"How to accurately use the language of the nobility and master the different honorifics and titles of address is an incredibly tedious course!"
Anthony wiped down a small blackboard behind him. "But before the lesson begins, I would first like to introduce you to a god..."
Anthony produced a badge from inside his chest. On it was the holy symbol of a tome, layered with a hazy, ethereal glow.
"Do you recognize it?" Anthony asked softly.
"I do! It is the holy symbol of the great God of Knowledge, OGMA!" Leylin nodded honestly.
Anthony's smile broadened. "Indeed! The great God of Knowledge, OGMA, is the faith of us all scholars, the origin of all knowledge..."
He gave Leylin a meaningful look. "And also, it is the faith of your Falane family. Do you offer prayers regularly?"
"I've seen my parents do it!" Leylin replied. After all, one couldn't expect too much from a child.
"Very good! Now, follow my lead!"
Anthony's expression became devout and holy. "Great God of Knowledge, you are the origin of all knowledge, the master of truth..."
Internally, Leylin rolled his eyes, but could only follow along with the prayer. "...Your radiance spreads throughout the entire world, driving away barbarism and ignorance, bringing us the light of civilization..."
His young, tender voice echoed continuously in the small sitting room, while outside the door, Jonas and Sarah wore smiles on their faces.
*So this teacher, besides giving me language lessons, is also giving me lessons on the gods...*
Leylin felt a bit gloomy inside, but his face showed not a hint of impatience. Instead, it was filled with earnestness and focus, causing Anthony to silently nod in approval.
In truth, Leylin knew this was entirely unavoidable.
After all, the gods' influence on this world was far too profound. If he wanted to maintain his disguise here, he had to transform himself into a believer.
A person without faith in a world ruled by gods was a monster, with no room to survive.
Fortunately, the gods only heavily influenced and marked the souls of their devout followers and fanatics, while paying little attention to casual believers who had merely been touched by a god's divine light.
Even more perfectly, unless one served as a priest of a god, the degree of one's faith was entirely invisible to outsiders.
After all, it was only scheduled prayers and the occasional donation to the church. This kind of surface-level showmanship was something Lei Lin felt he could perform perfectly well.
The God of Knowledge, Ogma — as far as Lei Lin knew, this was a deity worshipped by many nobles and scholars, or in other words, the cultural elite.
And it so happened that the former cared only for their own interests while the latter valued practical rules above all else. Neither group was likely to be particularly devout, so Lei Lin would not stand out among them at all — making this one of his best possible choices.
"If I didn't choose this one, then on the Faolan family's territory, there was only one other deity — Ilmater, the God of Suffering!"
Lei Lin shuddered from head to toe.
Ilmater was a deity brimming with the spirit of devotion and sacrifice. His doctrines mainly exhorted believers to endure and obey — precisely the kind of god that rulers loved to introduce to their territories.
Baron Jonas was no exception. On his current fief, only these two churches existed, and a pattern had already formed: the upper classes worshipped the God of Knowledge, while ordinary farmers and sailors followed Ilmater.
The Baron still harbored hopes of bringing the church of Waukeen, the Goddess of Wealth, into his territory, but so far he had not succeeded.
Trade across the entire island was not yet prosperous enough, let alone subject to a joint boycott by the other two churches. The wealth priests, who knew that making money took priority over proselytizing, naturally did not think much of the place.
"Excellent!"
Seeing a burst of white holy light drift up from the holy emblem and cascade over Lei Lin, every wrinkle on Anthony's face smoothed out into a beaming smile.
"The great God of Knowledge has accepted your prayer. From now on, you may accompany your parents to the Temple of Knowledge and the church to participate in holy ceremonies and make offerings..."
"That will be my honor!" Lei Lin replied stiffly, a trace of relief stirring within. As expected, this soul of his was completely native to the gods' world — it had not aroused the slightest suspicion. As long as he maintained this level of devotion and stayed beneath their notice, there would certainly be no problems...
Of course, Lei Lin also knew that he had completely closed off the path of becoming a priest.
After all, the faith requirements for priests were extremely demanding. Not only did one need to fully understand and follow the deity's doctrines, but one's very soul belonged to the deity itself.
If his own soul were exposed to the gaze of the gods, Lei Lin would have no confidence that he could hide anything.
"With my mentality, I'm afraid I wouldn't even qualify for the lowest rank of priest..."
Lei Lin was quite speechless at his own thoughts.
"Now then, let us begin today's lesson. Incidentally, the compensation your father offered me is three gold coins per sandglass hour!"