I'm an Inquisitor, You're a Heretic
The Holy Kingdom of Justia. Alongside the Empire, which ruled the vastest territories on the continent, it was a theocracy that held hegemony over the world. The ruler of this nation was the Pope, the supreme leader of the Central Church. The Papal Palace, where the Pope resided, doubled as the royal palace and served as the absolute center of the Holy Kingdom's administrative system.
In the past, ordinary citizens were strictly forbidden from entering the Papal Palace. Recently, however, parts of the palace facilities had been opened to pilgrims and tourists. Today was no exception; a group of young boys and girls had arrived at the Papal Palace for a tour.
"This is the Grand Cathedral, dedicated to our one true deity, Lady Justia."
"Whoa..."
As soon as the guide finished speaking, gasps of admiration erupted from all sides.
"Admiring is well and good, but please remain as quiet as possible. This is a sacred space where the Main God is resting."
"Yes, sir."
The brief excitement quickly subsided at the guide's gentle admonition.
"Now, let us head inside for a closer look."
The visitors from the Empire were all children of prominent noble families, and their guide was a priest of the Central Church stationed at the Papal Palace.
"That statue over there is the image of our Main God, Lady Justia. The sword in her right hand represents the force used to execute justice, while the shield in her left hand is the barrier that protects the innocent from injustice."
Led by the priest, the tourists approached the statue of the goddess inside the Grand Cathedral to examine it closely.
"Her gaze, directed toward the far horizon, signifies that the hand of justice reaches across thousands of miles..."
"A sword and a shield? Doesn't she look more like a goddess of war than a goddess of justice?"
"Shh! What if someone hears you?"
Even if they were noble heirs, they were still just children at an age when they would rather be running around outside.
"Ahem. In any case, please appreciate it with your eyes only."
The guiding priest decided to generously overlook the whispered, slightly irreverent chatter. In the long run, leaving a good impression on these young nobles and building rapport with them would be highly beneficial to his career as a priest. Friendly relations between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom were not just established at the state level.
Having already built the foundation of his career by working at the Papal Palace, his next step was an overseas missionary deployment. If he could get stationed in the Empire, it would be absolutely perfect. By acting as a tour guide here and making a good impression, he could gradually make a name for himself among the imperial nobility. Having already been ordained as a priest capable of wielding divine arts, climbing to a much higher position was merely a matter of time, provided he secured his standing both inside and outside the Church.
"Hey, Father-teacher!"
While he was grinning to himself over these pleasant thoughts, a boy suddenly called out in a loud voice.
"It is 'Father,' not 'teacher.' But yes, what is your question?"
"What's behind that door over there?"
The boy pointed to a massive stone door at the far end of the Grand Cathedral. The other children's eyes lit up with curiosity.
"Ah, that is the door to the Hall of Dormancy. It is the chamber where our Main God, who descended to this earth, has been slumbering for a very long time."
"Then, does that mean..."
"Indeed. That door has not been opened for at least several centuries. The Main God has entrusted everything to our Order and is currently taking a long rest."
He spoke with confidence, but even the guide himself had no idea if Justia was actually beyond that door. In truth, even the high-ranking priests who could perform divine arts and claimed to have heard the voice of the Main God did not truly believe she was inside the Hall of Dormancy. After all, neither the most devout priest nor the most sacrilegious heretic had ever been able to budge that door.
"They say that the day the slumbering deity awakens will be a day when a crisis so great has occurred that the Main God herself must intervene."
"L-like an invasion by the Demon King?"
"Hahaha. The Demon King, you say? You have quite the imagination."
The priest chuckled at the other boy's question. Demons certainly existed, but there was no need to trouble the children with such grim realities.
The tour group spent about twenty minutes leisurely exploring the interior of the Grand Cathedral. Perhaps due to the overwhelming solemnity of the cathedral itself, the children, though chatty, refrained from running around or climbing on the statues.
"Alright, let us move on to the next location. Everyone, gather over here."
"Okay!"
At the priest's call, the children scattered throughout the cathedral scurried back to him.
"Let's see. One, two..."
Thump!
Just as he was counting heads to move to the next tour site, a heavy, resonant impact echoed from behind them.
"W-what was that?"
Had one of these brats actually caused an accident? The priest's face went pale as he whipped his head around. If a statue or any other relic had been damaged, it would deal a devastating blow to his future career.
"..."
Fortunately, the accident the priest feared had not occurred.
Thump!
Instead, something infinitely worse had happened.
Thump!
Loud, heavy thuds were reverberating from beyond the door of the Hall of Dormancy, which had remained sealed for centuries.
Clatter.
That wasn't all. Pebbles and stone dust began to spill from the seams of the stone door, scattering across the polished floor.
Ruuuumble—
An event that should have been impossible was unfolding right before his eyes. The guide could only stare blankly as the tightly sealed stone door began to grind open from the inside.
A brilliant, blinding light poured through the widening gap. Upon witnessing it, the children collapsed to the floor one by one, losing consciousness instantly.
"Oh, heavens..."
Yet, the priest did not tend to the unconscious children. No, he couldn't even bring himself to think about them. From beyond the wide-open stone door, a majestic, transcendent being revealed herself.
At first glance, she appeared to be a woman with long, flowing white hair, but she was by no means an ordinary mortal. A dazzling halo floated behind her head, and her pure white garments exuded an aura of supreme nobility, looking as if they had been woven from threads spun from the clouds of heaven.
