Before Becoming a Saint
In the kingdom of Marinella, the reason the Church stood as the largest of all religious institutions was simple: it kept producing gifted people who went on to serve humanity in every corner of the world.
Yet the Central Church in Senium, which admitted people based on ability rather than birth and rank, drew plenty of quiet resistance behind the scenes, since most churches accepted only nobles and above.
The day Hilde awakened to divine power, Agatha’s mind had been in turmoil. Even deep into the night, she couldn’t sleep, and in the end she moved to the prayer room.
The divine power Hilde had come to realize that day was special. It was a blessing granted from the heavens, one person per generation, and fate itself was decided for them in the Celestial Realm.
Wasn’t that supposed to be a good thing? Not from a mother’s point of view. In the histories, there were countless lives crushed to pieces as they walked toward fate. Already, Hilde looked to her as though she were stepping into a thorn-covered road.
The daughter who had never once fought in her life didn’t seem likely to endure what was coming. With her heart burning raw, Agatha prayed in silence. Lowering her head, she let her long hair fall across her face, casting her in shadow.
After praying for what felt like hours, a small creak sounded and the door opened. It was the Pope, a white-haired old man who had already crossed into his late fifties and was entering old age.
Seeing Agatha there, when he had assumed she’d long since gone to bed, the Pope wore a look of pity. By then, rumors about the newly inducted girl were already racing noisily through the Church’s buildings.
He sat down a short distance away, in the same familiar seat he always used.
"Your worries will surely have reached the ears of God as well, sister."
Agatha lifted her head at the Pope’s gentle voice. Her gaze fell on a life-sized statue modeled after the goddess Sermilod. It spread its great wings and extended its right arm as if naturally reaching to stroke the head of an unseen being before it.
Agatha, who had been staring blankly at the statue, slowly opened her mouth.
"Blasphemous as it may be, right now I resent the Goddess. I’ve also begun to suspect that she’s angry over something from the past."
The Pope was not surprised by Agatha’s frank words. From having watched her since she was a child, he knew she always spoke only the truth.
Even those widely regarded as exceptionally kind have negative feelings rise in their hearts from time to time. If they dislike someone, they curse them inwardly, and when hatred deepens, thoughts of condemnation or even murder can surface. That was human nature.
The Pope smiled kindly. A child so small had been thrown into profound anguish for the sake of a single life.
"Please don’t worry so much, sister. God does not impose a cruel fate upon those who trust in themselves."
"...And yet countless people have met their ends before fate. If my frail daughter cannot endure it and disappears, I don’t know if I can go on living. I think I’d probably spend the rest of my life cursing the Goddess and wasting away like a wreck."
"That may happen."
At his indifferent tone, Agatha turned to look at the Pope. He was still watching her with a compassionate smile at the corners of his mouth. Meeting her gaze, he continued.
"Raising that daughter well is the revelation given to us by the Church. Sister, do you lack the confidence to bring up your child splendidly?"
Agatha’s eyes widened. Worrying over it accomplished nothing. In a situation where no one knew when hardship would descend upon Hilde, even this time was a waste.
"I was lacking. Thank you for the advice, Your Holiness."
Agatha bowed and left the prayer room. As always, a familiar silence settled over it.
The Pope clasped his hands and prayed. Please protect these pitiable lives. Please grant them the courage to endure great adversity.
---
The day after awakening to divine power, eleven-year-old Hilde was walking along behind a priest who had come for her early that morning. The woman, who seemed to have only recently become a priest herself, explained that she had been sent by Hilde’s mother and that this was a decision made just now. To sum up the priest’s words after bringing her into the room, the Church wanted to know whether she would receive training in controlling divine power. Hilde said yes, washed up briefly, and followed the guide.
Having lived only in a mountain village until now, Hilde found the enormous temple-like buildings lining the road deeper inside utterly fascinating. They were so huge that the oppressive majesty of the gods they served seemed to seep naturally from them. After passing several buildings, they arrived at a place Hilde recognized.
The Divine School. A special-purpose school run by the Church to train priests and holy knights. In this age of war, where even a single capable talent was precious, the institution had been founded with as much support as possible, and there it was, equipped with the latest facilities and staffed by skilled priests who taught the seedlings growing into future power.
