## Chapter 206 – For Elise
“You’ve completely pulverized him.”
Elise’s violence knew no mercy. Though she was a kind and girlish soul, she was, after all, a sister of the Radiant Cross, merciless against the impious heretics who walked the path of wickedness.
A lot of blood splattered.
Elise isn’t quite right in the head either, I guess.
“It was unavoidable to uncover the truth.”
“Well, I suppose so. How else would we know if this bastard was lying?”
“Indeed. If the same answer is not repeated consistently, it indicates falsehood… It was a delicate task.”
The old man, having vomited blood, had rolled his eyes back and fainted.
He had to endure Elise’s wrath and violence completely. He enthusiastically spewed out everything he knew, but to ensure he wasn’t spouting lies, he had to be beaten like a mangy dog gnawing at Kim Seo-bang’s balls on Dog Days until he repeated the same answer three times in a row.
ㅡScribble, scribble.
Having finished the interrogation, Elise opened the water bottle I handed her, took a drink, and then pulled out a small notebook and pencil from her bosom, beginning to write something down.
“Please wait a moment. I will record the contents of the interrogation.”
“Alright.”
What we learned from interrogating the old man who had fallen into the ways of magic was quite useful.
First, we found out the location of their gathering, and we also learned roughly about this thing called the Eternal Life Society. According to him, the Eternal Life Society was a strange religion with the bizarre ideology that one could live healthily and long without proper nourishment.
“To be able to live healthily without eating, and to be reborn as an immortal being through repeated practice… It is such an absurd story. From a theological perspective, this is clearly heresy.”
“Well, people can’t live without eating.”
“That’s right. People cannot live without consuming something. Similarly, one cannot be reborn as an immortal being even through practice.”
Elise finished recording and closed her notebook.
Cannot be reborn as an immortal being… I can’t agree with that part.
“Any doctrine that promises to fulfill unrealistic desires with things that are not common sense can be regarded as an evil religion. The long and arduous history of the Idol Wars proves this. I hope you will always keep this in mind, Saint.”
What’s this Idol War thing again?
“Don’t worry. I’m the type who doesn’t believe in unrealistic things.”
“Hehe, in fact, your firm mindset alone would be sufficient, Saint.”
I tossed aside the wooden plank that had been covering the door and moved the sprawled-out old man to a corner. Then, I placed the wooden plank on top to conceal the scene.
We decided not to worry about the old man anymore.
He wasn’t dead yet, but now it was entirely up to his will.
“And from what I heard, it seems there are circumstances suggesting a faith that worships a monotheistic god… This part needs to be properly investigated.”
This was the first time I learned that, according to Elise’s explanation, all religions that worship a monotheistic god are illegal in most countries, and are also declared as evil heretics and targeted for extermination by most religions.
I didn’t know much, so I just nodded.
Is it because there are so many gods?
Certainly, in a world overflowing with gods like this, if you were to say, ‘Screw you all. Your gods aren’t gods, only our god is the real god,’ there would be a lot of fights.
Unlike Earth, there actually exist divine beings here.
“Certainly, it is a doctrine that would sound appealing to those living in hardship… There are more than a few troubling aspects in many ways.”
Unfortunately, we couldn’t get a clear answer about that.
It seemed the old man didn’t know everything either.
He just seemed to be an ordinary follower who attended gatherings and received teachings as a group.
“Anyway, good job, Elise. Thanks to you, things are progressing.”
“I am glad that I was helpful. Then, I think it would be good to go to the gathering place now.”
The gathering was said to be held tonight.
The place the old man described seemed a bit far from here, but it had distinctive features, so it didn’t seem like it would be difficult to find. A gathering held in the basement of a building deep in the back alleys…
It’s a bit unsettling, but if Elise is there, it’s okay.
She and I are Divine Friends.
When we are together, we can increase our combat power due to the synergy effect.
“Still, there’s still some time left, right?”
“That’s right. It seems there’s about half a day left.”
“…Should we eat something?”
“Hmm, I suppose it would be alright.”
We came out of the slum and went into a decent restaurant. Seeing her dramatically emphasize that she would pay this time, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to let her treat me for once.
We sat down and ordered our meals.
“I believe we will be able to learn the truth if we participate in the gathering.”
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to tonight.”
Looks like I won’t be able to get back on time today.
I’ll probably get an earful from an angry Winia when I return. But right now, I need to worry about the world more than my own worries. I don’t know what kind of atrocities the infiltrated cultists will commit in the city.
And maybe do some looting on the side.
“Elise. If those guys are evil beings, we’ll just smash them to bits, right?”
“We don’t know the strength of the enemies yet, so I can’t judge yet. Acting rashly will only backfire… To eradicate the evil beings hiding in the city, a lot of preparation will be needed.”
“As expected of a Divine Friend! You agree with me! Good! Let’s work hard to purify the city!”
“As expected, Saint, you are a righteous person worthy of emulation by all…!”
Elise said, moved.
Good.
With this momentum, we’ll beat all the cultists to death and loot everything they have. That way, we can correct the city’s justice, and it would be even better if we could raise Elise’s achievements.
An opportunity to loot legally.
Great rewards follow great risks.
Right now, let’s witness the truth of the Eternal Life Society and reassess its value. Just thinking about the wand or the ceremonial dagger we were able to acquire from the sewers makes me have high expectations.
Even after eating slowly, there was still some time left, so we took a walk outside.
“So, first, we go to the gathering site and quietly watch what those guys are doing. It’s not something that can be solved in a day, and we don’t have any equipment right now.”
