Motifiel nervously gripped her examination slip, her nails nearly digging into her palm.
She watched as the three children ahead of her took their turns, each skillfully transforming the designated granite monolith into a sparkling, translucent crystal.
The examiners recorded the results with impassive faces; only when a child performed exceptionally well did the chief examiner, Sidric, give a slight nod.
“Number Four, Motifiel.” Vice-examiner Elic read out in an utterly flat voice.
Motifiel jolted, almost stumbling over herself as she walked onto the assessment platform.
She took a deep breath, pressing her hand to the cold stone as Liang Lai had taught her.
“Focus… feel the structure of the stone…” she murmured the mantra Liang Lai had drilled into her, trying desperately to summon the energy within her body.
But only a faint, flickering blue light emerged from her palm.
The stone’s surface began to crystallize, but the process was excruciatingly slow, and the crystals formed in patchy, uneven patterns—some places even retained their original stone texture.
“Come on…!”
From the audience, Liangcai unconsciously leaned forward, hands tightly clenched.
Motifiel, sweating with anxiety, racked her memory for the sensation when Liang Lai had guided her hand. Yet the more anxious she became, the less her energy cooperated.
The crystallization process even started to reverse; parts already crystalized threatened to turn back to stone.
“I’m doomed…!” she thought in despair.
“I’m really going to fail this time…!” Just then, her eyes accidentally landed on Liang Lai in the audience.
The Saintess was watching her with encouraging eyes, silently mouthing, “Don’t rush, take it slow.”
For some reason, upon seeing that look, Motifiel suddenly calmed down.
She stopped trying to force her energy, instead taking a deep breath, carefully recalling the principles of crystallization that Liang Lai had taught her.
Even though I’m Darkspawn, I now wear a human guise—can’t I do what humans do? I can’t let Liang Lai Mama down. I… don’t want to see that disappointed look on her face. To disappoint her because of me… something like that…
A warm feeling welled up inside her, and suddenly, a stable blue light bloomed from her palm.
The crystallization process began anew.
It was still slow, but now steady and continuous. In the end, the entire monolith was coated with a thin layer of somewhat murky crystal.
The assessment area fell silent for a moment.
Sidric stepped forward and measured the crystal’s hardness with the Scales of Truth, then closely inspected the uniformity of the crystallization.
“Completion: sixty-two percent. Purity: fifty-five percent. Control: forty-eight percent.” He announced the results in a flat tone.
“Barely passed.”
Motifiel’s knees nearly buckled, and she almost collapsed right there. She staggered off the platform, feeling as if she’d just been fished out of water, completely soaked.
“Congratulations.” As she passed by, Sidric suddenly murmured in a low voice.
Motifiel was at a loss. She looked up, only to see he had already turned away, as if she’d imagined the whole thing.
But… I don’t even know that guy… Why…? Wait! There was a familiar scent on Sidric…!
Motifiel shuddered violently.
But she didn’t want to think about it anymore.
If she kept thinking, she was sure she wouldn’t be happy.
It was better to pretend nothing had happened, to act as if she’d noticed nothing at all.
Back in the waiting area, Dolosa, for once, refrained from mocking her, only saying coolly, “At least you didn’t embarrass Mama.”
Asterys quietly slipped her a handkerchief. “Wipe your sweat, you look about to faint.”
Liang Lai hurried over and pulled her into a tight embrace.
“That’s wonderful! I knew you could do it! Little Mo!”
Motifiel buried her face in Liangcai’s shoulder, secretly wiping away tears from the corners of her eyes. She’d never thought she’d be so happy over something so small.
“I’m sorry for making you worry, Liang Lai Mama,” she whispered.
“I—I’ll work even harder from now on.” Liang Lai gently patted her back.
“It’s alright, just take it slow. You’ve already done very well.”
By now, Liang Lai was certain Motifiel wasn’t really cut out for studying.
But that was fine—so long as she could barely pass, she could always stay in the Court of Purity and live a carefree life.
As for everything else… children can have other interests and talents, after all.
