Chapter 210 – The Nun from the Convent
"Good morning, Lady Flora. May the Lord bless you."
Gideon smiled as he traced a cross over his chest.
Judy also inclined her head slightly. "Good morning, ma'am."
"And may the Lord bless you both as well," Flora replied with a warm smile.
Before she could say anything else, a figure suddenly darted forward and stopped in front of Gideon.
"Are you an exorcism instructor?"
Sister Lynn looked at him with barely concealed anticipation.
"The convent I belong to received a report of a paranormal incident. A family claims that after moving into a new home, they began encountering strange phenomena—"
"Sister Lynn."
Flora frowned and stepped between them.
"Father Gideon is not responsible for this matter. Your behavior is quite improper."
Gideon's gaze shifted to the nun in front of him.
Though her hair was wrapped beneath a veil, Lynn's youthful vitality was difficult to hide.
Bright brown eyes, a delicate nose bridge—
Undeniably, she was a beautiful young woman.
"What exactly happened?" Gideon asked, looking toward Flora.
After some explanation, he finally understood the situation.
Sister Lynn was from Saint Felix Convent in Brooklyn, New York.
As a local church institution, the convent did not have the authority to assess the difficulty level of supernatural commissions. Such cases had to be reported upward to the local parish, where certified clergy would be assigned to investigate.
Originally, a priest had already been dispatched.
Unfortunately, that priest was suddenly reassigned elsewhere.
At the same time, every other available cleric was also pulled away.
As a result, the commission's evaluation had been postponed indefinitely.
"The family being harassed by a spirit—did they recently move into a new house?" Gideon asked Lynn.
She nodded vigorously. "Yes."
"And they bought a fairly large house at an unusually low price?"
"Um… I think so," Lynn replied, puzzled. She didn't understand why he was asking this.
"And strange things have been happening inside the house ever since?"
Lynn nodded again and again. "Exactly. How do you know all this so clearly?"
Gideon didn't answer her question.
Instead, he stroked his chin and said calmly, "Have the family move out for now. That should prevent any immediate danger."
After speaking, he bade Flora farewell and left with Judy, heading toward the commission office to select a target for this outing.
From Lynn's answers alone, this was clearly a textbook case of a 'haunted house purchase'.
In American horror lore, spirits attached to houses varied greatly in strength—but the methods of dealing with them were often straightforward.
In fact, this was precisely the type of commission Gideon had been looking for.
However, as Flora had just mentioned, the commission had not yet been officially rated.
Under such circumstances, it was better to let another cleric scout the situation first.
But Sister Lynn, clearly, had no intention of letting this opportunity slip away.
She slipped past the front desk and stopped Gideon, lowering her voice into a deliberately ingratiating tone.
"Father Gideon… may I speak with you alone for a moment?"
As she spoke, Lynn deliberately glanced at Judy.
Judy's eyes immediately filled with suspicion. She edged closer to Gideon, subtly but unmistakably staking her claim.
Gideon rubbed his chin. After a brief pause, he said, "Alright."
They soon reached a secluded corner.
Lynn looked visibly nervous.
She glanced around to make sure no one was nearby—then suddenly removed her head covering.
Black hair spilled free, swaying softly in the air. Gideon caught a faint, sweet fragrance.
Lynn's cheeks flushed slightly.
She tugged at her collar, then abruptly leaned closer, whispering in a voice barely audible:
"If you… if you're willing to accept this commission, then I can…"
She didn't finish the sentence, but the implication was unmistakable.
Gideon observed her calmly for a moment, then shook his head.
"Too deliberate."
"…What?" Lynn blinked, not quite understanding.
"Because of the high fatality rate in exorcism commissions," Gideon said evenly,
"almost no clergy participate voluntarily."
"Even priests with noble intentions often resort to tactics like yours to obtain assistance."
Shock flashed through Lynn's eyes.
"And besides," Gideon gestured casually to the surroundings,
"you never intended to actually offer your body."
"This is the commission office—the busiest area in the entire seminary. Anything inappropriate here carries a high risk of being discovered."
"Not to mention the two women waiting outside."
"Your behavior practically screams 'I'm about to do something improper.' If we stayed away too long, Flora would certainly grow suspicious."
"And given how perceptive she is, she'd quickly piece things together—meaning your plan would still risk exposure."
Gideon paced slowly as he spoke, hands clasped behind his back.
"So your real goal was to apply pressure—forcing me into a position where I wouldn't dare act here, thereby giving you leverage for negotiation."
