novelraw Chapter 216 : Chapter 216
Chapter 216 : Chapter 216
Chapter 216: Inquisitor (2)
Ellen tilted her head.
For some reason, Harad had an edge to him.
"Are you denying Him?"
Badelots's voice seemed to boil.
Like a priest of Laan, it resembled fire.
"I never did."
"Then are you denying the Church?"
"Was the Inquisitor part of the Church?"
"......"
Inquisitors were part of the Church, but not part of the Church.
It was the price for free hunting.
"What I'm denying isn't the Church, but you."
Harad pointed a finger at that hunter.
"A hunter who came to hunt without permission."
"......"
Inquisitors hate the North.
If one came despite that, it meant he was confident.
Whether in skill or in patience.
"I see."
As if it had never happened, Badelots wore a calm smile.
"My name is Badelots. Ellen Serzila."
Badelots made the Holy sign smoothly in place of a greeting.
"It's Ellen Serzila."
Instead of a greeting, Ellen crossed her arms.
Leaning back against the chair, she took on a position of looking down at him slightly.
Any more arrogant than that and she would become Elaine of her previous life.
Harad saw fragments of that in Ellen.
"My greeting and request for understanding are late. Unable to contain my impatience, I stepped into the North without informing Serzila......"
"Speak to Harad. Think of him as my spokesman."
Ellen cut off Badelots's words and even crossed her legs.
It was splendid arrogance.
"I have no interest. As long as you don't dare lay a hand on the North."
On top of that, she handed over even the name Serzila to Harad.
It meant for Harad to decide about Inquisitor Badelots however the hell he wanted.
"Understood."
It should have been unpleasant.
Badelots smiled and shifted his gaze from Ellen to Harad.
Harad smiled brightly as well.
"I'm Harad. My position is classified."
"Just now, I was reckless. The criticism was unfamiliar, so I made a mistake for a moment."
"It seemed that way."
If an Inquisitor said something was a demon, it was a demon.
"I'm pleased to meet you. Truly. It seems a meaningful conversation will emerge."
"I think so too."
A stew with large chunks of seafood was served.
It trembled slightly as it was set down on the table, and it was a different employee from before.
"Did you order it?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Please eat. Let's talk while eating."
"It's fine."
Badelots didn't pick up his utensils.
It seemed the conversation took priority.
It looked different to Harad's eyes.
'Once a suspect, always a suspect until you rip out their heart, I suppose.'
Because one of the employees had become a suspect.
Badelots suspected that some demon's handiwork had been added to that food.
"You said they usually fear it, didn't you? Those who see this."
Badelots pulled at the collar of his pitch-black Habit and spoke.
"I suppose so."
"I didn't expect that of the North. This might be a reckless question, but does the North know what fear is?"
Ellen twitched.
Each Inquisitor had their own personality. Badelots was quite skilled at scraping with words.
"Of course we know. We just try to overcome it."
"How is it different?"
"It's not being reckless, but being brave. Who would think of fighting and winning against an Inquisitor? Not even knights."
"......"
"Don't tell me the Empire does that? Or the Church's faithful?"
Haha.
Badelots laughed as if he had heard an amusing joke.
It didn't seem entirely amusing.
His hands were making the Holy sign.
That prayer substitutes for all actions: greetings, gratitude, and so on.
That includes patience.
"Is Harad a brave man?"
What are you so cocky about?
That was how it sounded to Harad's ears.
"No. I'm a coward. That's why I stick close."
Harad leaned toward Ellen.
"Why. Do cowards seem like suspects too?"
"......"
Badelots widened his eyes and flicked his tongue.
'He's not that patient.'
He didn't seem to have great patience.
Then it meant his skill was great.
'Or he's full of greed.'
As long as his patience was low, either was fine.
Harad wanted that Inquisitor's emotions to burst.
"Badelots."
Seria opened her mouth at that moment.
And Harad saw light.
It didn't scatter anywhere but settled into Badelots. The wide eyes curved into crescents as if it had never happened.
Harad noticed at once that he had forcibly calmed his emotions.
'He listened to Seria.'
That relationship was strange.
Seria was the next Inquisitor.
She wasn't in a position to stop Inquisitor Badelots.
There was no reason for Badelots to listen to Seria, who hadn't yet become an Inquisitor.
'Are they partners?'
Genius priests bring partners along.
Seria, a genius overflowing with Divine power, often falls into states of agitation.
Simply put, it means she frequently goes crazy.
The role of Seria's partner is to crack her head open to calm that agitation.
But right now, it was the opposite.
Seria was calming Badelots.
"You're a mischievous person."
Badelots smiled.
It was more intense than at first, but calmer than just before.
"Badelots."
"It's fine, Priestess Seria."
Badelots gently dissuaded Seria, who tried to step forward again.
It didn't look like how a superior would treat a newcomer.
"Laan created and Luan embraces and watches over this world and its creatures. Meaning exists in all things, and there remains something to learn. This place is the same."
Badelots defended Harad and assigned value to this meeting.
"Splendid words."
Harad nodded.
If only they weren't said by an Inquisitor.
"By any chance, do demons also have meaning and something to learn from them?"
