## Chapter 439 – Those Devilish Bastards
“Alright, Elise. Let’s start the investigation now. Are you ready?”
“Of course!”
“I’m fully armed too. Let’s go!”
“Understood!”
I exited the east gate with Elise, who was showing great enthusiasm.
With Elise by my side, there’s nothing to fear.
That’s how much I trust her.
I don’t know her exact combat power, but her tenacity and mental strength, born from unwavering faith and devotion, are stronger than mine, even after accepting the true truth of Fusion Confucianism.
And she’s basically stronger than me.
She can even use divine spells, so her combat power is beyond comparison. But that’s old news; I can hold my own against her to some extent now.
And we’re together?
Those goddamn heretical cultist bastards should just crawl back into their mothers’ graves.
—Thud, thud.
—Thud, thud.
I walked along the well-maintained road with Elise.
My plan was to go a bit further from the city and, if we found any imps, start the investigation from there. Since there are supposed to be so many, we should find them soon.
“Oh, right, Elise. This happened when I went to the Misty Plains last time.”
“The Misty Plains, you say?”
“You know about it?”
“I’ve seen it on a map.”
Since we were walking anyway, I decided to tell her about it.
I was planning to tell her about anything related to heretics if we met later.
“When I went there, there was a village of bandits who were involved in human trafficking.”
“Wh-What! Is that true!”
“Yeah! Those bastards were drugging travelers who got lost in the mist, killing them or stealing their possessions, and selling them as slaves!”
“Such an evil village exists in reality?! I can never forgive them!!!”
Elise, listening to the story, burst into anger and trembled all over.
Some things never change.
“They would put drugs in the stew and serve it. Heh heh heh, I noticed right away and killed them all. The whole village was in on it.”
“You did well. Such evil groups must be crushed completely!”
As I told her what happened, Elise became completely immersed in my story, even pulling out her mace and looking around.
“You truly are Saint, never resting for the sake of a righteous world. I am more than happy to hear such a pious story.”
But it’s not really a happy story.
It’s closer to a horror story.
“But the story doesn’t end there.”
“What…?”
I immediately told her about the heretics who appeared.
That they were colluding with the village and engaging in human trafficking. Hearing that story, Elise expressed hatred and resentment as if she would curse all the evil beings in the world.
“Such an unspeakable thing…!”
“I recovered some evidence; I’ll show it to you later.”
“Please do! This must be reported to the Order! Heretics were hiding in the Misty Plains…!”
In the Misty Plains, where fog blooms all year round, what purpose could the heretics have for engaging in human trafficking?
Looking at it, it seems that the heretics are quite widespread in this remote area.
“Hoo! Saint! It seems like anger is overflowing! This must be an irresistible impulse!”
“In times like that, you shout ‘Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!!’ loudly, Elise!!”
“Understood, Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!!”
“Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!!”
And so, Elise and I entered the forest, endlessly shouting the battle cry, “Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!” Doing this together made me feel an incredible fighting spirit and motivation.
Those evil heretic bastards!
I will kill them all and seize their wealth…!
“Haa, shouting with Saint seems to calm the irresistible impulse a little.”
“No, it’s not calmed down. It’s just stored in your heart. If you encounter an evil being, your anger will erupt again!”
“I see!”
With that feeling, I drew my sword and started searching. I could see monsters running away here and there. It seems we were making too much noise.
Where could the imps be?
“Elise. Now that I think about it, it seems like there are a lot of heretics around here. The unexplored area near Krasheim where we first met, and the Ossuary too.”
—Rustle!
Pushing through the bushes and breaking branches, we headed deeper into the forest.
There’s a well-maintained path right next to us, but as soon as you step off the path, a jungle-like forest unfolds. That’s the kind of terrain this is.
“There’s also the Undead Festival, the Kobold Dungeon, the Isvant Underground Waterway, and even the slums where their evil hands have reached. The Misty Plains too.”
I told Elise, who was following behind me, my views on the heretics that I had thought about so far.
“Their base must be somewhere in this remote area. They’re hiding there, preparing to turn the world upside down… What do you think?”
“That is a correct assessment. Our Order is also cooperating with other churches to search the vicinity with similar thoughts. However, it is also true that there have been no significant results yet.”
We talked like that while looking around, but we didn’t see any imps. We only heard the sounds of unknown monsters running away from time to time.
Damn it. Why aren’t they showing up?
“What is their purpose? What is their purpose that they are trying to invade the city while commanding the undead? They even transformed people into ghouls and used them as slaves, and they created a heretical giant…”
The questions only deepened.
No, I don’t know if it’s because I bought a house, but I’ve been thinking a lot about it lately. I wonder if those heretic bastards are targeting Isvant.
Of course, even if they gather their forces and invade, they won’t be able to easily overthrow the city, which is defended by the lord and the church.
But I’m still worried.
“What is their purpose?”
I want to kill them all right now and resolve this uncomfortable feeling.
“Purpose… It is highly likely to be an evil wish, such as the resurrection of an evil god or the summoning of a demon king from another world. The purpose of heretics is mostly like that.”
When I asked seriously, Elise also gave me a serious answer.
“They’re all heinous bastards.”
Evil gods and demon kings are definitely goddamn bastards just by hearing their names. It is beneficial for humans if those kinds of guys are just dead forever.
