episode_0063

“You’re so stupid!”

In the most luxurious room within the Hedon Order, Rahve was venting his anger towards someone.

His usually peaceful expression was nowhere to be found on his face. Only irritation filled him, and he was glaring at the man across the desk.

“I’m sorry! I’m trying my best, but I’m having a hard time···”

The man in the priest’s robe was at a loss at Rahbe’s single word.

Although he was a famous priest in his own right outside, he was shabby in front of the overwhelming authority of the Pope. Furthermore, Rahbe was a person who could even purge anyone he didn’t like.

Knowing that, I was racking my brain to try to please Rahbe.

“Isn’t it your job to deal with it somehow!”

“Yes! But··· That··· The dungeon in the forest is the most suspicious, but it’s too difficult to solve without taking damage···”

“Do you think it makes sense that the knights that the church is proud of can’t find even one corpse!”

The cause of Rahbe’s rage was Angela. The plan to send her to a dangerous place and kill her seemed to be successful, but the most important body could not be found.

“I guess··· he was eaten by a monster and his body can no longer be found···”

“Tell me that now! Then I’ll split open the monsters’ stomachs and take their bones, relics, or whatever!”

It’s common for people to be attacked by monsters, but it’s rare for them to disappear without a trace.

This was especially true in cases like Angela’s where the search was conducted quickly. Furthermore, the personnel deployed were top-notch, so it was surprising that they could not find her.

“Yes···Yes! That’s true, but the monsters in the forest are strong and the traps in the dungeon are tricky···”

“Then come find some traces that can prove he’s dead!”

The man in the priest’s robe was as dumb as honey and couldn’t say anything.

It’s not that there was no trace of Angela. There was nothing to be found other than the trace of her having entered the dungeon.

Rahbe, who was looking at him as if he was frustrated, roughly knocked on the desk.

“Damn! I never thought things would get this messed up all of a sudden.”

“That···whatever···”

“Estelle said she smelled something and would come looking for me soon!”

The man could see why Rahbe was suddenly acting up.

Originally, it would have been possible to cover it up by saying that the saint’s body was not found.

But it was different if someone questioned or objected to it, especially if that person was a soldier of powerful noble birth.

“Damn it! Why at this particular time···”

Estelle was a young, talented child from a powerful noble family who was on the rise.

Even if Rahve had great power, it wasn’t a good sign for him to be involved with someone who was part of the royal army.

If I was not careful, I could have been caught with the weakness of having purged the saint.

“Could it be that you discovered something in the case the military investigated last time···?”

“I would have always told you to proceed cautiously in cases where it would be dangerous to get caught”

Rahbe’s voice was much lower than before. But that didn’t mean his anger had disappeared. It had simply turned into a cold anger. And that meant the man didn’t have much of a chance left.

“That··· That··· Of course! I proceeded with the utmost caution! And there was no evidence!”

“Then why did she come here now? She said she had something to say about the saint.”

“There’s no evidence, but··· I think she’s just suspicious of us!”

It was a poor excuse, but from his perspective, it was inevitable.

Under the name of Rahve, the Hedon sect was full of corruption, and it was not only inside the sect but also outside it.

So, no matter how perfectly you hide the evidence, you can’t avoid being suspected.

“You seem like a loser···”

“Da··· I will immediately deploy more knights and give orders to find the saintess’s body no matter what!”

“You idiot! If you continue to use up the elite troops within the sect, you will beheaded! ”

For Rahve, the paladins were the last resort to resist the kingdom in times of need.

Finding Angela’s body was important, but so was not losing the paladin.

“ha··· but···”

“Enough! No more reinforcements are allowed. We have sent too many people to a worthless outpost. Find the rest with all your might! If you can’t find them quickly···”

Rahbe deliberately did not utter the last words. That alone was enough to terrify the man.

‘If you don’t find it, you die!’

Rahbe’s purge was far from moderate.

Even if it was inhumane, it was a priority to deal with it cleanly, so it could not end at the level of being kicked out of the church.

The man had already seen many times that famous priests had disappeared without a sound at his hands.

“Yes···Okay···! Ba···I will definitely find it!”

The moment the man instinctively lowered his head, a knock on the door rang out from outside.

dripping-

“···”

For a moment an eerie silence filled the room.

But Rahbe, who had been expressing anger just a moment ago, answered in a kind voice toward the outside of the room.

“What’s going on?”

“Estelle has arrived.”

“Tell them to come in.”

After a while, when Rahbe motioned for him to leave, the man tried to run out of the room. However, as soon as the door opened, a woman in a neat military uniform stood before him.

“It’s been a while. May I ask where you are going in such a hurry?”

A beauty with fiery red hair. It was Estelle.

The man walked out almost running, his face as surprised as if he had seen a ghost.

“Ah··· That··· That··· I have something urgent to do, so I have to go first!”

As the man disappeared, only the old man and the young woman remained in the luxurious room, and the two glared at each other.

‘Like an old man with a dark heart’

‘She is indeed a beauty, just as I heard. I can use her to my advantage when dealing with her later.’

Estelle had already noticed Rahbe’s identity.

His presence, which held a certain degree of influence in the military, could be described as the embodiment of corrupt power.

Of course, he couldn’t win if he clashed head-on with the royal army, but there was no way to deal with him without conclusive evidence.

“Thank you for your hard work getting here. But I heard you have something to say. Shall we hear it?”

“Thank you for your hospitality. Now, let’s get straight to the point.”

The way they looked at each other had a completely different atmosphere.

Estelle looked at him with sharp eyes, and Rahve met her gaze with the kind gaze of an old man.

But the one thing they both had in common was that they were hostile to each other.

“I think the Pope already knows, but I came here because I thought there was something strange about the disappearance of Saint Angela.”

“What’s strange··· Hmm··· I don’t really have any idea···.”

Rahbe answered sarcastically, but Estelle continued talking as if nothing had happened.

“I’m sorry you don’t know. Well… we’re going to investigate anyway, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

“Since the investigation is ongoing on our side, I think it would be better for the military to help others. There are still many people who need help.”

“No. Our royal forces will intervene in this matter.”

Estelle’s voice was firm.

“Even if she is a saint belonging to a religious order, she is still a citizen of the Kingdom of Zeof. We have the authority regarding missing persons cases. Furthermore, since she is a famous saint, we plan to conduct a quick investigation so that the citizens do not become anxious.”

“I think this is a bit of an inappropriate interference. Can I take it as an intention to suppress religion?”

Rahbe showed his displeasure, but Estelle only answered more confidently.

“If you think so, you can announce it. Instead, I think we have no choice but to inform the public.”

“What are you talking about···”

“Just to let you know about the mysterious disappearance of the saintess.”

“Angela just went out to help people and then disappeared for a while.”

“Of course. But I wonder what the people think.”

The disadvantage was Rahbe.

Angela was a saint who enjoyed the support of the people, and it was easy to predict what would happen if it was reported that she had gone missing and refused to intervene with the royal army.

‘This damn bitch… dares to touch me. I will definitely get revenge.’

He could only smile kindly while hiding his true feelings.

“If the Royal Army wants to help us find the Saintess, there’s no reason to refuse”

“Then I will proceed assuming that the Pope has accepted it.”

Estelle left the room as if she was done talking.

Rahbe simply looked at her military-like, reserved steps with hateful eyes.