Kripel Heretic Reformation Center
How many years ago had it been?
I remembered the time I first arrived there as an infant.
Garrison had looked at me with an indescribable expression.
"This is Archimond ?"
What Garrison saw after rushing over upon hearing that Archimond 's reincarnation had been secured...
was me, a three-year-old child cradled in a nun's arms.
A little kid whose blood had barely even dried.
"He's not just some ordinary brat."
The one who spoke to Garrison was Ben.
"Klein Leinrant. The second young master of the Duke of Leinrant."
Unlike now, the warden of the reformation center still had a clean face back then.
But the ominous look in his eyes had not changed at all.
"The seed of disaster conceived by the Witch of the North."
The Witch of the North.
A derogatory title used to refer to my mother, Duchess Claire.
"Leinrant dismissed it as groundless rumors, but there were testimonies from other nobles, so..."
"So you threw him into the reformation center without even properly verifying anything."
Garrison interrupted Ben and spoke.
"Just like you bastards always do."
Kripel Heretic Reformation Center.
Its nickname was the trash can of the nobility.
Those cast aside in power struggles.
Those who learned things they should never have known.
Discarded hats, useless dogs, bastards, mistresses.
The inquisitors of Kripel disposed of these byproducts of continental society, and in return received favors from the nobility.
The reason I had been dragged here was no different.
Fearing the growing influence of the main family, they slandered my mother and even sent me—her bloodline—here.
"Inquisitors who are supposed to beat heretics to death are instead obsessed with politics and wealth."
As though he already knew the truth behind why I had been brought here, anger seeped into Garrison's voice.
"A pack of hyenas wearing the skins of priests."
Garrison's biting remark caused several inquisitors' expressions to darken viciously.
"Tch, arrogant bastard."
"If he weren't an Acting Agent..."
Though they had been insulted directly to their faces, few dared recklessly challenge Garrison.
"So you're saying you won't kill him?"
When Ben asked that, Garrison handed me over to the nun beside him and spoke.
"A necromancer is a heretic who has strayed from the righteous path."
Grinding his teeth, Father Garrison growled.
"Those who kill people and toy with their corpses, consumed by false faith."
"Indeed. Very wise words."
Perhaps dissatisfied with Ben's indifferent agreement, Garrison's voice lowered.
But not long after, Ben's laughter leaking through his teeth shattered the silence.
"Kahahahaha—! Hahahahaha—!"
A laugh devoid of all dignity.
The formality from before had vanished completely into manic laughter.
"Did you all hear that?! The great Acting Agent says he cannot kill a mere infant like this—!"
"This child is not him."
Silence filled the room for a moment.
"Kikik...."
But soon enough, Ben's laughter once again broke through the silence.
"Kahahahaha—! Hahahahaha—!"
An unbearably vulgar laugh.
The same unrestrained cackling as before.
"Did you hear that?! The great Acting Agent says he cannot kill a mere infant like this—!"
"This child is not him."
Another brief silence followed.
"Kikik...."
After shouting toward the inquisitors, Ben turned his head toward Garrison.
"He is Archimond , Acting Agent."
But in the very next moment, Ben's voice turned cold as though he were a completely different person.
"Archimond —the enemy of the continent, the worst necromancer, the demon born from Heidelbergh!"
The way Ben spat out all of those countless titles was close to madness.
"And you hesitate to kill the seed of that Archimond for such pathetic reasons?"
"You, who claim to be the sword of the Order, are withdrawing your hand simply because he is a child?!"
Ben's eyes grew savage as he glared at Garrison.
It was not the look of someone staring at a fellow priest of the same Order, but at an outright enemy.
But what I saw in Ben's snarling expression was something else entirely.
"So this is what they chose as the new Acting Agent. Pathetic."
It was inferiority.
'So that bastard must have originally been the one slated to become Acting Agent.'
The title Garrison possessed.
The heated gaze Ben directed toward it.
Seeing that, I became certain.
"That's enough."
As though he had no more words to waste, Ben reached out toward me.
"If you won't do it, then I will."
Saying that, Ben stretched his hand toward me.
He was probably planning to grab my head with that hand and crush it outright.
But at that moment, Garrison's thick arm blocked his path.
"... What exactly are you doing?"
