Chapter 1515: Chapter 1509: Map of the Holy Capital
The Holy Capital was quite a vast city.
But in terms of functional divisions, it was split into only seven simple and clear districts.
First, of course, was the Cathedral of Holy Grace.
As the core of a religious institution, the actual center of the Holy Capital, and the central hub of the entire Church, it was naturally an incomparably magnificent cathedral, one that stood out as transcendent even in that entire era.
The Church held its daily rites here—sanctuary, purifying pools, holy gardens... all sorts of large-scale religious facilities were present, and the place was entirely open to ordinary citizens, as a display of the Church’s attitude toward the common folk.
The second district, then, was the Priests’ Residential Quarter.
This was where the Church’s true occult personnel lived; ordinary people could enter, but many places here were in fact not open to them.
The Market District and the Commoners’ Residential District were the two largest urban areas of the Holy Capital; together they even occupied more than seventy percent of the city’s entire area.
The former provided all living services for commoners and for all priests in the Holy Capital; the latter was designed to meet the general living needs of the residents, and contained all the basic infrastructure of that society at the time.
After all, even in the Holy Capital, the population structure couldn’t escape the reality that ordinary people made up the overwhelming majority.
And then, the final three districts.
The Gospel District housed a dense cluster of administrative institutions; priests were highly active here, taking on the task of maintaining contact with dioceses all over the world. As the world’s center at the time, this was an extremely important place for the Church.
The Academic District—just as the name implied, this was where the Church’s Grand Library was located, as well as the research departments for various affairs.
Because of its "love of all mankind" stance, this too was open to ordinary citizens.
But a small number of areas, such as the library’s restricted section, were still only accessible to those who had obtained the Church’s permission; this rule had to be followed even by priests who possessed Spellcasting ability.
The Monastery—where the cloistered monks lived.
Only those who had renounced worldly power, devoting themselves solely to serving the divinity and to the study of faith, lived here.
In the Church, figures such as Holy-Seat Priests and Church-Seat Priests had to enter this place in childhood and were not allowed to leave. Only when positions changed would trials be set, to select suitable candidates to assume those offices.
So these seven districts, with the Cathedral as the center and the Priests’ Residential Quarter attached to it.
The Market District and Commoners’ Residential District encircled them at the core, while the remaining districts were set in all directions around them. Combined with the elevation changes of the ground, this formed the basic layout of the entire Holy Capital.
"..."
"Orel, do you have paper and pen here?"
Ronald, who was organizing and translating the information, spoke up.
The King of Giant Beasts, who had been rummaging through scrolls, heard him and nodded slightly, then pulled open a drawer at the bottom of a nearby bookshelf and took out paper.
"There’s still some paper, but as for ink, you’ll have to find your own solution."
Ronald took the sheets. Though yellowed with age, they were thick enough in quality that they were still perfectly usable.
Before Ronald had to think about how to find a pen, Martha handed him a fountain pen, a smile on her face.
"I bought this at the port of ’Springs’ before we set out."
Orel was a bit surprised.
"Paper and pens are cheap enough for ordinary people to afford?"
Martha immediately explained:
"’Gred’s’ productivity is nothing like it was in the past. It really is different now..."
The Holy-Seat Priest and the King of Giant Beasts had sparked another line of conversation.
Ronald, however, remained unmoved. With paper and pen in hand, he had already started, drawing the shape of the Holy Capital himself.
During his trips back and forth between the bookshelf and the others, Orel specifically took time to observe this map, and praised Ronald’s excellent map-drawing skills.
Compared to the map materials left behind by the Holy Capital itself...
Ronald’s map, drawn using all the information he had and modern cartographic techniques, showed a tremendous improvement in both practicality and accuracy.
For the King of Giant Beasts...
Having this map laid out before him allowed him to connect it with his own memories and bring that city slumbering in his mind vividly back to life before his eyes.
And once he had confirmed there was nothing wrong with his map, Ronald began analyzing the current situation with his companions.
"The first thing we absolutely have to determine is where that artificial godhood fragment is located. I think..."
Ronald had only just begun when Orel, over by the bookshelf, immediately interjected:
"Because of my position, I didn’t participate in the artificial deity project. But I can say for certain that, given the circumstances at the time, there’s no way they would have chosen a location with ordinary civilian activity as their experimental site."
Ronald glanced at Orel; the King of Giant Beasts didn’t even turn his head as he offered the reminder.
The information itself wasn’t particularly heavy or light, but the goodwill it conveyed was obvious.
After two seconds of thought, Ronald followed that lead and continued:
"Of the seven districts, the probability of the Cathedral is very low; in nature it’s just like the Commoners’ Residential District. Our targets should be pretty clear—"
Martha, who was also looking at—or rather, admiring—the map, picked up right away:
"The Priests’ Residential Quarter, the Monastery, the Academic District—I think those should be where we focus."
As a Church insider, Martha’s comments carried considerable weight.
After only a brief thought, Ronald raised his voice and called to Orel:
"Orel, where in the Holy Capital will we appear when we enter through the ritual?"
Orel’s reply was disappointing:
"That’s something I can’t guarantee."
"Where the ritual deposits you will vary according to the singing of the people throughout the process. Unless you use an extremely powerful Prophetic Spell to verify it, it’s nearly impossible to pin down."
That made things a bit troublesome...
If only Nicole or Catherine were here.
With Psychological History and Runic Spells, they would definitely be able to meet the needs of the moment.
After all, the people of the Nine Commandments Conclave had already gone into the Holy Capital ahead of them. Under such circumstances, Ronald wanted to narrow the gap between their side and the enemy as much as possible.
Sasha—
In the very second he received that regrettable news, Ronald felt a tug at the hem of his coat.
He shot a discreet glance.
He found that Nade’s expression was fixed on the map, but her Spell was unobtrusively tugging on his hem.
Ronald immediately understood what Nade meant.
His maid had learned to conceal information. Beneath that outwardly unreactive expression, Nade was reminding him—by using Probability Spells, she could make their point of entry into the Holy Capital turn out quite favorable!
At this moment, Nade spoke up:
"Sir, when I read that person’s memories just now, I obtained some information as well."
"The Nine Commandments’ understanding of the Holy Capital is very shallow. There is absolutely no way they can possess such a clear comprehension of this city as we do."
Ronald’s expression relaxed at once.
That being the case, even though the Nine Commandments had already gone in ahead of them...
Compared to that state of utter ignorance, the side that held so much information in hand still possessed an inborn advantage.
If they were lucky—
This might even make up for, or greatly surpass, the difference in timing between the two sides!
