Above the village, beneath the clouds.
Vane sat with his legs crossed on a chair formed by a swarm of bats, one hand supporting his chin, the other casually holding Dario's collar.
"What a strict teacher... Dario."
At the entrance to the alley below, all the villagers rushed toward that lone figure.
Vane took it all in, his bloodshot eyes reflecting the chaotic firelight, his tone ambiguous, neither mocking nor sarcastic.
She'll have to deal with these things sooner or later.
Dario's body swayed slightly in the night breeze, but his voice remained completely still.
"Inquisitor face not only outward swords and blades, but also the filth deep within people's hearts."
"Only those who have gazed into the abyss, broken free from it, and continued to wield their swords are worthy of the title 'Inquisitor'."
Only then are they qualified... to judge the crimes and punishments of others.
"Won't this drive some people crazy with reality? What will the Inquisition do? Kill them?"
"We will provide appropriate psychological treatment... Even if they cannot serve as frontline combat personnel, they will have clerical work to perform."
"What if they had already taken action before that?"
"..."
"Looks like I'm not Inquisitor."
Dario remained silent, while Vane's gaze drifted downwards.
"After all... I'll kill them all."
Irene had been cornered, her path blocked by villagers whose faces looked ferocious in the firelight.
The girl leaned against the cold stone wall, her staff and sword held horizontally in front of her chest, but the hand holding the sword was trembling slightly.
The boy Aegir had already fled when he shouted, leaving only Irene standing there, surrounded by the angry villagers.
Irene's mind was in complete chaos, a jumble of questions colliding within her:
Why... did the mute boy suddenly start speaking?
Why... would the villagers she was protecting attack her?
Why... can't I swing the cane sword in my hand as smoothly as I do during training?
In the chaos, malicious murmurs echoed in her mind, and the villagers' faces began to contort and distort.
The flickering flames transformed into the demon's eyes, and malevolent tentacles climbed up her spirit.
The surrounding shadows transformed into black waves carrying a salty, fishy smell, threatening to engulf her body.
"Don't come any closer!"
Irene screamed and instinctively swung her staff-sword forward.
A flash of sword light, and the "Demon's Eye" was precisely severed, while the "Black Waves" seemed to retreat temporarily.
In reality, the villagers, looking at the extinguished torches on the ground, suddenly remembered—
The girl before them was no ordinary person without the power to resist; she was a rigorously trained Inquisitor armed with formal weapons!
Fear made them back down, but when they saw the undisguised paleness on the girl's face, malice returned.
In Irene's view, the "demons" retreated and then returned, emitting a silent but piercing laugh.
She felt suffocated and could only swing her sword wildly.
All the sword skills he had painstakingly practiced in the past were now completely forgotten, leaving only the most primal instinctive reactions.
"Stay away from me!"
High in the air, looking down at his beloved disciple who was in chaos, Dario's eyes flashed with a complex pang of sorrow, and he sighed silently.
"Go down... before things truly become irreparable."
He couldn't gamble anymore; Irene's mental state was clearly on the verge of collapse, and any further provocation could lead to the worst possible consequences.
Whether she harmed the villagers, or the villagers harmed her.
"Don't rush, Dario."
Vane showed no sign of succumbing, calmly gazing at the girl.
"He's clearly her teacher, he's watched her grow up, why... doesn't he have more confidence in his student?"
"..."
Seeing that they couldn't easily get close, the villagers changed their strategy.
They began to throw—
Torches that had not yet gone out, spare harpoons, stones...
Clang! Snap! Sizzle!
The sounds of metal clashing and wood and stone breaking rang out one after another.
The sword in the girl's hand seemed to be imbued with life; nothing could break through the suddenly rising curtain of swords.
Her sword swings became faster, more precise, and more stable.
Muscle memory began to awaken, and those forgotten sword techniques flowed into her limbs and bones.
The "demons in the shadows" retreated step by step, their "mockery" turning into a roar of shock and anger.
Irene's feet were soon piled high with the hurled projectiles. She was breathing heavily, but her hand holding the sword no longer trembled.
Staring intently at the "demon," the fear in the girl's eyes gradually gave way to a burning rage.
In a daze, the scene before my eyes began to distort.
The howling wind has transformed into the roar of a storm in my memory.
The villagers' blurred faces overlapped with the twisted monsters crawling out of the tide.
She returned to that desperate night.
Her home was reduced to ruins by Catastrophe and monster attacks. Her beloved family shoved her into the basement, telling her "Don't come out no matter what," and then blocked the door.
Darkness was the only thing there.
The howling of the storm, the crashing of the waves, and the screams of the people.
The girl huddled in the corner, nervously staring at the lantern in front of her.
The flame grew smaller and smaller, until it was finally extinguished, just like the girl's hope.
Silence fell outside, and the girl groped her way out of the darkness.
The door was blocked by heavy objects, and seawater kept flowing in.
The girl desperately peered out through the crack in the stairwell.
As is natural, there is no light in the darkness.
The girl began to pray to God, just like she did before dinner every day.
However, the omniscient, omnipotent, benevolent, and loving deity in the scriptures did not extend a helping hand to her.
My body gradually grew cold, and my vision gradually blurred.
