I clicked my tongue inwardly as I watched the Ghoul dissolve into nothingness.
He just had to leave me with those ominous parting words.
A "Master," huh? If he meant that literally, it implied there was someone even higher up the chain than him. I doubted he was the only monster of his kind down here either, which meant their headquarters might be part of a fairly massive operation.
"Muu, Lloyd defeated that last group, so everyone’s tied for first. It’s a draw, y’know," Tao grumbled.
"So it seems," Sylpha added. "Since no clear winner was decided, there will be no prize."
"And I really wanted that date with Lloyd... What a letdown..." Ren muttered.
The three of them hung their heads, whispering among themselves. It had been a grueling battle, so they were likely just exhausted.
"On! On!"
Shiro barked at the mouth of a tunnel, beckoning us forward. If I recalled correctly, that was where the massive horde of Ghouls had emerged from. That meant their base was likely somewhere beyond it.
"Let's go have a look."
Following Shiro’s lead, I headed deeper into the tunnel. I kept the path illuminated with Sunshine as we walked, but we didn't encounter a single Ghoul. It was strange. If their headquarters really was at the end of this path, I would have expected some form of resistance.
"Something feels off," Sylpha remarked.
"What is it, Sylpha?"
"I have a feeling we’re heading straight toward the center of the city."
"But that’s nowhere near where the Ghouls have been appearing, is it?"
The sighting locations listed on the request form were all far from the city center. However, looking at the request again, I noticed a pattern. If you drew lines between all the reported sightings, the center point of that web was exactly where we were heading now.
"Wait, is this... the Church?"
We finally reached our destination: the very Church we had visited just the other day. I climbed a ladder, pushed aside a grate, and we emerged into a drainage ditch in the church’s backyard.
"No monsters after all."
It was hard to imagine the Church serving as a nest for monsters—honestly, it should have been impossible. Besides, things like Ghouls and Vampires wouldn't want to go anywhere near a place like this. At least, not if their reputations were anything to go by.
"Grrrrr..."
Despite my doubts, Shiro was still growling low in its throat. There really was something here.
"W-Who goes there?!"
The Priest suddenly stepped out from the shadows. It seemed we had given him quite a fright.
"Trespassing on church grounds... what is the meaning of this?!"
"Sorry about that. We were tracking a monster for an Adventurers' Guild request, and the trail just happened to lead here. You have my apologies," Tao said, bowing her head.
The Priest’s face flushed a deep, angry red. "W-What? Are you implying this holy Church is a den for monsters?!"
"No, that’s not what I meant at all!"
"Silence! You insolent fools, leave at once! You too, you mangy mutt! Shoo! Shoo!"
The Priest raised his voice, even going so far as to kick at the growling Shiro.
...Something was definitely wrong.
I’d met the Priest a few times before. While he seemed to find me a bit of a nuisance, he had always struck me as a fundamentally decent person. He had even been fond of Shiro, yet now he was being unnecessarily cruel.
"I’ve encountered that Priest several times, and he is usually a much more mild-mannered man," Sylpha whispered. "His behavior is quite peculiar."
"Yeah, he was way nicer when I met him before," Ren agreed.
"Hmm, maybe he’s just in a bad mood, y’know?" Tao suggested, tilting her head.
A bad mood, huh? That reminded me—I’d heard that Holy Magic could be used to fix a bad personality. If that was true, it might work on a bad mood, too. It was worth a shot.
I took a step toward the Priest.
"W-What are you doing...?"
"Pardon me."
Ignoring his protests, I held my hand over the Priest’s chest.
Holy Magic: Glimmer.
As the faint light washed over him, the Priest scrambled backward in a panic. White smoke began to billow from his body.
"Gwaaaaaah?! Y-You... was that Holy Magic?! How did you know I was possessing the Priest?!"
Oh, so that’s what it was. I’d honestly just intended to improve his mood; this was a surprise. Come to think of it, the smoke rising from his body looked exactly like what happened when I struck that Vampire with the Sword of Light earlier.
"Incredible... I suspected something was amiss, but to think a monster had actually possessed the Priest... As expected, Master Lloyd saw right through it."
"There was no disruption in his Ki. It was definitely the Priest’s own energy. Normally, a possession like that is impossible to detect. You’re something else, Lloyd," Tao praised.
"Even when I use Magic Focus to look, I can't see anything... Lloyd, you really are amazing!" Ren added.
The three of them stared at me with intense, glittering eyes while muttering under their breaths. I didn't quite follow their logic, but I figured it wasn't worth worrying about.
"That’s a Wraith, Master. A spiritual-type monster. They’re nasty customers that hitch rides inside people," Grimo explained.
"Hmm... seeing as it can speak, it must be an individual of considerable intelligence," Jiriel noted.
"Regardless, we need to drive it out of the Priest."
And then the interrogation. I'd make it spill everything it knew. This was my first time dealing with a spiritual-type monster, and there were several things I wanted to test out.
Let’s start with this.
Purification System Holy Magic: Holy Light.
A brilliant radiance erupted from my palm.
"Ha! Fool! Do you really think I’d infiltrate a church without preparing for Holy Magic? This Mantle of Darkness repels all holy arts!"
The Wraith flourished a black cloak, wrapping it around itself. The light struck the mantle directly, but the Wraith didn't seem bothered in the slightest.
So it really could block Holy Magic... In that case, I wanted to see exactly how much punishment it could take.
Supreme Holy Magic: Ultimate Holy Light.
My hand shone with a brilliance far exceeding the previous spell, and a massive flash of light slammed into the Priest.
"Guh?! W-What incredible power! But it still won't breach the Mantle of Darkness...!"
Wow, that was impressive. To think it could withstand Supreme Holy Magic. This was the perfect opportunity to use Magic Focus.
I cut off the flow of mana to the rest of my body and concentrated every drop into my fingertips. I narrowed the spell formula from a wide area down to a microscopic point, focusing all that flashing energy into a single dot.
Magic is a lot like water; if you constrict the aperture, the pressure and power increase proportionately. The blinding light compressed until it turned into a tiny, searing point of red-hot intensity. Smoke began to rise as the air around it started to scorch.
"W-What is that?! This is impossible!"
A massive explosion erupted as the Wraith was engulfed in the light.
Oops. I might have gotten a little too carried away and pushed the output too high. I watched nervously as the smoke cleared, praying I hadn't accidentally killed the man... but fortunately, the Priest seemed to be unharmed.
Phew. It looked like I’d cut off the spell formula just in time.
"H-How...? The Mantle of Darkness is a Demon trump card capable of nullifying even god-class Holy Magic. To pierce it so effortlessly... what terrifying magical power! As expected of Master Lloyd... I am truly in awe," Jiriel stammered.
"Heh, as if a mere Mantle of Darkness could stand in his way. That's my future vessel for you," Grimo cackled.
The two familiars were muttering again, but the Wraith’s interrogation had to take priority. Just as I started toward the unconscious Priest, a voice called out from the shadows.
"Wait... Lloyd? Is that you?"
I turned toward the sound and found Isha, the church sister, standing there.