Iberia, in an unnad seaside village.
Compared to the leisurely life of Steven on Ursus and on Rhode Island, the life of Irene as an Inquisitor was far from comfortable.
To be precise, her current situation could hardly be described as favorable.
The entirety of Iberia had been infiltrated by the so-called Church of the Deep to an extent far beyond what the Inquisition had imagined.
Even though they had begun to take notice of these people, what the Inquisition did not expect was that so many villages and the citizens of Iberia had already joined the ranks of the Church of the Deep.
But this was not entirely unforeseen—after the Profound Silence, Iberia had long ceased to be the glorious land it once was and had even decayed to an unspeakable degree.
All of this was closely linked to Irene's current predicant; if it hadn't been for investigating a so-called follower of the Church of the Deep, she wouldn't have fallen into the trap set by these cultists.
The abandoned village no longer showed any sign of life, and the "villagers" around her—wielding bizarrely shaped weapons—made one wonder whether they could still be considered human.
After all, even Irene had never seen human beings sprouting fish-like gills on both sides of their heads while growing fins on their arms and bodies.
This was unlike the divine or ancestral beings of the Terra continent; Irene was certain that before this, these villagers had clearly been ordinary Liberi people like herself.
"Do you really understand what it ans to attack an Inquisitor? Are you sure you want to do this?"
Raising the lantern in her hand, Irene issued a final warning to the group of creatures beside her—creatures that could easily be described as monsters.
Even though they had transford into their current state, if they were still willing to acknowledge their identity as citizens of Iberia, Irene was still ready to protect them.
However, the response she received ca in the form of strange bone knives hurled by those monsters.
They seed to avoid approaching the light of her lantern as if in fear, but that did not an they were incapable of harming the young Inquisitor.
By using their weapons as if they were projectiles, even though Irene was agile enough to dodge these attacks, she knew there would eventually be a mont when she would run out of strength.
anwhile, in this desolate village, the number of monsters kept increasing.
"Damn it."
Muttering softly, Irene also realized that there were not only villagers transford into monsters here but also the presence of terrifying fish-like creatures.
Not far away was the ocean, and these monsters seed to be multiplying continuously.
From that mont on, Irene formally confird that this was a trap set for her—whether it was the follower of the Church of the Deep who deliberately made her sense sothing was wrong, or these transford villagers—it was all clearly prearranged.
But what were they scheming all this for?
Raising her lantern high, Irene continuously activated its light using her Originium Art.
Although running away would have been the best option at that mont, judging by the strange, sli-like substance steadily advancing beneath her feet, it seed that the enemy had accounted for that possibility as well.
"What the hell is this thing?"
Only a slight touch against the slimy substance on the ground made Irene feel a wave of discomfort and stinging pain, causing her to furrow her brows.
This mass of moss-like growth, rapidly spreading across the entire floor, was even more troubleso than those monsters.
What was even more outrageous was that these things had clearly sealed off all the escape routes available to her.
This greatly troubled her.
Although the lantern's light could still slow the spread of these substances, she had only one lantern, and the area available for her to maneuver was gradually shrinking.
At this point, it seed her only option was to pray that the other inquisitors would notice the trouble here and co to her aid.
Irene's expression turned grim; she knew full well that even if soone found her, breaking through the encirclent of these monsters would not be an easy task.
She realized that her decision had been too reckless—indeed, she was still too immature.
For so reason, a certain figure flashed through her mind.
If he were here, then no matter how many monsters surrounded her, it wouldn't be such a big problem.
Yet she also knew that he had gone to faraway lands; could he really appear here to help her?
Shaking her long hair in deep reflection over her predicant, Irene understood that now wasn't the ti for more contemplation.
Given that they had orchestrated such an elaborate trap, it couldn't have been ant solely to target an ordinary inquisitor like herself—they must have so ulterior motive.
At this mont, all she could do was choose to trust her comrades and ntor.
