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[Translator - Night]
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Chapter 165
However, if the Holy Kingdom had deemed her a heretic, then her stigma should have already disappeared—that would be the logical outcome.
To know the truth, they needed to confirm it in person.
“What should we do?”
“We find her—before the Inquisitors do.”
If Nadia’s stigma were still intact, it would mean that the Holy Kingdom had lost its mind. If not, then she truly had become a problem.
The issue was figuring out where she currently was.
The distinctive, powerful holy energy of a saintess would normally make her easy to find, but with the abundance of divine energy saturating the area, pinpointing her was nearly impossible.
Even using the Heart of the Machine God to search for her wouldn’t be easy.
Instead, they needed to find someone who might know where she was.
Clang!!
Just then, the front gate of the local inquisitorial office swung open.
A man, bound and dragged by several Inquisitors, was being hauled inside.
Ah.
They’d found him.
The man being dragged in was someone they recognized—the holy knight who had once served as Nadia’s personal bodyguard.
The very man who had protected her when they last traveled to the Forbidden Zone.
“You vile bastards!! How dare you brand Lady Nabel a heretic?!”
“Shut up and move. Unless you want to be executed on the spot.”
“You’ll never find Lady Nabel! She’s already left this fortress! Oh, how the Lord must weep—seeing those who should be most devoted to Him commit such sacrilege! You—urk!”
One of the Inquisitors drove his fist into the knight’s gut, rendering him unconscious.
The man’s limp body was then dragged into the building.
Since they didn’t know the saintess’ current whereabouts, they realized they needed to get to that knight.
“Do we storm in?”
“No, let’s wait until nightfall and slip in quietly.”
Regardless of how they went about it, the fact that there had been no news of Nabel being captured by sundown meant they still had time.
* * *
“Damn it… here we go again.”
The local inquisitorial office had an underground interrogation chamber.
Of course, they called it an “interrogation room,” but it was just a euphemism for a torture chamber.
On days when heretics were brought in, the place would echo with their screams.
Naturally, the guards stationed there either had to grow numb to it or lose their minds.
The soldier currently on duty was battling the overwhelming urge to quit his job altogether.
No matter how accustomed one became, the sound of human screams never got easier to bear.
“Stay alert. We’ve been given strict orders from above to keep a close eye on things.”
The interrogation had just concluded.
After several grueling hours of torture, the so-called heretic still hadn’t broken.
“I heard he was a senior holy knight.”
“Ha. Looks like even high-ranking knights are just human in the end.”
It was disheartening to see that someone who had once held such a devout position could be branded a heretic.
“Whatever the higher-ups are thinking, it’s none of our business. Let’s just do our job.”
“Agreed.”
At his colleague’s words, the soldier straightened his posture and closed his eyes.
“Once we’re done, let’s grab a drink. I’ll be having nightmares tonight if I don’t.”
Under normal circumstances, he would have heard an immediate, agreeable reply.
But oddly, there was only silence.
“Hey… huh?”
When he turned his head, he realized that the guard who had been stationed at the door was nowhere to be seen.
He frowned in confusion.
That was the last thing he saw before losing consciousness.
Thud…
His body collapsed to the ground, and a shadowy figure dragged him into the darkness.
The intruder slowly emerged.
“This must be the place.”
The man, cloaked in a loose-fitting robe, walked through the underground corridor and forcefully rattled the iron door.
Clang!
Inside, he saw a man hanging limply, shackled by chains.
The prisoner’s body was covered in wounds, not a single patch of unscathed skin to be found.
“These bastards never learn…”
The battered man lifted his head weakly and bellowed with conviction.
“I won’t tell you anything! She is beyond your false accusations! She is more devoted than anyone—!”
“Luna, heal him first. He’ll die if we leave him like this.”
“Got it.”
Without any discernible emotion in her monotone voice, Luna waved her hand.
A multicolored light flowed into the knight’s body.
Instantly, the gruesome wounds on his flesh began to heal at an astonishing speed.
“Huh?”
The knight blinked in disbelief, looking at his suddenly restored body.
He glanced down at his hands and arms, bewildered.
“All done?”
“…”
“Good. Let’s go. We’ve got a saintess to find.”
The magical restraints on the knight were imbued with holy magic, making them impervious to necromancy or elemental spells.
The only way to break them was through raw physical strength.
Ordinary humans would struggle to even dent them.
“What a pain…”
Crunch!!
Just then, Luna casually grabbed the shackles with both hands and tore them apart.
The knight’s eyes widened in shock before he slowly nodded in understanding.
“What kind of strength is that…?”
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[Translator - Night]
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Though his body was healed, the torment he had endured had left him mentally and emotionally exhausted.
His legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.
“We don’t have time for this. Lady Nabel is in danger.”
