Everything had to start with completing the path of the Initiate. The Initiate stage was essentially a process of laying the foundation; once the magic particles had washed through the entire body and endowed it with sufficient spirituality, the advancement ritual could be held.
For Olivia, this was not a particularly distant goal. The original owner of her body, driven by her mission as a mole, had been quite diligent in her meditations, which had already provided a solid foundation. Now that Olivia herself had mastered the Radiant Meditation Method, she could significantly shorten the time required for this stage.
She believed it wouldn't be long before she could step into the next class rank.
Walking out of the Sunlight Cathedral, Mirabelle said decisively, "I want to become a Priest. It reduces the risk of facing combat directly. Fighting from a distance is always more reassuring than close-quarters combat."
As a princess of the Kingdom of Morden, she had many transcendent paths to choose from, such as the widely known Swordsman or Cavalry paths. She could have pursued those if she wished.
But since she had been sent to the monastery to grow as a nun, the only path she could naturally take was one belonging to the Church.
"A good choice," Olivia replied.
As for herself, she currently leaned toward becoming an Arbiter. Based on the transcendent abilities she knew of so far, an Arbiter's combat power was clearly far superior to that of a Priest; by comparison, a Priest was more like a support role.
She needed to possess enough combat strength, and Arbiter was almost her only choice at the moment.
"What about you, Olivia?"
"Arbiter."
"...Uh, I guess I'm not that surprised."
Mirabelle thought back to the scene she had witnessed at the orphanage. Olivia had walked out covered in blood after killing Ashley Hewitt. That image was truly terrifying and had left an indelible impression on her that she still couldn't forget.
Not long after leaving the Sunlight Cathedral, the two saw a small number of nuns practicing combat in an open space within the monastery grounds.
Seeing this, Mirabelle couldn't help but smile. "Olivia, once you become an Arbiter, that's where you'll be spending your time every day."
Arbiters excelled at combat, but combat skills didn't appear out of thin air; they required a learning process.
Fortunately, after becoming an Arbiter, one's body would become extremely adaptable to fighting, making it very easy to master combat techniques.
Therefore, before becoming a Pilgrim on the Arbiter path, learning combat was entirely unnecessary.
The nuns in the open space ahead were, of course, Pilgrims—official, full nuns.
"At least it won't be boring. If you want to take the Priest path, you'll have to stay in the cathedral praying every day," Olivia teased with a smile.
Mirabelle's expression stiffened as she imagined a very dull future, but she still feigned indifference. "I am a devout believer. Being able to pray every day isn't a bad thing."
They passed by the training grounds and arrived at the nun's school, where many of their courses were held.
Today, Olivia still had to face her Sylvan Runes class. At the thought of Ms. Mona being the instructor, Olivia couldn't help but feel a slight headache. Ms. Mona's enthusiasm was somewhat overwhelming for her.
"Ms. Mona is here quite early today. Could she be here for you?" Mirabelle looked ahead and chuckled softly.
Standing at the entrance of the schoolroom was their instructor, Mona Spencer, in a waiting posture.
She had blue hair and blue eyes and wore a nun's habit. Although she was middle-aged, one could still see the beauty of her youth; her skin, in particular, remained exceptionally well-maintained, as fair and smooth as that of a woman in her twenties.
When she saw Olivia appear, Mona immediately walked over.
"She really is here for you. I'll be going then," Mirabelle whispered with a raised eyebrow before walking away.
Though Olivia struggled with Mona's intensity, she still greeted her politely when she approached.
"Good morning, Ms. Mona. Were you waiting here for me?"
"Yes, Olivia. You are the most outstanding nun I have ever taught, so I recommended you to the Daylight Cathedral," Mona said with a smile.
The Daylight Cathedral?
A recommendation?
What did that mean?
Olivia didn't understand Mona's meaning for a moment.
She only knew that the Daylight Cathedral was a cathedral located in Kaliron's South District. This cathedral was different from the one inside the monastery used for the nuns' prayers; it was a much larger, grander structure that served the countless believers of the South District.
Furthermore, many affairs were handled within that cathedral, such as decision-making and arrangements regarding various transcendent incidents.
