Lumiera vis Animato

Sanctuary—the deepest part of the country. It is the very edge of the world, where the sea and the sky have merged, and it is filled with a high concentration of ether. 

She was born and raised in a family of traditional sanctuary guardians. She has exceptional talent and is renowned as the next saint.

Although she is still young, she performs all the religious rituals without any trouble.

However, once she is away from her duties, she shows a tomboyish and competitive nature of someone much younger than her age.

"Oh, this technique gives off a bit too much energy, so be careful." 

Lumiera could create a special ether shield, which would likely be able to prevent Seele tact and the Machine God from going berserk.

She volunteered to accompany the Brigade, not out of obligation as a saint, but simply out of curiosity about the world.

What’s a saint, you ask? That’s what I wanna know! I wonder what everyone thinks of me!

Apparently I'm the least saintly of all the saints, but what does that mean, Alma?

Um… Let's start with the traditional story of our country’s saint for now.

The saint is the leader of the shrine maidens at the Phono Temple in Sanctuary.

While shrine maidens sometimes go on missionary trips or pilgrimages to various parts of the continent, saints generally do not leave Sanctuary and pray there all year round.

It's kind of like the relationship between the queen bee and the worker bees, hehehe.

The saint has authority second only to the papal family in the political affairs of the church. After all, in this country, it is important to gather people's feelings.

Not only the "Wall of the Heart" for defense, but also the ancient mechanisms operated by people's thoughts and ether are the driving force behind the economy and industry. Our doctrine is important.

There are several families who protect Sanctuary, and the role of the next saint is determined by rotation. This time it's my family.

Talent in ether manipulation from birth is essential, but you'll have to learn about rituals and etiquette after you become a candidate for sainthood anyway. Ugh. So annoying.

What do I usually do in Sanctuary? It's not particularly interesting, so you should ask Alma.

...I'd like to say that, but, well…

During morning prayers, shrine maidens and the saint pray for the stability of the ether while thinking of each and every citizen.

Everyone in order, right? If you don't forget or skip someone, disaster will befall you. Being a shrine maiden is a great responsibility... but I sometimes forget the name of that mean prime minister. Hehe.

Unlike the shrine maidens, the saint meditates during the day, and one of their jobs is to divine fate from the ether in the atmosphere.

I must show the people waiting for the prophecy the way.

But... I’m sorry for sometimes giving incomprehensible oracles.

Sometimes I don't even know what to say or how to say it.

Dinner was pretty good. Even though life in Sanctuary values ​​frugality, they take their time and put effort into preparing the evening meal.

The shrine maidens also enjoy a little luxury, even though Alma keeps telling them to save on the temple budget.

I hear all kinds of stories from all over from the shrine maidens that have returned from their pilgrimages. I gather up all kinds of knowledge from books of the past and present.

This is necessary education for a saint who can divine fate from the veins of the ether. But…

No matter what kind of traveler in search of an oracle I meet! No matter how interesting the stories I hear about foreign countries are!

I myself can hardly take even one step outside Sanctuary!

This is torture! Hey, Alma!!

I know you're the leader of the White Knights, but please! When they're not looking, could you sneak me to the abandoned mines again!?

I need a breather! A B-R-E-A-K. A refresher!

Take me somewhere with thin ether once in a while.

I want to run around to my heart's content without feeling the crushing weight of responsibility!

…Huh? Why not? I said I would go.

My duties for the day are already over, so there's no reason for the saint to be holed up in Sanctuary. Anyway, if I say I'm going, I'm going!

Should I just go on my own, then?

Let me tell you an old story. Well… According to the speculation of the historians in Blue Country, it was about 20,000 years ago. It's hard to imagine.

At that time, there were machines called "Machine Gods”... False gods who borrowed only the form of the divine and walked the earth.

Those false gods were created by ancient people. The ancient people who settled on this continent when ether was scarce had a culture and technology completely different from that of the people of Emerg today.

They derived the ether from somewhere and established it on the continent.

The clue to this "somewhere" seems to be in the dimensional gate. The Empire is frantically researching both this gate and the false gods.

In response to the ether anomaly swallowing the continent, the Imperial Army is trying to counter it with machines that imitate ancient mechanisms.

Well, I don't know anything about the capabilities of mechanisms or machines. What's the point of creating even more imitations of a false god?

I wonder why they don't realize why there are now no surviving members of those settlers from 20,000 years ago on this continent?

They were all killed by the false gods of their own making.

According to legend, the false gods eventually went to sleep underground... But now, I can't help but feel that the same mistake will be repeated.

The false gods underground in Blue Country have already awakened?!

Tell me quickly! Come on Alma, let's go!

It is a saint’s duty to protect the people from the blasphemy of false gods! So let me go to Blue Country! I have no time to worry about my own safety!

