Chapter 437: Auryndra (01)

Ethan watched in silence as a gigantic cathedral rose up right in the heart of Windmere’s residential district.

White stone climbed from the ground in columns, arches, and towers. The ground trembled slightly beneath his feet, and a deep, constant rumble echoed through the surrounding streets, rattling shutters and sending a fine dust drifting through the air.

In size, it was similar to Goldenveil Cathedral. Perhaps a little smaller, but still large enough to hold ten thousand worshippers in its main hall.

The architecture followed the same style as well. The difference lay in the colors: instead of only white and green, splashes of red spread across the walls and towers, forming beautiful, intricate leaves that seemed to blaze against the pale stone.

Ethan’s eyes, however, did not linger on the cathedral for long. They soon drifted down to the central gate.

From there, he sensed a fourth-stage aura emerge.

Weaker than Arwen’s, no doubt, but still powerful enough to make the air around the gate feel heavy.

And alongside it, more than a hundred third-stage auras flared up one after another, like embers being fanned into life.

That was the Priestess of the Fire Leaf, Arwen’s younger sister, along with the one hundred and fifty paladins who served her cathedral.

And, naturally, it was Auryndra who drew the most attention when her silhouette emerged beneath the arch of the gate.

Her hair was a vibrant red, so vivid it seemed to be ablaze, falling in heavy waves over her shoulders. Beneath her still-closed eyelids, her eyes held the same hue.

Her skin had the same pallor as Arwen’s, and the dress that covered her voluptuous body blended white, red, and gold.

The light fabric clung to every curve, hugging her slender waist and stretching taut over her full, heavy breasts.

Her delicate feet touched the snow-white path leading into the cathedral. With every step, her wide hips swayed gently from side to side, and her heavy breasts gave a soft, lazy bounce beneath the fabric.

The skirt brushed against her thick thighs, the light cloth outlining their plump curves with each stride.

Behind her, one hundred and fifty female paladins, all at the third stage, emerged in perfect ranks, the soft clink of metal accompanying each step.

They wore the same elven silver armor as the paladins of Goldenveil Cathedral, and they were every bit as sensual and beautiful.

The polished metal molded to their bodies like a second skin, cinching slender waists and curving over full breasts and wide hips. Sunlight glinted off every pale curve, and their silver capes danced in the wind.

"Ah~" Auryndra’s lips parted in a high-pitched moan, as pained as it was seductive, her long eyelashes quivering and a faint shiver running down her body.

For a moment, pain crossed her face, her thin eyebrows drawing together. But the expression quickly faded as her eyelids slowly lifted, revealing a pair of red eyes that glowed like embers.

She sensed a familiar aura even before her vision cleared. Her eyes immediately fell on the woman standing beside Ethan.

Shock washed over her delicate features. Her lips parted slightly, and she took a step back, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

"A-Arwen?" she called out, her voice trembling, one hand slowly rising to her chest.

Ethan had already confirmed to Arwen that it would indeed be possible to use his ability to bring her younger sisters back. All eleven of them.

Still, seeing Auryndra standing right there in front of her, alive and breathing, Arwen couldn’t suppress the tremor in her heart.

She parted her lips, but didn’t have time to say anything.

Auryndra had already closed the distance in a few hurried steps, her heavy breasts bouncing beneath the thin dress.

She threw her arms around her sister, hugging her tightly, her face buried in the curve of her neck.

The bodies of the two high elves pressed against one another.

Two pairs of incomparable elven breasts—too large and heavy for any mortal hands to contain—squeezed together between their delicate bodies.

The soft mounds flattened against one another, bulging out to the sides, the pale, ample flesh swelling up and spilling over the necklines with every tightening of the embrace.

Arwen returned the embrace, unable to keep from smiling or to stop her eyes from welling up.

"It’s been so long, little sister..." she murmured, her voice low. "How was it after I left?"

"It was terrible..."

Auryndra pulled back just enough to look at her, her breasts sliding free of the press and settling back with a soft, heavy sway.

Pain was etched on her beautiful face, and her eyes brimmed with tears.

"Some of the sisters managed to preserve a few seeds from the Tree of Life, but most of us had already been poisoned by those damned demons."

She swallowed hard, her fingers clenching the fabric of Arwen’s dress.

"In the end, we had no choice but to sacrifice ourselves as well, to protect what remained of our people."

Her voice faltered for a second before she continued.

"I managed to withstand the poison for two thousand years... but, in the end, I fell too."

"You suffered so much because of me..." Arwen whispered, stroking her younger sister’s red hair. Her fingers glided slowly through the soft strands, warm and silky against her skin, as her eyes closed.

All around them, the paladins who had been guarding Arwen had also stepped forward to meet the newcomers.

They found many familiar faces among them, and soon tight embraces filled the white path, silver breastplates clinking softly as armored bodies pressed close and capes tangled in the wind.

In the future, Ethan planned to establish a rotation system among the paladins from outside Goldenveil, so that they could always visit the other sisters and spend time at the palace.

Without interrupting the reunion, the handsome young man let his eyes slowly drift to the status screen of the Church of Goldenveil.

[Name: Church of Goldenveil

Description: A newly formed church that worships life, death, and beauty.

Level: 2

Supreme Priestess: Arwen

High Priestess 1: Auryndra, leader of the Cathedral of the Fire Leaf.

Number of Priestesses: 16

Cathedrals: 2

Churches: 5

Follower Count: 155,916

Zeal: 88%

Defensive Paladin Order: Order of the Silver Wings

Military Forces: 350 female paladins

Average Level: 64

Treasury: 132,000 gold coins

Upgrade Requirements: 155,916/50,000 followers, Zeal 88%/72%, 25,000 gold coins, 5/7 churches, 2/1 cathedrals.]

The number of faithful had truly skyrocketed in recent weeks. At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before virtually the entire population of Goldenveil County had converted.

It was a shame the system hadn’t built the current churches, and that Arwen had been forced to hastily train the few priestesses they had.

Still, for a start, it was very good.

Soon, the church would be able to train priestesses more formally, and with Auryndra’s help, everything would become much easier.

A subtle smile touched Ethan’s lips as he looked back at the two sisters, still locked in their embrace in the shade of the new cathedral.