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~Chapter 52~
Did he repel it unconsciously?
More accurately, it wasn’t repelling—it was resistance.
The boy had resisted his power.
Usher’s ability was as powerful and useful as it was restricted and easy to detect.
Even though no one was around now, this was an entrance hall where people could come and go.
He had only used a very faint touch of power, mindful of prying eyes…
But considering it had even worked on a Pope candidate with holy power talent, this was shocking.
Still, not entirely impossible.
On rare occasions, among those born with a Holy Knight’s gift, some had mental strength so overwhelming that mind-control barely worked.
…Should I kill him?
Left alive, he would certainly become a hindrance to the Evil God’s church.
In fact, the squire Bennet’s name had already come up in the mouths of vice-captains of other knight orders.
They said he had outstanding talent.
He hadn’t been chosen as a sacrifice by the underground branch for no reason.
Hmm, perhaps it’s best to kill him now, after all?
Wearing his beautiful, serene face, Usher made his decision.
He would try one more time.
If it failed again—then he’d kill him.
With an easy smile, he spoke:
“Sir Cutter has spoken of your talent many times. Would you mind if we talked for a while?”
“My master? Ah, yes… yes, sir…!”
Using the fact that a squire couldn’t refuse a Holy Knight, Usher brought Bennet into his quarters.
And to his surprise—
Bennet resisted his mind-control for two whole days.
It was astounding.
That’s some mental resistance.
His plan—to kill the boy if a second attempt failed—changed.
I’ve never met someone with resistance this strong.
In this vast church, who knew if there was another soul capable of resisting him like this?
It’s bothersome having to keep my power so low, so as to leave no trace…
He would need to gather information for the future.
Usher decided to press the boy slowly.
His ability, “Persuasion,” had three stages:
-
Hypnosis.
-
Suggestion.
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Brainwashing.
He changed tactics—hypnosis and suggestion.
Fortunately, though brainwashing failed, simple hypnosis worked.
For example, putting the boy to sleep.
A method often used by fanatics to abduct victims.
It could be broken with a light shock, but here, it was only the two of them.
And it left no brain damage.
“…S-Sir Tatum? Did I fall asleep again?”
The deeper the hypnosis and suggestions worked, the weaker Bennet’s mental defenses became.
Yet he still resisted—
Until Usher whispered one unexpected phrase.
“Yes. Losing your parents to your cousin who became a fanatic… it must have been so hard. But a noble Holy Knight must be truthful.”
“…Noble…”
“Didn’t you come all the way here to become a Holy Knight?”
Like a serpent’s tongue, the whisper slid in—
And after days of endurance, Bennet’s defenses crumbled.
Usher felt delight and thrill.
The information he finally wrung out after such patience was sweeter than any fruit—and astonishing.
“…Seems she’s connected to the fanatics.”
Usher didn’t know that Bennet had never once directly said Nemesia claimed to be a fanatic.
But even this was more than enough to excite him beyond measure.
“Hm. Which is it, I wonder? What do you think, Bennet?”
The boy didn’t move.
“…Think…”
His lips tried to answer faithfully—
Yet his hand rose to cover his mouth.
His wrist showed faint rope marks, like from a lasso.
Signs of interrogation?
Usher only raised a brow.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. You don’t have to answer.”
He hummed, deep in thought.
Now, which is it?
Nemesia, a leading Pope candidate, seemingly connected to the fanatics.
If revealed, the church would be shaken to its core, and the Inquisition would rise in uproar.
Because it’s information no one knew.
When selecting Pope candidates, the church investigated their families and all relations thoroughly.
First possibility:
Among church officials, the majority bore deep hatred for fanatics—
often because their parents, siblings, or children had been fanatics,
or because fanatics had destroyed everything they had.
That boy as well?
Usher’s fingers tapping the chair’s armrest stilled.
Second possibility:
Not only would a Pope chosen by God appear after the prophecy…
But a child chosen by the Evil God.
