The once-raided merchant guild was overturned again. As the black market dealings got exposed along with their collusion with the cults, the Inquisitors busily sprung into action.

“I didn’t really know!”

“I just thought they were smuggling items!”

“It’s unfair! I swear I knew nothing!”

I joined the Inquisitors in interrogating these people. They claimed ignorance after pocketing all that money. What a laughable excuse!

“Shut your mouth, fool. Shut it.”

“Aah!”

“Trying to wash your hands clean after taking all the bribes? If you hadn’t pocketed the money and gone through official routes, do you think the goods would have been stolen?”

I was getting bored of just dealing with Beverick, so this was a welcome change.

I ignited the Embers in my hands, pounding them with fists wrapped in flames.

“These filthy cults!”

Phew.

It relieves my stress.

The Inquisitors were impressed.

“He hasn’t been in the order long, and yet he uses such aggressive holy spells attacks!”

“He’s better at disciplining with force than words!”

“To think he has a natural talent to be an Inquisitor!”

I have no intention of changing my career path.

I relentlessly kicked the people around. Sometimes, I graciously burned the hair off those who underestimated me because of my young age.

“Aaaah!”

“Please, anything but baldness!”

“You fools! Leave it to an Inquisitor to miss my deeper meaning!"

"Brother Jahad, does it mean anything?"

"Of course it does."

I nonchalantly showed the Inquisitor a worker whose scalp was left bare and shiny.

"What do you think of this sheen?"

"Just baldness..."

"We are the followers of the Sun God Ra! When her grace shines down from the heavens, where does it touch first?"

"...The head?"

"Exactly! That's why I shaved their heads! So even these wicked ones can be touched directly by Ra's grace!"

In my mind, Ra cut in bluntly.

[That's nonsense.]

"It could be true, right?"

[I'm right here, aren't I!]

"...Lord Ra, you're not a fake, right?"

[Aaaargh! Because of you, I've had to take sleep aids lately!]

I moved swiftly through the scene. The situation was soon under control. The Inquisitors acted quickly, and it didn't take long for the fleeing workers to be apprehended.

The problem was the shortage of personnel to manage those who were captured.

"If we request assistance from a nearby branch of the church..."

"It will take quite a while to get here. Lord Radatok, what shall we do?"

Inquisitor Radatok was weighing the options.

There was the possibility that the members of the Snake Cult might have fled with the goods and the longer they delayed, the higher the chance of losing them.

A conclusion was quickly reached.

"Everyone heads to the Ice Cliff, except for a few."

"But that would leave us outnumbered..."

"The sun of Ra never sets."

Radatok looked at me.

"Brother, it would be safer for you to remain here."

"I wish to follow."

"...What?"

"How can I stay put when heresy is right before my eyes? I'm going with you!"

The Inquisitors murmured among themselves.

"Even so, taking the child along..."

"But he seems to have the potential to become a future Inquisitor..."

"Lord Radatok, what will you decide?"

Radatok looked down at me. His bear-like eyes were filled with coldness.

Go, my favorability! Show your power, Konjac Jelly!

"......"

Radatok finally spoke.

"Can you swear to hide in a safe place if combat arises?"

Yes!

"Of course!"

"Very well, brother. Join us. You seem more fitting for an Inquisitor than anyone else, so experiencing a real situation first-hand is not a bad idea. See the heretics with your own eyes and understand what they're like."

I didn't plan to go that far, though.

I smirked. An oblivious Inquisitor whispered to Radatok.

"No matter what, taking a child along... If by any chance we were to lose..."

"We will not lose."

Radatok spoke as if it were a given. The heavy sword at his waist felt burdensome.

"I am Radatok."

"As expected, the Iron-blooded Radatok!"

"Our captain!"

"I told you not to call me something strange."

"I'm sorry!"

I glanced at the place where the Ice Cliff was located. A gigantic white mountain, and several cliffs lying beneath it.

If you fall, it's a place where you'd die. But I didn't care.

I've been here several times already! I remember the way perfectly!

"Let's go, Iron Bear!"

"Brother..."

Inside the frozen cave, goods were piled like a mountain. Yet, even so, Isabella, the priest of the Snake Cult, couldn't utter a single good word.

"You useless bastards!"

"P-Priest!"

Isabella mercilessly beat the followers of the Snake Cult. While she had stepped away for a moment, they had caused a ruckus, throwing everything into chaos.

They had stirred up a merchant guild that didn’t need to be disturbed, leading to conflict.

If that had been the end, it would have been fortunate, but to make matters worse, something had awakened.

In an instant, the entire Ice Cliff was engulfed in a snowstorm.

