Chapter 65 – Face-to-Face

Director Walter received a phone call from an unexpected person for the first time in a while.

It was Varasha.

“It’s been a while. Are you adapting well to the Inspectorate?”

“You want us to hand over custody of Kaiser, the representative of the Golden Age Party? Who is the inquisitor in charge?”

“Ah… then it will be difficult. If it were another inquisitor, it might be different, but I cannot exert my influence over him. Not only does he do his job exceptionally well, but I also consider him my confidant. I don’t want to interfere and tell him what to do, so why don’t you talk to him directly instead? He will surely listen to you.”

“You already spoke to him? Then… I am sorry that there is nothing I can do to help. I am of the position to interfere with the work of my subordinate inquisitors as little as possible. That was the case when you were here, and it is still the case now.”

“You are coming in person. You are still the same. But do not come to find me. It would be better to go see him directly and persuade him.”

“Yes, let’s keep in touch.”

As soon as the magic communication ended, the professional secretary announced someone’s visit.

It was Aria.

“You’ve arrived? This is the first time we’ve met like this, isn’t it?”

From her neat uniform, one could feel her cold cleanliness and refined elegance.

The look in her eyes, visible behind her silver-rimmed glasses, was always calm and intelligent.

An unwavering perfectionist.

“Yes, this is the first time I have had a private meeting with you, Director.”

“First of all, I express my deep regrets regarding the matter of your older brother. I also pondered a great deal before summoning you here.”

“You do not need to worry much if it is regarding my older brother. He clearly committed a wrongdoing and merely paid the corresponding price for his crime. I do not resent anyone either. There is no need to.”

“At least it was fortunate that the one who judged your brother was you.”

He continued.

“The Holy Order no longer speaks of the wrongdoings your brother committed. It is probably because of you. If someone else had summarily judged your brother, rumors would still be circulating. They would have gnawed at it relentlessly since there would have been a lot to gain.”

“Therefore, I am always grateful to Lead Inquisitor Rashid. He yielded that credit to me.”

“Was that his judgment?”

“Yes, I requested it, and the Lead Inquisitor readily agreed.”

“I see. He is a more thoughtful person than he appears. Indeed, he probably thought it was better to push the credit of capturing the Director of Palace Affairs to you rather than taking it with his own hands. Seeing how things passed without any trouble thanks to that, his thoughts were correct.”

A heavy air passed between the two of them.

The director composed his thoughts for a moment and then opened his mouth again.

“In any case, the credit for resolving that matter is not small. Therefore, I intend to promote you to Lead Inquisitor. That is also the reason why I called you separately.”

“Lead Inquisitor?”

“Why? Was it not what you wanted?”

“No. It is not that.”

She was weighing various things, and in the meantime, the director’s words continued.

“Although promotions seem frequent recently because too many major incidents have broken out, in truth, that is not the case. There are those who remain as a Deputy Inquisitor for ten years. It is not a position one can easily sit in under normal circumstances. I also do not put just anyone in that position. However, the credit for that work is by no means small, and don’t you also have your family’s prestige to consider?”

The head of the Sanctum family.

For the power of the Sanctum family to remain strong, she also had to hold a title worthy of it.

“It was a decision made with consideration for your position as well.”

“Then what will happen to me? Do I have to become independent separately?”

“If your title is Lead Inquisitor, it is correct to become independent. It is a position where you can lead your own independent investigations.”

“What if I want to remain?”

“Remain?”

“Yes. Has there never been a case where Lead Inquisitors went around together?”

“It is not impossible, but wouldn’t it be very uncomfortable for both of you? After all, when it comes to getting work done, having a subordinate is better.”

“Then I will yield. I consider Lead Inquisitor Rashid my superior. I feel that I am still lacking to become independent separately.”

“You shouldn’t be that lacking, though?”

“I feel there is still much to learn.”

“Is that so? Then I should ask him.”

She cut him off flatly.

“No. Please do not ask him.”

The director felt puzzled upon hearing her words.

“What do you mean by that? Saying not to ask.”

“I will remain as a Deputy Inquisitor for now. If I want, can I not rise to Lead Inquisitor at any time?”

“That is correct. If you wish, it is possible even right now.”

“Then I will postpone it. If it is the current Lead Inquisitor, the moment I become a Lead Inquisitor, he will immediately kick me out.”

“Kick you out?”

“Yes. He seems to be constantly looking for an excuse to kick me out, so there is no need to give him a pointless pretext.”

The director asked with doubt.

“Do you not get along?”

“No. It is better than ever. I simply want to remain in that position. I still have a lot to learn.”

Was there any need to weigh his competence?

The director seemed to understand to some extent.

“In any case, come see me whenever you want. You are already a Lead Inquisitor.”

“Yes, thank you.”

* * *

Karl came to find Rashid.

“Lead Inquisitor. The… Internal Inspectorate is persistently demanding custody of Kaiser.”

“Has it been a week?”

“Yes, they have been contacting us persistently for almost a week.”

“Do not think of it so seriously. Just pretend to listen and ignore it.”

“They keep demanding an explanation as to why identifying the player is taking so long, is it really alright to just ignore them?”

“It’s fine to ignore them. It is not a big deal. In any case, they are an external agency, not the Holy Order, are they not?”

“Then I will continue to ignore them.”

