Chapter 13: Policy Change

“Ah… what am I thinking…”

“Talking about the rest of my life… isn’t that a bit too shameless…”

After leaving the main city area, Treya’s state became strange.

She shook her head from time to time, and from time to time muttered something to herself.

Her voice was so low that Ryan could barely hear it, only managing to make out a few keywords… like “must find a way to make money” and such.

Was he putting too much mental pressure on her?

Ryan began a brief period of self-reflection.

Once the reflection ended, he concluded that there was nothing wrong with him. Yes, the problem wasn’t with him.

The two walked toward the outskirts of the city, but Ryan didn’t go straight home. Instead, before leaving the city, he led Treya to another district.

The atmosphere here was much more quiet and peaceful than the commercial district.

In Treya’s perceptual world, the colors quickly turned into a warm, pure white, which was especially reassuring.

But this wasn’t the way home.

Treya sensed this in her heart, but she didn’t dare speak up to ask, only silently following Ryan’s footsteps.

“Phew… we’re here. Before we go home, we have to make a trip to the Holy Church.”

Ryan’s voice broke the silence.

“If we want to get subsidy support, we need to register the orphanage under the Church’s name, so we have to come here to formally register and get an official status,” he explained somewhat awkwardly.

His “House of Gray” had just been established, was nameless and without official status, so it naturally couldn’t receive any subsidies, and was even less subject to regulation.

Originally, he hadn’t planned to come to the Church to register so urgently.

He thought that relying on the little savings in his pocket, he could at least hold out for a while.

But Treya’s failure at the Mages’ Association forced him to bring this matter forward.

“So this is the Church…”

Treya thought silently in her heart.

She had heard that if poor people were truly at the end of their rope, they could go to the Church to seek help.

In the Church, there would be benevolent priests and nuns providing hot porridge and bread for you.

But Treya had never seen the Church’s alms.

Every time, she would just take one look from afar before being chased away like a fly by the guards patrolling near the Church.

In her heart, the Church was just a hypocritical organization of swindlers, caring only about their own reputation while refusing to do any actual work.

The two walked to the Church’s grand main gate.

Two armored guards stood at the entrance. They stopped Ryan, saying that today was not a day open to commoners, and if commoners wanted to come to pray, they could only do so from Monday to Friday.

Treya’s heart sank.

Sure enough, it was still the same.

No matter where, the attitude toward people like them from the bottom of society was always the same.

Ryan said nothing, just pulled out a rolled-up piece of parchment from his robe and handed it over.

It was the deed proving his noble status and ownership of this estate.

The guard took it over suspiciously, unrolled it, and glanced at it.

When he saw the Gray Family crest and the King’s seal on it, the expression on his face also became friendly.

“So it’s Mr. Gray, excuse my rudeness!”

The guard hurriedly handed the document back to Ryan, then straightened his back and gave another guard a look.

The two of them bowed to Ryan at the same time.

“Welcome, Mr. Gray, may the Holy Light shine upon you.”

Their attitude was now completely different from before.

Treya “watched” this dramatic scene, and a strong wave of nausea welled up in her heart.

Was this the holiness they believed in?

As it turned out, holiness also came in different ranks.

In the face of a noble’s status, so-called holiness and precepts were nothing more than a joke.

The last bit of curiosity she had for this place was replaced by contempt.

Ryan seemed to ignore the guards’ change of face, accepting their bow with composure, and pulled Treya inside.

The interior of the Church was even more solemn and majestic than its exterior.

The high dome, the stained-glass windows, the air filled with the faint scent of incense and the ethereal singing of the choir.

In Treya’s perception, this was a world of pure white.

But she felt that beneath this white lay too much invisible filth, hypocritical and disgusting.

Ryan was clearly not interested in admiring the architecture. He pulled Treya along and directly found a young nun who was wiping a candlestick.

“Hello, where do I go to register at the orphanage?”

When the young nun saw Ryan, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she pointed shyly to a corridor on the side.

“Please come this way. Sister Elena, in the office at the end of the hall, is responsible for this.”

