The Demon's Street
The wet slap of footsteps echoed through the alley. Squelch. Squelch. Accompanied by the vulgar sound of flesh, a woman's lewd cries spilled into the night.
Hermann watched the prostitute straddle him, grinding her hips with practiced enthusiasm, and answered in a lazy drawl.
"Huh? Oh, I heard someone say they saw a demon over there... Haaang!"
She paused her movements for a moment, thinking, then answered. At that exact instant, a satisfied smile spread across Hermann's face. The information was solid. Thinking that, he began to move his own hips, ready to finish.
Splurt! Splurt!
Watching her completely lose herself, Hermann finished roughly outside her and tossed her onto the bed. Her technique was decent, but her face wasn't really his type. The freckled, cute-faced whore lay sprawled on the sheets, still trembling from the aftershocks and unable to get up. Hermann gave her oversized breasts—one last squeeze that didn't match her petite frame—then slowly pulled on his black robes.
"Thanks for the hard work."
He tossed some coins at her and stepped outside. Lina, who had been sitting in front of the brothel with a bored expression, looked up.
Lina's expression was sour. She had already endured endless hardship because people kept mistaking her for a prostitute dressed in a nun costume. Hermann answered her completely unenthusiastic voice with perfect nonchalance.
"...Ah, you mean that abandoned village? It's been a while since I've heard of a demon lurking in such an outdated place."
Lina was genuinely surprised. Demons usually hid among humans. In that sense, it was actually unusual these days to find one in a place full of derelict houses. Even as she thought that, a question occurred to her.
"Then why was that prostitute in a place like that?"
"Ugh..."
Lina made a face of pure disgust. Hermann shrugged with a sly grin.
"...Then please respect my taste in finding that repulsive, Your Excellency."
Lina answered while squeezing her eyes shut. Hermann chuckled. She really did have the most entertaining reactions. That was precisely why he kept her around.
In any case, the job of an Exorcist was remarkably simple. Unlike certain other professions, there was no need to memorize laws by heart, dig through precedents, compare them against church doctrine to determine what was more just, hand down verdicts, and then meticulously draft lengthy reports. All you had to do was... exorcise demons. In a sense, it was an incredibly straightforward occupation.
So it'd be nice if people would acknowledge that.
It would be wonderful if someone would just help with such simple work... Hermann muttered to himself, unable to hide his regret as he walked on.
"An Inquisitor, you see... is a shitty job."
Father Nicolas had said that.
"It's ridiculously difficult, the pay is terrible, and it's dangerous. So if you become a priest, you should definitely become a brewer."
The boy looked at his mentor, who kept repeating the warning, and asked with a puzzled face.
"...Then why are you an Inquisitor, Master?"
If you hate it that much, shouldn't you just stop? The boy asked with that innocent thought in mind. Nicolas scratched his head roughly at the pure question and answered.
"It's my calling. To use my power the right way. I pray to God every day for that."
In that regard, being an Inquisitor—who followed the law and stood up for the weak—suited him perfectly. Nicolas smiled.
"I hope you do the same. Please, use that power correctly."
The boy still remembered it. That smile. Those words. And...
"It's already too late. Tsk! That's why I told you not to go alone!"
His cold corpse as well.
Greg grumbled while holding the demon that had killed Nicolas in his massive hand. The boy reached out with trembling fingers and gently stroked the body.
Use your power... the right way...
Squeeze. The boy clenched his fist tightly, remembering those words. Then, in front of that cold corpse, he made a vow.
He wanted to keep that promise. And so... even now, as an adult, the boy constantly asked himself. Was he truly... using that power the right way?
"Your Eminence?"
Ah... The moment he woke from the dream, he heard Asa's voice and realized he had been dreaming. So that was it.
It was a dream.
Yes. He had sworn an oath. In that moment when his master died at the hands of a demon. That he would use his power correctly for the rest of his life. That he would offer everything to God to do so.
His master had not been a strong man. The demon had been a low-grade one. But... there was no way a mere Inquisitor could handle a demon. A priest who had spent his entire life studying law and doctrine could never stand against a demon.
Yet his master had fought. To protect a single kidnapped child. To protect the weak.
