Chapter 9

“Louis, are you leaving?”

“No, that’s not what I mean! Where would I go without you?”

009

Friendly Fire (Part 1)

Not grabbing the collar of that senile old man right away was the result of her exercising the utmost patience.

“I have to go. Something urgent came up,” Anne said coldly. She was struggling to maintain her composure, but sadly, she didn’t realize that her mask had already slipped off, and she was flailing helplessly.

“Is that so? Well, even so…” François, with a gentle smile devoid of any mockery, seemed to have pushed his opponent into a trap of his own making. His expression was more like a peeled-off mask than a natural movement of muscles. Just as living things change, but the dead remain unchanged.

Even in the presence of a human weapon capable of tearing apart bodies barehanded and creating whirlwinds by throwing weapons, he showed no sign of intimidation. Instead, he calmly picked up the teapot.

“Glug, glug.”

“You have time for a cup of tea, don’t you?”

He poured fresh tea into Anne’s now-empty teacup.

The tea in the teapot was as hot as if it had just been boiled, but no steam rose visibly. Suppressing the urge to leave immediately, Anne lifted her teacup.

She gulped down the tea in one go, abandoning all pretense of etiquette or grace. The scalding liquid caused even her superhuman body pain, but it was nothing compared to the rage boiling inside her chest.

“Are you done?”

Her tone was unbelievably rude and aggressive for someone speaking to the head of the religious order. Anne knew her opponent wouldn’t get angry, but even if he did, she wouldn’t care.

She was angry too. Beneath the shattered mask of composure was a girl, impulsive and emotional, fitting for her age.

“Sister, why are you so angry?”

But she couldn’t vent her anger at him, who still asked so kindly. If an Inquisition Judge got angry for a heretic, wouldn’t that be proof of corruption and betrayal?

Ironically, Anne still believed in Ailim and held onto her devout faith. Unlike most clergy, or perhaps like most people, her faith was only ‘second’ to her.

There was someone who had led her to the light before the merciful hand of the Lord. And now, it was her turn to repay what she had been given.

“Of course, it’s only natural.”

Why was the world so cruel to her? But Anne quickly calmed her heart, which felt like it was about to burst.

For Louis’s sake, Anne had to maintain her composure. To protect him, she could endure any harsh words or cruel actions with a smile.

“Even if family doesn’t keep score, that heretic is my achievement, isn’t it? To hand it over to another brother without consultation—”

But of course, if she could completely control herself, she would be called a superhuman. Though her body, blessed by divine grace, had undoubtedly reached a realm beyond humanity, her mind, having spent most of her life in a closed-off world, was not yet mature enough.

Even as she tried to stay calm, her voice trembled, and her words carried emotion.

“—You were reckless, Cardinal.”

A flash of lightning sparked in her blue eyes.

Perhaps it was she who was truly reckless. If François harbored resentment towards her arrogant attitude, the repercussions would fall not on her, but on the one she loved.

But at this moment, Anne had no choice but to warn François.

“I hope you’re satisfied now. I’ll take my leave.”

If he wasn’t satisfied even with this…

Without waiting for a response, Anne stood up. Her movements weren’t violent or rude, but anyone with a keen eye could see the volcanic passion bubbling beneath the surface.

*Bang!* François sat still for a long time after the door closed. When he finally stood up…

*Thud, thud, thud.*

The table shook slightly, and like a sandcastle collapsing, the chair Anne had been sitting on crumbled into pieces. Though it was just wood, the chair’s sturdiness was incomparable to ordinary ones, given it belonged to the Cardinal.

François slowly walked over, deliberately not showing his emotions. As he approached the pile of broken chair pieces, one fragment caught the old Cardinal’s eye.

And finally, his composure broke.

“Hah, haha.”

A dry laugh, unlike his usual soft, spring-like voice, more like a winter wind scraping against a withered tree.

Though the original shape was nothing like it, the fragment in François’s hand looked like a broken piece of a cross.

*

“…I was a fool to listen to a scoundrel like you.”

I glared at the man with burning eyes.

Even in this brightly lit space, his face was shadowed. I might have admired it as if it were a sculpture, but the light had been worn down and broken by time.

All that remained was malice glinting under the light. In his eyes, I saw the ugly face of someone who had already been destroyed and now wished for others to be destroyed as well.

“A prisoner, not a guard, defending the prison that holds him. By your logic, doesn’t that mean you’re confessing to being an absolute villain?”

