Chapter 95

Ceras looked down at himself in his priest's robes with an awkward expression.

No matter how he looked at it, the sleeves of the robes he was wearing were too long, and the bottom was too wide and loose.

Though it had been made more splendid with gold thread embroidery, the priest's robes were something he had only worn in his early days after entering the monastery.

After that, vowing to protect the faith and undergoing military training, Ceras had worn armor more often than robes.

As a result, even now, a few days after leaving the Ratio Church headquarters, the priest's robes felt incredibly awkward.

“I used to wear such loose things so well back in the day…”

“Sir Ceras, I mean, Father.”

Thwump.

The attendant who made a mistake with the title had his foot stepped on by Ceras and let out a small tear.

Since Ceras had originally served as an Inquisitor, the title 'Father' didn't come easily to their lips.

It was much more natural to call an Inquisitor 'Sir'.

However, ordinary priests were not called by the title 'Sir'.

Therefore, Ceras gave another warning.

“I told you to be careful with the titles. It makes people wary.”

“I apologize, Sir Ceras, I mean, Father.”

Ceras sighed and gestured with his chin to another subordinate.

The attendant who kept making mistakes with the title, despite being warned, was dragged to the aft deck with a long face.

People often forget due to the clergy's image, but the Western Church is actually an institution organized with a hierarchy and rank system greater than that of the military.

Therefore, it was no wonder that the holy knights in charge of the church's military power were similar to secular knights.

After the sound of meat being beaten was repeated a few times.

A short while later, the attendants who had resolved their conflict returned.

“So what is it?”

“Ahem, the captain says we will reach Fasa in a few hours.”

“Finally? You should have said so sooner!”

“I was about to say so.”

“Shut up.”

Ceras, who had been feeling cooped up on the ship for days, quickly went out to the forecastle.

Amidst the numerous seabirds flying in the sky, land was faintly visible in the distance across the blue sea.

Ceras was impressed to see land after a long time, and as the city came into view, his admiration grew.

“Wow, it's Fasa.”

“Father Ceras, have you visited Fasa before?”

“No. This is my first time. Fasa doesn't seem to be anything more impressive than Ratio, but there are a lot of people.”

“It seems the location was better than I thought. It's just that they couldn't thrive because of the pirates.”

“So it started to prosper once that problem was solved.”

Looking at the bustling port, Ceras wondered if this was the work of a demon, but he didn't get that feeling.

Fasa was just an ordinary port city.

Then again, a demon would be much more cunning than this, so it wouldn't be strange if it wasn't discovered.

Soon, as the ship arrived at the port, the sailors and the captain all offered prayers.

“We offer a prayer of thanks to Saint Leonius for the safe completion of our voyage…”

Seeing this, the priests tilted their heads.

“Who is Saint Leonius? I've never heard that name before.”

“I don't know. Wasn't the patron saint of Fasa Saint Rainerius?”

“Who knows. Maybe he was recently canonized.”

The priests were curious, but they couldn't bring themselves to interrupt someone else's prayer.

Instead, they quickly disembarked and entered the crowd.

With so many different kinds of people walking around, a group of priests looking around didn't seem suspicious at all.

“Where should we go now?”

“That big building over there. People call it the Lighthouse.”

When the attendant pointed to a large building in the middle of the city, Ceras was taken aback.

No matter how he thought about it, that statement went against common sense.

“I'm not from the coast, but don't they usually build lighthouses on the shore? Or was it originally a lighthouse, and the city expanded around it?”

“I don't know for sure.”

The attendant asked a passerby and returned to report.

“It's not a real lighthouse, it's just that it's brightly lit at night.”

“Fasa must have made a lot of money. Lamp oil is expensive.”

“Since it's by the sea, there must be some way. Like whale oil or something.”

“Is that so?”

Unaware of the situation, Ceras moved his feet without the slightest imagination of what was happening inside.

If he had known how much of the mercenaries' joys, sorrows, and hard work were melted into that place, he might have hesitated a little.

If he had known the fate that awaited him, he might have turned back.

