Chapter 6: The Devil Dwells in the Human Heart

It was early evening, as the sun began to set.

"Say hello, Tina. You too, Yulian."

I introduced the giant with his visibly robust physique.

"This is Raymond, today's temporary helper assigned by the Count."

"Pleased to meet you all," Raymond greeted stiffly.

Yulian acknowledged without batting an eye, while Tina nodded timidly, fear evident on her face.

Raymond, being rather sensitive, seemed slightly hurt by Tina's reaction.

"I've got somewhere to be today. If you need anything, just ask Raymond."

"Got it."

"Yes... Director."

"That's right."

I reassured Tina, patting her head.

'Don't worry, Tina. You're stronger than Raymond anyway.'

Though called a helper, he was essentially a temporary guard. But there was no way one or two knights could subdue Tina, a half-dragon.

So Raymond would focus on guarding the house while I ran an errand for the Count.

Soon, I said goodbye to the children at the entrance.

"Well, I'm off then."

"Take care, Director."

"Please come back soon...!"

Yulian didn't seem worried. In contrast, Tina's disappointment was clear, perhaps due to her separation anxiety.

"I should wrap this up quickly..."

I considered taking a risk for the sake of the waiting children.

Instead of heading to the street, I made my way to the orphanage rooftop. I sat down on the open floor and gazed at the starry sky.

That was all the prep I needed.

'I'll settle this quickly.'

10 seconds.

That was my gut-feeling time limit.

The bare minimum to pass off a divine sighting as a hallucination in a place with many onlookers.

To achieve this, citing miracles is preferable to constructing them through prayer.

[The Mother opened Her eyes and ears to heaven and earth to observe the tribulations of the mortal world. She Herself knew the good and evil prevalent in the world.]

Book of the Lord, Chapter 1, Verse 3.

I materialize a scaled-down version of the Lord's already recorded miracle.

That's the citation of miracles.

As I recited the verse, ethereal golden particles enveloped the surroundings. They merged into a light and shot skyward, beyond human reach.

A cool breeze blew.

What settled next was a viscous darkness. An oppressive darkness that seemed to reject all consideration and respect.

Surrounded by darkness like a child in the womb, I literally opened the eye of heaven.

A massive eye hidden in the dim sky.

Instantly, a tsunami of information overwhelmed me.

I saw too much.

I heard too much.

"Yulian, when's the Director coming back?"

"He'll be back before we know it, like he never left."

Yulian and Tina's conversation? I'm glad they get along even when I'm not around.

"How was business today?"

"Don't ask. Apples just aren't selling these days."

Just merchants chatting. Nothing useful there.

"I sold loads of flowers today! Isn't that great?"

"Yes, yes, keep it as pocket money."

Flotia beams as she brags to her mom. Nice to see such a warm family.

"Phew, I'm beat."

"Good work, honey."

Evening greetings in an ordinary home. Again, no useful info.

"Hah, ahh, mmm, ahhh!"

"Haa... haa..."

What's this...? Oops, my apologies.

"Feel good?"

"Haa... Why ask... Way better than... my husband's... Ahh!"

Sorry my ass, you f*cking bastards?

I saw everything you did. I'll expose it all tomorrow morning, so get ready for those divorce papers.

"Looks like the Court Count's caught on. We should make one big score today and wrap up."

"Good. We just got a big fish in stock."

"A big fish?"

"You'll see. It's none other than a fallen......"

Snap!

"Oh dear."

The flood of information cut off abruptly.

The 10 seconds I'd set had elapsed.

Still, the harvest was good.

I learned everything about today's illegal auction, including its location.

"Wow, never using that again. I end up learning things I never wanted to know."

I was impressed by the Lord's stomach. This must be what it takes to play god.

It was eventful, but prep was done.

Thump, thump.

I got up, dusting myself off.

Time to tell the Count about the plan and hideout.

It'd be fine to wrap up now, but... I overheard something worrying.

"A big fish..."

It'd be trouble if that item could harm the Count. Where else could I find such a generous patron?

Plus, for Yulian and Tina's sake, I should do a bit more.

'Better to be thorough with the after-service.'

Let's hit that illegal auction house.

---

---

Even those with the darkest desires are amateurs if they show them openly.

In that sense, the sinners running this illegal auction were quite skilled.

On the outskirts, a fair distance from the entertainment district.

A location not entirely devoid of foot traffic, but just secluded enough to be off-putting.

A pristine mansion stood at this well-balanced site.

Covered in ivy, it looked abandoned at first glance.

As the auction was in full swing, at a point when no more entrants were expected, I boldly approached.