Mona saw Olivia's confusion and smiled. "It's actually not that complicated. Deacon Ronan from the Daylight Cathedral reached out to me, stating they needed a nun skilled in crafting talismans to help handle some matters. As you know, talismans are time-sensitive; they can't be stored long-term. Most of the time, they need to be crafted on-site."
Olivia naturally understood the nature of talismans. From the moment such a transcendent tool was completed, the magic within it would gradually dissipate. Most talismans would lose all their magic within a single day, becoming ordinary items.
This lost magic could not be replenished; the item had to be remade.
Perhaps those with a deeper understanding of talismans or those of a higher class rank could craft talismans that mitigated this loss, allowing them to remain effective for longer, but there were clearly not many people capable of making such items.
Crafting talismans on the spot to deal with situations was the norm. The talismans the Church bestowed upon believers were usually made that very day.
Mona told Olivia that because many heretical organizations had been active in Kaliron recently, problems had cropped up in various districts. Those heretical transcendents never understood the meaning of being low-key or staying hidden; wherever they went, they always stirred up trouble.
To deal with these various troubles, the Church's clergy had been mobilized, spreading out to handle the problems caused by the heretics, and even facing them directly in transcendent combat.
The Church's power was exceptionally vast, enough to maintain the safety of Kaliron, but they still required more manpower to ensure the Church could handle everything with greater ease.
Mona said with a beaming smile, "Normally, a novice nun is still in the learning process and wouldn't participate in anything other than social services; those are matters for full nuns to face. However, you are an exceptional individual. You have a proficient grasp of Sylvan Runes and are skilled in crafting talismans, so you can participate in these matters ahead of schedule. This isn't a bad thing for you; it allows you to accumulate merits early."
"So, Ms. Mona, you recommended me to this Deacon Ronan?" Olivia's expression was a bit subtle.
Within the Church, there were two promotion paths for the clergy, distinguished by gender.
Men started as acolytes, while women started as novice nuns.
After acolyte came father, and only then came deacon.
A father corresponded to a full nun, while a deacon corresponded to a deaconess.
Those who could reach this step were already transcendents of the Sensate class rank. This Deacon Ronan was qualified to lead his own squad of transcendents to handle transcendent incidents that weren't too dangerous.
Mona reassured her, "Don't worry, the matters Deacon Ronan is responsible for won't be too dangerous. They just lack a support person who can quickly craft talismans. You only need to be a support member. It's not dangerous or exhausting, yet you can gain quite a lot from it."
"Thank you, Ms. Mona. I just don't know how much time participating in this will take. Will I have time to finish my daily lessons and prayers?" Olivia asked.
"As for the courses, I don't think you need to worry. Your knowledge is already ahead of the teaching schedule. As for prayers, it's not a rigid matter; when you have essential tasks to complete, you won't be forced to come back just to pray. As for the time, that's not something certain; it will be up to Deacon Ronan's judgment. It might take several days," Mona answered.
Since things had come to this, Olivia naturally couldn't say anything to refuse.
She called out to the magic mirror in her heart.
'Magic mirror, magic mirror, is there any danger in Mona recommending me to help Deacon Ronan?'
【Based on the information available within the monastery, there is no danger. When Deacon Ronan came to the monastery to request aid, his emotions were not anxious.】
Olivia nodded inwardly. Since that was the case, she could indeed participate in this matter.
...
Not long after, Olivia left the monastery.
Although Deacon Ronan wasn't anxious, he still hoped the assisting nun could arrive as soon as possible to help, so Olivia didn't have to attend today's classes.
As for tomorrow's classes, she might not attend those either. She didn't know how long this assistance would take, but fortunately, whether she attended classes or not didn't have much impact on her at the moment.
After walking out of the cathedral, Olivia took some time to first head outside Morning Dew Park on Aus Street. This was the location where she had previously delivered information to the Rose Legion.
Upon reaching a trash can, she crouched down, pretending to clean up some trash that had fallen on the ground. During this process, she quietly retrieved a note that had been placed at the bottom of the trash can at some point.
She had previously provided a response to the Rose Legion's mission; naturally, new instructions from the Rose Legion had arrived.
She covertly unfolded the note, her gaze sweeping over it.
Rate on N.U.
