Chapter 6

The lord’s mansion was located deep inside the forest.

Hamel was certain he had been in this forest before.

But the surrounding scenery felt utterly unfamiliar.

The once-green leaves.

The clear-running stream.

Not even the chirping of birds.

“…It’s desolate.”

Hamel quietly nodded instead of answering.

The atmosphere around them was gloomy.

Leaves had fallen, leaving only brittle branches trembling in the wind.

The soil was dry and cracked, and mold-covered mushrooms sprouted throughout the woods.

“Could this be the work of some demon?”

Hamel thought for a moment at Antonio’s question, then spoke.

“It might not be a demon.”

“What? No way.”

“It’s dangerous to attribute everything to demons.”

Someone who knows only one thing is more dangerous than someone ignorant.

Hamel had painfully felt that truth over the past few years.

People tried to link every problem and fear born of ignorance to demons, and as a result many lost their lives unjustly.

Innocent herbalists were accused of witchcraft and burned, or sick children died during unauthorized exorcism rites.

Exorcism must begin by confirming the demon’s existence.

“It could simply be a pest or disease affecting the trees.”

Only then did Antonio widen his eyes and nod.

Hamel felt relieved seeing him.

Though Hamel wasn’t eloquent, it seemed Antonio had understood something.

As a priest, one must above all avoid linking everything to demons.

Hamel nodded in satisfaction and then spoke.

“But this time it is the work of a demon.”

“…What?”

Antonio blinked with a look that asked what he meant.

As if he didn’t know how to react.

Hamel shrugged.

“Didn’t the old man earlier mention bodies with limbs severed?”

A dying forest and dismembered corpses.

Combine the two and a plausible hypothesis emerges.

However, one thing that didn’t make sense was the knight the old man mentioned…

“Priest, over there!”

At the deacon’s shout, a figure emerged between the trees.

A blood-red cloak and a long, horsehair-like crimson plume on the helmet.

The knight, bathed in the red glow of the sunset, shone entirely crimson.

He was certainly the knight from the rumors.

‘As I thought, strange.’

Hamel tilted his head, even more puzzled.

If his goal was to kill people, there was no need to reveal himself like that.

What could he possibly gain by threatening people?

The reason for driving people out of the forest.

They needed to know that.

Hamel cautiously approached the knight and said.

“Are you a knight of the Rengbaster family?”

“Get lost.”

He wasn’t the type for conversation, then.

Hamel paused and looked at the knight.

The knight opened his mouth again in a voice as cold as ice.

“If you don’t leave, I’ll gladly carve you to pieces.”

“Calm down. I’m a priest sent from the order.”

“…What?”

The knight visibly flinched.

He looked both surprised and flustered.

After scanning Hamel and Antonio’s attire up and down for a moment, he lowered his voice and asked.

“…You look young for a priest.”

“I am a formally ordained priest. I even have my exorcist’s badge here…”

Just as Hamel reached for the badge.

─Swoosh

The knight’s form vanished.

His body moved faster than he expected.

─Clang!

A violent impact rolled through the sword he had drawn in an instant.

Hamel immediately leapt back, deflecting the blow and creating distance.

Thrown back like a spring, Hamel swallowed a groan and raised his head.

In the spot where Hamel had just stood was the same knight.

Sword drawn, glaring at Hamel.

The murderous intent radiating from his raised blade sent a chill across Hamel’s skin.

“I’ve been waiting.”

“…Antonio. Get behind me.”

Whatever the situation, it had suddenly changed.

Hamel lightly shook his aching wrist.

Dealing with a knight is tricky.

An exorcist’s calling is fundamentally to vanquish demons, not to fight people as a combatant.

In Hamel’s case, the matchup was especially poor.

Depending on the situation, a knight could be far more dangerous than a demon.

As Hamel watched the knight’s movement, the knight didn’t attack but spoke instead.

“I have something to ask.”

“Speak.”

Hamel nodded, and the knight ground his teeth as he asked.

“Do you know an exorcist who uses two daggers? Brown hair, brown eyes.”

The appearance was common, but the weapon was distinctive.

He had never heard of an exorcist who used such a unique weapon.

Most exorcists rely more on innate abilities than on weapon skills.

“I don’t know.”

The knight sighed deeply, as if he’d expected that answer.

“I thought so.”

After a brief pause, the knight suddenly raised his head and recited coldly.

“Then die now.”

─Swish

Again the knight’s form blurred and dirt sprang up where he had stood.

It was a terrifying display of force.

The knight rushed like the wind and swung his sword.

Still, with focus it wasn’t invisible.

─Clang!

Hamel calmly blocked the blade once more.

“…!”

For a moment the knight seemed surprised Hamel could block, and Hamel slid forward with his weapon and thrust.

But the knight leaned back sharply and kicked aside the incoming blade.

Iron greaves collided with the sword, sending sparks flying.

His decisive strike had been stopped.

After exchanging blows, distance opened between them again.

The knight bumped his blade’s guard against his shoulder and spoke.

“You’re quite unique. An exorcist who handles a sword like that. Don’t you use innate powers or rites?”

“….”

It’s not that he doesn’t use them—he can’t.

He had probably spoken without knowing, but it was the last thing Hamel wanted to hear.

As Hamel readjusted his grip, he heard the knight snort in amusement.

“If you won’t show it, there’s no choice. I’ll just kill you.”

A chilling aura flowed from the knight.

That strange shift in the air Hamel had seen many times.

“…Aura Blade.”

─Vrrrr

A blue-tinged blade trembled as if alive.

The opponent was not a squire or a common knight, but an accomplished senior knight.

Against such a monster, nothing Hamel could do felt meaningful.

“Run away, Antonio.”

“Yes…?”

Could he buy time?

No—he had to.

