CH 63

“Are we getting any new supplies today?”

We strolled through the village and listened to the residents’ conversations. It was normal; they were just doing their daily business, which was strange. No pessimism, no pain. And yet, the world I saw through my eyes was full of hurt.

“It’s….”

“Peaceful. This is different from my expectations.”

Bishop Andrei acknowledged Daphne’s sentiment in a cold voice. The residents glanced at us, then returned to their conversation. The Bishop saw the scene, then turned to a group of villagers. They seemed wary of him and backed away slowly.

“What brings you here?”

An elderly man walked over to us, dressed in the same raggedy clothes and disheveled hair. He had a strong but simple appearance. His thick arms and rough, calloused hands suggested he was a seafarer.

“My name is Andrei Jung, an official of the Royal Palace. I’m here at the behest of Her Majesty the Queen to inspect the progress of the restoration and the living conditions in Bactins….”

Bishop Andrei stepped forward calmly, using a pseudonym that only changed his last name, but the man waved his hand and frowned.

“It’s none of your business. I’m just trying to find out what more you want to know so I can send you off as soon as possible. I suggest you go back and stop pissing people off. As you can see, we’re quite happy here and making a good living.”

The man was being quite hostile. The Bishop didn’t let it get to him, and he turned his palm to the ground and made eye contact with the man as if to calm him down.

“I’m not here to hasten your departure. We came here to deliver the supplies and assist the residents.

The man shook his head, the corners of his mouth twitching. I felt another twinge of discomfort at the dryness of his demeanor. Some of the residents were merely glancing in our direction, while others were talking amongst themselves, unconcerned.

It was strange. If someone in the village is arguing with what appears to be an official, at least one person would wonder what’s going on.

“We don’t need your help. We’re getting our regular supplies, and there’s nothing else for you to look for in this village.”

Bishop Andrei turned away from the man and looked around as if he had thought the same. The man was unnerved by his reaction, his eyes following his gaze. Then he grabbed the Bishop’s hand.

“Look, sir. It’s very kind of you to be interested in this, but you have nothing our town needs, so please go home.”

The man’s demeanor suddenly changed to a pleading tone. Bishop Andrei’s eyes narrowed as he held the man’s hand. I saw the man’s eyes shake. The Bishop didn’t miss it either.

“We are here at the Queen’s behest and must report our findings. We’ll consider the situation but must still investigate the temporary settlement. Otherwise…”

He jerked his head toward Marianne and me, dressed as soldiers.

“If you refuse to be investigated and continue to interfere, they could arrest you.”

The Bishop talked slowly, trying to calm the man. However, the man took a step forward.

“That’s not it. Do you not get what….”

“My dear, what are you doing here?”

The man froze. His head snapped back. I looked at the woman walking toward us. The woman, presumably the man’s wife, looked at us, her arms folded across her chest. She was similarly unkempt in appearance.

“Who are these… people?”

“… Nobody you should worry about, so you should go back first.”

At that, the Bishop spoke up quickly.

“It’s a pleasure, madam. I’m Andrei Jung, an official of the Royal Palace. I’m here to inspect the area, and I’d like to know if you’d willing to cooperate if you don’t mind me asking.

The man’s expression turned pensive, and the woman’s eyes widened slightly as if surprised by the Bishop’s words.

“Well, you’ve come a long way…I’m sure I can be of service.”

The man lashed out and pushed his wife away. She looked at her husband in disbelief, but the man didn’t care and turned to her.

“How many times have I told you you’ve just healed from your broken leg and shouldn’t be walking around outside? Get back inside.”

The woman blinked at the hand on her shoulder. Then she raised her, placing it on the man’s, and said in a voice as light and gentle as a whisper.

“Honey. I told you, it’s pointless to be angry.”

The man’s eyebrows twitched. His eyes flashed with fear, then returned to their original color. The woman gently pushed him away, then turned to the Bishop and smiled. A few stray strands stuck out from the side of her tightly bound hair.

“Your Excellency, what can I do for you?”

Daphne’s face paled, but Bishop Andrei, who stood before her, smiled broadly, unperturbed. His expression remained the same since the start of the interaction.

“I would like you to take me on a tour of the town. Not all investigators have arrived yet, and we plan to stay in the area for a while and take our time.”

“I see; then my husband and I will show you around.”

The woman turned toward the man, who shook his head, unable to speak. The man’s sudden change in demeanor was disturbing, but so was his wife’s nonchalance. It was as if her husband’s emotions were not conveyed to her at all.

“The village is peaceful; I thought that not long ago, there were many long-term patients, many wounded.”

The Bishop asks, and the woman huffs and puffs and lets out a small laugh.

“After her visit, there weren’t so many wounded anymore. Even my broken leg was healed by her!”

Her voice sounded like she was dreaming. The woman’s steps were languid.

