Chapter 40
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Temple
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Over the past two months, I'd grown a tremendous amount.
The extent of my growth was such that I felt confident I could achieve a decisive victory against my two-months-ago self.
Part of it was that my past self had been so pathetic, but since my skills had been mediocre at best, having a proper master accelerated my progress dramatically.
"And..."
It wasn't just my swordsmanship that had improved—I'd also gotten a feel for how to properly wield the lightning that dwelled within my technique.
When I first acquired this ability,
I couldn't use it freely because several conditions weren't met.
First off, lightning doesn't just appear if you imagine it and swing your sword.
You do need to visualize the lightning, but there has to be at least some friction involved.
That's why it only manifested when I drew my sword from its sheath and swung it, and nothing happened afterward no matter how much I slashed at the empty air.
I discovered this during my fourth sparring session with Marcel.
The moment our weapons clashed, I imagined the lightning.
I desperately wanted to electrocute Marcel with it, and the thought slipped out unconsciously.
At that instant, white electricity briefly enveloped my blade.
Of course, there was no way for the current to flow into Marcel, who was wielding a wooden staff against me,
and he startled, kicking me away to end the exchange. But after that day, he started believing my words.
He even praised me, saying it was a great ability.
Especially against opponents wielding solid metal weapons, it would be a tremendous advantage, he noted.
However, he advised me not to reveal it too openly.
A trump card only shines when the enemy is unaware of it,
and if everyone knows about it, it can't truly be called a trump card.
Engraving Marcel's teachings deep in my heart, I stared at the spot where he'd departed for a long while. Then Shan called out to me.
"Ellie."
"...Yes?"
"What are your plans from here on out?"
"Well, I was thinking of training a bit longer. I'm not quite at the level where I can roam outside safely yet."
The shocking events from before made me feel like my current level was still insufficient.
Objectively speaking, my strength wasn't lacking.
If my old self had been in the upper ranks among peers, now—in short battles, at least—I was among the top of my level.
That should be enough to earn respect anywhere.
Though if it dragged into a prolonged fight due to my lacking stamina, I'd plummet to the lower ranks among peers.
But that rarely happens anyway.
However, looking at it objectively again,
my situation wasn't a "normal" one.
If it had been, that incident in the city never would've occurred in the first place.
"I'm planning to step away for a bit next week myself."
"I see..."
Come to think of it, both of them had been helping me for two months without taking any requests.
No matter how much money you have, going two months without work causes all sorts of troubles.
"But... you don't need to keep watch on me?"
"I already know you're far from being a devil worshipper. That's why I spared and taught you."
"Fair enough..."
If I looked like a devil worshipper, they wouldn't have taught me anything—instead, they'd have buried me alive in some dank hole.
"By the way, any interest in joining me on this request?"
"What kind is it?"
"Dealing with a devil worshipper. You'll see some ugly sights more often than with ordinary requests, but there's satisfaction in eliminating scum that harms the world."
"Do we have to go far?"
"No, it's torturing a guy extradited to the capital to extract info, then killing him."
"Why you for that...?"
"I only take devil worshipper requests, so I get named requests like this related to them sometimes."
So this was a named request too.
It sounded pretty good.
Staying within the capital and interrogating devil worshippers—whom I had plenty in common with—seemed beneficial for me.
"But it's a named request for you. Is it okay if I tag along?"
"I'll just say you're my assistant."
And that works, huh.
The criteria seemed looser than expected.
No reason to refuse, so I nodded.
Even if the dice rolled and something huge happened, with the forces in the capital, if that same giant appeared, its head would explode and vanish within five minutes.
From the news about that city, a gold-rank adventurer had finally slain the giant and lifted the domain.
There were heavy casualties, but the capital had four such gold-rank adventurers, plus the royal guard and knight order combined—ten giants wouldn't be an issue.
That was why I judged the capital the safest place.
"I haven't taken requests lately either, so I'm running low on living expenses. Count me in."
"Then I'll inform the client you're included."
"Sure."
Shan said it involved ugly sights, but I wasn't too bothered.
I'd already seen plenty of ugliness.
I'd witnessed innocent people dying pointlessly and horrifically.
"Torture... I have to help with that, right?"
"I'll handle the actual torture. That's the expert's role."
"...Can't we just inflict pain?"
All sorts of gruesome torture plans flooded my mind.
This wasn't because I was cruel—it was just punishment for the cruel, so no issue with my humanity.
Looking down at me with those thoughts, Shan furrowed his brow slightly and spoke calmly.
"Inflicting pain is easy. But inflicting pain while keeping them alive? That's hard. Blindly causing pain might kill them before you get info, missing the point entirely."
"Ah..."
He was right.
Of the torture methods I'd imagined, how many could anyone survive?
Ten out of ten would die, defeating the purpose of extraction.
"I'll list the supplies you need to buy today. I'll cover the cost."
"Supplies too?"
"Of course. Holy water to purify their bodies after, white clothes, a mask to cover your face, thick leather gloves."
With that, Shan pulled two silver coins from his pouch and handed them over.
These weren't empty words—they were essentials. I nodded.
I bought the supplies and continued training, and the week flew by.
