Chapter 50: And It Starts Moving
A week has passed since the battle at the monastery.
In the conference room of the church, reports were being made on the results of the investigations to date. Sorenne Lubier, the deputy commander of the church's Mage Order and the person in charge of guarding the hero candidates, stood up to give her report.
"All the monastery officials committed suicide."
"Are you sure?"
Bishop Mikhail answered the question. All these troubles in the church are supposed to go to Bishop Mikhail.
“By the time we drove them to the top floor room, I am almost sure of it."
"Almost?"
That means it's not perfect.
"I said that because I haven't been able to confirm the bodies buried in the rubble."
"...Understood. Please continue."
Sorenne's explanation was not perfect, and on top of that, it was like raising a white flag saying that it was impossible to go any further, but Bishop Mikhail stopped pursuing the matter.
"Yes. From the testimonies of those who we captured alive, they seem to have believed in the savior and the saint."
“The savior and the saint……it’s definitely not a strange story. It seems to me that they are the ones we should equate with heroes."
"Yes, but they are not heroes."
"……I agree"
Bishop Mikhail doesn't like Sorennes' thinking. However, Bishop Mikhail thought that it would be useless to say it here, and decided to proceed with the discussion.
"What was their motive for trying to ostracize the heroes?"
“The idea is that the world should be governed by compassion, not by fighting. To that end, they believe that heroes, as weapons, are the ones who should be eliminated."
"……Continue"
As for Bishop Mikhail, this is an idea that is difficult to criticize. It can be said that he personally sympathizes with most of it.
"However, the summoning of the heroes has taken place. Once that happened, they would have to eliminate the heroes to prevent a great war. This seems to be the motive for the series of actions."
"Even if there are no heroes, battles will eventually occur. A world without battles would be ideal, but we should strive to create a better world in reality."
"Yes, that's right"
This is the basic policy of the church. Realism rather than idealism sounds good, but it can be said that they chose an easier path.
"Is there anything else?"
"That's all the information we've got. Because all the officials are dead, the information we can get is limited."
“Are there any materials left?”
"There are none left. I think they probably disposed of everything beforehand."
"In other words, they were expecting this attack?"
The church was planning a surprise attack, but it wasn't. It is not known at this point whether the information leak was intended by the monastery.
“Yes. All the materials were destroyed, and those who knew the details of the situation all committed suicide. Even the last of them seemed to be fighting to the death, so I think they were prepared to wipe everything out."
"Did anyone escape?"
"There must have been, but we have no idea where they are."
"How many?"
"We don't know that either. We do not even know how many were in the monastery in the first place."
The monastery is an independent organization. If they wanted to, they could keep as much information as they wanted to the church headquarters. In fact, they do so. And it is the same for the Knights Order and the Mages Order.
Sorrow appears on Bishop Mikhail's face.
"We have not relaxed our vigilance in our mission to escort the hero candidates. The search for fugitives is just beginning, and we will be strengthening that as well."
Sorenne took this as a sign of concern about the Anti-Hero Alliance, and hurriedly explained about the escort mission.
"That is, however..."
"Already supplemented?"
"No, it's the other way around. The Cardinal Council has instructed us that we no longer need an escort."
"Are they stupid?"
The Anti-Hero Alliance has not been completely exterminated yet. Sorenne did not understand the meaning of the Cardinal's instructions.
"They say this. If the head is crushed, the organization can't move. Besides, the battle ended up with the success of the hero candidates."
“There is no excuse for the rest. However, if the head is crushed, the tail of the group may run amok. What will happen to those who use extreme measures such as self-destruction if they run amok?"
"I told them that. It's a judgment based on that."
"...They want to pull the curtain?"
The danger has been communicated. When it comes to this judgment based on that, it is no longer a reason. The Cardinals' decisions are political. It is also a decision made for self-preservation.
"They don't seem to understand that the curtain is drawn by the other side."
"...How would you like to do this?"
"The number of people will not remain the same, but please continue the escort mission."