"......"
Badelots barely held onto his smile, only his eyes widening.
"I guess not. You didn't intend that."
"......"
"Then why did He create them?"
"......"
"Was it a mistake?"
That's it.
Just as Harad sensed it and was about to signal Ellen.
"Badelots."
Seria opened her mouth again.
It was a much louder voice than the previous two times.
The Divine power that Badelots raised and made settle into himself was the same. Briefly, it was large and dazzling enough to dye the dining room pure white.
"Demons are!"
Badelots shouted.
And he smiled calmly.
"Creatures created by Laan to teach His children the lesson to refrain from evil."
"Oh."
"......Meaning also exists. Laan wishes for us to become strong by experiencing, understanding, being frustrated by, and punishing the existence called demons."
Mages were objects of negative example and training scarecrows.
There are passages in doctrine that could be interpreted that way.
Whether Laan Himself wrote that into their heads, who knows.
"Indeed, how devoted He is. There's no need to go that far."
"......"
Light rose again.
Within the vanished light, Badelots smiled again.
'Agitation will be difficult.'
Harad clicked his tongue quietly.
No matter how much he provoked him, Badelots wouldn't fall for it.
To make that seasoned Inquisitor fall into an agitated state, he would have to deplete his Divine power first.
It wasn't a method he could choose right now.
He had to be attacked first to avoid consequences. Moreover, Seria was here.
"I'm sorry. I got a bit excited. Trying to live like fire, I unknowingly did that."
Harad made the Holy sign with utmost sincerity.
Then Badelots's gaze softened somewhat.
"My! Were you a faithful of Laan?"
"That's right. My remarks were a bit extreme. I've always been interested in doctrine."
"No, not at all. You were somewhat frivolous, but it was a perspective worth pondering."
"Thank you for understanding. It's my first time seeing an Inquisitor. I couldn't contain my curiosity about what your perspective would be."
Haha. Harad opened his mouth and laughed.
Badelots opened his wider and laughed.
"Please eat first. It hasn't cooled yet."
"Then I'll excuse myself for a moment."
Badelots picked up his utensils and immediately put into his mouth the stew he had refused until now.
"Priestess Seria, please eat as well. The taste is quite good."
"......Yes."
Seria picked up her utensils.
It was an expression difficult to describe, and when he looked to the side, Ellen had a similar expression.
* * *
"I heard Premont Central Church incurred a debt."
"Not quite a debt. They lost something too."
"The Great Devil. I heard about that case at the Inquisition as well."
The atmosphere changed.
Even though the meal had ended, people who had been sitting awkwardly while watching Badelots left one by one.
Among them were Godif and the employee Badelots had perceived as prey earlier.
Badelots subtly scanned those backs, but didn't lose his smile.
It wasn't because he trusted Harad, a faithful of the Sun.
He was catering to Ellen's mood.
This is the North.
But Badelots hadn't received Serzila's permission, and Serzila was right before his eyes.
It meant Badelots's fate would change according to Ellen's will.
"So. Why did you come to the North?"
As the main topic came out, Badelots straightened his posture like someone at an interview.
Harad felt it was affected.
"I didn't come out of selfishness."
"I believe that. What guides you is radiance."
"There's a demon I'm chasing. I'll catch only that and withdraw."
Quite selfish.
An Inquisitor's perspective seemed different after all.
"Must be quite a great demon, for an Inquisitor to chase it all the way to the North."
Harad said that, but in reality, it meant he had lost the demon to this distant place.
Badelots bowed his head slightly as if ashamed and made the Holy sign.
The sound of his quiet muttering prayer was rough.
"What kind of demon is it?"
"A truly fearsome and wicked demon."
Badelots's explanation was vague.
It meant he had no intention of handing over his prey.
"You don't plan to entrust it to the North."
"It's a demon I must punish. If I punish it, I'll withdraw without leaving any trace in the North."
He wouldn't touch other demons or suspects.
Harad let out a hollow laugh. Who would believe that?
"If it's like that, we'll have no choice but to push you out. Our Serzila will take care of the demon you lost."
"......"
"You already know, but this place was created out of goodwill. Ellen's goodwill toward Seria. My goodwill as someone who serves the same Sun."
Badelots nodded briefly.
The smile disappeared. He must be upset.
That's what Inquisitors are like.
Petty and persistent. If he doesn't get Ellen's permission, he's the type to continue hunting secretly.
In that case, it's better to keep him close.
And better than that would be killing him here.
He looked to the side and saw Ellen nod.
It meant she would draw her sword if he wanted. However, her expression was stiff. It must be because of Seria. She might be thinking of Wimar.
So Harad shook his head.
He hadn't regressed to see a face like that.
Much less having decided to live however the hell he wanted.
"Then let's do this. I'll permit it."
Badelots's face brightened.
"But Ellen and I will accompany you, until you punish that demon."
"......"
"We'll only watch. I promise we won't help or hinder."
"You're saying you'll monitor me."
The brightened face crumpled sharply.
"I've conceded enough. You should too."
If he refused even this, it would be claiming he would secretly chase the demon even without permission.
Because Inquisitors never give up on demons they've detected.
"......Let's do that."