The white-haired woman gazed forward in silence. After a brief moment, her eyes fell upon the trembling priest, and she finally spoke.
"I have sensed an explosion of divinity and awakened from my long slumber."
She was clearly speaking to him, but the priest did not dare to utter a single word in response. It was only because he was trained in the divine arts that he managed to retain his sanity; otherwise, he would have blacked out like the children.
The woman tilted her head slightly, then took elegant steps forward to approach him.
"Mortal. Are you one of my believers?" she asked, staring intently at him.
Crash!
Immediately after the teleportation, the four of them tumbled onto the ground, collapsing in a heap.
"Ugh...!"
Having teleported in such a rush without any time to prepare mentally, Yohan felt as if his internal organs were doing backflips, threatening to empty his stomach.
"Phew..."
Falco and Billy didn't look any better. Just like Yohan, they were desperately fighting down the rising wave of nausea through sheer force of will.
"Bleeegh!"
Meanwhile, the Goddess let out a loud, dramatic retch. Terrified that she might actually throw up something unspeakable, Yohan scrambled away on all fours to put some distance between them.
"Pant... Damn it, seriously, pant... I thought I was going to die."
Yohan finally managed to gasp out, catching his breath. The other two nodded in silent agreement.
"I-I was seriously terrified when that horde of elves suddenly ambushed us."
"Haa... Me too."
It was exactly as they said. They had thought things would end smoothly once the Guardian Deity finally came to its senses, only for a sudden onslaught of bow-wielding point-ears to nearly turn them into pincushions.
"Still, we survived thanks to you, Yohan," Falco said.
"Don't thank me. Thank her," Yohan replied, gesturing toward the Goddess with his chin.
"Uuuurgh..."
The Goddess was still sprawled on the ground, dry-heaving. It didn't seem like she was in any state to hear them.
"Phew. Well, it looks like we escaped in one piece, but where the hell are we?"
His stomach finally settling, Yohan stood up and scanned their surroundings. The other two followed suit.
"For now... it looks like we're near Junk Town."
"Yeah. Seems like it."
Fortunately, the landscape stretching out around them was the familiar, dusty wasteland of the southwestern continent that Yohan had seen more than enough of.
"Hey, how long are you going to stay sprawled out on the dirt? If it's that bad, just turn back into a spirit."
Yohan grumbled as he walked over to her. Despite his harsh words, he knelt beside her and gently patted her back.
"Ugh... T-this much... is perfectly... tolerable..."
"Sure, sure. Anyway, good job. I'm impressed you managed to get us near Junk Town in one go."
Of course, even if they had landed in some strange, unknown place, they could have just teleported again.
"What should we do now?" Billy asked, stepping closer.
Yohan shrugged lightly.
"What else? We head back to Junk Town first."
Though... walking back was going to be a pain. Since they had fled the Great Forest in such a frantic rush, they had lost all of their belongings.
"So that's how it is, dummy," Yohan said, looking down at the Goddess.
"Sigh... Fine. It feels as though you are treating me like a mere carriage, but I shall generously overlook—bleeegh!"
"Damn it! She's actually throwing up!"
In the end, it took several more minutes for the Goddess to fully compose herself.
"Phew. I am truly fine now. Come, gather around me at once."
While the Goddess spoke with a confident smile, the other three approached her slowly, looking highly suspicious.
"Are you sure you're not going to suddenly gag and spray us?"
"Yohan. She is still our Goddess. Watch your mouth."
"Please. You say that, but you'd be the first to run if she started retching again."
"Silence, silence! I shall transport us right next to Junk Town, so quickly picture the destination in your minds!"
As Yohan and Falco bickered, the Goddess barked at them like a fiery general. Yohan took her outstretched hand, closed his eyes, and visualized their destination.
Soon, a magic circle flared up around the four of them, and their vision was engulfed in a brilliant light.
Flash!
Perhaps because the distance was much shorter this time, the second teleportation went smoothly without any unpleasant side effects.
"Since we always teleport to this exact spot, I can recognize it instantly now."
"Yeah, me too."
Their landing point was a hollow in the middle of the wasteland near Junk Town. It was very close to the town, but the depression in the ground kept them hidden from view unless they climbed out.
"Alright, let's get moving. I just hope nothing invaded and trashed the town while we were gone."
—I wish to rest as soon as possible. Once we enter the town, secure a room immediately.
The voice of the Goddess, who had returned to her spiritual form, echoed in his mind. Yohan nodded and began walking toward the town.
"Hey."
After walking for a bit and entering Junk Town, Yohan spotted Wilhelm standing squarely in the middle of the main street for some reason.
"What are you doing posing like a badass in broad daylight?"
"I was told you were waddling your way back to town, so I came out to wait for you."
"Ha, what's this? Were you actually worried about us?"
It seemed they had grown on the gruff man after all. Yohan felt a brief warmth in his chest and let out a chuckle.
"Yohan. I will keep this brief. Run. Right now."
"W-what?"
But Wilhelm's expression and tone were dead serious. Naturally, the smiles vanished from the faces of Yohan, Billy, and Falco. Why was this man acting like this all of a sudden? At the very least, since he wasn't grabbing Yohan by the collar like last time, it didn't seem like they were in trouble for something they had done.
"Let me at least ask why. What is it this time?"
At Yohan's question, Wilhelm let out a soft sigh.
"An Inquisitor is hunting you," he said in a low, heavy voice.