1401 Galamor
"Miss Jasmine. I am Galamor Meras, third son of Cardinal Farsas, a Paladin of the Holy Church of Zurinus," the young man started speaking.
The young man was seemingly in his late 20s, with short golden hair parted at an angle, his fair face almost chiseled, with a sword hanging by the side of his waist.
Jasmine looked flustered at the man's sudden introduction. He threw in words there that she knew a little about, but not enough to know the significance of.
Cardinals, from what she knew, were second only to the Pope. With only 3 people being Cardinals at once, this young man would be someone of a lot of influence in the church.
Of course, she didn't know if he really was the son of a Cardinal or not just yet. For all she knew, anyone under someone in the church could be a son.
They did call priests and such fathers and whatnot.
Ning was quite curious as well. He had bothered to learn a bit more about the church in his preparation before coming here.
The Pope Lucius Gardnerwalt the Third was who Ning had expected to be Zurinus if anyone was it. But he also couldn't discount the fact that it could be someone under the pope, influencing his every move.
As a result, he had learned about the Cardinals and Arch-bishops too. There were 3 Cardinals in total and 10 archbishops, with many bishops and priests throughout the entire world.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtFarsas Meras was one of the Cardinals as well. This meant that the young man before them, Galamor Meras, had to be the actual son of a Cardinal.
Jasmine gave a slight bow. "It is my pleasure to meet a holy knight of the church, sir Galamor," she quickly said. "Can I be of some help to you?"
"There's no need for anything, miss," he said slowly. "I was simply drawn by your beauty. If you wouldn't mind, I would love to talk with you over a cup of tea."
"Oh," Jasmine turned around to look at Ning.
"Are these your friends?" Galamor asked, looking back at Ning and Tim. He didn't give more than a single glance toward Tim, but toward Ning, his eyes narrowed and stopped.
"May I know your name, friend?" he asked.
"You may call me Ning."
"Where is sir Ning from?" the young man asked.
"Far away," Ning replied with a small smile. "Is there a reason why you are asking me this?"
"Not particularly," the young man said, but he found it hard to draw his attention away from Ning. "It is just that I have seen many people in my life. A lot of them are Paladins and holy knights for the church. As a result, I've come to recognize someone who can hold his own in a battle. And you sir Ning, look like you can do more than just that."
Ning gave a wide grin. "I do indeed know a little about fighting," he said. "If you wish to test me on it, I would be glad to give you some lessons."
"Galamor? What is going on?" one of the man's friends approached.
"A problem?" another one asked.
Their hands reached for their sword, but they didn't draw it, simply holding it.
"No, I was just talking with this gentleman here," Galamor said and turned back to Ning. "Your offer is appreciated, but I must decline."
He turned toward Jasmine. "Have you made your decision, miss?" he asked.
"I… mean, sure," she said. "That's fine, right?"
She turned to ask Ning. Ning shrugged. "You are the one he's asking. You're free to make any decision you want," he said.
"Then yes," Jasmine said. "I would love to make an acquaintance of you, sir Galamor."
"May I know where Lady Jasmine is staying? I will come to pick you up tomorrow morning at 8," Galamor said.
Jasmine told him where their hotel was.
"I will arrive in time tomorrow morning," Galamor gave a small bow. "Now, if you will excuse me, I must go fulfill my duty. Farewell."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmGalamor walked away with his group and disappeared around the corner. Whispers came about from all around the street as people who were waiting to get into the restaurant started talking about what they witnessed.
Jasmine remained stunned for a long while before turning around toward Ning. "Did that just happen?" she asked.
"I fear my lady has found herself a date with a knight of the church," Ning said with a chuckle.
"Knock it off," Jasmine said quickly. She looked to where Galamor had disappeared and turned around. "I only accepted so I could get some answer for us. Wouldn't you like to know more about when the Pope will come out?"
"I would absolutely love to know that," Ning said.
"A Paladin," Tim said softly. "That too a son of a Cardinal. I wonder why someone so important is on the fourth level. I would have assumed he would never come down from the first level."
The five levels of the massive mountain of Airan take about an hour each to cross. As a result, people rarely left where they stayed.
"That is curious," Ning said as well, giving a thoughtful look. "I think he might be on a job."
He looked around and tried to see what the other people there were talking about. Listening to everyone, he quickly got an idea of what was going on.
"Ooh, that sounds like good news to me," Ning said suddenly.
"Hmm? What does?" Tim asked, and Jasmine turned around too, curious. "Apparently, Paladins don't usually leave past Level 2, and go to Level 3 at most. However, if they're being seen here, that means they are making sure that the town is safe and in order so they can prepare something important."
"Which means, it is very much likely that the pope is going to parade around the city, very soon."
Ning and the rest could only wonder how many more days that would be.