Stretching a hand out in a light-hearted manner, the Saintess began to gather magic as she prepared to cast her spell. I couldn’t help but gasp in amazement at the overwhelmingly powerful and endlessly gentle light that poured out of the childish hand in front of me. It left such an impression that even my mother gulped nervously in anticipation.

“Here…… we…… GO!” The Saintess said in a happy-go-lucky manner as a shiny ball of white light flew through the air, eventually crashing into my mother’s chest.

The complete lack of tension in her voice was at complete odds with the way I was feeling, especially after my mother’s body began to emit white mist. She blinked rapidly and looked at her arms curiously as the magic went to work.

“What’s this? It feels so comfortable……”

The spell did its work incredibly quickly, with white billows of mist appearing and fading after a mere few seconds - a small hint of grey carried along with it. Mom patted her body in disbelief, unable to believe its changes. A healthy blush adorned her cheeks, her dry lips were now plump and healthy, and her previously unfocused gaze now sparkled brightly with intelligence. The change was so drastic and so sudden that I could hardly recognize my own mother.

“There you go! All better, Ms. Tyra. Vance, aren’t you going to give your mother a hug?”

Startled out of my stupor, I did just as the playfully grinning Saintess recommended and gave my mother a hug. It was packed with all the emotion I’ve bottled up for years. Tears poured from my eyes as I blubbered, “Thank the G-Goddess! M-Mom, I’m so happy for you! Y-You’re all better now.”

Though she was a bit surprised by the sudden hug, mom warmly held me in her embrace. It was the first firm hug I'd received from her in years.

“There, there…… You’re almost an adult now. My little Vance, we need to be thanking the Saintess, not crying.”

Sniffling, I did as mom said and pulled away, only to see her eyes were red and dripping with tears too. Look at that hypocrisy.... it made me happy to see her so energetic.

“Fufu, aren’t those two adorable, Fae, Shayna?” The Saintess said.

“Indeed they are, young miss.” A young looking girl in a maid outfit said.

“Now that they’re healed, Saintess, shouldn’t we bring up some plans for the future with Mr. Vance now?” Fae said, her smart appearance giving an air of competence.

“Awwww, I wanted to let them bask in the atmosphere awhile, Fae. This is why people call you insensitive…. Always wanting to get down to business.” The Saintess said with a cute little pout, acting far more expressive than the Goddess’s representative on Avalon had any right to.

“Ummmm…… was there something you wanted from me, Ms. Saintess?” I asked nervously, a bit concerned by the implications of what Fae said.

Face becoming thoughtful, the Saintess said, “You work over at the Dawn Guild, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do, Saintess.”

She smiled at this news, saying, “Excellent! I always wanted to make friends with someone who works at the Dawn Guild. They’re the biggest merchant association in the Holy Kingdom, handling pretty much everything under the sun.”

“But…… Pardon me for saying this, I’m just an unimportant nobody. A small-time clerk in a branch store over near the slums…… If you were looking to get favors from the Dawn Guild, you came to the wrong person.”

“Fufu, I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong idea…… I’m not trying to extort a favor or anything. I just like to make friends with people of all walks of life. Merchants, servants, mercenaries, alchemists, and mages - anyone who will talk to me, really. Anyone who needs my help. I like to hear about the lives of others, help them however I can. Then, as long as it won't cause any problems for you, I hope you'll assist me in reaching out to the citizens. Help me give them hope.”

The Saintess’ face looked awfully earnest as she said this, as if all she truly wanted to do was make friends and create a peaceful world. I did have some doubts though, otherwise she wouldn’t have brought my ties to the Dawn Guild up in the first place. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter to me.

She fixed my mom, even after the rest of the world gave up on her. Mom matters more to me than anything else ever could. As the girl who healed her, I was definitely willing to help out however I could. I have faith in the Saintess, that anything she did would be for the benefit of the world.

From the depths of my heart, I swore to her, “If you ever need help in the future, Saintess, please reach out to me. I promise to be there for you. You’ve definitely made a friend out me.”

The adorable little Saintess directed a shining, divine smile at me as she said, “Thank you, Vance. I look forward to it. For now, I'd love if you could just occasionally tell me about the Dawn Guild, what they're up to, and how they treat you. I want to make sure they're not mistreating you or anyone else. If there’s anything more I can ever do for you, please feel free to let me know through Fae.”

Her smile turned a bit impish as she continued, “Unfortunately, they don’t really let me wander around on my own. Though they treat me like the goddess’ representative, they sure don’t give me much freedom. So I have to rely on people like you to help me and the citizens most of the time.”

She had a point. High as her position might be, I felt a little sorry for the young girl who couldn’t experience the outside world. Determined to help this caged bird, I gave the Saintess my best reassuring smile as I said, “One day, I’m sure you’ll be free to wander around as you please.”