Ardent Worshipper

The tolling of the bells sounded after the end of the mass.

As the believers stood up from their seats to return home after the weekly mass, the priests and nuns near the altar also stood up to arrange the used candles and the offerings.

The Pope of the Church also went to the back hall to prepare for his sacred duty this month; visiting the most special and guarded room of the Church.

The Sacred Chamber, the most confidential secret protected by the Popes of all generations, Archbishops, and Great Paladins that serves the Goddess of the Church.

Pope Nicholas, the 49th Pope of the Church since its inauguration in the continent, has one assignment every month after the devotee's mass in the morning; to report to the Sacred Chamber. The Pope is mainly the face of the Church to the world, maintaining the peace of the continent while the Archbishops and Priests of the Church purify the miasma in various locales.

After the grueling security inspections and identifications, the Pope finally reached the eighteenth underground level of the main church, guarded by a row of seraphim. 

Reverently bowing towards these mythical creatures that guards the Sacred Chamber, Pope Nick walked in through the giant carved walls of the chamber with an extremely humble and low attitude. He is a mere mortal that serves the Goddess that brought light to humanity. After death, may he enter the divine kingdom of the Goddess as an angel that supports human civilization of the continent.

What Pope Nick saw once he entered the Sacred Chamber is an endless green prairie and the warm winds. This may not be possible due to being located a few kilometers underground, but this is the Sacred Chamber, the place where the Goddess the Church serves resides in the continent. With just a thought of the Goddess, everything can be possible.

Of course, due to the restrictions placed by the [World] to higher beings, from Pope Nicholas' understanding, the Goddess' divine authority only extends indefinitely within the Sacred Chamber. Any actions outside of this place can only manifest through miracles, oracles, and a limited divine descent where the Goddess can use a prepared avatar to walk the earth with the faith of believers.

"Pope Nicholas the XIII of the Church of Wisdom greets the Great Goddess of Divine Wisdom and Prophecies," the Pope greeted with a humble heart once he noticed the warm and close feeling that can only be coming from the owner of this place.

"Little Nick," a holy voice echoed near Pope Nick's ears, but he dares not look back at the owner of the voice. No one can look at a divine being without the other's permission, even if the divine being in question is the Goddess they serve. Pope Nick is clear that aside from the [Saint] that the Goddess is looking for, the Goddess treats every mortal equally.

"Has she been found?" a simple yet longing tone came from the divine being. 

Pope Nick thought back to the time when he was still a newly elected Pope of the Church. The very first and most important mission given to him by an oracle of the Goddess is to search for a person who may or may not exist; a longing of more than a thousand years.

"There had been good news this month, Goddess. A person rumored to be the [Saint] was spotted by the Great Paladins when they were purifying the miasma at the edges of the northernmost countries, away from the Central Main Church. This may be the reason as to why it took so long to find the [Saint]," the Pope reported the good news, and he suddenly felt his life force coming back to him.

The Goddess is blessing him with vitality!

"Really?! She's there?!" the divine voice echoed throughout the prairie, bringing tremendous pressure towards this sole audience of the divine. On the other hand, the Goddess is still continuously giving him vitality, which made the Pope torn between moaning in contentment or gritting in sweats. It's a contradictory feeling, but the Pope is pleased to be the reigning Pope to accomplish this most important mission of the Church. 

"The traces suggested that it is indeed the [Saint], Goddess. The Great Paladins are now escorting the [Saint] back here to Central Main Church," Pope Nick smiled in joy, feeling the happiness echoing from the divine entity.

Pope Nick felt that it must have been hours ever since he stepped foot in this chamber, when in reality, it had only been a few seconds. The joy emanating from the divine presence is so overwhelming that it is messing up with Nick's sense of time and space.

When Pope Nick came to, he found himself back above ground, leaving the space containing the Sacred Chamber. His memories were a bit fuzzy, but he knew that the Goddess they are worshipping would soon be leaving this haven to greet the [Saint] in person.