But even if he had known that fact, Ceras would have eventually walked into the mercenary headquarters on his own two feet.

Ceras was that kind of person.

The Pope's command is absolute!

Because he had sworn obedience before God!

In front of such a mercenary headquarters, soldiers with black and blue eyes were standing guard.

‘It seems the discipline of the mercenary company is strict.’

Witnessing this, Ceras felt a sense of approval.

People tend to prefer the familiar over the unfamiliar.

Therefore, the strict discipline was good for Ceras to feel a sense of closeness.

As Ceras approached, the soldiers blocked his way.

“What brings you here?”

“We are from Ratio.”

“Ratio? We haven't received any notice. But if it's Ratio.”

The guard next to him chimed in.

“You idiot. They're from the church. Don't you even know that?”

“I know. That the Holy See is in Ratio.”

The guard who had been scolded retorted sharply.

It didn't make sense not to recognize them when they were wearing priest's robes in the first place.

Now the priests had a rough idea of what was going on.

It seemed the guards were not on good terms with each other, and they were about to be unintentionally drawn into an argument.

“Oh dear, did we come at a bad time?”

“Should we come back later?”

“That would be a bit…”

While everyone was in a predicament, a savior appeared from inside.

“Hey, Luca! Rene! You bastards! I put you out here as punishment, and you're already fighting outside again!”

At the rather rough words, the guards quickly stood at attention, but it was too late.

A fierce troll face popped out and kicked the guards.

“Aack!”

“Instructor, it hurts too much!”

“Then die!”

The kicked guards screamed, but Rhom kicked them one more time without a care.

“The new recruits are such a mess, I really can't show my face because of you guys. Huh?”

Rhom growled at the guards before noticing the priests looking at him and belatedly stopping.

‘I'm screwed. I'm going to get kicked by Sir Eleonor again.’

The troll from Aosta also had a medieval soul, but he was also aware of his identity as an executive of the Black Company.

As a result, he knew how the current situation would look to the guests.

It was not a sight to be shown to outsiders.

Acts of violence were, after all, actions that easily gave others a bad impression.

Moreover, their opponents were lofty priests.

Looking at their attire, they seemed to be quite high-ranking people, so how unfamiliar would such behavior be to them?

‘I should have just called them back during break time. I shouldn't have kicked them.’

Afraid that the priests would scream and run away, Rhom quickly revealed his fangs and smiled awkwardly.

But the guests' gazes were already sharp.

Full of regret, Rhom firmly resolved to preach in a place out of people's sight next time.

However, Rhom, who had been too busy making a living to neglect going to church, had completely misunderstood.

Such scenes were familiar not only to inquisitors like Ceras but also to ordinary priests.

‘It seems people live similarly everywhere.’

‘This place is no different from ours.’

In Rhom's awkward smile, the misunderstanding only deepened.

***

Recently, Rhom had been enjoying his power to the fullest after a promotion.

In other words, he had been kicking the butts of rebellious trainees.

It was so refreshing that Rhom could even understand how Eleonor felt when she kicked him.

Naturally, the trainees were full of complaints, but because Rhom's race was a troll, even the most courageous friends did not dare to challenge him.

No, in fact, there were some friends who couldn't stand such injustice and did challenge him.

They all ended up being beaten to a pulp, following Rene Calaci's fate...

Though Rhom reigned as the strongest among the trainees, there was something in the world that made him afraid, and that was Eleonor.

Eleonor would punish Rhom with a kick without mercy whenever he committed an uncultured act.

In other words, Rhom's habit of kicking the trainees could be said to have originated from Eleonor.

In fact, Rhom was one of the most knowledgeable people in the mercenary company, which was full of illiterates.

He was just relatively undervalued because there were many great figures around him, like a royal hiding his identity, the emperor's former bodyguard, and a duke's chronicler.

The profession of a knight was not something that could be done without culture.

It was just that he was treated like an uneducated fellow because of his unusually deviant behavior, even in a company full of strange people.

Anyway, afraid of getting his butt kicked for not welcoming the guests properly, Rhom quickly adopted a polite demeanor.

