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Chapter 240: Sanctuary of Federica (3)

"Laugh."

Liltara involuntarily flinched.

The place where Ketal had been held was the deepest prison in the sacred ground, a place for confining special criminals, and powerful divine forces protected it.

Yet, the iron bars of that prison were twisted effortlessly.

Ketal could have escaped at any time.

He had simply been biding his time.

“Wait a moment. If you leave like that, the alarm will...”

“No problem.”

Ketal swung his fist.

A gust of wind flew towards the end of the prison, destroying the mechanism.

Liltara closed her mouth.

“Now then, shall we move?”

Ketal leisurely walked out of the prison.

Liltara quietly followed behind him.

“The question you have is whether the saint and the elders are truly upholding Federica’s values. Isn\'t that right?”

“…Yes.”

Liltara nodded.

Were they, like the believers they had forced into deprivation, also in a state of deprivation?

Were they following Federica’s will?

“Let’s go and confirm that now.”

Ketal walked briskly.

His unhesitating demeanor left Liltara startled, prompting her to speak up.

“Well, I know of a few places that seem suspicious. Perhaps we could start by checking those out…”

“No need. I already know.”

“What?”

Ketal confidently entered a church located on the outskirts of the sacred ground.

He walked straight into the confessional, tapping a device on the floor.

Then, with a rumble, the floor opened, revealing a staircase leading downward.

“Here it is.”

Liltara\'s eyes widened.

“…Have you been here before?”

Ketal’s movements had shown certainty that a hidden passageway existed there.

It was as if he already knew about it.

But this was his first time in this place.

“No. This is my first visit.”

“Then how did you…”

“It’s the expansion of my senses. That’s how I figured it out.”

“…What?”

Liltara looked at Ketal in astonishment.

The idea of expanding his senses to detect a secret passage in a church at the edge of the sacred ground was beyond belief.

But Ketal was just as surprised.

‘It wasn’t like this before.’

He had always possessed perceptive abilities beyond common understanding, but he had never been able to locate secret passages within the sacred ground perfectly.

In the past, it would have taken him several attempts to find something like this.

His senses had sharpened.

And it wasn’t hard to guess why.

‘Mystic power.’

The mystic power he had obtained with the help of the ancient dragon Ignisia.

The beast that howled with discontent within him.

It had sharpened his senses, even though he wasn’t using the mystic power directly.

Changes were occurring within him.

“This is strange indeed.”

His power had been stagnant for a very long time.

One could even say he had hit his limit.

But now, that limit was slowly being broken.

“Well, let’s head down.”

“Yes.”

They descended the stairs and walked through a narrow passageway.

After a while, they came upon a small room with two doors.

“We’ll enter here.”

Ketal opened the door on the left.

A wave of cold air swept over Liltara’s entire body as soon as the door opened.

Her eyes widened as she looked inside.

“A-ah.”

Inside, there was a vast array of food supplies.

Meat with a tantalizing color.

Freshly preserved fish.

Sweet honey and fruits.

Luxurious wine.

And even spices and seasonings.

It could easily be mistaken for a royal pantry.

There was even a high-end kitchen attached, suitable for preparing these ingredients.

“A-ah…”

Liltara’s face twisted in disbelief.

What was this?

Was this not the abundance that they had so adamantly rejected?

Ketal picked up a piece of meat and ate it raw.

“It’s of high quality. A single piece of this could buy a hundred of the jerky you eat.”

“……”

Should they move on to the next room?

They left the food storage and moved to the door on the right.

It was a banquet hall.

A chandelier adorned with various jewels.

A luxurious carpet.

In one corner, there was even a lavish bathhouse.

Liltara let out a groan.

As Ketal examined the carpet, he noticed something.

“There are marks. Signs of recent use, within the last few days.”

At that moment, they felt someone\'s presence.

Liltara instinctively lunged forward and captured the intruder.

The person let out a scream and collapsed to the floor.

“Ahhh!”

“Who are you?”

