I’m Really Not Trying to Be Chased by the Heroine as the Villainous Playboy! – Chapter 652

Chapter 33: SSR

“Apprentice to the Sage? Acquaintance of the Saintess?”

Just a few brief words left Rapha completely bewildered.

A strong dragon doesn’t crush a local snake, but in White Harbor, who could possibly top the Saintess when it comes to local authority?!

Compared to the heroes who saved humanity, the contributions of the Rapha family over the years felt like a joke.

As Master Rapha remained silent, Teresa grew increasingly impatient, when Alice suddenly spoke up: “Lady Teresa, this person claims that the Church should favor those who contribute money and effort, prioritizing them for the Goddess’s favor.”

“Alice doesn’t understand; is this what the Church promotes under the Holy Light? That everyone is equal?”

Alice didn’t mean to stir trouble; she was genuinely confused and merely asking.

A curious little one like her.

But bringing up such a topic in public caused several high-ranking church officials to frown, even Teresa herself felt a bit out of place.

With the Trial of Saints approaching, countless individuals from all over came to sign up for the selection, and raising this issue at such a sensitive time was like publicly slapping the Church in the face for Master Rapha.

“Miss Alice, rest assured. Everyone is equal; there will be no favoritism toward the powerful—nobles or wealthy merchants alike; everything will be conducted according to the rules.”

As Teresa looked back at Master Rapha, her tone turned cold: “If we can’t adhere to this basic tenet of the Holy Light, then you need not participate in the selection for Saints.”

“I’m sorry! Miss, we were in the wrong! We shouldn’t have been impolite to you and your master! We’ll get out of here right now!”

Master Rapha’s pride crumbled; he bent his hefty body, bowing repeatedly, wearing a forced smile, terrified of displeasing the two. He hurriedly scuttled to the back of the line.

In White Harbor, he could dismiss ordinary noble youths, but this one had connections who could casually chat with the Saintess—a much more formidable relationship!

Any normal person wouldn’t dare to go heads-up with this situation.

The surrounding crowd buzzed with conversation, and the looks directed at Roy noticeably changed.

Who would have thought there’d actually be a contestant connected to someone as significant as the Saintess? How could they compete with such connections?

Noticing the disturbance among the crowd, Teresa furrowed her brows.

Feeling troubled, the Saintess maintained a graceful demeanor befitting her standing, turning to Roy with a smile: “Mr. Roy, while the Sage is an old friend, my earlier comments were strictly business.”

“Still, the same principle: everyone is equal, and there will be no favoritism in the upcoming selection.”

“Of course.” Roy replied, neither happy nor sad, simply offering the most basic politeness: “No need to worry, Lady Teresa; Alice will prove with her strength that she deserves the title of Saintess.”

Teresa’s main concern was whether the Sage would send a troublemaking scoundrel and leave her to clean up the mess.

Fortunately, Roy didn’t take advantage or flaunt his connections.

Decent enough, it seemed this loli-lover wasn’t quite at the point of being senile.

But talk about being cocky.

While most contestants were anxious about getting through the selection for the candidate of Saints, this guy came in already aiming for the Saintess position!

Young folks certainly have a lot of energy.

Teresa glanced at the golden-haired maid.

Cool, well-behaved, and cute. For her age, Sequence 7 bloodline status was quite commendable.

But beyond that, she didn’t see anything particularly special about Alice.

Out of politeness, Teresa still encouraged her without expecting much: “Do your best.”

Once the Saintess left, Roy quickly took Alice to complete the registration, joining the group participating in the selection as they entered the church.

The church in White Harbor was exceptionally tall and simply adorned, but the marks of time were evident, filled with a sense of history.

It was said that in the Third Era, the Human Alliance was formed right here, making it a historic site.

At the center of the church was a high platform, lined up neatly with twelve pristine stone tablets.

Similar to the tools previously used for testing bloodline purity, these stones could assess the purity of Holy Light power.

Eager contestants were led by nuns onto the platform and placed their palms against the stones.

In an instant, the stone responding to the Holy Light bloodline blazed with a corresponding manifestation of the light.

Among them, eleven stones radiated white auras—the most common color of Holy Light, comparable to a bronze-level status.

Only one person emitted a pure silver glow.

Gasps filled the crowd, their gazes full of admiration.

The church higher-ups observing from the other side of the platform grew interested.

A kind priest stepped forward: “Congratulations to all, who have earned the Goddess’s favor.”

“Those who manifest white Holy Light are welcomed into the Church to receive the Goddess’s blessings. And those who show silver Holy Light possess the potential for further service to the Goddess.”

He turned to the young man who had manifested silver light: “If you wish, you may directly join my ranks and experience the true mysteries of Holy Light.”

“I certainly do!”

The young man on the platform was overjoyed, evoking envy among the crowd below.

Being selected as a guard or assistant by a priest from the Church was akin to being taken on as a direct apprentice by a mid-level extraordinary being, with a promising future ahead.

For some at the bottom rung, merely joining the Holy Light Church was a life-changing opportunity.

However, to become a candidate for Saints was still a long way off.

Without even mentioning others, just the dazed expression on Teresa’s face revealed that the church higher-ups held little confidence in this selection process.

To rush and recruit someone for just a silver bloodline suggested they doubted this round of candidates, seeing it as more of a formality to collect talent.

After all, the true powerful extraordinary beings of the Holy Light on the West Continent had long joined the Church and were dispatched to the Eastern Continent headquarters for further training, leaving only the dregs behind.

The Church of the West Continent was inferior in all aspects to that of the Eastern Continent and hadn’t even been qualified to participate in previous rounds of the Saints’ Trials. Naturally, they wouldn’t hold out much hope now.

But, exceptions always exist.

Seeing the little maid stiffen her legs, Roy gently ruffled her hair, softly encouraging: “No need to be nervous, just perform as usual.”

“Mm.”

Alice nodded obediently, but her heart raced.

She recalled the bloodline testing during her entrance exam.

No matter what the onlookers thought, this was her big chance to shine in front of her master!

With that thought, Alice surged with unstoppable enthusiasm!

On another tier of the platform, delays in bloodlines displaying above silver led several church higher-ups to grow disinterested.

Teresa, especially, seemed lost in thought, barely resisting the urge to yawn.

Until the golden-haired girl stepped onto the platform, calmly placing her small hands on the stone tablets.

“Trust me, those two kids won’t let you down.”

Remembering her old friend’s letter, Teresa couldn’t help but smile.

The identity of an extraordinary being was often tied to their bloodline; a maid could at best reach bronze-level. Perhaps the Sage just wanted to take special care of her.

But no matter how much care was given, if one lacked strength, they would never get close to the position of Saint.

Having initially held no expectations, even if the other turned out to be just bronze-level, it wouldn’t be too disappointing…

The next moment, a blazing white light burst forth like a blazing sun, a pure sacred spiral enveloping the entire area, momentarily blinding Teresa!