Chapter 26: Interlude – Saint Alicia’s Canonization Ceremony 1

A few days prior, in the Royal Capital…

On this day, a crowd larger than any ever seen before had gathered in the Royal Capital.

Throngs of people had journeyed to the capital for this day, not only from the neighboring towns and villages but from the furthest frontiers of the kingdom.

And not just from within the kingdom; people were flooding in from other nations across the continent, all heading for this one capital city.

For a small country like this, it was a rare event for so many people to assemble, even in the Royal Capital.

Not only commoners, but nobles, clergymen, and even royalty from various nations had now converged on the capital.

It would be no exaggeration to say that all the key figures of the continent were gathered in one place.

Perhaps not even the coronation of the current king had drawn a crowd of this magnitude.

So much so that sharp-tongued commoners were heard to remark on it.

The object of their attention—of everyone’s attention—was one and the same.

A desire to catch even a single glimpse of the woman who was to be canonized as the new Saint… that was the single thought that had drawn them here.

Today, at the Royal Capital’s great cathedral, the investiture ceremony for “Saint Alicia” would be held.

To put it simply, this immense crowd had gathered for that Saint… for the sake of one single woman.

The Holy Church, an institution revered in the Kingdom of Lemuria and throughout the nations of the continent.

And the “Saint,” a woman recognized by the Holy Church as a sublime being.

But… the position of “Saint” had been vacant for a long time.

Moreover, the previous Saint had never garnered this much public attention.

This was because the title of Saint came with no actual authority.

It was treated as more of an honorary position, and in most cases, canonization was a posthumous event.

The very fact that this “Saint” was being canonized while still alive was, in itself, unprecedented.

This meant that the woman chosen as Saint this time was exceptionally special.

And that was also why so many dignitaries had assembled for this canonization ceremony.

The woman chosen to become the Saint… Alicia… was a former adventurer. And an S-Rank adventurer, at that.

Yes, she was a member of that S-Rank adventurer party… the Moon Maidens.

By now, that name is known throughout the kingdom… no, throughout the entire continent, so a lengthy explanation should be unnecessary.

The three female adventurers who had, for the first time in a decade, joined the ranks of S-Rank.

These champions, lauded as strong enough to slay even a dragon, were still young maidens.

And they were so beautiful, all who saw them were left captivated.

They were the women bards sang of in taverns across the nations, charming the masses and becoming objects of widespread admiration.

But, just recently, they had suddenly disbanded their party.

The reason for their breakup remains a mystery.

And so, not just adventurers, but everyone was now gossiping about what the future held for them.

And now, one of those very Moon Maidens at the center of all this talk… Alicia… was to be canonized as a Saint.

This was what the Holy Church had officially announced.

It was no wonder, then, that such a crowd had formed.

Incidentally, one of the more popular theories for the Moon Maidens’ disbandment, cited by no small number of people, was the presence of a man.

Their beauty was already widely known, and countless rumors had circulated about the men who had tried to make them their own.

Powerful men from across the continent, not just within the kingdom—nobles and even royalty from here and there—had sought their hands in marriage…

Unconfirmed stories like that were constantly making the rounds.

So, a rumor began to spread that they had finally found men and were settling down to start families.

Those who actually knew the Moon Maidens scoffed at the rumor, saying there was no way it could be true.

As if they would ever yield to the advances of such vulgar men.

To begin with, they had no interest in anything other than honing their own strength.

People who become S-Rank adventurers possess talent and a spirit that sets them apart from ordinary people… or so the thinking went.

In reality, the adventurers who had seen the Moon Maidens up close believed there was no way they would ever fall for a man.

After all, the adventurer profession was predominantly male.

Naturally, those men weren’t about to leave a party of beautiful women alone.

Already, a number of well-known adventurers had repeatedly made passes at them, only to suffer terribly for it each time.

Above all else, the adventurers had witnessed their strength firsthand—a strength like that of raging gods.

There was no doubt they possessed an extraordinary, rare talent.

However, that alone was not enough to reach the heights of S-Rank.

They threw themselves into battle… into their missions… day after day, as if to satisfy an insatiable hunger.

As if driven by some madness that had taken hold of them…

That was how the veteran adventurers of the Royal Capital described her.

Though no one ever learned the nature of that madness…

However, to the many people outside the adventurer community, this abnormality of theirs was, in a sense, unknown.

Some had even considered that they might have given in to the temptations of a powerful man.

So, Alicia’s appointment as a Saint swept away all those fears and anxieties.

After all, to become a Saint meant dedicating one’s life to God.

In other words, it meant that Saint Alicia would remain celibate for the rest of her life.

Better she belongs to God than to another man.

That was surely what Alicia’s most ardent fans were thinking.

And so it was that a great multitude, each with their own thoughts and feelings, thronged the great cathedral on this day.

But no matter how massive the great cathedral was—built as a point of pride for the kingdom—there was a limit to how many people could fit inside.

As a result, the seats were mostly occupied by nobles, royalty, and members of the clergy.

Those left out—the majority of whom were commoners—were forced to wait outside the cathedral.

Because of this, despite it being a sacred canonization ceremony, the interior of the cathedral was filled with a strange sort of fervor.

As the people watched, waiting with bated breath for the moment to arrive, Alicia finally appeared.

The moment Alicia, clad in the sacred vestments of the Holy Church, made her entrance, the atmosphere inside changed completely.