Chapter 11. The Order of the Nameless God

But I hit it harder for sure, didn't I?

Could it be that this human was stronger than it looked?

But no matter how I looked at this human, he didn't seem to have the strength to withstand my attack.

“Don’t you have anything stronger! Are you listening?!”

The griffin was angry.

It couldn’t understand what the human was saying, but he felt more obnoxious than before.

How dare a weak human act so arrogant!

- Kieeeek!

Perhaps the attack missed its mark before, so this time, I decided to show him what I was really made of.

The griffin’s claws glinted sharply in the air.

Swish!

Flapping its wings hard, the griffin shot down towards the waterfall again and swung its claws.

Thud!

The sound of the human collapsing was heard again.

The griffin, watching from the air in front of the waterfall just in case, became triumphant when there was no response from inside the cave. The griffin let out a cry of victory.

- Kieeeeeek!

As expected, that human was weak!

The griffin was stronger!

* * *

“Oof, my ears hurt.”

Pinned against the cave wall, I covered my ears with my palms.

Even the griffin’s cry was too destructive.

The first few times, both my eardrums would burst every time I heard the griffin’s lion roar.

But now, I had no problem hearing its cries.

Tiring.

[User’s body has been damaged.]

[Trait, Troll’s Heart, activates.]

[Warning! Intense pain is coming!]

“Kuk…!”

I gritted my teeth and endured the pain that felt like my whole body was being torn apart.

The abdomen, clawed by the griffin, slowly began to heal. But no matter how long I waited, the near-death state alarm didn’t appear.

“…Even this isn’t enough.”

Enduring the pain, I opened my Status Window.

Name: Radel Silvert Cretian

Age: 17

Rank: 8th Prince of the Cretian Empire

Stats: Health 17, Magic Power 10, Strength 11, Agility 9, Intelligence 12

Overall Ability: E

Skills: Basic Swordsmanship (E), Hayden’s Normal Mana Training Method (E)

Traits: Troll’s Heart (E), Status Effect Nullification (S)

My Health was already at 17.

It was worth getting beaten up by the griffin relentlessly ever since I learned that my Health increases by 1 each time I recover from a near-death state.

As I repeatedly entered a near-death state and steadily raised my Health, it had reached a point where getting hit by the griffin once wasn't enough.

At first, the pain was so intense I would lose consciousness, but now, I could more or less maintain my sanity.

It was a foolish method that would make everyone faint in shock if they knew a prince was risking his life like this.

But even as I threw my body into a potentially fatal situation, I didn’t feel a sense of crisis.

“Reminds me of the old days.”

When I was a Hunter in my past life, I never got knocked around by a griffin to this extent.

I could take down one griffin without any potions.

Even if I couldn’t be called an A-rank, I was a B-rank Hunter. I was at a level where I could pull more than my own weight in a Dungeon.

In those days, I worked myself to death. I would enter B-rank Dungeons alone, carrying potions on my back.

Come to think of it, I was called a madman a lot back then, too.

“I almost died a lot back then.”

I had a tough body back then, but not now. If I got hit a few more times to enter a near-death state, I could actually die.

I had to find another way now.

* * *

The Order of the Nameless God.

The Archbishop and several bishops were seated around a large round table.

The reason these highest authorities of the order had gathered was due to the manifestation of a new Ability in the Imperial Family.

“Didn’t we discuss this matter last time?”

Someone spoke up.

“What is the reason for gathering again over a finished matter?”

They didn’t gather in one place unless it was for the biannual regular assembly.

As the largest order in the Empire, they had a great number of followers, so the bishops, who administered the regional orders under the Archbishop’s command, were bound to be busy.

“We hear evil rumors about the 8th Prince’s Palace.”

“According to the informant dispatched by the order, it is reliable news.”

The bishops who heard the rumors looked bewildered.

“Then does that mean the 8th Prince is truly a heretic?”

“He is certainly suspicious.”

“Has the Imperial Family truly borrowed the power of devils again?”

Just then, someone let out an annoyed sigh.

“Hah…”

It was such a loud sigh that the bishops immediately knew who it was. He was a man with an impressive appearance, worn out by fatigue as if he had stayed up all night for a week.

With dark circles under his eyes and hollow cheeks, he was Lambrado Altante, the head of the Inquisitors.

“We have checked on the 8th Prince. Not one of the Seven Marks appeared, and there were no traces of a contract with a devil.”

The Seven Marks.

Those who made a contract with an Archdevil, the highest-ranking of the Demon Race, bore a mark somewhere on their body.

There were a total of seven Archdevils known to exist, and the location of the mark varied depending on which devil the contract was with.

It was usually hidden, but it would glow red and reveal itself when devilish power was used or when a Priest infused pure divine power into it.

The reason Kirio had checked Radel’s body when he was moved to the Treatment Room was also to look for this mark.

“Please don’t call us here and there for a finished matter. Our kids’ morale is falling when we’re already short-staffed.”

“Our kids?”

One of the bishops, who thought unfavorably of Lambrado, sneered and said.

“You mean those precious Inquisitors?”

Lambrado frowned.

As the order was large, it had long been divided into internal factions.

An invisible battle was being waged between the reformist faction, which argued for reforms to match the times rather than following outdated doctrines, and the moderate faction, which advocated for upholding tradition.

Lambrado and his Inquisitors maintained neutrality, but for some reason, they had recently been picked on by the reformist faction for every little thing.

The one who had just sneered was also one of the central figures of the reformist faction.

“I must say a word this time.”

He was making a fuss as if he had never said a word before.

