The Demoness's Authority
The scene fell completely silent, broken only by the Saints' voices.
Everyone else stayed quiet, uncertain and wary, afraid of bringing disaster upon themselves.
"Hameln! Sophia!"
Hercules looked toward his allies, the Saint of Music and the Saint of Speechcraft. They had suddenly fallen silent, their faces expressionless, and his heart sank lower and lower.
Who could have imagined that the Saints would suddenly decide here to replace one of their own? Once they reached a consensus, they truly had the authority to remove a Saint.
In fact, every Saint present had been chosen through deliberation by the others. Anyone who passed the trial could become a new Saint. There could be additions or removals, as well as successions.
Even so, the glorious height of all thirteen Saints standing together in the Saint's Association had been exceedingly rare.
It had happened only three or four times in all of recorded history. Added together, those periods had lasted less than thirty years. Yet each time, the Saint's Association had either reached the peak of its power and influence or survived a calamity that threatened to destroy it. No one stayed fortunate forever, and no flower bloomed for a hundred days. Any ancient organization with a history spanning more than a century was bound to experience its ups and downs. There had even been several great conflicts between Saints that nearly split the entire Saint's Association apart.
To this day, the rules for selecting Saints remained in place: better to have too few than to lower the standards. As a result, the modern Saint's Association had only eight Saints in office, with the other five seats still vacant.
"I'm sorry, Hercules. The Saint's Association needs the strongest to lead us all to greater strength, so... I second the motion!"