East Road Quest

Chapter 14: Athina Monastery

Athina Monastery, located two hours away from the city of Rome, was an area that no man, not even a priest, could enter. Instead, a small chapel for male believers was prepared in a separate building, which opened at four in the morning.

Father Daniel entered that place.

Bryon, feeling repelled by the space of the monastery, decided not to enter and waited outside. Daniel was rather relieved. The matters concerning Saph were not suitable information to share with a young friend like Bryon, who enjoyed chattering.

The chapel, like other cathedrals, had several crucifixes hanging, and next to them stood a marble statue of Saint Magdalene.

Magdalene was known as a woman who received revelations directly from the archangel Gadriel and wrote the scriptures. One-third of the scripture that everyone reads now was written by her.

In Catholicism, a monastery was a place created for women who followed the life of Magdalene, who had dedicated her entire life to God.

The monastery did not only house nuns or novices. Many noblewomen studied at the monastery from as young as fourteen, up to eighteen years old. This was because there were no other places for women to study. Theological colleges and academies were entirely filled with male teachers and students, making them unsuitable for young women to study.

At least, women who entered the monastery had an opportunity to study. In an extreme case, the queen of the Kingdom of Farence did not even have the chance to learn and still could not read.

Women who studied here faced a crossroads once they turned eighteen. They had to choose whether to remain and become a nun, graduate and serve in another order, or return home to get married.

“Saph is turning eighteen this year.”

It had not even been ten minutes since Daniel sat waiting in the chapel when Mother Julia, the head of the monastery, came to find him. Over sixty years old, her cheeks had many vertical wrinkles, but she was still charming when she smiled.

Mother Julia sat next to Daniel. He looked at the statue of the saint as he responded to her.

“Time flies. It’s time for Saph to make a choice.”

In fact, neither of them knew Saph’s exact birthday. They only considered the day Mother Julia found the baby in a basket on the orphanage steps as her first birthday.

“By the way, I’m sorry for coming at such an early hour.”

Daniel apologized belatedly.

Julia shrugged.

“Oh, it’s nothing new. It’s not the first time Father has come unannounced and disturbed our peace.”

Daniel smacked his lips and scratched the back of his head. Julia sighed and continued.

“And coincidentally… No, if I say it’s a coincidence, Father will be pleased, but I have no other words. Coincidentally, I couldn’t sleep at all last night.”

“Judging by your short breath, it seems you came from afar?”

“I came up from the orphanage.”

Athina Monastery also managed an orphanage. Athina Orphanage, located five minutes away, housed over a hundred orphans, and the nuns here took care of them. It seemed that Mother Julia had been there herself today.

“Did something happen?”

“By coincidence, it’s about Saph.”

Daniel drew in a breath.

Mother Julia smiled weakly as she spoke.

“First, I should ask why Father Daniel has come.”

“‘Coincidentally,’ I’ve come to see Saph. I’m about to embark on a long journey, so I came to say goodbye.”

“A long journey, are you going to search for the Holy Grail?”

Julia joked. When Daniel remained silent, Julia was instead flustered and shook her head.

“Let’s pretend I didn’t say that.”

“Let’s do that.”

After a brief cough, Daniel asked.

“So, what happened to Saph?”

“As you know, Saph has some special physical characteristics.”

### Saph’s Secret

A white horn sprouted from the top of Saph’s head. As a baby, it was merely a small bump. However, it gradually grew, and by the time Saph was five, it had clearly taken the shape of a horn, growing slightly each year. Now, it was about the length of two knuckles of an index finger.

The issue of the horn was serious from the moment it was discovered. Julia had kept it a secret from everyone except a few nuns and consulted with Daniel about whether to send Saph to the Holy See for an examination or to keep it a secret forever.

Daniel had said to keep it a secret, as he would take full responsibility.

