Chapter 15 - Mastermind: Behind The Church's Corruption

"Should we first learn what are the ranks? When you discovered that copper does not need to rank up, you skipped it."

"Yeah, that was an unnecessary action. I regret doing that."

Ellena asked the receptionist for the list of ranks, so she was handed a parchment of paper containing the ranks.

[Ranks]

i. Copper Rank

ii. Bronze Rank

iii. Silver Rank - Veteran

iv. Gold Rank

v. White Gold Rank

vi.Platinum Rank

vii. Titanium Rank

Ellena read the paper, then handed it back to the receptionist.

"Was it enough, Miss Ellena?"

"Yes. Thank you."

The receptionist added some information about joining the ranks. Newcomers in the ranks, essentially bronze rank, must train for a week before accepting combat quests such as subjugating a number of outside monsters.

Outside, monsters are the same as monsters in the dungeons. The only difference is that they are monsters who leave their corpses behind. And, in essence, they are the shattered remnants of closed, overflowing monsters.

This training is mandatory for everyone, but Ellena's contribution made her an exception.

"The guild was grateful for your contribution and determined that you had combat abilities. However, you must learn every detail about monsters, so you will not be ranked higher as a result of that achievement. You will only receive quests based on your rank. This is for the sake of fairness within the guild."

I see... As a result, they are concerned about inconvenient casualties. Mostly, other adventurers die because of carelessness, so survival instincts and knowledge must be learned, other than combat capability.

Ellena learned everything to build her personality. Now that she is ready to face the world, she must learn everything necessary to survive and socialize before the demons come. 

That goblin general was something unexpected. We must grind more by collecting fear points. To level up and acquire abilities.

Because of the level up, I was upgraded. I can now move my vision to a 10-meter diameter. It means I can see everything behind the walls within that area.

She must also learn how to move without my suggestions. Even though she learned it little by little, it wasn't enough. Because the information of her in the built-in information my employer installed on me was greater than right now.

And my existence would affect her destiny. Making a new path so she doesn't repeat her mistakes from her previous life... and her previous timeline.

***

Wearing the usual attire for a threatening mission, Ellena went out of the inn. When the days are like this, I feel like going to the inn is too inconvenient, because she needs to use her ability to get out. Maybe they need a house? I guess...

It's not like she can't get out, but she will be discovered and it takes more time to carry a bag of spare clothes.

Our mission right now is to investigate the church. Since we can't threaten the headmaster immediately, we need to find some evidence that would prove Selena's claim.

'Isn't this unnecessary, Aaron? Can we just threaten the headmaster to speak up about what she knew?'

"Ellena, work smarter then you work hard. We can't use every short cut in different situations. Aren't you afraid of the gods' retribution? Haven't heard of it?"

'Yeah. But it's not like we are hurting her for nothing.'

"Yes, we have good intentions, but what will you do if we are incorrect? We can trust Selena's words, but we can't apply them to our information since it was personal for her."

I explained to her why we shouldn't need to investigate the church. She became so reliant on her abilities that she lost sight of what was right. It's not like we were doing this just for points. This is also for Ellena's well-being.

Taking care of her justice persona is not just about following her aims. She must learn how to control herself and be more efficient. Not being controlled by rage is a must for a person with a strong sense of justice.

'Sorry. I will listen to you. I won't disappoint, Selena.'

Well, it's not like she'll know that you did this for her.

We entered the church and used her stealth to move unnoticed. As a precaution, I hover around the room, passing through the walls to keep an eye out for people.

"All clear."

At my signal, she continued walking through the corridor, trying to find where the headmaster's room was.

The church wasn't really that wide for a common orphanage and church. The church was estimated to be 20 by 50 meters in size. At the back of the altar was a corridor lined with personnel rooms.

The orphanage, on the other hand, was separated from the building. The kids slept at the orphanage and the personnel were on the second-storey of the building. However, depending on the situation, if the headmaster is really hiding something, she would hide it in a place that is away from the kids and other people. And the back of the altar was the most private, for that matter.

I passed through the walls to see where the most private areas were and where the best places to hide papers were.

"Here." We came to a halt in one room and checked to see if it was open.

'Lock.'

"I see... So this lock may hinder us, maybe, but not really. Use the lightning to weaken the parts of the lock, then melt the inside of it. It will be soften eventually and will be easy to open."

Metal isn't all that difficult if you have this ability. Yes, lightning can be conducted through metals, but it doesn't leave them there. Lightning is a form of electricity and can create plasma via a strong jolt of electricity. And since plasma is really hot, metals will be heated, then melt.

