The holy city of Jethrobaines was a very large city, said to have been built by the Pope of the True Church himself. Compared to Norvale in the Astralrealm Kingdom, the scale of the city was much grander and its history much longer.

The three of us flew non-stop, finally reaching our destination in the evening. We only rested twice along the way, mainly because of Cyra's low rank and lack of stamina.

"The name of this inn seems so familiar..."

After entering the city, the first thing to do was of course to find a place to stay. Before long, Cyra set her eyes on this hotel in a bustling area. It looked quite luxurious, yet exuded a touch of rustic charm.

"Old Arcania Hot Spring Hotel, drawing natural hot spring water from Dona Mountain Range, designated by His Holiness the Pope during his inspection tour, a necessary bridge to communicate with the Lord..."

"What a scam! Jethrobaines is clearly located on a plain, where do they get mountain hot springs from?"

I pointed to the large billboard at the entrance, raising a serious question, and pulled Nicola to leave.

"Wait, let's go in and have a look first. We're not short of money anyway! Maybe the hot spring water is transported from the mountains? After all, there are convenient tools like storage rings!"

Seeing this, Cyra hurriedly pulled us back, saying with a hopeful look on her face.

"Besides, it's said that this place is related to the Pope, isn't that the purpose of our trip?"

Actually, we all knew that what she valued most was the last line of text.

"But the Pope is not on an inspection tour now, how much use can a place he once named and stayed at be for our investigation?"

Nicola still shook her head, not buying it at all. Of course, the main reason was that the decor here looked too luxurious, and the price would definitely not be cheap.

However, after Cyra played the "trump card" of providing accommodation fees, she shamefully agreed in the end.

"Anyway, if we're not comfortable staying here, we can always change tomorrow..."

Faced with my contemptuous gaze, Nicola could only explain with embarrassment. A cent can stump a hero! The amount of savings she had at her disposal was not much anymore. Recently, she had been freeloading off my meals and accommodation fees. Who told her to miss the opportunity to make a fortune selling holy water?

However, I expressed that I didn't mind. After all, Nicola had helped me a lot when we were in Earth. Although I had once offered to split half of the holy water profits with her, she insisted on refusing and only borrowed ten thousand silver, promising to pay it back.

This was probably the last bit of pride of a wealthy young master...

"Welcome, our hotel has a long history of four thousand years and is the top thousand-year-old establishment in the holy city of Jethrobaines! Everything you see now can be called cultural relics. We believe you can spend a wonderful time here!"

As expected of an old brand, the receptionist showed a very professional smile as soon as we entered, guiding us into the lobby to check in while introducing the history of this place.

"Do you think this inn will suddenly collapse?"

Cyra stared at the ceiling and asked with some concern. After all, with such a long history, it was really a bit worrying. But looking at the surrounding decor, it must have undergone countless renovations and maintenance, so it should be fine.

"Is this really the hotel where the Pope personally stayed?"

Nicola was more concerned about this question. She had been inquiring about related topics along the way. Of course, the most important reason was that there were too many "old shops" on Earth that used the excuse of "the Emperor touring" or "the Emperor in distress," making her have to be extra cautious.

"Of course! His Holiness the Pope just came here last month and was quite fond of this place! He often chooses our hotel for six out of ten inspection tours, and you will definitely not be disappointed!"

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Of course, there might be some exaggeration in this, but the staff's answer was still quite satisfactory to us. It's just a pity that the timing was not good. Otherwise, we might have been able to see him in person without an audience.

However, the room rates were relatively heart-wrenching.

"Two thousand silver per night for just the lowest-grade double room, and it can't even accommodate three people. It's really high-end..."

Looking at the price list handed to us by the front desk staff, Cyra and I instantly felt the pain. Although we were mentally prepared and could indeed afford it, it would be a lie to say there was no pressure...

"You three must be visiting Jethrobaines for the first time, right?"

Seeing our expressions, the staff sitting behind the counter suddenly handed over another form.

"Our hotel is currently running a promotion. You just need to sign your names on this form and you can stay for one night for free."

"Oh? There's actually such a good deal!"

Hearing this, we of course wouldn't let it pass and quickly took the form to have a look...

"True Church Membership Application Form"!

"What a scam!"

