Chapter 14 - HER CONCERN

Veronica began to sweat. She was debating whether she should tell him the truth or not. However, she wasn't good at lying because she never lied. She had no reason to lie.

But, there was a high chance for her to be demoted if she told others that she actually broke one of the rules. She could forget about being an apprentice priest in such a case.

She began to stammer, "Umm… the thing is… I was…"

"Did you go out for a stroll?" Cook Felix asked.

"Huh?" Veronica glanced at him. Her emerald pupils were staring at him nervously and confusedly.

Cook Felix laughed and assured her, saying, "Ver, it's fine. You are not the only one who usually goes to the garden in the evening and watches stars. I've seen many of our brothers and sisters doing the same thing. This is nothing to be ashamed of, trust me. I think it's good to gaze upon the stars and think about the future."

Veronica inquired, "The future? Why do we have to think about the future?" She secretly sighed in relief. She couldn't figure out a convincing way to lie to him. He actually saved her by assuming something else entirely.

Cook Felix lectured, "Everyone should think about the future and be prepared for anything. You know, the future doesn't always work the way we expect it to be. That's why we have to be careful. This way, when a storm comes, you won't be swept aside by the strong wind."

"Is that so…" Veronica mumbled while eating. She thought about last night's incident. 'If I had been careful enough, maybe I wouldn't have to work at that place and I wouldn't be assaulted. And also, I wouldn't be…' her thoughts trailed off. Thinking about her shameless behavior last night, her face instantly flushed. She lowered her head and thought, 'I need holy water.'

Even now, she couldn't understand why she did such a thing. It was as if she had turned into a different person completely.

It was unimaginable that she would crave for a man. And she let an unknown man touch her most private area that even she never touched. She shivered concluding that 'the booze' people liked was a cursed liquid. Plain water was much better.

After she was done with her lunch, she went back to the inner temple and wiped the floor of the prayer rooms. When she went back to her room, it was almost midnight. She could barely stand straight. She didn't bother to wipe her hair and went to bed. All of a sudden, she heard a scream. The shrieking noise pierced through her ears.

She jumped out of the bed and opened the door. She wasn't the only one who heard the sound. Others did too. Most of them already went to bed. They opened the doors and came out of their rooms wearing nightclothes. They were puzzled and terrified to hear a horrifying scream in the middle of the night.

Veronica's heart was beating fast. She asked the girl close to her, "Sister, what happened?"

The beautiful girl politely answered, "I don't know. I was in the bed. No one here knows what is going on."

"Shouldn't we check?" Veronica suggested.

Another girl stated, "How can we? It's past curfew."

They couldn't because there was a rule that no one could walk out of the building after midnight except for an emergency. However, no one ever broke this rule and the girls in the tower didn't want to do anything that even pushed those rules to the limit. They were afraid of breaking rules and the consequences that followed.

Veronica questioned them, "Aren't you all worried about who screamed?"

"I believe there is an explanation for that," one of them said. She was a red haired beauty. Her name was Rebecca. She was in charge of the girls of this tower. "We should get some sleep. Everyone has work to do tomorrow. Someone will surely explain whatever happened tonight in the morning."

Everyone agreed with her decision and went back to their rooms. Veronica did the same. But, her heart was very bothered.

She laid on the bed and thought about the scream. It was a screech of a woman. It was so terrifying that her sleepiness flew out of the window as soon as it reached her ears earlier. She shut her eyes and tried to sleep.

However, her unsettled heart couldn't calm down. She opened her eyes and decided to check whatever happened with her own eyes.

It was the first time she had ever heard of a person's horrifying scream. In this peaceful temple, there shouldn't be any incident that could make a person yell like that. She needed to find out the reason.

She changed her clothes and went outside. It was already past midnight and the fires of the torches were long extinguished. She adjusted her eyes and then slowly walked in the absolute darkness.

Growing up in this place, she knew every nook and cranny of this place. Visualizing the place in the dark, she headed to the stairs.

Fortunately, she did not meet anyone in the stairway or she would be grounded for a week. There was a vegetable garden in between the two towers. One tower was for girls. That's where she lived. And the other one was for boys.

Veronica paused in a dark corner and pondered from where the sound came earlier. At that time, she heard some footsteps. Her heart thumped and she quickly hid behind a large pillar.

The owners of the footsteps were in a hurry. They swiftly walked in the direction of the other side of the boys' tower.

'Should I follow them? They could go to the place from where the scream came.' She decided to follow them. While walking, she gazed upon the sky.

It was the new moon but there wasn't a sign of the moon on the horizon. The sky was clouded. The stars were covered with black clouds. The gloomy sky was giving off a sad feeling.

She quickened her steps and followed them from behind. She couldn't see who they were. But, they headed toward the senior priests' chambers.