*clank*

The lock opened successfully. Ellena began entering the room while I stood guard outside the door.

The room was actually a library type. There was a table in the center, and the room was at least 2 by 3 meters wide.

She started searching for the documents indicating her donation. Then, after that, the budget allocation and, of course, the famous leasing account log book.

Why would they need this paper, and don't just simply burn it or destroy? It's because they need to check it casually so they don't get caught up in corruption. Reports and records should not differ between both parties, so to dodge that problem, they have to check their own records.

After minutes of searching, Ellena found the document for her donation. Then the next one was the lease book.

She started reading it and, a few seconds later, her eyes widened. So it was true, huh? Also, the budget allocation was found and there was a report on the allocation, which was different from what Selena had experienced.

'This is really solid proof.'

I moved to her side to read the paper, then I read the text. "Indeed, this is the key to threatening the headmaster. We now have a reason to collect some points and find some answers through her."

"Who are you?!" A shout echoed from the door.

Shit! I forgot about returning to the guard.

Ellena moved quickly, then covered the mouth of the headmaster. She let out a weak volt then paralyzed its legs.

"You know what will happen to you if you shout."

"Mhm!"

"Keep quiet and answer my questions if you don't want to lose your ability to stand."

"Mhm!"

Ellena slowly let go of the headmaster's mouth, then started interrogating her. 

The headmaster was wearing a normal nun's outfit, a habit-looking outfit, in particular. The main color was black, with a white undertone.

Just after letting go of her mouth, Ellena pulled her inside the room, then pushed her to sit in the chair. After those acts of Ellena, a fear points emerged. 

"Now, ask me honestly. What happened to this donation?"

"What donation? Wha-! That?!" I noticed the eyes of the headmaster widened and awkwardly averted her eyes away the paper.

So she was guilty. This is a common behavior of guitly that would  try to think of a scapegoat or an alibi.

"I don't know what you are talking about."

"Now, now, it is not good to lie, headmaster. Please answer me honestly before I swear to the gods that I will remove your ability to walk. "

"I really don't know. I'm not the one managi-!" The headmaster halted immediately as she started answering Ellena's questions. She may have slipped, so she stopped.

"Ellena, push more into her. I believe she is easily threatened."

"Now... who managed this money?"

"I don't know! Help! Someone intrud-! Mhm!"

Ellena hissed as she summoned small lightning and directed it at the headmaster's legs.

"Where is that money and who managed it?"

***

We were able to get some answers from the headmaster. Apparently, she quickly sold out the mastermind after some threats. We earned four points, which I believe is more than enough. It's not that easy to make a point appear.

Some conditions, such as heart rate, overthinking, and so on, are required, which result in fear. So this fear point is not about making a person feel fear. There is a level of fear that must be met.

The headmaster spoke up and admitted who was the mastermind behind that massive management of the gold coins. And when it comes to confidence, it comes from the Lumbert family.

Now, who did this? It was just from the main family and not the baron family. It was from the county family, Lumbert, an ancestor of the baron family Ellena had previously been a member of.

To think that I did think that her relative was only the sensible family member of Ellena. But I was wrong... They were also rotten to the core.

'Aaron, what should we do? I don't know what should I do to fix this?'

This is really getting big. I thought that the headmaster was the one who was sending the money. From what Selena said, the headmaster was pocketing the budget to send it to her family, but it was just a rumor. The headmaster was merely a puppet of the main family.

"Yes... I know that this is hard, but there's something we can do. Let's set aside this matter and focus on fixing the church's allocation. Even if we have to drain the headmaster's pocket. After all, she was involved in this situation."

'Yes... Let's come back tomorrow. I'm getting sleepy.'

Oh!... I didn't notice it. Ugh. That was disastrous of me. Sorry for neglecting my job as your assistant.

"Sorry. Yeah, let's come back tomorrow. I think she won't get away with this. We can easily track her since you have the ability."

'Yeah... Yawn...'

We quietly exited the church after leaving it. We also left the headmaster at the church's back door because we couldn't enter the orphanage. It would also be dangerous to be discovered.

After that, we headed back to the inn and let her rest for the night. I was only left to hover and keep an eye on them by observing the surroundings.

Now... this thing has come to this. What should I do? I know that Ellena would not let go of this one. Even if I tell her we can't do anything, her personality is simply too powerful.

If things get messed up, and we can't focus on the demons' coming.... This time reset would be futile.