Volume 1 Chapter 535

Chapter 535: The Ripple Caused by Lolth

"Oh dear—"

After sending Carpenter away, Lolth rubbed her forehead, feeling an even greater headache.

She had successfully deceived Bishop Carpenter, but that was not Lolth’s intention.

Although she had weighed the pros and cons of pretending to be the "Director of the Heretic Tribunal," she felt that she probably wouldn’t be found out in most situations. After all, she had "warned" them not to tell anyone, so they probably wouldn’t dare to talk carelessly.

It seemed like there was no loss for her.

But this still laid a hidden danger.

This meant that her trip to the Holy Empire would have more chances of making contact with powerful people from the Church of Light.

Lolth thought this was something that should have been avoided.

"At this point, I can only take it one step at a time," Lolth sighed. "Now that the Church of Light and the Holy Empire are in such chaos… I hope that Lord Director doesn’t have time to notice me."

Dorothy looked at her teacher and showed a slightly surprised expression.

"Teacher, aren’t you the director of the Heretic Tribunal?"

Upon hearing Dorothy’s question, Lolth was also very shocked.

"You actually believe this?" She gave the little girl’s head a gentle rub. "I am nothing like that guy…"

Dorothy showed a slightly embarrassed expression.

"I… I just can’t remember."

"A person as scary as the Director of the Heretic Tribunal, I can’t handle that. I’m not good at anything related to interrogation," Lolth scratched her head, "but I’ve heard that guy is quite competent…"

About the Director of the Heretic Tribunal, though mysterious, there are many "legends" that spread across the land.

Unlike the predecessors who had famously hanged the Privy Bishop or forced the emperors’ sons to their deaths, this generation’s Director of the Heretic Tribunal may not have targeted any particularly famous figures, but is even more "notorious."

First of all, he is mysterious enough.

Although past Directors of the Heretic Tribunal did not reveal themselves to the public, most information about them is still known.

Their height, weight, the type of divine magic they use, whether they are male or female—while the exact appearance and personality are unknown, there is still a general outline.

But this generation of the Director of the Heretic Tribunal…

Almost no information has leaked about him.

To confirm his identity, as Carpenter said, one must judge by his aura, purity, and Divine Artifact.

So, when Bishop Carpenter decided to reveal the other’s identity, he really made a bold decision.

The main reason no information has leaked about this Director of the Heretic Tribunal is not that he is like the current Pope, hiding away and rarely seen by anyone.

On the contrary, as a Director of the Heretic Tribunal, he is very active.

He often personally interrogates and executes heretics and even sometimes goes around the continent to solve problems his subordinates could not handle.

The reason his information remains secret is…

For this director, interrogation, capture, trial, and pursuit… can basically be equated with execution.

Currently, except for a very few people who cannot be killed and are locked away in the dark and dreary dungeon of the tribunal, most of those who had direct contact with him are…

All dead.

He single-handedly reduced the survival rate of the targets marked by the Heretic Tribunal, a fearsome organization that combines intelligence gathering and imprisonment, by several percentage points.

Rumor has it that before the current Pope ceased his public appearances and activities, he gave him a specific instruction.

"Don’t kill the bishops and those above them too quickly."

Whether this statement was truly made by the Pope himself remains to be verified, as it sounds somewhat like dark humor.

But the fact that such a grim joke has persisted for so long speaks volumes.

He is simply too brutal.

Pretending to be such a ruthless individual, Lolth naturally felt the psychological pressure.

Of course, looking on the bright side… at least those who might question her true identity would feel even more pressure.

Moreover, although she wasn’t skilled in interrogation, she was, after all, the official Chief Interrogator of the Demon Army and the head of the Interrogation Department. Two years of work experience hadn’t endowed her with any interrogation skills, but…

But pretending to know how to interrogate and understand intelligence, Lolth discovered she might actually be quite adept at it!

Isn’t this exactly what she had been doing all along!

Thinking this, Lolth couldn’t help but feel somewhat relieved.

"Maybe I really can do it."

She thought this and then relaxed.

"Alright, don’t think too much," Lolth said, looking at Dorothy, who seemed lost in thought. She jumped up from the bed, "Let’s eat!"

Saying this, Lolth took out a bunch of ingredients and simple cooking tools from her personal space.

The room was spacious enough for her to prepare a simple yet hearty dinner for herself using her portable kitchen tools.

Watching her teacher’s movements, even though she had lost her memory, Dorothy’s ingrained instincts made her swallow hard.

"Grr—"

Her stomach growled too.

She even realized that she would soon taste something delicious and couldn’t help but feel excited.

Dorothy stopped pondering over who her teacher really was.

However, based on Carpenter’s words and attitude, and Lolth’s sharp criticism of the Director of the Heretic Tribunal, it seemed like the other person didn’t care much about the trouble.

Dorothy inferred that her teacher must be someone of a similar rank, right?

Perhaps a Privy Bishop or a Cardinal.

However, Dorothy’s deduction was actually quite accurate.

Because Lolth’s position and role in the Demon Army are indeed similar to that of the director of the Heretic Tribunal!

It’s just another completely opposing force.

Feeling the hunger in her stomach and a bit of excitement, Dorothy thought for a moment…

She guessed her teacher mostly works in internal affairs and logistics, right?

At least she must be a part-time head chef at Eden Palace.

As she pondered this, she quietly observed her teacher begin to operate.

In the room where Lolth resided, tranquility and peace once again prevailed.

However, Lolth ultimately underestimated the impact of her own deceit.

In essence, while Lolth possesses a profound understanding of "intelligence work" that surpasses most on this continent—able to fabricate intelligence merely by glancing at a map—this very capability causes her to overlook the typical operations of standard intelligence agencies.

