The door opened and Hera stepped in. The moment her eyes landed on me, a brief relief can be seen in those eyes. She must have been waiting outside for quite a long time, considering the unknown time I have been fainted.
"So, this is the witness?" The High Priest asked. I already explained to him about my plans to cut ties with my family.
"My name is Hera. I used to be a maid of the Romano Household as well as the person who tended the Lady's wound." She introduced herself.
"Right. We will need to confirm your legitimacy first before proceeding. After all, it's the Duke Household that you're up against."
"Now we have justification, witness, and money to cover overall cost and procedures, it should proceed smoothly, right?"
At my question, he shook his head and show a look of regret.
"If it has been a few years ago, it would have been fine. However, a new law has been added that whoever under the age of eighteen must also present a letter of adoption that was approved by the government officials."
I know why the law was added. This is all because the legal age has been pushed to eighteen. Things such as marriage documentation, government officials exam, soldier recruitment and many more need to be above the age of eighteen. But it wasn't properly implement yet since it was just recently changed.
There are still many of those under the age of eighteen doing hard labor. Not to mention, this empire was among the few nations that was late in changing it's legal age as well as abolished slavery. I kid you not that the previous legal age was twelve years old.
"As for that, can you wait a little bit? There's someone that will poach for my adoption. They should be arriving right now," I told him.
Thank goodness the novel has mentioned where they are staying during the Empire's Founding Festival. Because of that, I managed to send a letter and it didn't take long to get a reply since they are within the capital. They should be arrived by now if I'm not mistaken.
The door suddenly being knocked and someone came in. He looks a bit rushed.
"High Priest, a Duke from the Aphelia Kingdom has come to pay a visit," he said. The High Priest quickly get up the moment he heard that.
"What? So suddenly?" Even he was surprised. Of course, since nobles usually sent a letter first before visiting a big church like this.
"Looks like the person has arrived." I get up from the bed and tidying up my dress. It got wrinkles but it couldn't be helped. "Let's go, shall we?"
The High Priest led the way, followed by me and Hera. We arrived in front of a door and he knocked on it once. Without any response yet, he turned the door knob and enter. A man with silver hair like mine can be seen in the room that was specifically for important guests in the church.
"Greetings, Your Grace. I'm the High Priest, Paul." He bowed a little as a courtesy. We followed suit.
"Greetings, Your Grace."
He stood up and stop in front of me. His emerald eyes turned sharp as he looked at me as if scrutinizing my reaction. I feel a little uncomfortable by his stares. He has an aura of authority just like my father, who is a famous mafia boss.
"You look just like your mother." His hands touched my head or specifically, my hair, while his eyes contain a hint of sadness.
"Thank you for your kind words, Your Grace." I chose to call him by honorifics even after he mentioned my 'mother'. His hand paused before he swiftly retract it back.
"Right. I brought what you asked for." He showed me a fancy envelope with a seal of the dukedom on it. "This is the letter of your adoption."
"You're going to adopt her yourself, Your Grace?" The High Priest seemed surprised. After all, it's not a small matter for a Duke Household to adopt someone, especially that Duke is from Aphelia Kingdom, the country that priorities magic above all else.
Naturally, someone must have a high aptitude in magic first before it even worth considering. However, Valentina's aptitude in magic is currently unknown. Unlike the Aphelia Kingdom, appraising one's magic is not mandatory in this country. It's only required for the heir of the household to report if they can use any magic.
You could say Valentina is a natural talent for being able to use magic despite never learning it properly. She also used magic many times in order to humiliates the heroine. Because of this, many people assumed that she is adored by the Duke and he spent a lot on her magic education, that's why it was unnecessary for her to take any magic related classes.
It couldn't be farther from the truth.
"She's from my own blood. There shouldn't be any need for this in the first place. If not for that rascal..." His voice turned darker as he said that. By rascal, I'm sure he meant Valentina's father. I hope she can hear this herself.
"Ah, if that's the case, do you want her magic to be appraise?" He got scared by the darker tone and quickly spoke.
"Ahem! Since she is her mother's daughter, I'm sure her magic aptitude will be amazing as well. But it should be up to her to decide. What do you think?" He turned to me.
There's no reason for me to refuse. Instead, it might be better to get to know the extent of my ability, so I smiled and said, "I would like my magic to be appraised."
"Then please follow me. We will confirm your magic first before we can proceed your adoption process." The High Priest led the way to another room. By the way, I know his name is Paul. But it felt rude to address him by his name when he has such a noble title so I will stick to High Priest.
We were led to a room that seems like a bathhouse with a big pool in the center. There are two statues that looks like an angel in prayer. On the palm of their hand, water is flowing out and enter the pool.
"Please enter the pool, my Lady."