Enrollment Preparations (3)
Nothing stokes passion quite like the promise of a reward.
Having secured that promise, Yoanna burned with more fervor than she had shown in ages.
"As Lord Dantalion's faithful servant, I will see the task you have entrusted to me through to success!"
"Well, if anything proves difficult, you may always come to me for advice."
"That will not be necessary. I will produce results that satisfy you without fail!"
"……"
He had thought it before: once Yoanna's spirit truly caught fire, there was simply no stopping her. How could anyone rein in a girl whose eyes shone with pure expectation, practically demanding that he place his hopes in her?
Having never raised a child of his own, Dantalion had only one option left.
"Very well. I shall look forward to it. Only do not drive yourself too hard—if it becomes too much, seek help at any time."
Encouragement, and a quiet hope that she would not do anything too strange.
Permission granted, Yoanna snatched up a few gold coins and bolted from the room.
"Miss Emily! Work has appeared at once—please come out!"
"Wh-what? All of a sudden… Hyaaaaah!? Y-you mustn't tear the door off!"
"Come out!"
Apparently Emily counted among the necessary supplies.
Letting the screams from the next room wash past one ear, Dantalion slowly stirred his body and made for the window. After witnessing such blazing enthusiasm, he could hardly sit back and wait in leisure.
"Noir, are you playing on the roof as usual?"
"Caw!"
Noir, who had secretly followed Yoanna, revealed himself from the inn's ceiling. Wings flapping, he landed on the windowsill, blinked his three eyes, and tilted his head. Still too young to project thoughts, yet the question was plain enough: What is it?
"Would you fly me over the city?"
"Caaaw!"
Noir beat his wings as if the answer were obvious. He was not so shameless as to refuse a command from Dantalion, who was as good as his master. Still, one could not simply put a creature at play to work without compensation.
"Let me see… I can spare this much."
"Caw?"
A droplet the color of a pomegranate seed beaded on Dantalion's tiny finger. Recognizing it, Noir's eyes sparkled—not merely from a crow's love of shiny things. The crimson drop stirred the instinct of a spirit beast that hungered for strength.
"I bestow this as payment. Born a spirit beast, you should be able to absorb it fully."
Noir nodded, drooling without realizing it. The droplet on Dantalion's finger was a kind of spiritual elixir. For an ordinary human like Thomas it would merely improve health a little; for Noir, its effect would be far greater.
Unable to wait any longer, Noir opened his beak wide.
"I will smear it on the roof of your mouth—eat it slowly. Swallow too quickly and you will not absorb the power completely."
For the record, the droplet had been flavored like honey-glazed walnuts with Noir's tastes in mind.
As the sticky drop was painted across his palate, Noir flicked his tongue. Each pass sent a thrill racing through him until the tips of his feathers quivered.
This—this was true delicacy!
Savoring the bliss with his whole body, Noir spread his wings.
"Caaaw!"
"I am glad you like it."
Having paid a satisfactory wage, he felt no guilt about putting the bird to work. Settling onto Noir's back, Dantalion tapped the crow's head lightly.
"Depart."
"Caw!"
Noir flung his wings wide, surrendered to gravity, and plummeted—then caught the wind and soared toward the open sky. Higher and higher he climbed until the cold air beat against his feathers; only then did he stretch his wings fully.
Above the endless clear heavens the sun blazed as if determined to light the entire world.
"The cityscape seen from the sky… this too has its own charm."
High walls sealing the cliff gaps, a city raised upon the broad earth—it was a testament to human history. Recalling a human life he could barely remember, Dantalion looked down.
To build this place, people must have spent long ages in cooperation and mutual understanding.
"Catch me if you can!"
"Big brother, take me too!"
"Dummy—then run faster!"
Children racing through the alleys without a care in the world made a fine sight as well. That they could laugh and run freely was itself proof the city was a good one.
Yet a place founded on desire cannot be without its stains.
The small face of his avatar split open, revealing a single eye. His vision flushed crimson, and the names of sinners began to etch themselves across it in scarlet letters. Looking upon those names felt like filth flung across clean white cloth.
Occupational hazard is a terrifying thing. I know it cannot be helped, yet I still want to wipe them all away.
So long as desire existed, sinners would never vanish from the world. Castrate desire, and the world would freeze, never changing again. Reminding himself of that truth, Dantalion shook off the distaste. There was no harm in postponing judgment for those who would fall to Hell eventually.
What he needed now was a suitable sinner to hand over to Yoanna.
Condemning those whose sins are light would be pointless.
Someone whose disappearance would benefit the city, yet whom Yoanna could take genuine satisfaction in judging. Once he settled on that criterion, most of the names in his vision faded. Those that remained were pure garbage, shameful no matter where one set them. Selecting from among them the particular piece of trash that would give Yoanna a sense of fulfillment, however, was rather complicated work.
I should weigh the nature of the crime, Yoanna's capabilities, and the impact on the city.
It might take time, but that hardly mattered. Given her personality, she would never claim a reward until the work met her own standards of satisfaction. Until then he could leisurely sort the trash for collection.
