As we flew further toward the east, I noticed something worrisome: my air bubble was losing altitude! Indeed, the details of the ground below me were becoming more precise and apparent. "Are we going down soon?" I yelled out.

Lady Luck flew closer to me. "We'll land in about an hour or so," she confirmed.

Seeing that the Goddess was not worried about my plight, I became convinced that I was in no danger of dropping from the sky. By my estimate, we were traveling at a speed of a few hundred miles an hour. Utilizing an avoidance tactic, I spent my time in flight meditating instead.

Before I knew it, we landed in the courtyard in front of a church building. I recognized it as the Westminster Abbey in London. When I heard a loud "POP" sound, I knew that my air bubble had burst. I opened my eyes and saw something unexpected: the commoners and clergy alike surrounded me. All of them were kneeling and scrapping their foreheads on the ground. To me!

I looked up and saw that my six patron deities were slowly flying away. Ah! I immediately understood why the people were acting in this manner. It was the first time that the faithful had seen the Gods with their own eyes, and the worshippers were offering their respects. In other words, they were NOT prostrating themselves to little old me.

The absence of noise in the ordinarily loud streets of London was eery. I pulled myself off the ground and tried to sneak away from the crowd. However, someone made a loud "AHEM!" I slowly turned around and saw Saint John the Kind standing in front of the main entrance of the church building.

"Arise, my children! Please enter and pray to the Gods!" the Saint invited. "As for you, Brother Mulligan, we need to talk."

I hurriedly approached the church leader before the horde of believers rushed into the building. I knelt, took his right hand, and kissed his ring.

The church leader waited patiently for me to discharge the custom. "Please follow me," he said. Saint John entered the Abbey, led me up the stairs, and took me to his study on the second floor. "Please have a seat," the old man said. He walked around his desk to take the chair behind it. Once I was seated before him, Saint John began our discussion: "You have returned from Carmarthen."

I nodded. I was surprised to learn that he knew already. But then again, it was likely that Van had informed the Saint of my mission. Furthermore, I did not forbid the paladin from reporting this matter to Saint John, either.

"Can I examine the Staff of Merlin?" he requested politely.

I placed the magical item on the table.

Saint John held the staff in his hand and examined it. "I see that it has been soul bound to you. Excellent!" He placed the staff on the table and looked at me. "I will inform Regent Paget. He will most likely ask to examine the Staff of Merlin, too. Once he is satisfied that the relic has been soul bound to you, the Regent will permit his faction in The Twelve to support your bid for kingship and recognize you as the Champion of Order."

"What should I do in the meantime?" I asked.

The church leader smiled at me. "Rest. You've had a long journey. It will take some time to gather The Twelve. Once they have arrived, I will ask someone to inform you."

"Your Eminence, I have something urgent to report. While flying from Carmarthen, I saw a large army of demihumans on the march. Arthur de Viere is leading them, and he is riding a red dragon," I reported.

To his credit, Saint John's face remained neutral. "I'm aware of it," he admitted for a long moment of silence. "Lady Musa has sent me a dream warning of the impending danger. Arthur has become the Champion of Chaos. He has been flying across the northern parts of Britannia to conquer and consolidate the land under his control. The Church is keeping a close eye on his activities. Once you have become the Champion of Order, we will mobilize our forces under your banner to push back our enemies."

"Also, I should point out that, normally, to acquire our recognition as the Champion of Order, you need to have reached Level 20. However, you are a Dual-Class Player Character, and it would be unfair to penalize you in that way since you need double the normal experience to advance a character level. It takes 190,000 Experience Points to reach Level 20 as a single-class character, but you already have more than that. Nonetheless, I ask that you advance your character to Level 17 and gain access to Ninth-Tier magic. Once you have done so, Regent Paget will not be able to withhold his support for you," the cleric advised.

I nodded in understanding.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. *KNOCK-KNOCK*

"Come in," the saint said.

The door opened, and Van entered the study. The paladin approached the saint and kissed the church leader's ring.

"Please sit down," Saint John said.

Van took the empty seat to my left. He stared at the Staff of Merlin, which was still on the table. Van's eyes lit up once he read its caption. He slowed turned his face toward me. Wonderment was etched on his face. "Brother Mulligan, praise the Gods of the Law and Order for your success!" He patted my shoulder roughly.

"-1 Health." Ouch.

"Sorry about that!" the paladin laughed.

Saint John cleared his throat and gave Van a disapproving look. "Van, you are to resume your role as Brother Mulligan's bodyguard. The Gods of Chaos will send assassins after Brother Mulligan's life. If they succeed, it will be catastrophic for us all! In the meantime, I will send a request to the Sisters at the Convent of Saint Mary and ask them to permit Sister Waverly to accompany Brother Mulligan. I would feel more comfortable if there is a healer nearby if anything happens to him," the old cleric explained.

Suddenly, the church bell tolled twelve times. It was already noon.

