Second Holy Mission (2)

Vivian went back to Ezekiel.

"Brother Ezekiel."

"You've already decided, sister?"

Vivian nodded.

"I want to take the Bank Account mission -- I mean, Holy Mission. Where should I go?"

Ezekiel took out a token from under the counter and gave it to her.

It looked exactly the same as last time when Vivian took her first Holy Mission -- a small piece of square wood that had the carving of a vertically stretched-out sun symbol.

"The Treasury Room is located at the Main Office building on the first floor of the east wing. Once you enter the room, show to this token the people assigned there."

"Got it. Thank you," Vivian said and then left.

***

Vivian entered the hallway of the Main Office building and she made her way to the reception desk where there were one White Cloak Priest and two White Cloak Priestesses sitting behind it.

Hmm..

This was the the first building I visited when first arrived in this compound with that Priest named Joshua… 

But why do I feel like I missed something…?

Truth be told, back when she first arrived here with Joshua, she was supposed to be introduced to the headmaster but he was out so it had to be postponed the next morning.

Vivian shook her head.

Whatever it is…

It must not be that important for me to remember it…

"Hi, excuse me, brother, I'm looking for the Treasury Room," Vivian said and then showed the token. "I was told by Brother Ezekiel that it's at the first floor of the east wing but I'm not sure which room."

"Ah yes, sister," the Priest said and then pointed. "It's the third door"

"Thank you," she said and then left.

Vivian finally reached the third door which had a plaque plastered on it that read: Treasury Office.

Knock.

Knock.

Ka-cha!

She knocked twice before opening the door. And upon entering, she found herself spacious office room.

The temperature inside the room was colder than usual that Vivian was surprised by the cold air brushing against her bare skin.

There were four desks: each of them had a White Cloak Priest -- two were males and the other two were females -- sitting behind it, and each of the desk also had two vacant chairs at the front.There was also a row of vacant seats on the side of the office. And on another side of the office, there was a private office room.

This is the Treasury Room…?

Also…

Why is it so cold…?

Not long after Vivian started sleeping the female dormitory, she noticed that most rooms within the compound had some sort of magic panel thermostat that could control the temperature of the room. But since she was sleeping at a shared room, she didn't bother to touch it. Also, she was afraid that she might break it.

"Hello, sister, do you need something?" one of the Priestesses asked.

Vivian quickly took out the token given to her by Ezekiel.

"I'm here for a Holy Mission where I need to open a bank account."

The Priestess got up from her seat.

"I'll inform Brother Lance of your arrival," she said and then gestured towards the empty seats on the side. "Please have a seat for a moment."

"Okay."

As Vivian went over to the empty seats, the Priestess headed to the private office. She knocked twice on the door before opening. However, instead of entering, she just stuck her head inside.

"Brother Vance, a Brown Cloak Sister is here for the Bank Account Holy Mission."

Vivian couldn't hear Lance's reply, but the Priestess stepped to the side and the door opened, revealing a Priest wearing a Gold Cloak. He looked like he was in his late 20s, he wore glasses, and he was quite tall but had a very thin frame with a slouching posture. However, he had a kind face that looked like he couldn't break a glass.

Lance's gaze landed on Vivian and his lips broke out inside a bright and cheery smile.

"Welcome, sister! Please, come inside my office!"

Vivian's eyes blinked a couple of times.

Why is this guy too happy...?

Creepy…

Nevertheless, she still got up from her seat and entered the office.

"Okay…" she said and forced a smile.

I'll just make sure not to eat or drink anything he offers…

"Please have a seat," Vance said and gestured to two vacant chairs in front of the desk as he made his way behind the desk and sat down.

Vivian sat down at one of the vacant chairs.

"Should I give this to you?" she said and showed the token.

"You can give that to me later, sister," he said and smile. "And please, you call me Brother Lance. I am the team leader in charge of managing the Treasury Room. And you are?"

"Vivian."

Vance nodded.

"Sister Vivian, is this your first time opening a bank account?"

"Yes."

"I see. If I may, please allow me to explain to you how to open a bank account. Unlike normal banks, you don't have to submit any identification or papers. You just need to present the Class Crystal pendant of your necklace and we will register it under your name right away. That will be the key for you to access your bank account. And don't worry, no one is allowed to access your bank account aside from you. And in case you lose your pendant, which happens a lot, the Temple will provide you another one for free anytime."

"Okay, so I just have to give this pendant to you?"

"Please wait for a moment."

He took out an oblong-shaped green crystal that was as large as an adult's head from one of his drawers and placed it on top of the desk.

"Hold the pendant of your necklace near the crystal."

Vivian took off her necklace and pressed the pendant near the crystal.

The crystal emitted a faint light and some information flashed inside Vivian's head.

'Mana signature registration successful,' a calm and soothing female voice said inside her head. 'What is the name you want to register on this pendant?'

"Vivian," Vivian said. And right after she said that, her pendant began to emit a faint golden light and her name written in the Zonian alphabet appeared at the back of her pendant.

