"No, I don't believe in God. I can't even imagine a being that looks like us existing before everything. I'm not denying it—after all, I'm just a simple human. My knowledge is limited to my senses. All of us are. We can't comprehend the incomprehensible, and we are unaware of the unknown. A human being, after all, always makes mistakes..."

Frowning slightly, I remember a phrase my father once said:"Knowledge is there, but we're too stupid to understand it."

Celestin remained silent after hearing my questions, but the sparkle in her eyes never faded—on the contrary, it began to shine even more. The little girl was clearly still excited.

"I see," she nodded after a few seconds, before opening her lips again:"It's understandable. Everyone can believe in whatever they want. But when you lack strength or will, isn't it better to believe in something? You know, I've always seen it—some families, mothers or fathers, cry as they beg for some kind of miracle. And sometimes… this method actually works."

"Believing in an existence that surpasses our understanding..."Reflecting on her words, I replied:"Oh, I get it. That false belief of giving all your remaining strength, emotion, or hope to something greater than yourself—it's a way to see things. Even when that 'miracle' does happen, they thank God instead of the surgeons, heh... I think it's very unfair to the real heroes."Mocking all those people...

"Yes, exactly that. Believe me, I've seen it. They even form circles while they all pray, crying," Celestin said with a serious expression in her eyes."Why don't you try it?" she asked shortly after, with an amused smile.

Raising an eyebrow, I looked at myself. My hands were trembling slightly, not knowing how to respond, while a thought raced through my mind:"Why?"

Shaking my head:"Well... I don't know any prayer," I said awkwardly. I never went to any—well, I did once out of simple curiosity, to catechism, but I left after a month.In short, they talked about Jesus and his journey around the world. That was fine. But to me, they never told the whole story. It seemed like a story with a happy ending, but it was the opposite—Jesus was crucified by the Romans because of Judas Iscariot, for thirty pieces of silver. After that, supposedly, the ten apostles took it upon themselves to spread God's word around the world. Of course, each of them died in a cruel way. Up to that point, fine. But what happened after Jesus' journey ended?

I found the answer in history class—the Church gained much more power by converting the Roman Empire to Christianity under Constantine I, only to later witness the empire's fall. But the Church remained a substantial force, giving gifts, taking over schools, and inserting itself into feudal society. Up to that point, one might say everything was fine, but nothing in the ancient or medieval ages was made of flowers—and the Church was no exception.

They initiated the Crusades, a series of military expeditions organized by the Catholic Church between the 11th and 13th centuries, mainly to recover the Holy Land (Jerusalem and surroundings) from Muslim control. They slaughtered and killed people in the name of God, with the Pope Urban II's own words:"God will forgive all your sins."

I'm not judging them—after all, I'm no one to do so—but I find it curious that the Church itself led a war in God's name, violating almost all of its own commandments and principles… with many similar cases: burning women accused of being witches, killing people with yellow or red eyes for supposedly being possessed by demons, attempting to execute scientists of that time for "violating divinity", burning Joan of Arc alive… only to later declare her a saint.

And many more historical facts that were recorded in human history—or never even came to light.

The history of the Catholic Church is full of mysteries and secrets jealously guarded in the Vatican, adding to that the Book of Enoch, which was the first to reveal the higher ranks among angels—completely erasing the belief that they look like us but with wings on their backs.

Celestin simply stayed silent. It seemed like she was giving me space to get lost in my thoughts.

After returning to reality…

"Do you want to try?" she asked, excited.

"Do I want to do it?" Instead of answering, I asked myself…"Do I really need to do it?" I said after a few seconds.

Celestin smiled. Her white robe seemed to glow, and her hair shimmered as well. The pale light of the moonlit night made her look like a beautiful doll.

"Then we must begin!" She gestured at me, letting me know the first step was to get on my knees. This chapter first appeared on M|V|L^EMPYR.

"Repeat after me..." she said softly...

"Our Father, who art in heaven…"

"Our Father, who art in heaven…"

****

"Sweetie… wake up…"

Hearing a voice beyond the darkness and peace I was feeling while lying in my cozy bed made me purse my lips slightly...

"One more minute…" I said as I turned over, trying to hear her voice again.

Seriously, what's wrong with people who try to wake you up in the morning?Waking someone who's sleeping should be a sin!

"Sweetie… you said that an hour ago!"

Evelyn squirmed like a worm as she desperately tried to fall back into deep sleep, but it was all in vain. A strong hand yanked her blanket off, leaving her no choice but to open her eyes.

Frustrated by her failed attempt, she shouted unconsciously:"Dad!"

Evelyn's red eyes looked at the man standing beside her bed, and her eyes widened...

A man who didn't seem to be over 30—actually, he looked even younger. He had red eyes like Evelyn, though not as intense, neatly cut light red hair, and a playful smile on his lips. The man raised a finger:"Sorry, miss, but I won't let you be late on your first day of school!"

Evelyn's mind froze completely.