The church leader looked at me and smiled. "Why don't you have lunch with your brothers in the refectory?" he suggested.

I nodded.

"Van, please take Brother Mulligan to the refectory," the saint ordered. Saint John looked at me again and added, "I should note that the brothers observe strict silence during their meals, and you will be asked to observe this rule as well."

"Yes, Holy One," I replied.

"You may leave," he said.

I gathered my staff. The two of us rose from our seats, bowed deeply to Saint John the Kind, and quietly left his study.

When we returned to the hallway, I asked Van quietly, "Is there anything else I should know before we arrive at the refectory?"

The paladin shook his head. "Stay silent and blend in with the clergymen. When you are ready to leave, give me a signal with your hands."

"Okay," I agreed.

Van led me down the stairs. We walked through a long hallway and then made a right turn. We entered a room with a long table on the left and right side of the room. There were an elevated platform and a shorter table at the opposite end of the room. One person was seated at that table.

When the cleric, an old looking man dressed in a red robe, saw me enter the refectory, he immediately stood up. Observing the silence, the man motioned with his hand for us to join his table.

As we quietly crossed the refectory, the clergymen stared at me. Their eyes gazed on my Staff of Merlin. They were mesmerized by the relic and what it meant to possess this historical artifact.

We reached the small table within two minutes, but it felt like an eternity due to the intense attention of my fellow brothers.

I looked at the man's caption, and his name was "Abbot Combs."

The Abbot smiled at me. He pointed his finger at me, and then to the empty seat to his right. He then gestured for Van to sit to his left.

Once we took our seats, servants placed a tray before each of us.

I looked at the table, and I saw a bowl of vegetable soup, an egg on the side, two pieces of bread, and a mug of beer.

Abbot Combs gestured for me to eat.

I smiled politely and started eating. My soup contained plenty of diced carrots, which caused the broth to turn a deep orange color. The soup also had cabbage and parsnip. Thankfully, a tiny bit of pepper and ginger were also added to bring flavor to the soup. Unfortunately, the bread was hard, and I had to dip it into the soup to soften the bread.

Frankly, this was not the celebratory fare that I would choose for myself after my death-defying trip to Carmarthen. But I was a member of the Church, and thus, I had to eat whatever the Church served in the refectory. I ate quickly and waited patiently for Van to finish his meal. Then I pointed at the exit on the other end of the dining hall.

Van nodded. He took one last sip of his beer and then rose from his seat.

I bowed deeply to Abbot Combs and stood up.

To my surprise, my host also rose from his seat. He gestured for us to follow him out.

As we walked across the refectory, my fellow clergymen raised their mugs in salute.

I nodded politely in acknowledgment.

The three of us left the refectory and entered the hallway. Once we were a reasonable distance away from the dining hall, the abbot stopped walking and turned toward me. "Brother Mulligan, do you know how to fight with a staff?" he asked while glancing at my weapon.

I shook my head.

Abbot Combs smiled broadly. "Would you be interested in learning from me?" he proposed.

"Sure!" I replied enthusiastically.

Van tried to speak up, but a dark look from the abbot silenced him.

The cleric took us down another corridor, which emptied into a courtyard.

I looked around and saw that high walls surrounded the courtyard and prevented outsiders from watching the training sessions of the clergymen. Many clerics were practicing against training dummies. Other clergymen were fighting barehanded against each other.

The abbot led us to a corner; near it, wooden staves were stored in a rack. He examined each weapon with an expert eye until he found one that was similar in length to my Staff of Merlin. He handed the staff to me. "Please use this for practice," Abbot Combs requested.

I took the weapon from him and handed my relic to Van. I also gave the paladin my various bags; I didn't want my items, especially my potions, to be damaged during my practice session with the abbot.

The old cleric took another staff from the rack and turned to face me. "Attack me," he ordered.

I had no idea how to attack with my weapon. I decided to hold one end in both hands, and I swung the staff like a baseball bat. *CRACK*

With the speed of a serpent, Abbot Combs smacked the end of his staff against my fingers.

The sudden pain loosened my gripe, and my practice staff dropped to the ground. "-5 Health, -5% Attack. Status: Disarmed." I flexed my fingers to shake off the pain.

"Lesson number one: you can't swing a staff like that, or else you will be easily disarmed," my instructor lectured.

I cast Minor Heal on myself and the pain dissipated from my hands. I retrieved the practice weapon from the ground. "How should I attack?" I asked him.

The abbot smiled and began his lecture. "The advantage of the staff is its superior reach compared to other weapons such as swords and daggers. You can use this advantage to disarm your opponent. The second advantage is speed. When you attack with a sword, your arm swings out. In contrast, you can jab and thrust with a staff. There is less movement in your arms, and the attack is faster as a result. The third advantage is that you can use your staff to aim at your opponent's weak spots such as the head, neck, solar plexus, wrists, and knees. Warriors will disdain the staff bearers to their regrets."

