The Worms of the Empire
It was only when the seasons had begun to shift once more toward my homeland that we finally arrived before the checkpoint at the imperial capital. In the meantime, Miloshi, Lenka, and I had grown rather close. We could now chat without any awkwardness, bantering over even the smallest things.
“Miloshi, have you ever been to the capital before?”
“No. I lived near the capital before I was assigned to Zelewald, but I’ve never actually set foot inside it.”
“Then let me tell you in advance. The capital is far larger, more magnificent, and more beautiful than any city you’ve seen so far.”
I almost added, Even if its underbelly is rotten and festering because of the powerful. But I stopped myself. At the very least, its outward beauty was something worth keeping in memory.
“…? But didn’t you say your past memories weren’t intact, Saint?”
Oops.
“Ahem. That just goes to show how intensely the scenery of the capital remains in one’s mind!”
“Ooh…”
Fortunately, Miloshi didn’t think too deeply about it and quickly accepted the explanation.
“Saint~”
Lenka, who had been speaking with someone who clearly outranked the others at the checkpoint, returned after leaving us behind.
“It seems the inspections have been tightened since I left the capital. Even with my inquisitor credentials, they won’t let us through easily.”
“Hmph. They’re probably just using tightened inspections as an excuse to raise the tolls again so more money flows into the old bastards’ pockets at the Privy Council.”
Lenka looked unusually flustered. She glanced around before gesturing for me to lend an ear. I tilted my head slightly and offered it.
“Tsk…”
I clicked my tongue but obediently nodded.
“…But how did you know the real state of the capital at a glance?”
Oops.
“That… well… it’s the Saint’s… divine power… or something?”
“Ahh. I s~ee.”
Was it just my imagination? Her usual expression didn’t seem any different, yet Lenka’s smile somehow felt distinctly like mockery.
The fact that we had to undergo inspection didn’t change, but thanks to Lenka’s status, we were able to complete it faster than the others. Several inspectors swarmed busily around Lenka, who carried obviously dangerous weapons, and Miloshi, who had a lot of luggage to check. On the other hand, I—who carried nothing at all—was guided into a separate room prepared for a simple body search.
But…
“You can stand right here.”
“……Hey.”
“Hm? Is something wrong?”
“Didn’t you say this was a body search?”
“Yes?”
Aside from me, the only people in the room were two inspectors and one man who appeared to be their superior. And all of them were men.
“Why are they all just a bunch of guys?”
The two inspectors looked somewhat flustered by my question and exchanged glances. Their superior, however, answered with a perfectly calm face.
“It seems there’s been a misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding?”
“As you know, the imperial army is still suffering from a severe manpower shortage in the aftermath of the demon king’s army invasion. That means we don’t have the luxury of assigning female personnel to every checkpoint.”
His words sounded reasonable, but an unmistakable lecherous smile spread across his lips. Judging by his much younger appearance and arrogant behavior compared to his subordinates, he was probably some spoiled noble brat.
“Haa… I thought I’d managed to avoid this kind of thing until now…”
Even I had to admit that my current appearance as Lucie was pretty enough to make most men turn their heads if they passed by. Until now, the special circumstances of war and the universal respect shown to me as the Saint had kept things fine. But the moment I left that nest, I got caught up in something like this.
“Didn’t you hear about my companions?”
So I decided to use Lenka’s status to avoid the hassle before it got any worse.
“From the Sacred Condemnation Chancellery’s…”
“Yes, yes, a Purifier serving an inquisitor. I already know. So what?”
Wow. This guy was even crazier than I thought.
His expression gradually twisted and grew vicious as he began to reveal his true colors.
“In the end, any woman traveling with an inquisitor and some brat who looks like her servant is obviously one thing.”
His unpleasant gaze began to crawl up and down my body.
“Either she’s a criminal being escorted after being caught by the inquisitor, or they picked up another orphan like themselves to turn into an inquisitor.”
Hmm. So that’s how it is.
It was true that my current outfit made me look like someone who wouldn’t be respected in the capital. After all, the robe I’d originally worn had burned away during the battle at Trzikov, so I’d been wearing whatever clothes I could find among the soldiers’ supplies. It was a bit much to expect anyone to treat me like nobility.
“So either way, if a commotion breaks out, it’ll be you who ends up at a disadvantage.”
