The golden embers were dancing in the air.
It was like seeing a golden wheat field in autumn, beautifully withering under the sunlight during harvest season.
Ena felt beauty in that scene while simultaneously recalling past horrors.
The inquisitor from the Holy Kingdom of Petra who once chased her to kill her, Martinez the Purifier.
The fanatic, who had been chasing Ena to kill her while she tried to escape to Tirna, now saved her.
Ena slumped down on the ground. Martinez picked up the fallen umbrella and held it out to Ena.
Ena unconsciously accepted the umbrella.
“Hey, how did you get here.......?”
"...I just happened to sense an ominous energy while passing by."
Martinez said in a sowhat awkward, stiff tone while staring at Dorothy.
“Dorothy Gale.”
"Oh, do you know ?"
Dorothy, who made eye contact with Martinez, smiled brightly.
However, apart from smiling, her eyes were not good.
She was displeased that soone suddenly appeared and released the hostage Ena. Moreover, the power he wielded was sowhat uncomfortable.
"A witch belonging to Walpurgis Night. A madwoman who mainly handles familiars and has a history of killing other witches. I'm the type to morize heretics’ personal information."
"Hmm. That's strange. If you know about , you shouldn't be standing here so confidently."
Dorothy snapped her fingers.
The scarecrow, already angry from being burned by straw, swung a huge harvesting sickle.
It was then that golden light settled in Martinez's right hand.
-Clang!
The golden spark transford into a cross-shaped shield, easily blocking the scarecrow's sickle.
Dorothy's eyes widened at the sight.
"Is that holy alchemy?"
The unique power used by Petra Kingdom holy knights.
The uneasiness and sense of alienation she felt when first seeing the golden fla - this was its identity.
Kya-ak!
As the scarecrow scread and tried to swing the sickle once more, Martinez moved.
Beyond the shield, in his hand gripping empty space, a massive golden hamr suddenly appeared.
The hamr, swung with great centrifugal force, struck the scarecrow's abdon, and the golden fla that burst forth engulfed the scarecrow.
Kya-ak!
The scarecrow scread as it touched the sacred fla. With a bad constitution and a body made of dry straw, it was inevitably vulnerable to holy fire.
Watching the scarecrow slowly fall in the golden flas, Dorothy bit her lip.
"Why is the Petra Order saving a witch?"
Dorothy couldn't understand the situation.
Martinez was obviously trying to save Ena.
Did he not know Ena was a witch? That was impossible.
A mber of the Order saving soone while knowing they're a witch - this made no sense.
"Who are you affiliated with? The Order in this city has no intention of crossing paths with us."
"I have no affiliation."
"No affiliation, and you're interfering arbitrarily? Don't lie! With that level of power, how can you have no affiliation?"
"I don't know much about that. What matters is right now. So what do you plan to do?"
Martinez stared coldly at Dorothy.
The golden hamr in his hand was pointed at Dorothy. As if he could strike her head down at any mont.
"Are you ending it here? Or will you continue?"
It wasn't just a verbal threat. Martinez was already letting holy power flow around him, ready to fight.
Dorothy distorted her face. She was angry about being interrupted, but even more so by Martinez's extraordinary power.
Much denser and greater holy power than an average Order's holy knight.
The holy alchemy power that could knock down the scarecrow with a single strike.
Wearing a gray hood that covered his face, his body type and voice suggested he wasn't very old.
Soone this young with such skills existed in Tirna?
Moreover, with the plan to take Ena hostage failing, Lupona could move again.
All she was left with was the Tin Woodman and the cowardly lion.
The other guys weren't brought, so these two were the only pieces she could handle right now.
In contrast, the opponent was an unknown familiar and holy knight.
Dorothy judged that continuing this fight was dangerous.
"How lucky."
Dorothy, maintaining her pride, pulled back the Tin Woodman and cowardly lion.
A strand of straw, burnt black, crawled like a snake between the scarecrow's charred remains and returned to Dorothy's hand.
"Next ti we et, it won't end this simply."
Dorothy tapped the floor twice with the toe of her jewel shoes.
Then she and the familiars vanished as if lting in the air.
Whoosh!
Ena, who had barely survived, could finally exhale.
Lupona, confirming Dorothy's complete retreat, dispelled her murderous sword and looked at Martinez.
Martinez also stared fixedly at Lupona in her black armor.
"You, that power..."
Lupona ignored Martinez's murmur, checked Ena's condition, then instantly leaped to the building's rooftop and disappeared.
Martinez could only quietly watch Lupona leave.
Although the power seed ominous and dangerous just by looking at it, Martinez felt its essence wasn't entirely bad.
"That..."
Ena spoke then, so Martinez quietly turned around.
"Thank you for saving ."
"...I didn't particularly an to."
Martinez was about to leave saying that, but hesitated as if sothing suddenly occurred to him.
Ena looked at him curiously. Co to think of it, Martinez coming to save her seed unnatural from the start.
“Wasn't I never really away from District 41?”
What was the reason for coming to this 30-sothing district, the Violet Fox office?
Moreover, his hesitation to leave imdiately.
"Um..."
As Ena carefully started speaking, Martinez reacted sensitively.
"What?"
"Ah, that is...We've t like this, and I've received help, so I thought it would be rude to just let you go."
"...So?"
"Would you like to have a al before leaving? The office is nearby anyway."
Martinez pursed his lips and stared at Ena.
Ena responded with an awkward smile.
Inviting soone who tried to kill her to a al. Was she at ease or just bold?
Martinez closed his eyes, let out a deep sigh, and answered in a slightly resigned voice.
"Very well."
*
Osian beca worried when Ena returned later than expected while shopping.