He was the one who had made a scene at the last regular assembly, complaining that the Inquisitors’ activity budget was too high.

“The Supreme Deity told us to love and forgive our neighbors, but the recent behavior of the Inquisitors is highly suspicious. Wasn’t there an incident where they framed someone unrelated to the Demon Race as a heretic and confiscated their property?”

There was indeed such an incident.

Lambrado said calmly.

“I cut it off.”

“What?”

Lambrado believed that even Inquisitors were not perfect.

The mistake that had already happened couldn't be undone, but it could be taken responsibility for.

“Cut it off? Is it enough to just dismiss him from his position? How shameless!”

“I cut off his tongue.”

Those sitting around the round table fell silent.

“The sin of punishing an innocent in the name of the Supreme Deity.”

Lambrado’s fingers folded one by one.

“I also cut off the arm that coveted wealth under the pretext of heresy.”

The bishops recalled the merciless hands of the Inquisitors.

No one was unaware that they were tasked with secretly punishing not only heretics but also sinners within the order.

A few of the bishops swallowed their saliva without realizing it, and the air in the conference hall grew cold.

“W-what difference does that make?! I can’t trust the Inquisitors anymore! The same goes for the 8th Prince’s case! Who’s to say they didn’t claim a heretic was not a heretic this time as well!”

As he shouted, the bishops who agreed with him raised their voices.

“Th-that’s right!”

“Does it make sense to make a decision about the 8th Prince after examining him just once?”

“The suspicious rumors, and all, we can’t trust it. We must open a Heresy Trial!”

Lambrado nodded his head.

“Very well. However, if it is revealed that our kids were right…”

His eyes swept over the bishops who had shouted.

The bishops, pierced by his dark eyes, were startled.

“W-w-what is it!”

“Are you saying you’ll cut us off too, or what!”

“…I haven’t said anything yet.”

Lambrado’s eyes shone gloomily.

The order had never officially supported any member of the Imperial Family.

It was obvious that the bishops who were bringing up the rumors about the 8th Prince to call for a Heresy Trial each had a royal they had decided to back, without needing to dig into their backgrounds.

Lambrado glanced at the Archbishop, who remained silent.

The Archbishop was only smiling enigmatically.

“Can only the Inquisitors judge heretics? This is so scary, my goodness!”

“If the 8th Prince is a malevolent being, who will take responsibility for that?”

Just then, someone who had entered unnoticed interjected.

“I will take responsibility.”

It was Kirio Tites.

He politely bowed to the Archbishop, then looked around at the bishops and spoke.

“I am the one who confirmed that the 8th Prince is not a heretic. It is right for me to take responsibility.”

“No, is this something one person can take responsibility for!”

A bishop shouted. Kirio agreed with him.

“That is a valid point. That is why I propose the Trial of Three Days.”

“The Trial of Three Days?”

A look of bewilderment spread among the bishops.

The Trial of Three Days was a traditional training method of offering prayers before the Supreme Deity for three whole days with a more pious attitude than anyone else.

According to records, a miracle occurred for a Priest who completed the trial, and the Nameless God gave an answer, but such a thing had not happened recently.

“I am in favor. Let us invite the 8th Prince to the Grand Temple on the coming Feast Day.”

The Archbishop, who had been silently watching until now, spoke.

“If he is truly a heretic, he will not be able to endure the Trial of Three Days. Is that not so?”

It was certainly a difficult task for a royal to endure.

In the order, the Archbishop’s word was absolute.

Even the bishops who thought unfavorably of it nodded their heads.

“Well, that is certainly true.”

“If the Archbishop says so…”

There was no way a royal would be devout enough to pass such a trial.

That was the common thought among the bishops.

To pass the trial, one had to be so earnest that the divine power in the prayer room would respond, and it was difficult for even a seasoned Priest to maintain concentration for three whole days.

To pass this, one had to be one of two things.

Either incredibly devout or crazy about praying. Furthermore, if one had a contract with a devil, they wouldn’t even be able to approach the prayer room.

Therefore, there was no way the clumsy 8th Prince could endure the Trial of Three Days.

* * *

I returned to my bedroom after finishing my training for the first time in a while.

After living in the training ground for several days, my own room felt unfamiliar.

Still, after training hard for a while, there was progress.

It wasn't as fast as recovering from a near-death state, but my Health had increased, and my posture had improved.

The memories of my past life were a great help.

“Now I can even sense mana.”

My senses had grown to the point where I could distinguish the mana of the secret passages connected to the outside.

The flow of mana in the passages connecting the interior of the 8th Prince's Palace and the passages connecting to the outer palaces was completely different.

Before, I got lost and accidentally went to the 2nd Prince’s Palace’s food storage, but now I was at a level where I could freely come and go to other palaces while observing the flow of mana.

It was the result of diligently training in Hayden’s Normal Mana Training Method.

Feeling secretly proud, I looked around the room and noticed a pile on the table.

“What are all those papers?”

I had told him to deliver reports in writing if there were any, so it seemed the Chief Attendant had left them.

Among them, the invitation on the very top caught my eye.

It was hard to ignore the golden seal that only the Imperial Family could use. Moreover, it was an invitation from the Emperor.

“…This is burdensome.”

I did think that since I had manifested my Ability, I would have to meet the Emperor at some point.

It was a summons from the Emperor, so I couldn't avoid it.

I checked that the date was still some time away and breathed a sigh of relief.

The next thing that caught my eye was an invitation with a pure white lily engraved on it.

It was from the Supreme Deity Order.