“The Saintess healed the wounds on my body, but she couldn’t heal the wounds in my heart. It was only healed thanks to the teacher who visited the village recently….”

“Honey!!!”

The man shouted at the top of his lungs. Daphne flinched in surprise, and Bishop Andrei turned to look at the man. The woman turned her head at the man’s shout, looked at him, and smiled. But there was nothing funny in her eyes.

“Oh, I almost made a mistake, I’m supposed to be showing you around town, but I keep saying the wrong thing.”

“It’s okay.”

Bishop Andrei nodded in acknowledgment but with a subtle hint of curiosity. He seemed to be piecing together what the woman had unconsciously said, though I wasn’t sure why he wasn’t prying further about this ‘teacher’ person.

***

“This is the building used as a school for the children….”

The woman pointed to the buildings made of planks one by one. The people walking down the street looked the same at the village entrance. Occasionally, they’d stop to talk to her, but most just eyed us from a distance.

“There you go. This is the general layout of our village.”

“Thank you for your kind guidance, ma’am.”

The woman saw us off with a man at the village entrance. The man hadn’t spoken a word since he’d shouted at her once, and he’d been pacing around like he was being watched the entire time. Bishop Andrei glanced at the man, then back at the woman.

“If you visit again in the future, I’m sure the other villagers will welcome you with open arms. We haven’t had visitors in a while, so they aren’t used to talking with outsiders….”

“I understand. I will come again, so I hope you’ll warmly welcome us again.”

Bishop Andrei turned and walked away, and we followed in his wake. As we walked, I only glanced back to see the entrance to the village. The woman who guided us stood in the same position, watching our backs.

“…What the hell.

For a moment, I felt like I was making eye contact with the woman, and I had to turn away in a panic. Following the creaking of my armor, I took off running. The woman’s vacant gaze seemed to follow my back.

“It looks like the Inquisitors will be busy tonight.”

The Bishop said in a low voice, and beside him, Daphne nodded.

“The people… are acting strange. How are they fine with the whole situation?”

“Of course, it’s strange that they think nothing’s wrong.”

Georg frowned, thinking it was strange too. I opened my mouth to speak, trying to erase the image of the woman’s eyes from my mind.

“Besides, unlike the first guy, his wife didn’t seem to care who we were.”

We didn’t have to say it, but we all knew the people were acting strangely. Marianne lifted her visor and exhaled expressionlessly.

“Are you okay, Marianne?”

“Yeah. No problem.”

Her face had the same delicate flesh as Bishop Andrei’s. As I narrowed my eyes worriedly on her pale cheeks, Bishop Andre turned his head toward me.

“At least it wasn’t without a harvest. We learned about the teacher.”

“You mean the ‘teacher’ the lady was talking about?”

He nodded with an eerie smile.

“Yes… I don’t know if it’s a person, but it’s most likely that the ‘teacher’ is one of those heretic worshippers. Not the leader of them, of course, but….”

Bishop Andrei clasped his hands together. Veins became visible as he put more strength into his hands.

“We must capture him and get to their roots. It has been a long time since they have made a major appearance. I can’t wait to finally get rid of them.”

His rosary rattled as he spoke. He then took a deep breath and relaxed his hands.

“If we could catch some worship activity at night, we can figure out what they are trying to do. That would make our job much more manageable.

The Bishop grabbed a swaying rosary and rubbed it.

“I’m looking forward to the night.”

***

Later in the night.

Marianne followed behind Bishop Andrei, her cloak wrapped around her in camouflage. The inquisitors moved more stealthily than shadows. Their footsteps on the grass didn’t make a sound, nor did their cloaks flutter when they ran.

“I don’t see any light at all.”

The Bishop said in an emotionless voice. This was the Bishop she knew, his voice as cold and sharp as an icicle.

“I love it.”

The rain stopped, but the village was covered in darkness. A black veil, without stars or moon, stared down at them from overhead, as still as someone’s pupil. There were no lights on in the village either. There were no bonfires, tin can fires, lamps, or lanterns.

Bishop Andre stretched out his hand and sent a signal to the inquisitors. The inquisitors dispersed and disappeared into the darkness just as the fog dissipated into thin air.

Marianne stood behind Bishop Andrei and looked out at the village. With no fire or sign of life, the town looked no different from the ruins outside. Bishop Andrei pulled a watch from his bosom. There were five minutes before midnight. His head then moved as he heard movement within the village.

One by one, the village doors opened, and people walked out. No one said a single word. The residents began to walk in a single file, gathered together in a line. They all walked toward a half-broken brewery at the far end of the village.

The brewery’s doors creaked open, and the darkness inside swallowed them individually. Bishop Andrei tucked his watch into his bosom and stared at the brewery.

-There it is.

A very faint but extremely pungent and ominous aura escaped like smoke through the cracks of the brewery’s doors.