Even if she’s not good at cooking or housework, something will turn up! Everyone has their own potential, even if it’s just in physical labor.
After the exam, Motifiel held her just-passing grade slip as if it were a priceless treasure.
She snuck a glance at the audience, noticing that Pope Alphonse VII had already left at some point—his seat was empty.
“What are you looking at?”
Liangcai followed her gaze.
“Ah, Her Holiness the Pope already left. He was mostly here to watch the third assessment.” Motifiel nodded, feeling a strange sense of relief.
But Liang Lai didn’t share that relief, for Pope Alphonse VII had only left after Dolosa’s exam, waiting until the third assessment was over—because Dolosa was the last to be assessed.
Liang Lai was now almost certain that Pope Alphonse VII had come to see his own daughter.
Meaningless, perhaps, but there was no malice in it, and Liang Lai’s tense heart slowly relaxed.
Maybe… when a person’s time is running out, his words turn kind?
Pope Alphonse VII didn’t have much time left, and probably hoped his bloodline could inherit the papacy—maybe it was a sort of… legacy?
Still, for someone shaped by the Church’s education, bloodline shouldn’t matter that much, since everyone here treated the very mention of it like a taboo.
On the way back to the Court of Purity, Motifiel clutched her grade slip tightly.
It was only a barely passing mark, but to her it meant the world—it meant she could keep living here, keep being Liangcai’s child.
That night, Motifiel made a decision.
She stared at the cloth-draped mirror and whispered, “I—I’ve made a decision. I want to stay here, to be Liangcai Mama’s good child. Uh, maybe, maybe this decision sounds a little outrageous, but, but… I don’t care! I feel so happy staying here… I’ll worry about everything else later!”
For some reason, Motifiel felt the image in the cloth-covered mirror twist for a moment, as if something flashed by, but it quickly returned to normal. Motifiel quickly turned her back, heart pounding.
She didn’t know what consequences her decision would bring, but for now, she felt an unprecedented lightness.
No more being a bad child who betrays Mama.
In the days after Motifiel’s assessment, the atmosphere in the Court of Purity grew noticeably lighter.
Liang Lai looked at the children—especially Motifiel—her face showing a relief mixed with a bit of pride, and her heart softened a little.
Even if Little Mo’s score had just scraped past the passing line, the effort and the outcome were both worth celebrating.
Liang Lai even began to consider whether she should take the children out for a bit, or perhaps hold a small tea party in the garden of the Court of Purity?
But the workings of the Holy See never pause for individual joy. The brief tranquility was soon broken by a formal order from the Papal Hall.
The order was delivered by a grey-robed Priest whose expression was as blank as a mask. He stood at the spotless gate of the Court of Purity, entirely out of place with the beautiful surroundings.
He handed over a scroll engraved with the sigil of the canons, his voice flat and without emotion:
“Third Saintess, by the command of the Chancellor of the Triumvirate of Saints, I deliver this task.”
Liang Lai accepted the scroll. The moment her fingers brushed the cold, faintly stinging parchment, her heart sank a little.
She unrolled the scroll. The text was written in a special ink with a faint silvery sheen—simple but leaving no room for doubt:
Task Number: VII-IX-CCLXII
Executor: Third Saintess Liang Lai
Target Location: East Boundary of the Seventh Dustfolk District, near the ‘Sighed Wall’ outpost.
Mission: Investigate and pacify the recent abnormal “faith fluctuations” in the region.
According to reports, the ‘Light Honey’ offerings from local Dustfolk have been steadily declining in purity. Some believers’ Sacred Brands on their foreheads have inexplicably dimmed, accompanied by a faint but collective spiritual listlessness.
Preliminary investigation has ruled out any large-scale Darkspawn activity.
The Saintess must attend in person, use pure faith to soothe and purify, restore the Faith Channel’s stability, and submit a detailed evaluation report.
Deadline: Depart immediately, return and report within three days.
Liangcai read the scroll over twice.
Investigating faith fluctuations—this was indeed the duty of a Saintess, usually required when the faith in a certain area became unstable for some reason, needing the Saintess’s power as an anchor and source of purification.
