She knew me?
Charlotte jolted, nearly leaping out of her chair and fleeing through the door so her carriage could take her out of the city to seek refuge with the cousin willing to help her.
This was her backup plan in case her attempt to "turn herself in" failed. In this backward age without telephones or the internet, leaving Suhit City, whose walls had long since become historical relics, would not be difficult as long as she could get out of the cathedral unimpeded. By the time wanted notices spread throughout the city, she would be long gone.
But in the end, she stayed put.
This lady might be a Beyonder herself, perhaps even with strange but powerful abilities like Henriette's... Charlotte calmed herself and decided to wait and see what the woman wanted. Putting on a somewhat frightened expression, she asked:
"How did you know my name?
"Where did the priest who heard my confession just now go?"
"Don't be afraid, Miss Charlotte." The woman's voice remained soft and gentle. "I'm a nun from Fauville Monastery. Because your circumstances are rather unusual, I'll be taking over Priest Keller's work. If there are any details about last night that you left out, you can tell me directly."
The monastery Viève mentioned stood on Fauville Mountain, southeast of Sushit City. It had been built even earlier than Saint Roch Cathedral, which also belonged to the Eternal Blazing Sun. Since the foot of the mountain adjoined the Saint-Roc District, only a few streets separated it from the cathedral. It was a place of quiet contemplation for the monks and nuns of the Sushit diocese, and many bishops from churches across southern Intis were said to have lived there.
So Viève came from that famous monastery rather than being a resident member of the cathedral's clergy... But what did she mean by my circumstances being "unusual"? Because I'm a baron's daughter, and this might involve a disappearance, kidnapping, or even more intimate harm, making it inappropriate for male clergy to hear? But although there aren't many nobles in Suhit City, I've never heard of anyone receiving different treatment during confession or repentance at the cathedral... Charlotte's thoughts raced, and she quickly arrived at a possibility:
Just as she had suspected earlier, Lady Viève was indeed someone from the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun who specifically handled supernatural incidents. The church already knew everything that had happened last night, including the murders in the old district and Etienne's death. Naturally, Charlotte Sauron, who was involved, had become one of the people they were watching closely.
After all, even Henri could tell there was something unusual about Etienne. There was no reason the church would not know.
If that's the case, even if I hadn't come to confess today, the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun would probably have sent someone to my home. But our conversation likely wouldn't have been this peaceful then... Did Henri anticipate this, and that's why she suggested I come to the cathedral myself? As this suspicion took shape, Charlotte pulled the sheathed dagger from her coat's inner pocket. After a moment's hesitation, she pushed it beneath the partition.
"There's also this. This dagger pierced Mr. Marceau's chest. I tried wiping it, but I couldn't get the bloodstains off..."
As soon as she finished speaking, several slender, pale fingers reached through the gap and took the dagger.
Through the narrow slits in the wooden partition, Charlotte could see the figure opposite lower her head to examine the weapon that had killed a Beyonder. She wanted to lean closer and squint through the partition to make out the woman's face, but feared meeting an eye peering back at her. All she could do was sit straight in the silent confessional, her head up and chest out, feeling both nervous and conflicted.
After a while, Viève finally spoke again:
"Is that everything?"
Again? What is this, some kind of game of chicken?
Charlotte did indeed have things she had not mentioned, but one concerned her greatest secret-her transmigration-and the other concerned Henriette, whom her cousin had entrusted with helping her. Revealing the former would very likely get her branded a heretic and burned at the stake, while the latter might implicate Henriette because of the church's wariness and mistrust of unaffiliated Beyonders.
So despite the immense pressure of the cramped confessional and the woman's repeated questioning, she still said nothing. She merely nodded emphatically enough for Viève to see.
The figure opposite went still again. Just as Charlotte thought the awkward silence would continue, the partition suddenly slid aside with a click.
On the other side sat a young nun. She was about Charlotte's height and wore a black robe with white fabric showing at the cuffs and collar. A white veil covered most of her long hair, though a few golden strands still hung over her forehead. Beneath them were slender eyebrows, well-defined features, and emerald eyes in which a faint light seemed to shimmer.
The hands with which she had pushed aside the partition and held the dagger were exceedingly thin. Her whole body was so slender that it could barely support the heavy nun's habit, except at her chest, where the robe rose in a pronounced curve, lifting the golden Sun Holy Emblem pinned below her collar and naturally drawing Charlotte's gaze.
Yet this incongruous feature and her beautiful face did nothing to diminish Viève's noble, sacred bearing. Charlotte even suspected that she was the daughter of some Sushit noble, sent to become a nun at the monastery for family reasons. Such things were not uncommon in Intis. Many nobles sent older female relatives or young women unwilling to obey their family's arrangements to monasteries. There were even rumors that several nuns of noble birth had formed the Nine Sisters Society within the church, advocating a greater proportion of female clergy and spreading the teachings of the Eternal Blazing Sun in impoverished regions by expanding monasteries, almshouses, and church hospitals.
