## Chapter 697 – Paladin Kim Kat

After a brief stakeout, we captured one of the guys coming out and, with Hilde’s help, interrogated him, learning the date of their next gathering.

Apparently, it’s a weekly event.

A week, huh… Guess I’ll have to find something else to do in the meantime.

* * *

A week later, I decided to attend the gathering alone first.

They weren’t particularly selective about who they let in, and the guys there were actually quite confident. Listening to the murmurs of the followers, most of them seemed to think that they weren’t stopping anyone from coming or going, and that it was just a place to hear good words.

“Hello.”
“Have a good day.”
“Nice to meet you.”

The followers were even remarkably polite, making it hard to believe they were plotting anything sinister. And according to Hilde, there weren’t any demons present either.

Are these guys really heretics?

As I was pondering this, the service began, with about fifty people sitting together, performing some kind of ritual and procedure.

I blended in by following the actions of the people around me. It reminded me of when I first went to church and cathedral during training in the army.

“Now, let us begin today’s sermon.”

The cult leader… or should I say,
Pastor? Priest?

The title doesn’t really matter.

Let’s just call her the preacher.

Anyway, the preacher was a beautiful woman with well-maintained skin and figure. Her hair was blonde.

But well, she might be beautiful by general standards, but she doesn’t quite catch my eye. There are so many top-tier beauties around me that my standards have become too high.

It can’t be helped.

Just my wives alone are prettier than Saintess Kadia, who’s known as one of the three beauties of the kingdom, and above all, my direct superior, whom I see all the time, is that Saintess.

I really am blessed with women.

Anyway, the woman who said she would begin today’s sermon started saying something on the platform.

“It may have been a tough week, or it may have been a pleasant week. If it was a tough week, let’s change our mood with today’s service, and if it was a pleasant week, let’s finish this week even more pleasantly.”

—I believe.
—I believe.

As the preacher spoke, the followers lowered their heads.

“If anyone had a hard time this week, please raise your hand.”

I saw a few people raise their hands, and the preacher pointed to a middle-aged man who was closest to her and instructed him to come up onto the platform.

“What happened?”
“Well, that is…”

The middle-aged man went up onto the platform, and the beautiful preacher held his hand and asked him what happened.

“My only son… said he would become a mercenary or an adventurer and left home… My wife ran away, and now even my last remaining son is like that… I don’t know what to do anymore…”

The middle-aged man was almost crying as he spoke incoherently.

“It’s okay.”

The preacher hugged the middle-aged man.

“It was inevitable that your wife left. But your son… isn’t he going out to achieve what he wants to do?”

Then she whispered in the middle-aged man’s ear as if persuading him.

“But that young one…”
“He will surely succeed and return. Are you a native of this city?”
“No… I came here to do business for the first time twenty years ago… That’s how I was able to settle down…”
“You took on a challenge and succeeded, didn’t you?”
“…That’s right.”
“It’s the same thing. Your son has gone to take on a challenge. Just like you did.”

Adventurers and mercenaries usually only end up dying. Diving into the abyss of death might be a challenge, but still. Anyway, if his dad is obsessed with this strange religion, he’s not human if he doesn’t leave home.

But the preacher didn’t bother to mention that.

“Your son has gone to take on a challenge as a man to live a better life. Think of it that way, and live hard for your son who will return later. Maybe he’ll come back to eat a meal. Just like you settled down here, your son will surely make it.”
“P-Preacher…”
“Yes. It’s okay.”

The middle-aged man, convinced by that, wiped away his tears and went down, followed by an auntie and a young man. Those people took turns going up and pouring out their worries with tears.

The preacher very skillfully hugged them, patted them on the back, and said good words.

“Hmm.”

What the hell are these guys?

They’re surprisingly normal.

All of them are giving constructive advice… They’re even doing some kind of counseling. Relieving worries or making people feel refreshed? The preacher seemed to be helping the followers get rid of their worries.

Gently persuading them, hugging them, all of that.

—Clap clap clap clap.

When the outpouring of worries was over, all the followers clapped and comforted them, saying, “It’ll be okay,” “Don’t worry,” “Don’t cry,” which was also kind of heartwarming.

“Thank you for your words.”
“Thank you for your words.”
“Thank you for your words.”

In that heartwarming atmosphere, the service ended, and people who were genuinely moved took out shiny silver coins or a number of copper coins from their pockets and put them in the collection box.

People who were wearing decent clothes donated a number of silver coins to the point where they made a rattling sound. I stood at the very back of the line and carefully observed how much they were donating.

—…

The people who went up onto the platform and heard good words earlier… to be honest, they didn’t donate that much money. The same was true for most of the other people.

But some guys who didn’t do anything donated more money.

…Is there no particular reason?

Anyway, this donation seems perfectly reasonable as the price for hearing good words. Above all, there was nothing problematic about the content. Rather, if it injects vitality into life with a few coins in this harsh world, it should be encouraged.

These guys believe in the Demon King?
It’s hard to imagine.

Or are these guys just ordinary religious people, and the heretics are somewhere else?

Well, I can’t find them right away.
Maybe the guy has already run away.

He’s likely to move to different cities, launder his tracks, and then settle in a completely new place. In the first place, if they were conspicuous guys, the paladin would have caught them… I’m not sure about this.