To conceal the horn, Saph wore a small white coif. It was not unusual for a nun to wear a hat, as the type, color, and style of hats varied by country. If Saph lived as a hidden nun, she could hide the horn on her head for the rest of her life.

There was another problematic physical characteristic. It was the color of Saph’s hair. Initially, it was an ordinary brown, but as she passed the age of ten, it gradually changed as if it were bleaching, and now it was a clear sky-blue color.

Moreover, the child, who had been merely cute when young, became more and more beautiful as she grew older. She wasn’t just pretty, but beautiful enough to stop passersby in their tracks.

There was a time when everyone at the monastery helped prepare for a major service. Since only female believers attended the service, Julia thought there wouldn’t be an issue. However, it wasn’t just men who could be captivated by beauty.

Saph’s appearance even drew the attention of the female believers. With that one exposure, she earned the nickname “The Blue-Haired Saint.” Strange rumors spread that having a strand of her hair would make your hair smooth, make you loved by your husband, and win the heart of the man you admired.

Now, Saph had to change from wearing a coif that only covered her horn to wearing a nun’s habit that covered her entire head. Although she wasn’t officially a nun yet, wearing the official habit made the other novice nuns preparing for the sisterhood jealous.

Julia still regretted that incident.

“Because of my mistake, a child who shouldn’t have been the center of attention became a hot topic. For the past year or two, Saph hasn’t been able to go out at all. She couldn’t work in the fields or play the ball games she loved…”

“Wasn’t the story about Saph’s hair just a rumor among women?”

“Women’s rumors tend to get passed on to men. And as rumors usually go, they get distorted and exaggerated. Men have even started coming to the monastery just to get a glimpse of the saint.”

“Wouldn’t Cardinal Pietro send a few soldiers if you asked him?”

“Aren’t those soldiers men?”

Daniel let out a short groan. Julia continued, lamenting.

“There was something I wanted to ask you about.”

“Go ahead.”

“Recently, Saph has been very depressed. I heard that the priest you were in contact with was excommunicated? His name was Jade?”

“That’s right.”

“It seems Saph relied on Father Jade much more than I thought. I only thought it was a simple curiosity that a young girl has towards the opposite sex.”

“Jade felt the same way. They only met a few times, but they cared for each other like siblings. I believed that if they continued to help each other grow, they would make great contributions not only to the Rome Priesthood but to the entire Catholic Church.”

“Contributions? Hearing such exemplary words from you, Father Daniel, makes me think you have a favor to ask?”

Julia asked perceptively.

Daniel, taken aback, responded.

“I really just came to say goodbye to Saph.”

“That’s not difficult. But I’m not sure if Saph will want to meet you.”

“Because of the issue you mentioned earlier?”

“As you know, Saph is a child without expression. It’s almost bizarre how expressionless she is. She doesn’t smile, cry, get angry, or show sadness. But I know that it’s only an external appearance, and she isn’t devoid of emotions.”

Julia continued in a sorrowful voice.

“But misunderstandings start from such things. She was already a child with enough potential for misunderstanding due to her horn…”

Julia hesitated to continue. Daniel listened with growing tension.

### “Just recently, her hat was knocked off at the orphanage. It was the doing of the princess from the Duchy of Lithuana.”

“Oh my goodness.”

Julia slowly began to tell the long story.

Fourteen-year-old Princess Alma had been full of complaints since she arrived at Athina Monastery.

She had expected a grand monastery like St. Vesta Cathedral, towering in the middle of Rome, or the Setina Cathedral in Rotican. Disappointed by the shabby appearance of the monastery, the princess complained about everything and confronted the head nun.

She demanded a better bed, better meals, flowers instead of vegetables in the garden, clothes made from fabrics brought directly from Lithuana, and three maidservants.

Julia calmly refuted each demand.

She said none of these demands could be met. If the princess disliked the monastic life, she was free to return to her homeland. No one would stop her. If she still wanted to argue, she should take it up with Bishop David, who had granted her unreasonable request to study the doctrine in Rome. If the complaints continued, Julia would inform Duke Rubilite!

