After confirming the inquisitor's locations, I leaned in close to give Anna a kiss on the cheek. At the sa ti, I used this as an opportunity to whisper into her ear.
"I found them," I said. "They're using disguise rings. I think they're inquisitors."
When I pulled away, Anna nodded
"We're at a disadvantage here," she said. "We should leave."
I frowned.
"I doubt they'll let us go," I said. "If we leave, they might attack."
"In that case, let's head to a safe place sowhere nearby."
I nodded. It was a good idea. However, I couldn't think of a safe place to hide out. I could count on one hand the number of tis I had been to Templeton. Maybe I could draw upon my family's connections, but I couldn't think of who to ask for help.
Damn it. If only Kaylee were here. She knew our family's network of allies and friends like the back of her hand.
Thankfully, we had soone who spent a lot of ti here in Templeton. I gestured for Paladin Charles to co closer. He stepped forward.
"How may I be of service, Lord Gabriel?" he asked.
"A team of inquisitors is watching over us and I believe they're hostile," I said. "I doubt they'll let us return to Grand Priest Darius' residence without trouble. So, do you know of any safe place nearby?"
Paladin Charles looked thoughtful for a mont, before nodding.
"There is," he said, looking uncertain. "However, I don't know if it would be… appropriate to bring you there."
I shook my head.
"Safety takes priority over propriety," I said. "Lead the way."
Paladin Charles hesitated, before nodding.
"Very well," he said with a strange expression on his face.
With that, our group left the marketplace with Paladin Charles in the lead. I took a look around, to see if the inquisitors were following us. A part of wondered if I was just being paranoid, jumping at shadows and seeing enemies where there were none.
To my dismay, the inquisitors started following us. Since we were leaving the marketplace, they didn't bother changing their disguises again and continued wearing their current ones.
"They are coming after us," I muttered under my breath.
I described the inquisitors' current appearances. My companions' expressions hardened.
"Don't worry, Lord Gabriel," Paladin Charles said. "We'll protect you."
I snorted.
"Protect yourself," I said. "I can look after myself just fine."
Anna pinched my waist.
"Is it so difficult to let other people look after you for once?" she asked. "Besides, you don't have a sword right now."
I frowned. She was right. I needed a weapon, and fast.
"Here," Paladin Charles said.
He pulled a sheathed sword out of a pouch hanging from his side, before handing it to . I noticed the pouch before, but I hadn't given it much thought. I took the sword and tied it to my waist, before giving Paladin Charles a questioning look.
"Inventory rings are the most common spatial enchanted items," he said, answering my unspoken question. "But they're not the only ones."
I nodded. Made sense. Kiki had an orb embedded in her chest, which served the sa purpose. Compared to that, an inventory… pouch seed mundane in comparison.
Unfortunately, the inquisitors noticed our exchange and must've realized we were on to them. They forwent any attempt at stealth and started running in our direction.
"Run!" I shouted.
Our group fled. We could've taken the inquisitors in a fight. They outnumbered us, yes, but I believed we stood a good chance at winning despite this. However, I didn't want to start a fight with the Inquisition. Yes, they attacked us first, but it was a hassle I didn't want to deal with.
I wanted to finish our business with the Church of the Sun and leave the area as soon as possible. Injuring, or killing, a team of inquisitors would only delay our departure.
Our group attracted a lot of attention as we ran, weaving our way through the crowded streets. Pilgrims, priests, and paladins watched us as we fled through the streets of Templeton. Good. The more attention we drew, the less likely the inquisitors would attack.
I hoped.
To my dismay, when I glanced back, the inquisitors hadn't slowed down at all. In fact, they sped up. They drew closer with each passing second.
"How much further?" I shouted.
Paladin Charles glanced back at the pursuing inquisitors and grimaced.
"We won't make it," he shouted back. "I'll try to hold them off." He looked at his fellow paladin. "Bring them to Marcella's."
The other paladin nodded. Paladin Charles stopped in place and prepared to face the inquisitors. I tried to stop and join him, but then Anna grabbed and threw over her shoulder.
"What are you doing?" I shouted. "Let go!"
I tried to break free, but failed.
