112

“There seems to have been some kind of misunderstanding.”

The man smiled awkwardly and extended his hand.

“Pleased to meet you. Lord Hamel Gilmore.”

“You know me, it seems.”

“Of course — how could one not know the most famous man in the order right now?”

When Hamel took his hand, the man beamed broadly in reply.

Hamel looked uncomfortable and spoke.

“I’m sorry. I don’t actually know your name, Father.”

“Ha ha… that’s understandable. I’m Monsignor Abraham. Feel free to call me Abraham.”

“Yes. Very well, Abraham.”

At Hamel’s words, Abraham’s jaw tightened. He was a rather emotional man. And… ‘Monsignor, huh.’ That was at least a relief. If he had been a bishop, even Hamel would have found him difficult to deal with. Strictly by rank he was lower, but the special statuses of saint and lord kept him from being overshadowed.

“Abraham, why are you here?”

“That is…”

Just as he began to answer, Abraham suddenly caught Aileen’s eye and brightened.

“Aren’t you Lord Rengbaster!”

“Why are you here…” Aileen asked, completely surprised.

What could be going on?

As Hamel watched, Abraham continued.

“Ah, Lord Rengbaster and I met in the domain before, when I visited to investigate the tragedy that occurred in Rengbaster.”

‘Those who came to investigate said as much — they claimed this was the work of the evil god Marbas.’

“Inquisitor,” Hamel quietly uttered the name.

Abraham smiled faintly and nodded.

“That’s right. I serve as deputy head of the Purification Office, the order’s acting judicial branch.”

Hearing that, Ono muttered under his breath.

“The archbishop’s dogs, are they?”

“Archbishop?” Daniel asked. Ono leaned close and spoke in a voice low enough for only them to hear.

“The order’s judicial body belongs to the imperial household, not the Holy See. They only nominally belong to the order; they answer to the Chief Justice—the archbishop—and to the Emperor.”

“Why are people like that here?”

“Why? Those bastards move for one reason only,” Ono said, narrowing his eyes as he looked over the trembling villagers. “Punishment of heresy.”

Their role was similar to the Exorcist priests; in practice, their duties often overlapped. But Exorcists strictly handled exorcism and demon-hunting. In contrast, Inquisitors judged sinners accused of heresy.

“…Is the Inquisition always like this?” Daniel scowled; Ono immediately shook his head.

“No — they’re infamous for cruelty, but this is…” Ono’s gaze dropped to the boiling oil; this was clearly excessive.

“Strange. They weren’t the type to run roughshod like this…” Ono tilted his head in puzzlement.

Hamel asked Abraham, “What is happening here?”

“Hmm? If it’s that, isn’t it something you already know, Hamel?”

“…?”

When Hamel fell silent, Abraham smiled and added, “Did you not send a dispatch to the Lettria diocese? Saying there might be an unwholesome faction in the Solmer domain that worships an evil god.”

…!

Only then did Hamel realize. The aid he had earlier requested from Bishop Arcen to help Aileen — these people were that very support.

“Why you instead of the knight order or the Exorcist priests…”

“We happened to be tracking heretics in this area as well. We were the ones who first suspected the Solmer domain, after all.”

Hamel roughly understood the situation. He kept his mouth shut for a moment, then asked again, “Then what became of Lord Vlad Chepesh?”

“Ah… well, you see…” Abraham scratched his head in apparent discomfort, then shrugged. “He disappeared.”

“….”

“By the time we arrived, the castle was already emptied as if the knight order and even the servants had all evaporated. They had left the residents as they were.”

Abraham exhaled a deep sigh. Hamel flinched. There was a troubling part in what Abraham had said. They left the residents as they were — wasn’t that to say the lord left without harming the villagers? That meant…

“Was that your doing?”

“Yes? What do you mean…?”

“I’m talking about the bodies displayed at the village entrance.”

….

Hamel and his companions froze. They had no doubt such a horrifying act had been wrought by demons. No matter how cruel humans could be, surely they couldn’t have done such a thing…?

“Yes, that’s right.”

“…!”

“It was our work. The title of the piece might be ‘The Heretics’ Last Words.’”

Abraham smiled smugly and nodded. Those listening could not react. Only Hamel asked in a cold, hard, almost mechanical tone, “What crimes had they committed?”

“The problem began with them living in this estate. Didn’t they live worshipping demons?”

“….”

“But we are not without pity and compassion, so we did not interrogate just anyone; we focused our inquiries on those who worked in the castle and their families.”

“Did you get any results?”

“No, these heretics have such tight lips that they wouldn’t confess a thing.”

“Is that so.”

Hamel nodded.

—Sss

A sharp metallic sound cut the air as he drew his sword. Hamel’s blade hovered just beneath Abraham’s adam’s apple.

When the cold steel kissed his throat, Abraham froze.

“…How dare you do this to a Monsignor!” Those behind Abraham raised their weapons, and at once Hamel’s companions drew theirs, points trained at the Inquisitors. A tense silence fell.

Hamel opened his tightly shut mouth. “You have abused the authority of heresy investigations. I would punish you on the spot if it weren’t a matter of the Inquisition’s oversight.”

The Holy See’s review body oversees the archbishop and the judicial institutions. The current head of the Inquisition is a kind but just man; he would likely hang every Inquisitor responsible for such atrocities.

“However, I will not allow any further investigation. As of this moment, you will withdraw from this case and return quietly to the Inquisition headquarters.”

Hamel pressed the sword a fraction more and the blade nicked Abraham’s throat; red blood trickled down.

“Do you agree?” he asked in a voice so cold it seemed to freeze the air. It was clear that anything but compliance would mean a swing of the sword.

Abraham swallowed dryly and replied stiffly, “…Very well.”

“….”