Huh...? Blue Country is calm now, but the Imperial Army has taken the Machine God’s cocoon? You should have said that earlier…

So, what should we do, Alma? I want to prevent the cocoon from awakening.

The Machine God is probably either in the capital city or at the dimensional gate. It seems that the energy of gates is good for awakening Machine Gods, so let's head there first.

There’s a gate not too far from here. The nearest one is in the old Imperial capital, and it would take two days at most to get there. We also have the Excavation Brigade's land sailing ship.

...What's that, Alma? No, that’s not it. I don't want to go with the Brigade because I want to ride on the ship or anything. It's not like I'm jealous of the Brigade because they get to enjoy delicious feasts every night! That's not it! It's just the journey! It sounds fun!

Yes, yes! Shizuma, the Excavation Brigade, and his friends! How are you all doing? I'm Lumiera, Saint of Sanctuary! 

Yeah. Good. Overall, good responses. 

But the Imperial Army is so persistent. Super persistent. They find us wherever we go. As we tried to force our way into the dimensional gate, the army came after us. A hail of bullets is coming down.

But my musical art, Absolute Defense Order, saved us in time. The ether shield envelops all of the Brigade’s ships and repels the army’s ancient weapons.

Pretty impressive, if I do say so myself!

With almost no damage sustained, we managed to shake off the pursuit of the Imperial Engineer, Iseria. It looks like we’ll be able to set up camp.

You must be exhausted from all that running around, right? Let's cheer ourselves up.

I'll leave the cooking and stuff to Fené, but as for me, I'll... Well, I'll show you a song and a dance. In another world, there are shrine maidens called “idols”, and this is a musical art that imitates them.

“Oh, but this technique gives off a bit too much energy, so be careful!" 

I know very well that the headset I wear is important for rituals and treatments! But turning my neck makes me tired! 

Huh? This was custom made to be light enough and just my size? The same with the robes…? They’re still heavy.

The staff that has been passed down for generations is also big and hard to hold… No, it’s just because I’m a little small.

I wonder if I’ll get any taller… I’d like to be slender.

I want to look like a grown woman… And my breasts could be a bit bigger…

That would be more dignified and cool for a saint, right?

Huh? Shut up, Alma! I’m a maiden too! Even a saint can be cute!

Sometimes, I wanna speak up and assert myself, but I’m always working. All the time.

It's tradition for a saint to maintain chastity while in her role... I understand that. But I wonder what my childhood friend Glenn would think… It’s just an example, Alma.

This wasn't supposed to happen. I was overconfident…

My Absolute Defense Order is a traditional technique that was passed down to me. As its name suggests, I thought it was the ultimate, strongest shield that could not be broken by anything.

But it was destroyed before my own eyes so easily…

Is that the power of the Empire’s latest weapon, Tetrachord II!? The people were terrified by the weapon…

Vibrations and destructive light that distorts the very existence of the ether… How dare they do something like that…

The volunteer warriors gathered around the Excavation Brigade are all brave, but lightly armored. Thanks to the protection of my music magic, they had endured the fierce attacks and defenses surrounding the dimensional gate. 

But now, without the protection of my shield, we’re exposed to the artillery fire of the enemy hordes lining the Empire's capital…!

Stop it! Even if it's to protect someone else—stop charging forward and sacrificing your lives!

Ah… What is this… This…

Will their overconfidence in my power bring them to the brink of annihilation?

It was the first time I saw someone die in battle.

And so many. All at once.

I relied too much on my ether shield, and it caused those warriors to do something reckless…

Those who took on the enemy and never returned… When I think of them, I feel such sadness and anger.

A sense of helplessness swirls around me.

...I can't just keep crying. Glenn was able to recover after the tragedy of Blue Country.

Alma! If I’m still down, slap me hard across the cheek and snap me out of it!

What I need right now isn’t tears! It’s courage!

We’ll get creative in dealing with the enemy! We know they have weapons with destructive wavelengths that can break through my Absolute Defense Order… So what?

Instead of a shield that can withstand destruction, we’ll use armor that absorbs attacks!

With my power to communicate with the ether, I’ll create armor here and now and distribute it to everyone!

Let's go home, Alma. My work here as a saint is done. The Imperial Army has realized their mistake, and there will surely never be another war to artificially manipulate ether.

Has the light taken Machine God Thor to another world..?

And where did Shizuma go…?

I'm sure they were aiming for the place they needed to return to. This will surely lead to joy, not misfortune.

What... Alma, you still want to fly in this sky? Don't you have to return to the thick ether in Sanctuary?

All right! Well said! I agree!

For now, I will continue traveling with the Brigade! Many parts of the continent are still scarred by the wounds of the Imperial Army’s actions, right?

We can't leave that healing to the shrine maidens alone. Let this saint take the initiative herself.

...Oh, Alma, that's not it. I’m not traveling to see weird things or eat delicious food. I mean it! But, oh...! I'm looking forward to it!