Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 118

118. Between Belief and Madness (3)

Though Aile had set out to hunt heretics under the Goddess’s command, his opponent was a high-ranking official holding a key position in the capital.

If it had been a typical assemblyman-level noble, the situation would have been much more difficult.

However, Dellen was deeply involved in shady dealings behind the scenes.

To prevent the ritual from being discovered, he didn’t have any guard NPCs inside the mansion, except for fellow Twilight Church members.

Even the guards currently protecting the mansion’s entrance were beyond Aile’s ability to handle.

If the guards were to rush in, complicating the situation and causing misunderstandings, it could become problematic for Aile, who was merely a visitor.

“But I’m grateful that you’re putting up a barrier for me.”

White holy fire blazed on Aile’s longsword.

Kwa kwa kwa kwang!

Dellen’s long arm swept through, turning the floor upside down, but Aile dodged it and plunged into the gap.

Then, he struck.

A flash cut across the monster’s chest, and a large flame of holy fire ignited, eating away at its health.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

Jjeo jjeo jjeok!

In the wake of the holy fire, a chilling frost spread.

The rising frost slowed the monster’s movements, and as it slowed, Aile’s movements became even faster.

The unique-grade longsword’s special effect, newly acquired.

In addition to the attack power and bonus stats attached to the longsword, the swordsmanship proficiency passive further enhanced the Flash skill.

A marked decrease in Dellen’s health was visible, and Aile used his increased speed to drive the monster even harder.

Wounds continued to appear on its body.

As a result, even more frost began to cover it.

“How dare you do this to me… !”

Enraged, Dellen slammed his hand down on the floor.

Then, monsters rose from the floor, revealing themselves.

They were quite large for monsters summoned as part of a pattern, and each one had stats that couldn’t be ignored.

But it was too late to turn the situation around with a new pattern.

‘I expected this much!’

Aile had already realized that a boss monster designated as a blasphemer wouldn’t go down so easily.

He had already inflicted as much damage as possible on the monster, absorbing its speed to the maximum.

Dellen’s movements, covered in frost, were much slower than before.

In contrast, Aile’s speed had accelerated accordingly, and with the set effect of the obsidian armor, he moved even faster.

He was amazed at how quickly he could move with his current stats.

Aile cut down the summoned monsters and advanced relentlessly, finally using the Fire Baptism skill to sweep them away.

Paat!

Aile leaped from the flames that engulfed the monsters and delivered a finishing blow to Dellen’s head, who was caught off guard.

Kwaaaa!

Koo-oong!

The extended Flash pierced the monster’s head, and Dellen, completely overwhelmed, reverted to his original form after his transformation was undone.

“Got him.”

“T-This can’t be…”

Dellen was covered in blood and on the verge of death.

Aile tied up the subdued monster tightly.

According to the quest’s instructions, he should have immediately punished the monster, but Aile didn’t hold an execution ceremony right then and there.

Although the barrier had been lifted as soon as Dellen fell, no one had yet discovered all of this.

It was possible that an accomplice might try something, and Aile refused to become a noble assassin, so it was better to deal with it thoroughly.

“Some of them are still alive, surprisingly.”

Aile turned his gaze to a few cultists writhing in pain.

Most of them had been hit by Aile’s attacks or had been caught in the battle and died, but some Twilight Church cultists were still alive, albeit in critical condition.

“Perfect timing.”

Aile gagged and bound the cultists as well, roughly shoving them into a corner.

As a result, Dellen’s mansion was now filled with the corpses of dead cultists.

However, it felt like a waste to just leave the corpses and leave.

The barrier had disappeared, and a warning should be left at the mansion to make the people of the capital aware.

“Then… shall we do some work?”

* * *

“Kyaaaa!”

“What, what is it! What’s wrong!”

A woman rushed out of the mansion, jumping over the fence, and her waiting colleagues gathered around in confusion.

Just a moment ago, she had heard the news that the mansion of a noble holding an assemblyman position had been heavily raided, and she had said she would go take a quick look to see if anything was left.

It wasn’t easy to approach because of the guards standing watch, but she wasn’t too worried because she was a high-level rogue class.

But she returned empty-handed, not long after entering.

“T-That… I went inside… Ugh…”

The woman, with tears welling up in her eyes, couldn’t bring herself to speak.

She looked severely nauseous, as if she had seen something terrible inside.

“Sorry, I’ll be right back…”

She immediately logged out, leaving her party members completely clueless.

She had always been a bit weak-stomached, but she wouldn’t make such a fuss over just a few corpses.

As they felt bewildered, they heard a commotion from behind.

The people on the street were making a fuss and moving somewhere in a crowd.

“What’s going on this time?”

“Let’s go.”

Following the crowd, they arrived at the central square of the capital, where a large number of people had gathered.

It was usually a crowded place, but now it was unusually crowded, as if something had happened.

“Why are so many people gathered here all of a sudden?”

“L-Look over there!”

A colleague’s finger pointed to one place, and their gazes turned.

The execution platform in the center of the square.

On both sides, corpses pierced by large harpoons were displayed in a row, and those hanged on the gallows were hanging limply, their breaths cut off.

The same was true for those still alive.

The prisoners standing behind them were being beheaded one after another, their heads displayed as trophies.

