"Bishop?"
Morin stopped in his tracks, staring at Ginsley.
"Morin, this isn't what we agreed upon." Margaret also came to a halt, her face showing displeasure as she said:
"A believer who can become a bishop must possess at least the strength of a Second Rank Wizard. How could we possibly deal with that?"
Ginsley turned his head to glance at Margaret, a smile spreading across his lips:
"Don't worry, why would I joke about my own life?"
His tone shifted as he continued to explain:
"When I said 'bishop,' I merely meant to emphasize their status. In reality, our target is still a priest. And according to my observations, his strength is only at the First Rank level, at most First Rank Upper!"
Upon hearing this, even Morin found himself speechless, replying irritably:
"If it's not a bishop, then why say it is one, unnecessarily causing everyone anxiety?"
Ginsley's smile remained unchanged as he looked around once more.
Impatient, Morin and the disgruntled Margaret stood there, with Colin and the others following behind, intently focused on the conversation here.
Ginsley's grin grew wider, his eyes squinting into slits as he hunched over, moving closer to Morin and Margaret, and whispered:
"When I said he was a bishop, I actually meant that the contribution points he's worth are at least equivalent to those of a believer at the Bishop Level!"
"Hm?"
"Why do you say so?"
Morin and Margaret's interest peaked immediately.
One should know that even slaying hundreds of priests might not yield as many contribution points as one bishop!
Colin and the others looked puzzled from a distance. Ginsley seemed to be using some sort of special technique; they could only see Ginsley conversing with the two, without hearing a sound.
Morin, unaware of this, glanced at Colin and the others nearby, subconsciously thinking of using Silence Magic again.
"Ah, Mr. Morin..."
Ginsley raised his hand, interrupting Morin's action, and whispered with a smile next to his ear:
"They can't hear us."
"However, Mr. Morin, on our Gubier Island, when fishermen catch fish near the shore, no matter how much they catch, they always share some with the Sea Hounds to increase their eagerness to fish...
Even those lowly fishermen understand this principle, Mr. Morin, and this dangerous battlefield we're on now is no calm inshore sea. If you want to succeed in obtaining those contribution points for the bishop later, you can't do without your helpers' efforts."
Morin's eyebrows knitted together... Ginsley was indeed playing a cunning game.
His words seemed to be without problem, but in reality, they just consigned the well-being of others, sparing Ginsley any loss himself!
Increase enthusiasm? Share contribution points?
Who would divide them? It would only come out of the interests of him and Margaret!
As for Ginsley, a Sea Domain Wizard with no use for the Divine Emblem, of course, he would suffer no loss!
"You sure think beautifully," Margaret said coldly.
Under Ginsley's control, Colin and the others, who were further away, might not have heard the dialogue between the two, but she, who was standing right beside them, heard everything loud and clear.
Could it be that Ginsley truly took them for fools?!
"Don't be hasty, my dear, take a look at what this is?"
Ginsley adjusted his position, turning his back to Colin and the others, flipped his left hand, and took out nearly ten dark-red badges from his Storage Ring.
"Divine Emblem..." Morin lifted his head, seemingly realizing something, and asked in a low voice, "Lord Ginsley, what do you mean?"
Ginsley smiled at him but offered no explanation.
Instead, he turned his head towards Colin and the others and announced loudly:
"The bishop I spoke of may not be a true bishop, but his value is at least equal to that of ten priests!"
'Ten priests... wasn't it a hundred priests?' Morin was taken aback.
Ginsley continued speaking.
"Lord Morin and I have discussed this matter, and when the time comes, everyone participating in the battle will get their share of the spoils... However, since there is only one priest's Divine Emblem, we will use the Divine Emblems of the other priests to replace it and distribute them to everyone."
As he said this, Ginsley opened his palm at the right moment, revealing nearly ten Divine Emblems in the center of his hand.
Although they were all priests, and the Divine Emblems represented their status, the divine aura on each emblem was not the same… This is also why the Divine Emblems could be used to discern the identity of the faithful.
At this time, both Morin and Margaret understood Ginsley's intention.
They no longer needed to distribute any Divine Emblem to Colin and the others; it would be Ginsley who would do so.
"It's getting late, so let me briefly describe what's special about that priest."
After stowing away the Divine Emblems, Ginsley looked at Morin and the others and began to speak.
Morin and Margaret fell silent for a moment before Morin nodded first, and shortly after, Margaret also nodded.
For them, giving Divine Emblems to Colin and the others seemed like a waste, and they would rather have the emblems for themselves... However, these Divine Emblems ultimately did not belong to them, and if Ginsley wished to proceed in this manner, they had no say in the matter.
Seeing Morin and the others' nods of agreement relieved Ginsley.
In fact, this had been a spur-of-the-moment idea; the Divine Emblems had been merely collected casually.
He had not even planned to give them to Morin and the others.
After all, strictly speaking, by doing this, they were exploiting a loophole in the rules set by the Supreme Council, and it couldn't be made too public.
However, now that he was giving out these Divine Emblems, ensuring the combat enthusiasm of the wizards brought by Morin and his companion was, for him, the best possible outcome.
After all, that priest... was no simple matter.
Ginsley refocused his thoughts and continued walking forward, clearing his throat, ready to introduce the hidden priest.
"That priest is in a building about two hundred meters ahead.
Though only a priest, I have personally seen him converse on equal terms with bishops of Second Rank Wizard strength, and even seemingly surpass them..."
"Lady Margaret."
But at that moment, a sudden cry came from behind.
Ginsley turned around to see that the oldest wizard, who had accompanied Morin, was lagging behind, looking exhausted and hesitant.
He was the one who had just spoken.
Margaret slowly turned around, her finely arched eyebrows furrowing tightly.
She didn't speak but merely watched the somewhat stooped figure of Mayer with a cold gaze.
"You are... Mayer, right? What's the matter?"
Morin also turned around, first frowning at Mayer, then relaxing his expression and forcing a smile as he spoke.
"Lord Morin, Lady Margaret," Mayer offered them a sheepish smile, wiping the inexplicable sweat from his brow, and said:
"My age and weakness leave me lacking in strength, and I fear that if I proceed, I might hinder the Lords, so..."
Mayer didn't finish his words, but his intention was very clear—he intended to withdraw.