Although Ena herself says she's fine, there were still many people targeting her in this city.
Ena Grundt is just a clerk at Violet Fox, a witch who is not officially affiliated with anywhere.
As a result, quite a few people were coveting her witch's power, witchcraft.
Notably, there were two witch groups existing in Tirna.
Hadn't a witch from the Walpurgis Night recently co directly to find her?
'I'm anxious, and this just won't do.'
At the mont Osian was about to go out holding a sword, the store door opened and Ena, who had gone shopping, returned.
"I'm back."
"You're late. What exactly happened...?"
Osian discovered Martinez, who entered the store after a slight ti difference.
"...Don't tell you've picked up another person?"
"Mr. Osian treats like I'm so strange person who picks up stray cats. I brought him along to repay the help I received."
"Help you received? What help?"
Even though Martinez would no longer try to kill Ena like before, as a Holy Knight, he wouldn't be close to a witch.
Could Martinez have helped Ena?
As Osian's eyes narrowed at the strange feeling, Ena stamred an excuse.
"That, well, it wasn't that Martinez did sothing wrong, it was more like an accident..."
"Explain properly."
"Well..."
As Ena couldn't answer, Martinez stepped in instead.
"I helped because she was attacked by another witch. That's all."
What? Attacked by a witch? And Martinez helped?
Osian's eyebrows slightly raised.
"I told you to use honorifics."
"...yes."
Martinez belatedly recalled Osian's earlier words and timidly added one letter.
Only then did Osian nod with a satisfied expression.
"...Wait a mont, Mr. Osian. Are you more bothered by him not using honorifics than the fact that I was in danger?"
"That can't be. But in the end, didn't you return safely?"
Though he said that, Osian could roughly picture the situation in his mind.
She would have probably stepped into the alleyway knowing there was danger, just to et Lupona again.
Ena's threshold for danger was too high compared to others. In situations where normal people would be cautious, she acted nonchalantly.
It was likely due to the life she had lived. The problem was that she herself wasn't very aware of this. Therefore, Osian didn't say anything more.
"Well..."
As Ena looked uncomfortable, Osian imdiately changed the subject.
"So, did you co all the way here just to get a al?"
It was a question that struck at the core, despite attempting to change the topic.
Martinez hesitated at those words, and Ena, sensing the atmosphere, quickly stepped aside.
"I'll go make so food."
With Ena gone and only the two of them left, Osian got to the point.
"Since you've co all the way here, you must have a separate purpose. What is it? Are you planning to request a commission?"
"Yes...(polite form)"
Although Martinez still struggled with honorifics, Osian didn't point it out.
He was more curious about why soone like Martinez would need a fixer's help.
"That is...I'm looking for a person...(polite form)"
"Looking for a person? Do you have an acquaintance in this city?"
"No...I'm looking for a missing person."
Using an even softer honorific, Martinez revealed his purpose.
"Looking for a missing person. Like a disappearance."
Osian nodded as if he understood.
Fixers would sotis use force, but they also often helped find missing objects or people.
"Even so, why did you co to to request this? You should be able to do this yourself."
"...I'm only specialized in finding heretics, I don't know where or what ordinary people are doing."
The words "ordinary people" ca from Martinez's mouth.
Not finding a heretic or soone from another religious order, but coming to find an ordinary person.
"I'll need a precise explanation of what happened."
Martinez nodded and began to tell the story of what occurred in District 41.
*
Martinez's life after coming to Tirna was monotonous.
At 6 a.m., he wakes up, dresses neatly, draws water, and offers morning prayer.
Then he imdiately starts cleaning the yard.
When morning cos, Dorthea yawns and begins preparing als.
He slightly protested her not praying, but since she didn't listen, Martinez half gave up. At least she never missed preparing als for the children.
The rest of his day is varied. He fetches drinkable water, repairs holes in the orphanage building, or fixes the children's toys.
Martinez didn't have such manual skills, but he had holy alchemy.
When he made toys the children wanted, they were always overjoyed.
Even though the power would disappear after a few minutes, who wouldn't be captivated by a toy shining in a brilliant golden color?
Dorthea would grumble that using the power was cowardly, but she would look at Martinez fondly as he never refused to help when the children asked.
"Hey. Isn't this job of playing with the kids actually more suited to you?"
Dorthea said this to Martinez, half-jokingly.
With a blunt tone and an expressionless face without any emotional fluctuations, although Martinez was initially avoided and wary by the children, things were different now.
"Rather, it seems you like the kids more than . The kids too. Oh, it's heartbreaking. So people stayed here continuously, but this rolling stone takes everything away."
"That's not true."
"Oh, it is. Even while pretending otherwise, you take such good care of the kids."
"I have other things to do. I live only to eliminate heresy, and I have been given that mission alone."
"There you go again. If you have such sacred power, you could just live by helping people. Isn't it too painful to just see blood while possessing such a noble power?"
"That is..."
Martinez held back his words.
He had never thought about living such a life before.
He had lived to punish evil with this power. Has he ever considered helping soone?
Martinez thought of the orphanage children.
Wearing shabby clothes but smiling purely, approaching him with pure innocence.
"...Still, I must complete my mission. And soday I will leave this place to return to how things were before."
"Even if the children hate it?"
"That's not important."
"Of course, it's your heart that matters. But as an adult giving advice, you can relax a bit. Why do you always carry such heavy things like nobility, mission, or destiny? You can be a bit more comfortable."
"...And you're trying to secretly smoke a cigarette."
"Oops. I was trying to smoke naturally while setting the mood, but you're quite sharp."
Dorthea ran away with a laughing face.
Martinez let out a small sigh looking at her. She's truly an unrelenting person.
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