For a moment, Luca doubted whether his eyes were playing tricks on him.
The scene before him was so unreal that it made him question his own perception.
The night was shrouded in darkness.
The moonlight was swallowed by dark clouds, and the starlight could not reveal itself in the dark sky.
In the midst of all the vanishing light stood Lucy Alrn, who, even in the deepest of darkness, was illuminating the world with her presence.
Her skin was whiter than the snowfields of midwinter.
Her red hair, captivating even in the dead of night, naturally drew attention.
Though she appeared to be walking without any particular thought, her movements were graceful and precise.
The nun’s habit, a little too large, fluttered in the night breeze, giving off an even more mystical aura.
Her eyes, red as jewels, shone brightly, clearly seeing the world despite the lack of light.
In the dark chapel, it seemed as if the very place was filled with light wherever Lucy Alrn stood.
Luca, mesmerized and forgetting the possibility of being caught, stared at Lucy as she stood before the saint's statue.
It wasn’t just Luca who thought that Lucy looked more sacred and noble than the Saintess.
The moment Lucy Alrn knelt down and gathered her hands in front of her, a warm, divine light began to spread around her.
Having worked as a professor for many years, Luca had met various clergymen.
Some were so corrupt that he wondered why the gods would bless such individuals, while others were so pure that they made him feel they were foolish.
Through these experiences, Luca had realized something important. The divine energy wielded by those at both extremes seemed to be strangely similar.
While the church’s clergy would try to explain this as the equality of the gods, Luca didn’t quite agree.
Why should only the gods, who are above the others, seek equality, when the other gods, who serve their followers, are willing to grant power freely?
These questions led Luca to secretly conclude that the god’s silence wasn’t about equality, but about incompetence.
However, at this moment, Luca’s convictions crumbled.
The divine energy that Lucy Alrn possessed, warm as the sun, was on a completely different level from that of any other clergyman.
It was clear.
The reason the clergymen he had encountered so far had similar divine energy was that their wills were in conflict with the gods’ true will.
The reason the gods had been silent was because they were dissatisfied with the very place of the God Church!
Behold! The appearance of Lucy Alrn, possessing the warm divine light, just like the myths spoke of!
She was the one loved by the gods! The one who would spread the will of the gods throughout the world!
She was the one who would become the brightest sun in this world!
Luca, watching Lucy Alrn pray in the center of the warm divine energy, was filled with a new conviction.
If it was Young Lady Alrn.
If it was her, loved by the gods.
If it was her, who had unlocked the overwhelming talent of the Alrn family.
If it was her, who possessed a remarkable perseverance that didn’t fit her appearance!
She might just be able to fulfill my goals.
She could dull the stars of talent I had seen. A manic smile spread across Luca’s face as he resolved to prepare trials for Lucy Alrn.
Not the trivial tests I had prepared to assist her growth so far. No, these would be the trials meant to engrave Luca the craftsman’s name onto the divinity that was Lucy Alrn.
Though he wanted to stay and watch over Young Lady Alrn, he realized the risk of being caught was too high, so he decided it was time to slip away.
Luca etched the face of Lucy Alrn into his memory one last time before quietly leaving the chapel.
Determined to offer a proper prayer for the pathetic god, I threw aside all the curses I had previously directed toward him and filled my prayer with gratitude for his protection so far, as well as my resolve for the future.
I thanked him for keeping me safe and for allowing Lucy to hear her mother's voice, comforting her sadness. I also swore to carry out his will by erasing the shadows of the evil gods from this world.
After finishing my words, I opened my eyes, intending to withdraw the divine energy that was filling the chapel. But then, I noticed Faby and Erin, who were praying beside me. I decided to leave the divine light as it was.
It was normal for Faby to pray beside me, but this was the first time I’d seen Erin praying.
Was she a believer of the God Church?
I didn’t recall ever seeing Erin go out on the weekends, so I wondered if she had been keeping her faith a secret from me.
Perhaps the old Lucy, knowing how much I hated churches, had deliberately avoided mentioning it.
A workplace boss who suppresses religious freedom... The Lucy Alrn rumors still linger, it seems.
As I was lost in thought, an alert sound rang in my ear, and I looked up.
[The Apostle’s Prayer has reached the God!] [Rewards will be given!] [The skill [Corruption Eradication] has been granted!]
At the mention of the skill Corruption Eradication, my eyebrows raised slightly.