Despite Ben's question, Garrison gave no reply.
He merely stared at me in the nun's arms as though deeply contemplating something.
Meanwhile, the hostility pouring from Ben had already turned into outright killing intent.
"I asked what the hell you think you're doing—!"
"He who points bloodstained hands toward My name is My enemy and a wicked serpent."
At Garrison's sudden muttering, Ben frowned.
"What...?"
Ben trailed off as he questioned him.
But at the same time, the hand reaching toward me stopped moving.
"Thus I proclaim: priests and shepherds shall not kill. Instead, guide sinful souls and spread My will throughout the world."
Garrison's voice recited the scripture as though refuting Ben's fiery tirade.
Ben also seemed to recognize exactly where those words came from.
"... First Scripture, Book of the Shepherd."
"So you do know it."
The logic of the Order itself.
By using the words written in the holy scriptures against him, Garrison forced even Ben into silence for a moment.
But only for a moment.
Bang—!
"This is insane. And in a situation like this, you want to hold a theological debate?!"
Drawing the mace at his waist, Ben smashed it against the wall as he viciously threatened Garrison.
"Hand over the child, Acting Agent. Kripel Reformation Center falls under my authority—!"
Shrrrk—!
The instant Director Ben drew his weapon, the other inquisitors also pulled out their weapons all at once.
"Kyaah?!"
"W-What are you doing?!"
"Acting Agent, hand over the child at once! Are you truly planning to fight your fellow brothers?!"
The nuns and priests accompanying Garrison screamed and crouched down.
The irony of priests pointing weapons at priests.
It was proof that the inquisitors of the reformation center had already degenerated into Ben's personal army.
"No. You are mistaken, brother."
But Garrison still showed no sign whatsoever of backing down.
Thud—!
An overwhelming force pressed against the dark stone floor.
Even while facing hundreds of inquisitors, he did not retreat in the slightest.
"Only reminding a priest who has forgotten his duty of who he truly is."
With those words, the inquisitors charged at Garrison all at once.
In that fleeting instant, a blinding light erupted before his eyes.
And then—
Then...
***
Clunk—!
The violently shaking carriage rattled across the rough dirt road.
The harsh jolting sensation woke me from sleep.
"Ah, fuck..."
Tasting the metallic bitterness of blood in my mouth, I forced my hazy mind back into focus.
"So that's why the dream felt so unsettling..."
Shaking off the memories of my childhood, I looked through the carriage window at the scenery outside.
The snow-covered mountains that could always be seen in the North had disappeared, replaced by barren canyons.
'Judging by the climate, this is the eastern region... We're almost at the Holy Nation.'
The moment Leinrant's supervision vanished, the seemingly polite inquisitors immediately revealed their true colors.
Under the excuse of purifying the evil energy dwelling within a sinner's body, they had beaten me for half an entire day.
Rusty spiked clubs and whipping lashes.
Weapons chosen as though it didn't matter what they did, so long as I stayed barely alive.
'Looks like I was unconscious for at least three days... As for my condition...'
Holding my throbbing head, I continued organizing my thoughts.
"Ghk!"
The moment I tried to exert strength, agonizing pain surged through my body.
But strangely enough, that was actually fortunate.
Pain meant my nerves were still functioning.
'Looks like they just left me untreated... and yet I recovered this much...'
Even without any training, this level of recovery was absurd.
No wonder they called it the bloodline of heroes.
"Director! It seems the prisoner has awakened!"
Hearing my groan, one of the inquisitors escorting the carriage shouted.
"Faster than expected."
"Should we educate him a little more?"
Educate my ass.
They were just tying people up and beating the shit out of them.
"No. We'll take him straight to solitary confinement."
"Are you certain? Young Master Klein once escaped the reformation center back then—!"
Smack—!
The moment one of the inquisitors tried to continue speaking, the sound of a slap cut him off mid-sentence.
"What did I say would happen if anyone brought up that incident again?"
A furious voice, as though someone had touched a dragon's reverse scale.
"M-My apologies."
The inquisitor, realizing his mistake, hurriedly answered.
"When I say something once, don't talk back. Before I kill you."
"...!"
Perhaps sensing the strength tightening in Ben's clenched fist, the inquisitor's face turned pale blue.
"Understood?"
