Chapter 15
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Who Judges the Examiner? (4)
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The words struck right at the heart of the matter, and for the first time, Erzena’s holy power flinched ever so slightly.
As the ominously rippling aura receded a bit, the air around the two finally lightened, allowing a breeze to flow in.
The saintess and Mohaim’s gazes met.
Mohaim looked just as shocked as she did.
‘How in the world...’
Mohaim’s plan to pass through the Crossroad Kingdom was flawless.
1. If only the paladins and saintess headed north, it would surely be seen as political maneuvering, so they formed a pilgrimage group to dilute that impression.
2. They assembled an unprecedentedly massive group, disguising war supplies as relief goods and holy relics.
By the time the examiners, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of cargo and people, noticed anything suspicious, it would already be too late.
The key figures in the pilgrimage would have already been cleared first and headed north.
As long as the 1st Paladin Order and the saintess made it through the Crossroad Kingdom, the rest could get held up without issue.
Yet here it was, blocked from the very start.
‘It should’ve taken at least half a day before there was any risk of getting caught.’
Erzena clenched her fist tightly to hide her agitation as best she could.
‘Pull yourself together. The guy’s from the Evil God Cult. It’s natural he’d have some suspicions.’
Fortunately, the Central Officer still seemed to be operating on suspicion alone, not certainty.
If he truly knew their real goal—the northern expedition—he would’ve blocked the saintess’s entry by any means necessary from the outset.
But he’d been incredibly cooperative right up until the moment he was about to stamp the entry permit.
There was just one missing piece, and she would’ve already crossed the border.
‘The documents from the attendant. That’s when his demeanor changed.’
After the wind flipped over those papers, the man sitting before her was no longer the cheerful, polite young man.
The one who’d been flustered around the saintess herself, his emotions plain for all to see, was gone.
"Please answer, Saintess."
In his place was an examiner whose gaze pierced straight through to the soul.
-Srrrr.
In the silence, only the sound of sand flowing through the hourglass could be heard.
"What is the pilgrimage group’s true purpose?"
The psychological pressure of dwindling time for explanations, delivered in a voice stripped of all emotion.
His expression, now devoid of any smile, looked ready to pounce at the slightest flaw.
Erzena slowly opened her mouth.
"...I have no idea what you’re talking about. True purpose?"
At the saintess’s response, the Central Officer’s fingers tapped the table. Tok, tok.
Each time, the sand in the hourglass beside him poured out at an even faster rate.
"In my view... I don’t believe you’re heading north for a pilgrimage."
"What?"
"To be precise, the pilgrimage feels secondary, with something else hidden within."
The Central Officer spoke bluntly, in words bordering on diplomatic discourtesy.
Suspecting the true intentions of an entire organization, rather than an individual, was a grave insult.
Especially when that organization’s leader was present.
Erzena shot back sharply.
"Don’t make baseless accusations, Central Officer. That’s highly offensive."
"My apologies. But my position requires me to always suspect true intentions."
"Are you saying the Holy Church is lying right now?"
"In my line of work, many people do. Even priests have hidden smuggled goods under their robes."
"You...!!!"
Unlike his initial meek demeanor, the Central Officer didn’t yield an inch.
He pressed further, uttering even ruder words to provoke Erzena.
Enraged by this, the saintess spat out in a fit of anger.
"Then what do you think it is? What do you think our real purpose is?!"
Her raised voice echoed across the border.
"Saintess."
Mohaim signaled her not to provoke him further, but her words had already reached the Central Officer.
"..."
The Central Officer remained silent.
For an uncomfortably long time.
His face showed no panic, no amusement—nothing.
His black eyes stared at the saintess without a flicker.
Instead of the saintess growing tense from his unexpected quiet after all the sharp retorts, her stomach began to twist with anxiety.
‘There’s no way he knows. No way some Evil God Cult dog has figured out our grand undertaking.’
Sweat beaded on her palms.
Excitement, worry, and rage made her heart pound wildly.
Did he really know? Or was he just probing?
The saintess prayed silently.
‘Please, let this heretic remain ignorant of our noble cause.’
And finally, the Central Officer’s lips parted.
He spoke in a low voice.
"You’re off to wage a holy war."
The heretic already knew.
"Ha."
Her first reaction was a hollow laugh.
"A holy war?"
The second was a retort with exaggerated gestures.
I nodded.
Holy war.
It was the term all religions cried out when unleashing absolute force.
A word used to completely crush somewhere—or something—on behalf of the entire church.
‘Nothing else fits.’
Considering all the clues so far, nothing else seemed like a plausible true motive besides a holy war.
‘It’s not a regular war. The church wouldn’t go to war against a nation.’
A nation was, after all, full of potential believers, so they avoided picking fights.
But all-out war against another church? That was possible.
History had examples of mutual heresy accusations, followed by crushing the opponent and stealing their followers.
So I’d taken a stab at it.
