Shirley stood before the grand entrance of the Temple’s Testing Sanctum and took a deep breath.
The door hadn’t opened yet, but her palms were already sweating.
She looked down at her best dress—the one Mother Superior had sewn for her, with a crooked little flower embroidered on the cuff.
She lightly touched the flower with her finger, remembering what Mother Superior had said.
“Don’t be nervous. The holy light will guide you.”
Then she nodded firmly.
The door opened.
The Testing Sanctum was even more empty than she had imagined.
Facing her were four high-backed chairs, and seated in them were four White-Robed Elders.
No one spoke first. They simply examined her in silence.
Shirley felt her knees go weak.
This kind of wordless atmosphere was more nerve-racking than a scolding.
Instinctively, she wanted to turn and look for Victor—but he wasn’t there.
He was still outside the Temple gates, stopped by the guards.
She took a deep breath, remembering Victor waiting for her outside, remembering the words he said when he draped that dark blue coat over her shoulders.
“Whatever happens, you tell me.”
Then she clenched the hem of her skirt and spoke first, her voice as steady as she could manage.
“H-hello, grandpa and grandma.”
“My name is Shirley. I’m a nun from Ashstone Town.”
The Elder in the center, whose white beard was as soft as snow, was taken aback.
It had been a very, very long time since anyone had called him “grandpa.”
He leaned forward slightly, a trace of almost imperceptible amusement in his voice.
“What did you just call me?”
“G-grandpa…!”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”
“Did I say it wrong?”
“I don’t really know the rules here…”
Shirley panicked, her voice growing smaller and smaller, her face flushing bright red.
She remembered Victor saying, “What’s there to be afraid of? I’m here.”
But he wasn’t here now.
The older woman on the left, who looked much sterner, twitched at the corner of her mouth.
The gray-haired woman on the right simply turned her face away, her shoulders trembling suspiciously.
The Grand Elder raised his hand to stop Shirley’s apologies.
“It’s all right.”
He turned to the other three Elders, a faint smile in his voice.
“You all heard that. She called me grandpa.”
The stern woman finally couldn’t help it. She let out a soft laugh.
She shook her head and muttered something under her breath.
The Grand Elder looked back at Shirley, and his gaze under his white brows was no longer as scrutinizing as before. It had softened.
“You’re adorable, Shirley.”
“Don’t be nervous.”
“Now, let’s begin the main business.”
“Please release the holy light magic within you.”
Shirley blinked, then nodded firmly.
This was a motion she had practiced countless times at the Ashstone Town Monastery.
She closed her eyes, folded her hands over her chest, and followed the method the Mother Nun had taught her—feeling that warmth that had flowed in her heart ever since she was very small.
She didn’t hesitate.
But this time, that warmth didn’t just curl quietly in her chest.
It awakened.
When the holy light rose, the very dome of the Testing Sanctum seemed to grow lighter.
Light poured from her palms.
From pale gold, it turned into a pure, white-gold like melted sunlight.
The light spread along her wrists, her shoulders, her slightly lifted chin, layer by layer, until it dyed the entire sanctuary into a vast ocean of warmth.
Her silver hair floated gently in the golden light.
The scar on her face was outlined with a soft contour.
Those pale golden pupils now shone as brightly as two ignited stars.
All four Elders stood up from their high-backed chairs almost at the same time.
In the corner, the Scribe recording the event twitched his hand, dropping his pen, and ink splattered all over the floor.
Outside the door, the Temple Knight on guard instinctively gripped his sword, thinking something had happened inside the sanctum.
He couldn’t see the light through the door.
But he could feel that holy light piercing through the stone walls, like a warm hand gently pressing against his chest.
In the square, countless people looked up at the sky.
Some knelt down.
Some knights forgot their formation.
Children ran out of the alleys, pointing at the sky and screaming.
An elderly monk leaned against a stone pillar. It took him a while to finally speak.
“No… this isn’t a baptism.”
“This is the holy light responding to her.”
“This is the intensity of a holy light baptism!”
Victor, leaning against the stone pillar, jerked to his feet.
He looked up at the golden light pouring down from the dome, his heart pounding like it might jump out of his throat.
That was coming from where Shirley was.
It was her!
He broke into a run, pushing through the still-dazed crowd in the square, charging toward the huge oak door.
“Let me in!”
“I’m her brother!”