"Y-Yes, understood."
The trembling voice desperately trying not to stutter was downright pitiful.
This was why having a good boss was a blessing.
"And besides, things are very different this time."
Saying that, Ben suddenly knocked against the outer wall of my carriage.
Thunk, thunk.
"This time, there's no Garrison around to help this brat."
With a face drunk on victory, Ben raised his voice.
"A specially prepared accessory just for you. Do you like it, Young Master?"
At those words, I raised my hands.
The shackles locked around both wrists, along with the heavy iron weights attached to them.
'Black ironstone restraints... Imperial-made equipment.'
Confirming that the demonic energy stored inside my body wasn't moving, I answered him.
"You even went this far for me despite your poor budget. I hardly know how to repay such generosi— Ghhk!"
Before I could finish speaking, excruciating pain surged through the restraints.
It felt as though countless needles were stabbing every inch of my body.
"Kahahaha—!"
As though my scream delighted him, Ben's laughter only grew louder.
"I'm glad you appreciate it. It makes the effort of preparing them worthwhile."
Ben's voice overflowed with satisfaction.
"When we arrive, I'll prepare something even better for you, so please look forward to it."
"Hah. Really now?"
Though he couldn't see it, I twisted my lips into a grin.
'Fucking sadistic bastard.'
There was no way my pride would allow me to sit here grimacing in pain exactly the way that lunatic wanted.
Ding—! Ding—!
Just as the trembling in my limbs finally began to settle, the carriage came to a stop alongside the ringing bells.
"We've arrived."
Woooooosh.
A barren wasteland where not even a single blade of grass grew.
And at its center, a gigantic hole carved into the earth.
Built into the walls of that abyss was the Kripel Heretic Reformation Center.
Rumbleeeee—!
As though the sentries had recognized Ben's face, the massive fortress slowly opened its jaws.
'The furnace leading to hell.'
That was what prisoners who reached Kripel always called this gate.
As I looked outside through the carriage window, old memories slowly resurfaced.
But...
'The upper prison levels are empty, yet there are even more inquisitors now...'
Looking at the mechanical devices and elevators installed throughout the place, I thought carefully.
At the deepest point of the massive pit at the center of the reformation center—
from the place where nothing should remain anymore, a familiar energy was leaking out.
The enormous source of power that had turned Helian into a monster.
An energy identical to holy blood.
"Hooooo—!"
Taking in a deep breath of the foul air of the reformation center, Ben spoke toward me as I stepped out of the escort carriage.
"There truly is no place like home, is there, Young Master?"
That smug grin plastered across his face.
I felt an overwhelming urge to smash that expression apart.
'But not yet.'
Instead of replying, I merely raised the corners of my lips and looked down at the shackles bound to my hands.
'Looks like they prepared as thoroughly as possible with all the information they gathered.'
Restraining cuffs made from a special alloy designed to block the flow of demonic energy instead of mana.
It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to call them custom-made specifically for me.
'But you idiots forgot the most important thing.'
The moment that thought crossed my mind, I whispered in a voice too quiet for them to hear.
"Arin."
Sssssss....
A black shadow wrapped itself around both my arms.
Like tentacles, it coiled around my limbs before slowly enveloping the restraints on my wrists.
And then, moments later—
Crack... crack...!
Tiny fractures spread across the shackles, and at the same time, the previously blocked flow of demonic energy began moving once more.
'As expected, they didn't notice.'
Ben showed no reaction whatsoever, seemingly unaware that the restraints had already been damaged.
Watching events unfold exactly as expected naturally brought a smile to my face.
'Information about demonic energy is known only by the Empire. There's no way they explained the principles behind it.'
Just because the Order and the Empire were cooperating didn't mean they were completely united.
There was no way the Empire would casually hand over something that could become one of its own weaknesses.
Those tiny cracks were enough to destroy everything.
Just like they had two hundred years ago.
And just like they would now.
'Good work. Now go down.'
Keeping a close eye on the movements of Ben and the inquisitors, I quietly spoke to Arin.
At the deepest pit of Kripel Reformation Center, there was most likely a factory producing holy blood.
And along with it—
the experimental subjects created during that process would still be sleeping there.
READ MORE CHAPTERS HERE : https://beastnovels.com/