He suddenly shoved his face right in front of mine. I had no interest in looking at a man’s face this close, and it was utterly repulsive. Meanwhile, the bastard seemed to think I was frowning because he’d hit the mark. He crossed his arms, squared his shoulders, looked down at me with infinitely rude eyes, and put on every arrogant display he could.
“So you’d better behave yourself.”
That filthy hand slowly reached out toward me.
“I don’t know about anything else, but there’s one thing I’m certain of.”
Tap.
His finger lightly touched my shoulder.
“You are a pest gnawing away at the empire.”
Crack—
“Huh…?”
The man blinked at his own finger, which had bent and twisted at an unnatural angle. Then, as the pain finally caught up with him, he clutched his broken finger and screamed.
“KyaAAAAAAGH!!”
“W-what the hell is this all of a sudden?!”
The inspectors, realizing belatedly that their superior had been attacked, reached for the weapons at their waists. I glared at them with clear killing intent in my eyes and gave them one last chance.
“If you draw those blades, I will treat you the same way I treat this insect.”
“Hiiik…!”
Fortunately, they didn’t seem as stupid as this guy.
“Y-you…! Do you even know what family we belong to…!”
“Hey. Insect spawn.”
I pressed my foot firmly down on the head of the man who was groveling on the floor clutching his finger.
“U-uwAAAAAGH!! It hurts, it huuurts!!!”
“I don’t care how high-ranking a noble’s son you are. From the start, any family that lets a piece of trash like you live comfortably in the capital is obviously just as worthless as you are.”
With my foot still on his face, I lowered my posture so my words would sink clearly into his ear.
“And listen well. I’ve cleaned up far too many cancerous lumps of the empire like you. I also know exactly how to pin crimes on both you and your entire family.”
“Kk… kkk… khk…”
Big fat tears began to roll from his eyes and drip onto the floor.
“So from now on, you’d better not go out recklessly. If I see that annoying face of yours in front of me again, even I won’t know what I might do.”
Instead of demanding an answer, I applied a little more pressure with my foot—carefully controlling my strength so his head wouldn’t explode.
“I-I un-der-staaand… I-I’ll be-have…!”
Just then, the sound of several heavy footsteps reached my ears. It was time to stop.
“Hmph.”
I slowly lifted my foot from his face. The clear red imprint of my footprint remained on the side of his head, making it look as if I were still stepping on him. Soon after, the checkpoint door burst open and a group of large people in identical uniforms poured inside. They instantly filled the narrow room. Having roughly grasped the situation, they helped the insect sprawled on the floor to his feet.
“Khk… Y-you…! I’ll definitely… make you regret this…!”
Now that there were more people around, the insect quickly regained his senses and started spewing nonsense again.
“Silence, you insolent wretch!”
Slap!
One of the group suddenly struck the insect across the cheek and bellowed.
“Do you even know who this person is before you dare run your mouth?”
The man shook his pupils left and right in utter confusion, his lips flapping wordlessly.
“What… is this…?”
“She is the sacred individual who will be consecrated as the Church’s Saint in the upcoming canonization ceremony!”
Only then did a deep despair wash over the man’s face as he finally realized who the people surrounding him were. Priests wearing white robes beneath black cloaks.
“Th-this is… the Sacred Condemnation Chancellery…”
“Take him away.”
The man was dragged off while repeatedly muttering “why” and “how” like someone who had lost his mind, pulled along by the hand of the inquisitor who had slapped him. The remaining inspectors claimed their innocence with terrified expressions. Of course, the inquisitors weren’t the type of people who would be swayed by such claims.
“Your purity will be judged not by you yourselves, but by the Chancellery.”
Once the remaining inspectors had also been dragged away by the inquisitors, the only people left in the checkpoint were me and one massive inquisitor whose face was hidden by his robe.
“Is that you, Lenka? Haha, I knew you’d arrive right on time. Yes, I trusted you would.”
But there was no response. If it had been Lenka, she would have smiled and mixed scolding with praise in a long lecture. Then who was this?
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Lucie.”
As if he had read my mind, the inquisitor removed the robe covering his face and greeted me. His voice was extremely dry, low, and thick, completely devoid of emotion.
“I am the Grand Inquisitor of the Sacred Condemnation Chancellery, to which the Heresy Inquisition belongs. My name is Ohen Leff.”