Erzena looked up at the sky wordlessly, then closed her eyes and murmured quietly.
"To think the world has fallen this far... if they’ve already discerned our purpose..."
I’d hit the nail on the head.
As expected, the pilgrimage wasn’t the real goal. It was secondary, or a cover.
That left only a holy war.
‘Now, what to do about this.’
But the problem wasn’t solved yet.
This situation was on a whole different level from some individual trying to sneak in illegally.
The Crossroad Kingdom never opened its paths for war or military action.
No matter who it was for.
So right now, I needed to stamp [Entry Denied] on the entire pilgrimage group.
But then I recalled what the minister had said.
- Make sure nothing happens to the saintess. Good or bad.
It meant to avoid any issues involving the saintess, no matter the circumstances.
The minister’s orders took precedence over standard protocol.
It was a measure for flexibility in crises or urgent matters.
And the performance bonus and clean record tied to it couldn’t be ignored.
But that applied to minor infractions, not something as major as opening the path for military action.
‘Still, an order’s an order...’
If I stamped based on protocol anyway, all the fallout would land on me.
A conflicting mess of orders versus rules.
What now?
‘Should I contact the minister first?’
As I pondered solutions, the saintess suddenly stood with her eyes still closed.
"Hm? What’s the matter?"
Her golden eyes, now open after finishing her prayer, glared at me, brimming with resolve and fury.
"If it is the will of the Lord, then I shall enact it here and now."
She slowly drew a makeup brush from her bosom and began writing something on her forehead.
[Believers to Heaven, Heretics to Hell]
What the hell was that?
Why scribble something so vicious on such a pretty face?
She even drew a bright red cross on her cheek before speaking.
"Enough games. Central Officer Nathan Kell. We’ve known your true nature from the start."
"..."
Her rigidly extended finger pointed straight between my eyes.
I had no response to her words.
‘Of course you know me. I’m the head of border control.’
I’d even introduced myself earlier.
What kind of nonsense was this?
"Threats like that won’t affect the inspection results—"
"Silence! No more trying to deceive me!"
Erzena shut me down with a shout.
"1st Paladin Order, hear me! Our enemies have already taken root across the world!"
A thunderous voice erupted from her slender frame.
The moment I saw it, I knew exactly what she was up to.
‘Ah, the classic type I see all the time.’
Some people were like that.
When they sensed they’d get caught violating entry rules, they’d lash out with absurd reasons instead.
The most common subtype among troublesome visitors.
‘A saintess pulling this is pretty novel, though.’
In the end, no matter how exalted, they were still human.
Put on airs of nobility and grace all you want—once their true feelings were exposed, out came the temper.
‘People are all the same.’
A wry smile tugged at my lips.
"How dare you laugh?!"
Even more incensed by my reaction, she pointed at me and yelled.
"This vile pretender who dares impersonate the Lord’s love to obstruct our great cause—"
"Saintess!!!"
But her words were cut off by Mohaim, who stepped forward with a serious expression.
"That’s enough. You’ve caused enough of a scene today."
"Mohaim! But that man, that person!"
So indignant, she stomped her feet in place.
Mohaim sliced through her complaints with a stern voice.
"Conflicts at the border carry as much weight as in wartime. You’ve already broken our agreement and diplomatic etiquette, Saintess. Stop now. I’ll handle this from here."
"But this is...!"
"...Enough."
"Ughhh! Just this once!"
The saintess huffed and puffed for a while before finally sitting back down and rubbing the ugly words off her face with her hand.
The paladin captain turned to face me.
"Examiner."
"Captain Espirence."
"I’ll admit it honestly. We’re heading north for a holy war."
"So you’re confirming my suspicions were justified."
"I agree."
Ho, a direct frontal assault. Rare case.
My eyes sparkled at this new type.
I wondered what excuse he’d pull to get through this.
"That’s why I’m showing you this."
Mohaim held out a crystal orb.
"This is..."
"You uphold the rules to guard the border, Examiner. But we must cross it."
"Everyone has circumstances. Being from the church changes nothing."
"But I’m confident this will change your mind."
"What does this crystal orb have to do with border crossing?"
"A great deal."
With that short reply, he infused mana into the orb.
Inside, an elderly man who looked quite advanced in years appeared, watering flowers.
"Sorry to disturb you during your vacation."
The old man turned to Mohaim and waved lightly.
- Ah, 1st Paladin Captain. Lighting up the crystal orb means trouble, I suppose.
"Yes. Just as you predicted, we’re stuck at the Crossroad Kingdom. It fit perfectly."
- Heh heh heh. I figured as much.
The two conversed casually, clearly well-acquainted.
Wait, what did this old man have to do with me?
"Pardon me, but may I ask who this is...?"
As I cautiously inquired, Mohaim extended the orb toward me.
"Central Officer, say hello. This is His Holiness the Pope."
Holy shit.