I find it very sacred to pick someone up and make them a saint.

The ascent beneath their feet stopped, and Mien led Luya forward.

Do you consider yourself talented?

Lucia didn't know why Mien would suddenly ask this.

Is it a talent for learning?

I never even thought about this question before. My study experience over the past few months has been more like that of a corporate slave, burying myself in work to complete one deadline after another.

The only "classmate" around him was Shanara, and Shanara was someone who was about to graduate with a doctorate in her second year, so it was difficult to compare her talent with her.

I thought for a long time but still couldn't answer.

Mien flicked his wrist, then led Lucia into a space.

The pure barrier around them suddenly contracted, restoring the original appearance of the surroundings.

While the magic alchemy machine was running, Hein was conducting experiments in front of them with his back to them.

"Hein".

"Professor Hein," the two greeted each other.

Hein simply waved his hand in response.

"For example, 'energy resonance'," Mien reminded her. "Furila was unable to advance to Saintess for a long time because of insufficient resonance with light energy."

Lucia had naturally heard of it, but she didn't know much about it.

Mien waved his hand, activating a giant alchemical machine beside him, which vibrated slightly and lit up.

Mien infused the machine with a wisp of his own light magic, and it instantly started whirring and clanging.

On the huge light screen in front of them, numbers flashed by at high speed in a chaotic manner.

As it stabilized, the number became 0, and then gradually rose higher.

"The Saintess's qualified resonance level of light energy is 60%, while Funila's is only 59.1%."

This rule exists because the degree of resonance determines the ability to utilize and master the power of faith.

Normal students are around forty, which is the threshold for becoming an outstanding superhuman. Those in their fifties are considered intelligent, and those in their sixties are considered exceptionally gifted.

This ability will help the saintess communicate with the Goddess of Light and listen to her teachings.

"Communicating with the goddess..." Lucia marveled inwardly. That was something written in books; she couldn't imagine someone actually being able to meet the great goddess face to face.

Then he thought to himself, if he had passed the resonance threshold that Funila had failed, wouldn't that mean that his Light Resonance had reached 60%? Wouldn't that mean that he was also one of the gifted individuals?

Is it true...? From childhood to adulthood, she has never thought of herself as smart. No one has ever praised her for being smart; they have only praised her for being "very hardworking."

As the mechanical roar grew louder, Lucia's eyes widened as she watched the numbers scrolling upwards, realizing they would indicate Mien's resonance level, and she felt a surge of anticipation.

This is Teacher Mien, so it wouldn't be surprising if the number soared to 120.

However, the numbers scrolled slower and slower, eventually stopping at "23.3%".

It stopped moving.

ah?……

Lucia stood there, stunned. Either the machine was broken, or there was something wrong with her eyes.

Mien didn't care and said:

"But the brightness of energy cannot determine everything, especially in the Academy of Scholars."

As you can see, my "talent" is quite poor, but that doesn't stop me from being the top student here.

Because understanding and utilizing all energies is a far more powerful force than a narrow grasp of a single energy source.

Lucia nodded vigorously. What Mien said was certainly true, and there must be a reason for the 23.3% figure!

"Hein is the same; his talent is practically zero."

But it is precisely through our mastery of all energy that we, as members of the Academy, can solve problems that the Papacy and the military cannot.

For example, the "Contract Truth Cult" incident in Tin Can Street.

Lucia's expression turned serious, and she gained a deeper understanding of the Academy's role, which made her feel a sense of pride and belonging.

"However," Mien sighed, "knowledge is still knowledge. Faced with sufficiently powerful forces, knowledge can sometimes be reduced to mere tricks and gimmicks."

Just like the Fountain of Faith in Tin Can Street, my resonance with the power of the Contractual Truth is simply insufficient to resolve the pollution there.

"But..." Lucia was a little confused. Mien had solved the problem right in front of her, so how could he say it was unmanageable?

Recalling the detailed scene, he couldn't help but wonder: Could it have been me?!

Mien looked at her and said, "Luya, you are very talented, not only in terms of Light Resonance, but also in your ability to utilize many energies, just like Hein and me."

Strictly speaking, the cult incident on Iron Can Street wasn't resolved by me, but by you; you saved everyone there.

Lucia was extremely surprised, never imagining that she had such an ability to do something that could affect so many people, and couldn't help but wonder if Mien was lying to her.

Mien tapped lightly in front of the massive machine, and a familiar purple energy flowed out from it.

Lucia recognized it immediately; it was the very energy of the "Cult of Covenant Truth" from back then.

She touched Lucia's forehead little by little, just like when she was in front of the Fountain of Faith, causing her to subconsciously take two steps back.

"Lua, don't shy away, try to grasp and touch it."

Lucia realized that this was just a machine for testing resonance. Overcoming her inner resistance, she straightened her back, closed her eyes, and mustered the courage to feel it.

The moment they made contact, the energy merged with Lucia's body, and soon a faint purple light appeared around Lucia's body, as if it were part of her body.

"Open your eyes."

The machine roared again, then stabilized after a huge jolt, and the numbers gradually climbed from 0.

10, 30, 50...

It hasn't stopped yet.

Lucia stared in surprise, thinking: Could it be that the resonance level of the power of the contract truth has exceeded 60%?