Because it was a place devoted solely to holy knights and priests, the scale wasn’t especially large. Most of the students lived at the Church, and even counting the preparatory, intermediate, and advanced classes together, the total number of students never exceeded three hundred.
The priest led Hilde into a large building marked Training Hall on the sign. Turning right at the entrance, they entered a space similar to a massive school auditorium, but it was packed with sacred relics and teaching materials neatly arranged for the children’s lessons. The noise was lively, the children all practicing the abilities they had learned.
Under one priest’s guidance, a model that looked like a wilted flower bloomed lushly after receiving a child’s divine power. Among some thirty children, the one who had made the divine power blossom panted hard and then flopped weakly onto the floor. The priest checked the strength, density, and duration of the divine power on a sheet of paper. Internally, the priest was astonished. This new student had splendid potential as a priest.
While catching her breath, the child happened to glance at Hilde, who had just entered the training hall.
"Huh? Hilde! It’s been forever, I’m so glad to see you! I was wondering when you’d show up!"
"Hello, Bridget... sis."
A pretty girl with short red hair was waving both arms wildly. It was Bridget, who had looked after Hilde well back in the mountain village and driven off the men who came close. Hilde had heard she’d gone to Senium a few days earlier with the holy knight Lohard, but she was already awakening divine power and moving ahead at an impressive pace.
"I’ll be on my way then, Priest Sevie."
"You worked hard. I hope you have a wonderful day today as well."
The apprentice priest who had guided Hilde greeted the teacher in charge of the children and left. Priest Sevie, a woman of twenty-five, felt something special the moment she saw the newly arrived child. The girl’s beauty was striking even at such a young age, but what truly caught her attention was the vast divine power faintly stirring within her.
The documents that had arrived on Sevie’s desk early that morning contained the new student’s name, age, parents, and other personal information.
Her mother is Countess Agatha? Well, well. That’s quite the heavyweight. She’ll be worth raising.
"Welcome. I’m Priest Sevie, and I handle practical training here at the Divine School."
Sevie said with a smile. Looking at Hilde’s lovely face, the children began to stir with small bursts of commotion. The boys blushed, while several of the girls fixed Hilde with sharp, wary eyes.
At her teacher’s polite tone, Hilde clasped both hands together and bowed her head.
"Hello, Priest Sevie. I’m Hilde. Please take good care of me."
"While you’re here, call me Teacher. Since Bridget just finished, practical training is over for now, so shall we check your aptitude? Would you come this way?"
Sevie led the children toward a pillar about five feet high with a green orb resting on top.
"This is called an Amplification Orb. It can usually tell you how much divine power you have and what part of the body it’s specialized in. Now then, Hilde. Would you place your hand on the orb?"
"Yes. Understood."
Hilde placed her hand on the orb. But nothing happened. Sevie offered an explanation.
"I heard that you awakened divine power. Try to draw it out as much as possible."
Hilde spread the power she had only vaguely sensed near her chest since yesterday throughout her body. Vitality surged through her, and her body grew light.
"Woooaaah!"
The children shouted at the sight of Hilde’s divine power shining through the Amplification Orb. A brilliant golden current was spreading in every direction. But the most striking feature was the radiant blue of her eyes.
"Hilde’s specialization is in the eyes. That’s an extremely rare trait. If divine power can naturally strengthen the eyes, it makes responding to an opponent’s attack much easier. Try moving the divine power gathered in your chest to your arms or legs, will you?"
Hilde tried to shift the energy. But it only trembled slightly; it wouldn’t move anywhere in any meaningful way. Not only did the power refuse to obey her wishes, but simply trying to move it also drained her physically. Her breathing growing ragged, Hilde gathered the scattered divine power back in.
"It seems like your specialization is in the eyes, so it’ll be difficult for now. That’s only natural, so don’t worry too much. Does anyone know the difference between a body strengthened through a specialized area and one strengthened by forcibly moving divine power?"
One of the slightly more mature students in the preparatory class raised a hand and said, "With a specialized area, divine power naturally gathers there, so it’s easier to control. Since it’s a person’s unique trait, you can’t just forcibly specialize some other part of the body."
