Ch.231Heresy Inquisition

“What are you trying to do?”

“The Lord said, ‘People are deceivers; men tell lies before women, and women practice pretense before men. This is because what was once one has been divided into two.'”

Lacy raised her cross spear high.

The metal weight at the end of the shaft gleamed menacingly.

“Since none of us women would want to become one with this man, to hear the truth, we have no choice but to make a man no longer a man.”

Um… that proverb probably wasn’t meant to suggest doing that.

Wasn’t it about men and women not lying to each other and loving sincerely…?

Well, it doesn’t matter now. No need to argue about it at this point.

– Crack.

The cross spear transformed the archbishop into a woman.

—-

“Guwaaaaaargh!”

Robert, his eyes half-bulging, screamed and thrashed his body.

He probably wanted to clutch between his legs and curl up, but… that would be impossible with his broken limbs.

Instead, as if expressing his pain, he seemed to be trying to buck his hips, but his massive belly fat made it impossible for him to bounce his body with his core strength.

In the end, all she… no, she could do was writhe ridiculously like the lid of a boiling pot.

“Heeee… Ehiehishia…!”

Though the pronunciation was unclear, I could guess what he meant. He was probably calling for Elpinel. Seeing the veins bulging on Bels’s forehead confirmed it.

They say pain that doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

The terrible pain seemed to have strengthened Robert’s faith again.

“How dare an apostate like you utter His name…!”

Bels muttered through gritted teeth.

If Lacy hadn’t been there, he would have torn out Robert’s tongue.

Well. It’s not even funny that he’s now calling for the god he betrayed.

“You don’t need to cry out like that, Robert. Elpinel is already watching over us. Now, since we’ve exchanged greetings, shall we begin the ‘trial’?”

Lacy smiled sweetly and struck her cross spear on the floor.

The sound of “tung-” echoed through the corridor.

Robert, startled, twitched and moaned like an animal.

His elaborate ceremonial pants were becoming soaked with what might be blood or urine… judging by the color, probably both.

“Your charges are as follows. First, the sin of turning your back on subjects suffering from civil war, and allowing their deaths through absurd propaganda about neutrality. Elpinel forbade His lambs from fighting each other, so this is a violation of His word. It’s an act of apostasy.”

The cross spear struck Robert’s left hand.

“Kyaaaaargh!”

Robert’s hand was crushed and burst like a torn dumpling.

“Second, the sin of defining the rebellion that violated imperial regulations as a succession dispute, thereby blocking the imperial army’s justification for intervention, despite bearing the responsibility of Prince-Elector. If the Legion Commanders hadn’t made the bold decision despite risking dishonor, how many more would have been sacrificed to the werebeasts?”

It wasn’t a bold decision but Leopold’s threat, though.

“Standing against non-human races that threaten humanity is the most important commandment given by Elpinel… This too is a violation of His word. It’s an act of apostasy.”

Robert’s left foot turned into a lump of meat.

“Guuuh…!”

It was closer to a groan than a scream.

Robert’s pupils were half-dilated.

“Wait, he’s going to die at this rate, isn’t he?”

“…Ah, you’re right. Thank you for pointing that out.”

As if she had forgotten, Lacy nodded and cast a healing miracle. Very weakly.

Seeing the white holy light enveloping his body, Robert’s face filled with despair.

He probably wished he could just die… but that’s still too early.

“Let’s continue the trial. Third, the sin of not only failing to announce my disappearance and search for me, but also hindering the church’s efforts with false statements. It would be reasonable to assume you had some connection with those targeting me. Do you have any defense regarding this allegation?”

“Aaah! Auo oaao! Hahua ueun isul ha uuu!”

Unfortunately for Robert, none of us could understand his dialect.

Lacy slowly shook her head.

“…I see you have none. I’ll take that as an admission of the charges.”

“I auea!”

Is he calling her a devil? What can we do, we can’t understand a word he’s saying no matter how much he protests.

If you’re feeling wronged, you should have practiced your pronunciation diligently.

“Elpinel said that bearing a clerical position means bearing the duty to protect the faithful. Clearly, allowing or conspiring in the endangerment of the faithful is a violation of His word. It’s an act of apostasy.”

Robert’s right foot was crushed.

He now had only his broken right hand left.

“…These are the reasons you’ve been brought to religious trial. Now, we must deliberate whether these charges are true. A formal trial would take a long time… but this is a summary trial, so I intend to proceed briefly with evidence and confession. You have no objections, do you? I see you don’t.”

She’s not even waiting for an answer anymore.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t secured physical evidence, so we’ll present the sinner’s confession as evidence. Robert, I grant you a final defense. Do you have any evidence to refute the charges mentioned so far? Words are meaningless, so I would appreciate if you could present physical evidence.”

While Lacy paused, I moved closer to Bels and whispered a question.

“Hey, do we really have to go through with this charade? Seems like a waste of time.”