After having this thought, the Pope sent letters to summon all the higher ups of the Church who has the related authority regarding the Goddess and the Sacred Chamber. They need to prepare everything for the Great Goddess they serve who will soon walk the land. It's time for the coming of the Great Goddess.

Meanwhile, back in the Sacred Chamber, the Great Goddess of Divine Wisdom and Prophecies Sophia, cannot hide her excitement and joy. Every single creature that had been blessed by her divine authority all felt the joy of their Goddess and celebrated within the prairie.

At last! After patiently waiting for more than a thousand years, her [Saint], her loyal priestess, her beloved, finally got reincarnated!

Sophia, without any divine bearing, sat down in the middle of the prairie and nervously bit her fingertips. At the thought of finally meeting the one she longed so much for, she hyperventilated. It's a good thing that she does not require to breath, otherwise, she would have choked and embarrassed herself amidst her faithful worshippers.

Tears pooled around her eyes, which tuned into shimmering dusts after it feel from her face. Sophia tried to calm herself down after crying for a few minutes. Her long, wavy dark hair floated around her as her divine energy radiated form her entire being. Her energy constantly kept her appearance neat and tidy.

Then, upon remembering her posture, she stood up hastily and looked over herself, wondering if her beloved would despise her with such an appearance.

Sitting in a thinking posture, Sophia tried to remember the preferences of her [Saint]. It appears… normal?

Nostalgia, longing, ardent love and devotion; feeling this after the millennium-long wait and seeking is natural. After all, even as a divine being, Sophia still has mortal issues to deal with. If not for the war with the demons and the Demonic Realm a few millenniums ago, she would never have had ascended to divinity and claim her godhood!

It was so sudden back then.

Sophia, with her sweetheart, were just little demigods, descendants and servants of full-fledged gods. They were at the peak of their lives, with a secure future and a sweet love that would help them avoid loneliness in their immortal lives. Sophia, just a little demigod without a proper title, was raised together with another demigod, the love of her life. When they reached the proper age for gods, they swore an oath at the Halls of Eternity back in the Divine Realm with the great gods as witnesses.

Then… the war broke out.

The demons invaded the Middle Realm, wishing to take over the land of humans and slay the gods who maintained order and peace.

The gods were caught off guard. And… many died unexpectedly.

Everyday, blood of gods and of demons fell in the lands and seas of the Middle Realm, turning the place into an inhospitable place for mortals to live in. The gods tried to protect them, with divine barriers and cities being built to accommodate their diminishing population, while the miasma that came with the demons contaminated the land.

One by one, the Great Gods fell, with the last being the former Great Goddess of Divine Wisdom and Prophecies, Sophia's parent. Sophia quickly took over her parent's mantle to control the overall situation. It was the last stand of the Divine Realm against the Demonic Realm a millennium ago. Sophia, a young and immature Great Goddess has a lot of responsibilities burdened on her tiny shoulders to defend the Divine Realm. It was her beloved who helped her with her responsibilities.

Finally, they managed to expel the demons from the Divine Realm and the middle realm. The gods heaved a sigh of relief that the few millenniums of war with demons would be over.

But the remaining Demon Lords had one final struggle. They… targeted her beloved!

Her beloved, caught off guard, died!

Sophia felt that the entire world was suddenly devoid of colors!

Seeing the lifeless look of her beloved, with her Divine Spark snuffed out, Sophia almost went berserk and chased the demons to the Demonic Realm to fight another war.

At that moment, the [World] intervened.

Battered and almost destroyed, the Middle Realm needs to recuperate. It placed a sanction on all higher beings to not be able to use their divinity and demonic powers within the Middle Realm, other than using the mortals' faith to walk the land. It cannot afford another war between the two realms.

