When I woke up today, I felt refreshed and ready to take on the world. My swordsmanship training was finally yielding some small progress as Captain Lloyd began to take an interest in my trainings with the dummies. I was mostly just improving my footwork while trying to accurately hit certain parts of the dummy. I knew my stamina and strength were lacking, so I wanted to refine my style of fighting to conserve energy and only use it when I can secure a solid strike on the target.

"Young Master Ray, it seems like you have been paying attention to the knights and their training. I can see you have improved on your imitation of our footwork while also modifying certain parts to better suit you. I hope you continue to train earnestly so that the goddess Iram may take notice."

With those words he left to attend to the other knights and knights in training. I refocused on my training as I deepened my concentration and got rid of any distractions. Sunday was meant to be used for training and studying up on the different gods of this world, but while finishing up my swordsmanship training Ana came running up to me with a serious expression.

"Master Ray, guests have arrived and are currently meeting with the Duke and Duchess. They have also requested your presence when you finished your routine."

I was puzzled by this, I wasn't expecting anyone to really want to meet me until the day of the ball. Since Ray had been bedridden for the majority of his life, he had no friends or connections. A guest making a request for my presence was just odd given everything. I packed up my things as I began walking towards my room to get washed up and dressed.

"Ana, who are the guests visiting us today? I hadn't heard anything from the Duke about any meetings I needed to attend."

"Well..." She quickly checked our surroundings before continuing. "It was an impromptu visit, the Duke had not known about them until they showed up. It is the Saint in training along with her guards and an archbishop of the goddess of light."

I stared at her blankly after she had finished speaking, it felt as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped on my head. Why would someone as important as the future saint be here right now before the main storyline even began? There could only be one saint during a generation, and the goddess of light, Alexa, was the head of the pantheon of gods in this world. The game had not mentioned much about the Saint's past before the Academia Lux arc, and had emphasized the Saint as being a diligent student who was devoted to the goddess. Had Ray's survival impacted this world's events in some way to cause a change in the timeline?

Worries began sprouting in my heart as I began to ponder about other things that may have changed now that Ray survived his illness. In the end, I bottled them up since I didn't have time to be distraught about things outside my control. I left Ana outside my room as I washed and prepared myself for meeting the future Saint's entourage. I chose an elegant yet sleek outfit so it didn't seem like I was trying to impress them. I just needed something respectful and non-offensive for our first meeting. I quickly finished up and met up with Ana who was waiting for me outside my door.

We walked in silence, the tension as tight as a stretched rubber band. I needed to mind my manners and words here since I would be representing myself as an heir to the Glouse duchy, something I had not done yet in this world in an official capacity. I ran through the motions for addressing the Saint in training as we approached the doors to the reception area. There were Glouse knights guarding the entrance, but when they noticed our arrival they quickly saluted and opened them for Ana and me.

Everyone was currently seated around a rectangular table with my father and mother at one end, and the Saint and her entourage on the other end. The paladins were standing at attention behind the Archbishop and Saint. Upon seeing my entrance with Ana, everyone stood up to address me.

"Ah here he is! This is my son, the stubborn fellow who loves to train even though he just recovered from an illness."

My father looked at me while saying this, a warm smile on his face. I immediately got down on one knee as I saw the Saint and followed the proper etiquette when meeting someone of such high stature in the empire.

"Glory be unto the light that shines through the darkness and brings the empire a bright future! Your humble servant Ray Glouse greets you."

I kept my eyes down until I was called upon as per customs. I could feel my heart beat rushing through my body as I waited for a response.

Stolen story; please report.

A soft voice pervaded the room in response to my greeting,

"What a perfect introduction, you may rise Ray Glouse. It is a pleasure to finally meet you after hearing from your parents. I am Lillia, a humble servant of the goddess Alexa."

I did as I was told feeling my heart continue to race against my will. In front of me was Lillia, the future saint. During the game, she was a beauty that would stop anyone in their tracks, her silky blonde hair was a unique color in this world. The one defining characteristic, however, of the Saint were her golden eyes. Her eyes had many powers behind them, but the game did not go into much depth with them other than their primary one: Hidden Truth. It allowed the Saint to distinguish lies from truths when talking with people, but was a power that needed much training to properly decipher complex lies.

