Lisea had to admit that the education he received from Xidis since childhood was completely different from most of the young people in the town, while others still held dreams of adventure and the unknown world, Lisea had already been dragged by Xidis to attend various magic-related classes and learn all kinds of social skills.

So, upon learning that Filin was a Grand Duke from the Central Continent and was willing to help connect him with the Church, Lisea immediately chose to seize the opportunity, after finishing dinner he not only rushed back to the church but also thoughtfully prepared drinks and desserts for Grand Duke Filin.

Thus, when Filin returned after finishing his bowl of slime jelly, he saw Lisea with sparkling eyes and a pile of snacks placed on the church bench.

Seeing this, Filin couldn’t help but twitch his lips, thinking that this boy didn’t resemble a simple southern Empire resident at all, he was exactly like a noble from the Central Continent.

‘Lady Xidis! What on earth did you teach Lisea!’

Of course, he only dared to complain internally, in reality he immediately sat beside Lisea, grabbed a cookie and started munching on it while speaking.

“Hey, this cookie is delicious, even better than the pastry shops in the capital, thanks!”

“It’s nothing, just a small gesture, I’m glad you like it, Commander Filin, by the way, do you really have a way for me to gain the favor of the Nine Holy Spirits?”

“Of course, of course, that won’t be a problem.”

After all, judging from the miracles in the church this morning, this boy could probably receive the blessing of the Nine Holy Spirits just by touching a holy artifact without even taking the divine test.

But Filin wanted the Hero’s son to gain even more benefits on the day of blessing, so he didn’t plan to let him obtain it so easily, instead he patted his shoulder and reassured him.

“The Nine Holy Spirits will bestow their grace at the most appropriate time, young man. Your efforts and devotion in serving the Church these days have been impressive, so I’ve decided to give you an opportunity... Do you know that on Holy Spirit Day, Migendorf will host a divine blessing ceremony?”

Lisea nodded repeatedly, of course he knew, the town’s priest had received a message from the Holy Spirits and specifically invited him to Migendorf to participate in the ceremony.

“Hehe~ this is no ordinary ceremony, Saint Liyat and the Left Cardinal will both attend, this is specially arranged by His Majesty the Emperor, an important ceremony to reconcile the two, and also a political event to announce Liyat’s son as a Hero candidate. To please the saint and the emperor, priests across the southern region are recruiting unfortunate people, specifically choosing those not favored by the Holy Spirits to participate in the divine test, all to serve as stepping stones for the saint’s son.”

This was a common tactic within the Empire, but unfortunately, Saint Liyat’s son was an incompetent and unworthy dandy who didn’t deserve the title of Hero candidate at all.

This was undoubtedly an insult to the Church and a desecration of the sanctity of the Nine Holy Spirits, every time Filin reported to the Left Cardinal, she would complain about it endlessly.

In that case, bringing the true Hero’s son to the ceremony would surely please the Left Cardinal and also humiliate the saint.

The more he thought about it, the more promising it seemed, so the red-haired young man clenched his fists and looked at Lisea with anticipation, but at that moment he noticed that the smile on Lisea’s face had disappeared.

“What’s wrong bro, why aren’t you smiling?”

“I can’t smile...”

‘That damn priest tricked me! So it wasn’t a decree from the Nine Holy Spirits at all, you just wanted me to embarrass myself in Migendorf because I’ve been ignored by them since childhood, I’ll pour out your wine tomorrow…’

“Hehe, come on, cheer up, I’ll write you a recommendation letter so you can participate in the divine test under the name of the Central Church, you’ll likely receive the blessing of the Nine Holy Spirits!”

Filin was certain that as long as Lisea went, he would definitely receive the blessing, and then he could be declared the true Hero candidate, benefiting both his future and the Church politically.

“But... I’m not sure if the Nine Holy Spirits will bless me, after all they’ve ignored me all these years.”

Having long been treated as a joke in the Church and endured ridicule, Lisea had already lost confidence, fearing that he would embarrass Filin if he went.

Filin almost couldn’t hold it in upon hearing that, after all this guy had just triggered divine manifestations this morning, the statement sounded absurd, so he put an arm around Lisea’s shoulder and exaggeratedly encouraged him.

“Hey kid! With your talent, you’ll definitely be recognized by the Nine Holy Spirits, they just haven’t blessed you yet because they want you to shine on a better stage. If you go to Migendorf and receive the blessing, you might even be transferred directly to the Church headquarters in the Central Continent. Think about it, a boy from a remote town who’s been looked down upon rises through divine grace and goes to the Central Continent, that’s a perfect Hero storyline!”

‘A Hero storyline?’