“We will all be able to go to a better world.”

Almost the last to donate 10 coppers, just as I was clearing the box away, the preacher said.

“Yes.”
“I believe.”
“I have no doubt about it.”

A better world?

“But when that day will come… the revelation has not yet been given. So, everyone, please work hard in your respective occupations, get rid of your worries, and live with a smile. He will also want the followers to live with a smile.”

The followers focused on the preacher’s words.

“Even if business is not good, even if things don’t go well, even if there are hard times, we are promised salvation. You must always remember that.”
“…”
“Of course, it’s not as easy as it sounds. Our souls are still bound to the flesh, so we cannot be free from external factors. So, we pray. We overcome it together. Let’s wait for that day with a smile. We can just laugh off the hard times. After all, we will leave for another world.”

The heartwarming atmosphere I felt vanished completely based on this point.

Something… good words are mixed in, but isn’t this exactly the same as what’s written in Saintess Kadia’s directive? Going to a good place? Are they going to seduce people with good words and do things like that?

“For the day when we break free from the shackles of the flesh and move on to a better world… to go to that happy place… then I’ll see you again at next week’s service.”

These guys are also suspicious as hell.

“Good job.”
“Thank you.”
“Good luck.”

With that, the followers greeted each other and lined up to leave.

“Hehehe, those were good words.”

I also greeted the person next to me and pretended to leave, but instead tied my shoelaces and kept an eye on my surroundings… I saw that there were several people waiting in the back besides the people leaving.

—Looking at them, they were the people who donated the most money.
Guys wearing good clothes.

Aren’t they leaving?

Anyway, I was almost the last to leave the building.

“Mr. Kat? Are you done?”
“Oh, Hilde. Was there anything strange?”
“Not at all.”
“Then let’s hide nearby for now.”
“Hide?”
“There are some suspicious guys. Wait a moment.”

So Hilde and I took a seat nearby and waited for the people who hadn’t come out to come out.

“…They’re not coming out?”

Even though we waited for about thirty minutes, those who had donated a lot of money didn’t come out… There were five of them. They were wearing quite good clothes, and they didn’t come out until the end.

Something was suspicious, so I memorized their faces, and I continued to lie low.

After waiting for about an hour, people finally started coming out one or two at a time. The preacher and two others moved together, and the three scattered.

“Hilde. Let’s follow one of those guys.”
“Yes!”

We immediately started tailing them.

It wasn’t too difficult because it was something I did often.

When the target, that is, one of the three who had scattered, entered an alleyway, I grabbed his shoulder.

“…Who?”
“Start.”

—Zzzzz.

Hilde immediately put her finger on his face and performed hypnosis magic. —Shiver. His eyes rolled back and he trembled.

“Human. What is your religion?”

Hilde asked various things skillfully in a sharp voice, and the man answered faithfully as asked, although vaguely.

He was the son of a fairly wealthy family.
He had a lot of money, so he donated a lot.

“Tonight… there… that place… underground… with the preacher…”

It seemed like he had heard something from the preacher.

“Where did they tell you to gather?”
“That place… the pleasure district…”

What’s that.

“Tell me the exact location, human.”
“…”

After a brief Q&A, I was able to find out the location.

The basement of the biggest building in the red-light district? The name of the building is Bunny Lane, and they’re supposed to gather there tonight.

We properly dealt with the guy and sent him away, and I retreated with Hilde.

“Hmm… Mr. Kat. Something’s suspicious. It doesn’t seem like a demon is involved, but they’re doing something secretly? The guy’s memory is vague? Hazy? It feels like that.”
“Is that so?”
“Anyway, we found out the location, so we should go there. They said tonight, so it’s not far away. Ooh-hoo-hoo, I did a good job, right?”
“You did a damn good job.”

I immediately stroked Hilde’s head.

“Really, stroke my pussy instead of my head.”
“Hey, hey. We’re outside, outside.”
“I think that would be thrilling too.”
“How can I do that when someone might see us?”
“What if they see us?”
“No one but me can see you getting off.”
“Ugh, yes… that’s only natural.”

Anyway, it’s tonight.
I’ll have to go and see.

* * *

I came back right away and told my women about this.

“A preacher who seemed normal gathers high-paying contributors at night and goes to a red-light district? The salvation bullshit is also suspicious as hell?”
“It smells like money. The red-light district is where big money goes around.”

The purpose of the heretics written in the directive, that is, was to deceive people and collect money. The Saintess is guessing that the property will be used as a source of funds for the `real` heretics.

“Shall we go together?”
“No. Today is just the suspicion stage, so I don’t think there will be any fighting. I’ll just go and come back. And if we go to the red-light district, we’ll just get into trouble.”

I can’t take my women there.

“Hey, don’t get involved with a criminal organization or something after you go.”
“Even if a truckload of those guys, no, even if a hundred of them come, they can’t kill me.”
“That’s true, but…”
“Anyway, I think it’s better to move secretly. If we go as a group, we’ll stand out too much. You’re all beautiful anyway. If you’re together, only that place will shine even at night.”

So I decided to go with just Hilde.
If I have hypnosis magic, I can easily investigate and come back.