Chapter 2: Rotten head

I couldn’t even guess why she was following me after just framing me,

But whatever the reason, I had no desire to talk to Meria.

She was a prissy miss who hadn’t even fought directly, so she didn’t properly know what job she was assigned,

And she was a b*tch whose head was as full of flowers as the other cultists.

I ignored her and kept walking straight ahead,

And Meria quickly followed, blocking my path.

“What do you want to say?”

“How can you act so irresponsibly? Will you keep this up until the end?”

“Ha. Hey, do you really think it’s right for the word ‘irresponsible’ to come out of your mouth? Are you going to keep acting like a b*tch until the end?”

“Apologize.”

“What?”

For a moment, I thought I had misheard.

No, it would have been better if I had misheard.

However, Meria’s gaze, fixed on me, was earnest.

Beyond dumbfounded, I was furious, so I decided to respond to Meria’s provocation.

“Apologize? What should I apologize for? Should I kneel before you here, bow, and beg for forgiveness?”

“You continue to speak disrespectfully. It’s fine if it’s directed at me. But speaking that way to the high-ranking priests of the Order, Deron, you must apologize for that yourself.”

“Why should I?”

“Your aggressive words and actions deserve punishment. The members of the Order are even discussing whether or not to punish you. So, for your own sake…”

“Shut your trap. You know it’s not true.”

I cut Meria off, glaring at her with dagger eyes.

As Meria wore a dissatisfied expression, whether from being interrupted or having her words denied,

I shoved my face right in front of Meria’s and said,

“You’re doing this because you’re worried my actions will be a hindrance to you, aren’t you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You always wanted to escape the Inquisition Department and go to a place that serves the Goddess. That’s why the b*tch who’s the head of the Inquisition Department is spouting nonsense about abolishing it.”

“That’s an unfounded speculation.”

Meria protested immediately,

But to me, who had seen Meria so many times, her words held no weight.

She pretended to diligently do her duty but never actually did anything important,

And just recited strange prayers all day long.

Did she think if she worked hard enough, she could become a saintess someday?

“You want to abolish the Inquisition Department, or perhaps get into the good graces of the high-ranking priests to escape quickly, and you’re worried that I’ll needlessly provoke those bastards and the repercussions will spill over to you, aren’t you?”

“Is that the kind of judgment you’ve used to conduct inquisitions?”

“The heretics all say the same thing. That someone who conducts inquisitions drives people to ruin with speculation. Of course, none of those who said that left with their heads intact. Their heads were broken because they believed in heresy, and their heads were broken when they met my mace.”

“How unpleasant. I feel like I didn’t need to worry about you at all.”

“Of course, you’ve never worried about me once. Sitting at your desk all day, only thinking about abolishing the department or escaping, would you ever even notice me diligently working out in the field?”

“Enough. We will proceed with your disciplinary action.”

Meria sighed and tried to walk past me.

However, this time, I blocked Meria’s path.

“What are you doing?”

“You seem to be mistaken, but do you still think you’re my superior?”

“That…”

“I just got fired. Now you, or the Order, don’t have the right to punish me as you please. If you really want to punish me, go to court, or try to fight and defeat me here.”

When I glared at her with murderous eyes, Meria finally faltered slightly and shifted her gaze.

Why is this b*tch, who has neither guts nor skill, acting so cocky?

Honestly, I’ve thought about hitting her more than once or twice,

Since things have come to this, should I just beat her up here?

As such thoughts and a hostile atmosphere continued,

Another woman’s voice came from another direction.

“What’s going on? The atmosphere doesn’t seem good.”

My already throbbing head felt like it was about to explode.

This voice, though not as frequently heard as Meria’s,

Was one that always pushed me to the limits of my patience.

“Lady Chloe!”

Meria brightened as if she had heard the voice of a savior, turning her head towards where the voice came from.

With a displeased feeling, I also turned my gaze and saw the annoying green-haired woman.

Her name was Chloe.

She was a member of the central Order, where Meria was so desperate to go.

For some reason, she hadn’t been at the meeting earlier; it seemed she was returning after finishing external work.

Her mysteriously emerald, wavy hair flowed long past her shoulders,

And even with heeled shoes, she still looked a head shorter than me.

Her skin was so fair, and she wore a pure white holy robe, making her look like a true member of the Order,

And a mysterious aura emanated from her dark golden eyes within her gentle and beautiful gaze.

Based on her appearance alone, she seemed like a woman who would be incredibly devout and bestow mercy like the Goddess,

But the problem was that her brain didn’t match her looks.

