Chapter 25

As Flam arrived at the church in the central district, the surroundings had already begun to darken.

At the corner ahead, she hid herself in the shadow of a building and observed the situation.

Something was definitely off about the church.

Although it was normal to have knights stationed at the gate, their expressions were unusually stern.

Near the entrance of the main hall, nuns were gathered, discussing something with anxious faces.

Sera was not among them.

Had something happened?

Should she go and ask directly? As she pondered this, a nun in her mid-20s, dressed in a white robe like Sera's, happened to pass by.

"Excuse me, Sister, I have a question."

She called out spontaneously.

The nun stopped, her pale pink hair swaying as she smiled and asked, "Is something the matter?"

Flam beckoned the nun over and moved to a spot where the knights couldn't see them, then asked directly,

"Do you know a girl named Sera?"

"You know her!?"

The nun responded by asking, grabbing Flam's shoulder.

From her desperate expression, it was clear—something had definitely happened to Sera.

"Ah... I'm sorry. It's a sudden event, and I'm a bit confused..."

The nun was holding a shopping bag.

It seemed she had just returned from running errands during the commotion.

"Something must have happened, then."

"Before that, could you tell me your relationship with Sera?"

"My name is Flam, and Sera and I—"

Before Flam could finish her explanation, the nun interrupted.

"Oh, you're the one! I've heard about you, the kind person who treats her to delicious meals."

It seemed the story had been passed on completely.

The fact that the first thing mentioned was food was very much like Sera.

"I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Tina. I've lived in the church with her since she was little."

Flam recalled the stories Sera had told her.

She had heard about the "family" at the church several times, and Tina was one of them.

"It seems safe to tell you what's happening now. Just a little while ago, we received a message from the Pope... They said they're going to excommunicate Sera."

"Excommunicate!? Why suddenly!?"

"It seems... the reason is that she was worshiping demons. They say she'll be taken to the Church Tribunal as soon as she's found."

The Church Tribunal—unlike the kingdom's court, it was an institution set up by the church to punish members who violated its rules. It could impose punishments ranging from imprisonment to torture and even execution. Of course, this violated the kingdom's laws, but the kingdom did not intervene in such church abuses. In some regions, they even left the maintenance of public order entirely to the church. In the current kingdom, being taken to the Church Tribunal was almost the same as being treated as a criminal.

"Of course, she's not worshiping demons. I can say that with certainty. We've lived with her."

Such a crime was clearly fabricated. Flam clenched her teeth in frustration.

But Sera had been a valuable and talented person for the church. There must be something they wanted to hide so badly that they were willing to cut her off.

"Flam, where did Sera go, and what did she do? Why does she have to be treated like this!?"

Tina's voice was trembling.

She was trying to suppress the emotional waves rising from within, threatening to make her cry.

But Flam had come to the church to find out the same thing.

"I only heard that she was going to the church in the West District to investigate something at the orphanage. She said she could get information quickly because she knew some knights."

"The knights... You mean Ed and Johnny. So they weren't uninvolved after all..."

"Did something happen to those knights?"

"They were suddenly transferred to a border village today. Only when a knight from the capital has caused a problem are they demoted. But I haven't heard any such stories, and I can't even ask them because they've already left the capital. They used to live in the central district, so they were close, and if they were being transferred, they would at least say goodbye."

Tina said this, hugging herself anxiously.

Flam, feeling frustrated, fiddled with the front of her shirt with her index finger and thumb.

Clearly, some force was at work to cover something up, ignoring the rules.

But why was Sera excommunicated, and the knights transferred?

What was the significance of this difference?

Because one was a nun and the other knights? No, excommunication should be the common and most severe punishment for Origin believers.

If the goal was to get rid of them, the knights could have been excommunicated and sent to the Church Tribunal.

There must be a reason why they couldn't do that and had to transfer them—this was the natural conclusion.

"Also, one more thing. A blonde girl in a nun's habit was reportedly seen on the street along the wall in the West District."

"That's—where the body was found, right?"

Tina nodded silently.

Even though she understood that she might not get an answer, she asked Flam as if placing her last hope.

"Is there any connection between that incident and Sera's excommunication?"

Flam wasn't certain.

But based on the timing, the situation, and the church's past actions, she answered:

"I think the church is likely involved."

Tina's red eyes widened.