Snow was piling up rapidly. It snowed so hard that you couldn't see even an inch ahead.

Isabella felt wronged. Who could have known that the opportunity she barely seized within the cult would be overturned like this?

"You... useless... aaagh!!"

Isabella lost control and beat all the followers she could see. One follower clung to her leg.

"P-Priest! Please calm down!"

"Calm down? How can I possibly be calm, damn it?!"

"But, didn't we seize all the goods?!"

"Goods? Yeah. You're talking well. So, just because we seized the goods, everything's fine now?"

Isabella dragged him along. She shoved his face outside the cave.

"What do you see?”

“S-Snow…”

“Right? It’s snow, isn't it? Now, answer this in three seconds. Do you think we can carry all this cargo through that blizzard?”

“I, if we use all our people, somehow…”

“Somehow, what somehow! Say it with your own mouth! And you insane fool! Didn't you see what’s crawling up from below the Ice Cliff?! If it catches a whiff of us, damn it! Those giant tentacles with suckers will climb up!”

They were definitely not inside this frozen cave for no reason. The situation outside was a complete disaster. Roars continued as enormous tentacles that had crept up slowly from the bottom of the cliff grabbed some of the followers.

The Demon of the Snow. This situation, like an old tale, was driving Isabella insane. It was no longer just a matter of goods; it had become a matter of survival.

“The black scales… How did I manage to bring the abandoned Paladins up to this point…”

Ah.

Her blood pressure was rising.

Isabella collapsed. The startled Paladins of the cult rushed to surround her.

"Isabella!"

"Please, pull yourself together!"

"Someone, bring some warm water!"

"I'm not dead yet, so save the firewood! We don't know how long we’ll be stuck here, so we can't just waste it!"

Isabella lay down and sighed. Most of the goods were food supplies, and they were desperately breaking down the damaged carts to use as firewood.

The problem was not knowing how long the Demon of the Snow outside would continue its rampage.

"...Do you think help will come from the cult?"

"......"

None of the Paladins could answer. Isabella let out a hollow laugh.

‘Yeah. Of course not.’

The black scales. That sect within the Snake Cult's Paladins was as good as abandoned. A forsaken child, one might say.

Support wasn't coming. This was an independent venture from the start. It was a mad attempt to achieve some glory, so even if the cult heard about it, they would likely turn a blind eye.

"This... damn it..."

Isabella's blood pressure rose again. She glared fiercely at the Paladins.

"You all… Instead of stopping it, you encouraged the fight?"

"Th-that is..."

The Paladins were sweating nervously.

"We know how hard Commander Isabella is working..."

"We thought that by grabbing even a little more loot, it would build our reputation..."

"And besides, those damned goods belonged to the Sun God Religion anyway!"

"If we seize everything, it would actually hit them hard and earn us high praise from the cult!"

"Those crazy old men wouldn’t praise us for something like this! You blockheads!"

Raising them had become her regret. These guys got stronger, but they turned into simpletons with nothing in their heads.

Isabella felt darkness overtake her vision, so she just closed her eyes altogether.

"...For now..."

She forced herself to come up with a plan.

"For now, let's stay here... Hide ourselves... Once the Demon of the Snow calms down, we'll make our escape..."

"That, that sounds good!"

"Albus."

"Yes?"

"If you don't shut up, I'm going to sew your mouth shut."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Damn it."

"......"

Isabella irritably scratched her black hair.

‘Well, maybe this would work out. They rushed here too quickly; regrouping here might not be a bad idea.

Anyway, with the blizzard raging and the Demon of the Snow rampaging at the Ice Cliff, no one would come here, so they were safe for now…’

"Someone is coming."

"What?"

Isabella sprang up. She glared into the blizzard.

A loud noise and flames. There were strange creatures battling the swirling blizzard and giant tentacles.

They were not magical flames. Instead, there was an unsettling aura of holiness. There is only one source of such flames.

The Cult of Ra. The flames of the Sun God Religion.

"What the hell?! They followed us through this blizzard?! It's been less than two days since those bastards left?!"

"C-Captain!"

"Prepare for battle, everyone!"

As people hastily scurried inside the cave, Isabella focused divine power in her eyes and observed them with enhanced physical abilities.

Glowing eyes and a gaze that was somewhat unhinged. Upon recognizing the face of the one leading them, Isabella's expression crumbled.

"B-Bear?! Damn it?! Why is the Fire Bear here?!"

"Fire Bear... Do you mean Radatok?"

"Yes, exactly!"

When it rains, it pours.

And then the ceiling collapsed on top of that.

"Why the hell is that Inquisitor here?!!!"

Isabella's world came crashing down as well.

Please support the series on NovelUpdates