For about half a year, the princess appeared to endure and adapt. Mother Julia decided to let her be as long as she didn’t cause any major trouble, thinking the girl would eventually tire out and give up.

Julia had let her guard down. Princess Alma harbored strange delusions.

The princess was convinced that staying at this monastery would make her a saint like Magdalene. In her mind, Magdalene was a beautiful woman who captivated all men, commanded the respect of women, and reigned over the people like a queen. Alma wanted to be seen like that when she ruled the Duchy of Lithuana in the future.

Julia believed that a few months of study would correct such delusions, but an incident occurred before that.

Alma met Saph.

Saph had everything Alma wanted. She was beautiful, tall, had fair skin, shiny hair, was smart, and always composed. The believers visiting the monastery called her the “Blue-Haired Saint,” and she was respected by other nuns. Moreover, Saph was kind to everyone, including Alma, and tried to help her with her studies.

Saph’s aloof demeanor and lack of expression made Alma see her kindness as arrogance. It became a provocation. The princess’s jealousy and anger flared uncontrollably.

Having learned politics and schemes from her father rather than kindness and consideration, Alma began to search for Saph’s weakness. She discovered that Saph had never taken off her hat in front of people.

Alma assumed Saph was hiding a bald head under her hat. Perhaps it was because her relatives on her father’s side were all bald, and she had seen them wear hats to cover it.

Alma decided to humiliate Saph in front of everyone. A week ago, she tricked Saph into coming to the orphanage by lying that the head nun had called her.

That day, all the orphans had gathered for prayers and songs. Excited to see the children after a long time, Saph went to the orphanage. Thinking there was nothing to hide from the orphans who already knew about her blue hair, she wore a simple coif instead of the usual nun’s habit that covered her hair.

Alma asked Saph to sing in front of the children, and Saph, without any suspicion, stepped forward.

Alma didn’t even do it herself.

Instead, Megle, a peer noble who had been forcibly brought to the monastery because of Alma, committed the act.

Megle approached Saph, who was singing beautifully, and snatched off her hat. For the first time, everyone saw the white horn protruding from Saph’s blue hair.

The children screamed, and the nuns who had never seen it were horrified. Alma and Megle were also surprised. But the cunning Alma didn’t miss the opportunity and shouted to the orphans.

“She’s a witch! She’s a witch disguised as a saint! Look at that horn. It’s the proof. Call the inquisitor immediately!”

Hearing up to this point, Daniel held his head in his hands.

“My goodness, I wish I could slap that Alma girl. So, did the inquisitor come?”

“I stopped him. I made an excuse that it was a misinterpreted bump on her head. But I don’t think I can hold them off for long. Princess Alma is still demanding why the inquisitor hasn’t come, and she’s threatening to send a letter to Rotican in Duke Rubilite’s name if necessary.”

Julia looked at the statue of the saint as she continued.

“The problem is Saph. I intended to send her away to a distant place and asked her what she wanted. Do you know what she said? She said she might really be a demon and wanted to stand trial.”

Daniel’s eyes widened.

“What on earth does that mean?”

“She hasn’t spoken at all since then. I’m worried she’ll go looking for the inquisitor herself if we leave her alone, so we’re keeping a close watch on her. Until now, I thought I could guess her inner thoughts despite her expressionless face, but at this crucial moment, I can’t understand what she’s thinking.”

“May I speak with her?”

“Please do. I thought only two people could comfort Saph right now, and one of them has arrived. I wish Jade could come, but he can’t because he was excommunicated.”

“Jade’s excommunication has been lifted.”

“Can that even happen?”

Julia was surprised and then shook her head.

“No. Don’t answer that. As always, Father Daniel, you must have used some cowardly and insidious means that I don’t want to hear about. Stay here. I’ll bring Saph.”