"I understand"
Bishop Michael also has the authority to arbitrarily move this much. This is not the power of an organization, but the power of trust in Bishop Mikhail as an individual.
“Speaking of survivors, what will happen to the orphans?”
"They were officially handed over to the guild as a reward."
"A slave..."
When it comes to rewards in the form of people, that's what it is.
"Yes, but they live in relative freedom."
"Have you met them?"
"That's right. They are in the cemetery behind the church."
"...Um, the place where they were put is..."
Sorenne's face paled as she recalled the scene of the orphans blowing themselves up, involving the hero candidates.
“They can’t self-destruct without magic tools. Besides, they are being taken care of by those who would not tolerate self-destruction."
"……I see."
“I have to think about creating a new orphanage. I think I'll let them keep them until then."
"You're saying you'll take them in sooner or later?"
"The children are victims. The Church must atone for that."
"I understand"
The children have no idea about the savior or that they are part of the Anti-Hero Alliance. They just did as they were told and were killed and murdered.
"Also... you find out about Kazuki's case?
“If it was the defensive magic she used. I just don't know if it really is."
"What kind of magic is it?"
“It protects her allies by enveloping them in wings of light. I found it on this point alone, so I don't know if it is true or not."
Sorenne repeats the words like an excuse. They have looked into it but do not believe it.
"It doesn't matter."
"I found the same description in a rather old tale. It is a magic that protects allies from all attacks and heals wounded allies, a magic called [Wings of Compassion]."
"...It is a unique magic, right?"
"Of course. It's the unique magic of the old saint Florence."
“A saint… is there such a saint?”
“I also learned about this matter for the first time. A long time ago, a person called a saint actually existed.”
This kind of thing is not uncommon in the Church of the Holy Heroes, which was created by bringing only concepts from another world. The existence of this world and the other world are mixed up and handed down from generation to generation.
"If that is the case, then Kazuki-san..."
"It means that she had the ability of a saint."
"But it is not written."
Kazuki's status board doesn't have the title of a saint or the ability of light attribute magic written on it. They couldn't have overlooked such important information.
"......I don't know any more than this."
"Neither do I. Anything else?"
"Nothing more right now."
The leaders of the Anti-Hero Alliance were wiped out. However, this meant that the church lost its source of information. There are no clues to investigate.
“I see. Then I have another question."
"What?"
"I would like to ask you, not as the deputy commander of the Church Mages Order, but as Mei Katsuragi's master."
"……Yes"
The way Bishop Mikhail started the conversation, Sorenne knew it was not a good one.
"The hero candidates have requested a change of conditions. The center of it is Mei Katsuragi."
"What do you mean by change in condition?"
"They say it's too inconvenient for them to have the contract decided unilaterally by the bidder."
"What's that!?"
"What they are saying is correct from the standpoint of a hero candidate. The question is why they thought about it and took action."
There was no way that Mei, a hero candidate, could have thought of this. She should not have even questioned it. However, Mei approached them to negotiate. This is a serious matter for the church.
"......I have an idea what it is."
"I see. Then please explain."
"By growing up, Mei has acquired skills suitable for a great mage. One of them is mental resistance."
"I see. I can assume that she is immune to mental interference?"
"Not just mental resistance, but the third level, so I don't think it will work."
It's an almost top-notch skill. Mental attacks do not work unless they are of a very high level.
“Will there be more people like this in the future?”
“Class A mages, for sure.”
"I see."
Mental resistance is a skill that anyone who excels in magic will always have, regardless of their level of skill.
“Also, I think Jin Takamiya has also acquired it, although I don't know at what stage.”
"Why do you think so?"
"He was not subjected to [agitation] during the battle at the monastery."
The euphoria of the hero candidates in the battle at the monastery was due to the influence of the Church's magic. It did not work on Mei and Jin.
"It looks like it's going to be troublesome from now on."
"Maybe so. What are you going to do about their demands this time?"
"I am going to meet their demands to a certain extent."
"Are you sure?"
"It's better than amplifying the distrust of the church. If they stop believing in the church completely, it will be more troublesome."
