CH 62

“I see you’re here, too. Please come and sit down.”

The magistrate led us in with a tired voice. The two-story temporary office was cramped, so only Arjen, Iris, Bishop Andrei, and I entered. The magistrate pulled a chair for himself from the small table and patted his back.

“Overseeing the restoration site requires a lot of standing for long periods, so I’m afraid I have to… Hehe. I hope you’ll forgive me if I look a little ugly.”

Bishop Andre smiled brightly.

“You have a lot on your plate. How can I call someone working on restoring a city ugly?”

“It’s a harsh time for everyone.”

At the Bishop’s words, he smiled bitterly. A deep shade of gray crept across his wrinkled face.

“Have you been contacted by Her Majesty?”

“Yes. She asked me to help you stamp out the heretics spreading throughout the land.”

Bishop Andrei nodded and looked at me and Iris.

“It’s a punishment for the hordes of heretics. Luckily, the Hero has granted my request so readily and has offered to help us weed them out.”

“I see… even the Hero got involved.”

His voice trailed off, and he looked at me. I couldn’t look him in the eye. At least to him, I would not be seen as a good man or a savior.

“You’ve just defeated the Fourth Disaster, haven’t you? I’m sure you’re still a bit tired, but you’re still willing to come and help our province, and I can’t help but be grateful.”

“I will do my best.”

The magistrate bowed his head, and I returned his greeting with a hasty bow. He did not hold anything against me. He wasn’t even being sarcastic, but it struck me like a sharp arrow.

“You came to Bactin’s aid immediately after you left the Hero’s Party, and you were accommodating then, too, but I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”

Isis merely nodded. I glanced at her pale face. She lifted her head casually in my direction, then dropped it quickly. Her violet eyes had been trembling ever since our reunion.

“I won’t be able to be of much help in this investigation, as I’m overseeing the recovery site, and there won’t be much I can do about it, save for the occasional progress meeting. If you need anything, I can be reached at…..”

Bishop Andrei opened his mouth as if he had been waiting.

“If a church is still active, we would like to base ourselves there.”

“…Yes. There’s probably an old church some distance from the village, and I believe the faithful still seek it out. I’ve heard the Saintess’ healing work helped strengthen their faith.”

“Very well, we’ll drive out the heretics plaguing the city.”

Bishop Andre looked at Iris.

“Please work with the other priests to ensure the faithful here are well cared for.”

I looked at Iris with a frown, but she nodded, her face turning away as if she wanted to avoid even being in my sight.

“When will you begin your investigation?”

Bishop Andrei rubbed his palms together lightly.

“I’d like to start as soon as we leave our belongings in the church. You said that the main area of activity for the doomsday cultists was the side of the village that housed the evacuees.”

“…Yes. Many have left now that the evacuation order has been issued, but many still won’t leave. We tried to do something about it by mobilizing our troops, but increasing the size would only worsen the skirmishes.”

“I see. We’ll be careful, but if the resistance from the heretics is strong….”

Nodding, the Bishop’s eyes pierced the provincial’s like a beacon.

“We may have to be a bit ‘rougher’ with them.”

“…Of course, I am aware of that.”

The magistrate nodded with a stony expression, and the Bishop stood up with a benevolent smile. Iris and I scrambled to our feet and followed him out the door. The magistrate stared at us for a moment, then spoke to me.

“Hero.”

His gaze held many different emotions. Resentment, pity, anger, and resignation.

“I don’t think they’ll be very welcoming of you. Some may even resent you, especially after news of Evernode’s state after the Disaster.”

I bit my lip. Flesh, tears, and blood roll over my tongue, throat, and nostrils.

“…I can’t speak for them, but I hope you’ll be merciful.”

“Yes. I understand.”

Beside me, Iris opened her mouth, but no words came out. The Bishop stood in the doorway, looking at us impatiently, and I tapped Iris on the shoulder.

“Let’s go back.”

She jerked back, startled by the touch of my hand on her shoulder. I finally looked her in the eye for the second time. The first time, her eyes then were wide and burning with anger. She must have wondered why I had kicked Arjen out of the party. They were angry and emotional, questioning my sanity but also confident.

“….”

Now they were just the eyes of a frightened child. As soon as I saw them, I couldn’t help but reflexively narrow my eyes; her trauma was too much for her to handle.

“Iris.”

I spoke to her, my voice soft. She looked up at me with eyes that had regained some of their focus. I let out a small sigh and jerked my head toward the Bishop. His eyes were fixed on her.

“Let’s hurry; my men are waiting for us.”

***

The church the magistrate had pointed out to them was still relatively intact compared to the other ruins, perhaps due to its elevation on the hill. The falling rain showed no sign of letting up as the day passed. The Bishop summoned us as soon as Daphne had tidied up our room with her magic.

“First, I’d like to explain a few caveats before we begin our investigation.”

The church had been used as a school, and a blackboard hung on the wall. He picked up a piece of chalk the size of his pinky finger from the floor and began to explain like a teacher.