However, luck did not seem to be on her side today.
ti ticked by, the brightness of her lantern's light gradually dimd.
The villagers turned monsters were no longer confined to throwing weapons from afar—they began to close in, attempting to sneak up for a stabbing attack.
Despite her agile movents allowing her to dodge many of their strikes, Irene had to admit that her strength was rapidly depleting.
What unsettled her even more was that although these monsters now had the capability to attack her directly, they still chose rely to wear her down, as if waiting for sothing.
Soon, Irene began to understand the reason behind their actions.
The corpses of the monsters and those terrifying fish were piled up around her, and the strange, moss-like substance had completely covered every inch of the ground where she could stand.
A strong, uncomfortable sensation radiated from within her body, and the stinging on her skin continuously aggravated her nerves.
What was even more horrifying was that Irene gradually realized her body seed to be slowly eroded by these bizarre substances.
Even though this erosion sowhat reduced their impact on her, it was by no ans a good sign.
"Do they intend to turn into a monster just like those villagers? Or do they plan to use to infiltrate the Inquisition?"
Irene quickly deduced from the situation exactly what the enemy was planning, yet the more she understood, the deeper her despair grew.
The surrounding monsters had sward the abandoned village like a tidal wave, leaving no escape, and the reinforcents from the Inquisition she had been waiting for had yet to arrive.
Moreover, judging by the situation, unless Saint Carn himself were to appear, not even her master—the High Inquisitor—could break through the siege of sea creatures.
"But I won't let you succeed so easily! I am an Inquisitor of Iberia!"
Leaning on her sword with one hand to prop up her exhausted body, she winced as pain flared from the wounds inflicted by her delayed dodges.
Yet the young girl seed almost oblivious to the pain as she raised her lantern once more.
If there was no hope, she decided, then she would beco hope itself, lighting the way forward again.
The simple-minded Liberi girl had a straightforward resolve: even if she died from exhaustion, she would never let their conspiracy prevail, nor would she accept being turned into one of those monsters.
In an instant, a burst of light swept away the gloomy clouds that had enveloped the area, even forcing back the sea creatures and the slimy substance on the ground—if only for a mont. But as the girl's strength waned, that radiant glow gradually faded away.
However, as the light dissipated, standing in the center was not only the lone Inquisitor; a slightly taller young man had also appeared.
"I've told you so many tis—stop being a flashlight! Stop being a flashlight! Why is it that every ti I co over, you blind with your light?"
With a hint of exasperation in his voice, the boy—who had appeared seemingly out of nowhere—rubbing his eyes as he scanned the surroundings, soon broke into a cheerful grin.
"Uh, looks like I might have co at the wrong ti?"
Reaching out to steady the Iberian girl, who was about to collapse from exhaustion, Steven smiled at her and even cracked a joke.
"Well, what do you think? If you'd shown up sooner, it wouldn't have co to this, would it?"
Although Irene was surprised by Steven's sudden appearance, she felt an overwhelming sense of relief.
Even if it were rely a hallucination born of her own exhaustion, it was enough to make her happy for a brief mont.
If that guy had truly co, then she wouldn't have to worry about the worst outco.
"Yes, yes, it's my fault, my fault. But now, given the situation, what do you want to do? Fight or flee? Personally, I suggest we fight—after all, I just love these monsters."
Steven's smile broadened at the sight of such a generous "gift."
The WAP the monsters offered were few, but their numbers were certainly not insignificant.
Even the thinnest mosquito leg is still at—and besides, these swarms of mosquitoes, no matter how you look at it, could always be piled together to form a big chicken leg.
"You're not a hallucination?"
Just as Irene was about to drift off to sleep, she suddenly realized that sothing was off, she raised her head and asked the young man a question.
"What? Do you think I'm a hallucination?"
Steven scratched his head and, with a gentle pinch on her slender waist in return, helped her snap back to full awareness.
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