Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Criminals' Church
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While moving deeper into the Empire's interior, Lenis asked me the questions she'd been curious about.
"By the way, Alvis, I've been wondering since we set out—why are you suddenly heading to the Goddess's church? From what I've seen of you so far, I wouldn't peg you as particularly devout."
Elfin chimed in agreement.
"Yeah, now that you mention it, it's weird. You got caught skipping chapel services and had to write reflection essays more than once or twice. I thought you were the least faithful student among the undergrads. So why go to the Goddess's church? To pray or something?"
"Pray... yeah, something like that. Sure, I was a bit lax about it, but if I pray sincerely and ask for a conversation, wouldn't the Goddess at least respond somehow?"
"If it were that easy to communicate with the Goddess, what would be the point of the Lunia Church or the priests..."
Ravi pondered for a moment before asking me,
"Come to think of it, during that fight with the Vector Baron last time, he kept saying stuff about you and the Goddess's power. And before that, Liniaras we met in Libertà spoke like you were hiding some incredible power. Is that what you're going to find out?"
"Something like that. Close, but not quite. Anyway, yeah, I do want to have a chat with the Goddess. The problem is we're wanted now..."
"To be precise, it's just you, Alvis."
Elfin's point was spot on.
After fleeing the border region, in the first Empire city we hit, I spotted a wanted poster with my sketch, ripped it down on the sly, and bolted.
The other three got off lightly since I'd told them early on to cover their faces—their posters only listed partial physical traits. But me, the one who'd drawn all the aggro up front? My sketch was dead accurate.
Thanks to that, I couldn't show my face in crowded Empire spots without a disguise, and even the others risked getting pegged too easily if we traveled as a conspicuous group.
That's why we'd been camping out like this. To figure out why this damn 'fate' thing helped when it wanted but sabotaged me at every turn, I needed to talk to the Goddess.
"So how do you plan to get into a church? Anywhere you go, they'll see your face, and you'll get reported on the spot."
"There's always a way."
With wanted posters everywhere, we couldn't hit up regular Lunia Church temples or churches in ordinary cities.
But there was one branch that operated semi-independently, under the belief that even criminals deserved a minimal chance at penance and repentance.
Just like Linian's fortune-telling shop in Libertà from the game—a pretty unique spot— all sorts of criminals flocked there to pray to the Goddess, confess their sins, swear off crime, and turn over a new leaf.
Talking to them there sometimes got them to rip combat skills straight from their memories and hand them over, vowing to quit the life. None were all that useful in fights, though.
To handle worst-case scenarios, that special church staffed guards who were absolute units—massive powerhouses—and even had reformed criminals volunteering for security.
"There's a church up in the remote northeastern Transen Mountains. They take in criminals without discrimination, so we can go worry-free. It's a legit church anyway, so praying there should get something done."
Elfin and Lenis still looked skeptical.
"'Should get something done'..."
"A church for criminals? Is that place really safe? Won't we end up as targets?"
"Uh... if anything, it might be safer than most spots?"
"......?"
The path to the Transen Mountains church turned out trickier than we'd expected.
Cities were growing larger, settlements more clustered, and traffic heavier, making it that much harder to dodge prying eyes.
Luckily, Ravi and Elfin's sharp ears picked up approaching footsteps early, so the wanted man—that's me—never crossed paths with anyone. Still, it slowed us down getting there.
In exchange, we learned something new en route via Ravi and Elfin: the Goddess's Sword— the Holy Warrior's direct unit—had started hunting for me.
"Goddess's Sword squads are patrolling nearby cities nonstop. Looks like heading into the mountains will be tough."
"The one's leading the Goddess's Sword right now is the third squad captain... rose to the rank super fast on pure skill."
I quietly read the article, watching the red-haired girl—Celine—move like a video in the spot where a photo would be, powered by magic.
Less than a year after graduating the Academy, she'd been recognized for her insane skills and rocketed to squad captain in record time. No one in the Goddess's Sword ranks—who knew her prowess—had a bad word to say.
And now, this Celine was leading the entire Goddess's Sword force, scouring the Empire for me.
'If I get caught by her, I'm screwed.'
Celine was the strongest heroine in the original Loveholic. And she'd hated me just as much as Elfin did back then—probably wouldn't lose to her in sheer loathing.
Lots of reasons for the heroines to despise me, but Celine especially prized pride and nobility, while Alvis was her polar opposite...
Lenis obsessed over nobility too, but it was all for show—her public image. Celine? She worshipped true noble conduct itself, making her way harder to talk to.
She already hated my guts, and now I was a wanted war-inciting terrorist, so unlike when we'd run into Elfin in Carrot Duchy, she'd go straight for violence—100% chance.
Given her skills, if she came at me for real, neither of us would walk away unscathed.
No reason to tangle with Celine now anyway, so avoiding her was priority one as we pushed for Transen Mountain.
"If we run into Celine, it's a fight for sure. You guys don't want that, so let's be extra careful not to cross paths. Ravi, Elfin—keep a sharp eye on Goddess's Sword movements. Lenis and I'll keep our gear light for quick escapes and always scout routes."
From here on, we had to play it ultra-safe—no more campfires and tents like before. Heading to Transen Mountain, we slept rough in the woods, backs against trees, no gear.
All three were far from street-hardened types, so I could see it wearing on them. Feeling bad, I pushed the pace hard to reach the mountain church.
Thanks to Ravi and Elfin's early warnings plus me and Lenis prepped to bolt, we made the mountainside without a Goddess's Sword encounter and followed my lead to the hidden church.
As the church building came into view, the three stared in awe at the slowly growing structure.
"A real church out here..."
"Even if it's another country's deal, I've never heard of a Lunia Church chapel in such a deserted mountain."
"Why build a church in a secret spot like this? It's not the church's fault if criminals show up."
Clueless that every visitor here was a criminal, they voiced perfectly reasonable doubts.
No point saying 'every guest is a crook' and freaking them out, so I skipped the explanation.
Upon arrival, burly musclebound giants thudded toward us—obvious heavy hitters.
Sensing the threat instinctively, the three stepped back, ready to fight if needed...
But the giants bowed politely in welcome.
"Welcome to our humble church, dedicated to Goddess Lunia, esteemed visitors. Here for penance? Or another purpose?"
Their bandit-stereotype looks and deep, gravelly voices clashed wildly with their refined, courteous manners.
The overwhelming dissonance left the three gaping at each other in confusion.
I approached the not-bandits—church guards—and returned the greeting.
"I'd like to pray to the Goddess, but circumstances make it tough to visit the city temples below. Mind if I humbly ask to pray and converse with Her here?"
"Of course. Goddess Lunia grants even the gravest sinners one more chance. Please, enter. We've a prayer room for visitors. Just kindly keep any commotion to a minimum."
The guards parted to the sides, and I opened the church doors.
Alright, Goddess.
Seems like you're the one who gave me this power, so what's with the grudge? Why sabotage me at every turn? And what was that other voice I heard? Let's have a talk.