“I apologize. I have committed a rudeness. Where are you from?”

“We are from the Holy See of Ratio. By the way.”

“Yes?”

“Are you perhaps Sir Rhom of Aosta?”

“Ah, yes I am. Father. You know me?”

“Of course, Sir Rhom is a famous person on the peninsula.”

“Hahaha. Thank you for saying so.”

‘He's weak to compliments.’

Ceras quickly sized up Rhom.

Rhom, who was being pushed around from above and below, rarely received compliments, so he was easy to win over with just a few kind words.

In fact, since Rhom was the only troll in the mercenary company, it was not difficult for Ceras to recognize him.

What surprised Ceras more was the fact that a troll could be polite.

Trolls were a naturally rough race and were mostly unruly.

Despite the efforts of the Western Church, controlling their ferocity was not easy.

The fact that trolls did not attend church well proved this.

However, Ceras' judgment was a complete misunderstanding.

Violence is always suppressed by greater violence.

Rhom, whose rank had been sorted out by Eleonor, naturally respected those of higher rank.

Ceras felt a deep sense of approval for the high level of discipline in the Black Company, which reminded him of the church.

Just as Rhom, being from the knightly world, didn't know much about the religious world, Ceras, being from the religious world, didn't know much about the knightly world, which led to this incident.

“We apologize for visiting without an appointment, but we would like to see Duke Gryph. Is that possible?”

“Ah, I see. No problem. Please come in. I will guide you.”

“Thank you.”

“Rene, Luca! You two stand guard properly. I'll come back to check on you later. This way, please.”

After giving a stern warning to the guards, Rhom quickly smiled and guided the priests.

***

“Who? Ratio?”

“Yes. The guests are waiting downstairs.”

I looked at Rhom, who had brought the news, with a puzzled expression.

I was lost in thought for a moment, scratching my head with the tip of my quill.

Ratio is where the Holy See is located.

In other words, it's the equivalent of the Vatican in that world.

But if they are priests directly under the Holy See, not from the Fasa diocese, that means they are quite high-ranking people.

Do such people usually visit without an appointment?

Besides, what reason could a priest from Ratio have to visit?

In the game, there are occasional events where a clergyman visits.

Usually, they come to proselytize to a pagan (change of religion), or to sell indulgences (increase in piety), request donations (also an increase in piety), or demand a grant of territory (increase in the influence of a monastic order).

They were mostly random encounter events.

It seems like they all want money.

Did they perhaps smell money from somewhere?

That would be troublesome.

“Did they not state their purpose?”

“They just said they came to see you, Captain.”

“Hmm, they didn't happen to bring a pile of firewood, did they?”

Today, Rhom was quick on the uptake.

“Pardon? Ah. You mean an Inquisitor. No? They just looked like priests. Besides, there's no reason for such dangerous people to visit.”

“You never know. I was accused of controlling a beast last time.”

“Come on, you worry too much. If they were going to come, they would have come long ago. There was no sign of that. Don't worry.”

“Then they must be here just to ask for a donation. Is the Holy See's financial situation not good these days?”

“I don't know. I haven't heard any such rumors. Should I tell them to go back?”

“Hmm, I don't know…”

High-ranking clergymen are mostly of noble birth or are their illegitimate children, people from the upper class.

They have high pride.

How humiliating must it be for such people to have to go around other regions doing something similar to begging.

It's better to give them a bit of money than to get on their wrong side and hold a grudge.

Besides, it's better to stay on friendly terms with the religious world as much as possible.

And this is the Middle Ages, where there's no separation of church and state.

I already have things I could be picked on for, what if I treat them poorly and they declare a crusade on me later?

The thought of the Knightly Orders swarming in like cockroaches is terrifying.

“No, they came all this way, it wouldn't be right to send them back empty-handed. They need to save face too, don't they?”

“Understood. I'll send them up.”

A moment later, Rhom left and the priests of the Western Church entered the office.

My first impression was that of a pale-blond priest and his attendants, nothing more, nothing less.

But, there was something strange about their movements.

“...?”