Rehearsing with Saintess Stella
"Approved!"
There had been a bit of a commotion earlier, but the carriage didn't stop and kept on moving. Before long, it pulled up in front of the Armonia Church.
"Let's get out."
"W-what? Now?"
"Yeah. We have to, right? Or were you planning to stay in the carriage?"
"N-no! Of course we have to get out!"
Monica shot to her feet. Then she plopped right back down. She seemed almost as flustered as when she'd first seen Selenie. I held back a laugh and opened the carriage door first, stepping out.
The temple of the Armonia Church loomed right in front of us.
"Whoa."
This wasn't my first time here, but I couldn't help marveling every visit. When it came to the largest temples in the capital, the Armonia Church never topped the list—there were plenty bigger. But if you asked for the most beautiful, it was almost always number one.
And that made perfect sense. Armonia wasn't just the god of music; he was the god of art itself. When they built the temple, they must have wanted talented artists from all over to lend a hand.
As I stood there waiting for Monica to climb down, I spotted some figures approaching from ahead. Priests.
"Welcome."
"Thank you for gracing our church."
It looked like they'd come out to greet us right on time.
"Thank you for the warm welcome."
"Hello."
I bowed politely to them, and Monica, who'd just stepped down behind me, gave a light curtsy at my side.
"If it's alright with you, may we escort you inside?"
"Yes, please."
We followed the priests into the church grounds. Normally, visitors for prayer entered through the main gate, but this time we went through a side door. A quiet passageway opened up before us.
First time using this route. It must be for church members only.
We walked quite a ways in—nearly ten minutes—before arriving at a spacious room.
"We've prepared most instruments you might need. If anything's missing, please let us know."
"That's fine. The piano's already been moved in, right?"
"Yes, it's over there."
I could carry my violin myself, but a piano was another story. So I'd sent people ahead to transport it.
I headed to where the priest pointed and inspected the piano. They'd set it up carefully—no issues, all pristine and ready.
The priest bowed once he saw me nod in satisfaction.
"Your practice partner will arrive shortly."
"Thank you."
With that, the priest withdrew, leaving Monica and me alone in the vast room. I scanned it again. It was clearly designed for musical practice from the start.
Then Monica asked in a trembling voice,
"Arden, do I really look okay? My hair isn't messy, is it?"
"This is the fourth time you've asked, you know? You look fine. So stop fidgeting."
Even after my words, Monica couldn't settle down. I got it, though. She was the saintess of the Armonia Church—that was a big deal. Even I, with my modern memories keeping me somewhat grounded, had been blown away at first.
"For now, sit down and check the piano."
I gave her some advice to help. She froze for a second, then shuffled to the piano like a glitchy robot.
No matter how nervous she was, the moment she sat at the keys, her expression turned serious. A natural-born musician through and through.
I finally pulled out my violin. Thanks to practicing whenever I could, it felt comfortably familiar now. I slowly drew the bow across the strings to check the tone, running through adjustments.
Soon, footsteps echoed. Monica and I looked up.
The door opened silently, revealing a woman in pristine white priestly robes. Sky-blue hair, sky-blue eyes. Saintess Stella.
"Saintess."
"Ah, hello."
As we greeted her, Stella returned the courtesy while stepping inside.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I had some last-minute preparations."
In her hands was an instrument resembling a violin. It was a local one I'd referenced heavily when crafting mine. In this world, instrument makers had to account for mana flow to some degree. We'd talked about mana holes with the craftsmen before.
People here put too much faith in them sometimes, but you couldn't ignore them entirely. Especially for large venues, where sound-amplifying spells were common. Skip the mana holes, and the magic warped the tone.
"So, shall we start by discussing the performance?"
Stella's eyes sparkled as she asked.
"Ah, yes. Let's."
First things first: what piece, what structure. We needed to settle that before practicing.
There was a table in one corner of the practice room, so we headed there, took seats, and dove right in.
"For the performance, how about just the three of us—you, Monica, and me?"
"Won't three be too few?"
I nodded at Stella's question.
"Sure, more people would create a richer sound. But for a perfect stage... I think limiting the numbers is better."
I pointed to the violin and piano in turn.
"Not many are familiar with violin or piano yet."
The more players, the harder the tuning. Obvious, really.
"Plus, I want to showcase the violin and piano melodies properly, just as much as debuting a new piece."
More instruments meant the piano and violin would get buried. The focus scatters.
From the start, I'd envisioned a small ensemble. Originally, just Monica and me—a duo.
"Hmm, that makes sense. So, what instrument should I play?"
"Well, what can you play...?"
Stella listed them off: twelve in total, with confidence in three.
"Impressive."
"Oh, no, it's not that great. I can't master them all."
"Still. Let's pick from the ones you're confident in."
The three: one like the violin she held, carillon, and finally—the Silveri Selenie had played before, similar to a cello.
"Hmm... Silveri seems best."
"I think so too."
Stella nodded in agreement.
"It anchors the low register perfectly."
"Exactly."
That was why Selenie chose Silveri despite her skill with many instruments. Others had merits, but for stability, Silveri won.
Then Stella looked at me expectantly.
"Will we use the Silveri as-is?"
"The Silveri?"
No mistaking that eager gaze.
"Are you hoping for modifications?"
"Oh, I'm not dissatisfied with mine now. But you made new violin and piano for this piece, right?"
So, was plain old Silveri good enough?
"Hmm."
I pondered. True... Silveri wasn't a perfect fit.
Worked fine with Selenie? That was her piece, not Earth's. Fitting violin and piano to it had been the challenge.
Building a new cello from scratch? Time-consuming to craft and master.
"Minor tweaks... that I could manage."
Like turning carillon into piano—just key adjustments?
Yeah, feasible.
"But it'd be a hassle for you."
"I'm fine with that!"
Stella answered instantly, eyes twinkling like stars.
"I want to play a modified one!"
And right then, my hand grew faintly warm. As if it approved too.