Once I listened to Abbot Combs' lecture, I began to appreciate the complexities of using the staff as a weapon. I didn't realize that there were so many ways to use it!

*Crack* My instructor slammed the end of his staff on the ground to draw my attention. "Follow me," he ordered. He led me to a training dummy. "I want you to practice using your staff to attack. You may use jabs, thrusts, and swings."

As I approached the training dummy, I tried to remember all the old Kung Fu films I had seen in the past. Truthfully, none of the martial artists held the staff like a bat. Instead, one hand usually held the middle section of the stick to aim and steer, while the strong hand gripped the end to apply power. I pretended I was in the billiard and aiming the cue ball on a pool table. *Thud* I landed the first jab at the dummy's torso.

"Good!" my instructor praised me. "Okay, I need you to practice attacking the head, neck, and torso. I think 500 times in each spot will suffice," he ordered.

I stared at the abbot incredulously. I will be spending the entire afternoon doing this!

*Crack* Abbot Combs jammed the end of his staff on the ground. "Is there a problem?" His voice had an edge.

"No, Abbot!" I replied immediately.

"Then, start hitting!"

"I'll count for you, Brother Mulligan," Van offered.

I started hitting the practice dummy. Fueled by anger and frustration at my predicament, I spent only 90 minutes to attack the head 500 times. I alternated between jabbing and swinging because the head was a large target. It took over three hours to complete the second portion of my practice session targeting the neck area. My arms were tired, but Abbot Combs refused to give me a break.

"Keep going!" he yelled and cracked his staff.

The third set of my practice against the torso was both easier and harder. The chest had many vulnerable spots such as the ribs, the solar plexus, the abdomen, and the kidneys. However, I had hit the dummy a thousand times already, and my arms were ready to fall off. Through my strength of will alone, I managed to complete the third portion in four-and-a-half hours.

"500!" Van yelled.

I immediately dropped to the ground and laid flat on my back. I could not feel my hands and arms. I stared at the sky. It was already nightfall. But the courtyard was illuminated with Light Spheres.

Abbot Combs peered down at my face with a smile. "You have a powerful will. It will serve you well in protecting our people. You have passed. Congratulations," he said with open admiration.

"Major faction quest COMPLETED. ACQUIRED: Staff Proficiency. +1,000 XP, +2,000 Reputation, +4,000 XP."

"You can't spend the night in the courtyard." My instructor offered his hand, and he helped pull me off the ground. "You can't leave either because curfew has arrived. You will need to spend the night in our dormitory." The abbot raised his hand.

A young boy ran over and stood before Abbot Combs.

"Please take these brothers to the dormitory. Also, send dinner to their room," the abbot ordered.

The boy bowed and then turned to face Van and me. "Please follow me." The lad took us through a long hallway until we reached the end. Then, we entered a corridor and stopped in front of a double door. He knocked on the door.

The right door right opened, and a cleric dressed in brown robes stood in the doorway. "Yes?"

"Abbot Combs has asked these two brothers to spend the night in the dormitory. And they require supper, too," the boy explained.

The cleric nodded. "Please come inside, brothers." He took us to a room on the second floor and opened the door. "I hope this room is satisfactory," he said.

I looked inside the room. It had a bed on the left and right side of the room with a small window in between the beds. In front of the window was a small table. On the table was a candle which was lit, a candleholder, and a towel. On the ground was a bucket of water. "This room is fine. Thank you," I replied.

Once Van and I entered the room, the cleric said, "I will send someone to bring your supper." He closed the door and left.

I cast Light to provide more illumination to the room. I took the left bed and placed my messenger bag on the ground. I laid down on the bed. Unfortunately, it was harder than I was accustomed to.

"What are your plans for tomorrow?" Van asked as he began to remove his armor.

"I need to contact Rijana and the elven siblings. I also need to retrieve Bila from the dojo. But that's after Sister Waverly returns to my party," I replied.

"Milord, I think you should stay here at the Westminster Abbey for another day," Van suggested. "I'm sure the Elven Nation has sent word to Rijana of your return to London; she will be asked to reunite with you. Word has already spread regarding the demihuman army on the march from the north. You will need to bring the people under your banner."

"That will happen once I have become the Champion of Order," I noted.

Suddenly, the door opened. A young boy entered with a tray. He placed it on the nightstand. He bowed to us and then left.

I peered at the tray and saw two bowls of porridge, a whole fish on a plate, and two mugs of beer. I looked at Van and said, "I guess we're sharing the fish. You want the head or the tail portion?"

"Tail." The paladin cleaned his hands in the bucket of water and wiped with the towel. He cut the fish in half with a small knife; he took the tail portion and started eating.

I took the bowl of porridge and ate as well.

The boy returned a half-hour later to retrieve the tray.

Since my body was tired from my training session with Abbot Combs, I went to bed early while Van stayed up to clean his armor.