บท 6: The Fallen Saintess (2)

(City of Lunarian- Varion Temple)

(The Inner Sanctum)

A weak voice solemnly prayed inside the spacious inner sanctum.

The voice sounded fragile, but one could clearly hear the devotion and reverence in the worshipper's tone.

"Our Lord of Light bless the weak and the sick. May your eternal grace shine down on your children."

"For it is in your name that we have the strength to following your teachings. Please lend me your strength to resist the temptations of sin for I am but a mere mortal."

"I pray that my devotion to you will never waver."

A young woman knelt solemnly in front of an enormous stone tablet that had mysterious writings and symbols etched onto its surface.

She finished her prayer and remained frozen in the same position with her hands clasped tightly together.

The woman wore a simple white dress that seemed out of place when considering her otherworldly beauty.

Her facial features were soft and delicate, and her black eyes shone with love and adoration as she gazed at the stone tablet.

The woman's skin was as fair as snow in fact it was so clear that wriggling veins could be seen under her skin.

Her body beneath the dress was slender and fragile.

It appeared as though she would fall over if the slightest gust of wind hit her body.

But strangely enough the one part of the woman that would immediately catch your attention was her hair.

It was loosely tied in a single ponytail and cascaded down her shoulders. Her hair was an ordinary brown colour but if one got closer, they would be able to see streaks of white.

Saintess Elisa was the daughter of Duke Berierse and should have been the heir to one of the greatest noble houses in the empire.

But fate had other plans for her future.

At the age of sixteen she gained the ability to heal anyone with a simple touch. No matter the severity of the injury or the extent of the sickness.

All could be healed from the rich to the poor as long as Elisa willed it.

Whispers began to spread that teenage Elisa was even capable of resurrecting the death. That rumor was complete nonsense but her overwhelming talent for holy magic was real.

The Varion Temple immediately deployed their paladins and 'persuaded' the duke to give up his daughter to the temple.

There was no need for violence as the duke was more than happy to trade his daughter for some benefits.

His mistress had recently birthed a son so the duke was secretly grateful that his accomplished daughter would no longer be in the picture.

If this betrayal had affected Elisa, then she never showed it.

Since arriving at the temple, the new saintess was completely devoted to the teachings of the Lord of Light.

The pope gave the saintess an entire squad of holy knights to serve as her personal guard. The captain of the squad was a woman called Claire Blanlyn.

A no-nonsense woman who was hailed as the strongest paladin among the younger generation.

Her personality was dull and stoic. In fact, Saintess Elisa could rarely get an extra sentence or two out of her whenever she tried to make conversation.

According to the other members of her squad, the captain was only interested in swordsmanship and gaining enough strength to be anointed as a Holy Commander.

Still, it was this twisted personality that made Saintess Elisa trust her so much.

Growing up in while being part of different noble circles meant that she had spent most of her life surrounded by silver tongued liars and cheats.

It was refreshing to interact with someone completely disinterested in the famous saintess of the Varion Temple.

Speaking of the captain…

It was impossible for the saintess not to notice someone entering her sacred domain, so she slowly got up from the ground.

"What brings you to my inner sanctum?" Saintess Elisa asked softly without turning around.

Claire walked into the room with a cold expression on her face. She wore a white set of armor with the image of the sun engraved on the chest plate.

A sword hung loosely at her hip with its body concealed by a leather scabbard. The scabbard was old and faded.

"My lady… I have come to escort you to the central temple. His holiness the pope is going to hold a grand assembly," Claire explained politely.

"Ahh… I see… let me go to my room and change into a more formal attire. I hope you don't mind waiting for a few minutes," Saintess Elisa spoke with a quiet smile.

"Not at all my lady. Take as much time as you need," Claire replied bluntly. The holy knight left the inner sanctum and waited patiently by the door.

I wonder how Saintess Elisa survived after I left…

Claire let out a heavy sigh as she stared at the wall opposite her.

At first it had been difficult for Sui Li to refer to herself by a new name but as the memories from this body poured into her mind…

It had been surprisingly easy to accept.

After absorbing a lifetime of memories Sui Li completely understood why the original Claire had desperately pleaded for her not to break her vow.

The source of a holy knight's power was faith.

They borrowed a fraction of God Varion's power, so their strength relied on their devotion to him.

And this strength could be taken away or lost. Any believer that broke their oath would be punished and paladins were held to a higher standard by the Lord of Light.

Their betrayal would lead to unimaginable consequences.

God Varion never forced humanity to worship him but those who did were expected to serve for a lifetime.

Sui Li closed her eyes and accessed Claire's memories once more. There was one question on her mind that she could not get any answer to.

In Claire's memories after the events of today she would gradually lose her powers over the course of five years until she voluntarily left the temple.

After that she travelled to a remote village and spent the rest of her days in a self-imposed exile tormented by feelings of guilt and regret.

She died one night when a mysterious portal opened in the middle of the village and a horde of shadowy beasts emerged and slaughtered all the residents.

As for where this portal came from and who was behind it… she never found out the truth.

The former holy knight could not even wield her sword properly and was torn apart by a swarm of lesser demons.

It was a cruel death.

Sui Li assumed that this portal must have something to do with the villainess of this plane but there was no proof or hint at her identity.

How was she supposed to deal with an enemy who was hidden?

The mystery behind the portal troubled Sui Li deeply. She had already decided not to kill the villainess and just live a peaceful life but…

Would she be able to live an uneventful life if a demonic invasion occurred?

Especially considering her role as a paladin, surely the Varion Church would not stand idly by and watch as the world was engulfed in the flames of war.

Sui Li closed her eyes for a brief moment to gather her thoughts. She decided that the best course of action was to just take things one step at a time.

Right now, her priority would be the grand assembly. Sui Li opened her eyes and once again became Claire Blanlyn.

"I'm ready," a soft voice suddenly whispered. Claire looked down and was instantly captivated by the fragile beauty standing near her side.

Saintess Elisa had replaced her simple white dress with a golden robe that extended to cover her feet.

The golden robe was adorned with sparkling rubies that shined and gleamed under the sunlight.

An amulet carved in the image of the sun was hung around her neck and a silver bracelet was worn on each arm.

"Do I look good?" Saintess Elisa teased with a mischievous glint in her eyes. The saintess brushed a loose strand of hair from her forehead and winked at her cold faced companion.

Claire hid it well, but a subtle blush had already begun to spread across her cheeks that betrayed her secret thoughts.

Saintess Elisa's smile widened and became a bit more genuine.

Why hadn't she noticed before just how cute her holy knight was?

Saintess Elisa narrowed her eyes and took a closer look at Claire. Her holy knight looked exactly the same as usual but…

There was definitely something different about her today.

Saintess Elisa just could not put her finger on what exactly had changed.