005、I don't necessarily dare not look her straight in the eye (above)

  Was Maria really ill? It looked like it, but only Gabriel knew what was going on in his heart, that wasn't real illness, but now Maria really needed to stay a few more days in Duketown.

  On the night she obtained the Tears of the Gods, Maria fainted. The days of devoted prayer had taken a toll on her physical and mental strength, and the atmosphere in Dirk's town made Dick feel quite uncomfortable as well. Maria was also feeling unwell, and every day except for eating and sleeping, she concentrated all her spirit to pray to the goddess Isis, and was already very tired.

  Once the mind relaxes, it's normal for ordinary people to faint or fall into a daze.

  Mary had a maid who did the rough work and a personal servant, but both of them have fallen ill in the past two days. Perhaps it was the long journey across the desert to this uncomfortable place that didn't agree with them, as neither the climate nor environment were suitable. Lord Dick brought several maids and female slaves for Mary's service, but Gabriel thought they couldn't directly attend to the Holy Maiden's daily life.

  Gabriel said to Dick, "You believe that Maria will become the patron saint of the Isis Temple, having received the tears of the gods, so everything should be treated as a saint."

  The Temple of Isis owns a large tract of land and countless slaves, but the Holy Maiden's status is transcendent. The things she uses cannot be handed to her directly by slaves, so female slaves cannot serve her directly. She cannot have any physical contact with adult men, and her clothes and food cannot be brought before her by women who have had a man. The several young and beautiful maidservants sent by Lord Dick are obviously not suitable.

  Rodick had considered everything, yet overlooked this, not because he wasn't meticulous enough. According to the rules, only after a formal ceremony was held at the Isis Temple would an acknowledged saint candidate become a true saint. Gabriel, however, demanded treatment as if she were already a saint, being overly cautious and fearful of any unexpected mistakes from now until their successful return to the Isis Temple.

  It's also good this way, at least it shows that the temple messenger has already acknowledged Maria's holy girl identity in his heart.

  Maria wasn't really sick, and since Gabriel's duty was to protect her, it naturally included ensuring her health. After Maria slept for a night and woke up, Gabriel had already treated her with a simple divine blessing, and she didn't have any problems physically, and under Gabriel's protection, she could safely cross the desert.

  But Gabriel had other things to do, and hadn't even told Roddick. She was going to teach Maria the most basic divine magic of the Isys Temple - the Trial of God. The standard for selecting a saint is not only to obtain the Tears of the Gods, but also to be able to awaken the power granted by the gods, which is what Gabriel wanted to teach Maria.

  This process is usually very difficult, but with the help of the Tears of the Gods, it can be much simpler, which is also one of the reasons why the Tears of the Gods are so precious. Only by awakening the power bestowed by the gods through the most basic divine trial can Maria prove that she will be able to use the Tears of the Gods in the future and bless the people of the Temple of the Servant God.

  Maria has obtained the Tears of the Gods, and if she can do so before arriving at the Temple of Isis, it will naturally follow that she becomes a true saint. If she cannot do so, things may still be complicated. Gabriel escorted Maria thousands of miles to the town of Duque, personally witnessed the appearance of the Tears of the Gods, and saw Maria's piety with his own eyes, and has deeply believed in her identity as a saint, so he decided to take this step as soon as possible.

  This does not go against the will of God, after Mary arrived at the Temple of Isis, the priests would teach her divine techniques according to procedure and conduct assessments within a specified time frame. Gabriel simply expedited this ritual and gave her special treatment.

  Lord Dick was still worried about one thing, that the temple's priests were making trouble, not teaching Maria true divine techniques or intentionally delaying her lessons, so that she couldn't pass the assessment and other city-states' saint candidates could steal this position. He was considering how to make public offerings and private bribes. Gabriel didn't say anything, but had already privately solved the troubles Dick worried about, now everything depends on Maria herself.

  After all, it was Gabriel who had escorted Mary here and obtained the tears of the gods. Even Gabriel felt lucky, for this was a blessing from Isis, who had an inexplicable affection for this pure and devout girl and was willing to help her.

  Professor Cadabra's divine magic is still a form of prayer, but it requires sincere faith and a quiet heart. It awakens the mysterious power granted by the gods through a special ritual and undergoes the trial of God.

  Mary asked her: "How will the gods test me?"

  Gabriel, who was always serious, rarely showed a smile: "Pray to the tears of the gods in the way I taught you, and you will receive the strange power bestowed by the gods. However, the desires dormant in people's souls will also be awakened. You must learn how to face these desires without being swayed by them, for this is the trial of God. To step into the threshold of the Temple of Magic... Your soul is so devout and pure that it won't be difficult to pass this test. As a saintess, you should know what to demand from yourself, there's no need for me to say more."

  "Isn't it that after arriving at the Temple of Isis, the priests preside over the ceremony before one can accept such a trial?... Am I not going against God's will by doing this now?"

