Chapter 82: The Struggle Between Two Factions
William looked up slightly but didn't rush to speak.
As soon as he entered the room, he sensed that the atmosphere was wrong.
Combined with the information he got from Ren earlier, William immediately understood that this was another "power struggle."
Looking at the entire history of Western religion, this was already an old tradition of the Church.
From the 11th century, when Pope Gregory VII issued the Dictatus Papae, to the Crusades in the 13th century.
The game between Church authority and monarchical power had begun long ago.
By the Reformation in the 16th century, even the Church itself had split internally.
Where there are people, there is a scramble for interests; this principle has existed since ancient times.
To the outside world, the Church naturally preached "benevolence, compassion, prohibition of marriage, etc."
But as for the rules... everyone understands.
It's nothing more than shouting slogans on the surface, while everyone has a tacit understanding in private.
After all, in a quagmire, staying clean alone is also a kind of "mistake."
This was also the reason why Levi didn't target Sasha's identity as an "illegitimate daughter."
Which high-level official of the Church hadn't done such a thing?
Levi himself had more than a dozen children, waiting to inherit his Church legacy after a hundred years.
Otherwise, when the person leaves, the tea cools.
Wouldn't the "resources" Levi accumulated over the years be taken advantage of by others?
Moreover, although they quarreled, they wouldn't tear each other apart over the position of a Parish Bishop.
If he really clung to this point, Fabio would naturally fight back.
At that time, it would be—
You report me for having too many illegitimate children; I mock you for taking in little boys every day.
This scene would be a bit too disgraceful.
William quickly analyzed the pros and cons.
In all fairness, he leaned more towards Sasha's side.
Not because he had much friendship with the former.
But the "reward" for the commission was provided by Bishop Julius.
If the other party fell, wouldn't William have made a trip in vain?
As for the probability of the Church issuing rewards as usual after the other party was punished for a crime...
William shook his head secretly; there was no guarantee for this.
Moreover, his brother Ren also served in St. Jehovah, which could bring him many conveniences usually.
Looking at it this way, William didn't seem to need to hesitate.
But there was another cleric sitting present.
William looked to the left side of the wooden table, the man resting his chin on both hands.
The latter had slicked-back hair and a young face, about thirty years old.
An emblem was embroidered on his cuff, a golden lion guarding in front of a cross.
Since William and Sasha came in, this cleric hadn't spoken.
But since the other party could sit in this position.
It meant that his rank in the Church was not weaker than Fabio and Levi.
Therefore, his words might affect the final result of this "investigation."
Before knowing which side this person leaned towards, William decided to play it safe first.
These thoughts happened in a flash.
In everyone's perspective, after hearing the question, this priest seemed not to expect to be called so soon.
That was why he "paused for a moment."
"William, from the West District Community Service Church."
William spoke hurriedly, but only answered the question and didn't talk about anything else.
"Community Service Church?"
Fabio was stunned upon hearing this, seemingly not expecting the other party to come from a local church.
But this was even better!
Fabio's confidence grew a bit.
Local churches were the lowest level of the entire Church. To climb up from such a place, ability alone was far from enough.
One also needed "someone" behind them.
Thinking of this, Fabio said in a deep voice:
"Very good. As an ordinary cleric, you were able to assist Sister Sasha in completing the exorcism."
"You not only protected the safety of the believers but also executed the 'benevolence' and 'responsibility' consistently preached by the Church."
"An outstanding cleric like you should be awarded a Medal of Honor and display your talents in a larger place."
William raised an eyebrow.
"Directly offering conditions," he thought to himself.
Hearing that the person opposite came from a local church, Levi and Fabio had the same idea.
"That's right. The Church has always attached great importance to clerics who are 'honest' and 'loyal to the Lord'."
"As long as your incident report is objective and true, the Exorcism Academy will definitely not treat you badly."
Levi also offered conditions directly, but added a clause of "objective and true."
