Chapter 375
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“Nathaniel!”
Caitlin bowed reverently. As she straightened up, she saw Nathaniel gesture for her to come and sit at the table
Once seated, Caitlin asked curiously, “Nathaniel, how did you know I’d come looking for you? ”
“Your grandmother probably told you about Saint Everlight Cathedral when you were a child, didn’t she?”
“She did! I thought she was just telling stories back then. But today, when I saw the road sign for Saint Everlight Cathedral, I suddenly remembered. So it really exists.”
Nathaniel nodded. “If you wanted to know about your grandmother’s past, you’d start digging around/Seeing her name here af Saint Everlight Cathedral would make you curious to know more. And if you’re smart, you’d come to me.”
It was as if Nathaniel could see through everything, predicting Caitlin’s arrival with uncanny precision.
Nothing escaped him. Caitlin bowed her head respectfully. “Yes. My grandmother passed away a long time ago and left behind many mysteries. I came to Departure City to find the truth.
“But I’ve lost a lot of leads. Do you know anything about the Yuncey family from back then? Could you tell me something?”
Nathaniel’s expression was calm and serene. He raised a hand to calm her. “Don’t be anxious. Let me tell you a story.”
Caitlin nodded and listened intently.
Nathaniel began slowly, “There was once a blacksmith, whose family had forged swords for generations. His craftsmanship won the king’s favor, and he became wealthy and prosperous.
“His skills were passed from father to son, never to daughters or outsiders. But he only had a daughter. To keep the craft alive, he adopted a son, intending to teach him everything. But the adopted son had a dark heart.
“Unexpectedly, the son–in–law who married into the family was honest and clever. The blacksmith broke tradition and decided to teach him
instead.
“This sparked the adopted son’s jealousy. He murdered the blacksmith, then killed the son–in–law too. He seized the blacksmith’s property and didn’t even spare the daughter.
“But the blacksmith’s daughter was already pregnant with her husband’s child. To protect her child, she endured humiliation and stayed with her father’s killer.
“Months later, she gave birth to a daughter. She passed the craft to her child as she grew. In the end, the blacksmith’s daughter died full of sorrow. Before she passed, she told her daughter everything and warned her to beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing…”
Nathaniel stopped there.
“What happened next, Bishop?”
Caitlin turned to look at him. He was sitting cross–legged, eyes closed, head slightly bowed, as if he had fallen asleep.
“Nathaniel!”
Caitlin got up and walked over. After checking him carefully, she realized he wasn’t breathing.
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Panic surged in her chest. She shouted toward the door, “Someone! Help!”
The priest from earlier rushed in. “Miss, what happened?”
“Nathaniel… he…”
Caitlin stepped aside. The priest checked his pulse and breathing. His expression changed. “The bishop has passed”
“I’m so sorry… I didn’t expect Nathaniel to pass away so suddenly…
Caitlin looked at Nathaniel’s peaceful face, her heart in turmoil. It felt like he had waited for her for so long, only to die right after telling that story. How could it be so sudden?
“Don’t blame yourself. The bishop was very old. Passing peacefully is natural”
The priest consoled her, then rushed out to call the others.
News of the bishop’s passing quickly spread through the cathedral. Everyone gathered in the side hall. Some began preparing the funeral rites in an orderly manner.
Following tradition, they held a Holy Communion for Nathaniel. The believers prayed for his soul, asking for God’s forgiveness and that he may rest eternally in peace.
The ceremony was solemn. Hymns were sung, candles lit, scriptures read, and the Eucharist was held.
Caitlin, Sebastian, and James stayed at Saint Everlight Cathedral for the ceremony and witnessed Nathaniel’s funeral.
By the time they came down from the mountain, it was almost evening.
The setting sun lit the sky in magnificent colors, yet there was a sense of sorrow in the air.
Nathaniel had passed, and Caitlin remained silent, her mood heavy.
“Come on, don’t dwell on it. Nathaniel passed peacefully from old age. It had nothing to do with you,” Sebastian comforted her.
“I just can’t help but think… if I hadn’t gone to him, maybe he wouldn’t have died.”
She remembered what Nathaniel said about waiting for her. The thought gnawed at her.
Sebastian wrapped her in his arms, gently patting her back. “Don’t think like that, Caitlín. Nathaniel may be gone, but his spirit lives on.”
Caitlin nodded. Sebastian asked, “Did he say anything to you before he passed?”
“He did, He told me a story, but I don’t think he finished it.”
Caitlin repeated the blacksmith story to Sebastian and James.
After listening, Sebastian fell silent for a moment and then said, “Was he using that story as a metaphor for the Yuncey family’s past?” James, who was driving, suddenly said, “Could the blacksmith be a metaphor for whoever founded the Fragrance & Dye Studio?”
“Then who was the blacksmith? Was he some ancestor of the Yuncey family…”
Before Sebastian could finish, Caitlin suddenly exclaimed, “I get it! The bishop was using that story to tell me about the Yuncey family’s past.
“That blacksmith might have been my grandmother’s grandfather. Since it’s several generations back, telling me directly would’ve been
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confusing. But through the story, I understood.
“Look at this!” Caitlin pulled up the Yuncey family tree on her phone. “Clayton had one son and one daughter: Miles and Alexandra. Alexandra married Lloyd Emerson, and they had a daughter named Eleanor. Miles had a son named Timothy. That makes Timothy and a grandmother Eleanor cousins.
“If that’s the case, here’s the first question: Clayton had a son. Why did he pass the Fragrance & Dye Studio to his daughter Alexandra
Sebastian answered, “Because the rule was that Yun’s Fragrance & Dye Studio passed to daughters, and only to sons when there were no daughters.”
Caitlin shook her head. “I think that’s just a rumor. It doesn’t make sense for inheritance traditions. Here’s the second question: Alexandra and Lloyd’s daughter Eleanor–why did she have the surname Yuncey instead of Emerson?”
“Could it be that the Yuncey family’s tradition of passing the craft to daughters required daughters to keep the Yuncey name?” Sebastian guessed.
“But the bishop said the original rule was to pass to sons, not daughters or outsiders. The Fragrance & Dye Studio should’ve followed that Only when there were no sons would it go to a daughter.
“And if the daughter kept her mother’s surname, that could mean Lloyd–my great–grandfather–was a live–in son–in–law! Just like in the
story.
“Which leads to this conclusion: Clayton probably didn’t have a son at all!”
Caitlin’s mind was clearer than ever. “Third question : if Clayton was the blacksmith, Alexandra was his daughter, and Lloyd was the son–in- law–then who was the adopted son?”
AD
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