As Urien and the little girl entered the office, the girl sat down nervously in a chair. Urien took his seat and gave her a gentle look.
"Now, let's get to the point," Urien explained calmly, addressing her as kindly as he could. "Could you tell me your name first?"
The little girl nodded quickly with a nervous motion and said, "F-Frieda, Frieda."
"You have a lovely name, Frieda," Urien said warmly, trying to ease her nerves. It seemed to work, as Frieda visibly relaxed.
"Now, we're going to talk privately. Why didn't your mother come?" Frieda hesitated for a moment but didn't want to keep him waiting too long. She answered quickly, "My mom's sick. She works a lot and gets tired easily. Her body's weak, so she falls ill quickly."
"I see," Urien nodded, not wanting to distress her further, and moved past the topic. He then took some paper and a pen from the corner of his desk.
"How old are you?"
"12," Frieda answered, though she didn't quite understand the reason behind the question. "I'm 12 years old."
"Do you have other family members? Any relatives?" Though uncomfortable asking, Urien needed more answers to understand her situation better.
The girl answered a bit sadly without delay. "No."
Urien sighed and continued taking notes. Frieda's eyes kept darting to his notebook with curiosity and concern, though her reading skills were too poor to understand much.
"Do you follow any religion?"
"My mom used to say gods were just fairy tales," Frieda said calmly, then quickly clapped a hand over her mouth, realizing Urien was a high priest. She felt ashamed and embarrassed.
Urien found it amusing and laughed, which only made Frieda more embarrassed. He stopped laughing and looked at her with a gentle smile. "There's nothing wrong with saying that. Your beliefs are important to you, just as mine are to me."
Frieda quickly nodded, reminding herself to be more careful with her words. Without further delay, Urien continued.
"Frieda, you're lucky because I currently don't have an assistant. Would you like to work for me?" Urien asked calmly. He didn't typically need an assistant since he had little work, but he didn't hesitate to create this role for Frieda.
Frieda's eyes sparkled with excitement and surprise. She struggled to find words, stumbling before finally speaking with hesitation and disbelief. "Really?"
"Yes, if you think you can handle it, you can come to work with me after school. How does that sound?" Urien's offer immediately captured her interest, and she nodded eagerly.
Urien smiled approvingly. "You'd earn five gold coins a week, and weekends will be your days off."
"W-wait, really?" Hearing these conditions filled Frieda with hope. Her mother's salary was only two gold coins.
Realizing that with this money, she could provide a better life, Frieda beamed with joy, making Urien want to pinch her cheeks.
"If you need anything else, just let me know." As Urien stood, Frieda rose too. Before leaving, she thanked him enthusiastically and dashed off to tell her mother.
Urien chuckled and waited in the strangely quiet room. The silence was soon broken by someone entering.
It was George.
"That little girl looked excited," George raised an amused eyebrow. Urien glanced at him and said, "I asked her to be my assistant. It seemed like they needed help."
"You did a good thing," George said approvingly. "If my grandfather were here, he'd be proud of you. He always preferred to give people opportunities for a lifetime over a one-time handout."
"Speaking of Grandfather, Urien..." George took a step forward, handing Urien a book. Urien furrowed his brow, unsure what it was until George began to explain.
In fact, this discrimination was so pronounced that a river had been built to separate Celestivum from Aurum Sancta.
A river surrounded Celestivum, effectively dividing it from the area inhabited by the populace. This had been deliberately constructed by engineers to prevent ordinary people from approaching the Pope's residence.
The river appeared passable, but it was not. It contained Mana so immense that it could tear a human apart in an instant. This ensured that no ordinary person could reach the Castle where the Pope lived.
The only passageway was a heavily monitored bridge.
On the top floor of Celestivum, as Solomon slowly made his way, he gazed in silence at the expansive yet remarkably successful architectural structure surrounding him.
Despite such incredible wealth, Solomon appeared indifferent. As he walked toward the ceremonial room within the Pope's palace, his footsteps echoed throughout the palace.
Despite the vastness of the place, Solomon had easily memorized it. It felt as though he were walking in his own home. Finally, after a five-minute walk, he arrived at a location closed off by a grand door.
The massive doors opened slowly, sensing Solomon's arrival. As Solomon entered, the first thing that caught his eye was the Pope himself.
Mocking the frail and weak elder, Solomon squinted his eyes but still knelt to pay his respects to the Pope.
"I see you are well today, Your Holiness..."
The Pope opened his emotionless and cold eyes and gave Solomon an evaluative look. Feeling the Pope's gaze seep into his very soul, Solomon felt disgusted and sensed his emotions spiraling out of control.
Quickly regaining his composure, Solomon disliked the Pope Bartolomeo's demeanor. He hastily sought to divert the Pope's attention and jumped straight to the subject.
"You have called for me, Your Holiness." Finally, the Pope's lips parted, and his eyes drifted to the colossal statue of the Goddess before him. Even though his gaze was on the statue, Solomon still felt the Pope's perception seep into his very soul.
"Yes, young Solomon. I have summoned you." The Pope maintained his indifference. "You know I have expectations of you and that I see your potential."
Not understanding what the Pope meant, Solomon merely frowned. The Pope continued, keeping his gaze fixed on the Goddess statue. "I have a task for you."
"May I dare to ask what this task is?"
"You will educate the Saint."
Solomon's eyes hardened upon hearing the Pope's words. He did not want to babysit a child, even if that child were a saint.
Still, not wanting to anger the Pope by outright rejecting him, Solomon reluctantly accepted the task. "As you wish, Your Holiness."
Although the Pope's expression did not change, Solomon could sense his satisfaction. Then the Pope continued, surprising Solomon with his next words.
"You will also train the new heroes."
"Heroes??" Even Solomon was astonished by this, and a strange expression appeared on his face. He knew what heroes were.
The Goddess of Light summoned heroes from other worlds whenever the world was in danger. However, Solomon was not sure of this truth, but upon hearing the Pope's tone of belief, he became convinced that heroes existed.
"From another world?"
"Yes, powerful individuals coming from other worlds ruled by the Goddess to aid this one," Pope Bartolomeo explained calmly. "Each of them is blessed by the Goddess and has gained extraordinary abilities."
"Tomorrow, we will summon the heroes to our world in the city center. Make sure you are prepared." The Pope issued the command swiftly. Solomon obediently bowed. "As you command."
As Solomon departed, he fell into deep thought, eagerly anticipating the following day.