Hearing this, Lisea’s previously lifeless eyes gradually lit up, because everything Filin described had been his dream for years, to be recognized by others, to be recognized by the Nine Holy Spirits and ultimately become a Hero...

“Hehe, you might even find your soulmate in the Central Continent, let me tell you, there are many beauties in the Church, our Left Cardinal is about your age and also a kind and beautiful woman, you two might get along well.”

“Mm... I’ll pass on that.”

When Filin mentioned this, Lisea shook his head. The first image that appeared in his mind was strangely his tea-loving teacher.

He quickly blushed and shook his head, not daring to show such improper feelings, then looked up to see Filin staring at him curiously.

“Oh? Do you already have someone you like? Come on, tell me, could it be Miss Rong’an?”

“Definitely not...”

The commander was about to pry further when the church doors were suddenly pounded loudly, a rough male voice came from outside.

“Are the knights here? I’m Faro, I was delayed by business at noon, is it still possible to undergo inspection now?”

“Damn it, can’t you see we’re done? Lisea, prepare the records, I’ll personally interrogate this bastard.”

Filin cursed inwardly and hurried to open the door, but the moment it opened, what appeared was not the bearded merchant, but a humanoid monster.

Its body was split open from head to chest, the gaping wound filled with sharp teeth and constantly oozing rotten pus.

The moment the monster saw Filin, its chest convulsed and it spewed a large amount of decaying pus at him, countless tentacles surged out from the split and lunged toward him.

Lisea was stunned by the scene, but before fear could set in, his hand instinctively reached for the sword at his waist.

“Commander Filin! Be care—”

Before he could finish, a blazing flash pierced his eyes, when he regained his vision, the entire church entrance had been burned by raging flames, and the monster’s upper body had completely disappeared, leaving only glowing embers at the severed section.

‘Filin had done this with just a flying kick! Instant... it was killed instantly? With just one kick?! A Legend-rank powerhouse, terrifying indeed!’

Filin had already returned to Lisea’s side, taking off his robe and holy artifact and handing them over, shaking off rotten flesh from his boots as he smiled.

“Hold these for me, it seems our target... has come to us, and this one... won’t be easy to deal with.”

Following Filin’s gaze, Lisea was horrified to see that the monster, which should have been reduced to ashes, was rapidly regenerating, its aura growing increasingly terrifying, its teeth grinding loudly as a sharp human voice emerged.

“Church dogs... all must die... such power... none of you will leave alive! Praise the Abyss, praise the First Prince!”

Feeling the rapidly rising pressure, Filin’s scalp tingled, in just a few seconds, the monster had reached Legend-level presence.

“Looks like... this will be a tough battle.”

Filin dropped his smile and reached for his sword, but suddenly sensed something wrong... not from the monster, but from Lisea behind him.

Turning around, he saw the holy artifact in Lisea’s hands emitting a sacred light, the light poured onto the monster, which immediately screamed as its flesh began to smoke and melt.

The monster roared in pain and charged at them, but upon entering the church, the statues of the Nine Holy Spirits emitted an even more brilliant light, instantly shattering it into pieces.

“What... an absurd blessing...”

And all of this happened simply because Lisea had touched the holy artifact once...

Thinking that the Nine Holy Spirits’ first gift to Lisea was the destruction of a Legend-rank Abyss monster, Filin almost wanted to hum with excitement, after all he had discovered a Hero himself!

Lisea was also thrilled by the change, he was about to say something to celebrate when he saw a familiar figure approaching the church, only to stop at the entrance.

“Lady Xidis!”

Holding the miracle of the Nine Holy Spirits, Lisea excitedly walked toward Xidis, but instead of encouragement, he was met with her terrified expression, she stepped back and said.

“Don’t come closer!”

The boy was stunned for a moment, then immediately remembered that Xidis disliked, even hated the Nine Holy Spirits.

Perhaps in half-elf culture, the Nine Holy Spirits were not considered sacred, he had learned in history that ancient wars between elves and humans were caused by belief in the Nine Holy Spirits.

‘In that case…’

Lisea gently clenched his hand, and the sacred light disappeared instantly, he rejected the blessing of the Nine Holy Spirits and returned the holy artifact to Filin, saying seriously.

“Sir Filin! Your holy artifact really helped a lot, it must be because of your artifact that the Nine Holy Spirits bestowed their blessing upon me, but Lady Xidis taught me that only what you earn yourself truly belongs to you! So... I will attend the Holy Spirit Festival! But I’ll return the artifact to you for now!”

‘What the hell! I bought that thing from a street stall for three silver coins, what’s holy about it!’

Before Filin could react, Lisea threw down the artifact and robe and ran after Xidis...