Before coming, he had already figured out the ins and outs through inside information.
Sister Sasha, like many illegitimate children of the Church, had no special talents.
Therefore, the matter of "going out for exorcism" fundamentally didn't exist.
This was also the reason why he was very confident about this trip.
"Archbishop Levi, it seems I am the one asking questions now."
Seeing his nemesis interfere, Fabio was extremely dissatisfied.
"Oh? I just expressed my appreciation for Church talents."
"This doesn't seem to violate any rules."
Levi retorted immediately.
"Given the recent high mortality rate of the Exorcism Academy, the word 'appreciation' doesn't seem appropriate."
Fabio countered tit for tat.
"This is all to implement the Lord's will. Don't people from the Sacred Society often suffer hardships unnecessarily, forcing people to stay in rooms for decades?"
"Where did you hear such rumors? We always respect individual wishes."
"The Exorcism Academy is the majority of the Church; the Sacred Society has long been a remnant of the old era."
"Bullshit."
"Watch your language, Bishop Fabio."
To win over the priest opposite, the two actually started arguing.
Seeing this, the corner of William's mouth twitched.
He didn't expect the internal strife of the Church to have evolved so fiercely.
Looking at it this way, it seemed that taking either side would offend the other.
Even not taking a side was a "sin."
Because this would damage the interests of both sides simultaneously.
"Is this power..."
William shook his head secretly, gaining some insight.
On the other side.
The two Archbishops argued endlessly, then focused their attention on William again.
"Let this cleric report the situation first."
Levi adjusted his collar, not intending to continue the meaningless argument.
"But there is one thing you must understand."
He smiled and stared at the young priest opposite: "Fabricating facts is committing the sin of 'blasphemy' and will be imprisoned in the Land of Suffering. You should know what kind of place that is."
The "Land of Suffering" had been mentioned many times in historical classics.
It was a nightmare place in the hearts of many clerics.
"No need to listen to threatening words. As long as you 'think clearly before speaking,' I will naturally guarantee your fairness."
Fabio stepped forward in time, blocking Levi's offensive, and emphasized a certain sentence.
"Your words seem to imply a threat too..." Levi interrupted again.
Seeing the two about to argue again, the third person at the wooden table finally couldn't sit still.
"I say... you two."
Jolan Borja rubbed his brows.
"You've been arguing for a long time; can you let this priest finish reporting the exorcism process first?"
He belonged to neither the Sacred Society nor the Exorcism Academy.
Instead, he came from a more independent institution—the Holy See.
This institution only accepted assignments from the Vatican, and its initial purpose was to protect the Holy Land.
In terms of rank, Jolan was equal to the other two Archbishops.
Even because of being closer to the center of the Church, the former's status was slightly higher.
Jolan didn't actively participate in this interrogation.
He was temporarily dragged in to make up the numbers!
Before this, he was appointed to investigate the recent "Child Disappearance Cases" and "Arm Amputation Cases."
Behind these events, there were faint pointers to the Church's number one hostile force.
And it might be related to the disaster mentioned in the "Holy Word."
Therefore, Jolan had been busy running around.
But because there were too few clues, his investigation had long reached a deadlock.
It happened that this matter occurred in "St. Jehovah Church."
And the struggle between the two factions had long been irreconcilable within the Church.
As the leadership level, the Vatican naturally had to come out to mediate and neutralize.
That was why Jolan was dragged in.
Just to be able to step forward to stabilize the situation at a moment like this, allowing the event to continue.
Otherwise, if left to argue, who knew when they would stop?
These two factions had a famous precedent—debating continuously for a month at the "Great Holy Festival."
Seeing the envoy of the Holy See speak, Fabio and Levi indeed shut their mouths.
"Phew."
Jolan breathed a sigh of relief; the surroundings were finally quiet.
"You can call me Archbishop Jolan. Now speak."
So everyone looked at the young priest again.
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