The Portal was now sandwiched between the Lord's Wooden House to the north and the three places of worship to the south. A bright burst of light emanated from the Stele and the three buildings rose up in front of him. Elsisn Temple was in the center with Kinah Prayer Hall to its right and Faulch Prayer Hall to its left.
Ikaris felt something different inside him after they appeared, but he was unable to determine what exactly.
Elsisn Temple looked like a small rectangular stone chapel only slightly larger than his previous cottage. A triangular roof of ochre tiles covered the building, with a small statue about three feet tall perched on the roof at the entrance of the temple, as if to welcome its parishioners.
The statue had the appearance of a young handsome man with long hair and a loose robe with puffed sleeves giving him a scholarly air. In the palm of his right hand, he held a prismatic, roughly spherical, multi-faceted stone up to his face and stared at it with penetrating eyes. At the end of his left arm, hanging at the side of his body, a short sword of plain appearance rested in his other hand. An unremarkable ring adorned his finger.
"The Sword of Light, the Stone of Possibilities and the Ring of Time." Magnus narrated in his head in a solemn voice. "These are the three most famous relics created by Elsisn during his lifetime. No one knows for sure what happened to them. Some believe that Elsisn took them with him when he ascended, others believe that the Confederation secretly holds them, or that his sister Nyr decided to hide them after his disappearance. Nowadays, there are a few identical, but greatly inferior relics, all obtained through Elsisn's worship."
Ikaris did not question the old Vampire further, because he knew that such a relic would not fall into his hands anytime soon. In any case, except for the Sword of Light, which was said to be able to cut through absolutely everything, including time and space, the function of the other two relics was not well known. The name of the Ring of Time seemed to speak for itself, but in reality it was notoriously impractical to use.
The boy then turned his attention to the other two Prayer Halls. Compared to the temple, their appearance was the difference between a lousy tramp and an upper-class aristocrat.
Whether it was the Kinah Prayer Hall or the Faulch Prayer Hall, it was nothing more than a small promontory of stacked stones on top of which a small statuette bearing their likeness stood proudly. In front of it, a small granite offering table had been set up for the faithful and a few flowers growing around it enlivened the place a bit.
The sculpture of Faulch was almost as Ikaris had imagined it. A hooded, emaciated man with a long scythe in his right hand, like a reaper harvesting the souls of the dead. In his left hand, he held a flask of about 50 centiliters, while around his neck hung a heavy antique key. Although the statue was carved from the same block of stone, he was willing to bet that if it could have been painted his clothes would have been all black.
"The Scythe of Doom, The Flask of Anti-Light, and the Key of Souls." Magnus enlightened him again as he followed his gaze.
At last, the statue of Kinah was much more pleasing to the eye. The Knowledge Saint had a cold, indifferent face, but her beauty was undeniable. On her sleeveless dress without embellishment, thousands of runes were inscribed but no one knew what they meant. Nestled under her right elbow was a thick grimoire at least four inches thick. Her two hands held a large basin filled with a still, ripple-free liquid. Yet, the most intriguing thing by far for Ikaris was the wireless earpiece hanging from her left ear.
'Do they have smartphones here?' He wondered dumbfounded.
"The Grimoire of Omniscience, the Vessel of Divination and that little ornament on her ear is called the Translator. It is not for nothing that Kinah and her sister Asuana were persecuted until they disappeared and many suspect the Confederation was behind it. These relics are far too dangerous in the wrong hands."
"Even the Translator?" Ikaris raised a puzzled eyebrow.
"Especially the Translator. Whoever possesses it can understand and speak any spoken or written language. In this world, some words have power. After spending a few nights on this island you should have realized that, Ikaris..."
Having seen what he had to see, Ikaris then went inside Elsisn Temple. It was as austere as he imagined. There were no pews, no decorations, just a small platform with an offering table and another statuette of Elsisn at the back of the room.
