Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Two Hearts
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Saintess Joanna Ark had vanished.
The moment this fact became known, the Papal Court was thrown into chaos.
"We must find her at any cost!"
At the Pope's command, every gate leading out of the Papal Court was sealed, and restrictions on outsiders were tightened.
'Who the hell could have done this?'
The path to the underground of the Papal Court was guarded by countless soldiers and high-level barriers.
There were few who could breach such ironclad defenses and abduct her.
And I was one of the prime suspects.
"I've never done anything like that."
Cynthia eyed me suspiciously.
"Really?"
The four knights who had accompanied her also kept their guards up around me.
"Yeah, no reason to."
I leaned back in my chair, casually lifting my teacup with a relaxed expression.
"Besides, I've been right here the whole time. How would I know where she is?"
"……."
"You came here with me, didn't you? I haven't moved a step from this spot since then."
"Is that true?"
"Don't believe me? Ask the staff."
She didn't question the staff.
Doing so in my presence would shatter the trust between party members.
"I'll take your word for it. So the party member you said you'd recruit isn't her?"
"Nope."
"Then who is it?"
"Can't say yet. But it's definitely not her."
From Cynthia's perspective, it was a reasonable suspicion. But in both my past and present lives, I had no connection to Saintess Joanna Ark, and adding her to my party had never crossed my mind.
'Our goals don't align.'
I slowly sipped my tea and nodded.
The conversation ended there.
Cynthia, who had suspected me, left with her knights, and I watched them go with a faint smile.
"Perfect."
Everything had gone according to plan so far. Now, all I needed was time to pass until the Pope, unable to find Joanna Ark, came begging for my help.
Then my objective here would be complete.
I lightly stroked the insect hidden in my sleeve and whispered.
"Rox, get started."
The 'Invincible Wall' that protected the Papal Court—a fortress never breached by enemies in a hundred years.
Today, I would conquer it and retrieve my old comrade.
The once-noisy interior of the Papal Court had fallen silent.
With searches led by the knights of the Papal Court yielding no trace of her, the Pope believed there was only one way to find her.
'Strange.'
The current heir of their bloodline was here. Whether true or not, he was said to possess incredible talent capable of facing a dragon.
"Summon Lord Berddin here."
It was a choice they had no alternative to.
They wanted to handle it quietly without outside help, but with their own forces failing, this was the best option.
Besides, the Strange Family were allies who shared their enmity toward the Glazers, weren't they?
With that in mind, they requested Berddin's aid.
And his response was crystal clear.
"Of course, I'll help."
Berddin gladly accepted the Pope's request.
"Thank you, Lord Berddin."
"But I have one condition."
"A condition?"
"Yes. If I locate Joanna Ark..."
I tapped the Strange Family crest engraved on my armor and continued.
"...I'd like the Papal Court's Holy Knights to join us on a joint operation."
"A joint operation with Strange...?"
"Yes. I'm currently pursuing a demon. To capture it, I need the sacred spells only the knights here can use."
This wasn't because I truly needed the Holy Knights' help. It was just a pretext to publicly align our future activities with Cynthia.
The Pope, catching my intent, glanced at Cynthia beside me and replied.
"Very well."
"Then shall we start by examining the spot where Joanna Ark disappeared?"
"Yes, Archbishop Juda will guide you."
Archbishop Juda clasped his hands in prayer and bowed. I mirrored his bow and casually asked.
"I'd like to move quickly on this. Could you assign a few knights to accompany me?"
Archbishop Juda brought two knights from behind him to my side.
"These two will assist you."
"Thank you."
"Shall we go now?"
"Yes, the sooner the search begins, the better."
Archbishop Juda and Cynthia to move with me, plus two knights.
All the prerequisites for the perfect 'New Comrade Extraction Plan' were now in place.
The Pope lightly touched his forehead, chest, and both shoulders in sequence.
"In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit."
He spread his hands toward us with a benevolent smile.
"Amen."
Following Archbishop Juda's guidance, we descended hidden stairs behind the Papal Court's prayer hall deep underground.
Step, step, step.
As our footsteps echoed louder in the quiet space...
"P-please, spare me! Please, have mercy!"
"I-I'm innocent... I really am... I'm not a heretic, I swear!"
"Mommy? Mister, where's my mommy? Mommy?!"
Desperate screams, groans, and sobs rose from below our feet.
"Lord Berddin, Miss Cynthia. It's your first time here, so please don't be startled by those we'll encounter ahead."
