Chapter 2 : Chapter 2
Chapter 2: Basement Sisters
The council chamber was extremely spacious. A long conference table stood in the middle. The Church never lacked money, nor did it ever try to save money on construction. To quote the chief administrator: “We would rather build houses directly out of magic gold than buy gilded ceramic bricks that only look similar.”
The maid guided Fia to a seat beside the main position, lit a candle for her, and arranged the various pieces of tableware neatly.
It did not look like a meeting at all. Instead, it resembled a candlelight dinner. However, the sunlight streaming through the stained-glass windows completely refuted that idea, so Fia could only attribute it to some special custom of another world.
“Thank you.”
She nodded slightly and gave the maid a gentle smile.
【Morality +1】
【Evaluation: Your smile successfully soothed the maid’s heart. She feels that much of the day’s fatigue has disappeared. Well done, so there is no reward.】
The maid’s face lit up with excitement. However, she still remembered the rules of the Church. She simply bowed without speaking and slowly stepped back to the side.
“It seems the Saintess still remembers punctuality and humility. I thought you had already become so indulgent that you no longer cared about meeting times.”
A voice laced with sarcasm came from the seat opposite her. The maid revealed an angry expression and was about to speak, but Fia stopped her.
She looked toward the newcomer.
“Lorinna, as a candidate Saintess, you should not enter after me. But under the witness of the Goddess, I will permit this mistake of yours.”
Her smile and posture were flawless. The original body’s instincts had been preserved well, saving her from having to study the thick 《Church Etiquette》 book line by line.
The newcomer was clearly choked by the remark. After reluctantly bowing to Fia, she sat down across from her with a sulky expression.
「Lorinna, Candidate Saintess LV20」
So it is you, the red-and-white striped candidate Saintess.
The information flashed by. According to the original body’s memories, Lorinna had originally been recommended to the Church by Fia herself. However, at some unknown point, she began acting as though the two of them were mortal enemies. From nitpicking daily life to competing for Saintess duties, she was extremely troublesome.
The original Fia had very high prestige within the Church. Because of that, Lorinna was quite unpopular there. The attendants privately nicknamed her the White-Eyed Wolf.
All of this could also be found in the background settings from Fia’s previous life. Because she had explored the game so thoroughly, she knew even more. Among the 261 endings she had unlocked, twelve involved Lorinna. In a certain sense, the two of them could even be considered sisters.
Basement sisters.
The small faction secretly backing Lorinna was the opposition group within the Church. Before the Hero arrived, they had tried to support Lorinna in seizing the position of Saintess to gain greater influence. After the green-haired hero appeared, their focus shifted—because in this world, secular power could never surpass divine authority.
Lorinna was merely their puppet used to curry favor with the hero. The masterminds behind the kidnapping of Fia after the summoning ceremony were also them.
Pulling her thoughts back, Fia realized that she could easily recite five key strategy points on Lorinna’s body and six secrets hidden in her heart. She could completely ruin this red-haired brat’s reputation and have her expelled from the Church, exiled to the most remote island where she would live a miserable life surviving on wind and dew.
But that was unnecessary. It would merely remove one tool used by the hidden parasites.
The person who would truly be useful in this meeting was someone else.
“It seems you two get along quite well. That reassures me.”
An old and resonant voice came from the doorway beside the main seat. The guards and maids all bowed at once. Fia and Lorinna also stood up.
“Welcome, Your Holiness the Pontiff!”
“Greetings, Your Holiness the Pontiff!”
“That is enough. Under the gaze of the Goddess, we are all family.”
The white-haired old man walked to the main seat and sat down, waving to the guards.
“You have all done well. Remain loyal to your duties. May love and justice shine upon you. Little Fia and Lorinna, sit down as well.”
「Kurta, Pontiff, Holy Knight LV86」
Scared to tears… actually, no.
Fia sat down obediently and looked properly at the old man. During the early stages of the game, the Pontiff was one of the rare genuinely righteous characters. He aided the poor, rebuked corrupt nobles, slew monsters, and rescued civilians. He truly embodied love and justice. At the same time, he was the Saintess’s godfather and the spiritual pillar of the Church.
Until the middle of the story.