But Lady Viève, with her striking looks and figure and noble bearing, doesn't seem like someone abandoned by her family and forced to live in seclusion at a monastery... Charlotte glanced at her again, then realized that staring was impolite. Besides, unlike Henriette, Viève did not make her feel reluctant to look away. She raised her gaze and said clearly:
"Praise the Sun."
Given the confessional's cramped confines, Viève did not spread her arms either. She merely inclined her head slightly and replied:
"Praise the Sun."
Before Charlotte could speak again, she quickly set down the dagger, took a thick, parchment-bound book from beneath the partition, and placed it on the ledge between them.
Gold encased the book's four corners and thick spine. In the center of its cover was a Sun Holy Emblem composed of a golden disc and segmented lines. It was a Holy Bible of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, but Charlotte noticed dark patches along the edges of the pages facing her, as though some liquid had soaked through the paper and seeped out.
That couldn't be blood, could it... Having seen far too much blood the night before, the thought came instinctively. For a moment, she could not understand why the nun had brought out the Holy Bible.
Fortunately, her confusion did not last long. Viève pushed the dark-stained Holy Bible forward and turned it halfway around so the golden holy emblem faced Charlotte. Pressing her right hand against the cover, she smiled and said:
"Miss Charlotte, if you believe you have concealed nothing about last night from the deity or from me, please place your right hand on the Holy Bible as I have and repeat that statement.
"Rest assured, this is only to demonstrate your honesty to the deity. It won't cause any... harm."
Although Earth had similar practices, such as swearing an oath on the Bible, everyone knew they only meant something if you believed in them. No deity would descend to punish you. But supernatural powers truly existed in this world. Even if there were no deities, Beyonders might possess some form of lie detection.
Unfortunately, refusing now would inevitably arouse Viève's suspicions. And Henriette, who was also a Beyonder, had not stopped Charlotte from seeking help at the cathedral last night. Thus, after only a moment's hesitation, she steeled herself, reached out with her right hand, and pressed her palm against the Holy Bible's cover.
"Regarding what happened last night, insofar as it concerns Etienne Marceau and what I experienced last night, I have concealed nothing from the deity or from Lady Viève." She worded her oath in her own favor, then added a precaution: "...Apart from the memories I've forgotten."
At the same time, she felt the cover beneath her palm gradually grow warm. The temperature was not high, however, remaining somewhere between warm and slightly hot, like wash water that was a little hotter than usual.
Did I pass or not? Should I tell her what I'm feeling? Charlotte looked again at Viève's pale face and well-defined features, only to see her smile slightly and say:
"Fortunately, it seems everything you've told me is true."
Fortunately... Charlotte hurriedly lifted her hand. Seeing that the Holy Bible beneath it looked no different from before, she asked in confusion:
"What would happen if I lied?"
"The Holy Bible would heat up, and so would your body. How hot they became would depend on the severity of the subject's lies and how much of the oath they constituted... Of course, it usually isn't fatal."
As she spoke, Viève reached out to retrieve the Holy Bible. The instant her hands touched the cover, her expression changed slightly. Her face beneath the veil flushed unnaturally, and her body gave a shudder.
Exhaling a breath of scorching air, the nun quickly placed the Holy Bible beneath the partition. Those strange reactions subsided, and she smiled at Charlotte again as she said:
"Since you've proven that you've held nothing back, I should share some information you might find interesting. For instance... do you know what happened in the old district last night?"
"My father told me there was more than one murder there." Charlotte furrowed her brow, looking frightened like any ordinary girl. "I came to seek the church's help because I was worried Etienne had something to do with it."
Viève nodded.
"I thought as much. Your willingness to act already puts you ahead of the vast majority of survivors of such incidents. Many are too frightened to tell anyone, and some even think they can escape any further consequences by fleeing to another city and severing their former social ties."
That was exactly what I'd originally planned... Charlotte froze, finally gaining a deeper understanding of what Henri had said the night before. Then, as though prompting Viève, she asked:
"Was there more to last night's murders?"
Viève gave her a long look. The upturned corners of her mouth tightened slightly, and she answered in a solemn tone:
"Late last night, the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, the Church of the Artisan, and Suhit City's garrison eradicated a secret organization that worshipped an evil entity, stopping a human sacrifice already in progress. Most of its followers died during the operation. A small number had already given their lives to the entity they worshipped through self-sacrifice.
"In addition, we found the bodies of seven victims used as human sacrifices at the scene. But according to our investigation and analysis...
"There were originally eight victims intended as sacrifices."