"Do you understand what is going to happen, Cless?" The priest asked the girl. Cless was dressed only in a white toga, drenched in holy water.

"Yes, father. I want to stand judgment before God. If God finds me wanting, may His punishment cleanse me."

In the church, Cless and Karen explained about the contracts and the deaths under the priest's vow of secrecy. They asked for the rite of cleansing, something that would punish Cless for her transgressions. Were she really responsible for murdering eight people, she would be smitten right there before the altar. But as both Karen and the priest agreed, she was innocent. In any case, it would be almost guaranteed that the secular powers of the Realm of humanity wouldn't try to accuse her of being responsible for the deaths after the ritual. She was already acquitted by God.

The priest started to chant in the language of the heavens. It was beautiful, almost like a song. His elven traits helped give his voice an ethereal quality missing in the voices of humans.

"God, your daughter Cless comes before you to be judged by the deaths of those that violated the terms of the contracts wrought through the Skill you granted her. Please show your mercy upon her as she is truly repentant."

The priest used his Skill and prayed. Holy light descended on Cless and the holy water over her body evaporated without burning her. After the light was gone, Cless was completely dry and clean. Not even the grime on her hair and scalp was left behind.

"Behold!" The priest cried to the entire church. Only the dear nuns were on the pews, praying for Cless' absolution. "God has shown His Might and His Mercy. May no person dare weigh any sin on her."

The nuns approached to hug the girl. Cless finally understood why she wasn't angry at Karen for hiding that they were related by blood even though it was only to the tenth degree. The nuns and the priest were her family as much as Karen was.

"Thank you, father. You saved me."

"Your faith saved you, Cless. You acted as God taught you to. Use the opportunities you are granted. You deceived no one. Your Skill is righteous. Fear not it for it is as much part of you as your two eyes and your heart. Embrace your Skill and nurture it. Pray and meditate to understand the depth of God's love through your Skill."

One of the nuns held Cless by the shoulders and kissed her cheek. "Thank you for the donations. We knew that it was you that told George to bring the horses and the wagon to the church."

"No, sister," Cless shook her head. " I had no use for draft horses and a wagon. Make good use of what is laid in front of your path. May the gifts grant Cornelius respite in the afterlife. I want no grudge from him."

"And none shall befall you," The head nun spoke. "We will pray for you every day Cless. God will shed His Holy Light on your path so you never walk in the darkness."

"Go get changed!" Karen took Cless' hand and drove her to a room where her clothes were. She helped the girl change clothes.

Afterward, they returned to the nave and the nuns were waving goodbye. Some of them wanted to hug Cless a bit more.

"Now off you go," The priest shooed the nuns. "Go to the midwife to see that the violation of your body does not bear fruit. Know that you are clean and bear no shame."

"Thank you, everyone!" Cless left the church dragged by Karen.

They made good time to the midwife. Inside several pregnant women were merrily engaged in gossip. The arrival of a young girl always drew the eyes of these women, because there was only one reason for one such as Cless to visit that place. They sneered and whispered among themselves, but Cless stood tall, confident. It only increased the disdain of those women. Cless walked inside and soon found an empty seat. She took it but the pregnant women next to her vacated her own seat. Karen didn't even wait for her to get far away and dumped herself on the still warm seat.

The midwife came into the room and scanned the women present. When her gaze met Cless' body, she stopped and spoke.

"Come, girl. I'll see you now," She called. Some of the younger pregnant women tried to protest, after all, they were there for more time but the midwife raised a palm to stop them. "This child demands immediate attention. You can wait until the next season or you can travel to the next town. Your choice."

Cless noticed that Karen had a smug smile that only increased the frowns and sneers on the gossipy women. The older ones quickly understood that Cless had been violated and beamed a sympathetic smile. Cless nodded to these women, smiling back. She raised her chin and followed the midwife. The woman waited for Cless and Karen and closed the door after them.

"Child, what is your name?" The midwife asked.

It startled Cless. Was there someone in town that didn't know her? "I'm Cless, madam. I was violated yesterday, that is why I am here."

The midwife smiled, trying to inspire confidence. She spoke softly, "I know, girl. My Skill gives me the ability to see your wounded womanhood. As all others. It also gives me the power to make it right. I can tell you that you won't bear children. The wound is small, just your broken hymen. I see that healing magic was used on you already."

Cless was astonished. Did she mean to see the womanhood of all women all the time or just see as in sense? Could she not see? Probably. Cless thought she wouldn't want to see pussies and flappy labia all the time. Especially those that lacked in hygiene or during those days of the month.

"Cless, could you come back to us?" Karen jokingly shook the girl from her musings.

"Yes, what is it?" Cless didn't even bother to disguise her distraction. "Is it done?"

"There is nothing to do other than give you my support, Cless," The midwife said. "I know you must've hated being touched by a man that way, but please don't give up. Maybe one day you'll find a man that really loves you, and you will find sex pleasant."

'Okay?' Cless thought sardonically. 'A man that loves me, deformed as I am? Good luck future me.'

"Thank you. I'll keep that in mind," She finally whispered with little confidence.

"You won't bear children, you are not diseased and you are not wounded, at least your body isn't. Stay strong, girl," The midwife reassured her one more time.

"Great!" Cless cheered.

"But I have a lot of angry mothers to look after. Off you go, girl. You don't have to pay as you were a victim. But please take care when around boys. They are lovely but treacherous. And they want only one thing."

"Power, Money and Women." Cless guessed.

Karen and the midwife chortled. "An accurate guess. Now shoo."

