."
Then, Emilia explained the Church's preparations to enter the Duchy of Guinness.
Silas was taken aback upon hearing this and thought to himself, "Kingdom of Guinness? It seems to be Vanas's country."
Emilia explained, "The Kingdom of Guinness is currently in internal strife. The old king died not long ago, and the current emperor is the old king's granddaughter, Vanas Guinness. Her situation is very difficult. The strength of the anti-imperial faction is gradually growing due to the addition of those cults, and many nobles have already joined the anti-imperial faction. If this continues, the entire kingdom will be completely destroyed in less than half a year."
Silas asked tentatively, "Then what can I do when I go there? I don't know anything about war."
"Your purpose there is very simple. Help us determine the current domestic situation and how many cult forces there are. Finally, act as an envoy to negotiate with Vanas Guinness. If she is willing to accept the Church's protection, we can immediately set out from here and reach her capital in just one day, help her quell the internal strife, and continue her rule. Here, you must remember to be as gentle as possible, don't let her have too much resistance. We can even refrain from establishing a church there and let her continue to rule independently."
Hearing this, Silas understood. "So it's a reconnaissance and order delivery mission. It doesn't sound like a big problem."
"When do we set out? How many people will go together?" he asked.
Emilia said, "Currently, it's just you. We have been in the Church for too long and carry a special aura that is easily perceived by those people. Since you have relevant experience from before, you should be relatively familiar with operating alone in such unknown territories!"
Silas said bitterly in his heart, "It's called operating alone, but I had quite a few helpers back then."
"Yes, I'm already used to the situation," he thought, but replied seriously with his face.
Emilia nodded. "That's best. I'll give you a communication familiar later. You can use this familiar to contact me at any time and report the situation. The sooner you set out, the better. You have three days to prepare. After three days, you will follow a merchant caravan across the border into Guinness."
"Did you guys just brag about me? Why does this Archbishop have such high expectations of me!" Silas glanced at Marx covertly, with a hint of inquiry.
Marx suppressed the urge to laugh, turned his head, and pretended not to see.
"It really is these guys!" Seeing Marx's appearance, Silas confirmed it in his heart.
Emilia, on this side, asked, "Silas Sotos, do you have any other needs or require any help? I will try my best to satisfy you."
Silas pondered for a moment, then said seriously, "I need some funds. In such chaotic times, money is a very useful thing. Since it's about gathering information, it will probably cost a lot of money. I don't have money."
Emilia smiled upon hearing this. "That's no problem. I have a very sufficient budget here, which will satisfy you."
She had thought Silas would ask for some spells and secret treasures, and she had even prepared them.
But unexpectedly, what Silas wanted was money.