Luo Wei maintained the pride and dignity befitting a royal princess: "First of all, the Misty Pins is not under the jurisdiction of the Western Church."

  "Secondly, in our Misty Pins, politics and religion are unified. The royal family members are priests of the gods. We worship deities, not humans. I hope you can respect our beliefs and traditions."

  When composing these words, Luo Wei drew inspiration from the priestly system of ancient Babylon.

  According to the Code of Hammurabi, "All priests are guardians of the king, the king's children, or the queen and her children," and the king is God's spokesperson, with divine and invioble royal authority.

  If she wanted to establish a nation in the Misty Pins, she must keep divine authority in her own hands.

  She would not allow anyone to preach and establish another church in her territory, dividing her authority.

  Only the power system in the Code of Hammurabi was most simir to the ancient Chinese concepts of "Heaven-Human Unity" and "Divine Right of Kings," so Luo Wei instinctively imitated it.

  "Sir Knight, I suggest you first consult His Highness the Prince's opinion, then come back to tell me your thoughts. What do you think?"

  "Well..." Bruce hesitated for a few seconds, then nodded, "Alright, I'll go ask."

  He turned around, gave Antoine a look to keep an eye on these two people, then quickly walked toward the carriage at the center of the square.

  "Your Highness!"

  "What is it? Speak."

  Bruce frowned and said: "Those two cim to be from the Misty Pins, and the young dy appears to be a royal princess of the Misty Pins."

  "She says their country unifies politics and religion, with the royal family serving as priests of the gods, so they worship deities rather than humans."

  The carriage was quiet for a moment. After about ten seconds, the Cardinal's gentle and melodious voice spoke again: "If they don't wish to worship, so be it. Tell everyone that the Western Church welcomes guests from afar, and they may do as they please."

  "Yes!"

  Bruce quickly returned to Luo Wei and Troy, raising his voice to announce: "By decree of His Highness the Prince, the Western Church welcomes guests from afar, therefore you two are exempt from the kneeling ceremony!"

  Bruce's voice was loud and clear - everyone in the square heard it distinctly.

  The crowd immediately showed expressions of reverence and adoration: "His Highness is so kind to forgive their sins."

  "Yes, His Highness is truly wonderful!"

  "His Highness is a good person, so tolerant of us too!"

  "Prince Alfred is the most benevolent to followers among the nine princes, how fortunate we are to see him!"

  These commoners prostrated themselves deeply, trembling with excitement at being bathed in the noble radiance of the church prince.

  Bruce was very satisfied with everyone's reaction and said to Luo Wei and Troy: "You two, His Highness invites you to make yourselves at home. We'll be taking our leave now."

  "Thank you," Luo Wei nodded slightly.

  Bruce and Antoine mounted their horses and returned to the carriage's side.

  The ivory carriage slowly crossed the square, passing in front of Luo Wei and entering the rgest street in the Magic Beast Town, heading toward the mayor's manor in the western part of town.

  As it passed Luo Wei, the nearly transparent gss window of the carriage opened slightly, and a handsome face cast a gentle gnce in her direction.

  The face wasn't elderly - rather pin features that combined to create a unique charm, like a well-aged wine exuding a rich aroma from years of maturation.

  He wore heavy garments and an excessively ornate crown, yet his superior bone structure easily carried such weight.

  Brilliant red gems were inid in the golden crown with its pointed spiral patterns, which contrasted with his smooth skin as white as jade. His deep navy blue eyes were like a calm and gentle ke, seemingly containing infinite tolerance.

  As the carriage drove away and people in the square got up, the impact of that face still lingered in Luo Wei's mind.

  After a while, she turned to ask Troy: "Was he trying to use his looks to charm me?"

  Troy: "???"

  Although he usually wouldn't, this time he couldn't help but contradict his employer.

  "Prince Alfred is over eighty years old now. I don't think someone his age needs to use their looks to manipute others."

  "Over eighty!" Luo Wei stood frozen in shock, "That face doesn't look over eighty at all!"

  He looked forty at most.

  "Church members are very good at maintaining their appearance, and mages age more slowly and live longer than ordinary people."

  "How much longer?"

  Troy thought for a moment and said: "The current Pope of the Church is a Senior Mage who is one hundred and fifty-seven years old. I hear he's still energetic and can handle many church affairs every day."

  "Prince Alfred is one of the younger Cardinals among the nine. He also has great magical talent. He reached Intermediate Mage level at sixty, and will probably become a Senior Mage in another decade or so. He's a strong candidate for the next Pope."

  The more Luo Wei listened, the stranger it seemed. She suddenly turned to Troy: "Troy, tell me honestly, how old are you?"

  Troy looked confused: "Twenty-three, didn't you already know that?"

  "You're only twenty-three and you're already an Intermediate Magic Swordsman? Do you expect me to believe that?"

  Looking at how people treated Intermediate Magic Swordsmen, and the ages of other magic swordsmen and mages, Troy's age and level seriously didn't match!

  "Besides, Intermediate Magic Swordsmen are rare, and you said you previously worked in the Arvic Royal Pace. How could you be so unknown that even that knight couldn't guess your identity?" Luo Wei expressed deep doubt.

  Troy felt wronged: "I was only an Intermediate Swordsman when I was at the Arvic Pace, so of course no one would know me."

  Luo Wei found it even more unbelievable: "You were just a swordsman then? So you broke through to Intermediate Magic Swordsman in three years, advancing one level each year. Do you think I'm that gullible?"

  "I'm not lying to you," Troy's forest-green eyes were full of sincerity. "I broke through to Advanced Swordsman the day I escaped, then I hid in the Pgue Forest for a year and became a Magic Swordsman."

  "After becoming a Magic Swordsman, I originally pnned to escape to the Wastes, but was discovered while boarding a ship. I fled into the Magic Beast Mountains and hid there for a year and a half, then became an Intermediate Magic Swordsman."

  After reaching Intermediate Magic Swordsman level, he felt secure enough and made his way to Siria through various routes.

  Luo Wei was full of admiration: "Troy, you must have been the male protagonist in some male-oriented novel before!"

  "What male protagonist?" Troy didn't understand.

  "Nothing, just saying you're lucky." Luo Wei's face twisted with envy.

  The more she thought about it, the more uncomfortable she felt. From Troy's perspective, wasn't she just a lucky encounter who provided him money and resources?

  No no no, she couldn't think that way or bme heaven and people.

  In some ways, Troy being framed, hunted, forced to flee, and ending up penniless when she found him meant he was the lucky encounter heaven prepared for her.

  Heaven had tempered him into an Intermediate Magic Swordsman, perhaps waiting for her to pick up this equipment!

  Looking at it from this angle certainly made her feel much better.

  Luo Wei patted Troy's shoulder encouragingly: "Keep up the good work, you'll get everything you want!"

  Troy watched her expression change back and forth in confusion, thinking only that a woman's mind was truly hard to fathom.

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