Interrogation (3)
I suppose my excuses to the priests weren't very effective after all. From that moment on, the priests who I thought had understood began taking especially good care of me.
“Where are you going, Your Grace?”
“I left something in the prayer room. I'll be right back.”
“You can't go alone! Hey!! His Grace is moving!”
I'd begged them to stop, but it was no use. I'd planned to slip away quietly since it was only a short trip, but they couldn't let even that small gap slide. They reported it themselves so a guard would follow me.
They all thought I was suffering from some danger I couldn't speak of, and that I was staying silent to protect them.
“No matter how much I deny it, everyone’s misunderstood completely.”
“Shall I explain things for you?”
“No, they'll figure it out if nothing happens. That really nothing is going on.”
As more heretic inquisitors were added to my guard detail, the days I saw Sister Melody gradually decreased.
“By the way, it's really nice to see you after so long. What did you do on your day off?”
Since she was taking turns guarding me like the other inquisitors, it was only natural that our meeting times would shrink. She'd been working day and night because of me all this time, so I thought it would be good for her to have some personal time and rest. I genuinely meant well, but...
'They say the seat that’s filled doesn’t show, but the empty one always stands out.'
Maybe it was because I'd been under Sister Melody's protection for so long, but being with anyone else felt incredibly awkward and uncomfortable. Still, it was true that I'd placed too heavy a burden on her, so I believed letting her rest was the right thing to do. Any discomfort I felt was something I could easily endure if it meant she could rest.
“It wasn’t a very good time.”
But strangely, Sister Melody gave a heavy answer to my light question.
“Why? Did something happen? I thought you’d come back well-rested.”
“They probably didn’t want me to rest. No, never mind. Please forget what I just said.”
“Why?”
“It was nonsense. It seems I felt a bit resentful. I acted emotionally.”
It was surprising to hear that Sister Melody—of all people—had acted emotionally. And the fact that she herself recognized it and let out a deep sigh was almost amusing.
“Were you upset that I switched guards without hesitation?”
“…I know the current method is more efficient and systematic, so I realize my words sound strange.”
“Not at all. I’ve felt so empty and uncomfortable without you… I can’t even count how many times I’ve wished we could go back to how things were before.”
I wondered if she could sense that I truly meant it.
“Are they making you uncomfortable, Your Grace?”
“It’s only natural to feel uneasy when you’ve been with someone comfortable and suddenly have to be with strangers. And from what I’ve seen, you and I actually got along quite well.”
Compared to the inquisitors currently guarding me, Sister Melody’s stiffness was practically cute. Those people…
'They look like they wouldn’t bleed even if you stabbed them.'
When I first met Sister Melody, I’d found it strange that someone who seemed so accustomed to blood and skilled at judging heretics was apparently fresh out of training. But now that I had others to compare her to, it was clear she really had been rather inexperienced.
They weren’t people I could handle just by getting close to them.
“So you also preferred it when I guarded you alone, Your Grace?”
“That’s right.”
“If it could be undone, would you do so?”
“Undo it?”
“It’s not helping at all. There’s no need to drag around something so cumbersome, is there?”
Was she really trying to send them away just because I’d said I was uncomfortable?
“Still, I can’t keep asking you to guard me all day long. It’s better for you to rotate shifts so you can live comfortably like this. Besides, those people will eventually leave once time passes. They won’t stay by my side like you do.”
The heretic inquisitors were people who would disappear once their purpose was fulfilled.
“Don’t say anything bad about your seniors for no reason.”
It was something I could endure for a little while. Getting on the bad side of superiors would be too great a loss. Wasn’t that exactly why I’d been marked by them before? Thanks to my master’s help, I’d avoided disaster, but it wouldn’t be without consequences. I had no idea what kind of disadvantages might come later. Knowing that, I couldn’t possibly tell her to walk the same path.
“Understand?”
“…Understood. Still, if you find it unbearable, or if they ever do anything strange, please tell me immediately.”
“I will.”
Fortunately, my sincere dissuasion worked, and Sister Melody withdrew her suggestion.
“And I’ve been thinking… the problem is that we only see each other occasionally by chance, right? It’s not like our relationship is so cold that we can only meet for work, is it?”
“Pardon?”
“How about we meet on your days off and spend time together? We could eat delicious food or have a light conversation.”
