Chapter 139 – Red Net (7)

“After the last sewer incident, the royal family summoned the Florence family and conducted a large-scale investigation. In the process, I realized that the recent problem of black magic and demons spreading within the kingdom was more serious than I thought.”
“It was first discovered near the North Sea, but since then it has traveled through the Vatudis region and has now reached Farencia. “That was only a few months ago.”

My head was pounding.
I didn’t really understand the current situation.
Why am I the culprit who spread demon statues and black magic in the sewers?
There is clearly some mistake.

“You are mistaken! “It’s not me who spread black magic, it’s the church!”
“Who said that?”
“… Michelan Castro of the Blood Gate Brigade. “It was all planned by him.”

Erzsebet made eye contact with Darling for a moment.
But the lord of Farencia snorted his teeth and looked pitifully at Caroline.

“There is no priest with that name in the Temple of Light. Even before you arrived, security checks had been strengthened, but there were no reports of any suspicious person entering Parenzia.”
“You said you were from the Blood Gate Brigade… ! Are you going to come in and be subject to inspection like that!?”

As Carolyn revealed her teeth, the armored personnel carriers in her student council room sensed her threat and began to move.
The iron dog Mareil was also preparing magic without being revealed.
Then, Caroline remembered the whizzer board she had asked him for earlier.

“That’s right! She must have had a holy relic sent from Monarch. “I’m sure I got it from that bastard, so if I follow the traces, my identity will definitely be revealed!”
“…”
“…”

The two women still show no signs of belief.
Caroline was just frustrated.
Even though she came prepared to reveal the secrets of the Seongguk and antagonize them, it is as if she is holding on to a loved one!
Her voice became increasingly angry.

“Hey, you idiots. How can I go to the graduate students in that sewer and hand them the demon statue!? “I didn’t even know they existed!!”
“…”
“And! I went to Skandal with you, princess! “Why on earth are you doubting me!”

Haha.
Only Caroline’s heavy breathing filled her room.
Lehel, who was watching the crystal ball alone, gave Erzebet a few glances, and then he began to say something incomprehensible.

“I’m sorry, this isn’t my specialty. “I don’t think it will help.”
“It’s okay, we’ll take care of the rest.”

Lehel walked past Caroline and closed her door.
The fireworks outside the window began in earnest, but the room was filled with silence.
It was Darling who broke the silence.

***

“I have more to say… !”
“Speaking of Wizardboard.”

Widely.
The little lord looks out the window and taps on the desk.
There was only one reason she kept her saint alive, who once again spread the demonic image of the woman who killed her parents throughout the land she had cultivated.
Because Lewis said it was precious.

“From the customs to the temple, to the merchants along the border, it was all something you requested and received.”
“What?”
“The handwriting on the letter and the source of the money given to the postman were all yours, Caroline Magdalena. “One of them even remembered her face exactly.”
“What do you mean…”
“Caroline.”

This time it was Erzsebet.
She spoke in a low tone, reaching out her hand to the polar bird sitting quietly on top of the iron soldier.

“When I led Lewis to the center of the sewers, I knew the way. “It’s only natural since I controlled my familiar from outside while looking at the map.”
“…”
“But how did you, the second fastest person, find your way? “It was too complicated to memorize, and no guidance was ever provided.”
“I…” …”

Because he is a member of the Blood Gate Brigade.
Because he is a veteran who is well versed in chasing and catching tail.
But a small question arose in Caroline’s mind.
How was it possible to catch up so quickly with Lewis, who was suddenly far away in the complex sewer system?

“According to the priests at the temple, you went into the empty end room of the confessional and muttered several times a day. “The apprentice priest checked the other side just in case and confirmed that no one was inside.”
“That can’t be possible. Michelan is just hiding…”
“According to the intelligence agent we planted in the Blood Gate Brigade, there is no one named Michelan Castro there. Not even in the delegation that came with you. Above all, Caroline Magdalena, I looked through all of your personnel records as the vice-captain of the Blood Gate Brigade, but she has never even met such a person.”

Mareil’s shocking words follow.
Caroline felt like she had been denied everything she had ever known.
So what were the orders of the church?
What do you mean, find the holy sword?
Did the church really plan to abandon me from the beginning?
If not——.

“And this is the decisive testimony.”

She is a princess again this time.
Her head feels dizzy.
The sound of firecrackers outside the window spreads and spins in my head.
The red pupils shake like crazy.

“‘If you want to catch a spider, throw yourself into the net.’ According to Albert, who came out during the interrogation, it was said by the person who gave the demon statue to his family.”
“Yes, that’s right! That’s Michelan’s… !”
“When asked who the person was, he said he couldn’t quite remember, but he looked something like this.”

A red-haired busty woman.
There the accident stopped.

No way.
No.
Probably not.
Caroline’s mouth trembled.

“The magic that the Blood Gate Brigade is best at handling is brainwashing and manipulation through ‘mental manipulation.’ Caroline, are you…”
“Excuse me, princess. “I tell you.”

