episode_0090

This place is not my world.

Thanks to the half-forced realization, I’m still alive in this world. A person with no connection to the world cannot exist in the first place, and because I had always felt like an outsider drifting through the world, I was able to remain unaffected by Fairchild’s attack.

Had it been otherwise, my brain would’ve been instantly reset the moment I connected, leaving me sucking my thumb on the ground like a fool.

“Leave it to me.”

What Cecilia and Christine are trying to do ultimately stems from their guilt toward me. From attempting to restore the magic I carelessly showed them, to their grandiose—no, downright delusional—goal of resolving this situation without harming anyone. If they fail, there’d be no point in having regressed.

They were being dragged along by emotions as instinctive as breathing.

But what else could they do?

“Eric! No matter how you look at it, facing Fairchild alone is reckless! Christine and I can at least provide support from behind. If needed, we can even expand the range of the spell.”

“I already gave you a chance. You’re the ones who failed.”

“Huh?”

Cecilia gasped sharply. Ah, damn it. Before she could jump to another misunderstanding, I quickly cut in.

“Exposing the Church’s corruption, using that to amplify your and Elia’s influence within it—wasn’t that our original plan? To uncover the hidden rot and prevent future calamities? And yet, you botched it from the very first step.”

“We were just—”

“Trying your best? But you failed. Why should I believe this time will be any different?”

“Chris! Say something! If this keeps up, Eric really is going to try stopping Fairchild alone!”

“……”

Christine wisely kept her mouth shut instead of backing Cecilia up. Knowing this wasn’t the second but the third—no, the umpteenth chance, she wouldn’t recklessly intervene.

“Fairchild’s awakening and this whole mess happened because you two decided on your own to ‘save’ me from danger, didn’t it? And now we have no idea when that thing might fully awaken and crawl out.”

To begin with, Fairchild isn’t as hard to defeat as its infamous reputation suggests. Its essence is nothing more than a mass of miracles—pure magical energy. For it to judge and act, it needs data on human bodies it can mimic.

And yet, our oh-so-brilliant little sister and saintess waltzed right in without even knowing that. Sure, it’s partly my fault for not explaining properly, but there’s no denying that this entire mess is the result of their recklessness.

“Trying to do something for me now would just be a nuisance. No, worse—you’d only get in my way.”

Of course, surrendering to regret would’ve been sweet. They could console themselves with the meaningless reassurance that they were ‘trying their best’ and use that as motivation. Even if things went wrong, their intentions were pure enough that no one could blame them. I could confidently say it wasn’t hypocrisy but something desperate and beautiful.

Not my problem.

“My life’s purpose is to guide you using my prophecies, to raise you into a party of heroes capable of facing the Demon King. Of course, it won’t be easy. The burden you carry as the chosen ones is far greater than mine. But you agreed to it, didn’t you? So acting on your own like this is unacceptable.”

“Ah…”

“What I need isn’t girls wallowing in regret and self-pity, but swords that can stab the Demon King without hesitation.”

In a few years, everyone will just be equal lumps of meat under the Demon King and its armies anyway. What’s the point of a more comfortable life?

I will make them into heroes. That’s all it’s ever been.

“The Church.”

“What?”

“The Church. We can go right now if you want.”

“Now?”

Christine nodded.

“Our original plan was to slip in unnoticed during the early hours anyway. Trying to infiltrate during the day or evening would just draw attention.”

I glanced out the window. It was already late when I first entered this room, but after all the arguing, the sky had darkened into the pitch-black night of early dawn.

“Who said there’d be no one around at dawn? A place like the Central Church wouldn’t leave its guard down. If anything, they’d be more vigilant than during the day.”

“If we’re talking about the front gate, then yes.”

“The front gate?”

Cecilia, who had been sulking, muttered in response.

“Eric’s right—the Church increases security at dawn. But that’s only for the publicly permitted entrances and a few unofficial ones known only to certain people. The internal doors? They’re so lax it’s like no one’s even guarding them.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Why? It’s perfectly logical. Why guard a place no one knows exists? Especially if it doesn’t even look like an entrance?”

“Hmm.”

She had a point. The path to Fairchild ultimately leads to the Church’s core—a vault holding all its dirty secrets. The number of people who know of such a path would be vanishingly small.

“Then let me ask this: how many people do you know who are aware of the path to Fairchild?”

“Me, the Pope, the Grand Inquisitor, the Four Keepers of the Relics… let’s say around ten, generously. And none of them are currently at the Church.”

“None? Why?”

“If you’ve already sucked a place dry, wouldn’t you go looking for another pasture? They’re probably out there somewhere, drooling over the next lost sheep. All I know is that none of them are in the capital. I’ve already confirmed it.”

Watching Cecilia ruthlessly criticize her superiors, I had to admit it. The current Church would absolutely do that.

“What about guards? Even if it’s just a passageway, there’d still be some, right?”

“The people stationed there? Christine and I can handle them easily. Besides, Fairchild’s vicinity has better security than guards—why bother with the hassle of manpower?”

“Security measures?”

“Prisoners. Stupid priests caught in corruption, or those who committed crimes endangering the Church. Once Fairchild gets to them, they’re imprinted with the unconscious urge to protect it. Even if they die, anyone who steps inside just becomes another of Fairchild’s slaves. A perfect security system with nothing to lose.”

“Wait. Then how did you two get out? If what you’re saying is true, the people inside were once quite powerful within the Church. No way you escaped unscathed.”

“We killed them. Why even ask?”

“I see…”

I gave a small nod at Christine’s indifferent reply.

“Eric might not know this, but once someone is completely dominated by Fairchild, there’s no coming back. Mental degradation means they’re forever trapped in dreams that’ll never return to reality. The followers are essentially rotten meat—corpses that’ll attack any human in sight.”

Like zombies. An image of the so-called followers formed in my head.

Well, if that’s the case, there’s no helping it.

I’m no saint, and I’m not naive enough to stand by and let already-dead things kill me.

How many criminals will Elia have to purge later, anyway?

“So you two can completely neutralize those followers? Once I connect with Fairchild, I’ll be useless.”

“You’re really serious about this, huh? Sigh… It’s possible. Christine and I were confident we could handle it even after activating the spell from the start. If Eric connects with Fairchild and the two of us remain free… Yes, it’s more than possible.”

“Good. Then we leave now. The sooner, the better.”

“Right now? Even so, we need at least some prepara—”

“You were planning to go anyway, weren’t you? Why the hesitation just because I’m coming?”

“Eric, unlike us, isn’t exactly skilled in magic or combat…”

“What does that matter? I’ve got nothing to pack. If you die, I die. If I connect with Fairchild and die, I still die.”

“Ah.”