Her eyes stared straight into me as if they were trying to analyze my soul, but luckily I knew that her powers were still in development right now and thus she would be unable to fully utilize them on me. With those thoughts, I stood up slowly as I greeted the Archbishop and took a seat at the table near my parents.

Lillia continued to stare at me, causing me to feel a bit self-conscious about my posture and clothing choice. I took a couple of silent breaths to calm myself, as I surveyed the others at the table trying to get a better understanding of the room's dynamics.

While doing so, the Archbishop spoke up while facing me.

"Ray, we were delighted to hear about your recovery when the news reached us. It seems like the heavens have blessed the Glouse duchy with a miracle through your healing."

He smiled while saying this, but I felt an odd discrepancy between his words and his expression. I decided to ignore this feeling for now and respond cordially.

"Yes, I am deeply grateful to the heavens for their miracle, but also to my parents for not giving up on me. Without their constant support and care, I would not have been able to survive for as long as I did..."

From the corner of my eye I could see my mother getting emotional as my father consoled her, both of them warmed by my kind words.

"Why has the Saint and the Archbishop blessed us with their visit? I had not heard that we would be expecting any guests today, if not I would have been properly prepared for this momentous occasion."

Before the Archbishop could respond, Lillia spoke up in a timid tone.

"I personally wanted to visit the famous Rainbow Fields! I had heard that they are one of the natural beauties of the continent..."

She blushed while saying this, reminding me that she was still just a young girl with plenty of worries on her shoulders. I smiled at her response since I had also wanted to visit the fields and had fallen in love with them during my visit.

"That is such a coincidence, I personally visited them recently on my first outing! I can personally attest to their beauty, and right now they are a feast for the eyes. You will not be disappointed when you visit."

The conversation naturally shifted towards the different attractions of the Glouse Duchy, and it lasted for a good amount of time. Lillia would occasionally direct a question towards me given my illness and odd activities right now. She was especially interested in my outings in Granbell and my swordsmanship training. The servants brought out some food for us while we talked to accommodate our guests. After a couple of hours, a paladin came up to the Archbishop and whispered something into his ear before returning back to his previous position.

"Ah, it seems that time has slipped us by due to the wonderful conversation and company we had. We must get going now to stay on schedule. Thank you for the hospitality that you have shown us, and I hope to see you all again in good health."

The Archbishop looked at me specifically while finishing his thoughts, sending shivers down my spine for no apparent reason. Throughout the conversation he had been throwing glances my way, but Lillia seemed to be trying to cover for him.

Lillia and the Archbishop both stood up, and per etiquette my parents and I bowed down to the future Saint. Before leaving the room, Lillia stared straight into my eyes and gave me a small smile. I responded with a smile of my own and a slight wave before she disappeared with her entourage.

My parents looked at each other with a slight smile on their faces as they watched that tiny interaction.

"The Saint in training is only a couple of months older than you, Ray. You'll probably meet each other again in the Academia Lux if all goes well."

My mother gave me a knowing smile as I felt my face heat up. Other than Ana, Lillia was the only other person my age that I had interacted with. My parents knew of this and would allow the two of us to converse over the topics we brought up. Instead, they would talk with the Archbishop about the church and the empire, topics I was oblivious about.

In the end, my parents and I bid each other farewell as I wanted to get some last minute studying in before going to bed. There wasn't much about the goddesses in our study, but there was enough that I had general understanding of each goddess.

Alexa: Goddess of Light, and the head of the pantheon of gods.

Vulma: Goddess of Life and Nature.

Iram: Goddess of War and Battle.

Ollia: Goddess of Wisdom.

Morea: Goddess of the Dead and of the Moon.

There were other minor gods, but these were the big five. I let out a yawn as I closed the book, and stretched my arms. Today's unexpected visit was quite delightful, but it had me on edge due to the potential changes in the storyline. In EOR the main character never met any of the potential party members until they reached the Academia Lux, but I had just met one of the major characters in the game. I shook my head as I walked back towards my bedroom to get some rest. The coming weeks would be full of training and grinding as I prepared myself for the ball and completed the missions.

I let out a sigh in my heart, I just wish the grinding process could be a bit easier...