“Perhaps they are thinking of breaking the taboo of resurrection.”
“Resurrection?”
As Elise said, the heretics may be pitiful guys who are researching such things in order to revive their mothers who died long ago.
They are literally motherfucking bastards.
Thinking about it that way, I began to understand why they were always acting like that. They are venting their longing for their lost mothers through crime and murder. It’s only natural.
“There were many evil gods and demon kings who fell during the Idol War. Of course, there were just as many followers.”
In the era of the Idol War, which was truly an era of madness, good and evil, religion, values, and ideologies were all mixed together, killing each other while claiming to be right.
In other words, communists, imperialists, fundamentalists, as well as democratic thinkers, dreamers, and nationalists, were all waging a great war for survival. To put it simply, that’s the extent of it, but since those ideologies were combined with other world common sense, religions, and values, the number of forces reached thousands.
Even external forces such as demon kings and demons flowed in and intervened in the process, making the already chaotic world even more chaotic.
In other words, it was an other-world-style world war.
“Perhaps they are continuing the lineage of heresy even after hundreds of years, acting to revive their old idols… This is just my personal opinion.”
“Aaaagh!!! That’s a really scary story!”
“Hehe, it’s a scary story, but if you have a firm belief like Saint, there will be no problem.”
“Hehe, that’s right. If you have a strong mind, those bastards are nothing.”
“That’s right.”
And so, Elise and I continued to explore the forest while talking about various things.
After about 30 minutes, I noticed something black crawling in front of me.
—Gurgle, gurgle…!
That black and grotesque shape…!
It’s an imp!
“There! Elise! An imp! I found an imp!”
“They’ve finally appeared!”
Elise, who shouted like thunder, pulled out her mace and rushed towards the imp. I also sprinted after Elise.
“Oh, God of Order!!!!”
“Kieeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!”
—Clang, clang!
As our holy screams echoed, the imp turned to look at us. Seeing that monster’s face made inhuman anger and murderous intent surge!
“You son of a bitch from hell!!!!”
“Evil fiend!!”
—Crack!
Elise, a brutal monster ambush predator, skillfully swung her mace and instantly shattered the imp’s head. Investigation is supposed to be done after annihilating them.
—Gurgle!
—Gurgle!
“Alright! These bastards were gathered here!”
“There are a lot of imps!”
There was not only one imp here.
—Gurgle, gurgle!
—Greeeeeeeek!
—Grrrrk!
Whether they were all gathered here or not, many imps were wriggling in the bushes, on the trees, and behind the rocks!
Those disgusting bastards!
“Living Armor Fist Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!!”
“They must all be killed!!!”
—Pow pow pow!
I immediately unleashed the Living Armor Fist, slamming punches and kicks into the imps crawling on the ground. —Thwack! —Smack! Every time a fierce punch and a savage kick containing the profound philosophy of Fusion Confucianism struck flesh, a cheerful striking sound echoed, and their bodies and heads burst.
—Boom!
“Die!!!”
With such flimsy durability, they can never survive in front of my Living Armor Fist, which has been honed by murder.
—Gurgle!!
—Gurgle gurgle!
The imps, only then realizing the reality, tried to escape, but in the first place, they could never escape from here with their speed.
—Boong boong!
“Y-You crazy goddamn bastards!!!! How dare you cause trouble here!!!”
I scolded the imps and burst them with my bare hands.
It didn’t take long for the imps, who were frolicking happily, to turn into fragments of burst entrails.
Compared to the skills of me and Elise, the durability of the imps was no different from water balloons. The levels don’t match. All the imps burst alive in front of her mace and my fists.
A field of flesh and blood was created in an instant.
It was a fitting end for evil fiends.
“To burst imps with your bare hands, you truly are Saint!! Truly a bold and righteous fist! Saint’s steel-like power must surely come from a pious heart!”
Elise, who had been watching me unleash the Living Armor Fist, exclaimed in admiration.
“Elise! You too must learn to beat monsters to death with your bare hands! There will definitely be situations where you have to fight even when you lose your weapon! Always assume that while fighting!”
“That’s right! Saint was preparing in that way!”
Seeing Elise’s admiring appearance, the thought that I should pass on the Living Armor Fist to her began to captivate my brain.
“Now, follow me, Elise! Living Armor Fist!!!”
Now was the time!
“L-Living Armor Fist!”
“Watch and learn! It’s a terrifyingly powerful bare-handed martial art! It’s a primal justice martial art that I created solely to beat evil beings to death!”
“Understood!”
—Pow pow pow!
—Boong boong!
As I immediately showed off the murderous moves of the Living Armor Fist, Elise skillfully imitated the movements. Imitation? No, that was by no means an imitation.
She has already reached the realm of murder…!
“Like this, is this how it’s done!”
“That’s it, Elise! You’re doing very well!”
It must be the first time she has unleashed a martial art, but Elise’s overflowing talent and combat power perfectly digested the Living Armor Fist with just one viewing of the moves.
Is this what talent is…?
—Pow pow pow!
—Boong boong!
“I can feel the overflowing power!”
“Good, let’s go straight into practice! Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!!”
“D-Dejyaaaaaaaaat!!!”
And so, Elise and I roared while unleashing the Living Armor Fist. Today, not a single imp blooming in this forest would be able to survive.