“Kihihi. Exactly! Why put on airs now?”

The man didn’t take my contempt as an insult. Instead, he cheerfully agreed and even added more.

“A merciless murderer, a twisted avenger, a blood-stained sinner… Do you know how the system boiled over after I was captured and my story spread? Everyone was shocked and terrified!”

I didn’t know. I lived in a remote countryside that wasn’t even part of the empire.

“So, are you proud?”

“…”

“Proud that you’re a human who deserves to fall into hell?”

The man was an evil beyond comparison to the rowdy drunks who boasted about their violence and savagery. And so, the contempt I felt for him was several times stronger.

Pushed to the limit, only evil remained for me. Humans are cunning creatures, finding joy in distinguishing and belittling others.

Even knowing that such behavior was as ugly as the man proudly boasting of his sins, I sneered with all my might.

“Unfortunately, unlike a monster like you, I’m just an ordinary person.”

I would never commit such atrocities, and even if I did, I wouldn’t proudly flaunt my evil like you.

“Kahaha. Right, forgetting and turning a blind eye is the privilege of the weak and ordinary.”

“What have I forgotten or ignored?!”

I snapped, but then I shut my mouth without finishing.

Was I truly facing reality? I couldn’t answer ‘yes’ to that question. The images of those I cared about, melting in flames and their skin peeling off, were still vivid.

The deaths of my loved ones felt strangely unreal. At times, it all seemed like it belonged to strangers who had nothing to do with me.

Anger gave way to sudden silence. I thought he’d throw a few sarcastic remarks, but the man behind the bars said nothing.

The silence was preferable to the explosive conversation with that heinous murderer.

“Still, you’re all disgusting mutts clinging to Laube.”

But the brief peace was soon shattered in an unwelcome direction.

“Quite the noisy barking, huh? I thought my ears would rot.”

A third voice suddenly interrupted.

When Anne had come here, she was unconscious and didn’t see, but this time, I saw clearly.

Outside the bars, in a vast white space where walls, ceiling, and floor blended indistinctly, a red figure suddenly rose.

I didn’t know what kind of trick it was, but it was clearly beyond my understanding. However, before I could ponder the peculiarities of this space, I gasped at the sight of the newcomer.

The attire was familiar.

Silver armor and a blood-stained cross, the insignia of an Inquisition Judge.

“…It’s been a while, brother.”

And this Inquisition Judge looked strikingly similar to the man in the cell, like a twin. It was something I realized belatedly upon hearing the gloomy voice.

Of course, there were clear differences. Unlike the man with blood-red hair, the Inquisition Judge had hair as bright as flames.

“Ha ha. You welcome your disgraceful brother so warmly. I’m truly honored. I’d love to catch up with you, brother, but…”

The biggest difference was their positions.

Heretic and Inquisition Judge, prisoner and guard, exile and punisher, inside and outside the bars.

“…Today’s business is with this one.”

I once again witnessed a scene where reality and common sense were twisted.

As the red-haired Inquisition Judge waved his hand in the air, the cell holding the man blurred and then disappeared completely.

“This is…”

“Ah, no need to be surprised. This reformatory is different from ordinary places; the space is distorted. Aren’t you curious why?”

I wasn’t curious at all, but seeing his crazed, flickering eyes, I couldn’t easily speak.

The madness in the previous man was like a crouching beast, quiet until it suddenly lashed out in a frenzy, destroying everything around. But this Inquisition Judge’s madness…

It was like a flame. Just as my first impression, it was unquenchable, always ready to leap or spread in any direction.

To avoid being consumed by it, I reluctantly played along. If fire followed human will, then wildfires wouldn’t be called disasters.

“…I’m curious.”

“Well, you see…”

The Inquisition Judge waved his hand in the air again. No, not just that. It was invisible to my eyes.

*Clang.* The sound of metal against metal. As if he were a creator, he pulled something dark out of the light.

When it fully appeared before me, a dull *thud* echoed, and a foul, bloody stench spread.

“It’s to keep filth like you, and our brother… dirty, vile, powerful, ugly, despicable, and deserving of being torn, stabbed, burned, and split a thousand times over, locked away.”

The smell was familiar.

“Now, since our friend seems quite perceptive, I’ll give you a special choice.”

The lid creaked open, and what was revealed inside embodied everything I had imagined since waking up in this prison.

No, more than that. My simple, rural imagination couldn’t even begin to grasp the depths of human evil passed down through generations.

“Do you prefer holy fire or holy water?”