The Corruption Eradication skill was a passive skill one could acquire if they followed the Paladin or Priest class tree.
Its effect increases your stats when fighting those related to the evil gods, and it also prevents the presence of evil energy from approaching the area where divine energy was spread for a certain period.
When the second year begins, the followers of the evil gods will likely become more active, so this skill will definitely come in handy.
It was a great reward for just one prayer, but I couldn’t bring myself to be purely happy.
The reward I received after driving out the followers of the evil gods from the academy streets was an increase in fame.
It was a vague and intangible reward that was hard to even feel physically!
But now, after just one prayer, I had been given such a useful skill!
This felt a bit strange, didn’t it?
Isn’t it normal for the reward to be the opposite?
I know I could complain even if I was given something, but this still felt wrong!
Just how bizarre is this pathetic perverted god that he gives out rewards like this?
Even though I was forced to serve him, is it wrong to ask that my god show some dignity?
As I vented my complaints about the pathetic god’s statue, another alert sounded.
Was he going to offer some excuse? Frowning, I read the new quest notification and tilted my head.
[Luca’s Trial] [Professor Luca of the Academy seeks to leave his mark on the shining star. Overcome the trials he has prepared.] [Reward: ???] [Failure: ???]
Luca? Why is Luca suddenly showing up?
I hadn’t even met him since returning to the academy!
Confused, I looked around but found nothing and turned my attention back to the blue window.
What is this?
Even though the pathetic god is a weak, perverted figure, I didn’t think he would try to change the subject like this.
"Young Lady, is something wrong?"
Still lost in thought, I was snapped out of it by Erin’s concerned voice. I shook my head.
Whatever. I can meet him tomorrow and figure it out then.
For now, let’s calm down Faby, who looks like she’s about to pass out from crying.
The next morning, as soon as I woke up, I entrusted myself to Erin’s hands, who had already perfectly prepared everything for the day.
"Today, I’ll go find people who work at the academy to see if I can find something to do. It would be an inconvenience for me to just follow you to your classes, Young Lady."
While Erin tied my hair up, I asked her what we would do today, and she told me she would be looking for work.
I knew my image wasn’t very good among the commoners, so I asked her if she was sure it would be okay, but Erin smiled confidently.
"Don’t worry, Young Lady. I’m quite used to handling things like that."
I was skeptical about Erin’s words, but seeing her so confident, I decided to let her go.
As she had said, I couldn’t keep her by my side forever.
Later, I could just talk to Cal and ask him to keep an eye on her, and there shouldn’t be any problems.
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Once I was finished getting ready, I left the room and headed straight for Luca’s office.
It was still early in the morning, but knowing Luca, he would probably already be working by now.
"It’s been a while, Young Lady Alrn."
As expected, Luca was sitting at his desk, papers scattered everywhere.
As usual, he tidied up the papers and started talking about the trials he had prepared for me.
Despite talking for a long time, I couldn’t find anything strange about Luca.
"If you’re talking about the First Queen, I deliberately accepted her offer. It seemed like she had her eyes on you," he said, even mentioning his relationship with the First Queen.
I figured his judgment was similar to my grandfather’s, so I decided to set aside my suspicions for now.
For now, I’d just stay vigilant and observe. Given that a quest had been issued, I was sure he would do something insane eventually.
Once I was done confirming, I stood up to leave his office, but Luca suddenly said something that caught my attention.
"Young Lady Alrn, did you happen to do something with the Art Guild during the break?"
"Why are you asking about that? I don’t want to share personal details with a creepy, obsessed pervert like you."
"Ah, it’s because the Art Guild has been spreading items related to you," he explained.
...Already?!
How much time has passed since I left the Art Guild, and they’ve already spread my things!?
Shocked by the incredible speed of the crazy fanatics, I froze for a moment before Luca pulled a pendant out of his drawer.
The pendant appeared simple at first glance, but inside, there was a drawing of me, eyes closed, praying.
"It seems they are still in the early stages, testing the waters. But rumors say they’re not only making songs and poems, but also plays about you. It looks like the Art Guild is confident of their success."
I could understand the songs and poems—they had already spread everything, so adding a few more things wouldn’t change much.
But a play?! What have I done for them to make a play about me?!
"I’ve heard the prototype is already quite popular. The Art Guild’s items have been gaining traction, and now they..."
I jumped up suddenly, not even waiting for his permission, and stormed out of the office.
The back alley.
I need to go to the back alley!
I have to find out if this rumor is true!