Doynes did not enter the shrine along with the others.

“How could someone like me, who isn’t even the Patriarch, dare to examine the remains of our great ancestor?” Doynes said. He shook his head while releasing a long sigh, then he bowed his head toward Kristina.

Eguene didn’t say anything useless, and just quietly stuck to Kristina’s side.

‘After having come this far, there’s no way that they’ll turn to me and give me some bullshit about not being allowed to accompany them in, right?’

Eugene told himself this, but he still decided that it was best to be cautious. So far, things had worked out quite well for him. If he was kicked out now, right at the most important moment, he would no longer just stop at having no faith in God — Eugene would be actively hostile to the divine being.

While he was entertaining such thoughts, Eugene glanced at Gilead’s back. He thought with some concern, ‘It must be very stressful for him.’

The memory from earlier, of Gilead angrily defending the safety of Eugene as if he was Gilead’s real son, lingered in Eugene’s mind. Since Eugene already had Gerhard, he couldn’t really think of Gilead as his father.

However, he acknowledged the fact that Gilead was a good person, and he had sensed a lot of concern and fatherly love coming from Gilead. That was why he couldn’t help but feel that Gilead was in a very pitiful position. The eldest son had smeared shit all over the face of his father and his clan, and now a Saint who had come to visit was stubbornly insisting on opening up their ancestor’s grave.

‘Becoming a Patriarch? Like hell I would do that. Absolutely never,’ Eugene swore as he felt a shudder run down his back.

Setting aside his pity and any other emotions, Eugene reaffirmed his decision once more. If he was forced to join the Knights of the Black Lion instead, he could deal with it, but he absolutely couldn’t bear becoming the Patriarch.

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