"That’s right. But once your skill in handling divine power becomes more refined and you can infuse it into the body part you want, you can strengthen yourself even further. Much like a swordsman’s mana, if you will."
"Teacher! But swordsmen use aura!"
"Aura is also something you can only release after extremely arduous training. If aura is a swordsman’s specialty, then for a holy knight, it’s important to refine your own specialization."
After a little time passed and Hilde had caught her breath, Priest Sevie looked at her.
"Eye specialization is rarer than most other specializations. In many cases, people never even come across it. Hilde? Would you come up and help me with a demonstration?"
"All right, Teacher."
Hilde stepped to Sevie’s side at the front, where she had been explaining things. Sevie took several small orbs from her robes and moved back about thirty meters.
"Now, Hilde. Would you activate your divine power again? I’ll throw the orbs, so do your best to dodge them. They’re quite fast, but even if you’re hit, they’ve been specially treated, so you won’t get hurt. There’s no need to be nervous."
"I’m ready. You can throw them."
Hilde activated her divine power. Immediately afterward, Teacher Sevie hurled the orbs at high speed. A small sphere barely three centimeters in diameter was rushing toward Hilde at a speed too fast for the children to follow with their eyes.
By the slimmest margin, Hilde twisted her body and evaded it. The children, delighted by the entertaining spectacle before them, watched with rapt attention. Teacher Sevie aimed for Hilde’s forehead and right arm and threw two at once.
I can see them! They’re not so fast that I can’t dodge. Weirdly enough, I can even predict their trajectories.
Hilde calmly tilted her head slightly and moved her right arm behind her back. Once again, by a tiny margin, the orb slipped past her and struck the auditorium wall, where it turned softly into powder and scattered away.
The demonstration continued several more times. Sevie increased the number of orbs one by one as she threw them, and at last, when eleven came flying at once, one struck Hilde’s shoulder. The orb that hit her crumbled into soft powder and vanished.
The children cheered, thrilled by the marvelous display. Hilde was sweating from exertion as she used all her strength to block the orbs. After praising her effort and dismissing her, Teacher Sevie looked over the children.
"Did you all see how strengthening through specialization works? Some of you may be disappointed because your specialization is in your arms or legs. But if you all become skilled enough with divine power, even this won’t be difficult, so let’s all strive harder from now on. Since the time is up, we’ll end class here."
"Yes! Thank you, Teacher!"
Although Sevie had ended the lesson, the demonstration Hilde had shown earlier had lit a fire in the children. The students who had attended class with her all crowded around to talk to her.
"Your name was Hilde, right? You were amazing."
"You awakened divine power yesterday? And yet you can control it that well?"
Hilde, growing embarrassed, scratched her cheek and said, "Ah, thank you. But I’m still having a hard time moving the divine power elsewhere."
Bridget, seeing Hilde flustered, said, "That’s in the intermediate class curriculum. We’re still barely managing to activate divine power ourselves."
Then, an incongruous laugh cut through the atmosphere. The children turned toward the source of the sound.
It was a late-teen girl with beautiful long silver hair and green eyes.
"It’s the Saintess!"
"Looks like the advanced class gets to use the training hall next. Let’s hurry outside."
The children, somehow reading the mood, bowed their heads to the Saintess in greeting and hurried out of the training hall. Hilde was about to follow when the Saintess looked at her.
"Hilde... was it? You’d do well not to get too carried away here."
The girl sticking close behind the Saintess snickered. Hilde, momentarily stunned, was at a loss. What exactly had she done wrong to deserve this? It shattered her preconception that a Saintess should be kind to everyone.
"Sorry, but I haven’t been getting carried away, and I haven’t done anything wrong either..."
"How dare some insolent preparatory class brat speak that way to the Saintess!"
The red-haired girl behind the Saintess flushed and snapped back. Taller than Hilde by what looked like six inches, she seemed ready to strike Hilde at any moment.
"Enough, Trisha. Our far junior here simply doesn’t know her place."
The Saintess stepped up to Hilde, brought her mouth close to Hilde’s ear, and whispered in a voice so quiet that no one else could hear.
"If you’re the daughter of a loser, then stay down and keep quiet. Unless you want to suffer."