'Name registration successful.'

'Bank account registration complete.'

'You have 10 gold coins inside your bank account.'

Vivian knitted her brows and the crystal stopped emitting light.

She turned to the Lance.

"I have 10 gold coins inside my bank account?"

Lance smiled.

"Consider it as a small gift for becoming a member of this Temple and opening a bank account in this Temple."

"I see."

"Now that you've successfully opened a bank account, please allow me to explain further."

What…?

Explain further…?

Was this a trap…?

I mean, shouldn't they explain all of the rules first before having the person register…?

"You can use that Class Crystal of yours to purchase things without having to carry coins with you. Unfortunately, aside from our Temple's own shops, only most high-end shops offer such services."

So basically like a debit or credit card…?

"I see." 

"There's more."

"More?"

"Are you aware of the concept of lending?"

Vivian's brows knitted together.

"More or less."

"Great! You see, here in our Temple, we understand that all of us come from different walks of life -- some are born rich, others are born poor, some have more options, others have fewer options. However, we all share one goal -- to save humanity from the demons, demon-kins, the Cult of Infinity and the heretics. And so the Temple developed a system where everyone has an equal chance, regardless of their background and upbringing. Do you know what it is?"

"Lending?"

"Correct, lending! We allow our members to use coins that they don't have right now and pay later. Wonderful, right? But hold on, there's more," Lance said excitedly.

Vivian didn't say anything and just stared at him with an expressionless face.

"Unlike other banks, our bank has no monthly interest in keeping your coins and items in our bank and we also don't have any loan sharks to hound you about the coins you loaned from the Temple. However! Of course, nothing can be too perfect, right? The only issue here is that the coins you loaned from the Temple's bank can only be paid with the rewards of the Holy Missions."

"What? I'm not following."

"We allow our members to use coins that they don't have right now and pay later --"

"No, no. The part I'm confused about is that I can only pay back the coins I loaned from the Temple's bank using the reward from the Holy Missions?"

"Yes. Once a member borrows coins from our bank, they can only pay it back with the rewards from the Holy Missions."

"Why?"

"Because our Temple doesn't really care about coins -- at least to some extent. The Temple understand that not everyone come from affluent backgrounds. So this lending system was developed in order help our brothers and sisters focus more in saving the world from demons, demon-kins, the Cult of Infinity and the heretics.

"After all, no matter how noble the idea of saving the world from demons, demon-kins, the Cult of Infinity and the heretics is, we still need to deal with reality. People still need coins to pay for food, lodging, support their families, training, and equipment. Don't you agree, sister?"

"Ah… yes," Vivian said.

Lance nodded.

"I'm glad you agree, sister."

"The borrowed coins can only be paid back using the reward from the Holy Missions, right?"

"That is correct."

"What if someone just lends and lends without limit and doesn't plan to pay for it in the end? As far as I know, doing Holy Missions isn't mandatory."

"That is true. Which is why there is a limit on how much a member can borrow and it depends on the color of their Cloak."

"With Brown Cloak at the lowest?"

"Yes," Lance said and the nodded. "For a Brown Cloak like yourself, you can only borrow up to 100 gold coins.

"And the rest?"

 "The rest, White Cloak is 1,000 gold coins, Gold is 10,000, and Red and Gray is 100,000."

"Let's say I borrowed coins now. How much will be deducted from the reward I get for completing a Holy Mission?"

"50%."

Vivian almost coughed out blood.

"50%?!"

"I know it seems too much compared to the other banks. However, you must understand that we are the only bank that offers such perks. The other banks would hound you down with interest and seize your belongings. Some would even go as far as to sell you to slavery. Such things will never happen here in our Temple."

Vivian's brows knitted.

"But isn't slavery prohibited?"

She remembered Pana telling her that slavery was prohibited.

"The Luxen Kingdom is one of the kingdoms that prohibits slavery. However, some people can still be creative."

"I… I see."

"Anyhow, even though it's 50%, the owner can choose to make it 100% if they want in order to pay the loan right away."

"I see. Thank you for telling me this."

"One last thing."

Vivian didn't say anything.

"You can buy a complete set of a full-plated armor made out of Mithril that's custom-made for you right now at the Blacksmith Shop through a loan. The price is only 50 gold coins which is cheap compared to any set of Mithril armor you can find. And in case you're wondering why it's being sold that cheap, it's because the design is based on the standard armor used by Priests, the Crusade Armor Set for the Holy Crusade."

Vivian recalled the Class Magic Mission where one had to participate in the ranking match at the Training Grounds and reach at least Top 3 in order to win a set of full-plated Mithril-grade armor. She also recalled the other Class Magic Mission about participating in the Holy Crusade and must have a complete set of the Crusader's Armor.

"I see."

"Anyhow, please forgive me if I've taken too much of your time, Sister Vivian. It was nice meeting you. And once again, congratulations on completing this Holy Mission. May the God of Light continue to watch over you."

"You too."

Vivian got up and left.