Opening the door, I was expecting Marcs or some other acolyte, but the one behind the door was actually a much older person. By the wrinkles on his face and the bags under his eyes, he's way past being called the usual adult and can be considered an elder, probably around fifty years old or more. He looked tired and haggard but I could sense that he also had a mature air to him as if he was at a superior position, I couldn't help but guess his name out loud.

"Head Priest Astor Noblesa?"

"Head Priest? Hopefully, I'll be one before the stress kills me.", the old man said with a grin that did not match his age.

Was this really Astor Noblesa?

"Didn't know you actually knew what I looked like."

"It was a mere guess, sir."

"You've got great intuition! You'll definitely be helpful here."

The feeling he gave off that was rather domineering earlier had already subsided. It was as if I was speaking to a different person. Was there a different intention behind that or is he usually like this? I decided to probe him a little.

"I couldn't help but feel a sagelike impression from you, sir. So, I assumed that you were Head Priest Noblesa."

"Again, just Priest Noblesa will do. Although I do the work of a head priest, this church is still too small for a head priest to be assigned in.", Astor said as he chuckled.

"I didn't expect that you would be the one to pay me a visit, sir."

"Well, I was rather curious about what the future Saint would look like."

"Has this been spread around already among the branches?"

"No. I was told of this fact only when I was informed that you volunteered to go here. Otherwise, you wouldn't even be allowed to go here but rather be sent straight to the Main Branch."

"So even the Main Branch doesn't know of me?"

"They might. I'm certain that Grand Bishop Elisha Ariel Octapenia knows you exist. As for the rest, I'm not sure. The Main Branch has its own circumstances and rules regarding information as important as this."

Their own circumstances and rules? Are you hinting some internal disputes happening within the Main Branch? I knitted my brow a bit as if that statement required me to contemplate on what he said.

"You already caught on that? Are you sure you're only five years old?", Astor suddenly said jokingly and before I could respond, he already changed the topic.

"I also visited you to inform you that dinner will be ready soon. Even if you're hungry or not, you still have to go to the dining hall at least to show your presence to everyone. We'll continue our discussion later."

Gesturing to me to follow him, I left my room and walked with him while keeping a bit of distance.

The many sprawled bodies of the supposedly tired acolytes earlier were no longer on the halls, and it appeared as if there was no battlefield-like situation earlier. The floors were clean and the suffocating scent of dried sweat no longer polluted the area.

Noticing that I was observing how clean the place already was, Astor decided to explain.

"Although we're not as prosperous as the other branches, there are still benefits to being located in a non-human centric trade city. One such benefit is earlier access to the latest arcane developments and discoveries that are being spread around the world. There's a newly developed arcane called [Cleanse] and it utilizes arcana to clean a particular area. In fac-"

Having acquired that answer to my unstated question, i decided to not put all my effort in listening to Astor, and instead contemplated further on the concept of arcana.

That's another mystery that I would like to explore. Arcana, also considered as the source of everything in this world, apparently exists in every living thing; although there are also specific areas in this world that are deprived of life and yet are filled to the brim with traces of arcana, the concept where life and arcana are always present together has never been disputed. Those who have undergone an examination using the [Sphere of Truth] would always show the presence of arcana inside that person and the only time when arcana ceases to dwell within a person is when they are supposedly dead. Unfortunately, the books that the 'disappointment' and Al have read from the Church of Hure's archives regarding this phenomenon were not too detailed and only brushed upon this topic. Information and details regarding theories involving arcanes and arcana are more than likely found in books involving the subject of Arcane Studies which the church's archives seemed to be lacking.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Now that I'm realizing that I am capable of retrieving the contents of books that were read years ago, isn't this form of memory retention and retrieval sort of amazing? Is this what geniuses that have photographic memories feel like? I don't really see myself as a genius but maybe my brain is very abnormal. It has the memories and experiences of my life as Samuel Tuckerman, it supposedly contains multiple identities, and there is a degree of conscious control that is happening inside it. Maybe that explains it. Or maybe, it's just another [Blessing] that hasn't been unlocked yet but is already in effect, just waiting for me to do something to trigger its complete activation; since there were records that stated that [Blessings] that aren't unlocked yet doesn't necessarily mean that they are not working, they are just not under control. Unfortunately, Al has complete control over [The True Pacifist] and I'm sure he won't really allow me to have control over it.