"They're after you!" Anna shouted back. "Paladin Charles will be fine. You're the one in danger here."
Despite this, I continued to try and break free from her grip. However, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't. Anna's arm was like an iron bar, firm and unyielding.
"Leroy!" I shouted. "Help!"
My bodyguard ignored . No matter how much I shouted for him, he imitated a stone statue. Blind, deaf, and dumb. I let out a shout of frustration.
"What is wrong with you people?!"
Anna and Leroy didn't answer and continued running. All I could do was watch as the inquisitors reached Paladin Charles' position. He engaged three of them, while the other seven ran past him.
However, even from this distance, it was clear that Paladin Charles wasn't in any serious danger. The inquisitors looked like they just wanted to suppress him, not hurt him, thus proving Anna right.
Seeing this didn't make less angry and frustrated about being carried around like a sack of potatoes. My dignity, what little I had to begin with, lay in tatters.
Our group continued fleeing through the streets of Templeton, with the inquisitors closing in. Despite Paladin Charles' attempts to slow them down, they continued to gain on us.
"At least give to Leroy!" I shouted. "He's stronger than you."
Anna took a mont before responding.
"Fine," she said. "Don't try anything funny."
With that, she adjusted my weight to hand over to Leroy. This gave an opening, which I took full advantage of. I broke free from her grip and used [Lightning Dash] to put so distance between us.
"Gabriel, you fuck!"
I grinned at Anna, before I ran towards the inquisitors. If they were after , then I might as well lead them away and ensure my companions' safety.
Anna, Leroy, and the other paladin tried to catch up with . However, when it ca to speed, they couldn't match . I used [Lightning Dash] to keep ahead of them, rushing towards the inquisitors. However, just before we t, I changed directions and ran into a nearby alleyway.
In the brief mont that I left the inquisitors' line of sight, I pulled my invisibility bracelet out of my inventory ring and put it on. Afterwards, I changed direction again and ran out of the alleyway. On the way, I almost ran into one of the inquisitors but managed to avoid them in ti.
Thankfully, the invisibility bracelet hid from the mundane senses, so the inquisitors all ran past . I headed back towards my companions, and almost collided with Anna. I took off the invisibility bracelet, revealing myself to them.
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They stopped in their tracks, and looked ready to yell at . This included the paladin, who had maintained a professional expression this entire ti. I held my finger to my lips and gestured for us to flee while we still had a chance.
Anna looked like she wanted to murder , but nodded. She grabbed by the wrist, her grip so strong that it felt like my bones would break, before dragging off. We followed the paladin as he led us towards our destination.
Several monts later, the inquisitors appeared and chased after us once more. They must've realized that I had tricked them. However, by this point, it was too late.
The paladin led us to what looked like a small, but opulent, marble palace. The sight of it caught off guard. I hadn't expected a place like this to exist in Templeton. A short wall surrounded the palace, though it looked more decorative than defensive. However, I sensed a lot of Holy magic emanating from this place. Whatever it was, it was well protected.
At the front gate stood a pair of female guards wearing leather armor and wielding spears. However, the armor the guards wore was revealing and sensual, almost like a costu. For a mont, I wondered if I had wandered onto the set of so kind of fantasy porn film.
The paladin stopped in front of the guards, with the rest of us right behind him.
"We seek sanctuary from the Inquisition in the House of Love," he said, a little breathless.
My jaw dropped and I gaped at him. The House of Love? Had… Had he brought us to so kind of brothel?
"In that case, welco," one of the guards said, wearing a sultry smile.
With that, the guards opened the front gates and we rushed inside. Just in ti too. We crossed the threshold seconds before the inquisitors caught up to us. The guards crossed their spears and prevented them from entering.
"Move out of the way!" one of the inquisitors demanded.
"The Inquisition is forbidden from entering the House of Love," one of the guards said. "Leave!"
"There is a demon in your midst! Hand him over to us!"
"If there is a demon, we will deal with it in our own way. You are not welco here. Leave!"
The inquisitor started speaking, but then sothing cut him off. Rather, his mouth continued moving but no words ca out. It took a mont to realize that a barrier had ford around the… House of Love without noticing it.
