“Do you believe in love at first sight?”
That was the first line of the famous romance novelist’s breakout work.
Audrey loved that book, but she didn’t believe in love at first sight.
Could a feeling born from looking at someone’s appearance without knowing their heart really be called love?
Besides, no matter how good-looking someone was, could they compare to herself?
The Saintess’s looks were basically the best in the world.
If she said she was second, no one would dare claim first.
Even her own sister fell slightly short.
But life was unpredictable, and it turned out she had never fallen in love at first sight simply because she’d never met the right person.
Like right now, at this very moment.
The girl had slightly wavy blonde hair, bright eyes with slightly upturned corners, a fierce yet youthful face.
Even after learning that Audrey was the Saintess, she was only surprised, her expression still neither servile nor overbearing.
She looked like a cute little kitten that was trying to act fierce.
In terms of looks, she certainly didn’t surpass Audrey, but the moment Audrey saw that face, she found her more and more pleasing.
Maybe she’d been staring too long, because the blonde girl turned her head away, a faint blush spreading across her cheeks.
She’s blushing.
Aaaah, I like her even more now, what do I do?!
“What’s your name?”
“Selina…” she said quickly, her eyes still dodging.
Just as Audrey wanted to dig deeper, a sudden pain shot through her ear.
“Aaaah! Ow! Ow! Vika, what are you doing?! ╯▂╰”
“My dear Saintess, do you think it’s appropriate to harass a nun on her first day of reporting?”
“There’s no one else around here! And! This is insubordination! I’m docking your pay!”
“Unfortunately, His Holiness the Pope hasn’t officially delegated authority to you yet. Pay isn’t something you get to decide.”
Hearing that, the corner of Audrey’s mouth twitched.
Selina, on the other hand, widened her eyes, unable to believe what was happening.
“What’s wrong? Can’t believe this thing is our Saintess?” Vika said flatly.
“No, I’m just a bit surprised.”
Selina waved her hand.
Until she figured out the specific situation here, she didn’t dare get too close to the Saintess.
The number of people who wanted to befriend or even marry her could circle the empire three times over.
For now, it probably wasn’t her turn, a mere junior nun.
“Divinity grants the goddess power, humanity grants the world compassion. Though I am the goddess’s incarnation on earth, I am also her human side. Don’t think of me as too perfect.”
Audrey said, puffing up her cheeks.
‘Hmm, cute, but I dare not touch,’ Selina thought.
Before she could come back to her senses, Audrey had already pulled her over to that small pavilion.
Vika sighed helplessly and decided to let her be.
From start to finish, another black-haired girl sat quietly in place, watching Audrey’s antics.
At the same time, she finally got a clear look at the blonde girl who had drawn the attention of the other two.
Suddenly, she felt an inexplicable warmth toward the girl before her.
She didn’t understand where this feeling came from, but her body instinctively wanted to get closer.
Reason curbed the momentary impulse.
On the surface, she showed no emotion, just sitting there quietly.
Deep inside, she questioned a certain presence.
“System, system, what’s the background of this girl?”
For some reason, the all-knowing presence in her heart fell silent at that moment.
There was no response, as if it had never existed.
“System? System?”
The black-haired girl grew anxious, calling out more frequently.
Yet still, no response.
“…”
Selina looked at the black-haired girl.
The sudden feeling of closeness puzzled her as well.
Just as she was about to study the black-haired girl more closely, she thought she saw a wisp of black mist behind the girl.
But in the blink of an eye, it vanished from sight.
Selina blinked, finding it strange.
‘Did I just see things? That can’t be right.’
Soon, she shrugged it off.
Maybe this was just a quirk of the Grand Cathedral.
There were always some things or people that appeared and disappeared from time to time.
The black-haired girl was momentarily stunned, then hurriedly introduced herself.
“Um, hello! My name is Ailina. Just call me Aili!”
She looked very shy, but she wasn’t wearing clerical attire.
Selina turned a questioning look to Vika, who explained.
“She’s the daughter of Marquis Rhine, and also our Saintess’s best friend. On the Saintess’s account, as long as she doesn’t enter certain restricted areas, no one can stop her.”
Privilege was a good thing—at least for those who had it.
“Selina.”
She extended her right hand, making a gesture to shake.
Aili hesitated for a moment, then placed her hand on top.
‘Looks like she’s a bit socially anxious.’
But she still felt that strange familiarity with her.
Why was that?
Audrey looked left and right, lost in thought for a moment.
‘Huh? I was the one who approached both of them first. How did I become the outsider?’
After they finished shaking hands, Vika leaned close to Selina’s ear and added, “The Saintess’s name is Audrey. Before becoming the Saintess, she was the daughter of Duke Born.”
It was more or less what Selina had guessed.
The fact that they could become best friends likely had a lot to do with their similar backgrounds.
“Want to have breakfast together? It’ll be livelier with more people.”
Vika shook her head.
“Unfortunately, we’ve both already eaten. I need to finalize her position before today. Excuse us.”
Vika said flatly, pulling Selina away.
After they had walked some distance, Vika suddenly spoke very seriously.
“Although those two seem to like you, I’d advise you to stay away from them unless you have the corresponding status. Otherwise, you won’t be able to protect yourself.”
Selina nodded.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
They passed through a corridor, crossed a plaza, and arrived at their destination.
A nine-story tower.
“This is?”
“The Tower of Phantoms. It was remodeled from a relic of an ancient civilization. Its main function is to test talent.”
“Talent? I recall there’s a crystal ball for that.”
“You mean the Sacred Selection? That can only give a rough estimate, not precise enough.”
With that, Vika led Selina inside the tower.
The interior was much more spacious than Selina had imagined.
There were also quite a few nuns and monks around her age standing inside.
But the most eye-catching was the bald head in the crowd.
“This is Bishop Ferrence. He’s in charge of training the clergy,” Vika introduced.
However, the little old man with the gleaming scalp let out a cold snort.
“Vika, you were exactly ten minutes late! Ten minutes! You wasted ten minutes for every cleric present. If one person wastes ten minutes, then that adds up to over a hundred minutes, nearly two hours!”
‘Damn, does this world use that kind of rhetoric too?’ Selina was shocked for what felt like the umpteenth time.
Vika rarely showed a troubled expression.
“It’s not really calculated that way, Bishop Ferrence. Anyway, I’ve brought the newcomer. I’m washing my hands of the rest.”
“Hmph, no time to waste. Begin the test!”
Ferrence waved his hand, ordering his subordinates to herd all the young newcomers into a room.
Selina followed the crowd into the room.
There was nothing special about it.
The architectural style was the same as outside, but the room was completely empty, with only a staircase leading upward and a faint, translucent “glass” in front of them.