The Church's mental interference with the candidates is not always effective. Therefore, there are several conditions for it to be effective. One of them is a sense of trust and security. It is difficult to work on a person who does not have such a feeling and is strongly suspicious of them.
Bishop Mikhail's concern is this.
"To that extent?"
“The attack and the inadequate response to it. I wish it were just that, but the battle at the monastery seems to have taken its toll."
"...Was the stimulation too strong?"
"Even I was disgusted just by listening to the stories. What about the Knights Order?"
“We are so consumed by the atmosphere of the battlefield that we have no control over it. Our country is too inexperienced in combat. Maybe it's right for the church, but not for the country."
No country wants to fight the Church. There is nothing to be gained by winning. Furthermore, in the church country whose territory is not so large, there are almost no bandits. Even if there are knights and mages, there is no battle.
"...It is a difficult problem."
“There will be no problem if the turmoil settles down quickly. However, if that doesn’t happen, will the church country really be able to protect the country in the unlikely event that it gets caught up in the turmoil?
"We're aiming to quickly contain the turmoil. That's what we're aiming for."
"Yes. I know that."
The Anti-Hero Alliance aimed to prevent turmoil. The church is acting on the premise that turmoil will occur, trying to minimize the chaos. Both are the same in that they hate turmoil.
The only difference is whether to use the heroes or try to eliminate them.
◇◇◇
Church Academy was gradually returning to normal.
The hero candidates have also decided that the attack on the monastery has come to an end, and they are now attending school at the academy.
That is not the only reason they are coming to school. The improvement of the conditions proposed by Mei was fully supported by the other hero candidates, and they are working hard to achieve it.
What is needed is the united will of the hero candidates.
It was important to promote negotiations by weaving in the threat that if they did not accept the proposal, all would withdraw as hero candidates. This resulted in the restoration of a sense of unity among the candidates, who had become increasingly individualistic, with the exception of the hero candidates in Class C.
"None of you have been to school?"
"Yes, that's right."
Mei answered Yuya's question.
"I don't know if they got the message. We need to be united in this kind of thing."
Even though it was Mei's idea, Yuya acts like he's the leader.
"It doesn't matter if Class C doesn't agree, right?"
"Well, yes. We are enough."
"We, huh?"
"……What?"
Yuya showed a dissatisfied expression at Mei's tone of voice.
“Jin hasn't been to school either, though?”
"Is he still in shock?"
"...I hope so if it's just that."
"Why?"
Even though they know that Jin is shocked by Kazuki's death, Yuya doesn't think they killed Kazuki. Yuya has a very self-serving mind.
"Nothing..."
"Nothing? Well, it's fine. So what's the status of the negotiations?"
"Surprisingly, it might go well."
"Is that so!? That's good!"
"......So these things can be used against the church."
Mei, who has learned of the existence of mental interference, is worried about Yuya's reaction. She can't grasp how he's affected.
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing."
"Nothing again?"
"I just need to find a way to drop it."
Ignoring Yuya's question, Mei continued the conversation.
"What do you mean by drop?"
"I'm not sure how far we'll actually win the terms. They can't just let us go to the country we want to go to."
"It is impossible then..."
"Isn't that obvious?"
Perhaps only one country will accept it. There is no way that the conditions that all other countries oppose will pass.
“What is Mei thinking about?”
"...I want to be able to choose which one is the best for me in the bidding conditions."
"So you can choose the place you want to go the most from the bids? Not bad."
Not bad for Yuya, who thinks he will get multiple bids. It's the same with Mei.
"But that doesn't mean anything to those who don't get multiple bids."
Shizuru, who has lost confidence in multiple bids, naturally disagrees.
"Is that where we're going with our thinking?"
"We're all in this together, remember?"
"I see. You said together. Mei, you can't."
Yuya easily accepts Shizuru's claims. It made Mei suspect mental interference.
"Use your head a little more. This condition has another advantage."
"What?"
"We can work on our own"
"What do you mean?"
Yuya does not seem to have any desire to think for himself. A sigh escaped Mei's mouth when she realized this. This is his problem before mental interference.