But such a task was rarely assigned to the Saintess ranked third, especially not to such a remote Dustfolk District boundary.
That place was almost the edge of the Holy See’s actual control; beyond that, it became a vaguely defined buffer zone, and then the legendary “Rust Frontier.”
Although the order clearly stated it didn’t reach the frontier, the location’s sensitivity was obvious.
Was it a deliberate arrangement by the Papal Hall? Was it because Pope Alphonse VII had noticed Dolosa’s tremendous progress and extraordinary talent, and thus now had a new “consideration” for her foster mother as well? Or… had something truly happened there that even the grey-robed Tribunal couldn’t easily determine?
“Liang Lai Mama, are you going out?”
Dolosa had appeared behind her at some point, her golden eyes sweeping over the scroll, sharp as blades.
“Yes, it’s a last-minute task—going to the edge of the Dustfolk District. I’ll be back soon.” Liang Lai put the scroll away, making her tone as light as possible.
“Boundary?”
Asterys and Delucia poked their heads out from behind the door like startled rabbits, their silver hair trembling, eyes full of worry.
They had an instinctive wariness of the word “boundary.”
“I’m going too.” Dolosa’s tone brooked no refusal.
Liangcai shook her head.
“No. The task is for me alone. Besides, the Court of Purity needs someone to watch over it.”
She patted Dolosa’s head, then looked at the twins. “You two have to be good and help take care of the other children, okay?”
Dolosa pursed her lips, clearly dissatisfied with the arrangement, but she didn’t protest, only grew more somber.
Of course, besides fearing Liang Lai would bring home another child, what she worried most about was the Saintess’s safety—after all, that place was notoriously dangerous.
Asterys and Delucia nodded obediently, hiding their unease.
When Motifiel heard Liang Lai was going out on assignment, her joy at barely passing her assessment was immediately overshadowed by anxiety.
Still, she trailed behind Liangcai, helping her prepare a simple pack, quietly reminding her, “Liang Lai Mama, be careful. I—I’ve heard the boundary isn’t peaceful…”
“Don’t worry.”
Liang Lai smiled at her, packing several bottles of basic holy water and the crescent-shaped golden Saintess Medal.
“I’m just going to check the Faith Channel. I’ll be back soon. You just passed your assessment, so relax a bit. When I return, I’ll check to see if you’ve been slacking off.”
Illucy and Dexilensi hovered nearby, watching with longing.
Dexilensi seemed to want to ask to be taken along, but after some thought, said nothing.
With the affairs of the Court of Purity settled, Liang Lai boarded the black, unmarked carriage arranged by the Church and set out.
“As expected of another world, even the horses run so fast,” Liang Lai marveled at the scenery whipping by outside. “Must be magic or something.”
It took less than a day to reach her destination.
The carriage rolled past layers of Holy City’s white, solemn buildings, but the further out it went, the grayer the buildings became, the less immaculate the streets.
The sweet scent of Light Honey in the air was gradually replaced by more complex odors: dust, sweat, and an indescribable, oppressive heaviness belonging to densely packed humanity.
This was the Dustfolk District boundary.
The dwellings of the faithful were far less grand than those in the inner city, mostly low stone or brick houses packed close together.
Every forehead bore a glowing Sacred Brand, but the brightness varied widely. Whenever the Church’s carriage passed, no matter what they were doing, people immediately stopped and bowed their heads reverently, not daring to look up until the carriage had gone.
That reverence was etched into their very bones.
Liang Lai watched all this through the window, feeling little in her heart.
Since becoming a Saintess, she had seen such sights countless times. Faith was both their pillar and their shackle…
But wasn’t she the same? After all, she had once been a priest herself.
Was faith in God what kept her going, or simply a hope that she and those around her could live better?
When a person has no power to change their life or surroundings, they pin their hopes on a god in the clouds.
Liang Lai understood this well, but before coming to this world, she’d never dared to think too deeply.
After all, overthinking never solved anything—it only brought more sorrow. Better to tell herself, “God will save me.”