A middle-aged man with a friendly face greeted me with an amiable smile.

"Excuse me, could I see your token?"

"What?"

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I was surprised by his extremely polite speech and manner.

I also found it quite clever that he used the ambiguous term "token" rather than "ticket."

He'd never pass for someone running a shady auction like this.

So I decided to take the opposite approach.

"Who the f*ck are you?"

"... Pardon?"

"Who do you think you are, blocking me? Sh*t, do people come here bare-faced? Can't you tell who I am?"

"W-well, that's..."

"Enough, tell me your rank and name first, you little sh*t."

"This is, um, difficult..."

Ah, damn. I'm losing my nerve.

I thought I could imitate those as*hole customers from my past life, but the guilt is killing me.

But if speak gently, they won't listen.

"I'll f*cking, you know? I'm with your boss! We eat together! Hit the baths! We do things! We do it all, you get me?!"

"..."

As he stood there sweating profusely, at a loss, a young man in the same uniform emerged from the stairs leading underground.

"What's going on here?"

The young guy asked the man facing me. He pulled the youth aside and whispered.

"He's not showing a token and causing a scene. Guess he forgot it, what should we do?"

"Ah, happens sometimes. It's tough getting into Count Arwel's turf. That's why they're more irritable. Anyway, how does he look?"

"From what I can tell, this guy's the real deal. Young as he looks, every time he opens his mouth, it's like he's spent his whole life looking down on people.

He's got the foulest mouth I've ever seen."

"Sounds about average for this place."

"True enough."

You, you, you animals.

I can hear everything. Even without miraculous powers, well-developed senses pick up this much easily.

Feeling my mood tank, I snapped at them irritably.

"Hey, as*holes, get your boss. You two the only ones watching the door?"

"Ah, yeah. Just us."

"Really? You sure?"

"Geez, of course! Why would we lie to a VIP?"

Wonder how low the bar is for VIPs here if this act works.

Then again, people who live off screwing others are all the same.

"Fine, I get it. Come here for a sec."

Step, step!

The two lined up in formation, perfectly aligned. How convenient.

They'll be tied up beautifully.

Without missing a beat, I recited sacred words.

"In the name of the Lord and the Holy Spirit, chains of light."

Instantly, golden chains materialized from thin air and wrapped around the two men.

Clank, clank!

Caught off guard, they just stared at me, too shocked to scream. Then it clicked, and they started yelling.

"Y-you tricked us...!!!"

"No, wait, he said something about the Lord... Could he be from the Temple?"

"What? This bastard's from the Temple!? That's impossible!"

"F*ck, sh*t. Since when do holy men talk like that... What's the Temple coming to?!"

"You crazy bastards, look who's calling who a bastard with a dirty mouth. And yes, this is exactly how the Temple deals with criminals like you."

I'd better gag them quickly with the muzzles I brought. The heart of an empathetic person is as delicate as falling flower petals.

After dealing with the door guards, I headed upstairs. Walking down the hall, I came to a big door. I threw it open.

The rush of perfume hit me like a truck. Excited breaths and vulgar shouts filled the air.

People of all sorts sat masked before a stage so fancy it was ridiculous.

'At this point, I could just signal the Count for a clean sweep.'

Just as I was about to leave the auction house.

The auctioneer's hyped-up voice stopped me in my tracks.

"Finally, time for the main dish of this auction!"

He had everyone's attention with his theatrical gestures.

Clearly, this wasn't his first time running such an event.

As all eyes focused, the lights went out.

Then came the sound of wheels. An iron cage being rolled center stage.

Flash!

The lights came on, spotlighting just the cage.

"This is the cream of the crop! Black hair like night and eyes to match! A boy with features identical to those of the royalty of the fallen nation!"

"Ooh... Ooooh...!"

"Shame he's a bit roughed up from training... But being young, he'll heal quick, right?"

'A bit roughed up' was putting it mildly.

Dried blood clearly visible from his face to his neck.

Must've bled so much they couldn't clean it all.

His eyes were so swollen you could barely see them, and his breathing was so hard his chest heaved.

Whenever he slumped against the cage, a thug would kick him, forcing him upright.

Tears fell on the knees of the boy turned commodity overnight.

That's when I realized I'd never known true evil.

I never knew one person could do this to another.

It was a cruelty I'd never seen in my past life or in the quiet temple of this one.

"..."

I need to run to the Count now.

Get him to send in troops to arrest them all.

These monsters who've ditched their humanity need to pay.

As my mind went blank with these thoughts.

My mouth started reciting God's words on its own.

"... For you did not mediate friendship and peace."

And you turned your backs on humility and law.

"... So I sent down the sword."