The Fifth Inquisition Office (4)
The Fifth Inquisition Office (4)
The carriage stopped in front of the church headquarters. I glanced over the advance party as they began climbing out one by one.
At the front stood a large man. His hood was pulled down low, so I couldn't see who he was, but I knew by instinct.
After all, we were connected through the Sacred Mark.
"Hey. Hector."
I grinned. The face beneath the hood grinned back.
"It's been a while, boss."
Hector's crew.
We bumped fists.
The carriage departed. The ones who had come over were all five of the children from the orphanage I used to teach. I quietly gauged the mood around the church headquarters. No matter what, this wasn't the place to chat.
I was already under Dwayne's surveillance. I could feel someone watching from a distance.
Shall I shake them off?
"You haven't just been lazing around all this time, have you?"
"While you were gone, boss, there was a turf war. A clash over who controlled the underworld of Venelda. We fought there with our lives on the line. Maybe, just maybe..."
A gloved fist cracked as it clenched.
"...I might be stronger than you are now, boss?"
"Oh yeah?"
I gave the kid a quick once-over. The others behind him were the same.
They'd gotten stronger. They were definitely different from before. Kids who'd been affected by my skill and thrown themselves into a bloody war between organizations.
But well.
I'd been fighting ridiculous monsters on my end, you know?
"If you can keep up, then follow me."
Maybe I'll get a little serious for the first time in a while.
[Blessing (B) is used.]
[Status ailment resistance greatly increases.]
[Mental fortitude becomes resolute.]
[Physical abilities greatly increase.]
[Maximum Sacred Power temporarily increases greatly.]
[Using Prayer of Fire (B).]
[Physical abilities are greatly enhanced.]
Weight settled into my step.
BOOM!
The ground caved in deeply. Hector's crew, who had been grinning, all froze solid.
I crooked my finger.
"B-Boss?"
"You got all cocky just because we met again after so long... Let's see here..."
"Th-That's not what I meant...!"
"The moment you lose sight of me, you'll remember the first time we brawled."
I lifted the corner of my mouth slightly.
"Starting now."
"B-Boss?!"
. . .
I shook off the tail immediately. The kids were the same. I deliberately slowed my pace several times.
Even if they'd gotten stronger, they were still below the level of a priest. They were nothing more than apprentice paladins. No, even that was too generous.
The Group 2 paladins of the Fifth Inquisition Office would be a hundred times better than these kids.
I poked Hector, sprawled out on the empty ground, with a branch.
"I thought you said you'd gotten stronger?"
"P-Please spare me..."
"And why do you keep wearing that hood? It's about time you took it—"
Fwoop.
I stopped talking. Something strange was growing on Hector's head.
Small horns.
"Do they stick horns on you in the back alleys these days if you ask?"
"How could that be?! They just suddenly grew. But... after these appeared, I got a bit stronger, so I don't hate them that much."
I quickly checked the others too.
Linden, Pavel, Marie, Natasha—every single one of them had different horns.
"...Ah."
No way. That thing?
[Mixed Sacred Mark (A): Repels all Demonic Force. Can grant Sacred Marks to others. As subordinate priests intermix, parts of their bodies may become twisted. (5/20)]
"May become twisted," huh...
But why does it manifest as horns?
"Naga, do you know?"
-Y-Yes? I-I don't really... B-But... I'll look into it.
There was a clattering sound. A faint "ow ow" groan followed. She must have fallen while rushing around.
Clumsy thing. For now, I examined the kids' bodies carefully.
It was true that horns had grown, but there were no other abnormalities. If anything, they were serving as focal points that helped their Sacred Power circulate smoothly.
The difference between a knockoff and the original. That was about the extent of it. I was a vessel made from the start to receive a god's power. But these kids were ordinary humans.
Their bodies couldn't contain the overflowing Sacred Power, so parts of their bodies appeared to have twisted.
"Do you hate it?"
"I don't hate it."
Hector's face reddened.
"Actually, a lot of girls tell me it looks cool, so..."
"Boss, you know what? Hector's dating someone these days."
"Sh-Shut your trap?!"
"They're all over each other, making a huge fuss. Ugh..."
Marie let out a sigh.
"They're only going to be apart for a few months in Venelda, but the two of them are clinging to each other like they're parting forever... crying their eyes out... Might as well cut your dick off."
"Sh-Shut up! You brats! That never happened! Who cried?!"
"Hoh...?"
Dating, huh. That's a good thing. But...
"Your boss here... is so busy... he can't even dream of dating... and a subordinate goes and gets a girlfriend first?"
"B-Boss?"
"Ahaha. No, no. Congratulations, Hector. Congratulations, of course."
My eyes flashed.
"Still, since we've met after so long, we ought to have a little brawl, right? Everyone draw your swords. We're doing a skill assessment."
"...Boss has that crazy look in his eyes, doesn't he?"
"No? They haven't? Oh, Hector. You go stand over there."
"Wh-Why?"