It was a rumor spread among the fanatic ranks.
They believed the Evil God had also sent a chosen child.
But unlike God’s prophecy, the Evil God’s was so obscurely worded that even high-ranking fanatics couldn’t interpret it.
Yet if Nemesia were that chosen child—
Her unnatural intelligence, her boldness even in the face of blood,
her willingness to sacrifice civilians without blinking…
So much suddenly made sense.
And since Nemesia wouldn’t know Usher was a fanatic, her wariness of him was understandable.
But still—
some things remained unexplained.
Hmm. Which is it…?
Usher’s gaze landed on Bennet’s clouded eyes.
Breaking him would be fun…
But the real fun might be elsewhere.
Slowly, he closed his hand, as if grasping something.
I’ll take her.
If Nemesia truly was the Evil God’s chosen child—
She deserved the protection of a fanatic.
Not some washed-up hero.
“Well.”
And if it didn’t work out?
Then someone dies, that’s all.
Usher’s smile was rapturous.
“Let’s see… where shall I go for a little kidnapping~”
Two days later.
He’s gone!!
I was in a panic.
I couldn’t see a mirror, but surely my face was pale.
“Um, are you all right, Candidate Nemesia?”
As I clutched my head, a voice gently asked beside me.
It was Laura, the Holy Knight who’d been on my team during the Cerberus Judge exam.
Beside her, her Pope candidate, Mel, also looked at me with concern.
“Mm… I’m fine…”
Nestled in my father’s arms, I shook my head quickly.
Dad’s face said he knew exactly why I’d gone pale—and chose not to ask.
“That’s a relief. You suddenly went white as we were touring—I thought you might be ill.”
“Mm, thank you for worrying.”
I buried my face shyly against Dad’s neck, but my expression hardened.
This is bad…
Two days ago, the moment I saw the alert that Bennet had tattled, I had shouted at Dad:
“Dad, Bennet! We have to find him!!”
But the problem was—we couldn’t let anyone know we were urgently looking for him.
Usher surely didn’t know about the Lasso of Truth’s hidden function.
We can’t let him catch on.
And worse—
Bennet had vanished without a trace.
No one knew where he was.
My expectation that we’d just have to find Usher was shattered.
So I’d chosen a cover: sightseeing the Holy Knights’ quarters.
That required two Pope candidates to apply.
Luckily, Laura and Mel had agreed to help.
That much worked out, but still…
We’d gone to the squires’ training grounds.
The result was disappointing.
“Eh… Cadet Bennet? We haven’t seen him these past few days.”
“Hmm, a few days ago maybe? He went out looking pale, said he was off to see Sir Cutter… haven’t seen him since.”
“No idea.”
All I got was that Bennet had been skipping training for days and was in trouble for it,
and that his peers had no clue where he was.
This was a place where infiltrating fanatics, supernatural incidents,
and maze-like structures were routine.
So a missing cadet wasn’t treated as anything serious.
Experiencing it firsthand, it’s ridiculous. How can they be so calm about disappearances?
So once again, we returned empty-handed to the church’s main building.
Strange.
If Usher heard Bennet’s tattling, he should’ve come for me by now.
The fact that he hadn’t shown his face yet—it was ominous.
That was why I’d moved as quickly as I could.
“Where should we go next time?”
Laura asked kindly.
I opened my mouth to answer—
And realized it was already too late.
Damn it, Usher’s curse pulled it off again.
A squad of Holy Knights rushed in, surrounding Dad and me.
“Wh-what is this? What’s going on?!”
Laura cried out in shock, clutching Mel.
But the knights ignored her, closing in tight around us.
I kept my expression calm but felt a twinge of frustration as I looked at them.
“Dad.”
“….”
Dad held me tightly as someone pushed through the knights.
“Sir Derrick Sacrum! We have received a report of imminent berserk risk!
You are hereby deemed a target for emergency restraint and placed under arrest!”