In a daze, the girl heard her relatives calling her.
Bang--!
The sudden noise brought the girl back to her senses.
A sliver of light shone through the crack in the door.
That wasn't dawn, but rather pink lighting.
"Step back, child."
The girl used her last bit of strength to move backward.
The next moment, a flash of sword light appeared, and the heavy door panel, along with the heavy objects piled up outside, was neatly sliced open and pulverized!
Light poured in, dispelling the darkness.
He carried the lantern that emitted a warm pink glow as he walked step by step down the flooded steps.
He was not strong; in fact, he looked rather old.
The girl was lifted up by a pair of strong arms. Through her blurred vision, she saw those terrifying monsters rushing towards the light, only to be driven back and burned by the glow emanating from the lantern.
As she was safely handed over to the arriving medical staff, the man did not hesitate for a moment, turning to plunge back into the monster-infested ruins.
The girl grabbed his robe.
"... Excuse me... excuse me, who are you?"
"My name is not worth remembering,"
The man's voice was filled with weariness and guilt.
"Just a useless, latecomer..."
The girl didn't reply, stubbornly tugging at his clothes.
The man finally turned around, his resolute gaze meeting the girl's eyes.
Irene saw her own expression reflected in it.
Like devout believers praying to God in a church.
"Just an Inquisitor."
The man said this.
"I will become someone like you!" Tears welled up in the girl's eyes without her noticing.
"Then, like you... go and save others!"
The Inquisitor remained silent for a long time in response to the girl's words.
"This is an extremely difficult road."
"I will persevere!"
The man didn't speak, but took the lantern from his waist and handed it to the girl.
He turned away without looking back, facing the raging storm and the rampaging monster.
He raised his staff-sword, and in the next instant, a dazzling sword light cleaved through the sea, illuminating the dark ruins.
It is also deeply engraved in the girl's memory.
Later, she became his student.
She studied the laws, practiced swordsmanship, participated in investigations, and fought against the evil followers of the Church of the Deep.
But the girl was never able to recreate the stunning sword light that cleaved through the sea and pierced the darkness from her memory.
Yes...
How can someone who has never faced the ocean tides develop a sword technique capable of cleaving them in two?
The buzzing in my ears gradually became clearer, my vision refocused, and the villagers' faces reappeared.
Those weathered faces were now contorted with rage.
Like... those monsters that crawled out of the sea and destroyed everything.
In a daze, she felt as if she had returned to that dark and cold basement.
But unlike then—now, she held a sword in her hand! She had the power to resist!
The staff-sword was slowly raised, its tip pointing at the nearest villager.
With just a few more swings, these "monsters" whose minds have been corrupted by the "deep sea" will be cut down just like the tidal wave under the teacher's sword back then.
Swing it down...
Just like they want to do to themselves right now...
Irene lowered her body slightly, assuming a starting stance for a charged slash.
High in the air, Dario's pupils suddenly contracted as he stared down, preparing to leap, but he was firmly held back by Vane.
"You're crazy! I have to go down and stop her!"
"I said it."
Vane held Dario firmly in control.
Trust your students.
Below, Irene's sword had already been swung.
A beautiful sword strike, almost matching the sword light wielded by the Inquisitor back then.
Splitting through a crowd of people is no different than splitting through the ocean tide.
Dario closed his eyes in despair, already foreseeing the horrific carnage that would ensue.
The world quieted down.
Irene's vision was completely enveloped by the light of the sword.
In a daze, she saw that warm pink lantern again.
The light flickered, not dazzling, yet it illuminated the sword in her hand.
Her face was clearly reflected on the meticulously maintained sword.
Anger, sadness, confusion, struggle, ruthlessness... and deep-seated fear and... reluctance in his eyes.
Is that me?
A sudden sense of doubt arose in Irene's heart as past memories overlapped with present scenes.
In her memory, when the Inquisitor looked at her,
In those resolute eyes, I saw myself shining brightly.
Faced with the Inquisitor's advice about the difficult road ahead, the girl straightened her back and firmly replied:
I will persevere!
Clang--!
A dazzling sword light swept through the crowd, harming no one, but cleaving the house behind them in two.
Rumble--!
The sturdy stone houses collapsed to both sides, and the villagers who rushed forward froze on the spot, their faces filled with horror and fear.
High in the sky, Dario suddenly opened his eyes, and the despair in his eyes was replaced by shock.
Immediately, the shock quickly turned into relief, and... a feeling of being relieved.
The clenched fist finally relaxed.
Vane watched this scene quietly, releasing his grip on Dario's collar.
Below, the smoke and dust gradually dissipated.
Irene's breathing remained rapid, her cheeks flushed from the effort, yet her posture was more upright than ever before.
She held her staff and sword upright in front of her, the tip pointing upwards—a standard posture for Inquisitor when performing his duties and proclaiming the law.
"I am Inquisitor Irene."
"Having witnessed it firsthand, I suspect that you have engaged in illegal contact and protection of the Church of the Deep, which is suspected of endangering public safety in Iberia and infringing upon the life rights of others."
The girl raised her sword, its light illuminating her solemn face.
"Now, in the name of the Inquisition, I command you—"
"Lay down your weapons! Give up resistance! Cooperate with the investigation!"