“Of course, we will be cautious.”
“Right? But I think this is going to take a while.”
“A while, you say?”
Elise asked back at those words.
“Hmm? Do you have any plans?”
If it was just a simple rampage, we could do it today or tomorrow, but to take down the leaders of those guys, more investigation would be needed.
Suspicious guys doing suspicious things are usually for money, so there’s a high possibility that wealth is accumulated. We had to track its whereabouts.
“No, it’s not that. It’s just…”
“Just?”
“Just because you said a while…”
“Why a while?”
“Ah, it’s nothing. It’s getting late. Let’s go back to the slum.”
“Well, let’s do that.”
It was finally time for the sun to set. We went to the gathering place according to the old man’s testimony. Passing a large building, turning around a place lined with stalls, and going deeper. As the sun went down, the gloom around us increased, and the slum dwellers, like stray dogs with shining eyes in the dark, moved busily.
Turning a curve, moving through an alley.
From the middle, people heading in the same direction joined us.
“Elise. People are gathering. I wonder if they’re all participants in the gathering.”
“…Yes. I think so too.”
Now there’s no need to find the way.
The procession was long.
They moved forward, following each other like they were possessed by something, with soulless eyes. Elise and I also took advantage of the atmosphere and followed behind them.
“Imohtep. Imohtep.”
From the middle, I also rolled my eyes back as if possessed by something and chanted the slogan, acting as if I was being manipulated by an evil sorcerer.
“Imohtep. Imohtep.”
“Saint?”
“Imohtep. Imohtep. Elise, you follow along too.”
“Ah, I understand. I, Imohtep. Imohte, ep.”
It’s like that time in Egypt.
As we walked like that, our destination finally appeared.
“Imohtep. Imo… Saint. Look over there.”
“…Yeah. That seems to be it.”
It was a three-story building made of yellowish-brown mud walls, and people were all going into it.
Even in the dark world, orange light emanated from the entrance, and when I got closer, it turned out to be an entrance to the basement of the building. The people who went there seemed like… moths jumping into a bonfire.
It’s probably similar in reality.
Elise and I entrusted ourselves to the procession and went down to the basement of the building.
“…”
Quietly, and calmly.
The torches hanging on the wall illuminated the yellowish-brown walls and burned with an orange light, and the people wrapped in rags were just going down the stairs as if they had no interest in anything in the world.
After going down for a while, a corridor appeared. And at the end of it was the gathering place. I couldn’t come to my senses because the smell of money was wafting so strongly.
“…Elise. Duck your head.”
Elise and I rolled our eyes back again. There were guards at the end of the corridor. The robes they were wearing were very familiar.
The robes that the cultists in the underground waterway were wearing.
I checked their faces, but I couldn’t see any tattoos.
Their skin wasn’t white either.
However, they looked extremely emaciated, as if they were about to starve to death after not eating for about two weeks. Their pale eyes stared at the people entering like eternal watchers.
“…Imohtep, do you?”
“No. Be quiet here.”
ㅡSwish.
I tensed up and followed the person in front of me.
Fortunately, there were no particular restrictions.
“…Phew. That was a close call.”
The inside was wider than I thought.
There was a platform, and the people who had already entered were densely packed, staring blankly at the platform. Elise and I stood in the middle. More people came in and the venue became crowded.
I remembered going to listen to the Brass Sky Angel sermon with Winia when I was in Krasheim. It was similar to this back then.
ㅡMurmur, murmur.
ㅡMurmur, murmur.
As I watched Elise trying to stretch her neck while standing on tiptoes, the gathering participants began to stir. Did it finally start?
ㅡThump, thump.
“S, Saint… I can’t see…!”
“I can’t even let you listen… Just bear with it for a moment.”
When I pressed Elise’s head down, a group of people wearing robes came up to the platform. They were all bald bastards with white skin and black eyes, who looked evil at first glance. Except that they didn’t have any tattoos yet, they didn’t seem any different from those guys in the waterway.
The evil magic that Risha mentioned was referring to these guys.
The ones standing in front of the platform turned their heads left and right as if looking around the venue.
“…I am truly honored that so many followers have come to visit.”
And then he said that.
ㅡShaaaaa…
It was an ominous tone as if an evil aura was emanating, and above all, the inside of his mouth looked black. Not just rotten teeth, but literally like rinsing his mouth with tar.
ㅡOh, oh…!
ㅡOhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!
ㅡOhhhh!!!!
ㅡEternal Life Priest-nim! Eternal Life Priest-nim!!!
Then the people let out gloomy cheers as if they had heard a great speech. Elise looked up at me with a stiff expression.
“Saint.”
“Let’s just go along with it. Woooooo!!!!”
“Y, yes? O, oh. O, ohhhh…!”
After cheering together for a while, the monster-like speaker, called the ‘Eternal Life Priest’, raised his hand. His palm was also as white as snow.
ㅡSilence.
The poor people listened to the words so well that the heat subsided in an instant.
“Ah, then today I will bestow the teachings of the Eternal Life Society… First, I will bring in the Susan follower who wished to be baptized at the last gathering.”
He muttered something and mentioned baptism, and Elise, who had a trigger activated by those words, tried to stand on tiptoes even more vigorously. At the speaker’s gesture, someone appeared from the hidden back.
“Look at the figure of the Susan follower. Now he is not a follower, but a blessed one who has obtained the power of eternal life like us.”
It looked like some kind of grandmother, but the reason I said it so ambiguously was because the person really looked ambiguous.
The withered grandmother, yes. She resembled the guard who looked like a monster that I saw earlier.