She was shocked, but somewhere in her heart, she had already accepted it.

"In my opinion, the demoted knights are probably already dead. That's why they had to cover up their deaths by making it look like a transfer."

"Then what about Sera?"

"Sera's body hasn't been found yet. She might still be on the run. They probably excommunicated her to be prepared in case she shows up again."

"What could the Pope be trying to hide so desperately?"

"That's..."

If she told her, she might get involved too.

Flam bit her lip and shook her head.

"Sorry, I can't get you involved. You might end up in the same situation as Sera."

"Even so, I don't care! She's... not related by blood, but she's part of our family!"

"Even so—if Sera is still on the run and hasn't shown up in front of you, it's probably because she doesn't want to involve you."

"...Even so, even so... Do you know how much everyone loves her...!"

Tina's words were tinged with regret.

But Flam felt the same.

If they had the power to solve the problem, Sera might have relied on them.

But that didn't happen.

She felt her own powerlessness acutely.

"What should we do? Should I attack the Pope? Will she come back then?"

"I don't think it will be that simple."

"You're right, we don't have the power to stand up to the Pope—"

"That's not what I meant. It's the church itself..."

"What about the church? It's fine, you can tell me. I'm prepared. I know the Pope and others are hiding something... We know that too."

She might even have deeper suspicions than those who merely doubted the church.

At the very least, the Pope and others were not trustworthy.

This was a common understanding among normal nuns and priests.

Faced with her determination, Flam decided to tell her what she knew.

"Because they might not be able to control what caused this incident."

"What?"

"The result of human experiments."

"Human experiments...! So, Sera was involved in that?"

"Probably. She might have found out something about the results of the experiments, and they're trying to cover it up by eliminating her."

Or she might already be eliminated.

Tina staggered, holding her head.

It was a shockingly disturbing fact.

However, even though she had only just met Flam, she must have had a feeling about it all along, Flam surmised.

"Probably, Sera left the church in the central district this morning and headed to the church in the West District."

"You said she had business at the orphanage, right? But there's nothing there. I've been there myself, and the children are just living happily."

"Yes, so the research is probably not being conducted at the orphanage. It's more likely that experiments involving children are being conducted elsewhere."

From her conversation with Ink earlier, Flam made this prediction.

However, considering that Sera had collapsed in the West District, the facility was probably not far away.

"But Sera talked to two knights at the church in the West District—then, or during the conversation, she was attacked by something—probably the 'eye' that created those deformed bodies."

"Eye?"

"There are reports of such sightings. The victims were attacked by a large number of eyes, causing their bodies to swell and become deformed."

"What do you mean? The eyes, just the eyes, attack?"

"Probably, that's the case."

"Such a monstrous thing in the capital... And it's also the result of human experiments."

Tina swallowed hard.

She had never seen such a creature, but it might still be hiding somewhere.

"But why was she attacked? Ed and Johnny were just knights, they shouldn't have known about the experiments."

"I'm not sure. But the fact is, the knights were somehow victims, and Sera managed to escape. She ran through deserted streets, pursued by the eyes."

Flam put herself in Sera's shoes to think.

If she was talking to her friends and suddenly attacked by strange eyeballs, and her friends died protecting her, and she managed to escape but the pursuit continued, she would run through deserted streets, pursued by the eyes.

But along the way, she would realize something.

The bizarre appearance and the timing of the attack at the church—this must be the result of the research the church was trying to hide.

"At the end of her escape, Sera reached the street along the wall. She predicted that the 'eyes' wouldn't attack anyone else and wouldn't appear in front of a crowd. The church was trying to hide this, so they attacked her."

"But... other people were also involved. So, they couldn't control it, right?"

"Yes, the church must be panicking. Otherwise, they wouldn't have used such unreasonable and brutal methods to transfer the two knights and excommunicate Sera. They would have been more cunning, as usual."

Silence fell between the two.

Sera's safety had not been confirmed.

The identity of the eyes was still unknown, the church's abuses could not be stopped, and nothing had really progressed.

"But, I feel a little hopeful. Sera might be safe?"

"Maybe."

"Even knowing that is enough. I'll only tell people I trust and look for her."

"Be careful, you never know who might be targeted."

"Maybe being targeted will help me find Sera faster."

Flam couldn't laugh at this joke.

She had seen the deformed bodies at the scene, and it was impossible to laugh.