Wasn’t this his first time serving as an exam proctor?

Just as he steeled himself.

“It’s touching, really. But when did I ever let anyone go…”

─Clang clang

The urgently ringing bells cut off the knight’s taunting words.

The knight snapped his head toward the sound of the bells.

Torn between choices, he glanced between Hamel and the bell and clicked his tongue.

Then he glared at Hamel as if to kill and said.

“Get lost. If I see you again, I’ll kill you.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than the knight dashed off at speed and vanished into the woods.

“W-were we spared…?”

Antonio collapsed to the ground as if his strength had left him.

Hamel sheathed his sword and approached Antonio, offering a hand.

“Get up. We’ll follow him.”

“What? I must have misheard…”

“You heard me correctly.”

Hamel began running in the direction the knight had disappeared.

That was the direction of the lord’s mansion.

---

“Phew. P-please wait, Mr. Hamel!”

Antonio panted as he spoke.

Hamel stopped and turned to look at him.

Antonio was covered in leaves and dirt, struggling to keep up.

“You need to build up your stamina.”

“…It’s not stamina. How can you climb like this without making a sound?”

─Rustle

Antonio stepped on a dry leaf with a look of disbelief and approached.

Hamel had only one thing to say.

“Prayer silence is an exorcist’s discipline.”

“…You’re joking, right?”

Hamel shrugged in response.

What could he do?

You learn to survive.

Antonio would soon feel that need keenly as well.

“You don’t have to hide your sound right now, so focus on running.”

“But that knight is still around.”

Fear flashed across Antonio’s face.

It was understandable.

Having an opponent who moments ago threatened their lives somewhere in these woods was terrifying.

Which was why Antonio had to learn more.

Hamel tapped his ear and said.

“Focus on the sounds.”

“Sounds?”

Antonio, looking puzzled for a moment, followed orders, took a breath, and pricked up his ears.

─Clang!

From the far side of the forest, a sharp metallic clang mixed with a faint roar.

“They’re fighting.”

Antonio muttered in surprise.

Hamel nodded calmly.

Halfway true.

With experience you can not only tell that someone is fighting, but roughly who is fighting.

A swordsman with exceptional power was battling a nonhuman being.

It was definitely the knight from a moment ago.

The knight, who had raced through the woods, had been confronting something for quite some time.

“Always keep your ears open. Just gathering information and hypothesizing the situation changes the level of your response.”

Hide my own information, but gather as much about the opponent as possible.

Exorcism is, after all, a kind of combat.

Within that scope, quality information becomes a decisive factor in victory or defeat.

“…I understand.”

Antonio nodded as if he had realized something from Hamel’s words.

He seemed to be learning well.

Just as Hamel felt a surge of pride.

“But why did you follow that knight?”

He seemed curious why Hamel would run toward danger again after narrowly escaping death.

Hamel glanced at Antonio and then spoke.

“Because there’s a demon where he was headed.”

The answer was surprisingly simple.

Hamel’s motive and purpose was solely the hunting of demons.

Of course his ultimate goal was to capture the demon that killed his mother, but his hatred for other demons was no less.

They were pests and a cancerous presence that brought no help to humans.

That was Hamel’s perception of demons.

“Remember the bell’s ringing from earlier. If it rings twice in quick succession like that, it’s a signal of a demon’s appearance.”

Clear anger and hostility.

Hamel no longer looked at Antonio.

His eyes flashed like a madman as he stared toward the demon’s direction.

Antonio involuntarily swallowed dryly at Hamel’s changed demeanor.

There was the gentle Hamel who fought the knight to protect Antonio.

And the mad Hamel who pursued demons, neglecting not only his own life but Antonio’s as well.

Two completely different faces, but both were of Hamel.

Antonio felt a chilling sensation at that duality.

It felt like peering into the darker side of exorcist priests.

He stopped asking questions and focused on running, while Hamel silently led the way.

With increasingly stealthy movements, Antonio ran through the forest alongside Hamel.

---

How long had they been running?

A wide clearing opened up, revealing a huge mansion.

No matter how small the domain, this was the manor where the lord resided.

The outer walls around the mansion towered well above a person’s height, resembling castle ramparts.

And in front of that mansion.

─Clang!

Three knights were engaged in battle against a single monster.

“That knight is there too.”

Antonio whispered, pointing at the knight wearing the red cloak and crimson-plumed helmet.

Hamel nodded quietly instead of answering.

Hamel’s gaze was not on the knight but on the creature they faced.

“almawt qadim ‘ayuha al’aghbia (Death approaches, O fools).”

A voice filled with malice issued from the black mist.

‘Contract enforcer Djinn.’

Just as he expected.

Whether to be glad or sad about that fact he wasn’t sure.

Seeing Hamel’s expression, Antonio, misunderstanding it, asked anxiously.

“Is it a powerful demon?”

“No, not strong so much as troublesome.”

There are different kinds of djinn.

This djinn, lacking human or animal form, would be classified as a mid-tier demon.

Mid-tier demons might sound dangerous, but not necessarily so.

Djinn of that level tend to have clear weaknesses and counters among mid-tier demons.

Demon rankings are, after all, classifications made by humans facing them.

A rank does not equate to absolute strength.

‘If you know the counter, it’s not difficult.’

Djinn are tricky and threatening to face, but their weaknesses are very clear.

Hamel had faced djinn of this level several times and was confident he could subdue it in the blink of an eye if he chose.

The knights, however, were different.

The knights, riddled with cuts from slashes through the air, panted heavily.

“Damn.”

Armor shredded by the djinn’s razor-like wind.

They gritted their teeth and glared at the djinn hovering in midair.

It was at that moment.

“You fall back. I’ll cut it down.”

The knight in the red cloak stepped forward, cloaking his sword with aura.