I sighed with relief. Good. We had managed to get away from the inquisitors without causing an incident. Even if they made a commotion out of this, it would be fine since no one got hurt.
At least, that's what I thought until Anna let go of my wrist, grabbed by the ear, and twisted it.
"Ow ow ow. Anna, what the hell?"
She gave my ear another twist.
"What were you thinking?" she demanded in a low voice. "The inquisitors were after you. So why did you run towards them? Is there sothing wrong with your head? Why do you keep running towards danger, you idiot? Since you're so determined to die, maybe I should just kill you myself. It'll be faster."
I looked towards Leroy for help. However, he just crossed his arms and glared at . It looked like I wouldn't get any help from him. Not that he had been much help when it ca to Anna. Traitor.
I opened my mouth to respond to Anna, but then soone else spoke up first.
"Now now," a woman with a sultry, sensual voice said. "This won't do. The only violence allowed inside the House of Love is the kind that brings pleasure as well as pain."
Our group looked over to find a woman exiting the palace and walking in our direction. If soone asked to describe the madam of a brothel, the image in my head would co pretty close to the woman before us now.
Curvy and voluptuous, with a body built for sin. Smooth tanned skin, luscious dark hair, and amber eyes with a hint of mischief in them. Her outfit, a red silk dress, revealed just enough skin to tantalize and titillate.
It was difficult to pinpoint her age. She reminded of my mother, in that she had a mature air about but looked younger than her age. I found the way she moved hypnotic and entrancing, even though my tastes ran towards, well, Anna.
That was all I could see before Anna covered my eyes with her free hand.
"Who the hell are you?" my fiancée demanded.
The woman let out a low chuckle.
"My na is Marcella. I am a priestess of Amara, the Goddess of Love."
That would make a lot of sense. Amara held a strange position in Lumina. Love was a broad concept which included sexual love. The problem was, Luminan culture was by and large conservative. As such, she wasn't as worshiped as much as her peers.
That said, almost everyone knew of her, even if they didn't know much about her. She wasn't a major god, but neither was she a lesser one. Instead, she was sowhere in between.
Hmm, Marcella. That na sounded familiar for so reason, though I couldn't rember why.
"This place is a temple?" Anna asked, incredulous "I thought it was a brothel."
Marcella chuckled again.
"That is a common misconception," she said. "When people hear that we worship the Goddess of Love here, they believe we an the basest form of love. However, we venerate all forms of love here. Now please, let go of your lover. As I said, violence is forbidden here except under specific circumstances."
Anna clicked her tongue in displease and she let go of my ear. However, she kept her hand over my eyes.
"That's not necessary," Marcella said, sounding amused. "It's clear that this young man is besotted with you. While he may find attractive, it's nothing compared to the passion he feels for you."
Anna snorted.
"You expect to believe that?" she asked in a sardonic tone. "I'm not blind. While Gabriel may love , I know my looks are nothing compared to yours."
Marcella made a sympathetic noise.
"You give yourself too little credit," she said.
"She's right," I said. "To , you're the most beautiful person in the world. Other won may as well be mud-covered pigs in my eyes."
A beat of silence passed.
"Well, I wouldn't put it like that," Marcella said in an awkward tone.
"That's because you're not ," I said.
Anna laughed and she removed her hand from my eyes.
"Dork," she said, struggling not to smile. "That was almost enough to make forget how much of a suicidal idiot you are."
I grinned at her.
"Shall we head inside?" Marcella asked, gesturing to the palace. "The four of your requested sanctuary, and I shall provide it. Let no one say I am a poor host."
I glanced back at the front gate. The group of inquisitors were still there, arguing with the guards. We couldn't hear them, but things looked like they were heating up. While I wanted to avoid fighting the inquisitors, that didn't an I wanted others to get hurt in my place.
"What about them?" I asked, gesturing to the front gate.
Marcella's gaze followed my gesture and her expression cooled.
"Pay them no mind," Marcella said in a cold voice. "The Inquisition wouldn't dare barge into here. If they tried, I'd make that old goat they call Grand Inquisitor pay for it."
