Naimes watched as Jacques seemed about to say more, but unwilling to waste further words, he simply offered this sincere advice before turning away to continue his work. This time, Jacques and Isabella had arrived with over a dozen people - migrants seeking to join Beiqi Village.

He needed to thoroughly check that none among them were wanted criminals, demon affiliates, witches, or similar threats. Left standing there, Jacques didn't quite understand what Naimes meant by "eat more meat while you still can." Though confused, Jacques suddenly felt an icy dread crawl up his spine, accompanied by a nauseating sensation that made him involuntarily frown.

Indignant, Jacques was about to chase after Naimes to continue their conversation when Op arrived. He appeared exactly as usual - wearing that same robe that seemed oddly out of place, with what appeared to be perpetual sweat stains on his forehead. The handkerchief he used to wipe his brow remained clutched in his hand.

"These must be the new priest and holy knight! What an honor!" Op greeted them warmly, as if completely unaware of any investigation. His accompanying assistants quickly moved to welcome the migrants. Arrangements for housing, work assignments, and living supplies for the village all needed coordination.

Though a dozen people might not seem many, for a small village of just over five hundred, this represented a significant population boost. Op behaved entirely normally, like any moderately wealthy village chief might. For a moment, even Jacques the investigator felt slightly disoriented, especially after receiving welcoming gifts that made him think, "Someone this hospitable can't possibly be a law-breaking villain, right?"

The gifts weren't particularly valuable - just some medicinal herbs gathered from Beiqi Mountain. According to Op, brewed as tea or soup, they beautified women's complexions and... also beautified women's complexions when drunk by men. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel{f}ire.net

However, Naimes noticed Op displayed extremely subtle emotional fluctuations when looking at one particular individual in the crowd. Had Naimes not been a demon with instinctive perception of emotions and desires, he might have missed Op's barely detectable reaction.

"So this must be the tainted witness?" Naimes thought. "But how did Op recognize him?" This puzzled Naimes somewhat. The witness had arrived openly without disguise, clearly confident Op wouldn't know him. Yet Op had apparently identified him at a glance - quite interesting indeed.

While pondering this, Naimes began conducting basic inspections of the newcomers. When examining the individual who'd triggered Op's reaction, Naimes keenly detected faint fluctuations of something intangible around the man's body.

"Probably restrictions placed by the Church," Naimes deduced. "Most likely something like Sin Nails." Sin Nails resembled the Divine Nails on Naimes' own body - both were special constructs formed of intangible power, though serving opposite purposes as restraints for Church prisoners.

"Is this how Op recognized him?" Still perplexed, Naimes pretended nothing was amiss and continued inspecting the others. Finding nothing unusual about the remaining individuals, he concluded the checks.

Op led the newcomers to their accommodations while Naimes bid farewell to the elderly priest and departed immediately. Isabella and Jacques said they wanted to survey the surrounding area and left as well. The previously bustling church grew quiet once more.

The old priest watched the departing figures with complicated emotions before turning back inside. He cleansed himself with holy water, then knelt before the deity's statue to pray softly.

Meanwhile, Jacques found something unbelievable - most villagers spoke highly of Naimes. In their accounts, Naimes was a dutiful, responsible holy knight, amiable and courteous, who'd never caused any disturbances. As for Chief Op, he too received largely positive evaluations.

For instance, the village's original dirt roads had been paved with gravel thanks to Op's funding. By such accounts, Op was a pragmatic leader who valued talent. Any household facing difficulties could seek Op's help and receive some assistance.

"This isn't working - we're not uncovering anything this way," Jacques quickly realized. As trainee clergy, villagers saw them as aligned with Naimes. Even those with negative impressions of Naimes would swallow any criticism when speaking to Church personnel.

"You're being too impatient, Jacques," Isabella could only advise. "These inquiries were merely to sample local rumors and survey village conditions anyway. We never expected major revelations."

Of course, Isabella understood why Jacques felt such urgency. The elderly priest's advanced age justified having a trainee priest, but Naimes remained in his prime - normally requiring no holy knight apprentice. Jacques' presence here actually resulted from the Dartmanley family's influence, though they couldn't openly investigate without evidence.

The Church wielded significant power, but couldn't abuse it without damaging faith and regional stability. For reasons unknown, the Church had grown increasingly concerned about such matters in recent years.

A month prior, Isabella had needed to seek the old priest's help for personal reasons. Learning of this, Jacques proactively gathered information on Beiqi Village and unexpectedly discovered that a captured contraband dealer had implicated the village chief, claiming he'd obtained goods from Op's trading team members who said they worked for Op.

Normally, such accusations would only warrant contacting the local priest - even an unclear response wouldn't prompt Church investigation. But recalling Naimes' presence here, Jacques saw dual purposes: causing trouble for the family traitor while accompanying Isabella, leading to their current mission.

"If villagers are secretly mining whalehide ore, they're clearly hiding it well," Isabella reasoned. "We have our key witness now - Benjamin claims he's seen the traders. Once he familiarizes himself with villagers, he can secretly identify them to aid our investigation."

"When we obtain concrete evidence, the Church can properly intervene. Against Church scrutiny, they'll have nowhere to hide." Though disinterested in the Dartmanley family's affairs, Isabella couldn't let Jacques - who'd pursued her so ardently - continue flailing about aimlessly either.