Morning.
A ray of sunlight filtered through the bed curtains, illuminating the room.
Aililan had a wonderful dream all night; she could barely remember just how many times it had happened within the dream.
All she knew was that the Saint of Temperance, Lizberu, was beautiful in her dream, gentle, and… so very tender!
“Hm?”
Aililan awoke from her lovely dream.
Recalling the flush of colors in the dream, it had truly been an unforgettable, blissful night! Perhaps it was also because of a deep sleep—her spirit felt fuller than ever, and even her exquisite cheeks carried a rosy glow.
She braced herself on the bed, about to get up.
The next moment.
“Mm?”
Aililan felt the bedding beneath her palm—it was warm and… damp.
Aililan: !!!
No way!!
Something felt very, very wrong!
After a brief frown, Aililan finally realized the seriousness of the situation. As the dignified Saint of Chastity, it seemed—maybe, perhaps… she had wet the bed?
Thinking back on last night’s dream, Aililan slapped her face with a regretful look, muttering, “Saint Lizberu, I’m so sorry, I have sinned! To dream of you like that in such a sweet dream!”
After this incident, Aililan was forced to reexamine her own mental state.
Could it be that she was actually… repressing herself too much?
She’d rather believe she was merely repressing herself, than imagine someone had slipped into her room in the night. That was simply too far-fetched.
For now, the urgent thing was to hide all evidence of her crime.
That day.
Saintess Aililan woke up later than usual, took an extra bath, and repeatedly ordered that no one was to enter her room that day, as inside hung two sheets and a quilt waiting to dry.
With a serious expression, Aililan instructed again, “Renata, there are important documents I drafted in the room. No one is to enter today, understood?”
Renata swore an oath: “Understood, my Lady Saintess. As a Knight, I promise, not even a fly will get into your room today.”
The two of them headed to the Military Police. The sign had already been taken down, and by afternoon—or at latest, tomorrow—a new one reading “Investigation Bureau” would go up.
Many people had come and gone inside and outside the building.
But Aililan frowned slightly. “Renata, please tell me what’s going on. Didn’t I ask you to notify the Servitors from the Holy Land to come participate in the selection exam?”
Renata smiled wryly, a bit helpless: “My Lady Saintess, you can’t blame me. I heard that after being selected, they’d have to serve in the Atester City Investigation Bureau, so none of them are willing to come.”
“Why not?”
“My Lady Saintess, have you forgotten? While they are Servitors, they’re also Chaste Knight Reserves. Their upper limit could be to become noble Chastity Knights—with benefits at least ten times greater than working at the Investigation Bureau.”
Aililan understood at once. “So that’s how it is!”
It’s like in another world—would you rather serve at the feet of the emperor, or take a post out in the provinces?
It doesn’t even have to be the emperor’s court—even if you pass the provincial civil service exam, given two choices: remain a minor official at the provincial capital, or go local and become a village or town chief directly, what would you choose?
People vote with their feet.
No wonder they weren’t enthusiastic.
Aililan pondered for a moment, then instructed: “Go tell the Servitors I won’t force anyone to stay and serve in Atester City. Moreover, anyone with grassroots work experience will be given priority for promotion in the future.”
As soon as Aililan’s order was given, sure enough, it wasn’t even noon before the area outside the Investigation Bureau was packed. Her solution was extremely effective.
According to each person’s talents, the Investigation Bureau, Tribunal, and Inspectorate began to fill up with personnel.
But regarding the Tribunal, since there were some disputes over authority, Aililan asked Bishop Wilma to invite Atester City’s Chief Judge of the religious Tribunal, Lady Valentina.
Chief Judge Valentina greeted her. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness Saintess.”
Aililan inclined her head slightly in return. “Chief Judge Valentina, there’s no need for such formality.”
“What does Your Highness require of me?”
“Here is the situation: I have separated the ‘judgment’ authority from the Military Police and reorganized a new ‘Tribunal.’”
“What?” Valentina’s expression changed slightly. There was already a religious Tribunal in Atester City; if Aililan established another, she felt somewhat slighted.
Aililan gestured for calm.
She’d anticipated the Church Tribunal would be anxious.
After all, this involved disputes of power—no one likes their authority to be challenged. So it was necessary to explain in advance.
“Chief Judge, please let me finish.”
“Please go ahead, Your Highness.” Valentina’s tone was obviously much colder.
“The Tribunal separated from the Military Police won’t handle the affairs of nobles or church personnel; it’s only for the common folk, dealing with cases like theft, fighting, brawling, civil disputes, and the like. What do you think?”
“I—it’s actually like that?” Valentina instantly relaxed.
Those in the religious Tribunal
already found the business of judging commoners a tedious burden.
They dealt with nobles and church members; who would want to handle trivial affairs all day?
If they had to take on all civilian cases, the workload would be as high as a mountain.
Moreover, most in the Church Tribunal came from noble backgrounds, and were reluctant to interact with the lower classes.
That was why Aililan said these people from the Church Tribunal were derelict—just to get rid of heavy workloads, they delegated the judgment of commoners to the local authorities.
Aililan smiled and asked, “So, Chief Judge Valentina, what do you think?”
Valentina let out a long sigh of relief and replied joyfully, “Saintess Aililan, you’ve truly done us a huge favor.”
“Chief Judge, you flatter me. I was just afraid you’d misunderstand, so I came to explain.”
“Ha ha.” Valentina couldn’t help but laugh, for Aililan’s words also gave her great face, making her mood even better. “Say no more. If you have any trouble setting up the Tribunal for the commoners, just come to me.”
“There is actually a ‘small matter.’”
“Please, Saintess Aililan.”
“If you don’t mind, I hope you can issue an order in the name of the religious Tribunal: from now on, all judgment of commoners in Atester City shall be handled by the Tribunal.”
“And why is that?” Valentina asked, curious.
“Ha ha, well, even a mosquito’s leg is still meat! It’s best if our own power stays in our own hands, don’t you think? We can’t let just any Tom, Dick, or Harry meddle in the noble authority of judgment.”
“Saintess, you put it perfectly!”
“So then?”
“Please rest assured, Saintess. When I return, I will immediately issue an order as Chief Judge of Atester, instructing all jurisdictions under Atester to hand over civilian trials to the Tribunal.”
“Thank you very much.”
“Not at all, Your Highness. As you said, we’re all our own people here! When the doors are closed, we’re one family.”
Aililan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Another problem solved!
The tangled interests of all parties in Atester City were like a chaotic ball of yarn—she’d managed to tease out a thread, making governance far smoother in the future.
Besides, she had her own ambitions. If she could turn Atester City into her own Saintess fief, then, given Atester’s unique location, turning it into a World City of Desire—
That didn’t sound bad at all, did it?