My jaw dropped. Who the hell was this woman? While the Grand Inquisitor seed like a reasonable fellow when I t him, he was still the head of the Inquisition. There weren't many people that would dare insult him. The only ones I could think of were the heads of powerful Houses/Clans, and the grand priests.
Wait. Grand Priest? Aha!
"You're the grand priestess of Amara!" I exclaid. "That's why your na seed so familiar. I read it sowhere."
Marcella raised an eyebrow at .
"Indeed," she said. "And I'm well aware of who you are, Lord Gabriel." She gestured to Anna. "You as well, Lady Annabelle."
Right. As a grand priestess, she knew about the regression. That said, I couldn't bring myself to call her grand priestess, even in my own head. The title didn't suit her, not to at least. It seed more fitting to just call her Marcella.
"Are you going to take this as an opportunity to try and sway us?" I asked.
"Of course," Marcella said without an ounce of sha. "This is a heaven-sent opportunity. Why wouldn't I take advantage of it?"
I shrugged. Fair enough.
"Shall we?" I asked, looking over at Anna.
My fiancée looked torn for a mont, before nodding.
"We're already here," she said. "We may as well."
I nodded, before I thought of sothing.
"Wait, what about Paladin Charles?" I asked.
The other paladin, whose na I still didn't know, shook his head.
"Paladin Charles will be fine," he said. "Those inquisitors were after you. They'll fight him for a bit, before disengaging."
I relaxed. Good. I liked Paladin Charles, and I didn't want to see him hurt because so inquisitors got it into their heads that I was a demon.
"Shall we?" Marcelle asked, smiling.
We nodded before she led our group towards the palace. Now that things had cald down, I took a closer look at the place. It was three stories tall, with a pink, green, and white color sche. It should've looked tasteless and gaudy, but sohow it wasn't. Instead, it reminded a little of a spring dawn, full of hope and vitality. A small courtyard with a small flower garden occupied the space in front of the palace.
Art of Amara decorated both the palace and the garden. So were as I expected, lascivious and lustful depictions of the goddess. However, others were more elegant and modest. I guessed these represented forms of love other than lust.
Hmm, maybe this place was more nuanced than I first believed.
Of course, the impression crumbled the mont we stepped inside. The front hall of the palace was a large, open space decorated with all sorts of plants, artwork, and expensive furniture. Like the exterior of the palace, pink, green, and white were the primary colors here.
This part wasn't the problem.
Lounging around the front hall were a few dozen scantily clad n and won. They varied in color and physique. The won ranged from short and petite to curvy and voluptuous, like Marcella. On the n's side, they ranged from skinny little beanpoles to one burly man who would give Logan a run for his money. They wore clothing that emphasized their physical traits.
"I thought you said this wasn't a brothel," I said in an acerbic tone.
Marcella glanced back at and smirked.
"I never said that," she said. "I said it was a common misconception. This place isn't just a brothel. Everyone here is a priest or priestess of Amara. We offer a variety of services."
My left eyelid twitched.
The priests and priestesses of Amara sward in our direction. Their eyes lit up with joy.
"Ooh, newcors!"
"That silver-haired one is gorgeous!"
"I prefer his companion. Strong won are beautiful."
Anna and I reached for each other at the sa ti and pulled each other close. As for Leroy and the paladin, they were on their own.
"Hello there, beautiful," one of the more voluptuous won said, reaching for .
Anna glared at her, releasing killing intent, and the woman froze.
"She's a jealous one," one of the n said with a chuckle.
A burning jealousy filled .
"Avert your gaze or I'll collect your eyes," I said, my voice calm but containing a hint of murderous rage.
The man's expression fell and he stumbled back. The other priests and priestesses started whispering amongst each other. However, since they were so close, we heard everything.
"Look at them. They're obsessed with each other."
"How romantic!"
"It does seem a bit unhealthy though."
Marcella clapped her hands together, silencing everyone.
"Please, give our guests so space," she said in a gentle voice. "They ca to us seeking sanctuary from the Inquisition."
The priests and priestesses of Amara nodded with sympathetic expressions on their faces. They made their way, and Marcella led us deeper into the House of Love.
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