When Ino, now dressed in a silver-white swordswoman’s dress, led Lulumia out the door, she didn’t keep her waiting long. It was still only nine in the morning.
The Holy Capital of the Ohnheim Theocracy boasted several Istel Church temples. Ino, who hailed from the Geffen Parish, stayed at the temple on Commerce Street.
As soon as they stepped beyond the temple plaza, the lively and bustling air of Commerce Street greeted them, with all sorts of magical items dazzling Lulumia at every turn.
Lulumia glanced up at Ino’s profile. Ino didn’t look too happy—she must have run into trouble with the Cardinal.
Well, of course.
Skipping leadership training with the excuse that “my way is better,” and then taking people hunting monsters in the dangerous Great Forest without permission—no leader could tolerate such a headstrong subordinate.
Even if Ino’s method really was more efficient, there were always smoother ways to get things done.
Being overly blunt is bound to get you shot down.
Maybe teenagers her age thought she looked cool, but moving from the Geffen Parish to the Capital Parish was like graduating university and entering society.
Internships would sand down every rough edge of a new recruit; if Ino didn’t change her temper, she’d keep running into obstacles.
Lulumia sighed quietly—honestly, what could she do?
She decided to break the ice and lighten Ino’s mood.
“Ino, are you feeling down?”
“Yeah. That Cardinal put me on the spot again. He said if I pull another stunt like this, he’ll revoke my qualification for the Saint Candidate promotion.”
“The Cardinal has that much power?”
“He’s the head of the Capital Parish. His authority is greater than Cardinals from other parishes.”
Ino calmly explained as she held Lulumia’s hand.
Officially, the Geffen Parish and the Capital Parish were equals, but in reality, the Capital Parish had a much larger population and a more prosperous economy, contributing far more to the church.
As a result, its voice in church matters outweighed all other parishes in the Ohnheim Theocracy combined.
On top of that, all Saint Candidates nominated by each parish had to undergo their promotion ceremony in the Capital Parish.
Over time, it became tacitly accepted that the Capital Parish led the more remote parishes.
Thus, even though they shared the same title, Sander, the Cardinal of the Capital Parish, wielded much greater power than his counterpart in Geffen.
Ino went on.
“So basically, the Cardinal of the Capital Parish controls nearly the entire process for the Ohnheim Theocracy’s Saint Candidate selection.”
“So, we shouldn’t get on his bad side, huh? Maybe give him a gift to make up for it…?”
Seeing Lulumia’s big, earnest, adorable eyes, Ino couldn’t help but laugh.
“Where did you learn that? Kids shouldn’t worry about these things. But honestly, it was my fault this time—I almost got Shalina involved.”
“As for gifts, don’t bother. The Cardinal is famous for being incorruptible and stubborn. Every noble in the capital tries to cozy up to him, but he’s devoted only to the church and never accepts bribes. With no relatives to be used as leverage, he’s practically untouchable. Everyone in the church fears him. Giving a man like that a gift will only make him think less of you, like you’re insulting him.”
“I see…”
That Cardinal doesn’t sound so bad—better than those greedy types.
“So what exactly is the Saint Candidate promotion?”
Lulumia finally asked what had been on her mind.
“Huh? The sisters never told you?”
Ino looked down in surprise.
The soft blue strands of her gardenia-scented hair brushed against Lulumia’s face, making her nose itch.
Lulumia wiped her face and answered, “Nope.”
“Well, you just arrived,” Ino muttered to herself.
“Put simply, the Saint Candidate promotion gathers all the candidates recommended by each parish for a competition. A few of the most virtuous, magically gifted, and publicly recognized ones are chosen to stand before the Mark of Original Sin and be tested by Lady Istel. Those who earn Lady Istel’s recognition become the Saints tasked with watching over the Mark of Original Sin.”
“Why not just bring all the Saint Candidates before the Mark of Original Sin and have Lady Istel test them?”
Lulumia couldn’t help but complain in her heart.
If they had to go through a human selection process before seeing the Great Spirit Istel, wasn’t it just like a presidential election on Earth?
On the surface, it’s democracy, but really, the people can only pick between two options, left or right—either way, you have to hold your nose and vote.
Ino smiled wryly and explained, “Because Lady Istel only has a sliver of her soul left. It takes years to build up enough magic to perform a test. If too many people go, Lady Istel won’t have enough power and the test can’t be held.”
“Oh…”
So the Great Spirit Istel really was still alive.
Lulumia bit back her urge to say anything blasphemous.
But Ino spoke up in her place.
“Actually, some people in the church have questioned whether this is really Lady Istel’s will. After all these years, she’s never delivered an oracle—only held the Saint Candidate tests over and over.”
“They argue that if Lady Istel still has consciousness, then even if the Mark of Original Sin—which seals the demon—has problems, she could simply send an oracle to the church to avert disaster. Electing Saints would be pointless.”
“And over the past thousand years, there have been incompetent, even disastrous, Saints. If the selection really was Lady Istel’s will, wouldn’t that mean Lady Istel had poor judgment?”
“Ino, that’s not really something you should be saying…”
And that kind of pragmatic skepticism really didn’t sound like the church’s style.
Lulumia glanced warily around them. What Ino said could get her branded a heretic.
“That’s because you’re the only one listening,” Ino grinned, poking Lulumia’s petite nose. “Getting all preachy with me, little one?”