Tired and aggrieved, the Great Goddess of Divine Wisdom and Prophecies, Sophia, secluded herself from the world. Even as a Great Goddess, she does not have the capability to revive the dead. All they can do is maintain their lives as immortals and rule with divine power, but they can still bleed and die. Her beloved does not have any divinity related to healing and defense, thus, lost her life as easily as killing a baby. And once a creature loses their life, their souls and spirits would be dragged by the [World] to the Afterlife, not to be interfered with by even gods and demons.

Grief flooded Sophia's heart that she almost fell from her divinity as the Great Goddess of Divine Wisdom and Prophecies. If! If she only made sure to secure her beloved's safety, if only she did not become complacent of their victory, her beloved would not have died unexpectedly!

But, the [World] is still as merciful as always. As a neutral authority between gods, mortals, and demons, it cannot let the Great Goddess of Divine Wisdom and Prophecies fall. It would spark another war that it cannot bear at the moment. Thus, the [World] imparted a secret to Sophia. The [World] would be reincarnating her beloved as her [Saint] which would help them reunite in the future.

Pumped with hope and hatred for the demons, Sophia immediately descended to the Sacred Chamber of her Church in the middle realm and guided her Church well in purifying the miasma and fixing the environment of the Middle Realm. The [World] told her that by doing this, she'll meet her beloved earlier.

Sophia who toiled, waiting patiently for over a thousand years, is finally going to get the reward she desperately wished for. Her beloved got reincarnated!

It did not take long for her to wait this time. After about a month, the [Saint] reached the Central Main Church together with escorts from the ranks of the Great Paladins. The arrival for the [Saint] was anticipated by the whole church.

Wearing the avatar that she crafted patiently for more than five centuries that would fit the aesthetics of her beloved [Saint], Sophia step foot outside the Sacred Chamber for the very first time ever since the end of the war. Even the restrictions put on her by the [World] did not dampen Sophia's mood.

Taking too much effort to maintain her divine bearing in front of her faithful worshippers, Sophia half ran using the avatar. Eventually, the Pope guided her towards the open field by the Church's main gate where the [Saint] would enter with the procession. All the higher ups of the Church except for the Pope were in the presence of the Goddess they worship for the first time.

No one dared to cause trouble at all, bowing their heads reverently, showing their respect towards the deity. If possible, they would love to kneel with both knees, smash their heads towards the ground and express their devotion towards the Great Goddess. But since the [Saint] is coming, the Great Goddess allowed them to be a bit presumptuous and not be overly respectful. Hence, everyone lined up by the gates, with the Great Goddess' avatar standing at the forefront.

Finally, the anticipated time of the arrival of the [Saint] arrived.

The carriage carrying the [Saint] stopped and the Head Paladin went to open its doors.

And… when the foot of the [Saint] stepped down the carriage, its as if time stopped for Sophia.

That's! That's her beloved's presence! The very presence that made her fall in love millenniums ago! The presence that made her cling to the memories of them together! The presence that she longed to feel once more!

Ignoring all forms of formality, Sophia rushed towards the carriage to help the [Saint] walk down. As soon as Sophia touched the hand stretching out from the carriage, Sophia felt contentment bubbling inside her, as if she could touch this hand forever and would never get bored.

When she looked up, she saw the eyes of her beloved; the same golden eyes that shines with the sunlight. Her twinkling, mischievous eyes made Sophia remember all those memories of their childhood in the Divine Realm, away from wars and bloodshed, full of peace and laughter. Her soft, wavy hair that is as dark as the night, her bright and warm presence, her addictive scent that comforts her heart; everything about her beloved brought her the peace she did not have for over a thousand years.

Sophia immediately leaned forwards to catch the body of her beloved, grasping the body tightly, afraid that letting go would make the other disappear for over a thousand years again.

"Sophia," the other's voice is still as soothing as ever.

"I'm back."

Followers of her Church thought that the [Saint] they were looking for was just a human mortal that was granted a favor by the gods.

However, for Sophia, this [Saint], even if she's currently mortal, is a goddess that she ardently worships.

The pillar of her Divine Soul, her identity, and her future.

"Yeah, welcome back, Tia."

~ Fin ~