"What?"
"Nothing. Until now, it was all about money, so national power was everything. But with this condition, that's no longer the case. For example, having a wonderful marriage partner."
"Ooh!"
"For example. Anyway, even a small country can win a bid if it can provide what the other party wants."
It is conditional on providing the candidate with what he or she desires. It depends on the strength of the candidate's greed, but first of all, it is not possible in any small country. Mei knows this. Not every country is fair and just.
"I understand that. What does that have to do with working?"
“If you find a country you want to go to, you can negotiate the conditions yourself and say, [I will go to your country under these conditions, so please bid for me]. Then the other bidder will feel comfortable and bid for you. It's a win-win situation."
"Isn't that illegal?"
Yuya feels no advantage. The reason is that he thinks that even if he does nothing, the bidding countries will compete with each other to raise the conditions of the bidding.
“You know, we are negotiating for our own advantage.”
"Is that so?"
“Well, your negotiating skills will be tested. But hopefully, we might be able to break the terms.
"I guess so."
Seeing through Yuya's dissatisfaction, Mei added an explanation. Yuya's preferred explanation. Fittingly into it, the hero candidate decided to ask the church to change the rules without Yuya complaining about anything.
And it was granted with some conditions. The condition attached was that the candidate should be able to objectively judge that his or her choice was reasonable. It is a very vague condition, but she dared to make it vague in part. Case by case. It means that there is room for that.
This change of conditions will cause problems that neither Mei, who thought about it nor the church that accepted it, could have imagined. The reason is that neither of them had thought about human desire.
◇◇◇
None of the Class C hero candidates have come to school. It is in a sense right and in a sense wrong. It depends on whether you treat Ren as a hero candidate or not.
Ren was in the library. Upon entering, Ren passes a face he does not see often. He knows her face, just not after seeing her right now. It was a first-year female student.
When he was satisfied with who it was and where she was from, Ren walked to the back of the room. Sure enough, the target person was sitting at the desk in the back.
"Hey Mike"
"......Long time no see. You came out, huh?"
"You were here after all. I'm glad I came straight here."
"That's...... you've had a rough time."
Looking at Ren, Mike called out to him while showing some hesitation.
"You know about Kazuki?"
"I'm in the same class as you."
"That's true. I was wondering if you were studying, or are you on a date?"
"Date?"
The word date didn't go through with Mike.
"In this world... is it a secret meeting?"
Ren manages to pull out another word from memory.
"Are you stupid? That female student just happened to come to borrow a book."
He was right.
"Don't you know each other?"
"The first-year student? There's no way we know each other."
"Right. That's a pity. She was a pretty cute girl."
“Is that what Ren likes?”
"I just evaluated it objectively. I don't care about appearance."
"......It is not convincing at all."
Anyone who has met Luna will feel the same way. Furthermore, if he met Rin, he would probably yell at him as a liar.
"Is that so?"
“Yes. I half expected that, but I'm glad to see you're doing well."
"It's a quality that doesn't drag people down due to death."
"Right. What about the others?"
"They're pretty bad. Half of them may not come to school anymore."
For the production titled candidates, the academy is already worth nothing. If they follow the blessings given to them, they will think it is better to devote themselves to training that way.
"I see. What about you?"
"I don't come here very often either. Today I have business with Mike."
"It's rare to get business from you. I won't lend you money."
"No, I'm talking about before."
"Before?"
"Hey, Mike. How about we introduce ourselves?"
With a big smile on his face, Ren said, it was a cruel smile that was far from innocent. Mike had always been afraid of Ren, but this was the first time he had seen him like this.
"……What are you saying?"
"Introduce yourself. Tell me who you are."
"Are you serious?"
“I'm serious. Don't worry. I've set up a barrier around us. They may suspect us, but they can't hear what we're saying.
"So you want me to talk?"
"That's right."
"I have nothing to say."
Mike refuses to answer Ren's question. He looks confused as to what he's saying.
"That's a problem. Then let me ask you a question. Are you a member of the Anti-Hero Alliance?"