“There were no longer any who worked in the castle anyway. Our interrogations were already finished.”

Abraham looked at the man who had collapsed, his face ashen. The fellow who had nearly been dropped into boiling oil gasped and swallowed.

“Well, that fellow didn’t seem to know much anyway. We’ll leave it at that.”

“Very well.”

Hamel sheathed his sword. The taut tension between the two sides eased somewhat.

He addressed the awkwardly standing Inquisitors calmly. “I’ll give you one day. Pack your things and leave this place by tomorrow morning.”

“…Very well.”

Abraham pressed at the wound on his neck and nodded. He feigned calm, but the veins standing out on his forehead and his clenched jaw betrayed shame and anger.

“Let’s go back.”

Abraham turned and walked toward the empty lord’s castle. They had likely used the castle as a base to interrogate the domain’s people. The other Inquisitors followed him and headed to the castle.

Hamel watched them depart and let out a heavy sigh that hung low with the setting sun.

“I can’t believe it.”

“How could those who claim to serve the gods be like that…”

Ono and Daniel, and even the expressionless Lena, all grimaced.

….

Aileen had gone pale. She had come this far driven solely by hatred of demons—she probably believed that if demons vanished from the world everything would be solved. But that was not so. In this world there are beings with malice as great as demons—perhaps even greater. Humans can be crueller to other humans than anyone else.

Hamel lightly placed his hand on Aileen’s shoulder. Her trembling body gradually calmed.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes… I’m alright now.”

Aileen steadied her breathing and slowly nodded. She seemed to have barely regained composure.

‘By the way…’ What on earth was happening? Hamel felt the situation was unnatural. No matter how brutal the Inquisitors were, they shouldn’t be able to masquerade interrogation as a pretext to slaughter people so cruelly. Yet the deputy head of the Purification Office spoke as if he were proud.

‘Are they believing in something?’ No — more importantly, why did they kill the people? Was it to pursue Vlad Chepesh? It felt like more than that; there was malice and obsession. From Rengbaster to the Lettria diocese they had spread word of Chepesh’s crimes and tightened the noose around him. Perhaps…

‘Did they target Chepesh from the start?’

Hamel furrowed his brow. It felt as if he had acted exactly as they intended — as if he had been a pawn in one of their moves to pressure Chepesh. He shook his head. Anything further would lean toward imagination rather than deduction.

Hamel sorted his thoughts and approached the man who had nearly been thrown into the boiling oil.

“Are you injured anywhere?”

“Yes? Ah… no, I’m fine. All thanks to you sirs…” the man kept bowing again and again.

Hamel bowed his head and apologized.

“I’m sorry.”

“Yes? What — why this sudden…” The man was bewildered for a moment as Hamel continued calmly.

“Those who did this will surely pay for their crimes. But that does not undo what has already occurred. Their wrongdoing is the order’s wrongdoing, and it is my fault as well. I apologize once more.”

The man who had been listening chuckled and said to Hamel, “I can’t say I understand those things, but I do know one thing: thanks to you I can live.”

“But…”

“It’s late. If you have nowhere to stay, would you come with me? My wife runs an inn.”

Hamel paused and looked at the man. He smiled as if it were nothing. Hamel looked to his companions; they all nodded as if pleased. The exhausted group felt a small lift from that kindness.

Hamel inclined his head. “Then we accept, please.”

“Wonderful! My wife’s cooking is excellent — you can look forward to it. Ha ha.”

The man cheerfully led Hamel’s party onward.

They arrived at the inn. The man threw open the door of a fairly large two-story building and called, “Come in! Ha ha.”

But only for a moment.

“….”

“….”

Silence hung over the inn’s ground floor. Hamel stepped inside and said calmly, “There are no people.”

“Yes… it can’t be helped, given what’s happening in the domain,” the man muttered awkwardly.

At that moment the man’s wife and their young daughter emerged from the kitchen.

“Welcome… hm? Oh my, David! What are you doing back so soon?”

“Anna! Lily! These people saved my life!”

“Saved your life? What do you mean?”

To the confused woman, Hamel quietly approached and bowed his head.

“I am Hamel Gilmore.”

“…Are you perhaps a noble?” Anna’s face began to blanch.

—Thunk

Hamel placed a coin purse into her hand. “A guest.”

“….”

“We’d like to stay one night. If you cannot, we understand.”

Hamel spoke calmly, as he always did. His composed voice had a calming effect on those who heard it. After staring at the coin purse for a moment, the woman clenched her fists.

“Please, sit here! Have you eaten?”

“Not yet. My husband praised the hostess’s cooking highly.”

“Ah. It’s not that great… but I’ll do my best!”

The woman darted into the kitchen like a breeze. David, as he was called, spoke apologetically.

“No, I can’t accept money from my saviors…”

“Please, accept it. It makes things easier for us too.”

“Very well… now that it’s come to this, we’ll do our utmost to serve you.”

David rolled up his sleeves and grabbed some cleaning tools.

“Lily! Show these people to the best room on the second floor.”

“Yes!”

The small girl bowed to Hamel’s party and then energetically climbed the stairs to lead them to the innermost room.

“This room is the biggest and quietest! And the women can use the room opposite…”

She opened the door and then immediately shut it.

Hamel, puzzled, asked, “…Why is that?”

“Um… it’s not quite cleaned yet! Let’s have dinner first…” the girl said, sweating as she spoke.

—Bang

The closed door flung wide and someone poked their head out from inside.

“What’s the matter, Lily?”

“Ah! No! Api!”

“…?”

“…You are?!”

The boy who stepped out froze, eyes wide, and looked up at Hamel. Hamel, for his part, was also speechless as he stared at the boy who had emerged from the room.

Apophis, enemy of the world.

He never imagined that an ancient god who had lost his name would pop out of a private room in an inn.