It was a face Liltara had never seen before.

Having grown up in the sacred ground, Liltara knew everyone there by sight.

This person was an outsider.

“…Who are you, and why are you here?”

“I-I’m a servant. I came to clean.”

The person answered, trembling.

After a brief hesitation, Liltara asked another question.

“Do you know what this place is used for and who uses it?”

“Ah…”

At that moment, the servant\'s expression went blank.

As Liltara looked closer, she realized that the servant was under a restriction imposed by Federica.

A restriction preventing them from revealing certain information.

It was an incredibly strong restriction.

Breaking it would be difficult for anyone who did not serve the same god as the one who imposed it.

“Break.”

Kiing!

Liltara broke the restriction immediately, without hesitation.

“Who used this place, and for what purpose?”

“T-the Saint and the Elders used it. They held banquets here sometimes.”

“…Were the food supplies in the next room used for these banquets?”

“Yes…”

The servant answered with a fearful face.

Liltara’s expression twisted in distress.

She motioned for the servant to leave.

“I see. You may go now.”

“B-but… why are you here? Are you here to discuss the schedule for the next banquet?”

“…No. We’re just here to inspect the area. It’s nothing important, so don’t worry about it.”

“Oh. I understand.”

The servant quickly hurried away.

The sound of the door closing echoed, and Ketal spoke.

“It’s not easy to maintain the appearance of humility and restraint. I guess they relieved their stress in this way.”

“A-ah… Ahhh…”

Liltara let out a long sigh, filled with despair as if the world had ended.

“How could this be? Why… How could such sin exist in our sacred ground?”

The Saint and the Elders of the Federica Church were committing sins.

And this fact did not surprise Ketal much, as the same was true of the Church of Kalosia.

The Church of Kalosia did not uphold the values of deceit and trickery.

They were denying the will of their god.

But even though Kalosia pitied them, it did not correct the believers.

Even if it meant the eventual downfall of the church, it had concluded that there was nothing to be done.

To a god, their church is like their children.

But they do not lead their children by the hand.

Like the Church of Kalosia, the Church of Federica could easily go astray.

However, there was one curious difference.

“Liltara, can the Saint and Elders use the scripture?”

“…Yes. They all use it.”

“That’s the difference.”

In the Church of Kalosia, only the Saint who upheld the values of deceit and trickery could use the scripture.

The god did not grant power to those who denied its values.

‘Why?’

And ultimately, what was the main reason they had called him?

As Ketal pondered, he came to a simple conclusion.

‘I’ll just ask them directly.’

After all, they would meet soon enough.

His curiosity could be resolved then.

It wasn’t a particularly important issue for an outsider like him.

But for Liltara, it was different.

She was a girl who believed in and followed the values of Federica more than anyone else.

To a girl who had spent her entire life learning these misguided values, the truth about the church must have felt like her world was crumbling.

Ketal waited quietly.

Liltara kept her head down for a long time, silent, before finally speaking.

“But… But still, I am a follower of Federica.”

But.

Even knowing the contradictions, even realizing the truth, the girl had lived her entire life this way.

Now, she could not break free from this contradiction.

“There must be a reason. Or perhaps they were briefly tempted. If I speak to them and make them realize… it will be… okay.”

But there was no strength in Liltara’s voice as she said this.

Her expression showed that she knew she was saying something impossible, but she couldn’t accept it.

Ketal smiled.

“So that’s how a true believer reacts. Interesting.”

“…I’m sorry, Ketal.”

She was the one who had brought him to this contradictory place.

She had believed she was following Federica’s guidance, but with the Saint in this state, she couldn’t be sure.

Although there was no deception involved, Liltara couldn’t know that.

“I\'ll do whatever I can to help you escape, Ketal. I\'ll talk to the Saint and make them see reason.”

“No. There\'s no need. I\'ve seen all I need to.”

“What?”

Liltara flinched at his words.

Ketal\'s expression had changed.

It was the face of someone waiting for the final act, the climax of a story.