“Has the Holy Kingdom gone mad? Branding the saintess a heretic?”
“It seems there’s… internal—wait, what did you just say?”
The knight’s eyes widened as if they would tear apart at the seams.
“You’re not seriously trying to fool me by pretending you don’t know. But that doesn’t matter right now. Get on your feet. We’re getting the saintess out of here.”
No matter what was happening with the Hael Tribe, saving the saintess’ life was their top priority.
If she truly fell, the consequences would extend beyond the Holy Kingdom and could spark a massive conflict.
“How in the world did you get in here? If you involve yourself in this, you might not be able to handle the consequences.”
"As long as I don’t get caught, it’ll be fine."
I swiftly glanced around outside.
It seemed like there were no immediate issues yet.
"Don’t make a sound. Follow me quietly."
After setting up a moderate illusion spell and thoroughly masking all traces of our presence, we quickly made our way underground.
Despite the thick darkness, the sight of the Inquisition agents combing the area meant that Saintess Nadia had not yet been captured.
"How did you end up here?"
"Wasn’t it the saintess who summoned me?"
She had sent me the meeting time and location, after all.
At my question, he wore a puzzled expression.
"That can’t be. She wasn’t in any condition to send proper messages, and Lady Nabel specifically ordered not to contact any outsiders, saying she couldn’t afford to get them involved in this mess."
He still seemed unable to believe how quickly his body had recovered.
He kept checking himself over in disbelief.
"It would be bad if we were discovered. Let’s save the details for later. Where is the saintess hiding?"
"Lady Nabel is in one of the hidden safehouses in this area, but… we’re still not ready to escape yet."
"Lead us to her immediately."
"Can I really trust you?"
Though I had saved him, it was clear that in Nabel's current situation, trusting anyone was a luxury she couldn't afford.
"I can’t help everyone. However, I will ensure the two of you escape safely."
"…Even that much is greatly appreciated."
Without hesitation, he guided us through the underground sewer, skillfully avoiding the Inquisition agents' watchful eyes.
The stench of the sewer made Luna frown, and she cautiously scanned her surroundings before clapping her hands softly.
At once, a multicolored aura spread around her, repelling all the filth in the vicinity.
We walked for a while until he stopped in front of a hidden passage and opened a concealed door with practiced familiarity.
"Lady Nabel is hiding somewhere inside this secret tunnel. I beg you, you’re the only ones who can help her now."
Though the situation was dire, the lack of any traces of intrusion at the entrance was a relief—it meant that Nabel was likely still safe inside.
Just as I was about to pick up the pace and call out for Nabel, I grabbed the knight by the back of his collar and yanked him back.
"Don’t act like an amateur. Shh."
His eyes widened in surprise at my sudden action, but I motioned with my head toward a certain direction.
There, shrouded in the darkness, figures in black Inquisition robes were moving stealthily, barely illuminated by faint light.
"The information must have leaked! This tunnel was supposed to be known only to the higher-ups of the Inquisition."
It appeared that this secret passage was an escape route reserved exclusively for the upper echelons.
If there was an entrance, there had to be an exit.
Those intruders had likely entered from the opposite end.
Since the area was still quiet, it seemed Nabel hadn't been captured yet.
However, there were too many of them to extract her silently.
If only teleportation magic weren’t being disrupted—but some peculiar force in this place was interfering with my spellcasting.
Most likely, it was part of a countermeasure designed to hinder mages among the pursuers.
The effect was so similar to magic itself that I could immediately tell it wouldn’t be easily resolved.
That made me wonder—would communication magic even work in such a densely shielded structure?
"Can we communicate with the outside from here?"
"It’s nearly impossible right now."
Oh?
Is that so?
"Don’t get any funny ideas. Even if communication is blocked, this passage is protected by a special holy formation. It suppresses all forms of magic and aura except for sacred magic."
"Hmm… Mercy doesn’t seem like the best policy right now."
"The ones down here are undoubtedly aiming to eliminate Lady Nabel at all costs. These are heretics who must eventually be dragged to the execution grounds."
"Then, you should leave it to the professionals from here on out."
"Professionals?"
With that, I casually tossed a stone fragment from the ground into the distance.
At the same time, I swiftly closed the gap between myself and the three Inquisition agents coming around the corner.
The sudden noise naturally drew their attention in that direction.
That was their mistake.
The first agent spotted me just as I struck his solar plexus.
Thud!!
"Guh?!"
A sharp, strangled gasp burst from him.
His body reflexively curled forward, making his head dip.
Whack! Thwack! Crack!
Fluidly guiding his movements, I landed a series of precise blows on his vital points, instantly knocking him out.
The other two agents, still dazed and slow to comprehend what was happening, fumbled to draw their swords.
But it didn’t take long before they, too, collapsed.
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[Translator - Night]
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