Lulumia didn’t resist, just pouted. “Ino, you don’t act like a priestess at all.”
“I wasn’t one, to begin with. One day, Lady Istel came to me in a dream, and then church officials came to my door, saying they wanted me to be a Saint. My family wasn’t even religious.”
“Huh? I’ve never heard you talk about your family.”
“Nothing to say.”
Ino’s tone suddenly turned cold.
Lulumia blinked, then understood.
Ohh, I get it—rebellious phase.
Teenage girls at odds with their families, totally normal.
Lulumia wisely chose not to poke that sore spot.
Unknowingly, the two of them had left the bustling Commerce Street and arrived at the noble district, which Lulumia was quite familiar with.
The streets here were wide and pristine, the spotless stone pavement lined with grand mansions and stately townhouses with their own gardens.
The only people walking around were well-dressed butlers and maids.
Street lamps lined the road, a rarity elsewhere, making Lulumia feel uncomfortable, like she’d wandered into a wealthy neighborhood after her transmigration.
The original owner of her body had spent a fortune just to rent a place here.
“By the way, the Cardinal praised me today for finding such an outstanding Magi Doll. Do you have any idea what that’s about, Mia?”
I am not a pig.
Lulumia complained in her heart—she hadn’t even met the Cardinal.
Fortunately, Ino also doubted that Lulumia could have any connection to that stubborn Cardinal, so she just propped her chin and muttered, “Strange… Maybe he just heard something.”
“Never expected to meet you here, Miss Ino. Is this Lady Istel’s blessing at work?”
Just then, a young man of seventeen or eighteen, dressed in the uniform of Saint Istel Academy, blocked their path.
“I was about to visit the temple for you. I heard you were having trouble adjusting to the capital. As a newcomer, Miss Ino, I haven’t been a good host, which is my failing. No time like the present—would you do me the honor of visiting my home? The relationships among the capital’s nobles are quite complicated…”
“No need.”
Ino’s rejection was cold and direct.
The young man seemed to expect this; he didn’t get upset.
He simply bowed, left hand behind his back, and offered a red gift box with his right.
“Then I won’t interrupt your stroll. But please, at least accept this gift I’ve prepared for you. If you ever have any worries, you can always come to me.”
Objectively speaking, the youth’s handsome smile and polite demeanor did have some charm.
But Lulumia felt her teeth ache just looking at him—this young man was Jeann’s older brother, Geos.
“I said it already, Geos—I don’t need your gifts.”
Ino frowned, her patience running thin.
“It’s just a few sweets, nothing valuable,” Geos opened the red box, revealing several chocolate-like candies.
“These treats were made especially for you, Miss Ino. If you won’t accept them, they’re no different from pebbles on the roadside. What’s the point of making them?”
“You could give them to the poor.”
“To commoners… well,” Geos sighed, eyes full of regret, “if Miss Ino insists, I suppose I must throw them away. Such a waste—hey, what are you doing, kid?”
Not giving Geos a chance to keep up his act, Lulumia grabbed a chocolate and popped it in her mouth.
Facing Geos’s panicked attempt to snatch it back, she looked innocent as could be.
“Didn’t you say throwing them away would be wasteful?”
“You—”
Geos was at a loss for words, while Lulumia kept eating and grimaced.
“Yuck, tastes like copper coins.”
Beside her, Ino’s face twitched.
She quickly fished two gold coins from her pocket and handed them to Geos.
“Sorry, I’ll just buy this chocolate. Please don’t bring any more next time.”
She hurriedly finished, took Lulumia by the hand, and rushed away.
Only when Geos was left gaping behind them did Ino pinch Lulumia’s soft cheeks and scold gently, “What was that about? If you want sweets, I can buy them for you.”
“Obviously, I just don’t like him. If he wants to get close to you, he’ll have to get through me first. You’re mine, Ino.”
Lulumia puffed up her cheeks, full of righteous indignation, though inwardly she thought, As long as I’m around, Geos can forget about getting close to Ino for the rest of his life.
Ino was half exasperated, half amused.
“Who taught you this stuff? You’re way too young to be worrying about such nonsense.”
“I came up with it myself.”
Ino was speechless for a moment.
Somehow, she felt like she was losing an argument to a ten-year-old.
But then she thought about how she really did dislike nobles like Geos, and let out a long sigh.
“Forget it. But don’t go snatching food from people again—it’s embarrassing. I brought you out today to teach you magic. Is there any magic you’re interested in?”
Yeah, I want to learn ‘Cleanse.’
Lulumia really wanted to say that.
If this were a galgame, a dialogue box would pop up: “Learn ‘Cleanse'” or “Learn Water Magic.”
Anyone could tell, picking the latter would increase Ino’s affection.
After all, in this world, ‘Cleanse’ was considered a magic with no ambition.
“Ino, you’re good at water magic, right? I want to learn water magic too! I want to be just like you, Teacher Ino!”
She bounced forward, hugging Ino’s arm like a lively, innocent little sister.
Sure enough, she’d picked the right option.
Ino’s gentle face lit up with happiness.
She stopped in her tracks and looked up at the magnificent temple before them—the largest in the capital, the training grounds for Saints, the Central Temple.
“No wonder the Cardinal praised you as my Magi Doll. Let’s start from the path I took to learn magic—first up, close-combat magic. Mia, you look pretty sturdy. You should be able to take a hit.”
Huh?
Lulumia was stunned.
That’s not how it works in galgames!