Out of the midwife's office and away from the glares of the pregnant women, Cless and Karen went to the town hall looking for constable George. They found out that the constable was out, investigating a series of strange murders that happened during the night. Since Cless knew who died and where they lived, they went around looking for the constable. They found him at the fifth house, the one where Douglas Jones lived. Constable George was currently talking to Mr. Jones Senior.

The two women stopped one house down the street, well visible under the morning sun. It took George just a few moments to recognize them. The constable was a well-trained fighter and was always aware of his surroundings. He finished talking to Mr. Jones and approached them.

"Miss Karen, Miss Cless, good morning. Please tell me, why am I not surprised to see you two here?" He showed no signs of amusement. All these deaths seemed to be taking a toll on the man's already somber mood.

"Constable, good morning," Karen replied. Cless decided to be as quiet as possible and only speak if asked. "We have information on the incident you are investigating, can we talk somewhere private?"

George looked at Cless but the previous two visits had the effect of bolstering her confidence to previously unknown levels. She glanced back and smiled. George found it strange and the behavior didn't match the girl's usual demure demeanor. But that she sought him spontaneously with such confidence meant that she was either innocent or overly confident. Especially now that they knew of the constable's Skill to discern lies.

"Well, I can say you got my interest. Let's go to a bakery next block, they have a tasty fruit bread I fancy."

George walked with one woman on each side. He seemed bothered by it but said nothing. Inside the bakery, they climbed to the second floor where a balcony with some flowerpots created a lovely atmosphere. Cless was impressed with the place. She walked down that street several times, but the balcony was not noticeable from the ground. Given her status as a pariah in society, she never actually entered the fancy bakery.

At the ground level, George ordered three pieces of fruit bread and freshly squeezed fruit juice for three. Karen paid for two and George paid for his. It would not do well to either party pay the other's share as it could be seen as a bribe.

"Well, ladies," George started the conversation, "My time is short and I have several murders to solve. What do you want?"

"Cless, please tell the constable your story," Karen prompted her to speak.

She was not happy. Her overconfidence took a hit but maybe it was a good thing as she started on a humbler tone than what she would've used if not.

"Constable, those deaths were not murders. These boys were punished by God. They broke an oath and paid with their lives."

George glared but Cless did her best to not flinch. He was not amused by it. "What oath did they break?"

"They were accessories to my rape. In exchange for my discretion, they agreed to not speak of what happened. And they broke that oath. God punished them."

Cless thought that If George had the Skill to shoot daggers out of his eyes, she'd be dead by now. "And you can create binding oaths before God. Is that your Skill?"

They paused because the bakery attendant brought their mugs of juice and the slices of bread with the fruits embedded in the dough. They drank and ate a bit before continuing. The bread was marvelous.

"In a way, yes. I cannot force them to enter the oath, it must be willing. The merchant and these boys died for the same reason although the oaths were different. And I used no trickery to goad them into agreeing. They knew exactly what they were compromising."

The constable backed a bit. Cless sighed in relief. "Girl, I offer you one silver ducat for a display of your Skill," He said showing a glinting polished silver coin.

"I'm sorry, constable. My Skill only triggers if the offer is considered to be of equal value by both parties," Cless smiled. She knew George would see her statement as the pure truth. And that she considered a mere display of her Skill worth more than a silver ducat.

The corners of George's mouth raised for the first time. "Your hair is really beautiful today, miss Cless. No offense intended."

It was obvious he was fishing for something. Cless was more than happy to indulge. "None taken. But thank you for noticing, Constable. You see, I just came from the church where I asked the priest for a rite of cleansing. This hair here that you see," She shook her black shoulder-length locks. "Was cleaned by holy water and Holy Light."

"Amazing," The constable mumbled. Cless didn't know if he was amazed at her hair or amazed that they had the foresight to get the church involved before talking to him. But after a brief mental re-evaluation, she was sure it was the latter.

"I also visited the midwife just before finding you, she confirmed that I was violated yesterday. Fortunately, no other actions were necessary."

George nodded in agreement. There was no doubt that he knew that the midwife could stop pregnancies before the belly showed and that she could identify and testify cases of rape. Karen finished her bread and juice. Cless passed her share to her aunt when he remembered that Karen hadn't a chance to eat breakfast.

"Well, thank you for your proactivity, miss Cless and miss Karen. You saved me a lot of work. I will keep your name out of the records as a token of my gratitude. They were smitten by divine punishment for breaking an oath. That is enough and also the truth, isn't that so?"

Cless smiled and chuckled. "Yes, constable. What you said is the truth." Truth enough but not the whole truth.

They got out on the street and were about to part when George thought of asking something. "Are there going to be any more oathbreaking?"

"I pray not, constable," Cless replied. "But people's faith and trustworthiness are lacking these days. I can only pray."

George sighed. The man must really hate paperwork. "If something else comes up, could you let me know? Like a really early warning?"

This time was Karen that replied, "Of course, constable. Let it be known that we are staunch supporters of the law."

George groaned but went on his way. Even though he already knew the solution to the mystery, he still had two interviews to do. Karen and Cless returned to the inn.

Name: Cless (no surname)

Race: Human.

Level: 10 ( 48,633 / 55,000 Exp)

Class: None

Profession: None, None

Base Stats: Strength: 6 — Agility: 6 — Health: 14 — Intellect: 20

Available Status Points: 0

Skills: [Absolute Contract (S)]

Proficiencies: Prayer: 3 (+1) — Scribe: 2 — Houseworking: 2 — Math: 2 — Reading: 4 — Leadership: 1 — Intimidation: 1 — Negotiation: 1 (+1)