Sigh!
Mareil threw the large map of the kingdom on the table in front of her as she sat down by the door.
The picture of the continent on the floor had red lines running through it.

“This is the place and time when the demon statue was first discovered. It’s near Lake Senrir in the North Sea, and it was about six months ago. After that, 4 months in Vatudis, 2 months in Camilan… And then came and now this is Parenzia.”

Piing——!

Fireworks exploded.
A thin red line rose up and spread out into a beautiful circle.
The beam of light that came through the window flashed and disappeared throughout the room.
Like an invisible prison.
As if it was constricting my heart.

“It hasn’t been found in the South yet. In other words, we believe that the person who spread this demon statue is in the central part of the kingdom.”
“Ahhh…”
“I ask you, Caroline Magdalena. “Where have you been and what have you been doing these past few months?”

Digging up memories
It reminds me of a conversation with Louis in a small single room.

— What was it? They suddenly came to see me and imprisoned me for months? Then he told me to go to Parencia… He said he had work to do.
– Okay?
– Huh. When I came here, I heard a junior colleague call me a prostitute and I was tormented by a strange evil spirit… This is also really bad.

Are you locked up?
For how many months?
That memory…

Was there?

Piing——! Peeeee——!!

“I-I…” … I definitely… !”

Caroline tried desperately to remember.
Making her gasp for air and tearing at her hair.

Then, she suddenly looked up with a bewildered expression at the red light that had once again spread in her room.
To catch a spider, you have to enter the spider’s web.
Only then did she realize.
What she said was the mindset she always emphasized to her brigade’s subordinates.

Self-brainwashing.
The best way to infiltrate without being suspected by the enemy.

“Ahhh… !”

The best inquisitor of the Blood Gate Brigade.
A Heretic Questioner without blood or tears.
Thus, the nickname stuck.

Spider web.
Red net.
Blood (血羅).

“Ah.”

I have already.
It was caught in a net.

***

— Mareille, could you please take over the prisoner?
— Why not investigate through the Crown Office of the Inspector General? This is an issue that could easily lead to a conflict with Seongguk.
— The Federation… Are you saying you won’t help the kingdom this time too?
— The purpose of our existence is the purification of Helzeb and the annihilation of demons. What if he was a knight with a strong sense of justice like the leader of Hooksclaw? … Goliath’s captain won’t want to set foot on him any longer.

In front of Caroline, who had completely collapsed, the three women were discussing her future.
As I was listening to them outside the door, I was contemplating while covering the mouth of Lehel, whom I ran into by chance.

“For some reason, they keep trying to put it on me…”
“President? What does that mean… !”

One of the two words I hate the most after falling into this world is fate.
The other one is uncle.
However, in the end, it was impossible not to deny that Hella’s intention was successful.

The goddess loves her saints and is annoyed by her warriors.
According to kingdom law, anyone who uses black magic to gain unfair advantage or cause harm to human life is subject to immediate death.
As a result of her persistent efforts to prevent Caroline’s death, I now no longer can leave her alone.
And the fact that she chose me, whom the goddess hated so much, meant that I had the power to solve the current situation.

“Bill, go back first. I’ll sort this out. And the chairman goes in with me.”
“Luis?”
“Yes? You shouldn’t go in now… Hehe!”

Slam!
With those words, I opened the door to the student council room, where dim light was coming through.
The three women’s expressions were filled with astonishment.

“Store owner… ?”
“You… ! At that time… !?”

Carolyn was lost on her knees right in front of the door.
From anyone’s perspective, it is a scene of unprecedented school violence.
Erzsebet came forward, leaving behind Mareil, who retreated in contemplation, and Darling, whose expression hardened.
The polar hue, with her wings wide open, landed lightly on her shoulder.

“Lewis, did you hear everything?”
“…”
“Then I’m glad I don’t have to explain. “If the royal family asks about your relationship with the saint, tell them you don’t know.”

Because that’s what it’s for -.
The implications of that one word were clear.
Erzsebet was considerate of me.
It meant that he knew that I did not want to be associated with the royal family and that I had no intention of revealing my existence to the public.

I remembered the first time I met her when she came to her store late at night.
Erzébet at that time was just, but she did not have the courage to carry out that justice.
However, now that she had succeeded in creating the iron bottle and was recognized by her own familiar, her eyes did not waver at all.
Since he knows the details of the investigation conducted by the royal family’s inspector general’s office, he must have already been to the royal capital.
Then–

“Erzebet.”
“… !!”

It’s okay to refuse her consideration.
I am not a person so weak that I need to be protected by a guardian who has already grown up.
As if to protect Caroline from her slumped position, she took a step forward and looked down at her.
The smart heir to the throne of Penheim seemed to have realized my intention just by that, and quietly took two steps back.

Again.
Again.

Among us who looked at each other’s faces for a long time, she was the first to lower her gaze.

She ran her hands behind her back, straightening her beautiful blonde hair.
Holding up the hem of one dress.
Erzébet bowed deeply and bowed her head in front of me.

“See you, godfather.”