The party members couldn’t help but frown at the gruesome sight of blood dripping down.

“Ugh… I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

“Aren’t those guys crazy!”

As expected, the culprit was the notorious Church of Light.

There had been many stories circulating lately, and it seemed they had finally caused trouble in the capital as well.

“But why are those guys holding an execution in the middle of the square…?”

“Wait, that’s!”

A man standing on one side of the execution platform.

It was Aile, the crazy inquisitor of Esmair who had recently become a hot topic.

‘A lot of people have gathered.’

Aile, standing next to the priest, glanced down at the people and thought.

It was only natural that he was standing in this place.

He was the one who had captured the criminals, and the fanatic execution ceremony taking place in the heart of the capital was arranged by Aile with the help of the Church of Light priests.

Since all seven churches of Askalon existed without exception, it wasn’t a difficult task.

Tteong!

In the meantime, all the beheadings were over, and now only one person was still alive.

Aile took the last prisoner and stepped forward.

Dellen, gagged and dragged along, struggled as he was pulled.

“What? A noble?”

“Why is a member of the Assembly here?”

When they realized that the person being dragged to them was Assemblyman Dellen, the people began to stir rapidly.

They had heard that it was an execution of demon worshippers, but they certainly hadn’t expected such a big figure to appear.

“How presumptuous…”

Among the crowd were nobles from the capital.

They were naturally displeased that the fanatics dared to lay hands on a noble, and Aile could feel their sharp gazes on him.

But that was all for now.

Naturally, demon worship was a very serious crime within the kingdom, so he was able to bring the assemblyman without being stopped by the royal family.

In that situation, no other noble could step forward simply because they were displeased.

Rather, if they rashly stepped forward in this place, they would be suspected of being the same demon worshippers and would have to be careful because they could be relentlessly pursued by the fanatics of Ru [likely referring to the Church of Light].

As he calmly accepted the various gazes, Aile moved the chains and tied Dellen to a gruesome-looking stake in front of everyone.

“You! Do you think you’ll get away with this… !”

As the gag that had been blocking his mouth was removed, Dellen tried to shout in anger.

But before he could even finish his words, Aile placed holy fire under the cross.

Hwareureureureuk!

The flames, which instantly blazed fiercely, engulfed him.

A violent scream echoed, and those who were watching turned pale.

The most painful pain a human can feel is burning pain, so it would be terrible for an NPC experiencing the actual pain.

But it didn’t end there.

The Church of Light priests, who had been waiting in advance, began to pour healing magic on him to restore his health.

Wounds were healed by the brilliant light of healing, and new flesh sprouted, only to be burned black again.

It was to question the sins of sacrificing countless innocent people, and it was also a warning to everyone in the capital.

In the square, where black smoke had already risen high, screams of pain echoed endlessly.

* * *

[You have executed the enemy of the church, the blasphemer!]

[You have successfully executed the designated punishment according to the ‘Sentence of Punishment’. The stat bonus is doubled due to the skill’s effect.]

[Goddess’s Favor +1.59% (Currently 80.14%)]

[Church of Light Contribution +900]

[Faith Stat +20]

[Madness Stat +20]

[Quest completed!]

[Goddess’s Favor +2.00% (Currently 82.14%)]

[Church of Light Contribution +1200]

[Level up!]

‘He’s completely turned now.’

Aile, leaving Dellen behind after his last scream, slipped into the crowd.

The people, focused on the execution, didn’t notice him as he pulled up his hood.

He had received a lot of rewards while performing this quest, but he had become irrevocably estranged from Prince Oren.

But he didn’t care much about that.

It was inevitable from the moment he decided to side with the princess.

Moreover, the prince couldn’t have been unaware that Dellen was a devout believer in the Twilight Church, and it seemed that he had reached out to forbidden magic or demon worshippers wherever he could.

It meant that he was a guy he would have to oppose anyway, even if it wasn’t this time.

Now that things had come to this, there was nothing to hold back.

“With this, one seat in the Assembly has been vacated. It’s even better than I expected.”

A woman had already approached right next to him in the crowd.

A beautiful face with blue hair was visible under the pressed hood.

“Princess…?”

Princess Seyia of the royal family was standing next to Aile, and even this time, she had appeared without any guards attached.

“What if you get assassinated like that?”

“Hehe, you don’t have to worry about me.”

The burning flames were reflected in Seyia’s eyes as she looked at the stake.

“The white flames are beautiful. Honestly, I had a hard time understanding the teachings of the Church of Light in many ways, but seeing it like this makes me think differently.”

Even as she looked at the traces of the person who had been burned to ashes, she was smiling faintly, showing a delighted mood.

‘That’s probably because the neck of a noble on the prince’s side was cut off.’

With Dellen, who had supported the prince, dead, the succession decision of the Assembly was one step more advantageous to her.

From the princess’s point of view, it was naturally welcome news.

“I’m still lacking a lot. To think that there was something that could be done by putting forward… no, following the God of Light like this. Aile-nim, may I ask you to continue to fulfill your role as an inquisitor in the future?”

It meant that she wanted him to move for her.

Aile chuckled.

“As long as you keep the parts you promised…”

“Even more than that. I’m the type to give and take for sure. More than anything, I don’t want to receive the Goddess’s punishment.”

Seyia smiled brightly.