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Just as dawn broke, Ulyan got up. As he passed by his daughter's room, he suddenly saw Olivia coming out of Leo's room while putting on her clothes.
Ulyan flew into a rage, his eyes bloodshot. He was about to go forward and stab Leo to death with his weapon, but then he turned his head and saw the guy lying in his daughter's room, sound asleep with Little Mouse in his arms.
Ulyan was instantly confused. Did I remember the wrong room?
I'm getting old.
He didn't have time to think further and shouted, "Hey, you good-for-nothing! It's so late and you're still in bed!"
Little Mouse rolled over and got up quickly. She put on her clothes and shoes in a flash and was as obedient as could be.
Leo remained unmoved. He just lazily turned over and asked, "Well, then tell me, what time is it?"
Ulyan was taken aback because there was no church or clocks in River Bend, so no one knew the time and everyone just woke up naturally.
Ulyan rolled up his sleeves and was about to teach this lazy young man a lesson.
"Hey! If you don't get a spanking for three days, you'll start to misbehave!"
Before he could step forward to fight, Olivia grabbed Ulyan's arm and gently persuaded him, "Dad, aren't you going to the big waterfall? I've got everything ready. Come with me to get it."
Today, Ulyan was going to the Wild Folk tribe to meet The Wild Folk Elder Zurvan and bring some gifts in return for their last visit to River Bend.
Since Bobak's influence on the relationship between the two settlements was still strong and there were no conflicts between the two settlements, Ulyan wanted to take this opportunity to improve relations.
If he didn't strike while the iron was hot and strengthen communication, once there was a conflict between the two villages in the future, it would easily turn into a skirmish.
No one wanted a war between the two villages to break out just because one village cut down a tree or snatched a prey from the other.
If he, the headman of River Bend, became friends with the elder of the Wild folk, many things could be settled with just one word.
The important matter at hand took precedence, and Ulyan gave up the idea of arguing with Leo.
He and Olivia walked out of the main house, led a donkey, took two militiamen and the gifts, and headed towards the big waterfall.
As soon as Ulyan left, several sisters surrounded Olivia and inquired about what had happened last night.
Olivia stammered for a long time before shyly revealing, "It hurt so much. Leo said I'm still too young and it's better to wait for another two years."
The group of sisters looked at Olivia, who had a charming figure and attractive curves, in disbelief and suspected that Leo was blind.
The young widow Agatha complained, "Is sixteen still too young? Some girls are already mothers at sixteen!"
Then she said with a hint of excitement, "Could it be that he likes older women? How about a twenty - year - old?"
The village belles stared at the twenty - year - old Agatha. Their faces were full of disdain, but in their hearts, they were envious.
Last night, Olivia, who was in a bad mood, and Leo, who was sexually aroused, couldn't fall asleep. They lay together and shared a lot of knowledge with each other.
Leo was worried about Little Mouse and finally couldn't help going to Olivia's room to check on her.
Sure enough, Little Mouse was hiding alone under the quilt, shivering and covered in cold sweat. She noticed Leo as soon as he entered the room.
She grabbed his arm as if it were a life - saving straw.
Leo didn't get up until the sun was high in the sky after a restless night.
After riding in the corral enclosed behind the big house for a while, Ivan, a militiaman, ran over and reported to Leo, "Leo... Captain of the militia! There's a 'father' in the village!"
Leo, perched on the horse, looked down at Ivan like he was a complete moron.
Feeling guilty, Ivan forced himself to explain, "He said he's a 'father'! He wants to talk to our lord."
"How bold! Come with me to meet him!" Leo waved his whip, but didn't dismount.
Ivan had to lead the horse for him and carefully left the corral.
Last time Leo rode out on his own, not only did he fall off the horse, but the once - gentle riding horse ran wildly around, causing a huge commotion in the settlement camp.
So now when he rides a horse, it's always led by someone. Even so, the people around still feel nervous, looking at him as if he were a cattle thief who had entered the village.
Letting the horse walk at a slow pace to the center of the village, Leo saw the visitor and immediately understood what Ivan meant.
The visitor was a middle - aged fat man less than one and a half meters tall, wearing a white robe. It was obvious that he was some kind of religious person.
There were golden flower patterns embroidered on his white robe, and the golden cross on his chest was particularly eye - catching.
Under the sun, the golden patterns emitted a strange reflective light, making the short and fat wearer look holy and extraordinary.
Besides him, there were two armed retainers following behind, wearing delicate chain mail shirts, polished plate - armor shoulders, iron gloves, and face - covering steel helmets.
Their outfits were really beyond the villagers' knowledge in this backwater place.
If it weren't for the fact that the villagers in River Bend all believed in the Ancestral War God, some people would have bowed down on the spot.
After chatting with Bobak for several days, Leo had some understanding of the religions in this world. Sitting high on the horse, he asked, "Are you a priest of the Holy Light Church?"
In the Imperial language, the words for "priest" and "father" are the same. Since the people in the Northern Region believed in their ancestors and had no knowledge of priests, the ignorant villager Ivan simply didn't know that the word "father" had a second meaning.
