The Spider Queen

(Alpha Star System- Inner Regions)

(Planet Zyanora- Branch Of The Nephilim Church)

"Wow… a real saintess…"

"She looks so beautiful… I can't believe my eyes…"

"An angel… she has to be an angel… bless my heart… I… wow…"

Whispers filled the hall as the new converts stared in rapture at the gorgeous angel who stood proudly in the middle of the room.

Rachel smiled warmly and the soft golden light that surrounded her body gradually faded away.

She kept the wings and the halo that floated above her head but now the intense spiritual pressure was gone.

Archbishop Lucius cleared his throat and walked towards the raised platform at the front of the hall.

He walked confidently up the steps and stood in front of a large altar with the symbol of an upside down cross next to a pair of white wings.

Rachel and Bishop Walsh took a seat at the back of the hall and quietly watched the proceedings.

It was hard for the saintess not to recall her welcome ceremony to the church.

Rachel had grown up in the foster care system as her parents had decided to put her up for adoption when she was only a few years old.

She had gone from home to home without much stability in her life. Some of her guardians were kind and others were… less so…

But without exception for one reason or the other, she would find herself being returned to the orphanage like a used present that no one wanted anymore.

Of course, that all changed when the Nephilim Church discovered that she had an immense talent for cultivation.

Rachel was not a particularly religious person but without a doubt she was grateful to the church for providing her with a permanent home.

It seemed like just yesterday she was sitting in this hall along with other young Quafes and nervously paying attention to every word that the archbishop spoke.

At that time, her only wish was to stay at least for one year… now she had been part of the church for more than five.

Rachel smiled as she leaned against the wooden bench. Life really had a funny way of working out for the best.

Being the saintess of Archangel Raziel was honestly quite the wonderful experience so far.

Archangel Raziel was a pretty relaxed entity and did not demand that she adhere to a strict moral code or perform certain actions.

"Hey… stop daydreaming…" Bishop Walsh scolded under his breath as he placed a hand on Rachel's shoulder to get her attention.

"Sorry…" Rachel whispered back as she shook her head and focused on the archbishop who was now reading from a tiny black book.

"New converts… I understand that you may be feeling a bit nervous…" Archbishop Lucius softly spoke as he touched his beard.

"The Nephilim Church will not force you to stay if you do not want to…"

"I implore you all to spend the next three years exploring the different roles in the church and see which one is right for you…"

"Whether you become a demon knight or saint… a nun or priest… or even a clerk or missionary… every role is important…"

"For it is the Lord who created us… and we are tasked with carrying out his will… not through fire and war but through peace and understanding…"

The door leading to the back of the hall slowly creaked open and a beautifully dressed young woman with long flowing white hair entered quietly.

The only place available to sit was next to Rachel and Bishop Walsh so the young girl walked over quickly.

Her facial expression immediately changed as she saw Rachel and a heavy frown flashed across her face.

"Nadia! Come… you can sit by me…" Rachel kindly whispered as she moved to the side to make space for her fellow saintess.

Nadia reluctantly sat down next to Rachel and crossed her arms with an unpleasant look on her face.

Rachel shrugged casually at her rude gesture and focused her attention back on the archbishop who was now chanting religious scriptures.

She knew that most of the other saintesses were not… overly fond of her to put it mildly but Nadia was by far the worst.

Bishop Walsh sensed the tension in the air and shot Nadia a warning look as he did not appreciate her foul attitude towards his charge.

Despite the fact that she was a saintess, there was just something about the look in Bishop Walsh's eyes that sent a shiver down Nadia's spine.

Rachel did not notice the tense moment as she leaned forward and quietly watched the crowd of new converts.

Two people caught her eye in particular.

One of them was a tall handsome young man with a pentagram engraved in the middle of his forehead while the other was a pretty girl with a pearly white smile.

She could sense demonic energy lingering around their bodies which meant that they would most likely become future demon knights.

That handsome man in particular caught Rachel's eye and she could not help but give him a flirtatious wink which he did not see.

Ahh demon knights… now they knew how to enjoy themselves…

Rachel recalled a few pleasant memories and the smile on her face gradually got bigger.

The expression on the saintess' face bore a striking resemblance to a seductive demoness rather than a pure holy angel.

"Demon knight filth… they should be kicked out immediately…" Nadia muttered darkly as she noticed the direction of Rachel's stare.

"Nadia… relax… the Nephilim Church was founded on the principle of balance… light and darkness coexisting and all that…" Rachel lazily retorted as she yawned.

"Hmm… you would say that wouldn't you… you are such a disgrace…" Nadia snarled angrily.

Rachel paid her no attention to her mocking words which seemed to make the other saintess even angrier as her fingers tightly curled up into a fist.

In Nadia's eyes, Saintess Rachel was a black stain on the purity and grace of the saints and saintesses of the church.

She was unlike any of the other vessels of the archangels and Nadia could not understand how or why archangel Raziel had chosen her as a conduit for his will.

She was lustful. She was prideful.

She was… she was… unworthy.

Rachel sensed the animosity radiating from Nadia, but she merely leaned against the wooden bench and did not turn her head.

Fortunately, Nadia was soon distracted by the loud booming voice that echoed through the hall as the archbishop reached the middle of his sermon.

"For the Lord on the seventh day… he did not rest… but rather… the creation of angels and demons were planned from the beginning…" Archbishop Lucius shouted passionately.

'The Nephilim Church is based on the ancient religion of Christianity from hundreds of thousands of years ago… but… in those years the faith has changed…"

"We had made contact with the beings behind those stories… we have conversed with entities beyond this mortal realm…"