"I'm going to give you a special lecture separately. It's absolutely not because of jealousy, so don't refuse."
"Boss... you're so petty..."
"Quiet, Matasha."
"It's Natasha!"
. . .
The skill assessment ended in an hour. I clicked my tongue.
My growth was incredibly fast. I hadn't expected them to reach my level, but I had wanted them to keep up at least halfway...
I looked at the kids sprawled on the ground. Why do they never exceed my expectations?
In the end, this was where the limits of ordinary people compared with a player showed. The difference between understanding and mastery.
I kicked the butts of the kids crawling along the ground.
"Line up."
"L-Line up!"
Watching them scramble into position, their discipline seemed firmly instilled. After calling them over, I pulled out a book I'd stayed up all night writing from inside my coat.
"Do you know what this is?"
"...What is it?"
"The Saintess's diary."
"You stole a diary?"
"I knew you were trash, boss, but seriously..."
"Opening someone else's diary without permission is a crime."
"The worst."
These little shits.
My earring buzzed and shook. Beatrice's spirit popped out.
【Y-Y-Y-Y-You...?! I wondered what you were looking at all night, and you were copying my diary?!】
"...Boss. What's that next to you?"
Oh. You can see her?
I grabbed Beatrice by the scruff of her neck. She dangled in midair.
"Can you see this?"
"...A doll...?"
"You can see her because we're connected through the Sacred Mark. But that's not what matters. Now. Everyone prepare to offer praise. The great and radiant Saintess who will be our teacher. This is Saintess Beatrice."
"Whoa... she moves."
"She's translucent."
"She looks fascinating."
【Don't turn me into a spectacle!】
I placed the Saintess on my palm. I whispered to her quietly.
"Saintess. Do you know something?"
【Wh-What?】
"Those kids are orphans who lost their parents in the war."
【S-So what? What do you want me to do about it!】
"The orphanage at our church branch took them in when they were wandering the streets. They couldn't even eat one meal a day..."
I laid out the story in pitiful detail. Beatrice, who had tried hard to act unaffected at first, shed a few tears.
【Th-They're so pitiful...】
"...So I got them to where they could live decently. But these kids are the type who want to climb higher. They aren't satisfied with where they are now. They want to become better people."
【A spirit of self-improvement is only natural for a follower of Ra... Ahh... Such admirable children...】
"So."
I shook the book containing a training method, condensed from only the important parts of Beatrice's diary.
"We need your help, Saintess Beatrice."
【W-Well, if that's the case... It doesn't contain any private stories, right?】
"I left out the part about wanting to burn the cardinal because he annoyed you."
【Ack! Ack! Ack!】
I handed the book to Hector. Hector flipped through it once, then his eyes went wide.
"They're... drawings?"
"Most of it is drawings. Easy to understand, right? It covers everything from how to handle Sacred Power to how to use various weapons. It was possible because Saintess Beatrice knew how to wield most weapons."
【A warrior must always assume the worst! You must always know how to use the weapon in your hand!】
Hector turned the book over. While the others rushed in, clamoring to see it first, Hector bowed his head to me.
"I'm... always just receiving from you, boss... Thank you."
"What do you mean, just receiving?"
"...Huh?"
"Did you forget why I called you here?"
I cracked my knuckles. Hector's face went pale.
"Matier told us to come up here first, but... Wh-What's going on?"
"This is your new starting point."
I pointed at myself.
"I'm the sun."
I pointed at Hector.
"You're the shadows. Okay?"
"...No way."
"You've gotten sharper, Hector."
I grinned.
"We're taking this place over."
. . .
The city of Ainkad.
The place where the church headquarters had established itself.
Compared to Venelda, this absurdly large metropolis was practically a concentration of culture. The average standard of living for its citizens went without saying, and it was wealthy enough that starving people were rare.
But flies always swarm to overflowing wealth.
The more Ainkad prospered, the larger its shadows grew. The so-called "Black Road," a street of darkness where illegal dealings ran rampant, had seeped into every corner of the city.
Among them, the boss of "Jasmine," which had gobbled up one district, was a man who loved flowers. He was a gentle man who thought about retiring someday and opening a flower garden.
He only ran a single district, but he was a man of little ambition who was content with that.
The man, tending his flowers as always, heard a commotion from the floor below. Thinking his unruly underlings were fighting again, he let out a sigh.
The man set down his pruning shears, grabbed his coat, and set off.
But the next moment, the door flew off.
BOOM!
Flames mixed with shadow blazed outside the door. A giant of a man strode in, cracking his shoulders.
"Never thought I'd be doing the same thing here."
"But it's familiar, so isn't that good?"
"True. Well... ever since the old days, whenever we listened to what the boss said, there was always a reward afterward."
"Wh-Who the hell are you people?!"
"Us?"
The man at the front took off his hood. A red horn gleamed from his head.
"...Call upon him. Then you shall be saved."
The giant grinned.
"The boss shall guide you."