In fact, Chloe had contributed greatly to the current situation where I, an Inquisitor, was being beaten by the Order.

From the start, she didn’t understand the importance of my role, so she kept reducing my authority because it bothered her.

I wanted to smash her head in, thinking that anyone who interfered with the Inquisition was a heretic,

But Chloe’s head was just full of flowers; she wasn’t a heretic, so that was difficult.

In the meantime, Chloe, in league with Meria, had caused this whole mess.

“What are you doing here, Lady Meria?”

“I’m just leaving after the decision to dismiss Deron.”

“I see.”

Chloe nodded as if she had heard something perfectly obvious.

‘Try to act a little surprised, you damn fanatic.’

As I watched Chloe with a displeased expression, Chloe turned her head towards me.

“You’ve worked hard, Deron.”

My teeth clenched to hear her say such words without a change in her expression.

Normally, she’d only talk about how I was violent or needed to show love, not about me working hard.

Moreover, the fact that she immediately dropped my title of Inquisitor showed that she had been quite eager for me to leave.

I smiled faintly and replied to Chloe,

“Oh, it was nothing. All the hard work was done by Meria, who knelt and prayed in her office every day, and Chloe, who never paid attention until reports were due and then called me in to lecture me.”

Fortunately, Chloe’s expression stiffened slightly, perhaps realizing I was openly sarcastic.

Soon, Chloe warned me as if it were a grave matter.

“Even if one is outside the Order, insulting a person of the Order can be punished by direct authority.”

“Punishment, you say… That’s truly an act of spreading love throughout the world. Such love is too burdensome for me.”

Not wanting to waste any more time, I brushed past Meria, hitting her shoulder.

Just as I was thinking I’d only ruined my mood, Meria’s voice came from behind me.

“There will be no place for you.”

Whether she meant there was no place for me in heaven,

Or no place for me in the Order, I couldn’t tell,

But without looking back, I raised my hand and said,

“Stop your nonsense and get lost. And pray you don’t run into me on the street.”

****

Before leaving, I stopped by my office one last time, but there was nothing much to take.

I rarely kept many things in my office because I was always out and about, stirring things up.

Just as I was about to grab the few things I had and leave, eager to depart,

Someone knocked loudly on my office door.

“Yes, I’m coming out. I’m leaving soon! I’m never coming back here!”

I shouted towards the door, wondering if they couldn’t even wait for such a short tidying, and a reply came from outside the door.

“Inquisitor Deron? You have visitors.”

“I’m not an Inquisitor anymore, just send them away!”

“…They insist on seeing you.”

What else could they possibly want to pick a fight with someone who was leaving?

I put down the items I had gathered and yanked the door open.

Behind the door stood the person who had just spoken to me, and two unfamiliar women.

The two women didn’t seem to be from the Order, as they weren’t wearing the Order’s robes.

The woman on the left had bright golden straight hair that swayed, reaching just above her waist,

And the woman on the right had long, flowing silver straight hair that extended past her waist to her hips.

Both were flawless beauties with distinct yet harmonious features,

And their undeniable voluptuous chests, long limbs, and smooth, pale skin were also beautiful.

Seeing their similar faces and aggressively stunning figures, they seemed to be sisters.

Normally, I would have been momentarily dazed by their beauty, and the two women stared intently at me.

“Are you Deron? The Inquisitor whom those who believe in the profane fear the most? The final arbiter of the wicked and the savior of the good?”

“This face, these shoulders… They’re the same as back then. It seems we’ve found the right person.”

The two women muttered to themselves, scrutinizing me,

And thoroughly annoyed, I asked curtly,

“What are you doing? Who are you?”

Despite my rather prickly tone,

The two women, instead, bowed respectfully to me one after another and introduced themselves.

“Hello, I’m Raylin.”

The blonde woman placed a hand on her chest and bowed to me first.

As I remained still, surprised by the unexpected reaction, the silver-haired woman also clasped her hands and bowed to me.

“Hello, I’m Seirin.”

Raylin and Seirin.

Their names suggested they were indeed sisters, as their appearances implied.

My emotions momentarily softened, and I asked Raylin and Seirin in a different tone than before,

“Why have you come to find me?”

In response to my question, the two women, instead of answering, each drew their weapons.

The blonde woman drew a wand from her waist,

And the silver-haired woman drew a sword from her back, which had been concealed by her hair.

Then, taking their stances, they both spoke to me simultaneously,

“We’ve come to defeat you.”

‘Now what is this situation?’