Above the church ruins, most of the construction debris had been cleared away, leaving a clean patch of ground.
On that ground stood the skeleton of a church, its main structural frame already built, with only the outer walls and some corners remaining.
On either side of the church’s main door hung two banners that read:
“Work overtime, extra hours, extra shifts! Rain or snow, we never stop!”
Even on a night of pouring rain, the church was brightly lit, and a large crowd was working vigorously in the rain.
They completely ignored the harsh weather, letting the rain beat down on them as their hands moved without pause.
“Everyone, hold on! In a few more days, the new church will be finished!”
“For the faith of the good people of Ma’en City, for a better future, we can get through these tough days.”
Pastor Derek stood on the platform before the door.
A small glowing orb floated above his head as he shouted encouragement to the workers around him.
The rain soaked his clerical robe, dripping from the hem to the ground.
He waved his holy symbol, sending out waves of gentle holy light through the curtain of rain, shining upon the workers.
The workers, who should have been exhausted from heavy labor, were invigorated after receiving the blessing, as if injected with pure adrenaline.
They worked even harder, swinging their tools at a frantic pace, leaving trails of mud and rainwater in the air.
“Well done, Old John! Elios has seen your devotion. Tomorrow you’ll get an extra hot white bread roll.”
Derek nodded at a sturdy man, acknowledging his hard work.
Then he made a note in his notebook.
Seeing this, a few others began to follow suit, swinging their tools with all their might.
Sparks flew from the bricks, dazzling and warm in the darkness, and sweat glistened in the rainy night.
“With your help, restoring the glory of the Glimmer Church is within reach!”
Derek shouted loudly, piling on the praise, his flattery enough to make anyone cringe.
Just then, the rain stopped.
A snowflake drifted down from above, landing on Derek’s wet head.
He touched the cold spot on his head and muttered suspiciously:
“Hmm? Snowing?”
“The weather’s way too abnormal…”
Suddenly, a biting wind blew in from outside the city, as if the Queen of the Ice Plains had descended upon Ma’en City herself.
The entire city was coated in frost, the air turned dry, and even the color of the sky shifted to a pale blue of cold.
Raindrops that hadn’t yet fallen from the eaves instantly froze into icicles hanging upside down.
Puddles on the streets rapidly cooled, leaving smooth sheets of ice.
“What?! What’s going on here?”
Derek’s body emitted a soft glow, melting his frozen robe, and he raised a hand to brush ice shards from his hair.
But the workers beside him lacked such special abilities.
Soaked through with rainwater, they were all frozen into ice statues.
Their tools hung motionless in midair, and their faces still wore expressions of fierce effort.
As if time had stopped at that moment.
“This is a big problem…”
Though he didn’t know exactly what was happening, he knew that if he didn’t act immediately, many people might die in this sudden winter night.
Derek quickly went to the workers, chanting a long, obscure incantation.
The next second, the light orb above his head burst into a dazzling white glow, radiating warmth that dispelled the surrounding cold.
The ice statues slowly melted, revealing the shivering workers beneath.
“Is this… the wrath of Lord Elios?”
A worker asked, his lips trembling as he hugged his arms.
Derek’s expression turned serious.
He said in a grave tone:
“Put down your tools immediately. There’s more urgent work to do.”
He turned and walked into the church, then came out carrying a large bundle of scrolls.
He handed one to each worker.
The workers fiddled with the scrolls, but couldn’t figure them out.
They looked up in confusion.
“What are these?”
“Magic scrolls. They contain a spell called ‘Sun Fragment,'” Derek said.
“Your new job is to find residents in the city who have been frozen into ice statues like you were, then tear open these scrolls in front of them to save their lives.”
“Pastor Derek, I—”
“Go now!”
“Yes!”
The worker who wanted to speak was silenced by Derek’s sharp command.
Without another word, the workers each took a bundle of scrolls, and with a glowing orb above them, disappeared into the cold night to provide warmth to other unfortunate victims.
“Well, my church’s expenses are going over budget again…”
Derek lowered his head and sighed with some regret.
These scrolls were all purchased at a low price from the Mage Association in neighboring Mistport at the beginning of the year.
In a backwater like Ma’en City, those lofty mages had no interest in such meager wealth.
So the city had no branch of the Mage Association, and the only way to buy magical items was through the black market or at a high price from the church.
He had planned to wait until winter, when the weather was coldest, and then sell them at a high price to the city’s nobles for a big profit.
But this bizarre cold disaster had suddenly struck, forcing him to use the magic scrolls for emergencies, ruining his profit plan.
More than shiny gold coins, Derek didn’t want any casualties in his parish.
Even if his church went bankrupt, he would squeeze out resources for disaster relief.
“Phew… I hope not too many people die tonight.”
He exhaled a puff of cold air, rubbed his hands, and prepared to head to the church warehouse to check the remaining supplies.
“Derek! Big trouble! Come help!”
From behind came the voice of that Vivian, making his head ache.
‘No, no, don’t cause any more trouble for me, Miss Vivian…’ he thought.
‘Because the last time she showed up late at night, she suddenly wanted me to officiate her wedding, and the result was that my church was destroyed.’
‘Now Derek deeply regretted why he had provoked Vivian three months ago.’
‘He had only tricked five copper coins out of her, but brought a mountain of trouble on himself.’
‘If he could turn back time, he would stay far, far away and never get involved in anything related to Vivian.’
‘Ah, but it’s too late now. Let’s see what she wants this time.’
Derek turned around, his eyes wide as he exclaimed:
“What the hell is that now?!”
Vivian was charging toward him, holding a massive block of ice with both hands above her head.
*CRASH!
The huge block of ice slammed heavily onto the ground with a deafening noise.
“Save Talia! She’s dying!”
Vivian pointed at the ice, speaking urgently.
Derek followed her gaze and saw a rat-girl sealed inside the ice.
She slept peacefully, a faint smile on her lips, as if dreaming of catching a big fish.
But ruining the scene was a bowl-sized hole in her chest, exposed to the night sky.
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