"...No way"
Suddenly, Ren plunged into the heart of the matter. Taken by surprise, Mike's complexion has changed.
"But that's the case with the girl student just now."
"You……"
Ren's pursuit did not stop. Mike reacted again.
"Thank you for the good response. Thanks to that, I'm convinced. That's right, the Anti-Hero Alliance can't be contained within a single monastery. Even if it's a major base, it's not everything."
"How far did you speculate?"
"I always thought that a country was involved. Not a big country, but a small country that feels threatened by a big country."
If you know the purpose of summoning the heroes, you will know that the heroes are nothing but a nuisance to a small country. And Ren knows what kind of existence the heroes are in this world.
"So?"
"But it seemed larger than I thought it would be. So I thought it would be a coalition rather than a single small country. The Anti-Hero Alliance is an alliance indeed. The purpose is slightly different, but the goal is the same, to eliminate the heroes. That's probably what this alliance is."
"......And you think I'm a member of it?"
"I don't know, that's why I asked. If you don't like the question, I'll change it. Why are you trying to kill me?"
"...Do you have any evidence?"
Here Mike should have been surprised. Mike's reaction is exactly what Ren would have wanted him to do.
"That answer is the evidence, so don't you agree? The rest of it is circumstantial evidence."
"Tell me"
"I'm suspicious of two things. The first time was when we were supposed to be asked to kill the undead, but we were attacked by a pack of living magical beasts. But at this time, the rumors were circulating, so it was a potential test of my mettle."
"Really?"
"It happened right after I entered the academy. I don't think they would go that far based on rumors alone. There are plenty of ways to be sure before that."
A hero candidate is working as an adventurer. There is no need to go to the trouble of using the guild's request to test their abilities. Ren is at the academy, so it is normal for him to first try within the academy.
"...And the other?"
“It was supposed to be an extermination of evil spirits, but to my surprise, a demon appeared. I managed to get away with it because the other party was caught off guard, but if not, I would have died for sure. In other words, the objective was my life."
Rin tried to kill Ren. So the possibility of a test of ability disappeared.
"Even so, why am I the culprit?"
“One possible target for my life is the church. The same motive as the attack in the woods. But there is no way they would do that to me personally. The other is the Anti-Hero Alliance. But I don't understand why they would target me, a class C student, first. Why do you think so highly of me?"
“…………”
"A person who is neither a hero candidate nor a guild member who may have a high opinion of me. Mike, you are the only one."
Outside of the guild, the person who knows Ren best is Mike. And just as Ren thinks, Mike holds Ren in high esteem and fears his power.
"There's Lang too."
"Lang is thinking of pulling me into her own country. She has no motive to kill me."
"...Then someone else you haven't noticed."
"Mike, I need you to come clean. If you don't, I'm going to have to break my promise to Rin."
"...Who is Rin?"
"The demon who aimed at my life."
"What did you say!?"
Ren's words upset Mike greatly.
"She's alive. Right now, She's on my side as a candidate for my mistress."
"A mistress candidate!? Do you know what she is...?
Seeing that the smile on Ren's face had turned into a genuinely happy smile, unlike before, Mike realized that he had made a mistake.
"Thank you for confessing. Did I keep my promise just in time?"
"What promise?"
“I promised Rin that I would never ask her why she was trying to kill me, or who directed her to do it.”
"You..."
He tries to keep his promise to the person who tried to take his life. It's very typical of Ren, and it brings a wry smile to Mike's face.
"If I didn't do that much, Rin won't trust me."
"You call her Rin?"
"Cause I didn't even ask her real name."
"...Is she really your mistress?"
He didn't ask her name or why she wanted to take his life. Mike couldn't understand how she could be his mistress.
"Could it be that she was your lover? If so, I will return her."
"Seriously, you..."
"I haven't put my hands on her. I just carried her on my back."
"How can you call that a mistress?"
“She's a candidate. I swore I wouldn't touch Rin until she was ready."
"That day will never come, you know?"
Mike saying this means that he has a certain amount of familiarity with Rin.