Cynthia asked Archbishop Juda with uneasy eyes.
"What's down there?"
"...Heretics."
"Heretics?"
"Yes, souls fallen to Satan's temptation, beyond the Lord's salvation. Poor wretches, all of them."
"I... see."
"If you make eye contact, ignore them. They're no different from beasts."
"……."
Cynthia nodded faintly.
At our destination under his guidance: pitch-black darkness pierced by torches at regular intervals along the walls.
Underground cells stretched in rows, shadows slanting in the dim light.
Clang!
Someone shouted from a cell with dangling bars.
"Mercy! I truly know nothing!"
A man with swollen, diseased skin wept and begged.
The archbishop covered his mouth and nose with his sleeve, waving his hand dismissively. One of his accompanying knights kicked the bars.
Clang!
"Shut your mouth! How dare a heretic address the archbishop?!"
The wailing man collapsed from the impact.
Thud.
A child behind him cautiously approached and looked at Cynthia.
"Mommy... Where are you... Where's my mommy...?"
Cynthia's eyes widened in shock. She stared at the child's face, speechless.
Juda lightly gripped her shoulder, pushed her forward, and whispered.
"Let's proceed. No need to heed the whispers of those possessed by Satan."
Cynthia swallowed hard, averted her gaze from the child, and replied.
"Yes."
I shook my head at their behavior. What was so terrifying about this god that they imprisoned people here?
If heretics were truly evil, the holy knights should have exterminated them outright.
Why keep them in cells and inflict suffering?
Even in my past life, no one could answer that. Asking why they were imprisoned only elicited repeats of "punishment for betraying God."
'What exactly is this god?'
No, who is it?
If the being that revived me is the same god they speak of, I want no part in carrying out his will.
Visiting this place reaffirmed my resolve from my past life.
"This is it."
At the end of the underground prison, the archbishop tapped an open cell door with his finger.
Inside: a dozen loose shackles and five barriers drawn on the floor.
'Juda, you're even more impressive than I thought.'
Layer upon layer of 7th-circle-or-higher spells, all shattered and someone extracted.
I couldn't break barriers like that easily myself. Only a rare few could do it without alerting the guards.
'Well.'
One of my past-life comrades could manage it, but conditions weren't right to meet her yet, and there was an optimal recruitment order.
"What time did Joanna Ark disappear?"
The guard squad leader answered instead of the archbishop.
"Around dawn, but we don't have the exact time."
"Any entries to the underground prison yesterday morning?"
"Not a single one."
"No shift changes?"
"Shift changes? Are you suspecting our guards?"
"Yes."
The squad leader looked uncomfortable, his face screaming why ask such a thing.
The archbishop, seeing his reaction, slammed his staff on the ground.
Thud!
"Squad leader, why aren't you answering?"
"Archbishop Juda, surely you're not suggesting a traitor in our ranks?"
"Enough! Answer the question. Was there a shift change, as Lord Berddin says?"
"...Yes."
I nodded visibly for all to see, then asked the squad leader.
"Can you summon all the shift personnel and pre-shift guards here?"
"No, Lord Berddin, isn't that excessive? Would they free the criminal Joanna Ark? They've guarded this prison faithfully!"
Of course not.
Regular guards lacked the power, and what gain would they have?
'But.'
Planting suspicion bought me time to extract my old comrade here.
"Archbishop Juda, I think I'll have to withdraw. If you can't even muster the guards when it's no big deal, how can we proceed?"
The archbishop glared at the squad leader in fury.
"Summon them immediately!"
His shout echoed through the prison. The squad leader trembled in fear, saluted, and hurried off.
"Y-yes, sir!"
The moment he left, I dropped the insect hidden in my sleeve into the cell.
Plop.
No one noticed. Beyond the torchlight was utter darkness, and the silent, stealthy insect crawled into a corner and hid.
'Perfect.'
If everyone left the cell area, my plan would be flawless.
"Archbishop."
"Yes?"
"We've gathered all the info here. Let's check the guards outside, as the squad leader mentioned."
"Outside?"
"Yes, being in the same space as heretics this long is... unpleasant."
"...Ah! Understood. Let's head out."
The archbishop smiled brightly and led us out of the underground prison. More heretics begged for mercy on the way, but we kept our heads down and ignored them.
'Wait.'
Light will soon reach you.
With that, I exited the Papal Court's underground prison and headed to the barracks where the dawn guards were assembled.