"That's right." The short and fat priest in the white robe looked up at Leo, his tone a bit annoyed. "I'm Father Lawrence of the Holy Light Church. Where is your lord? I want to talk to the lord here."
With a height of less than one and a half meters, he looked extremely short in front of the generally tall people in the Northern Region, especially when Leo was sitting on a horse.
Although it was a riding horse, it was a riding horse from the Northern Region, with a shoulder height of one and a half meters!
Father Lawrence looked like a dwarf in front of Leo on the tall horse.
Precisely because of this, Father Lawrence didn't want to talk to this arrogant and extremely rude young man.
Leo jumped off the horse and said with a smile, "Our lord is not here. I'm in charge of everything."
"Who are you?" Father Lawrence looked at him askance.
Leo blurted out, "I'm the local captain of the militia, judge, sheriff, tax collector, the lord's personal guard, and son - in - law - Leo Mundo."
Wow! He's in charge of administration, justice, military affairs, and finance all at once. And he's even the lord's son - in - law!
Ivan beside him stared blankly, hearing many novel words for the first time.
Father Lawrence also showed a solemn respect. He shook hands with Leo and said, "Young Mr. Mundo, I'm Father Thors Lawrence, a priest of the Holy Light Church stationed in Isonpol. You can call me Father Lawrence."
"Respected Father Lawrence, what brings you here?" Leo nodded and asked straightforwardly.
"The Lord of the Holy Light has commanded me to spread His gospel. Where the Lord's glorious light shines, there cannot be without His church," Father Lawrence smiled gently, and a holy aura began to emanate from him.
"Has the Holy Light reached here already?" Leo asked in surprise.
Father Lawrence pointed at the sun in the sky with a mysterious look on his face and said, "This is the manifestation of the Holy Light, representing the Lord's majesty. Just like me, it also spreads His gospel."
He spoke in the imperial refined language, similar to classical Chinese in ancient China. It was the formal written language in the empire.
Leo had learned some imperial refined language from Olivia and Little Mouse and had the flexible thinking from his past life. Otherwise, he would have had trouble understanding what the priest was saying.
At least Ivan beside him only half - understood. He just thought Father Lawrence was lofty, mysterious, and elegant, with an awe - inspiring aura around him.
Leo had a brief discussion with Bobak about religious beliefs. In the Northern Region, there was Ancestor worship. The orcs practiced shamanism, and the elves followed druidism. These all had the same goal by different means. They were all polytheistic beliefs with strong inclusiveness and could easily absorb and accept the deities and theories of other religions.
However, in terms of religious expansion, this was actually a drawback to some extent, especially when facing the invasion of Monotheism. It was almost fatal.
Just like the Ancestor worship in the Northern Region, it was all over the place and lacked theoretical knowledge. Many people in the Northern Region who believed in their ancestors didn't mind having an extra powerful deity on their shrine, but no one was willing to share their own ancestors.
Following the principle of "better safe than sorry", the practical people in the Northern Region believed in the the heroic spirits of ancestors, the the semi - gods of the wilderness worshipped by the elves' druids, and the elemental spirits of the orcs shaman.
When the belief in the God of the Holy Light from the south spread to the Northern Region, many people in the Northern Region didn't mind following it.
But no people in the Northern Region would drag a southern friend and say, "This is my ancestor. He's super powerful! Call him your ancestor too!"
Leo, who had received nine - year compulsory education, understood these things very well. He could easily understand Bobak's explanations and follow his train of thought, which was why he was appreciated by Bobak.
With this knowledge as a foundation, Father Lawrence's persuasion seemed rather weak.
Leo smiled and said, "So, you want to build a Holy Light Church in River Bend, right?"
"Exactly," Father Lawrence replied with a satisfied smile. "I've come from Isonpol under the guidance of my Lord to build a church here and spread the gospel."
"But don't you have a church in Isonpol? Why do you come to River Bend?"
Lawrence was stunned for a moment and then said, "I'm not the priest of the church in Isonpol. It's Father March. The Lord said that the church under my responsibility will be here."
"Then you're not the big shot; you're just an ordinary guy," Leo said expressionlessly. "As a Holy Light friar, to manage a church and become a priest, you need a document signed by the bishop of the diocese."
In the Imperial language, the words for "priest" and "father" are the same, and so are the words for "monk" and "brother".
According to the rules of the Holy Light Church, for a monk to become a priest and own a church, they must pass the assessment of the bishop in their diocese and sign legal documents.
Of course, rules are just rules. In the countryside of the entire Atlantis Empire, there are still unauthorized small churches everywhere.
This is because the vast majority of small - scale knight lords don't understand the tricks at all and are easily swayed by a few words.
Moreover, most knight lords in the south are believers in the Holy Light and can't wait to welcome the churches to their knight fiefdoms.
In many lord families, the eldest son inherits the knight fiefdom, and the second son inherits the church. With one knight fiefdom, they can collect taxes twice and strengthen their rule.
Perfect!
It's a pity that this is the Northern Region, and this is Leo's territory.
"Hey, my Holy Light brother, if you want to be a 'priest', please show me your documents."