Inside a certain nun's dormitory in the temple.
A person dressed in high-ranking nun attire was quickly packing her bags, stuffing gold, silver, and jewelry into her suitcase one piece after another.
“I can't fit any more,” the nun muttered, continuously pressing the treasures down into the suitcase until there was absolutely no room left. “Forget it, I'll leave them.”
Tossing aside the silverware she couldn't fit, the nun closed the lid, lifted the suitcase, and prepared to head out.
“Bang!”
The dormitory door was flung open, and a member of the Inquisition walked in.
“Sister, put down the suitcase in your hand and submit to an inspection.”
In an instant, the nun's face turned completely bloodless.
Elsewhere, in a secret passage inside the temple that led out of the city.
“Hurry up! If you don't want to be caught by those lunatics from the Inquisition, run faster!”
Two people dressed in mid-level cleric attire and one wearing a mid-level priestess robe were running through the tunnel.
This secret passage had originally been built by Bishop Coos for his own use. It utilized special materials that could withstand the Inquisition's Holy Light Barrier.
Unfortunately, before he could even use this secret passage, he had been captured by Tyr.
“I can't... I can't run anymore.”
Stumbling, the woman in the priestess robe gasped out.
“Who told you to carry so many things? Hurry up and throw some away! We need to get out of here and hide quickly!”
The mid-level cleric turned to look at the numerous bags hanging all over the priestess, speaking in an exasperated tone.
He had already warned her when they began their escape not to bring too many things. Getting away was their top priority right now.
Once they were caught by those lunatics of the Inquisition, their end would definitely not be pleasant.
“No way! I worked hard for all of this. I won't give up a single piece!”
The priestess shrieked, completely unwilling to put down anything in her hands.
“You... Sigh.”
The mid-level cleric sighed, having no choice but to keep running toward the exit.
“No, I can't run anymore.”
A moment later, the priestess dropped her things to the ground and squatted down, panting heavily.
“Then leave the extra things behind! What's more important, your money or your life?”
The mid-level cleric was practically dying of anger. They were running for their lives right now.
If they weren't a couple, he wouldn't have even bothered with this woman.
“Of course money is more important! I refuse to go back to the days of having no money!”
The priestess looked up, speaking with absolute conviction.
“Help me carry some of this, or I really won't be able to run.”
Looking down at the bundles beneath her, she picked out a few and tried to hand them to the cleric.
But just as the cleric reached out to take them, she pulled her hand back.
“Don't go mixing up my things with yours. These are all mine. You're the one who chose not to bring your own stuff, so don't even think about taking a share of my treasure.”
A look of vigilance flashed in her eyes. After all, compared to her, the gold, silver, and jewelry the cleric carried didn't even amount to a tenth of what she had.
“Then you can just stay here and wait to die by yourself.”
Completely infuriated, the cleric stopped paying her any mind and headed toward the secret passage's exit on his own.
“What are you doing?! What am I supposed to do if you leave?”
The priestess shouted loudly, but the cleric ignored her, simply burying his head and walking forward.
“Damn it, I knew he was unreliable.”
Seeing the cleric walk away without looking back, the priestess grumbled as she hoisted her bundles and slowly shuffled toward the exit.
More than ten minutes later, she arrived at the exit, only to find the cleric standing there, completely dazed and motionless.
“Are you going or not? If not, get out of the way.”
Seeing him, her anger flared up again. Since he was just blocking the doorway, she stepped up to shove him aside.
However, as she took a few more steps forward, she realized someone dressed in Inquisition attire was standing outside.
“Clang!”
Her legs went weak, and the bundles in her hands slipped to the ground, spilling a mess of gold and silver utensils.
Under the relentless search of the Inquisition, similar scenes played out one after another all across the temple.
After some time, the head of the Inquisition approached Carenna.
“Lady Saintess, all involved members have been arrested.”
“Deal with them according to the Temple's code.”
Carenna's tone was cold. She glanced at the clergy members being escorted over, her gaze entirely devoid of warmth.
Amassing wealth in the name of the Temple was akin to severing the roots of House Aglaia. They would pay the price for their actions.
“Yes.”
The head of the Inquisition acknowledged her command and raised his hand, gesturing to the members behind him.
“Swish—”
The sound of blades slicing through flesh echoed in rapid succession. All the clergy members involved in Bishop Coos's corrupt system were executed on the spot.
Immediately after, golden flames flared up from the hands of the Inquisition members and fell onto the corpses, incinerating them completely.
To House Aglaia, the Inquisition was a true instrument of violence, much like the Enforcement Squad was to House Callis.
“Let's go. We'll head to House Callis's manor here. We shouldn't keep little Tyr waiting.”
Once everything was settled, Carenna boarded her carriage. Remembering Tyr, a warm smile appeared on her face.
...
The next morning.
After breakfast, Tyr prepared to pay a visit to the City Defense Knight Order.
“Are you going to execute those criminals so early? Isn't it a bit too soon? If you want the citizens of Caslant to witness it, it would be best to wait until the afternoon.”
Carenna assumed Tyr was heading out to deal with the Black Mages and Bishop Coos. Believing he wanted the citizens of Caslant to witness the execution of these criminals, she made the suggestion.
“No, I plan to deal with the members of the City Defense Knight Order.”
Whether it was their delayed response to this Abyss demon incident or the commander of the City Defense Knight Order openly defying his transfer order to meet with Bishop Coos, both gave him ample reason to clean house.
“I see. That is for the best.”
With a brief thought, Carenna understood the reasoning behind it.
She had also looked into the situation here. From the moment the Abyss demons first appeared to when the City Defense Knight Order finally confirmed their involvement, there had been a delay of a full half-month.
Although most city defense knight orders tended to show a lax attitude when dealing with commoners, they usually wouldn't face any punishment as long as nothing went wrong.
But now that an incident had occurred, the responsible personnel naturally had to be dealt with.
Moreover, this was within the territory of the Grand Duchy of Callis. For a commander of the City Defense Knight Order, which was under the jurisdiction of House Callis, to defy Tyr's transfer order just to cozy up to a bishop of House Aglaia was utterly intolerable in itself.
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