Chapter 121: Saintess? Not Even a Dog Would Do It

The bishop respectfully handed a document to Peretti.

She glanced at it. The contents were nothing more than filling in her personal information and the details of the Falisa incident.

But… how was she supposed to fill this out?

Was she supposed to write something like “Defeated three Regulation Squad leaders—record verifiable”?

If she wrote that, it would definitely raise suspicion. After all, why would she have fought the Regulation Squad in the first place if there wasn’t something wrong?

After some thought, Peretti wrote about being rescued by Josuna, saving Ailberna Isaacson, and defeating Vinika. Of course, much of it was heavily modified—just enough to make things look better to the people here.

She had no intention of fooling Josuna or the Pope with a fabricated report.

The mage girl who had been there earlier stood quietly beside Peretti.

Most people present either needed to work with her—or wanted to cling to her influence.

In Mara’s understanding, a bishop was already a high-ranking figure within the Church. Yet even someone so respected could only bow and scrape in front of Peretti.

If she didn’t seize this opportunity, she might never again meet someone of such high status.

Aisha, on the other hand, was different.

What she felt toward Peretti was admiration.

“Senior, what was that spell you used? Why have I never seen it before?”

“That’s normal. I taught it to myself. The Church doesn’t have it.”

“You mean… you created your own magic?!”

In today’s already mature magic system, most mages simply learned spells created by their predecessors. After all, something you casually created yourself could never compare to spells refined through countless experiments.

That was why very few people pursued magical innovation. Even those who tried often gave up—either because it was too difficult or because their results were inferior to existing spells.

Yet Peretti’s self-created light-element magic—

Could be reused in cycles, and in almost every aspect surpassed the majority of current magic.

At roughly the same age, she held a high position in the Church and possessed unimaginable strength.

The gap between them felt overwhelming.

“There’s no need to compare yourself to me. I’m not exactly a normal human. Given your current level, your talent in magic is already exceptional. Believe in yourself.”

“So… how high exactly is your rank in the Church?”

Seeing the bishop’s fawning expression, even Anasha couldn’t help but grow curious.

Within the Church, positions like bishop valued seniority more than strength. The older you were, the deeper your experience—the more likely you were to become a bishop.

That’s why most bishops were gray-haired elders.

But the girl in front of them looked barely in her twenties—and yet her rank was above a bishop’s. That was extremely rare.

“Isn’t it written right there? Peretti, commoner, twenty-one years old. High-ranking priest.”

“Twenty-one… wait, with your age and your affinity for light magic, shouldn’t you be a Saintess candidate?” Anasha looked at her in surprise.

She had assumed Peretti was at least twenty-eight.

Yet she was only twenty-one.

At that age, creating her own magic—her talent was monstrous.

Someone like her perfectly met the requirements to become a Saintess candidate.

“That was originally the case. But if I became a Saintess candidate, I’d basically be guaranteed to become the Saintess anyway. No one else could compete with me.”

“And honestly? Too troublesome. I can’t be bothered.”

“In the end, what is a Saintess? Just a glorified tool for the Empire. Wherever there’s war, wherever there’s trouble—the Saintess has to go fix it.”

“Five nationwide pilgrimages every year. No rest all year round. Smiling in front of a bunch of old men, saying things I don’t even mean from morning till night.”

“Honestly speaking…”

“This Saintess position? Not even a dog would take it.”

Silence fell over the room.

In all their lives, they had never heard of someone refusing to become a Saintess simply because it was too troublesome.

Countless people longed for that position.

“Haa… finally finished filling this thing out. I’m exhausted.”

Peretti casually tossed the document aside, stretching as if she had just finished intense exercise.

The bishop hurriedly caught it, nodded repeatedly at her, then quickly left.

“So, what are you planning to do next?” Anasha crossed her arms, looking at her with interest.

“No rush. Since you’ve pushed me into this position, I’d like to ask something first.”

Peretti’s tone shifted.

“Why haven’t you stopped the inflow of beast slaves? Why hide the truth instead? You, as the leader of the second Regulation Squad, are colluding with local nobles—deceiving those above and below you.”

The vast church hall fell silent.

Only Peretti sat on the bench, while everyone else stood before her with lowered heads, unable to answer.

They suddenly remembered—

Her file listed her as a commoner, not a noble.

Different origins meant completely different perspectives.

She nodded slightly, a hint of self-mockery in her voice.

“Right… of course. Everyone here is a noble.”

“Without s*ave mines, who would do the digging? Who would manage the estates of the noble lords? Who would carry goods? And who would sing and dance for their amusement?”

“Protecting commoners from nobles, right? What noble intentions… it almost moves me.”

No one responded.

They all knew—

As a commoner, Peretti understood nobles far better than they did themselves.

Deception meant nothing in front of her.

“The outsiders are about to invade, and the border is still being concealed. You think you can handle it yourselves—but look at the result.”

“A bunch of idiots.”

“Come on, Anasha. You stayed here because the bishop convinced you, didn’t he? Tell me—what reason did he use?”

For once, standing above everyone else—

Peretti found herself in an unusually good mood.

“My mission is to deal with the rebel Fakenna. He did rebel, so I must complete my task.”

Clap—clap—clap—

Peretti raised her hands and applauded, the crisp sound echoing through the hall.

“Then could Miss Anasha tell me—why did Fakenna rebel? You can’t possibly not know something this important, right?”

Anasha’s expression shifted. Her brows furrowed, as if struggling internally.

After a long moment, she made up her mind.

“Because Fakenna proposed wiping out the Lu tribe to eliminate future threats—but no one agreed. The local nobles stripped him of his rank and honor, and to silence him completely, exiled him and his followers to the desert.”

“The position of commander of the Third Knight Order was then given to his brother, Kane.”

“Those were just the powder building up.”

“The fuse was lit a month ago—during a dispute…”

“His wife died in an accident.”