I hurriedly threw the application form back. This suffocating operation instantly reminded me of a certain anime! It was fine in Norvale, at least Bishop Rister of Preston Cathedral had some integrity. How come they started directly using this scheme at the True Church headquarters?

"Wait a minute..."

But Cyra and Nicola didn't think much. They retrieved the application form and pulled me aside.

"If we only agree to join superficially, or sign a fake name, wouldn't we be profiting?"

"Yeah, this is a matter of several thousand silver! Even if we have to sign our real names, what can the True Church do if they come to us and we don't acknowledge them? At most, we can just quit immediately then! There's absolutely no loss at all."

Nicola chimed in as well.

"But the question is, will the hotel let us off so easily? The holy city is the headquarters of the True Church. How could they let us take advantage of them for no reason?"

I still had some doubts. They should have both watched this anime, as it was very famous. But they had never delved into the logic behind this kind of membership model. After all, reality is not anime. If you could benefit just by simply joining a religion, why wouldn't people make money off it?

Moreover, the True Church in this world didn't seem to be the kind of cult that wouldn't allow you to leave after joining, right?

"Look, it's written clearly here! The pen and ink used for signing are infused with magic and have a certain compulsory effect. And you must first present relevant identity documents to participate in this event—it's not a problem for Nicola and me, but Cyra doesn't have an adventurer's guild identity. She might not be eligible to participate unless she reveals her wings."

I pointed to the terms on the application form and said after carefully studying it.

"Then look here. After signing, you need to go to the local True Church within three days to complete the formal membership procedures. Otherwise, you will be pursued by the religious court throughout the continent!"

"Excuse me, what exactly are the membership procedures? Can you explain it to us in detail?"

Nicola immediately turned her head and asked the staff behind the counter.

"Also, what kind of process is required if you want to leave the church?"

Obviously, she hadn't given up on the idea of quitting after joining.

"Of course!"

The staff smiled brightly and immediately answered us in a very professional manner.

"After filling out the form, you can go to St. Cenin Cathedral in Jethrobaines within three days to complete the procedures. The process is very simple. You just need to register, pay the fee, receive the scriptures, then accept the priest's baptism and take an oath. That's it. I also joined the church this way!"

"Fee? How much does it cost?"

Cyra's ears were very sharp, instantly grasping the key word.

"The fee is not much, less than ten thousand silver! Only 9,998 silver is enough. Of course, if you don't have enough money, the church also thoughtfully provides installment payment services. No interest, you just need to do volunteer work for the church to pay it off, with room and board provided!"

The other party continued to answer very professionally, suddenly shifting the topic.

"As for the process of leaving the church, it's relatively more complicated. And the procedures for quitting are a bit different in each place. But if you join the church in the holy city of Jethrobaines, then you must also apply to quit here. Of course, if you haven't paid off your debt, you can't apply to quit—first, you need to write a 100,000-word application for leaving the church, stating sufficient reasons, then submit it to the Religious Affairs Office in the east of the city. After stamping and signing, go to the Religious Personnel Bureau in the west of the city to apply for cancellation of church membership. Then there's only one step left—conduct a tour of all the churches in the city to give speeches about leaving the church. After that, you can be considered to have successfully quit..."

"What a scam!"

I couldn't take it anymore. I hurriedly returned the application form to the staff and quickly paid all the fees. Only then did we receive the keys to two rooms. Nicola and I shared one room, while Cyra had a single king-size room to herself. Why? Because she was rich and generous!

"Why does the membership promotion model in this holy city seem so much like a pyramid scheme?"

Cyra commented with lingering fear. I thought she went too far with her direct sales in Norvale before, but I didn't expect to encounter the authentic version so soon.

"Yeah, I remember the last clause even said that if you successfully introduce others to join the church as a referrer, you can receive a reward of 2,500 silver."

Nicola also sighed. The referrer on that application form just now was of course already filled in by the hotel, so they were working so hard to recommend the event to us. The wool always comes from the sheep in the end!

But the good thing is, although this kind of event has no integrity, at least it didn't turn into the situation in the anime where they pestered people to join the church. Even though we refused the event offered by the hotel, the staff's attitude remained very respectful and polite, which was why we finally chose to stay.