“But Liltara, can you do me one favor?”

“…What is it?”

“Tomorrow, do nothing.”

Liltara\'s eyes widened at the unexpected request.

Ketal spoke quietly.

“No matter what happens tomorrow, you are only an individual. Do nothing, and do not get involved. Can you promise me that?”

“…Yes, I understand.”

Though she didn\'t fully grasp his meaning, Liltara nodded.

Ketal smiled in satisfaction.

“Alright then.”

Everything was in place.

The audience was ready.

Now, all that was left was to enjoy the show.

* * *

The Next Day.

The Holy Knights brought Ketal out of the prison.

They were puzzled by the appearance of the iron bars, which Ketal had restored to their original state, but they chained him up and led him away.

They took him to the very center of the sacred ground.

There, the Saint, the Elders, and every follower of Federica was waiting.

Among them was Liltara.

“Ooooooh!”

“Federica, please accept our offering!”

“Grant your blessings to the servants who follow your guidance!”

The followers were crying out in near frenzy.

It was the very image of fanaticism.

In their midst, Liltara stood silent, her expression somber.

Seeing her, Ketal smiled.

In the center of the crowd was an altar.

“What’s that for?”

“It is the altar on which you will be offered to Federica,” the Saint said calmly.

“Your body will be burned, and your soul will be sent to Federica\'s realm. Consider it an honor to meet Federica as a sinner.”

“In other words, you\'re going to kill me.”

Ketal smiled brightly and looked up at the sky above the altar.

“If that’s the case, Saint of Federica, what will you do if I resist?”

Ketal asked.

“What if I refuse to approach the altar? What if I reject it?”

“Then, unfortunately, we will have to proceed by force. Kostia.”

“Yes.”

The chief inquisitor, Kostia, along with his subordinates, grabbed Ketal, intending to drag him to the altar by force.

“Uh, uh?”

But Kostia’s expression began to stiffen.

No matter how hard they tried, Ketal’s body wouldn’t budge.

It was like trying to push a deeply rooted tree.

The Saint frowned at the sight of them struggling.

“Kostia. What are you doing?”

“Just give me a moment, please. This… Move!”

Kostia enveloped himself in divine power and rammed his shoulder into Ketal, intending to shove him with all his strength.

Thud!

But it was Kostia who fell.

He stumbled back from the force and landed on the ground with a shocked expression.

The Saint’s face slowly hardened.

“…What.”

Something was wrong.

It felt like realizing that the gears, which had seemed to grind along despite creaking, had been misaligned from the start.

“Unfortunately, I’m not ready to die just yet,”

Ketal murmured lazily.

“I have nothing more to ask of you.”

He hadn’t resisted them until now.

He had followed all their orders, never once rebelling.

Because he was curious to see what they would do with him.

He had thought he could find some enjoyment in the process.

But now, it was over.

He had enjoyed everything there was to enjoy.

“It seems you want something from me, but I’m not going up there.”

Ketal bared his teeth at the sky.

His gaze met the one watching from the heavens.

Ketal clenched his fists.

Clang!

The chains shattered.

The Saint was aghast.

Ketal raised his fist.

“If you have complaints, come down and say them yourself.”

He swung his fist.

A gust of wind from Ketal’s punch flew straight toward the altar.

“Federica!”

The Saint cried out in panic, gathering divine power to create a barrier to protect the altar from the wind.

But it was impossible.

The barrier shattered like a rotten fence hit by a speeding carriage.

The wind, having lost none of its force, smashed into the altar.

Boom!

The altar exploded.

The altar they had painstakingly built, meant to be an offering to their god, crumbled and collapsed.

Screams echoed.

The sacred ground, steeped in fanaticism, was instantly plunged into chaos.

Amid the turmoil, Ketal clenched his fist in satisfaction.

“Hoo! That’s good! The fruit is always sweetest at the end of the wait!”

He laughed, truly enjoying himself.

“Well then.”

The time for the harvest had finally come.