Another day began, the first rays of light shining through the windows of the church, some without any glass, some patched, some with wooden frames. But the sound of chanting, praying, birds singing and children playing never stopped.

The priest was still as diligent as ever, reading prayers, sweeping the floor, and then cooking. He had not changed at all, only his age had worn away his youthful, once vibrant hands. They were the warmest hands Anatole had ever seen in his life.

He sat quietly in a corner of the chapel, watching them play and do all sorts of things, some were reading books, some had just learned a few words and were babbling in broken English. They were all happy, the 16-year-old girl was also helping the priest take care of the children.

"Your family is really happy, huh?" [Anatole]

The priest who was sweeping the yard also looked at him.

"Yes, it's a pity, it's so sad, they're all homeless children, I picked them up and raised them." [Nicholas]

"Why don't you send them to an orphanage?" [Anatole]

"That's a good question, Father Louis asked the same thing before, but I didn't let him. I think an orphanage isn't the right place for them, even though the conditions there would be better, I think they'd be less cared for, and now..." [Nicholas]

The priest smiled happily.

"Who would send their own children to an orphanage? Haha." [Nicholas]

Anatole was quite surprised by this answer, he just sighed and looked at the children again, but in the end he still smiled contentedly.

"They must be very lucky to have someone like you to raise them." [Anatole]

"Thank you, I think your parents must be very proud to have given birth to a good person like you." [Nicholas]

"I don't know either, Father, I didn't know who they were when I was little..." [Anatole]

The priest suddenly became thoughtful.

"I'm sorry about that..." [Nicholas]

"It's okay, Father..." [Anatole]

When the priest finished his work, he was resting. Anatole walked around the church and found the pile of wood the priest had brought back yesterday. He went to check it out.

"Are these things you used to patch the church roof?" [Anatole]

"Yeah, I'll climb up and patch them when I have some free time." [Nicholas]

"No need, I'll help you fix the roof, I'm free too." [Anatole]

"Okay, leave it to you." [Nicholas]

He sighed and stood up.

He picked up a ladder, grabbed a bunch of wood and tools and climbed up.

Suddenly, as he climbed up, the ladder was too heavy and unstable, it suddenly fell down by inertia while he had not yet realized what was happening...

"Are you okay?" [Nicholas]

The priest had been there for a long time, his hand was holding the ladder tightly to prevent it from falling down. Anatole breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm fine, thank you." [Anatole]

"Yes, that's good." [Nicholas]

"First, drop some pieces of wood, carrying them will only make you heavier." [Nicholas]

Following his father's words, he dropped a few pieces of wood. His father then pushed the bar forward, making it easier to catch on the roof without shaking anymore. Anatole was able to climb up to fix the roof.

Then Father Nicholas climbed up with him. While he was working hard to fix the roof, he asked.

"How did you know I was about to fall and come to help?" [Anatole]

Father just smiled and said.

"It's simple, you seem a bit hasty, I guess something must be wrong." [Nicholas]

"And I have a few things I want to tell you too." [Nicholas]

"What is it, Father?" [Anatole]

He gently reminded him.

"I know that for you, time is money, but being hasty is not always good, it can lead to you almost killing yourself like just now." [Nicholas]

Father added.

"To be effective, just bring a few pieces of wood, hammer them carefully, hammer them firmly so they don't come loose, do it when you feel most comfortable." [Nicholas]

Father came and took a few nails, hammered them moderately but repeatedly, the nails gradually sank in, very firmly.

"This nail can't be hammered down in one hit, each time you have to be precise and maintain a sufficient amount of force, this makes the nail more solid, look at this." [Nicholas]

The nails were driven deep and evenly, the two boards became solid like that.

"Wow, you really have a knack for it..." [Anatole]

"It's nothing, every time you hammer a nail, you just think of it as a relationship between two people, doesn't it sound a bit strange?" [Nicholas]

"A relationship?" [Anatole]

"A strong relationship is built on perseverance and regularity, a good connection is a nail hammered evenly and deeply. The same goes for maintaining or creating a relationship, to make it last is not simple, but to do it one by one, each time you hammer it makes it stronger and later it will be difficult for anything to pry the nail out." [Nicholas]

It was a simple thing but it was the first time he felt it had such meaning, no one had ever told him these things before, it was the first time he felt so limited, the priest in front of him might not be as talented or well-trained as him but he had things that a stubborn person like him had to admire.

"What about the other things?" [Anatole]

"Always have allies, that's all." [Nicholas]

"Allies?" [Anatole]

"When you have close relationships, you will have useful allies to support you, they can do things that you normally can't do." [Nicholas]

"Those are the people who truly trust you and you also trust them, they will always support you and vice versa, you will be able to support them, don't hesitate, always accept help and seek help from anyone you trust, okay?" [Nicholas]

He pondered over what his father had just said, somewhat deeply.

He recalled the time in the Foundation, countless times his colleagues had helped him, that was the reason they were always able to survive in this harsh world, but just because of one incident, they were all gone. Now as former comrades, he would try his best to decipher their deaths, to fulfill their wishes even if it was just a little, so that he could make up for what they had done for him, so that they could rest in peace...

"I have felt that before, Father, thank you for reminding me." [Anatole]

"Lastly, remember that you will never be alone in this life, God will always be with you." [Nicholas]

"I will truly remember what you said today... except that I am not sure if God will be with me." [Anatole]

"Thank you for listening to me." [Nicholas]

Finally, there was still peace in his heart, no burden could weigh him down anymore.

"Then when I need to fix the roof, I will ask you." [Anatole]

The priest laughed.