Slouched on the sofa was a blonde woman dressed without any sense of decorum, wearing a famous light novel themed shirt from The Continent based on the illustrations of Evil Dragon. She chewed on snacks while reading a manga adaptation, then looked over with lazy interest. Anyone seeing her like this would never guess she was Raina.
"You already investigated most of it, didn't you. Forget it. Raina, how are things on your side?"
Elvin asked calmly, looking at the blonde woman who lay on the sofa reading comics and eating snacks like a complete layabout. Who would have thought that she was the head of one of the top merchant groups in Faris Empire. As for what made Raina special, the answer was simple: she was rich.
She was one of the wealthiest women in the world, and that alone was enough. Just the spare change slipping through her fingers could level this mansion and rebuild it several times over. A question was about to surface: who exactly were Elvin and the others, and what were they planning in this Church of Holy Light Saintess Selection?
The answer would be revealed very soon.
"For now, I haven't drawn too much attention, but this batch from the Abyss Church is troublesome."
"Injuries like yours from before are hard to treat. Those with stronger bodies can be worn down over time, but as for ordinary people…"
"Even I can't do anything now. Those so-called the Lord priests I hire with pocket money are completely useless. Treating one or two is fine, but mass treatment is impossible even if they work themselves to death."
As she spoke, Raina clicked her tongue, clearly frustrated but helpless. This newly emerged Abyss Church seemed different from the previous ones, possibly with real backing behind them. Ordinary the Lord clergy were already the highest level of Holy Light users money could buy, and above them was only the candidate Pope.
Asking someone of that level to personally heal common people was like asking the boss to tighten screws on the factory floor. Many victims of Church of Holy Light sacrifices and attacks she had taken in were still suffering from that strange power. Now, Elvin had brought another variable: the candidate Saintess picked up halfway.
"You've already read the file. That young lady seems to be an impostor. The real Wen Cui was found downstream three days later by my people."
As she spoke, Raina tossed another snack into her mouth, her information network funded by money proving its worth. While they still could not trace where Alba came from, it was certain she was not a real member of the Ventris family. That entire family had perished days ago.
In an incident involving the whole Church of Holy Light, the Abyss Church all died suddenly, and the entire family met a violent end. The only survivor at the scene was a stray cat stealing food. Knowing this, Elvin did not mind at all.
"That doesn't matter. If anything, it's better."
Taking the place of a candidate Saintess was nothing unusual. In this chaotic selection, such things happened all the time, including people doing far worse. Raina herself had bought over a dozen candidate Saintess slots and placed her own people inside, so Elvin was not bothered by it.
"The current Church of Holy Light is really rotten. In the Dawn faction, you can count the people who can use Holy Light on one hand. It's ridiculous."
"But this person has such a unique Holy Light, so she is worth drawing in. Still, judging by your face, you want to say more than that."
Hearing this, Raina noticed the strange, conflicted look on Elvin's face. After a pause, she spoke slowly. "At first, that Holy Light felt familiar to me, like something I had felt long ago."
"It took time, but I realized it resembles the light of the one we encountered at the very beginning."
Her expression went blank for a moment, then she frowned and turned to look at the only serious painting in the room, aside from posters of beautiful girls and manga. The painting was dark in tone from top to bottom. Below were ruins, black dragons twisting in chaos, and countless corpses scattered across the ground.
Above them was a massive black vortex, from which the haloed head of the Black Dragon emerged, its mouth spewing flames downward and its eyes glowing with fierce red light. This kind of artwork had become popular in The Continent in recent years, all depicting the famous descent of the black dragon god and the results of that event.
In less than a single day, all Demonkind settlements across The Continent were struck by Great Dragon formed of black mist, unleashing catastrophic disasters. The Demonkind, who had ravaged the land for thousands of years, were nearly wiped out. The Three Great Empires began expanding their territory rapidly, scrambling to claim the newly emptied lands.
Those lands, once filled with resentment and strange Magic, were purified and became no different from ordinary soil. That was why the various the Empire dared to seize them without fear. This event was acknowledged by all nations and many factions as a true sign of a god.
And where there was a god, there were believers who revered its power. Many cults once rose in the name of the Black Dragon across The Continent, though most collapsed in the end. Elvin and Raina were different, as their faith endured and had never dimmed.
They were believers of the Black Dragon because, in their childhood, they had received true divine light. Elvin's entire family had been exiled to the Demon Territory over a single casual remark. There, they were captured by the Demonkind.
As someone who lived through it, Elvin knew the rumors were false, because the real Demonkind were far worse. Even now, she did not want to remember how she survived. A large part of that was thanks to her uncle Pierce, who protected her.
Even with him, they could only barely survive in that mire. Though she lived, her future held no light. As a child, Elvin had lost one arm and both legs below the knee, like many others who suffered either under torture or starvation.
Her uncle Pierce preached faith to the other prisoners, offering fragile lifelines of belief. At the time, she wondered why she should go on living at all. In a secret group prayer, she made her first wish: that all the Demonkind tormenting her would die.
That wish came quickly. The next day, the Demonkind and the castle above them were gone, and they were saved. Along with her reborn arm and legs.
Raina was one of the few peers who survived with Elvin. She had been sneaking out with family near the border when she was captured by the Demonkind. Later, while fleeing with salvaged supplies, they were attacked again.
Both girls were shot and left dying. Raina died first, watching her uncle entrust her to others before charging out with a broken sword. Elvin felt herself sinking into endless darkness in Abyss.
At that moment, it was as if someone in white stood at the cliff edge, holding her hand and keeping her from falling. "Just hold on a little longer." Her second wish was fulfilled.
All the Demonkind vanished. That being appeared before them, vast and impossible to look upon, overwhelmingly dark yet filled with great light. She gazed into that light, and the Demonkind disappeared.
Beside her, Raina, who should have been dead, opened her eyes again. Their return home went smoothly, but the beliefs of two children had been forever changed. Thousands of others were changed as well, pulled back from the edge of Hell.
They believed that god of ruthless action was an aspect of the God of Light. Resurrection and that saving light could only belong to the God of Light. Faith was born in them, and Elvin trained her sword not only to protect herself.
She also wished to join Church of Holy Light someday to serve the god and see that light again. But after growing up, she found Church of Holy Light riddled with corruption. She was furious.
Others felt the same, but toppling Church of Holy Light outright was unrealistic and unnecessary. It was still the only officially recognized organization of the God of Light. So a simple plan was born.
They would pass the selection and become a Saintess, one of the greatest symbols of Church of Holy Light. From the top down, they would purge the filth. The process required support and unconventional means.
It was unfortunate that no matter how much they prayed or studied scriptures, they could not awaken Holy Light. That power had not appeared for a long time. But now, there was Alba.
"A Saintess wielding Holy Light should be normal. If she has that guarantee, we can draw more support."
Raina grabbed a candidate Saintess outfit from the sofa and thought for a moment. "Her build is similar to mine. With a mask and decorations, it should work."
"If you decide on this, I will go back and ask Alba for her opinion."
Elvin nodded in agreement.
"I advise you to speak honestly." "Do you understand? Tell me straight, where did you little turtles crawl off to?" "…Wu."