“I don’t feel like it’s been that way lately. I'm not a very good judge of character, but I can tell that she's showing me a favorable reaction."
"You're kidding, right?"
"I could be mistaken. Well, we'll have to wait and see."
"What do you mean?"
"Regardless of Rin's feelings, I swore I wouldn't touch Rin until I came of age in this world."
“…May I ask why?”
Sometimes it's hard for Mike to understand what Ren means by these promises.
"I'm a crazy guy, and I'm afraid of what will happen to me if I don't discipline myself like that."
"...You're right."
A rule that Ren imposed on himself in order to be normal. Mike realized that not telling lies was one of these things.
"Now, introduce yourself."
"Jeez. That's why I thought I should erase you first. You can see through anything like that."
"It just so happens."
"Why did you leave me alone?"
Mike wonders why Ren kept him alive when he was trying to kill him.
"I had no reason to kill you, and I couldn't find any use for you."
In a way, the answer was typical of Ren. Trying to kill him was not a reason for Ren to retaliate.
"...So that's how it is."
"I don't know. I don't know who you are."
"What will you do after knowing that?"
"If I can use you, I will."
"And for what?"
"To kill the heroes."
The enemy of my enemy is not my friend. In Ren's case, the idea is that if it's an enemy of an enemy, he might be able to use it.
"What did you say?"
“Let them know that being a hero is of no help. Let them know that a great power just happens to have power at this moment. Let them know that there is something that surpasses talent. It destroys all the values of this world."
"……In short?"
"It's going to throw the world into chaos. To do that much, I need a foundation. I know that Mike is from some country. I need to know if that country can be my foundation."
"Pfft... ha... hahaha, hahahaha!"
Mike started laughing out loud as if he couldn't stand it. Ren had no idea what he was laughing at.
"……Are you okay?"
"Can I not laugh at this? Throwing the world into chaos? You tell me that?"
"What's so funny?"
Ren doesn't understand even if such a question is directed at him. He still hasn't heard who Mike is.
"Can you do it?"
"You don't know until you try. And I've decided I'm going to do it. I'm going to do what it takes to do it."
"Yes. You are that kind of person."
Thinking about what you can do and what you can't do, if you hesitate to act, nothing will progress. The same is true for Mike. It's the same idea, that's why Mike is here.
"So?"
“Let me introduce myself. I don't know how much use I'll be to you. It's up to you to figure out how to use me."
"Then let me do that. My name is Kaiser Ren Breitkreutz."
"Ha?"
Mike is taken aback when Ren suddenly begins to introduce himself, telling him his name, which is also the first time he has heard it.
"Takashiro is my mother's surname. In the country I lived in, I didn't stand out that way, so I called myself that. My real name is from my father's side."
"I didn't expect to be surprised by your self-introduction... Ralph Jungling of the Nord Federation. My father holds the position of left minister in the country. He sees the heroes as a hindrance, but he is not part of the Anti-Hero Alliance."
"I see. So that's how it is."
A smile appears on Ren's face when he hears about Mike's identity. Now he knows what Mike's laugh means.
"Did you know my country?"
"I like studying."
"I'm well aware of that. Now, can I be of any use? Let me tell you, I have no official position in the country. As an individual, I have no authority."
"Is your father someone I can talk to?"
"I can't say he will understand what you're saying, but I'm sure he's worried about the country. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here."
"That's true."
Trying to do something. That's why Mike is here. And it's something that can keep pace with what Ren is doing.
"And the current country is different from the former country. I don't know the former country."
"The past is irrelevant. And if the present is not good enough, change it. I'm talking about the future."
"I see. Can I take that as sparing my life?"
"Did you understand well?"
"I gave my real name. Telling it in a situation where I don't know if it's useful means you're going to erase me if it is not."
"Exactly. Just knowing that makes you useful."
"That's good to know."
Mike knows Ren's ruthlessness. He also realized long ago that there was something that he wanted to be with knowing that.
He was attracted to him even though he knew he had to kill him. Mike was truly grateful that he no longer had to make Ren his enemy.
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