Since she had stayed by my side only because of her guard duty, it seemed she hadn’t considered meeting outside of official business.
“Th… that’s possible, I suppose.”
She nodded, as if realizing a new possibility. And so, our first date promise was made—though I myself only realized how flustered I was afterward.
I’d told Sister Melody that the heretic inquisitors were burdensome, but they weren’t entirely unhelpful or merely inconvenient. They didn’t just stand guard—they also lent a hand with matters at the clinic.
Not all the patients who crowded in after the clinic doors closed were good people. Especially when transients flooded the place, their presence proved incredibly useful. What surprised me most was how effectively their utter lack of mercy worked.
“Let go of me!!! Aaaagh! It hurts! It hurts, I said!!”
“If it hurts, sit still and receive treatment. If you cause another disturbance, I’ll make sure you never set foot in the temple again.”
“!!!”
In fact, heretic inquisitors had the authority to add names to the Blacklist. Perhaps because the threat was sincere, the patient who had seemed incapable of controlling his anger suddenly became docile.
“Your Grace, it hurts here.”
“Yes?”
“It hurts right here. Please treat it quickly.”
There were also those who did perverted things to the priests. The inquisitors dealt with them just as decisively. Since it was subtle sexual harassment, if the perpetrator denied it, punishment would become ambiguous, but…
“You dare try to defile a body that serves the gods?”
“Hurk!!!”
The moment the inquisitor grabbed the sexually harassing patient by the collar and glared at him as if ready to kill, the man wet himself and fled. When an inquisitor with an appearance that could make even the Grim Reaper step aside glared with murderous intent and spoke threateningly, who would dare talk back? The patient who took the killing intent head-on couldn’t endure for long.
'I really don’t understand why someone would wait in line for so long just to pull something like that.'
Anyway, the heretic inquisitors excelled at expelling problem patients. Thanks to them, the priests who had initially avoided them out of fear gradually began to accept them. Though they were still afraid to get too close.
“This is the first time I’ve seen patients behave so obediently.”
“Me too.”
“I know it’s wrong, but it feels so refreshing.”
“Pfft! Right?”
“I guess I had prejudices because they looked so scary. Now that they’ve helped us, I feel really sorry. We should treat them well.”
“Should we prepare some snacks for them?”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
The public opinion toward them had completely turned positive. Sister Melody had whispered it to me alone, revealing that their helpful actions had been intentional. They knew their appearances weren’t exactly friendly, so they were trying to integrate by offering assistance.
'They really do have faces that require effort.'
I didn’t think their efforts themselves were bad. There was nothing wrong with doing things to earn people’s favor. However, just like with Sister Melody’s attitude, I simply didn’t want to get close to them.
'They don’t seem like people I should get friendly with.'
The strange aura that Sister Melody had given off when I first met her was even thicker and more dangerous with them. That was why I felt even more reluctant and uncomfortable.
'Is it because of Sister Melody’s attitude? They really don’t look close at all.'
Although she called them seniors, the distance between them felt far too great to be a simple senior-junior relationship. Hadn’t they immediately glared when I said I was uncomfortable, ready to send them away? I’d tried to brush it off as their unique atmosphere, but…
'No matter how strict their hierarchy is, isn’t it strange for them to dislike her that much?'
Even if they weren’t as close as we were, the fact that their dislike was so obvious felt off. It wasn’t just that Sister Melody disliked them one-sidedly. Watching their unconscious attitude toward her, I felt negative emotions rising.
'It’s too much. We were getting along fine, yet they criticize her and say she did it wrong.'
Despite the clear evidence that I was still alive and unharmed—proof that Sister Melody had guarded me well—they refused to acknowledge her achievements. It was thanks to her protection that I hadn’t been seriously injured and had survived until now. Moreover, considering her performance in the Labyrinth, scolding her made no sense. I’d expected praise for a job well done, but all that came back was cold, harsh criticism.
After that, they completely overturned all of Sister Melody’s rules for guarding me and replaced them with their own methods. They treated me with perfect politeness and care, but the way they acted coldly toward their own junior left me confused every time I saw it. Were these people good or bad? I wished someone would give me a clear answer, but unfortunately, it seemed I would have to judge for myself and reach a conclusion.