  Gabriel shook his head: "You have not violated the will of God, I do this just to let you successfully pass the test of God. If you can't pass it, you won't get the recognition of the divine spirit either, but I believe in you." Seeing Maria still had some doubts, Gabriel thought for a moment and said: "I'll tell you something that happened in this town today."

  Gabriel recounted the dispute of the people on the square at the northern end of the town, and finally said: "I think what Mr. Aristotle said is not unreasonable, the will of the gods is a prerequisite, as long as you pass the test, it means that you have obtained the recognition of the gods, because as a candidate for the Holy Girl, you have already obtained the tears of the gods."

  Maria blinked her beautiful big eyes for a long time, and finally nodded: "Yes, you are right. The rules of the Isis Temple are clearer to you than me. I will not disappoint you."

  Gabriel shook his head slightly: "No, no, it's not me. You certainly won't let the great Mother Goddess Isis down."

  At this time, Maria suddenly thought of something and asked doubtfully: "But you've been here all along, how can you hear what people are saying at the other end of the village, every sentence is so clear, and I haven't heard anything, is this the power of the gods?"

  Gabriel smiled again: "This is the power given by the gods, I heard every one of their voices, as long as I concentrate my spirit and want to listen. ... As a holy maiden of the Isis Temple, you will have far more powerful divine powers than me. I am a warrior and cannot learn high-level divine magic anymore, while you will master the highest divine magic of the Isis Temple."

  Just as he was saying this, the voice of the maid downstairs came: "Mr. Gabriel, Mr. Aristotle has found the servant you need and brought him here."

  ……

  Armon was well aware that it was Aristotle and the old madman who had saved him today. It wasn't unexpected that the old madman would help him, but this young stranger was obviously a noble, so why would he want to help an unfamiliar miner? Armon was extremely grateful and delighted at the opportunity to serve this gentleman, even if it meant being a servant for three days, not to mention the generous reward of one gold coin per day.

  On the road, Ammon expressed his gratitude and, according to the most solemn rite he knew, wanted to kneel down and kiss the dust from Aristotle's feet. But Aristotle stopped him, laughing: "Child, you don't have to do that; you are not my slave, nor am I a god or king." Then looking at him again, he asked: "Do you want to ask me why I helped you?"

  "Ah, yes, sir," Ammon nodded and said, "I think I'll ask."

  "Aristotle gazed into the distance, seemingly talking to himself: 'I come from a distant land on the continent, a place called Stagira. There are many city-states there. I once studied at Plato's Academy. My teacher used to say, "Why do we seek knowledge? Virtue is knowledge; clever people should become good people."'"

  Amun blinked and asked, recalling: "Hedeton? Have you heard of a sage named Thoth?"

  "Aristotle's eyes widened slightly: 'I met him at the Academy of Plato, he was a student of my teacher's friend Theodoros, child, how did you know his name?'"

  "Ah, the old man in town told me," Amun replied, "the same old gentleman who just spoke to you." The name of Teotihuacan was familiar to Amun from the old madman's tales. According to legend, this sage claimed that there were only five regular polyhedra in the world, and the regular dodecahedron was the most special one among them. It was the outline of God's drawing of the world, containing mysterious information about the fifth element, a source of mystical power and a symbol.

  Ammon originally thought it was just an old madman's nonsense, but he didn't expect there to be such a person. It seems that the old madman was telling the truth.

  The two continued to walk towards the southern end of the town, and Aristides seemed interested in the child, asking as they walked: "Earlier when we were discussing the oracle in front of the temple, do you know why the divine spirit that left the oracle is called a protective god?"

  "Why? The gods are the gods, and the oracle is the oracle. It seems that the townspeople have never pursued this question, and Amun did not answer, but instead said very humbly: 'Sir, please enlighten me.'"

  Aristotle smiled: "Actually, I'm not sure either. I just want to discuss with you that the oracle is called a protective god because it really protects the residents here. The divine stone produced here is so precious, and the mining technique is passed down from generation to generation. How can we prevent people from being driven by greed to make underage children bear such heavy work? So as to better protect the craftsmen here for generations to come, without letting young men die prematurely?"

  Amon's somewhat confused mind was suddenly enlightened, and he nodded repeatedly: "The divine decree, it's this divine decree! Children under the age of majority cannot learn mining skills, and women are not allowed to mine divine stones!"

  Aristotle also nodded and said, "Yes, this is why the gods in that temple are called protective gods. No matter how the oracle was passed down, it's indeed necessary here. Child, if you become a priest in the future, you should also guard such oracles, but you must understand the true divine spirit and its source, not like that priest just now."

  After saying this, he thought for a moment and couldn't help but laugh again. He turned his head to look at Ah Meng and said: "The spirit of the oracle is that men under the age of 16 are not allowed to learn mining skills, but in the local language used here, it is permissible and possible to be a word. Can you understand what I mean? So the priest today couldn't argue with me, but you have to understand the difference, otherwise you'll be confused like everyone else."

  From the north of the town to the south, Armand was deep in thought, and while he was speaking, they arrived at Maria's small house.

  **