Ryan said a word of thanks, then pulled Treya toward the office.

The office door was open, and the interior was simple, containing only a desk and a few bookcases.

“Hello, Sister,” Ryan knocked on the door.

The nun called Elena looked up, and seeing Ryan and Treya behind him, she revealed a gentle smile.

“Hello, sir. How may I help you?”

“I’ve come to register a newly established orphanage, hoping to affiliate it under the Church’s name,” Ryan got straight to the point.

“An orphanage?” Sister Elena’s gaze swept over the two of them, finally coming to rest on Treya.

She noticed Treya’s eyes, which lacked focus.

“Please sit,” she pointed to the chair in front of the desk, “What is the orphanage called?”

“House of Gray,” Ryan replied.

“How long has it been registered?”

“It was just established the day before yesterday. There are only six children at the moment, but because I am short on funds, in order to provide a better living environment for the orphans, I can only hope that the Merciful Lord can provide a little help.”

“The support allowance… I’m sorry, Mr. Gray, I must inform you that the Church issued a new regulation just this month to strictly review the eligibility of affiliated orphanages receiving allowances.”

“The eligibility review has become stricter?”

“Yes, because many disgraceful incidents have occurred since the support policy was promulgated.”

The nun’s tone carried deep disappointment and sorrow.

“Some people have taken advantage of the goodwill of the Church and the Kingdom.”

“Under the guise of adopting orphans, they registered orphanages to defraud the subsidies issued by the Church and the Kingdom.”

“But in reality, they did not take good care of those children at all. Some used the children as slaves, and others… even turned around and sold the children to slave traders.”

Hearing this, Treya’s small hand clenched.

She was all too familiar with this kind of thing.

Among the homeless children in the Lower District, children would often suddenly disappear. In the blink of an eye, they would become disabled people, kept by those unscrupulous orphanages as money-making tools.

“Our original intention was to help good people who do good deeds, but in the end, we let the children who were already unfortunate fall into an even more miserable hell.”

Sister Elena’s eyes dimmed.

“The Cardinal is furious about this. He said that every single copper coin of the Church should be used on people who truly need help, and must never become a breeding ground for evil.”

Ryan fell silent.

He had to admit that this kind of thing was indeed very much in line with the nature of this world.

Where there is profit, there are parasites.

He just didn’t expect his plan to be affected by these parasites.

What bad luck.

“So…” Ryan asked in a low voice, “what is the new regulation?”

“The Cardinal has decided that all newly registered orphanages must undergo a one-year review period.”

“During this one-year review period,” the nun continued to explain, “the Church will send a specialist every month to conduct irregular visits to your ‘House of Gray’.”

“We will inspect the children’s living environment, their diet, and their physical and mental state.”

“Only after the one-year review period expires, and we confirm that you are indeed operating the orphanage with heart, the children have received proper care, and there are no acts of abuse or exploitation…”

“Starting from the second year, the Church will officially include your orphanage on the subsidy distribution list.”

F*ck…

Damned slave traders and gangsters.

These damned scammers have not only harmed those orphans, but have also blocked the path for people like them who sincerely (for investment purposes) wanted to do something.

Ryan wanted to curse, but his face could not show any impatience or disappointment.

As a noble, he had to maintain a noble’s dignity.

After a few seconds of silence, Ryan slowly nodded.

“I understand.”

His voice betrayed no emotion.

“This is for the children’s own good, a necessary measure. I fully understand and am willing to cooperate.”

Treya could feel a flicker of annoyance flash through Ryan’s emotional aura.

He was very angry.

But he suppressed it.

This made Treya’s heart tighten with it.

No more money.

Mr. Ryan has no more money.

It’s all her fault… if only she weren’t so useless…

Treya fell back into a state of self-reproach.

At the same time, a look of relief appeared on Sister Elena’s face.

“Thank you for your understanding, Mr. Gray. The fact that you’re thinking this way shows that you truly care about the children.”

She pushed the form in front of Ryan.

“After registration, you will be the legal guardian of the ‘House of Gray’.”

“The Church’s inspectors will visit you tomorrow. Please be prepared.”