That child had been nothing special. Lowborn, an orphan with no parents, and without any exceptional talent. Compared to the outstanding Inquisitor Nicolas, many would have said it was far more beneficial for Nicolas to live. A truly insignificant child.
Even so, his master had not hesitated to fight the demon to save him. Knowing full well he would die, he had protected that boy without fail.
Seeing that, he had thought... I want to become like that too.
He wanted to protect someone.
He was a pathetic man who couldn't even protect the one woman he loved... and yet...
"Still, it feels like I'm getting more familiar with the train."
When Asa grumbled while stroking a pigeon, he let out a small laugh.
Even so, he wanted to protect. His master's words. His teachings. He was an idiot who couldn't properly protect even one woman he loved. But he was also an incorrigible fool who respected his master.
In any case, the train was moving smoothly. Toward Giner, the capital of the Rucella Kingdom.
"It's eerie."
Lina wrapped her arms around herself as she looked at the street lined with abandoned houses. Doing so made her surprisingly good figure stand out a little more than usual, but Hermann paid it no attention. He was completely focused on the demonic energy he felt in this place.
The aura itself is low-grade, but...
Still, it was quite large. It seemed to have devoured a considerable number of humans.
What a pain.
Demons that had eaten many humans became quite troublesome even if they were low-grade. Or rather, the lower the grade, the more annoying they could become.
[Grrr...]
Drip. Drip...!
"Y-Your Excellency!"
At that moment, a beastly growl rang out, and an enormous, hideous creature revealed itself. Lina called out to Hermann in fear. Hermann naturally hid her behind him and calmly observed the demon.
It looked like a giant dog stitched together from several corpses, with multiple arms sprouting from its body. That was the demon living on this street. And that was exactly the problem that arose when a low-grade demon devoured too many humans.
Once a demon reached mid-grade, such mutations didn't occur. But... because it was low-grade and unstable, consuming that many humans caused its body to mutate with the demonic energy dwelling within human flesh, making it stronger and harder.
A low-grade demon like this could actually be more threatening than a mid-grade one.
Bang!
It's tough.
Hermann marveled as the bullet he fired bounced right off. So it could deflect pistol rounds? Well...
Thud!
[!]
The demon's eyes widened at the bullet Hermann had fired, which had pierced precisely into its heart. That was only natural. The shot he had just fired wasn't an ordinary bullet.
That's exactly it...
Lina wasn't surprised even after seeing it. That was Hermann's Unique Magic. Magic Bullet. Hermann could create bullets made of pure magical power. It was an incredibly simple spell, but that was precisely why it required a tool. Without a gun, even if he created the bullets, he had no means to fire them. Of course, he could throw them, but in terms of efficiency, using a gun was far better.
Thud!
The demon collapsed, unable to withstand even a single shot. Whoosh. At that moment, rain began to fall. Hermann, his body steaming, casually raised his gun and fired another magic bullet.
Fwoosh!
The demon's corpse instantly caught fire and began to burn fiercely, completely ignoring the rain.
"Where should we go next..."
Hermann watched the flames die down in the rain after quickly burning the corpse, confirming they were completely extinguished before turning away.
"Whoa! You look like a mess, Miss Lina."
"...Your Excellency."
Lina glared at Hermann, who was whistling at the sight of her nun's habit completely soaked and clinging to her body. The once loose habit now stuck tightly to her, revealing every curve of her excellent figure in a rather obscene way. But she was a nun. Hermann had no hobby of looking at the wife of the Goddess with impure eyes, so he took off his own robe and draped it over her.
"...Thank you."
Lina's eyes widened in surprise, as if she hadn't expected such consideration from him. Hermann, now in just his white shirt, slowly walked forward.
How many people had lost their lives to that demon? It was terrifying even to imagine. But... that was exactly why Exorcists risked their lives fighting demons. To prevent even a single person from becoming a victim.
In that sense, Hermann felt a pang of regret.
He wanted to use his power correctly? Then of course...
Jenkinson will end up coming here too.
He would have to come to this street where demons lived. His magic—the ability to forcibly cancel the opponent's magic—was the most necessary power when dealing with demons.
That was why Hermann was certain. Demons would be drawn to him. It was the Goddess's arrangement guiding him here. And so, someday, without fail... he was convinced the boy would walk this path as well.