Cecilia snapped back to reality with a jolt.
“Ah, sorry, sorry, Cecilia. I accidentally splashed you.”
Lin Naiyue stuck out her tongue and quickly apologized.
“It’s… it’s fine…” Cecilia answered reflexively, but her mind was still blank.
“Cecilia, come join us too.” Primrose was having fun, so she casually splashed a handful of water at her and smiled in invitation.
‘The Goddess… is inviting me?’
Cecilia’s brain completely short-circuited.
She stared at the unreserved smile on Primrose’s face and felt as if a Holy Light had struck her, leaving her floating on air.
“O-okay!”
Almost on instinct, Cecilia carefully cupped a bit of water and tossed it symbolically in Primrose’s direction.
The small glob only landed on the water in front of Primrose’s legs, causing a tiny splash.
Cecilia’s face instantly turned red. S-she… was so nervous she couldn’t even splash properly!
‘But she’s the Goddess… I really can’t let loose, boohoo!’
Primrose watched her and started to find the girl a little endearing.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Pfft—ha ha ha! What’s that, Cecilia? Is that all the strength you’ve got?”
Primrose mercilessly teased Cecilia on purpose.
Sure enough, Cecilia puffed out her cheeks slightly, looking a bit defiant.
“Then, Goddess, please receive my attack.”
This time, Cecilia waved her hand and used water magic to summon a basketball-sized sphere of water.
A silver Holy Light wrapped around the sphere, lifting it to float in the middle of the bathroom.
Then, using the acceleration from its fall, it slammed down toward the bath.
Splash!
Lin Naiyue and Primrose were both drenched like drowned rats.
After that, Cecilia joined the water fight.
The three of them laughed together in the not-so-large bath.
Primrose realized that this Saintess, though a bit fanatical and pervy, wasn’t bad at heart—in fact, she was quite naive.
“Alright, alright, I’m done. If we keep this up, our skin will get all wrinkly.” Lin Naiyue was the first to stop, leaning against the edge of the bath, panting.
Primrose stopped as well. She felt like she hadn’t relaxed this much in a long time.
Cecilia also paused, leaning against the other side. Her cheeks were flushed—from the steam or excitement, who could tell?
The bathroom grew quiet, leaving only the gentle sound of flowing water.
“Speaking of which, Cecilia,” Lin Naiyue suddenly spoke, “why do you admire Prim so much?”
Hearing that, Primrose also grew curious.
Although Cecilia had explained before that the Kingdom of Aezera had a history of venerating Her, and that as the current Saintess, it made sense for her to worship a deity…
But Cecilia’s fanatical, almost pathological devotion couldn’t be explained by just historical tradition and her position as Saintess.
At the question, Cecilia’s expression instantly became utterly devout.
She stood up from the bath, walked in front of Primrose, and then made a move that left both Primrose and Lin Naiyue stunned.
Cecilia directly pulled off her towel, exposing her entire body to Primrose, while kneeling down in the bath, hands clasped together before her chest.
As she looked into Primrose’s aqua-blue eyes, a crescent of golden crosses was especially prominent in her own.
“What are you doing?” Primrose reached out to help her up.
“Goddess, please allow me to answer Mother’s question.” Cecilia stubbornly remained on her knees, her voice soft and reverent.
“Then… there’s no need to take off your towel, is there?” Primrose said awkwardly.
‘This is the first time I’ve seen a girl completely naked up close—and a beautiful maiden’s body at that!’
‘The shock is a bit too much for me.’
‘Now I’m stuck facing Cecilia, forcing my eyes to stay locked on her face and not glance downward.’
‘Even so, it’s hard not to catch the scenery faintly visible through the mist and steam.’
“No, I don’t want to hide anything before the Goddess. Being unclothed is the most basic professional ethics for a Saintess.”
Cecilia’s explanation was absolutely flawless!
That actually lessened the sense of guilt Primrose felt inside.
“By the way… don’t tell me you’re in this state every time you pray before the Divine Statue?”
Primrose suddenly thought of that question.
“Huh? If you don’t mind… I…”
“No, no need. Forget I said that. Just keep answering my… Mother’s question.”
Primrose quickly cut off Cecilia.
Cecilia nodded, looking a bit bewildered. “My family has been guardians of the Sanctuary for generations. My ancestor was one of the first knights to follow Lord Gabriel.”
“But later, our family declined and became commoners. As far back as I can remember, my father told me that the Goddess Primrose is the only hope of this kingdom, the faith of all of us.”
“However…” Cecilia’s voice carried a hint of sadness, “with the arrival of those three negligent gods and that scumbag Hero, people’s faith has long been shaken.”
“Everyone in the village said that for a thousand years, you had never truly answered the prayers of believers. There were also some very harsh words.”
As she said this, Cecilia suddenly looked a bit ashamed. “At that time, I was just an ordinary child. When I heard the other kids and adults saying that, I naively wanted to defend my father’s teachings and argue with them.”
“And then… I was ignored.”
“But later, through a chance opportunity, I awakened the Holy-attribute magic talent that exists in less than one in ten thousand. I was noticed by the kingdom’s Sanctuary Council, taken to the Royal Capital, and chosen as the next Saintess candidate.”
At that time, Cecilia didn’t think she could actually become the Saintess.
She was just lucky to be a candidate.
But then, an earthquake struck the Royal Capital.
The earthquake killed all the other Saintess candidates except Cecilia.
Some were crushed by rubble, some fell into crevices…
However, that wasn’t the decisive factor in Cecilia becoming Saintess.
The key was that the earthquake shattered the marble Divine Statue of Primrose.
The fragments fell around young Cecilia, forming a crescent shape like a small boat, cradling her within.
Inside the crescent, some smaller broken stones formed a needle-like—or arrow-like—vertical line, pointing directly at Cecilia, who was sitting duck-style on the statue’s base, hugging her head in fear.
Not a single piece of debris actually hit Cecilia!
Add to that the pattern naturally formed by the earthquake.
When the clergy saw it, they thought, ‘A miracle!’
‘This is the guidance of the Goddess Primrose!’
No doubt about it—Cecilia was the next Saintess!