“I will divide us into two groups: one to do a full-scale investigation during the day and one to spy on them secretly at night. Of course, as I said, the night is a dangerous time, so the Inquisitors will do the surveillance. I’m warning you here….”

He drew a circle around a few words.

“Unless there are exceptional circumstances, no one is to be alone in the village at night. Darkness is an attribute of the evil gods, and it is the time of activity for their worshippers who lurk in the shadows. They are stronger at night; even you, Arjen, could be in trouble if you face them.

Bishop Andrei drew a figure on the board.

“This is what the symbol of the doomsday cult– or, rather, the symbol of an evil god cult– looks like.”

He slammed the chalk into the figure, causing it to break.

“A star…?”

“It’s too wild a shape to draw myself, so please understand I can only show you this. Their symbol is a pentagon with its tip pointing toward the ground. So…”

The Bishop pointed to the top of the star.

“You can think of it as a pentagon turned upside down. The Holy Land calls it an inverted pentagon, and the cultists carry this symbol somewhere on their body, either as a tattoo or a symbol.”

Bishop Andre stared at the star with a fierce glare, then crossed it out in displeasure.

“Another rule. Hasty action is taboo. We’re short-handed; if we grab heretics just because they’re in sight, they may heighten their awareness of us.

He wrote on the board as he spoke.

“Our objective is to approach them individually, find out who the cult’s leader is, catch them, and beat them to a pulp.”

Bishop Andre put down the chalk and dusted off his hands.

“Then let us begin our investigation. I’ve assigned you your roles. Elroy, as for you, I know it’s a little early for you, but please make sure you’re wearing your helmet. You’ll be acting as my right-hand man.”

‘A helmet.’ I nodded, frowning. I feel like he takes a subtle pleasure from making me his subordinate as his smile grew slightly bigger as he spoke.

“Iris, you’ll join us later; I don’t want you to be caught off guard while I’m trying to gauge the atmosphere and figure out how to proceed with the investigation, so please stay here and wait with the inquisitors.”

“…Understood.”

Bishop Andrei stood up from his seat and looked at me.

“Now, let’s go. Follow me, Hero.”

Psycho asshole.

***

“Iris.”

Iris stopped and turned around at the Bishop’s voice calling her. A group of people were making their way out of the church. Daphne disguised as the Bishop’s aide, Georg as a knight, and Elroy and Marianne as escorts. The rain had become a drizzle, falling lightly on their raincoats and armor.

“Bishop.”

Bishop Andrei’s expression and voice were stern.

“How long will you remain like this?”

She blinked and looked at him. She couldn’t speak, unable to find the courage to tell him what had happened that day or why she was shaking so badly.

“I know you’ve been through a lot in helping with the recovery efforts here, but we need your help now. After all, the people here trust you.”

Iris’ eyes darted around at the mention of the word ‘trust.’ The Bishop saw it, but he didn’t ask why.

“I hope you’ll settle down as soon as possible. We won’t take long; it will be your turn to step forward sooner or later.”

“…Yes, sir.”

Bishop Andre looked over Iris’ shoulder. Arjen sat back in his chair and watched.

“Take care of Iris, Mercenary.”

He then turned and walked toward the Hero’s Party. Iris watched them walk away, then slowly returned to the church and curled her legs on the pew. Once the party was out of sight, only then did she hear the sound of drizzle tapping on the leaves.

“You know, Arjen.”

Arjen turned his head toward her, dark shadows and pale light cast across his face. He was his usual self, even at a time like this. Whether that was a good thing or not, she didn’t know.

“How would you have reacted if I had talked you out of it? What if I had insisted on doing what Elroy wanted?”

Arjen’s eyes closed and opened at the question.

“Nothing would have changed. I would have stuck to my decision. Even if the party’s opinion leaned that way, I would have gone to the Commander-in-Chief and tried to convince him to follow my plan.”

“…How can you be that confident?”

Iris’ voice was dry.

“If we had fought according to his plan, someone in our party would have surely died. It could have been Georg, it could have been Nella, it could have been you. I don’t know what would have become of the Hero.”

Arjen shook his head.

“Even then, there’s no guarantee we would stop the Kraken. Once we commit to his plan, there is no going back.”

Iris buried her face in her knees. Arjen’s voice continued.

“After all this time, regretting your choices won’t change anything.”

The last words were his own. He patted her on the shoulder and stood up.

“This is my way; it’s all I can believe in.”

Iris was left alone in the church, watching the rain fall. She imagined the sound of the Hero’s footsteps as he made his way down to the village in the distance.

***

“It’s a worse condition than the rumors said.”

I heard Daphne mutter. I grunted inwardly, looking at the view of the village through the grate of my visor.

“…This.”

The village’s landscape could not be called clean and nice in any sense of those words. The houses were made of boards and stuck together to form a maze of alleys, and the air was foul-smelling. The lack of proper drainage meant that the air smelled not only of feces but also of unwashed people and rotting flesh. However, seeing the people in it made me feel incredibly uncomfortable.

“Strange.”

Bishop Andrei muttered, and I couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

For as far as I could see, each and every one of the residents wore a relaxed smile.