After examining each object for a long time, the teenager concluded that this place was nothing special. It seemed strange for a religious building magically created by the Stele. He had expected something else.
In doubt, he decided to scan the building directly with his Appraisal Spell. This time the result was different.
[Basic Elsisn Temple: A place of worship dedicated to the youngest of the twelve Major Saints.]
[Blessing of Elsisn: Raises resident satisfaction by 1%, Raises territory fame by 1%, Raises resident talent by 1%, Creation Spells cost 5% less stamina.]
[Number of followers: 0]
[Offering pool: 0/100. Fills the pool to receive a blessing from Elsisn. NB: A priest of Elsisn and the appropriate prayer can influence the result.]
[Upgrade requirements: Grade 3 Village and at least 100 followers.]
"Now, we're talking." Ikaris cheered in joy as he read the scan report.
If this temple was just an ordinary place of worship he would have been disappointed, but fortunately the Stele had not disappointed him. The strange sensation he had felt earlier was definitely the 1% talent increase.
When he checked his Status, he was able to confirm that his Soul Strength was now 102.101 points. As he scanned some of the other villagers, he realized that the 1% talent increase was totally random.
For some it was their Life Spark that had increased by 1%, directly affecting their Constitution and Vitality and thereby their Stamina. For others, it was their Divine Spark or Soul Spark. In a few rare cases, they had gained a passive Secondary Spark such as Fast Learning or Enhanced Focus that could somehow boost their growth by about 1%.
"Truly magical." Ikaris acknowledged in wonder.
This kind of miracle only heaven knew when he would be able to perform one.
'Based on the fact that the Stele evolves by gathering the Fate of its inhabitants, I guess this temple also depends on some sort of energy to produce these effects. Since there are currently no worshippers, the blessing of Elsisn that the village enjoys is totally free of charge. No doubt an incentive to encourage us to worship him. But fine, I like it. I'll find you as many believers as you want.'
Interested, Ikaris then appraised the two Prayer Halls, but his expectations were soon dampened.
[Faulch Prayer Hall: A place of worship for the Night Saint.]
[Number of worshippers: 0]
[Evaluation: This Prayer Hall has not been recognized by Faulch as of yet. Pray, make a sufficient offering or gather enough followers and perhaps he will grant you his favor.]
[Kinah Prayer Hall: A place of worship for the Knowledge Saint.]
[Number of worshippers: 0]
[Evaluation: This Prayer Hall has not been recognized by Kinah as of yet. Pray, make a sufficient offering, or gather enough followers and perhaps she will grant you her favor.]
Compared to Elsisn Temple, these two Prayer Halls were really just a poor statuette perched on a pile of stones. Magnus had already told him that the Saints had complicated relationships with each other and that it was often a losing bet to attempt to worship them all. If Faulch accepted Last Saint believers, getting Zar's blessing would become virtually impossible.
'Oh well, it's better than nothing I guess. At least as a Nephilim of Faulch, getting his attention shouldn't be too difficult...' He muttered pessimistically.
The three places of worship immediately drew the attention of the villagers, and those who had already lost interest in the Lord's House rushed to the three statues. Those summoned by the Stele were only mildly curious, but that was as far as it went. Those from the Hellhound Pack, on the other hand, were much more enthusiastic, some even outright ecstatic.
Ikaris soon noticed that it wasn't Elsisn that attracted the most eyeballs, but Faulch's statuette. When he queried Liam, he immediately understood why.
"In the Warring Lands, Faulch reminds us every night why we should fear him. It is unwise to disrespect him." The Alpha Werewolf pointed to his own statuette that he carried in his luggage.
Compared to the Prayer Hall one, his was so crudely carved that if Ikaris were in Faulch's shoes he would have sent the Black Fog to visit them in broad daylight.
"I see..."
As it turned out, however, there was another reason why Elsisn and Kinah were unpopular. These natives had no idea who they were.