Several days passed while Dantalion gave serious thought to the reward he would present to Yoanna. And today she returned to the inn in high spirits, clearly having achieved a satisfying result. Anyone with a scrap of perception could tell she had succeeded.
"Yoanna, may I now tell you the location of the sinner to be judged?"
Dantalion asked the moment she entered the room. Truthfully, he had intended to give her the location even if the results had been lacking, simply for the effort. But his prediction had not been wrong. Unconcealable confidence shone on her face.
"Today I succeeded in securing a favorable broker! Tomorrow we should be able to obtain a house, so…"
She trailed off, yet her bouncing shoulders made her anticipation plain. Those bright, sparkling eyes made him feel as though he were looking at an adorable puppy. When he stroked her head in praise, she closed her eyes just like a real dog…
"Ahem. In that case, I shall tell you the location. It would be best to leave at dawn so the others do not notice."
"Indeed—if a commotion arises it could cause problems with enrollment."
Fortunately Yoanna paid no mind to the cough. A short while later she ate a hearty dinner of meat, bathed, and settled her body and mind. In the quiet predawn hours, when the moon hid behind clouds, she confirmed every light in the inn was out, prepared herself, and slipped from her room.
At that moment Emily, who had been secretly reading by a small lamp, opened her door…
"Ahaha… it's so dark I can't see a thing~"
"……"
Emily averted her gaze while delivering the most awkward line imaginable. Seated on Yoanna's shoulder, Dantalion stared at her intently. Just what had she been dragging Emily around doing to produce that reaction?
Passing Emily, Yoanna reached the window at the end of the corridor and whispered,
"I did nothing that would inconvenience Lord Dantalion, so please rest assured."
Inconveniencing me is normally rather difficult in the first place.
Still, though Emily could not meet her eyes, she did not seem terrified. So they had not been out committing anything too brutal. Filing Emily's reaction under "safe," he began guiding Yoanna.
He led her to an abandoned church on the city's outskirts. People seemed to have left it only recently; the building itself remained fairly clean.
"There was a church even in a place like this."
"The location is awkward, so it was abandoned, I suppose."
With other churches available, there was little reason to visit one so remote and desolate. The city's bishop would hardly waste priests here, so the place had simply been left to rot. And buildings that slip from notice tend to acquire uninvited guests.
A man who had been lurking in the dark dragged a cart up to the church. As if long familiar with the place, he bypassed the front doors and headed for a side window.
"Hey, open the window."
"You bastard… what kept you so late today? Did you bring the moonshine?"
"Hehehe, the brothel gave me some fantastic service today. But yeah, I brought the booze proper."
After checking the face through the window, the man inside opened the church's main doors. Through the gap more than seven locks were visible—an excessive number that spoke of a firm resolve never to open for the uninvited. The doorkeeper scanned the surroundings and gestured; several burly men poured out from within. They seized the crates heavy with illicit liquor and vanished back inside.
Thud! Click! Rattle!
As the doorkeeper shut the door, the various locks engaged once more. Watching this, one might almost take them for merely diligent smugglers. But the crimes they mainly committed were—
"Lord Dantalion, shall we go in now?"
"All the sinners I confirmed appear to have arrived… are you not curious what sins they committed?"
He had expected the question, yet Yoanna seemed not the least bit curious. She tilted her head, then smiled with absolute trust.
"Lord Dantalion would never order the execution of the innocent. You selected those for whom death is better for the world."
That was why she had not asked. She existed to reduce the sins of the earth in his stead. Sensing her resolve, Dantalion nodded.
"If that is your will, then enter. However, their numbers cannot be ignored, so the ceiling—"
Permission given, Yoanna kicked off the ground and launched herself at the front doors. Today's weapon was not the greatsword Clove had gifted her, but a one-handed sword—chosen for the confined building and for greater stealth…
Crunch!
Reaching the doors, Yoanna sensed the presence on the far side and thrust her blade through in a single motion. Drawing power, heat erupted from the hilt and in an instant the sword glowed white-hot.
"Wh-what the fuck! A sword just popped out of that guy's neck!?"
"Ghk… gahk!?"
The crackle of living flesh burning traveled up the trembling blade. Waiting until the man's breath stopped, Yoanna yanked the sword free.
Thud.
The sound of a corpse collapsing came from beyond the door. Without further delay she swung at the doors themselves. A crimson arc flashed; her kick followed, and with a thunderous crash the doors split and collapsed.
The criminals who had been laughing and chatting only moments before stared at Yoanna with blank faces.
"I will now judge your sins. Anyone who wishes to raise an objection, raise your hand."
Having pronounced the death sentence, Yoanna leveled her sword at them. Sensing the ominous atmosphere, one man thrust his hand high.
"W-wait! You saw us moving moonshine, but under imperial law that isn't a capital—"
Thwack!
A wood chip Yoanna kicked punched clean through the raised hand's owner. The man who had tried to buy even a little more time fell to Hell faster than anyone.
After a brief glance at their dead comrade, the criminals stared at Yoanna as if by prior agreement.
"Anyone else with an objection?"
"……"