After all, she lacks any proper subordinates in the Interrogation Department; her only official subordinate is Kululu, who appears to be quite problematic.

This oversight leads Lolth to miss a critical detail.

Namely, the strategic importance of Guomu Town’s location.

As a "neutral town" under the control of the Wizard Association’s mages, it lies near the border between the Holy Empire and the United Kingdom of South Sotua, and is not far from the Golden Peacock Kingdom…

On the surface, it appears to be a small agricultural town, but in reality, it serves a hidden purpose.

It functions as an "intelligence exchange point" tacitly approved by South Sotua.

The number of "intelligence personnel" gathered here far exceeds Lolth’s expectations.

Especially since many organizations and factions have increased their intelligence presence here in anticipation of Carpenter’s arrival!

From The Church of Light and the Holy Empire alone, due to the intensifying factional conflicts, numerous spies have been dispatched, likely numbering over ten.

This does not include those from the Golden Peacock, the Wizard Association, or the covert agents planted here by South Sotua.

From the moment she stepped onto the street to discipline those individuals, until Bishop Carpenter came to apologize, countless eyes were silently observing the scene.

After witnessing Bishop Carpenter leave the inn as if pardoned, spies from various factions began to mobilize.

Within the Holy Empire, whether it was the pro-Carpenter factions led by the Sixth Prince and the Eighth Prince, some neutral noble factions, or the factions of the First Prince and the Third Prince, all were anxiously reporting to their family masters.

"In Guomu Town, a lady has appeared who compels Bishop Carpenter to bow down!"

"It seems Bishop Carpenter received some kind of warning and may no longer support or participate in the upcoming conflict!"

And as if to confirm their suspicions, the actions of the minions sent to greet the bishop became even more peculiar.

These arrogant, short-sighted, and greedy nobles actually came to the street and settled their old debts at each stall one by one.

They even humbly apologized to the residents of Guomu Town and hired several fruit stands to distribute fruit to the residents and travelers, promoting the teachings of The Church of Light.

They acted with kindness and generosity, as if they were truly devout and benevolent believers.

Even Bishop Carpenter joined them in performing these tasks personally.

This left everyone quite astonished.

Upon receiving the reports from their informants, the nobles and princes in the Holy Empire were momentarily too apprehensive to act rashly.

In The Church of Light, other bishops who had initially planned to support Carpenter, and even a few cardinals, suddenly felt a sense of trepidation.

Although they had not witnessed what Carpenter had seen, as individuals of similar or higher status, they quickly deduced that Carpenter’s fear likely stemmed from an encounter with someone significant.

The three Privy Bishops were all over a hundred years old, yet what they saw on the street was a young girl…

The only young girl from several knight orders was currently accompanying the Lady of Light in detention within the demon race’s territory…

The remaining Privy Bishop and Cardinal are all within the Papal State…

Thus, the conclusion is clear.

It must be that important person whose gender is still unknown…

Considering that individual is quite intimidating, most bishops with a bit of sense have drawn similar conclusions to Carpenter.

"It’s the… Lord Director of the Heretic Tribunal."

Ever since the pope disappeared, the Lord Director has been focused on dealing with heretics; now he has started targeting internal matters, which is not good news!

In fact, most of them are bold enough to form factions and act for the next pope, and they aren’t shy about interfering in the Holy Empire’s succession, mostly because they think this Lord Director seems uninterested in church affairs.

Now, this sudden strike against Carpenter seems to be a warning to everyone else.

It’s as if a pair of eyes that had been watching in the dark finally opened, looking around and reminding everyone…

"The Heretic Tribunal is watching you."

Even the Heretic Tribunal received this signal.

"Is the Lord Director planning to interfere in the church’s recent affairs?"

"As expected, going to the demon race’s territory to check on the Lady of Light is just a ruse!"

"So what should we do?"

"Naturally, we should prepare and wait for the master’s commands—after all, the master does not like to wait, remember!"

Each elite member of the Heretic Tribunal team was eager to act.

They had been holding back for too long!

And this unrest was not limited to just The Church of Light…

The king of South Sotua, after hearing about the happenings in Guomu Town, had planned to go to battle, but he paused for a while and decided to delay his plans again.

With Osmeda returning home badly hurt, the rebellion that he could have easily suppressed was also delayed.

"The Church of Light… sigh…"

The old king of South Sotua sighed.

The Golden Peacock Kingdom was also affected by the information from Guomu Town.

Ms. Maria Diana, still lying on her bed, looked at the characters appearing on the scroll and slowly squinted her eyes.

She gently burned the scroll and looked at the woman in front of her.

"Garland… I have been hearing some rumors recently."

"That girl Dorothy seems to be doing quite well."

"I have always believed in your ability to get things done, Garland, but…"

She gently stood up and lifted Garland’s chin who was kneeling on the ground.

"You seem to have disappointed me."

As the person providing the information, Garland naturally knew what Maria Diana had seen.

The message from the Golden Peacock’s informants had one more point than the others.

That is "Dorothy."

They not only recognized Lolth as an important person from The Church of Light like everyone else but also identified their own… Princess.

After all, she is the only princess of Golden Peacock.

Even the public mostly knows what Dorothy looks like; how could they, as informants, not recognize her?

Moreover, Lolth didn’t give Dorothy any disguise at all.

Hearing Maria’s words, Garland looked into the eyes of the current true ruler of the Golden Peacock and remained silent for a moment…

Then, she bit her lip and gave an answer.

"It is my fault… I will take care of everything."

"Ha, to ‘take care’ of things right under the nose of a Privy Bishop in The Church of Light," Maria said with a soft laugh, "You better know what you are talking about… Garland."

Upon hearing this, Garland fell silent for a moment, then nodded.

"I understand."

"But… everything will be fine."

She said firmly.