Astral Sage

Tina left the infirmary.

Relying on her memories of the past, she recalled the organization that stood at the pinnacle of humanity.

The Tower of Stars.

A gathering place for top magical talents, it possessed all the magic-related knowledge and lore in the world. The name of every well-known powerhouse in history could be found within its archives. Joining this organization meant privilege and status, ensuring Sathya's absolute safety—she believed this even now.

In the changing room, she tidied her shawl, adjusted her small skirt, and pulled on white thigh-high socks.

The mirror reflected a young girl in a school uniform. She had delicate, refined features and deep blue hair that cascaded down to her waist, with a snow-white hairclip that made her look even more energetic. Her flawless, pale skin was the envy of many, even though she rarely dressed up. She was indeed one of the top "beautiful girls" in the Holy Academy, and later, she had even ended up on the same bizarre campus beauty list as Sathya.

But her deep, azure eyes made her look more like a gloomy young girl. It seemed one's temperament was indeed hard to change.

She walked out the door.

A familiar figure stopped her.

Standing before Tina, her proud figure was practically bursting beneath her white robe. The woman clasped her hands together, her pale, thin face filled with worry. Taking quick, short steps forward, she looked exactly like a mother worried about her daughter, carrying a basket full of food on her arm.

“Senior Lavertis?”

Tina offered a warm smile and took the initiative to greet her.

Lavertis was Tina's senior, and only students of the same society would use such an address.

The Holy Academy was as large as the imperial capital, with the northern and southern campuses spanning dozens of kilometers. It was home to a hundred thousand students and tens of thousands of monastics and mages. Within the Holy Academy, most students chose to join a society to secure learning resources and benefits.

A society was similar to a student club, but far more reliable and influential.

Generally, students within the same sphere of influence would share learning resources within a single society.

The Leaflight society, which Tina belonged to, specifically recruited children from orphanages, small monasteries, or poor families.

Without a sphere of influence or family prestige behind them, they had no choice but to band together for warmth to secure a place in the academy.

Miss Lavertis was the president of the entire society, a serving holy sister of the Church, and also Tina and Sathya's first teacher.

She stepped forward and asked with deep concern, “I'm fine. Tina... Weren't you in the ward? Why did you come out? Is your body okay?”

“Don't worry, Senior. I'm not hurt~”

Society competition was fierce. The originally obscure Leaflight had only gained prominence because of the two apprentice Saintesses, Sathya and Tina. A society's contributions to the Holy Academy could be converted into academic points, which determined its ranking and status. Although Lavertis wanted to raise their society's rank, she cared far more about her students' safety.

“How is Sathya? How is she doing?”

“We didn't face the demons directly. We were just injured by the aftershocks.”

“Is that so? I heard that all the Inquisitors perished, with no survivors. Magical beasts are truly terrifying.”

Lavertis's expression grew guiltier as she spoke. “Tina, actually, I came here to find you for another matter. You might already know about it.”

At this point, Lavertis lowered her head in regret, saying with deep self-reproach, “Because our Leaflight is too weak, you and Sathya have been removed from the list. I... I am so sorry...”

“The Astral Sage removed us on her own initiative?”

To put it simply, above the Holy Academy, there was an academic group called the Tower of Stars, widely recognized as the greatest magical organization in the world.

And the students within this ivory tower would, without exception, become peak powerhouses standing at the top of the world.

There were eleven societies in the Holy Academy, and only six of them had produced Saintess candidates.

All the apprentice Saintesses would be gradually eliminated through trials arranged by the Pope, and joining the Tower of Stars this time was part of the assessment.

Given the Holy Academy's status, the Tower of Stars would select one student from each of the academy's societies every five years to enter the tower. With the Saintess Selection drawing near, this had become a highly coveted slot.

Little did anyone know, this condition provided the perfect opportunity for underhanded manipulation from below, making Tina the target for elimination.

Becoming a Saintess meant bringing immense wealth and status to one's society. At this time, before the large-scale invasion of magical beasts, humanity still had no idea what kind of enemy they were about to face.

“Yes, it was Lady Astral Sage.”

The apology on Lavertis's face deepened, like a worried, weak mother confessing her sins.

“Actually, Leaflight doesn't matter. Your safety is the most important thing. You must never get involved in dangerous disputes. If you get hurt, it would be terrible...”

But Tina said confidently, “Don't worry, Senior. I'm going to see the Astral Sage right now.”

“But... but...”

Lavertis gripped Tina's hand. “Even if she truly takes pity on us, one of you will still be left out.”

“Then of course I will give it to Sathya. She is more talented and motivated than I am.”

But Lavertis had seen Tina's hard work; she knew exactly how hard the children of the society struggled.

She knew she couldn't stop Tina, but she still kindly advised:

“There has been a rift between you two for a while now, hasn't there? I'm so sorry I didn't notice sooner. Besides, Sathya is actually a good child. She's like a blank sheet of paper; she doesn't know anything. Even if she said hurtful things, she didn't mean them. She was probably just angry in the heat of the moment.”

Tina was a bit dazed at first. Because she possessed memories from before the time reset, she couldn't quite remember exactly what had happened at this point in time.

“Don't worry.”

Tina simply nodded.

But Lavertis suddenly looked as if she understood everything. “Tina, I know you care deeply about Little Ya too, but sometimes, too much of a good thing can be counterproductive. After all, affection is a process where two sincere hearts slowly draw closer under equal circumstances~”

Lavertis possessed an extremely strong ability to perceive emotions, and she was one of the rare geniuses in the academy.

Even though her brilliance was overshadowed in front of the apprentice Saintesses, she was still the youngest society president.

Perhaps she had already seen through everything.

In her heart, Tina began to guard herself against this kind-hearted woman.

However, she had no intention of getting rid of Lavertis.

She was a kind person, at least in Tina's eyes.

Right up until her death, she had been protecting her students.

Tina took a piece of cream-spread bread from her hand, nodded slightly, and politely bid farewell to Lavertis.

If the Tower of Stars was a kingdom of magic, then the Astral Sage was its prime minister.

As the Astral Sage, she also served as a mentor in the Church, holding a status equivalent to a university professor.

During the Saintess Selection, her office was located on the top floor of the western campus library.

Finding her was not difficult.

In the past, she had also sought out the Astral Sage to secure a spot in the Tower of Stars for Sathya.

She had knelt in a humble posture, bitterly begging the Astral Sage, and had even signed a contract with her to become a special experimental subject for the Tower of Stars just to secure that spot. That period of time had made it impossible for Tina to hold her head up high before the Astral Sage for years to come.

Because in the eyes of the Astral Sage, she had actually cast aside all her dignity for a woman who had abandoned her.