At that point, the green-haired hero was deceived by a goblin shaman and brought the Seed of Corruption of the Demon Race into the Church. The game would immediately enter the apocalypse route. The max-level Fallen God Knight would blow the protagonist’s head apart instantly. With overwhelming stats in both hands, it was also the route where the Saintess died the most cleanly.
Fortunately, none of that had happened yet.
“This meeting is to discuss the Hero Summoning Ceremony with the two of you.” The Pontiff smiled kindly. “According to the Goddess’s will, the summoning ritual will call forth beings from around the world who meet the conditions. Our Church must fully support them until the chosen hero completes the task of saving the world.”
A very good opening speech.
Back in her previous life, she had heard it eight times a day while studying the game’s routes.
Fia did not speak for the moment. She needed some time to organize her thoughts.
“Saving the world? But there are absolutely no signs that the world is about to be destroyed.”
Lorinna asked the question. The city-states she oversaw for missionary work had been so peaceful that they had even started hosting muscle-flexing competitions. Suddenly being told that the world was about to end was difficult to understand.
“The Goddess said that the world will collapse amid corruption and filth, and that the creatures upon the earth will be pushed toward destined death while wailing in despair.”
【Morality +4】
Fia smiled faintly and repeated the words written in the meeting documents, earning admiring looks from the attendants.
“Yes, that is the first half of the Goddess’s prophecy.” The Pontiff looked at her with appreciation.
“Lorinna, you should learn more from your sister Fia. Look at how calm she is.”
“I… I understand.”
Lorinna’s face flushed slightly red. She lowered her head and fiddled with the tableware, saying nothing more.
“What did the Inquisition and the Central Council say?”
Fia asked the Pontiff. These two institutions were important parts of the Church, yet in the summoning ceremony storyline from her previous life, they had not been described in much detail. The small faction behind Lorinna was composed partly of members from those groups.
“The Inquisition fully accepts the prophecy and will offer its full support. As for the Central Council…” The Pontiff hesitated slightly. “The representatives of the various kingdoms stationed here at the Church are arguing fiercely. Some with weak faith have even publicly questioned the authenticity of the prophecy.”
“How dare they!”
Lorinna slammed the table and stood up, only to notice everyone staring at her speechlessly. Embarrassed, she sat down again.
“Do not get agitated. The dispute mainly concerns the latter half of the prophecy.” The Pontiff calmed her before reciting the remaining part of the prophecy in a solemn tone.
“Light shall return from the dim end of all things. In a glorious ceremony, the stars of the world will be gathered to mend a flawed destiny.”
After hearing this passage, Lorinna, now more cautious, did not speak immediately. She secretly glanced at Fia across the table. She had already decided not to be the one to speak first.
Fia’s expression remained calm, only slightly furrowing her beautiful brows. Yet inside her heart, a storm had already erupted.
This is different.
The latter half of the prophecy was different from the one in her previous life.
She had listened to it seven or eight times a day while studying strategies. There was no way she would forget it. The original latter half had been:
“The chosen hero will be summoned, and you shall assist him with all your strength until love and justice spread across the world.”
“What is wrong, Fia?” The Pontiff’s voice sounded beside her.
Fia came back to her senses and shook her head.
“It is nothing. I was simply moved by the prophecy. Was the information about the relevant summoning array also bestowed by the Goddess?”
She desperately wanted to determine the reason behind the change in the prophecy. For a strategist, the most frightening thing was not choosing the wrong route, but stepping onto an unknown route with no records.
Especially now that she was no longer the distant strategist player watching from above.
She was the actual romanceable character.
The feeling that she could take one wrong step and end up captured for someone’s “fan service” made her question sound slightly panicked.
“Saintess, you must always maintain proper composure…” Lorinna began with a smug smile, finally finding an opportunity to criticize her, but the Pontiff interrupted her.
“Ah, it is normal for Fia to be shocked by the prophecy. After all, she is the most devout.” Ignoring the red-haired candidate glaring in disbelief at the obvious favoritism, the Pontiff explained to Fia, “The records of the summoning array were also passed down by the Goddess. They are right here.”
He took three copper fragments resembling broken disks from his robe.