“Shirley!”
Two Temple guards crossed their polearms in front of him.
“No unauthorised entry!”
“I said I’m her brother!”
Victor’s voice had gone rough.
He clenched his fists, staring at the door, his nails digging deep into his palms, counting silently in his head.
When he reached eight, there was no movement from inside.
He was about to circle around and climb the wall.
Just then, he heard something.
Not an explosion, not a scream.
It was the Elders’ voices, low and full of reverence.
Inside the sanctum, the light gradually drew back into her palms and vanished.
Shirley finally stopped.
She was panting, with fine beads of sweat on her forehead. She looked up and saw the four Elders standing from their high-backed chairs.
They exchanged glances.
Then the Grand Elder stepped down from the platform, came before her, bent slightly, and spoke in a tone far more solemn than before.
“Are you willing to bear the faith of the God of Holy Light, become the Saintess of the Holy Kingdom, and fight for the people and the Holy Kingdom?”
Shirley’s eyes lit up.
She nodded firmly, her voice still breathless, but every word seemed squeezed from the deepest part of her heart.
“I am willing!”
The Grand Elder took a radiant gem from his sleeve and placed it gently in her hand.
“For now, rest in the Temple.”
“In due time, we will hold your formal coronation as Saintess.”
He paused, then inclined his head slightly.
“Saintess.”
Shirley’s face instantly flushed red. She fumbled to bow several times.
“Th-thank you, Elders!”
“Thank you, Grand Elder!”
“Thank you, Grandma… oh no, no, I’m sorry, I did it again!”
The stern old woman finally couldn’t help but laugh.
The gray-haired woman stepped forward and gently patted Shirley’s head.
“It’s been a long time since anyone called us that.”
“Saintess, you are special.”
“May the holy light shine upon you.”
Clutching the gem, Shirley was about to turn and run out, but then she suddenly spun back around.
She gathered all her courage and spoke louder than before.
“Grand Elder!”
“Can my brother stay here too?”
“His name is Victor. He’s the one waiting outside the Temple gates.”
“He grew up with me. He always waited for me outside.”
“He promised to be with me wherever I go.”
“I promised him I would take him wherever I go.”
The Grand Elder looked at her.
“The boy who kept looking through the door before you came in, and was stopped by the guards twice?”
“Yes, yes!”
“That’s him!”
“His name is Victor!”
Shirley nodded eagerly, then her voice slowly quieted, carrying a hint of pleading.
“He’s really good.”
“He saved all his copper coins to buy me a cross.”
“He… he never let me be alone.”
“Please, can he stay?”
The Grand Elder was silent for a moment.
“Of course.”
“A Saintess has very high authority.”
Shirley nearly bowed again.
Then the Grand Elder added one more thing.
“But I must remind you.”
“A Saintess must remain pure.”
“You cannot stay too close to him.”
Shirley suddenly remembered that night by the lake.
The holy robe scattered on the ground.
Victor’s breath.
And the warmth of his fingertips.
Her face went crimson.
Not a blush of shyness.
It was a blush from thinking about something she shouldn’t have thought about.
She lowered her head hard, her voice as thin as a mosquito’s.
“I… I understand…”
She turned and ran out, but at the door she stopped and bowed once more.
Then she pushed open the oak door.
Victor was leaning against the wall, his hands still trembling slightly.
The moment he saw her come out, his whole body relaxed.
Shirley ran toward him, holding the glowing gem in her hands, her face still carrying the blush that hadn’t faded.
“Victor!”
“You can stay now!”
“The Grand Elder said yes!”
“The Saintess has high authority!”
She paused, swallowing the second half of that sentence.
‘When you hear the word “pure,” I’ll explain it to you slowly later…’
She buried her face in his shoulder, not lifting her head. She held him tightly, silently pressing the smile on her lips and the unspoken shyness back into her heart.
He caught her.
His fingers were cold, his breath hot.
He grabbed her shoulders and looked her up and down, making sure she wasn’t hurt.
Then he saw the gem in her hand.
And the shock still lingering on the faces of the four Elders following her out.
He understood everything.
He said softly, “You scared them all, didn’t you?”
Shirley lifted her head from his embrace.
Her eyes shone like two ignited stars, her voice tinged with pride and earnestness.
“Victor.”
“I can protect you now.”
“From now on, I’ll protect you.”