“This is the procedure for heresy judgment. Even in summary form, the trial itself must be conducted.”

If you called this a trial, angry judges would probably hit you over the head with law books.

“Is this really a trial? It just looks like torture to extract a confession.”

“No. It may seem that way to you, Lord Median, but… the church’s interrogation adopts more humane and rational means instead of simple torture.”

Humane and rational means?

Could it be that…

“You mean, repeatedly cutting and regenerating the brain?”

“…You knew about that? Impressive. Indeed, that is one method of interrogation. But that’s a time-consuming approach… Lady Elmaine will probably choose a more merciful and more certain method.”

At least, it’s clear that her definition of “merciful” is completely different from mine.

If not turning someone into a truth-telling machine through brainwashing… what is Lacy planning to do?

I was honestly curious.

“…I see you have no physical evidence. I thought as much. Then we shall now begin the ‘interrogation.’ I ask for your cooperation.”

Lacy stepped forward and kissed her holy symbol.

Just seeing that gesture, Robert convulsed madly, as if guessing Lacy’s intention.

Tears, snot, and drool mixed together, making his face a mess of filth as cold sweat streamed down. It was dirty and ugly.

“Aehaeo! Aehaao!”

I guess that means something like ‘I’ll confess, I’ll confess!’…?

I feel like I’m starting to get used to Robert-speak.

“Didn’t I tell you earlier? Only a purified body speaks the truth. A confession from one who hasn’t been purified is meaningless.”

Lacy smiled benevolently like a saint. A whirlwind of pure white light emanated from the cross spear she pulled toward her chest.

The brilliant holy light enveloped her entire body.

“-O Elpinel. Clear sky that hates evil, pure white grace for the righteous. Bring your wrath here.”

Um…?

That incantation, could it be…!

“…Until all sins of this world are eradicated.”

—-

– Whoosh.

A flame blooms.

A small flame like a candle that could be extinguished with just a clenched fist.

However, the holy power within it was enough to fill the entire cathedral and more.

The dark corridor became as bright as day.

The violent impulse dwelling within me growled and retreated.

It felt like a cool dawn breeze washing through my mind, like an autumn sky without a single cloud.

[ What is that? What is that? ]

Even Hersella, who had been silent, couldn’t hide her astonishment.

I stared blankly at the tip of Lacy’s fingers, unable to even think of answering her.

I can’t believe she can use it already….

Neither the scarlet flames of magic nor the dark red karma fire, but a flame that emitted a blue light and flickered.

Holy Fire.

Elpinel’s flame that burns all that is unholy, reducing it to ashes.

—-

Lacy, with blue flames at her fingertips, approached Robert with a bright smile.

“Robert. As someone who has held the position of archbishop, you must know well what this flame is. His flame that warmly embraces the innocent and burns the guilty.”

Robert’s pupils trembled, following the flickering of the flame.

“Uh… uuuh… uuuuuh…!”

“Rejoice. If all the charges mentioned earlier are merely false accusations, and you don’t have even a speck of sin, His holy fire will prove your innocence. Conversely, if all of it is true, and you betrayed Elpinel by joining hands with a witch… the holy fire will purify that sin. Either way, it’s cause for joy. So, smile.”

…So the “merciful and certain method” Bels mentioned was burning with holy fire.

Theoretically, it makes sense.

Holy fire is a flame that burns the unholy, so if someone with evil intentions touches it, they will burn, and if someone innocent without any evil thoughts touches it, they will only feel a slight warmth.

According to Elpinel Church doctrine, there’s no more certain way to distinguish between sinners and non-sinners.

The problem is….

“Has there ever been anyone who didn’t burn from that fire?”

“So far, not a single one. Which means they were all sinners.”

Bels answered calmly.

…Yes. That’s the problem.

Holy fire burns those with unholy thoughts.

But how many people in the world have never harbored an unholy thought in their lives?

Lacy is fine because it’s her own holy fire, but if someone else were to hold holy fire to her, she’d probably burn like a torch.

A human who could touch that fire without burning could probably pull out the holy sword too.

In other words, holding holy fire to a person is just an execution by burning that looks a bit more sacred.

I don’t know if Lacy knows this fact.

“He said, ‘The eye is the lamp of the body and the window of the heart; if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.’ It means that to eliminate darkness from body and mind, one must first purify the eyes with bright light.”

…I’d bet Leopold’s neck that’s not what it means.

Does Lacy have some kind of mustache filter in her head? Teachings full of moral lessons transform into terrifying threats the moment they pass through her tongue.

Lord Elpinel, is she really your best choice?

Her faith itself must be impeccable since she can use holy fire, but her way of thinking is a bit….

“Now, let’s begin the purification ritual.”

Lacy lightly touched Robert’s eyes with her fingertips.

The holy fire transferred to his swollen eyeballs, burning with blue flames.

Robert howled like a drunken pterodactyl.