Returning to the present—Elise had just enrolled at Saint Galahadworth Academy.
Since this academy prohibited private duels between students, new students weren't given private residences like the Founding Twelve. Instead, they were assigned double dormitories.
However, Laetitia offered to share her room. As the academy's second-ranked student, she had her own private quarters and invited Elise to be her roommate.
And so, the two close friends were reunited once again.
After a week-long preparation period, Saint Galahadworth Academy officially began classes. Students dressed neatly in uniform, heading toward the lecture halls.
Elise, too, had changed into her white school uniform, now standing in front of a mirror examining herself.
She looked good—very good. But… wasn't the skirt a little too short?
The smooth curve of her thighs was clearly on display. That said, Elise didn't particularly mind showing her legs. They were part of the charm, after all.
In fact, she had chosen to pair the uniform with white stockings, specifically to enhance the visual effect.
Aesthetics mattered—and if she was going to wear a short skirt, she might as well make it more appealing.
Still, that didn't mean she was careless.
Despite her saintess appearance, Elise had once been a boy. The last thing she wanted was for some scandalous headline like "Exploring the Secret Garden of the Saintess" to blow up online. Not that there was any flower or grass in her garden anyway.
"Whatever… maybe I should just add a holy light under the skirt?"
Sacred Speech—a branch of Kotodama Arts, but instead of consuming mana or prana, it used faith energy.
"Sanctus Lux!"
Sensing the effect activate, Elise nodded in satisfaction. This ability didn't usually trigger unless someone accidentally caught a peek under her skirt—in which case, their vision would be flooded with divine light, obscuring anything they shouldn't see.
This was exactly why Sacred Speech was Elise's favorite skill—its versatility was simply unmatched. The effects it could produce were limited only by her imagination.
With enough faith backing her, Elise could recreate any skill from her previous life's anime!
Including, but not limited to: Kamehameha, Chibaku Tensei, Za Warudo… and even conjure special items with unique effects, like fusion earrings.
Of course, the power of these abilities was directly proportional to the amount of faith she had—it wouldn't necessarily match the original versions.
"Perfect. Thus is born the school-uniform-wearing saintess!"
The Saintess smiles equally upon all, for she loves this world just that much! Be grateful!
Finally, Elise glanced at Laetitia, who was still snoozing in the other bed. Taking on her saintess persona, she walked over to Laetitia's bedside and softly whispered her name.
I'll get my revenge for that little grudge later. For now, let's get to school.
...
Saint Galahadworth was, true to its collective-oriented reputation, very focused on group activities—whether in class or in physical training.
Of course, to ensure student autonomy, group events weren't too frequent. After all, team battles still required individual strength as a foundation.
The weaker your personal strength, the less impact you could have in a team.
The academy also offered many courses in coordinated combat tactics, allowing even students with weaker individual ability to shine through teamwork.
No wonder this academy had taken first place in the Gryps Festa!
Elise occasionally sensed the gazes directed at her—some admiring, some longing, and of course, some jealous ones too. But in such an environment, openly expressing jealousy toward Elise would only lead to isolation.
Besides, Elise's background was far from ordinary. In the past, she represented the Church—and now, she even had the authority to represent the EP Conglomerate. Anyone who picked a fight with her was asking for trouble.
As for whether Elise could integrate into a group—there was no need to worry. Laetitia had taken care of everything.
In fact, she'd already pulled Elise into her small group.
That group happened to be the student council.
Not that anyone dared complain—after all, Elise had the power to back it up.
Elise walked into the classroom with a gentle smile. Most of the students had already arrived and were chatting in small groups—exactly the kind of atmosphere she had expected from a typical academy.
That was, until she entered.
The air suddenly froze. All eyes turned to Elise.
"Look! Isn't that the Saintess herself?!"
"I didn't expect we'd be placed in the same class! This is amazing!"
"Good morning, everyone!" Elise gave a respectful bow.
The response was far more enthusiastic than she had imagined.
It seemed the Saintess still held immense popularity among the students.
From there, life fell into a familiar school rhythm. Without private duels allowed, student life at the academy leaned heavily toward peaceful, daily interactions.
Aside from regularly scheduled mock battles, combat opportunities were rare—limited mostly to private training sessions.
Elise genuinely enjoyed this kind of daily academy life. Lately, she was even planning to go swimming with Laetitia. Word of this outing had leaked into a few student gossip channels, and now many were excited by the prospect of witnessing a "saintess at play in the water."
But the next major event on the horizon in Asterisk was the upcoming Star Warrior Festival—better known as the Festa.
This tournament was held annually, cycling through three events: Phoenix, Gryps, and Lindvolus.
Phoenix was a two-person team battle, Gryps was a five-person team event, and Lindvolus was an individual tournament.
Compared to Phoenix's dynamic duos or the chaotic upsets common in Gryps' group fights, Lindvolus was by far the most popular.
Why? Because Lindvolus showcased pure, individual strength. There was no teamwork to rely on. No surprise underdogs. Power alone determined the victor!
And this year's Festa was none other than the Lindvolus Festa—the solo battle tournament!
Winning this event, watched by audiences around the globe, would not only earn the victor a wish granted by the Integrated Enterprise Foundation, but also immense fame and recognition.
Elise already had widespread fame. The whole world knew her as the Saintess of the Church, as a powerful Strega. Stories of her transforming barren wastelands into lush forests still seemed unbelievable to many.
But in terms of combat—
People had no idea how strong Elise truly was.
Sure, she made dead land sprout trees… but can you use trees to punch people?
They simply couldn't imagine how trees could be used offensively.
After all, Elise had spent most of her public time using life- and support-based abilities. As a saintess, it was natural for her to use her powers to heal and protect others—rarely did she ever show her battle capability.
Before the title "Wordweaving Strega" was exposed, the public could only speculate about her true power.
That's why Elise needed a stage—one where she could prove her combat prowess before the eyes of the world.
She had been deliberately hiding her strength for this very reason—
To unveil it during this year's Lindvolus Festa!