21th of Glace, Year 1023

She didn’t tell Lirion what the Kin Law was, but he should be able to find out for himself soon enough. All the saints were required to follow a moral code, the only set of official rules that they had to follow. Most of them were common sense anyway.

For example, one of the rules was that they must be impartial and cannot meddle with political or worldly affairs in the name of their own interest. A saint must be impartial and always put the people’s safety and welfare first above all else. Another was that a saint cannot pursue wealth or abuse their power for selfish reasons. 

Another very important rule was to never take a human life. That was the rule that Lirion violated when he killed many Asterian nobles, and he was exiled to the aether plane for seventy years as punishment. 

However, not long after Lirion was exiled, the other saints banded together and appealed to Eislyn to make an amendment to the code of saints. What they wanted was an exception to the rules, which later became known as the Kin Law. 

In short, the Kin Law stated that the taking of a human life is only excusable if done in the defense of a saint’s kin. Since all saints were once normal mortals with families, it was unreasonable for them to suddenly cut off their family after becoming saints. If a family member were to get murdered, the saint should be allowed to avenge their fallen family member, even if it meant returning the favor to the murderer.

Since Lirion had just returned from the aether plane, he hadn’t caught up to all the recent news yet, but once he found out about it, he should immediately recognize that the Kin Law was created because of him. It would show proof that the other saints did not condemn him for his actions.

Well, either way, Renee didn’t feel like being the one to explain the Kin Law to him. Instead, she left the Court of Saint early the next day to find the University of Elysia so she could check out the most recent edition of The History of the World. She was planning to read it in hopes that it might mention any weaknesses that Eris might possess. To defeat a goddess, one must first learn everyone they can about her. And if she was lucky, she might be able to find a book on how to break her third seal. 

She wore a hooded cloak to hide her face, partially because she was afraid of running into or being mistaken for her previous incarnation, assuming she was living in Elysia at this time. Perhaps she was, but in Lorelia instead of the capital. Either way, Renee didn’t feel like taking any chances. 

When she first left the building at daybreak, she felt fully confident in her ability to find the library and be back by afternoon or evening. However, she vastly overestimated her sense of direction and her ability to recognize the different parts of the capital. Apparently, one thousand years was long enough to reshape the capital of Elysia to the point Renee couldn’t find the one building that didn’t change. There were shops in places that would eventually become neighborhoods, and houses in places that would eventually become commercial districts. Renee managed to make it halfway to the University of Elysia by following the river before becoming hopelessly lost.

She knew that the University of Elysia was probably one of the oldest buildings in the whole world. It started off as just the main temple of Eislyn until a few hundred years ago when it established a university. Now the University of Elysia and the Temple of Eislyn is a joint organization, serving two coexisting purposes. One side focused on philanthropy and religion while the other focused on education and knowledge. It was so prestigious that it even rivaled the top universities from Asteria, a kingdom famous for its advances in education, philosophy, and other intellectual pursuits.

“I should have taken one of the saints with me.” Renee grumbled to herself as she attempted to retrace her step after walking herself into a dead end. “Or I should have brought a map. GPS has spoiled me.”

She was about to give up and ask the closest stranger for directions when someone came to her first.

“Excuse me, but are you lost?” A feminine voice called out to Renee from behind her.

“Yes, please—” Renee eagerly turned around to accept the help and found herself face to face with none other than Anise. She almost called out Anise’s name, but stopped herself at the last second. 

The Anise standing before her is not the same as the Anise she left behind. This Anise was younger, probably around fifteen or sixteen. She was also thinner, and her clothes were plain and simple. However, aside from those slight differences, Anise looked the exact same as her future self, with the same pale golden curls. Even her bright green eyes had the exact same inquisitive spark.

Renee swallowed as she pushed down the swell of emotions that emerged when she saw Anise. Instead, she pretended to be seeing Anise for the first time in her life and said, “I want to find the University of Elysia’s library. Do you know how I can get there?”

Anise looked up and down at Renee, as if scrutinizing her. Then, she must have decided that Renee was probably not someone native to Elysia because she then said, “I do, but the library isn’t open to the public. You’ll have to be a student at the university or a temple worker to be able to access the library.”

“What?” Renee was stunned. “Why is that?” The idea of the public being barred from a library was outrageous to her. Did Matthias know about this? Most likely not or he would have made a fuss a long time ago, given his desire for free education.

Anise shrugged.

“Can you take me there anyway? Maybe I can appeal to the head priests or something.”

Anise nodded. “Follow me.”

She beckoned to Renee as she led Renee to her destination.

“Are you a temple worker?” Renee asked.

“Yes,” Anise replied. “I’m an orphan that was raised within the temple, so I was made into a temple hand.”

Temple hands are the lowest rank of workers in the hierarchy, responsible for basic and menial tasks around the temple. Anise’s testimony aligns with what Renee remembered about how the temple works. The temple is known to take in orphans and unwanted children and raise them by the charity of others. Those children were commonly made into temple hands until they became old enough to leave, although some chose to stay and continue to work in the temple, advancing to higher ranks. 

“I see.” Renee replied. “Living in the temple… Is it nice?”

Anise smiled, but it seemed a little forced. “I do have a lot of friends there. Why do you ask? Are you interested in joining?”

“Maybe. Are you planning to work there forever?”

“No, I want to attend the University of Elysia to study medicine once I turn eighteen. I want to become a doctor.” This time, Anise’s excitement was genuine.

Renee couldn’t help but smile back. It’s cute to hear that Anise of the past had the same aspiration as Anise of the future. Little did this Anise know, she did end up studying medicine at the University of Elysia, even if it was one thousand years into the future.

“We’re here!” Anise announced as the two finally reached the large university-temple building.

“Thank you, Anise.” Renee let out a sigh of relief.

“When did I give you my name?”

Renee paused. “You introduced yourself earlier.”

“I did?”

“Oh, I forgot to tell you mine. I’m Renee.”

“Nice to meet you, Renee.” Anise beamed, then her expression became serious again. “Also, one more thing: if you do decide to become a temple worker, tell them you have no magic, even if you do.”

Before Renee could even ask her to elaborate, Anise quickly scurried out of sight, leaving Renee more confused than ever. Nothing makes sense. Why is the library not accessible to the general public? Why are only university students and temple workers allowed to access it? Why did Anise tell her to lie about not having magic?

Renee could easily reveal that she was the eleventh saint to gain access to the library, and that was originally the plan, but she was now curious about what kind of secrets the temple was hiding. So instead, she decided to change her aim a little. 

She entered the building and began looking for the historical counterpart of a modern-day receptionist. When she finally found one, she gave them the sweetest smile she could and said, “I’m a recent refugee from Lianru, and I need work and shelter. I heard that the temple is always hiring for more workers, so can I apply?”

An hour later, Renee officially became a temple worker.