In a vast room of pure white that extended to the infinity of the clouds. It was a sacred temple with a representation of a beautiful woman on one knee, extending her right hand towards the world.

The image of this woman was the goddess, Miriat.

A similarly beautiful young girl, with silver hair and golden eyes that seemed to have been ripped from the sun itself, was about to grasp that hand.

The equally beautiful young girl was extending her hand with her eyes closed, appearing tranquil and immaculate. She had a youthful figure still far from fully developing; in fact, calling her young was not even accurate. She was only 14, yes, she was still a child.

The child wore modest clothing, an old peasant dress. She was, of course, of humble origin, with humble parents and a humble attitude. She was a common child, but very beautiful.

Oh, what disasters would come when she grew up, thought the peasants watching her, understanding the hardships of their own class.

There were also nobles and kings. The nobles were already starting to have sinister thoughts about her.

"How sinful!" The sacred place reacted to their thoughts and expelled them miserably.

The foolish mortals who had never set foot in the temple had no idea about the peculiarities of the place. After all, these mortals would never have had the chance to step into the temple in their lifetime if it weren't for today's event.

Any nefarious thought would result in expulsion.

To be fair, the nobles were not the only ones who were expelled. There were also peasants of different professions. In fact, throughout the ceremony, someone was always being expelled. The blessed door of the goddess's sanctuary could not close because of all the sinful people!

Constantly, beams of light would envelop a foolish mortal and expel them through the door.

The pope was frustrated, as he had to close the door and couldn't move from the entrance!

The pope was indignant, his face flushed.

"I'll make sure to put portraits of these humble people in every church so they'll never be able to enter again!" the pope swore.

The temple was a sacred site that only a few members of the church could enter in their lifetime. Otherwise, only the chosen ones or those selected by the sanctuary could enter.

But today was different.

Today, everyone could enter.

Anyone accompanying a girl no younger than 5 and no older than 16 could enter.

Today was a special day of joy and nervousness.

For 700 years, no day like this had ever occurred.

The saint, an elf who represented the goddess and maintained peace in the world by keeping the seal of the demon king, was retiring.

Her life was ending.

A new saint would be chosen by the goddess.

A new representative of the goddess, pure and dedicated to safeguarding the world, would give her life to fulfill her duty. A woman who would take on the role of the mother of the world.

A role every girl dreams of.

A story every girl knows and wishes to be part of.

A destiny… already written in stone. The saint could not live any other way.

In the huge temple, there were hundreds of thousands of people. Peasants and nobles. Humans, elves, dwarfs, beastmen, etc. All the non-demon races were present so that their girls could be candidates for the saint.

None should be stopped from taking the test. And none could refuse.

There was no excuse not to participate.

During the ceremony, the strange place seemed to distort time.

Only a few tens of thousands of girls had been inspected, yet no one felt tired. It was as if the place enveloped them with a protective cloak that deprived them of any human need.

In any case, the mortals in the sanctuary were expectant.

Today, the world was waiting for a new mother.

The hand of the girl, moving slowly and imperceptibly trembling, got closer and closer to the goddess's hand.

The girl's heart was beating furiously.

Unlike any other mortal in the temple, the girl was not thinking about whether she would be chosen as the saint or not.

No, she knew it was impossible!

Instead, she feared what would happen once she touched the goddess's hand.

Her back was soaked with sweat.

What if she was punished? What if they accuse her of blaspheming the goddess's ritual? How would she get out of this? Forgive me, goddess, I did it out of desperation! she nervously apologized.

But the events were inevitable. She was already there. She had to take the goddess's hand and hope for the best. Hope that her life wouldn't be ruined in that moment.

She had hope for a future. To explore the world. To make a name for herself.

Perhaps, she would end up apologizing to the goddess every morning, afternoon, and night for the rest of her life.

The girl's father, lost in the crowd with erratic thoughts, nervously bit his nails. It was clear to anyone who looked closely that his thoughts were also not directed at whether his daughter would be chosen as the saint or not.

It was lucky that no one had the time to notice his pitiful and insignificant self… nor the pool of sweat beneath his feet. Everyone was distracted, watching the ceremony.

"Oh goddess, we didn't want to sin. We did it to protect her!" the man swore.

Things that must happen end up happening; it's the law of life. It's common sense.

The girl's hand brushed against the goddess's hand... and it happened.

In a brief moment, a halo surrounded her.

The statue of the goddess turned golden, and the power contained within the statue entered the girl's body.

Two golden halos sprouted from the girl's back.

Her entire being shone with purity. The girl's silver hair turned golden, just like her eyes.

A new saint had emerged.

Everyone stood up in awe and reverence.

Nobles? Kneel.

Heroes? Kneel.

Kings? Kneel.

Paladins? Serve me.

In the temple, where the goddess's will was fully exercised, the saint was like a lesser deity.

Everyone kneeled and, in unison, said:

"We salute the saint, the protector of the world. The daughter of the goddess. The immaculate. The pure. The mother of all races."

But despite this, a few people found it absurd what they had just witnessed.

They were kneeling, but at the same time, they choked on their saliva. These few people looked at each other to confirm they weren't hallucinating or dreaming.

"Am I crazy? Why? How?! This has never happened before!"

"It's a dream… It must be. This is impossible! Did the goddess make a mistake? Does this make sense?"

"The saint... I... I don't want to think about it!"

A lost girl in the crowd, head bowed, murmured incredulously.

"The mother of the world... is a man?"

And in the saint's mind.

"No, I'm a man! How can I be the saint? I don't want to be the saint! Goddess, don't punish me! I don't want this! I'm just here as a substitute! Goddess, don't make this mistake!"