Chapter 48: VERONICA'S ANSWER

"That was quick. Have you come up with a decision?" Saint Ava inquired.

It was evening. The sun had already set. The seemingly golden rays of evening light had started disappearing on the horizon. Even the fire of the torches had begun to extinguish. The Rosemary Temple gradually became darker and darker.

So, she ignited the largest fire torch that was situated in the middle of an empty hall. The fire gradually spread and made other fire torches lit up since they were all connected. At that time, her new disciple came in front of her.

Veronica's eyes were calm. They didn't look as excited and restless as before. Her emerald orbs shone in the golden light. She opened her mouth and said, "I'm not leaving. I will stay."

Saint Ava said nothing. She put down the torch and walked toward the prayer room. Without turning back, she asked, "What made you change your mind?"

"…" Veronica was ashamed of her thoughts and actions. The Head Priest saved her from Sister Josephine's punishment, brought her to the Rosemary Temple and showed her a new path.

Saint Ava didn't have to take her in but she did and wanted her to be a healer worthy of her trust. She even shed blood in order to teach her.

And, all she had been thinking about was having a leisure life. She didn't think about their efforts at all. 'I'm the worst', that's what she told herself.

"I wasn't prepared to live a life as a healer. I let you down. I'm sorry," Veronica bowed respectfully.

Saint Ava responded, "I didn't want to hear your apology. I want an answer."

Veronica raised her head and gazed at her. "Yes, I won't delay my training any longer. I will not step a foot out of this place until I become a healer you expect me to be. I will diligently work and eat whatever food you give me without any complaints. I want to help people as much as possible, whether it's a friend, stranger or enemy."

Saint Ava carefully observed her as she spoke. After she was done talking, she smiled faintly. "Fine, do as you wish."

"!!!" Veronica had never seen such a radiant smile before. Her heart almost dropped to the floor.

[A/N: I'm not sure but it can be the beginning of yuri XD]

For the next few months, Veronica completely devoted herself to the training. She cleaned the whole temple during the day and at night, she trained herself until she fell asleep.

At first, she did have a hard time with carrying out the chores in the temple. After all, she was the only one doing all the works. Sometimes, she couldn't even finish her day time chores in time. And, this always brought hindrance to her training time at night.

However, two months later, her body improved significantly. She learned to conserve her energy over time and began to feel less tired. The fruits in the mountains helped her to gain more energy and she could feel it.

The best part was that she was able to change herself the way she wanted to. She began to love this place.

She had no complaints about the juicy fruits. She wasn't scared walking alone in this temple as she began to get familiar with it and its surroundings. Slowly, she began to get used to this place.

Sometimes, she missed Catherine and everyone in the temple. Nonetheless, she hardened her heart.

While training, she pushed herself to her limits as it reminded her of the outside world.

Despite loving this place, she didn't forget that she wanted to roam around the world one day and see the beauty of this breathtaking world.

The problem lied with her power. She wasn't improving as much as she thought she would. It could be because she was tired after all the chores and so she couldn't concentrate.

Since the beginning, that's what she thought.

When Saint Ava realized what her problem was, she mentioned her weakness, "You are blaming your strength when you should blame your mind before training it to concentrate hard."

"I'm sorry," Veronica apologized.

Another night, Saint Ava lectured her, "Focus on your heart. You have to make your heart believe that you truly want to heal someone and use your inner strength to pour your pure energy in healing."

"Yes, yes…" Veronica kept nodding.

Another week later, Saint Veronica remarked, "Your hands are shaking."

"I'm sorry. I'm nervous." Veronica nearly cried. How long had it been since she was practicing? She still couldn't heal the scar on Saint Ava's arm.

Saint Ava told her, "Calm your heart."

Another month of training passed. And in a certain morning, Saint Ava suddenly asked her in an offended tone, "Where do you think you are looking at?"

"I'm sorry!" Veronica hurriedly moved her eyes to the injured arm.

The cut was too deep to be healed so easily and she wasn't powerful enough to heal it completely. Moreover, Saint Ava always cut the same place where she got wounded before. It almost made Veronica feel all hopeless as though she was ordered to carry out the most impossible task available.

Even so, Veronica didn't give up. She kept trying harder.

Once, Saint Ava asked, "Why are your eyes closed? You have to keep your eyes open."

"I'm sorry, mam!" Veronica opened her eyes and looked at the injury. What could she do? She felt so guilty looking at the bloody arm every day.

Just like that, six months had passed. And, Veronica continued her training.

One day, an eagle came through the small opening in the mountain. It had a small paper tied to its leg after being folded to the smallest size possible.

The eagle directly flew to the prayer room and found Saint Ava like a trained intelligent bird.

Saint Ava unbound the paper and unfolded it. After reading the small note, her expression turned grave.

Veronica was wiping the floor. She saw the note and questioned her, "A letter from the temple?"

Saint Ava shortly answered, "From Head Priest."

"What did he say?" Veronica inquired.

Saint Ava responded, "Something terrible happened. He wants your aid."