In the end, Badelots also stepped back.
"Good. What kind of demon is it?"
"A Great Devil of fire."
A 5th Rank Mage whose Origin is fire.
"That's quite serious."
Harad suppressed a laugh.
There's no way such a Mage would be from the continent.
"We must catch it."
Inquisitor Badelots was also chasing a Dreamer.
* * *
Badelots and Seria said they had taken rooms at a nearby inn.
It was an inn that was neither cheap nor expensive, and they said they hadn't paid the fee.
"Graciously, they were faithful of Laan. It must be a connection Laan made."
They didn't charge because they believed in the same god.
Harad snorted. They probably didn't charge because they'd feel like demons if they did.
"Where are you and Ellen staying?"
"We're nearby too. The details are classified."
"You have many secrets."
"Isn't that how the Intelligence Bureau is?"
Harad and Ellen saw Badelots and Seria off to the front of the inn.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow, Ellen."
Badelots and Seria entered the inn with smiles.
Before long, two of the third-floor windows brightened.
Harad didn't leave immediately and continued watching the inn.
One third-floor window darkened, and one fourth-floor window lit up.
That would be Badelots's real room.
It meant he had suspicious belongings.
"Let's go too."
The Intelligence Bureau's safe houses exist everywhere in the North.
Harad and Ellen planned to stay there.
As expected, the safe house was empty.
There were two beds. One was worn, and the other was brand new as if just prepared.
It was worth memorizing the roster quickly.
Benus must have ordered the Intelligence Bureau to cooperate with Ellen.
A letter was placed on the worn bed.
The addressee was Harad, which seemed to mean the worn bed was Harad's.
Harad tore open the letter immediately.
What was inside was information. Information about Inquisitor Badelots.
They must have gathered information immediately upon confirming contact with Badelots.
'Splendid.'
Thus the Serzila Intelligence Bureau was competent.
If given more time, they might even obtain information about the Great Devil of fire.
Harad sat roughly on the bed and unfolded the letter lengthwise.
"Why did you do that?"
Ellen spoke at that moment.
"What?"
"You were uncharacteristically aggressive."
Don't sharpen your edge, be slippery like water.
It was a basic quality of continental Mages, and he had treated Seria and Wimar that way.
Not with Badelots.
Harad had been aggressive from the start.
"I thought of Wimar."
It was because of the past incident when Wimar had found Rosen.
Back then, they were lucky it was Wimar, but if you kill a priest after finding a suspect, problems arise.
"No. Saying we were lucky is also wrong."
Because Rosen lived and Wimar died instead.
"I thought we had to kill him at the start if we were going to kill him. Well, I don't think I'll grow fond of Badelots though."
That was why Harad had been aggressive.
"But he didn't fall for it."
Badelots didn't fall for the provocation.
He killed his emotions with his own Divine power.
"If you were thinking that, we could have attacked first."
"That's also true."
He's an Inquisitor.
There would be no guilt even if he killed him.
No worries about consequences either.
The Church couldn't protest.
That's what Inquisitors were.
"Then why didn't you?"
"Because Seria wouldn't accept it. From our position, Badelots was still innocent."
Even more so from Seria's position.
In her eyes, Badelots is a holy priest who has devoted everything to punishing demons.
"She's your friend."
"She's not my friend."
"But she might become one."
"It doesn't matter."
"I know. If it were for me, you would have done it."
Ellen nodded.
If Harad had wanted it earlier, Ellen would have drawn her sword. Even if not Seria, she would have certainly killed Badelots.
She would have gladly accepted Seria's attack or resentment.
Ellen already had that resolve.
"But it's the same for me."
"What?"
"I can do anything for you too."
Don't give up.
Wimar said that to Ellen. While telling a priestess to tolerate demons and proselytize. Ellen would have thought of Seria first.
"Wimar said so. That I had already given up, and you weren't the type to give up even if told to."
"Yes."
"He was right. I have neither the intention nor confidence to win over the Church or priests."
Seria was a special priest.
But Harad didn't particularly expect anything.
On the other hand, Ellen has expectations.
The fact that she's biting her lip right now was proof.
Ellen regards Seria as a friend.
Or wants to become friends.
"Ellen, I want you not to give up. Like Wimar said."
Attacking Badelots in that place earlier would be the same as giving up on Seria.
Harad didn't want that.
"At the Village of Embers, and now, I'm already doing what I want to do enough. This time it's your turn."
"......"
"Don't try to give up because of me. I don't like that."
Badelots isn't important.
What's important is Seria, who accompanies him.
A friend who didn't exist in his previous life.
"Thank you."
Eventually Ellen smiled.
Some worry seemed to remain, but compared to earlier, it was clearly lighter.
It seemed only the worry of how to win over Seria remained.
"Still, if there's something fortunate, it's fortunate."
"Why?"
"Because it's you."
Ellen stared at Harad intently.
It was a burdensome gaze. The gradually deepening smile was even more so.
"Because you're not someone who makes the same mistake twice."
"......?"
"So there won't be the same thing as with Wimar, this time I'll also be more careful. To match you. Because only you can distinguish Mages."
"Ah."
He should have let her forget.