"Thank you for telling me all this."

"You're welcome... Thank you. If I confirm Sera's safety, I'll contact you."

"Please do. I'll contact you if I find her."

Flam gave Tina her address and waved goodbye.

She had obtained more information than she expected, but she looked up at the purple sky and sighed deeply.

"I hope Sera is safe..."

If that innocent girl had swollen, multiplied, and become hideous—just thinking about it made her feel nauseous.

She had to find Sera as soon as possible, destroy the facility where Ink was, and... even if it didn't stop those "eyes," she had to keep moving.

◇◇◇

On her way back from the central district to the West District, Flam's eyes met those of a large man approaching from ahead.

...It was Dain.

"Hey."

He approached Flam with a creepy smile, followed by about twenty men standing in formation like an army.

His participation in the church service and the expressionless faces of the men behind him were unsettling and mysterious.

She tried to ignore him and pass by, but—

"Feeling down because that little kid you were hanging out with is gone?"

She couldn't help but stop at his words.

The men behind Dain were all staring at Flam with blank expressions.

A chill ran down her spine.

"Next might be the creepy bandaged woman."

"Dain, you—!"

Enraged by his obvious provocation, Flam lunged to grab his collar.

But he laughed and said,

"Is it okay? We've become devout, obedient followers of Origin-sama, hahaha."

"Have you even given up your last bit of pride?"

"Hahaha, I'm not scared of a little puppy's glare! The church is not bad, you know. Being under the protection of overwhelming power is a relief. Well, there are a few disappointing aspects, but—"

He shrugged off Flam's hand and took a couple of steps back to maintain his distance.

"Client... no, now it's a boss. He told us not to touch Flam Apricot. Well, we can't do much about that. It's a low-risk, high-reward situation for us."

"What are you talking about?"

"Hehe, you'll see soon. Let's go, guys."

At his command, the men moved in unison, like lifeless machines.

Eira's reason for disliking the current Dain became clear.

He talked about low-risk, high-reward, but that was not the case.

He had lost too much, and the benefits he enjoyed were too small for him to realize it.

The "Dain faction" was probably over.

Still, a vision of a new form of dominance might be forming in his mind.

But it would not be the same as the strong charisma that had led the West District.

Flam clenched her fists and tensed her arms.

If they couldn't target her, they would likely target the people around her.

Even Milkit, as he had declared.

Perhaps it would be better to strike now.

With a burning hatred, Flam was about to draw her sword when she felt a gaze and looked to her right.

—An eyeball was staring at her.

Just one, but it was staring intently at Flam.

"..."

Flam gasped.

Why.

She hadn't obtained any significant information from the church, and she hadn't harmed anyone yet. Why was it here?

"Could this be—"

It was undoubtedly the eyeball that had created those deformed bodies.

All her anger towards Dain vanished, and she was overwhelmed by fear.

She drew her sword and faced the "eye."

It rolled away, turned the corner, and disappeared.

Flam hurried to follow, but it was already gone.

"What was that just now..."

It had only shown itself, not pursued her.

Confused by this inexplicable action, Flam finally headed home.

◇◇◇

Milkit, waiting for Flam, greeted her with a smile, "Welcome back," without asking about her expression.

A meal was better enjoyed in a bright and cheerful atmosphere.

So, Flam didn't tell her or Eterna and Ink about Sera's situation yet.

But everyone could sense it.

Even if they didn't know the specifics, they could tell something bad had happened.

After the meal, when the dishes were cleared, Flam told everyone that Sera had not returned to the church.

Ink was particularly hurt.

She blamed herself for getting Sera involved in the incident.

Flam tried to comfort her as much as possible, but it didn't fully heal the wound.

After a while, she went upstairs and locked herself in the guest room across from Flam's.

Eterna also returned to her room, saying she had work to do, leaving the living room to the two of them.

Milkit tried several times to speak to the dejected Flam but couldn't find the right words.

The desire to do something for someone else was a new motivation for her.

Milkit regretted her inadequacy, but Flam was already receiving more than enough strength from her efforts to act.

"Thank you."

"…Huh?"

"I'm really grateful to you, Milkit."

"N-no, I haven't done anything—"

"No, it's enough. Just having you here makes me stronger. So—"

Flam stood up from her chair, leaned forward, and took Milkit's hand.

"I don't need special words, and there's no need to be