Published: July 26, 2025
“The oath ceremony is now complete.”
“Then, to the library…”
“Wait. The discussion isn’t over yet.”
“…Yes.”
Prompted by the high priest, I moved from in front of the altar to his office desk. Fran prepared a chair for me, so I sat down.
“Thank you, Fran.”
“…No need to thank me.”
Fran’s face showed a brief flicker of surprise, then she knitted her brows slightly. Maybe I wasn’t even supposed to say thank you. I should ask Frieda sometime about how nobles are supposed to behave.
“May I begin?”
“Yes, please.”
There were several wooden tags and pieces of parchment piled at the edge of the high priest’s desk—I didn’t know what reports they were. The high priest glanced over a few of them, then looked at me briefly.
It felt like a teacher holding a textbook was about to start a lesson.
“As you know, all the azure priests in the temple come from noble families. You, being a commoner, should understand that there are basically no people who feel positively about you wearing the Blue Robes.”
“Yes.”
Even though I knew, hearing it face to face sent a chill down my spine. When I first said I wanted to be a shrine maiden apprentice, I thought I only had about half a year left to live, so it was enough just to read books in the library.
But the temple had magic tools. Becoming a Blue Robe apprentice could extend my life, and my relationship with the temple wouldn’t be just temporary anymore. I couldn’t be reckless like before; I had to think about many more things.
“Right now, the number of azure priests is very low, and they need people with mana, so you might just be ignored for now. But in a few years, when more nobles join the temple, who knows what might happen. I’m telling you this in advance.”
“…Yes.”
I clenched my fists tightly on my lap and bit my lip. If I made any mistakes toward the nobility, my family would also suffer. I wanted information that would help me get through this safely.
“Especially the head priest refused even the oath ceremony. It seems you haven’t met the other azure priests, and they don’t have good feelings about a commoner like you. For that reason, I will take on your guidance.”
Though I have no rank, my mana and money make me someone who tramples on nobles’ sense of privilege, so it’s natural they wouldn’t like me. I understand that. But despite saying nobles don’t like me, the high priest seemed quite sincere in his warnings.
“Isn’t it unpleasant for you, High Priest? I mean, me…”
“I respect competent people. Especially now, with the decline in priests and shrine maidens, all the work has fallen on me. Knowing that you, skilled at paperwork, will gladly help me, there’s no reason to dislike you.”
His sly smile made my cheek twitch. The fact he mentioned my skill with paperwork meant the investigation he talked about before was finished, and he already had a lot of information about me.
There’s no concept of personal information protection in this world. If a noble like the high priest asks, people talk freely. I wondered what information he held about me—scary.
“I will do my best, but what exactly is my job in the temple? Please tell me what I should do.”
“Ah. Your job will begin as my assistant in paperwork. This is the most important. You’ll do paperwork here in the mornings. Next is prayer and offering. Especially as a shrine maiden, you must learn to pray properly.”
“I understand prayer, but what is an offering?”
“Charging divine relics with mana. Fran, bring the shield.”
Fran nodded slightly and returned with a round shield about 50 to 60 centimeters in diameter. It seemed made of gold and was decorated with complex patterns and patches of blue.
In the center was a palm-sized, yellow gem that flickered and shimmered like it was burning inside. Around the edge of the shield were marble-sized gems, some yellow and some transparent like crystal.
“Touch this central mana stone. Imagine sending your mana into it…”