"You want to change your Class to Priest now?" the kind-looking man asked.
"No, I asked: 'Let's say I want to change Class now, what do I have to do?'"
"If you want to change Class now, you simply just have to present your Class Crystal and pay 10 gold coins for your previous Temple."
"Class Crystal?"
"Yes, your Class Crystal. Do you have it, sister?"
Vivian didn't say anything.
"It's very common that people lose their Class Crystal. If you've lost yours, you have to go visit the Temple of your current Class and pay 10 gold coins to get a new one."
"Can you show me what a Class Crystal looks like? I think I may have forgotten it. I got into an accident not long ago so my memory is still a bit hazy."
The kind-looking man didn't say anything. Although he still maintained a friendly demeanor, Vivian could feel him sizing her up.
Fuck…!
Did I say something wrong...?!
Should I start calling him brother…?!
And just when Vivian was about to bolt away, that ominous feeling she felt from the kind-looking man vanished.
"Is that so, sister? If you can learn [Greater Heal], I'm sure you can heal that injury of yours."
Isn't there a faster way, like paying someone to cast [Greater Heal] on me…?
"Oh really? That sounds very interesting!" Vivian said and smiled.
"But in case you forgot what a Class Crystal is, sister, I can describe it to you because not all Classes have the same Class Crystal. Your Class is Thief, right? Then a Thief's Class Crystal is a small and shiny rectangular piece of crystal that looks like metal and is about this size," he said and made a gesture with his fingers.
Hearing what the kind-looking man said, her brows knitted together.
About that size…?
A small and shiny rectangular piece of crystal that looks like metal…?
And then it finally dawned on her.
"Oh!"
She quickly reached out inside her satchel and took out something.
"This one? This a Class Crystal?"
The item on her hand was also a small and shiny rectangular piece of metal.
If Vivian were to be honest, when she first saw it inside her satchel, she thought it was something like the one used for sharpening knives or to light fire.
She never thought it was a Class Crystal.
"Yes, sister," the kind-looking man said with a smile and stretched out his hand.
"Huh? What are you doing?" Vivian said and took a step backward.
"Aren't you going to change Class now?"
"Huh? No, I can't --" Vivian said and took another step backward.
"Don't worry, sister. Even if you don't have the money to pay for the 10 gold coins, the Temple of Priests will help you pay it for you. After all, you've been blessed by the God of Light just like us.
"Moreover, you don't have to go to your previous Temple to complete the process, we will do it for you.
"Furthermore, as a member of OUR Temple, we offer free lodging -- men and women are separated -- and 2 meals a day.
"And lastly, just like the Adventurer's Guild, we also offer Holy Quests that you can partake in and earn gold -- Oh, did I forget to mention that all of the rewards of our Holy Quests have a minimum of 1 gold coin? My, my, sorry about that, sister. I hope you will find it in your heart to forgive me."
"H-Hold on, I have a question…"
"What is it, dear sister?"
"Are all of the Temples like this? Like, do they also offer perks like this?"
"Not all, dear sister. But we have the best perks."
Vivian's eyes turned to slits.
No…
That can't be true…
They say that whenever something sounds too good to be true, it usually is…
"Tell me, what's the catch? Please be honest with me."
"The catch? There's no catch, dear sister, other than the things I've mentioned."
Vivian cast her gaze down and thought about everything that the kind-looking man said.
"Dear sister, let me ask you this."
She raised her head and looked at him.
"Have you ever heard the saying, there are no poor priests?"
Vivian knitted her brows.
"Also, you're an Adventurer so you must have noticed this already. Has anyone asked you if you were a Priest or have healing magic?"
Vivian recalled the female Adventurer who asked her on her first day checking out Quests if she had a Class healing spell or the Light Affinity.
"How many people have you noticed walking around inside the Adventurer's Guild wearing our cloak?"
Vivian thought about it and could not recall any.
"Do you see now, dear sister?"
Vivian hung her head and her eyes were locked on the floor.
"Come, dear sister, give me that Class Crystal. You belong with us."
Step.
Vivian felt her feet move forward.
When she raised her head to look at the kind-looking man, there seemed to be a golden ring or halo behind him. On top of that, for some reason, she felt this calming sensation within her as if she was caught in a trance and had this feeling that she could trust him.
She blinked a few times, wondering if it was just a hallucination.
"Come, dear sister, we're waiting for you, your brothers and sisters…"
Step.
The kind-looking man stretched out his hand.
"Hand it over to me, dear sister."
Vivian slowly raised her hand and placed her Class Crystal on top of his palm.
"A wise decision, dearest sister," he said as he softly clasped Vivian's hand with his hands.
***
Vivian was standing in the middle of a large dimly lit room with no windows.
There were what looked like 4 bulbs on each corner that were emitting a faint golden-yellow light. There were 2 doors; one behind her where she came in and another one on the top left.
The door located on the top left opened.
Six people came out and immediately surrounded Vivian.
All of them were dressed in a white cloak and had a golden necklace with a pendant that looked like a vertically stretched-out sun symbol around their neck.
One of the people, a woman standing in front of Vivian, activated a spell and a golden ring or halo appeared on her back.
For some reason, once Vivian saw the golden ring, she felt the same calming sensation within her from the kind-looking man as if she was caught in a trance and had this feeling that she could trust the woman.
"Let the blessing of the Awakening Ceremony begin," the woman said and she approached Vivian.
The rest then followed suit. A golden ring appeared on their back and they approached Vivian.
[Heal].
[Cleanse].
Vivian was like a light bulb -- a faint color of yellow and the color green enveloped her body.
[Heal].
[Cleanse].
The 6 people continued bombarding Vivian with magic spells until they ran out of mana.
A few minutes later…
When they all finally ran out of mana, the female who had spoken earlier and seemed to be the leader, asked a question.
"Sister Vivian, did you receive the God of Light's blessing?"
Vivian placed a hand on her chest and activated a skill.
[Heal].
A faint yellow light enveloped her whole body.
When they saw the light, a few of them let out a gasp.
The golden ring or halo behind the woman's back vanished.
"Congratulations, Sister Vivian. To think that you managed to learn [Light Mastery] right away on the first wave of your first ceremony. It seems your Affinity with Light Magic is quite high. May the God of Light continue to watch over you."
Clap.
The golden ring on the back of the rest of the members vanished as well and they gave a round of applause.
"Welcome, Sister Vivian!" a male voice said.
"Welcome, Sister Vivian!" a female voice said.
"Another talented member has joined us!" another male voice said.
"Welcome to the Temple of Priests, Sister Vivian!" another female voice said.
Vivian looked at the woman who seemed to be the leader.
"So what's next?"
"Next is we send you to one of the bases of the Temple of Priests for your new home. Don't worry, it's located here within Luxen City and you're free to come and leave anytime you want."
"I see."