We headed to the underground prison in the deepest part of the outer city.
Four soldiers guarded the entrance heavily, but after Shan showed the request document and a 10-minute verification, they opened the door.
"...Wouldn't a vital facility like this be better in the inner city?"
"The inner city's residents are all wealthy—they'd never want a creepy underground prison in their neighborhood."
NIMBYism was the same in modern times or now.
I understood, yet it left a cold feeling in my chest.
We changed in the prison changing room, then descended the stairs.
The underground had three levels.
Level 1 for minor crimes, level 2 for major crimes, and from level 3 onward for even worse felons. Our devil worshipper target was on level 3.
"Level 1 has beds and private toilets, but level 2 just has beds and communal ones without partitions."
"Treatment varies by crime severity."
"Yeah. Level 3 reeks of dampness, fish, and filth. No beds, no toilets."
Up to level 2, survival was possible; level 3 was uninhabitable for humans.
No torches lit the dark, cold stone walls and iron bars.
It felt deliberate, leaving people in darkness.
"The interrogation room is further in. It's dark—watch your step and follow closely."
Shan led with a magic lantern; I trailed behind.
The room already had the man bound to an iron chair with chains, as if prepared in advance.
Shan set the lantern on the table and lit the room's lights.
The magic lamps, akin to modern bulbs, illuminated the space instantly.
The revealed man's appearance was quite grotesque.
"...Shan."
"Hard to look at?"
"No, were you comparing me to filth like this and still doubting me?"
His face had literally melted.
Ugly.
Visceral disgust welled up.
"I'm pretty, you know. You should've suspected accordingly."
"You used to blush saying that, but now it's casual."
"You get used to anything eventually."
Casually donning my mask, I took a pill from Shan and slipped it into the unconscious devil worshipper's mouth.
The pill dissolved slowly, absorbing into his body, and soon he awoke, looking up at us.
"Awakening pill first, then torture, right?"
"Yeah, passing out is a hassle."
"Toes first, or fingers?"
"You start low and build up. Too much pain at once causes shock death. Includes visual pain, so since toenails are in his downward view, we start there."
"Got it."
As I nonchalantly fetched and lined up tools from the wall, the devil worshipper spasmed and yelled.
"...Y-you lunatics! Ask first, torture if no answer! Who starts with torture?!"
We stared down at him blankly, then exchanged glances.
"Hear that?"
"Nope."
"Keep going?"
"Yeah."
Without hesitation, Shan used the tool I'd handed him to grip the big toenail, twisting it forcibly to wound the toe before slowly pulling it out.
He deliberately didn't extract the root fully, tearing midway to allow a second round of pain.
"Gaaarghhh!!"
"Should I heat a needle?"
Thinking a heated needle into the fresh socket would ensure agony, I suggested it. Shan blinked at me.
"Oh."
"Y-you mad bastards! I-I'll talk! No, I will talk!"
Shan and I met eyes again.
Should we listen?
We pondered briefly, then shook our heads in unison.
These monsters sacrificed people for gain.
Why show mercy?
None.
Ignore him now—would he shut up?
No.
One toenail and he's suddenly polite.
Interrogation for info?
We could do it anytime.
"Hear that?"
"...No?"
"Keep going?"
"Yeah."
My stomach churned a bit, but punishing non-humans required no guilt.
That was my stance.
Calling it revenge for Tory and the kids would be a lie—this was personal grudge, no denial.
"Tough one... enduring this much pain."
"...Hm, yeah."
"Might need to ramp it up."
"Got it."
Watching our exchange, he thrashed, but we ignored him.
Want human treatment? Live like one.
Only after ripping out all nails, thrusting heated needles into the sockets, and severing every finger and toe did we finally heed his words.
Being small fry, his info was all stuff Shan already knew.
Realizing we wouldn't stop no matter what, he spat empty threats like "The bishop will punish you all," then perished in endless agony—worthless as a bug.
"...Bishop?"
"The devil worshippers' ringleader. Temples, empire, adventurer guilds, kingdoms, duchies, countless city-states chase him relentlessly, yet he evades capture. A real headache."
"...Huh."
As Shan said, if the whole world hunted him without success, his abilities were legit, evil or not.
"Think the bishop will avenge him?"
"I've heard that over twenty times—still fine."
"No need to worry then."
"Right. Good work anyway."
"No big deal."
I shrugged, celebrating the small request's end.
Killing might usually feel off, but my mind was too warped now.
No particular thoughts or emotions arose.
Devil worshippers, huh.
Aside from the stark appearance difference, I could see why Shan suspected me.
Looking at him felt like gazing into a mirror—disgust crawling up my spine.
"Feels gross."
Emitting the same aura as those things wasn't a lie.
Given this, I should avoid temple folks as much as possible.
I'd done nothing wrong, but misunderstandings seemed likely.
The next day,
temple personnel appeared in the capital.
To investigate the city wholly sacrificed to devil worshippers.
Naturally, Shan and I, survivors of that incident, were summoned.
"...Aren't you a devil worshipper?"
As expected, suspicion arose.
Innocent? I'd be lying. But I'd had a hunch it'd go this way.
"...Haa."
I sighed, surrounded by the temple people.