Another thing to think about is my [Arcana Intoxication] that I can already mitigate on my own by blessing myself with [Stamina Boost] is still an enigma to me. I can feel the arcana within me when I invoke an arcane, but I still don't understand how all of this works. Unfortunately, the 'disappointment' and Al never bothered to explore this further as they simply accepted this fact without questioning how or why. For example, how do arcana and arcane affect creatures and things at a microscopic level? How do blessings and other similar arcane effects living things on a cellular level? Are atoms present in arcana?

From the memories of the two, I remember the sensation of invoking arcane like [Mend], [Stabilize], [Barrier], [Stamina Boost], and [Illuminate], and I have observed their corresponding effects on people as well as on me, but that's all. The supernatural phenomenon that follows will always leave me with questions. If I can somehow observe them much closer, like through a microscope or a more detailed observation tool, then maybe I can uncover more secrets about them. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who thought of these. Maybe Tyrian the Innovator knows the answer, assuming that he's a person who got reincarnated as well which I believe to be the case.

I then realized that Astor has been staring at me as he had stopped walking and I did so as well. Maybe while I was thinking about these things, the two in my head decided to move my body for me. Well, aren't they convenient.

"You seem to be thinking about a lot of things."

As I believe there's no harm in telling him what I was contemplating about, I decided to tell him a summarization of some of my thoughts; obviously omitting the matter involving the observance of phenomena at the microscopic or cellular levels. After hearing these, he looked surprised but immediately changed to a face full of understanding.

"So you've also thought about these things, huh?"

"Yes, sir. Arcanes and arcana are so amazing, and I believe the possibilities they can lead to are limitless. Maybe if I can understand how they really work, the things I can do would have no limits too."

"That's sort of true. A lot of people have similar thoughts about the fundamental laws of arcana, and those people who truly explored these are called Arcane Scholars. But you also have to consider that there is a difference in knowing how to do things and being capable of doing it. A limbless swordsman may be adept with the sword, but it doesn't mean that he can wield it."

"But sir, wouldn't that mean that he was able to wield the sword before he became limbless? Since he can't be considered a swordsman without actually being known for being adept with the sword."

"Yeah, maybe that was a bad analogy, but still, you understand the point I'm getting at, right?"

"It means that even if I learn how arcanes and arcana work, it doesn't really mean I can utilize this knowledge."

"Correct. There were many Arcane Scholars that tried to truly understand arcana. Some may have succeeded while others might have failed."

"Why do their outcomes sound uncertain, sir?"

"Because it was rumored that those who succeeded somehow disappeared and it was speculated that they were taken by the Arcanians, while those who failed ended their own lives due to the despair of wasting their efforts to devote themselves to a pursuit that never bore fruit. Their outcomes may be different, but they are still somewhat similar."

So if I'm too curious, I might get kidnapped by those ancient beings? Death or disappearance means that I might not be able to use what I learned. But, I still want to know!

"Did that dissuade you from learning about the truth behind arcana?"

"A little."

"There are also other Arcane Scholars that decided to not focus on the fundamental laws of arcana but rather focused on arcanes. There were those who managed to recover or recreate long lost arcanes, while there are others who managed to improve known arcanes or create new ones."

Oh, then maybe I can devote myself to that instead. If it's possible, I'd like to improve the arcanes I already know. It feels like there is an untapped potential to them, despite them being considered as the most basic of [Support-type] arcanes.

"The Church of Hure also has its own branch that is focused on developing new [Support-type] arcanes or trying to improve already existing ones. It's all for the goal of increasing the efficiency of the services provided by the church and possibly expanding it."

After Astor said these, I no longer had any questions to ask. So we resumed walking until we finally arrived at the dining hall. Although the wait inside my room only took around ten minutes, the talk with Astor regarding arcana and arcanes took a while, thus it is noticeable that the dining hall was already filled with members of the Church of Hure.

It's called a dining hall, but it would be more accurate to call it a dining room. Despite there being only twenty-one people inside, this room was already crowded, but it still had enough space for five more people and more than that would require sitting too close to each other. 

As I entered the room with Astor, I noticed that almost all the gazes of the people sitting were on me. From Astor's own words, I'm sure that my status as the future Saint has not been spread around, but I do realize that a mere newbie acolyte accompanying the de facto Head Priest of this branch would definitely attract the attention of these people.

I guess I'll have to make up an excuse. I hope you're good at improv and reading the mood, Astor.