billion book
Chapter 1846
Chapter 1846
That night, Larkin found out that Mary didn’t want to leave the convent. Erica felt a bit down after hearing this, but Mary was a smart kid with her own mind. If that was her choice, Erica respected her decision. After all, things like fate can’t be explained with logic. Content provided by NôvelDrama.Org.
It was only after Abbot passed away that the monks and volunteers at the convent realized that his relationship with Larkin was pretty tight. Larkin was there at the funeral as a family member, standing alongside Abbot’s other disciples. His identity was easy to guess. Soon enough, everyone in the convent knew that Larkin was the one who’d left the monastic life behind, Abbot’s rumored disciple.
What they heard was that this disciple was highly enlightened, understanding so much at a young age. His decision to rejoin secular life had caused quite a stir back in the day. After ten years, people had pretty much forgotten about it. But with Abbot’s funeral, those memories were stirred up again.
“No wonder Mr. Larkin’s morning sermons are so deep, he used to be Abbot’s disciple, huh?” Erica overheard the monks chatting as she arrived home.
“Absolutely, those old folks who were always bugging Mr. Larkin for scripture advice, the moment they found out he was Mr. Carter, the one who’d left the monastic life, their whole attitude changed. They became really snarky, even dragging Erica into it. They were calling her a vixen, claiming she seduced Larkin.”
“Nonsense!” a nun suddenly retorted angrily, “Mr. Larkin has been out of the monastery for ten years. He just got married, what’s that got to do with Erica?”
“Today, when I mentioned this to my daughter, she showed me Mr. Larkin and Erica’s wedding photos. They’re all over the internet,” a volunteer whispered, “It’s pretty clear that Mr. Larkin left the monastic life because of Erica, but at that time she had a boyfriend. Poor Mr. Larkin, he waited for ten years.”
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The nun who had been defending Erica quickly changed her tune, “Even if Larkin left because of Erica, does that make it her fault? Men get lustful, and women get blamed. Is it a crime to be beautiful now? So infuriating!”
After her rant, the nun seemed to realize her outburst and quickly bowed her head, murmuring, “Forgive me, I have sinned.”
Erica chuckled when she heard this, knocking on the door to announce, “I’m back.”
The people inside quickly signaled to drop the topic. As Erica entered, they put on innocent faces and started chatting with her about other things. Erica didn’t call them out on it, just chatted away with them.
Finally, the nun who’d been defending Erica asked, “You guys are leaving soon, right?”
“Yeah,” Erica nodded, “We’re heading to Norhaven first, then to H City. After that, we’ll be leaving H Country for a while.”
“Oh, it’s going to be hard to see you after that,” the nun said with a sad look in her eyes.
“It won’t be as convenient as now, but we can meet up anytime!” Erica replied.
“You better keep your word!” the nun laughed, “We have to stay in touch!”
Even though Erica’s time at the convent wasn’t long, she experienced more kindness there than anywhere else.
After staying at the convent for two more days, Erica and Larkin were about to leave.
Early in the morning, they got up.
Larkin bought flowers and fruits his teacher liked, and then he went to the cemetery.
He crouched in front of the gravestone, wiping off the dew, and then arranged the flowers and fruits.
“Teacher, Erica and I are leaving for a while. Next time we come, it’ll probably be colder,” he said.
On the gravestone, Abbot’s smiling face was full of love.
Larkin gently touched it.
“I’ve read all your annotations in the scripture copies I made. I was once your pride and joy, and for that, I’m really glad.”