Karl, bowing his head, departed, and Rashid smiled bitterly.

‘She has the style of a hunter. Beyond persistent, it is downright sickening.’

It was the same during Mariel’s case.

He had thought she gave up because there was no news, but that was not the case.

After all, she was the one who had been hiding and digging behind his back.

And she was also the only one who was certain that he was the Saintess’s murderer.

‘Those words were right. The words saying that she would not give up easily.’

They were words spoken by Aria.

Since they were senior and junior at the academy, she would probably know about the person named Varasha in more detail than he did.

Knock, knock!

It was Aria.

“Lead Inquisitor. Inspector Varasha is requesting a personal meeting. What should I do?”

To think she would actually come in person.

However, there was only one response Rashid would show.

“Tell her I am not here. Or rather, saying I am out on a case would be better.”

She, who would have replied “Yes” under normal circumstances, stood holding her ground particularly today.

Before Rashid could even express his question, she said indifferently.

“You still do not seem to know my senior, Lead Inquisitor. She is already waiting outside.”

Rashid smiled bitterly.

A woman so persistent that it was sickening.

“Did she use her connection with you? It should be difficult for an inspector to enter all the way here, shouldn’t it?”

“Since I did not want to be viewed unfavorably by my senior, I did show her a little consideration. However, if you command it, I will not do so next time and will ask for my senior’s understanding first.”

“Guide her to the reception room. I had to settle this with her eventually anyway.”

A moment later.

Rashid came face-to-face with her.

He sat in the seat of honor, and she sat nearby, like a visiting guest.

Her wavy blonde hair and tall stature were stretched out beautifully without any excess.

Her neat uniform and her elegant, dignified behavior showed she was undoubtedly a noble.

“I thought our conversation was already finished. You are quite persistent.”

Although Rashid opened the flow of the conversation, she seemed more concerned with the office than the dialogue.

“This was the office I used to use. By the way, where is Inquisitor Ludrick? If I left, he should be using this place.”

“Regrettably, he passed away after getting caught up in an unsavory incident. There was friction with the Magic Tower side not long ago. Since it is a matter of the Holy Order, it might not be well known to the outside.”

“The Magic Tower… Indeed, Ludrick was good at exorcism. He must have been a thorn in the side of the Magic Tower.”

She also seemed to know roughly about the awkward relationship between the Holy Order and the Magic Tower.

“More than that, how did a cleric become a Lead Inquisitor? I cannot understand it very well. Wasn’t an inquisitor’s background of origin the most important thing?”

“There are many stories behind that, but that is not what is important.”

Rashid spoke, his face turning serious.

“Would you stop it now? If I refused to that extent, shouldn’t you have taken the hint on your own?”

Like a war hero.

She, too, did not yield.

As if she had come to her own home, she crossed her legs first and maintained a quite comfortable posture.

Anyone looking would think she was the one sitting in the seat of honor.

“Inquisitor.”

That attitude of calling him without even looking.

Rashid found it extremely offensive.

“Just who do you think the person you are meeting is?”

“Inspector.”

‘This won’t do.’

“A mere nobody.”

Having never expected him to go that far, she could not stop a hollow laugh from escaping.

The only person who could speak like that to her, a war hero, would be someone with two lives.

“I thought no one in the Empire would look down on me in that manner. This is quite unexpected. Do you not know that even if I kill a single person, no one would make an issue of it?”

“That is limited to the Empire. This is the Holy Order.”

“Do you think even the Holy Order would protect you? No matter how independent a state it is, it is ultimately a place inside the Empire.”

“I am not a person who relies on something like the Holy Order. Even without the backing of the Holy Order, I can sufficiently look down on you.”

The gazes of the two clashed fiercely in midair.

Neither of them yielded.

“Yes, you are indeed an inquisitor of the Holy Order. I heard you slaughtered Count Gerard?”

“Ah, you know well. That could happen to you too, Inspector.”

“You have quite the nerve.”

“Did you even do that kind of background check? Yes, to be precise, I merely took the responsibility. The one who slaughtered him was your junior standing over there.”

Varasha’s gaze was directed solely at Rashid.

“I am different from that count. Do you know why I became an Internal Inspector?”

“You probably thought it was better than being an inquisitor. While an inquisitor has extraterritoriality against the people of the Holy Order, an inspector has extraterritoriality against all citizens of the Empire.”

Rashid’s words continued.

“Is it not the status of an inspector that allows you to frame even a passerby as a spy and slaughter them if you wish? You must have transferred to the Inspectorate because you wanted that.”

“You know well. Then, what if you were suspected of treason?”

How ridiculous.

“Then, what will you do if you are suspected of being a player?”

“You refuse to back down.”

She could recall the moment she first met him.

She had thought he was nothing special, just an ordinary cleric.

But at some point, that man was standing on equal footing with her.

“This is the Holy Order. It is not a place where your absurd threats will work.”

“I will warn you one last time.”

It seemed she had come for blackmail rather than persuasion.

Worthy of a hero from the Imperial Army who had experienced war, her behavior was quite rough and wild.

She looked ready to kick the table at any moment.

“Hand over Kaiser. Otherwise, a treason charge you never had will appear.”

Not to be outdone.

The corners of Rashid’s mouth curled up slightly.

“That sounds like you suddenly want to become a player, is that correct?”