Am I destined to become a saintess of esoteric Buddhism? ...

With a ring, the number jumped past the 60% threshold, but it didn't stop there: 65, 70, 75...

"Stop raising her!..." Lucia wanted to close her eyes and shout in her heart, "Is Teacher Mien going to capture me, this born witch, and execute me?"

The final number settled at 77%, and Lucia breathed a sigh of relief.

Mien noticed her unusual behavior and explained:

"Resonance level only indicates your ability to use it, not your belief; the two are unrelated."

It was precisely because of this that you were able to eradicate the defilement from the wellspring of faith.

"Teacher," Lucia asked softly.

"Um?"

"So what is my resonance level of light energy?" she wondered.

Mien laughed and said, "You can try it yourself."

Lucia swallowed hard, then reached out and channeled a beam of holy light into the machine, causing the numbers to climb back up from zero.

10%, 20%, 30%, 50%...

With a ringing sound, it naturally crossed the 60% threshold and continued to climb.

Lucia felt her heart pounding.

60%, 70%, and it's still rising...

It eventually stopped at 82%.

Lucia was incredulous. Mien had only said that his resonance level was over 60%, not that it was this high.

But upon reflection, it makes sense; 82% does indeed exceed 60%.

"Most people are already considered geniuses if they can achieve a high resonance level of two faith powers at most," Mien continued.

"For example, Professor Phyllis has a 52% resonance with the light and a 49% resonance with the power of faith in life."

Lucia digested everything.

As he spoke, Mien activated the magic alchemy machine again, which inexplicably made an even louder noise, causing Hein to turn around and look at it.

Suddenly, more than a dozen different magical powers flew out from it, and various kinds of faith power flowed in the laboratory, gradually moving closer to Lucia.

Lucia tried to calm herself down, realizing that they were not aggressive.

They touched the girl one after another, then merged with her magic, transforming into streams of light that flowed around Lucia.

As the immense energy surged, Lucia's clothes billowed up, highlighting the girl's surprised face.

The light screen on the alchemy machine began to scroll:

Resonance with the Power of Light: 82%

Life energy resonance level: 80%

Resonance level of order energy: 79%

Stellar energy resonance level: 81%

Void Energy Resonance: 80%

Pain energy resonance level: 78%...

…………

It repeatedly challenged Lucia's worldview.

"But you are different. You are someone whose total faith energy is close to 80%, which has never happened in the limited records of the Empire."

Strictly speaking, you are a genius among geniuses; perhaps there is no one on this continent with greater talent than you.

Everything happened so suddenly that Lucia couldn't accept it for a while.

"But……"

She never felt smart in her entire life.

She never felt special; in every aspect, she was just an ordinary girl.

This is not simply accepting a fact, but more of a change in self-perception.

Deep-seated inferiority complexes cannot be washed away overnight.

—Mien is telling her about a completely new version of herself.

Am I really a genius?

Mien looked at the shocked Lucia and said calmly:

"Have you thought carefully about what you've been doing since you enrolled?"

"You completed the theoretical assessment that others would take one or two years to complete in just three months."

Even though you've worked hard enough, this is something that can't be achieved simply by hard work. There are many people who work hard, which means you have a talent for learning and understanding magic.

"You're very clever, Lucia."

Lucia felt her heart clench.

"After passing the theoretical test, you will have less than seven days left before you have to face off against Funila, who has been training in magic for seven or eight years."

In his first freestyle fighting match, he defeated Furila, who was hailed as the future son of the Church of Light.

Do you think I would say, "All I saw was sweat and effort"?

That's because of your talent, Lucia, a talent that no one else in the world possesses.

Lucia looked at him with trembling eyes.

"I don't have that kind of talent either."

Lucia felt a little hot.

What she saw in Mien's eyes was more than just 'gratification' and 'satisfaction'.

Rather, it is a form of 'acknowledgment'.

I'm telling myself that I'm good enough, that I'm better than everyone else.

I couldn't help but close my eyes again.

"No one can cleanse the defilement of the Fountain of Faith in Iron Can Street. I am prepared to gather the scholars of the Holy Chapter to use magical machinery or set up magic arrays to solve this problem."

But under my guidance, you directly faced the Goddess of Contractual Truth and absorbed and purified her primordial power.

This relies not only on your talent for resonance, but also on sufficient courage and determination.

As Lucia listened to Mien's account, she began to think about these things carefully and realized that something was glaringly wrong, and how outrageous her own actions were.

Lucia lowered her head, her eyes already red.

She didn't know why she couldn't hold back her tears; she only knew that every word Mi En said was stirring up her tender heart.

These were words I had never heard before in my more than ten years of solitude, and all the grievances I had felt were awakened from my numbness.

Teacher Mien was like his only family member, and he wanted to hug him and cry his heart out.

However, he managed to restrain himself.

This is just her unilateral view of others as family; Lucia wouldn't do something so rude.

Mien watched Lucia quietly, waiting for her to calm down.

After a long while, Lucia finally calmed down and casually wiped away the tears that had welled up in her eyes.

Only the lingering turmoil in my heart remained unresolved for a long time.

…………

…………

(I'll post another chapter tonight, but it won't be before midnight.)