Lynn stared at him in disbelief, instinctively tugging her clothes tighter.
Gideon continued calmly,
"If I were designing this scheme, I'd probably suggest 'changing locations'—luring the target away before gradually manipulating them."
He spread his hands.
"Instead, you're creating the illusion that I could obtain you—without ever letting it actually happen."
Lynn's breathing quickened. She took several unconscious steps backward.
Gideon noticed—but instead stepped forward.
"Clergy usually take on exorcism commissions for one reason only," he said quietly.
"To advance in the Fourfold Theological Path."
He locked eyes with her.
"So tell me—did you use some method to bypass the Church and secretly undergo spiritual awakening?"
Lynn's expression shattered.
Fear flooded her face. Her voice trembled.
"I… I don't know what you're talking about."
Unauthorized spiritual awakening was strictly forbidden.
Aside from its extreme mortality rate, such rituals lacked safeguards and could allow demons to cross into the world.
Anyone discovered to have awakened privately would face direct judgment from the Vatican.
Lynn had obtained a sigil through illicit means—and no one else knew.
Which was precisely why she looked so shaken now.
"Your expression already answers me," Gideon said calmly,
"but given your little performance earlier, I'll need confirmation."
He stepped closer—then suddenly grabbed her sleeves.
"I'm going to tear your clothes. Prepare yourself."
Lynn froze—furious and humiliated.
How could someone be this shameless?!
Before she could react, a powerful force tore through her sleeves, ripping away her outer garment.
She instinctively clutched her chest, frozen in place.
But Gideon showed no interest in the exposed skin. Instead, his brows furrowed.
Her chest was tightly bound with white cloth—only the upper portion faintly visible. Nothing improper could be seen.
More importantly—
Her back was covered in scars.
Gideon narrowed his eyes.
Some were old and healed. Others were recent—jagged, uneven wounds unmistakably caused by evil entities.
"Tell me your real purpose," he said flatly.
"Then I might agree to help."
Initially, he'd thought Lynn possessed some hidden intelligence.
But her attempt to trade her body—inside a church, no less—had been suspicious.
And the moment she removed her clothing, he'd noticed the abnormalities on her back.
That was why he'd pressed further.
He was genuinely curious—what desperation could drive a nun to abandon her dignity just to take part in this commission?
As for possession—
Between Gideon's direct inspection and the protective arrays covering the entire seminary, infiltration was impossible.
If an entity could bypass that, nowhere would be safe.
Lynn lowered her head and slowly dressed herself again.
"…Why do you look like I'm the one who wronged you?" Gideon muttered.
"If you choose to scheme against others, you'd better be ready for retaliation."
Lynn raised her head. The coquettish softness was gone.
"Will you report me?" she asked quietly.
"That depends on what you can offer," Gideon replied with a shrug.
"And just to be clear—I'm not interested in your body."
Lynn tilted her head slightly. "You really are a strange one."
"You looked so devout and kind earlier. I didn't expect you to be so…"
"Sister Lynn," Gideon cut her off.
"Mind your words."
"Only fools with short lives speak carelessly."
She froze—then nodded after a moment.
"Thank you… for the reminder."
After a long hesitation, she finally spoke.
"I did secretly awaken… and I obtained a sigil. I joined exorcism commissions to advance."
Her gaze hardened.
"Fifteen years ago, I was just a child. I had a happy family—but…"
"One day, a demon entered our home. Under its influence, my father became someone else."
"At first, he only shouted. Then he began hitting us. My mother tried to escape with us, but—"
Her voice broke.
"He killed her with an axe… and then used that same axe to behead himself."
"My sister and I barely escaped. But when we reported it to the Church, the demon had already vanished."
Her fists clenched.
"So I joined the Church. I swore to the Lord that I would one day purify that demon."
Gideon rubbed his chin. "And this commission—is it connected to that demon?"
Lynn shook her head.
"I don't know its name. Only that it can influence emotions—twisting personalities."
"According to the report submitted by Kathy Lutz, her husband George Lutz became abnormal after moving into their new house."
"Every night at exactly 3:15 a.m., he wakes and wanders through the house."
"At first she thought it was sleepwalking. But soon their relationship deteriorated—he began shouting at her and the children constantly."
Her eyes lifted.
"It's exactly like my father."
She met Gideon's gaze.
"So… will you help me?"
Gideon shrugged lightly.
"You still haven't told me what I get out of it."