Chapter 61 : The Inspection Bureau

Before the kingdom’s hounds from the Inspection Bureau arrived, Li Wen had to leave—leave this place, and preferably Ark Town entirely.

She headed straight for the nuns’ dormitory.

Many of her belongings were still there: leftover materials from various rituals, and the spoils she had taken after defeating the fire mage.

As for the “drops” from Tilrogzach—no, the spoils—there was only a single blood-stained contract.

It was with this very contract that he had summoned the spear that had nearly killed her.

That spear was impressive, but she wasn’t sure if it could be used by her.

Her bone-eroding short sword, however, had not survived the previous battle.

Under the strain of the Remnant Light’s unworded arc, the sword’s enchantment had shattered, and the demon’s blood had corroded the blade beyond repair.

It was now nothing more than scrap.

The contract could wait for study later.

Right now, her priority was getting out.

Li Wen had barely stepped out of the church when she ran into someone unexpected.

No—“unexpected” wasn’t quite right.

The fire consuming the church was visible from anywhere in Ark Town, especially from the nearby dormitory of the nuns.

Sister Luna of the Sunlit Church stood there, frozen, her eyes filled with grief and confusion.

“Miss Mephist… why?”

Li Wen didn’t even bother correcting her.

“What do you mean by ‘why’?”

The young nun faltered.

“If you mean the fire in the church, I’m afraid it’s not my doing. If you’re asking about that deceitful pastor, then I regret to inform you—he’s dead. And yes, I’m the one who killed him.”

Li Wen’s tone was devoid of pity.

“Why…”

Luna’s voice trembled the moment she heard the word “pastor.”

“Pastor Mog… he was such a good man. Why would you—?”

Why?

Li Wen’s patience thinned. Her gaze grew cold.

If he hadn’t attacked me in the middle of a ritual, I wouldn’t have interfered with him at all.

Whatever schemes he and Siswell were plotting, someone else could have dealt with it—it didn’t have to be me.

“As for your claim that he was a good man? I don’t know how you came to that conclusion, nor do I care what happened between you two, or what ‘story’ you think you share.”

“I’ll just say this: none of it matters—not compared to the Twilight of the End. The destruction of the world is close at hand, and here you are, wasting my time.”

As if venting some buried resentment, Li Wen—rarely so verbose—spoke in a long, cutting stream. Then, without so much as glancing at Luna’s expression, she walked away.

***

At dawn, Ark Town’s mayor, Old Morgan, was already waiting at the church gates.

The fire from the previous night had been seen by everyone in town.

To keep it from spreading, Morgan had organized the town guards and volunteers to fight the flames.

Now the fire was out, and the crowds had dispersed.

He remained, however, for a reason.

When the first light of morning touched the ground, a solemn, well-built carriage came to a stop before him.

Several figures in black clothing and leather hats stepped down.

The leader was a middle-aged man; the others, all young.

“Gentlemen,” Old Morgan greeted, bowing his head.

A pastor from the neighboring town had already told him—these people were from the capital.

None of them were of simple standing.

The middle-aged man nodded slightly, his expression grave.

“Where is Pastor Ed?”

“Mr. Ed is… waiting at the ruins of the church.”

Without further words, the man led his companions toward the site.

“A strong smell of the Inferno… must be—”

“Discuss it when we’re on-site,” the leader cut in sharply.

“You’re too serious, Captain,” one of the young men muttered.

“This has to be the work of those Deep Dawn scum again. Shame about the stationed pastor, though. I heard he was a top graduate of Saint Peter’s Seminary. Could have gone anywhere, yet chose to preach in a backwater like this.”

The captain’s face darkened further, but the young man rambled on.

“I’ve told you—until we investigate, speculation stays speculation.”

The others exchanged helpless glances, used to their captain’s temperament.

The once-majestic Sunlit Grand Cathedral was now a charred ruin.

In front of it stood an elderly pastor in black robes, praying in silence, his expression heavy with sorrow.

“Pastor Ed, what’s the situation?”

The old pastor stirred and gave the middle-aged man a polite nod.

“Captain Xu En, only one nun from the Ark parish survived. The young, promising pastor here… likely perished in the fire.”

Xu En nodded. The account matched the intelligence he had received.

He was about to ask more when he was abruptly interrupted—

The two investigators had finished their work.

“From the scene, the fire appears to have been caused by a clash between two transcendent individuals,” the mage with the spellbook declared with certainty.

The other followed up immediately.

“One was of the Radiant spectrum—likely the pastor. The other… hard to say. Judging from the etheric feedback from the Absolution Rite, I got an overwhelming, terrifying feeling. Definitely nothing good.”

“There’s a heavy trace of infernal energy here. The spatial barrier has fissures—someone attempted to summon a demon, or worse.”

“A curse was definitely used…”

“The pastor’s body was completely incinerated—no remains.”

“And there’s also—”

“The conclusion?”

Xu En cut them off.

The two looked at each other and answered in unison.

“It was the work of Deep Dawn.”