Beneath St. Samuel's Church.
"Hey, Leonard."
Leonard Mitchell had just stepped out of the break room with his teammates when he heard someone calling to him.
He turned to look and saw the person standing in the shadows of the corridor, dressed in a dark, ink black robe, wearing blue eyeshadow and blush, looking mysterious and strange.
"Miss Daly."
Leonard signaled for his teammates to go on ahead, then walked over and greeted this acquaintance of his.
"How are you holding up? I heard you all ran into something quite dangerous this time."
Daly gave him a faint smile. "A god's corruption on top of a high Sequence Beyonder, it's a wonder you all managed to hold out."
Leonard recalled the scene from that day, and the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
"That was mostly thanks to Deacon Ishmael."
He shook his head. "All we could do was run... Facing a demigod who'd lost control, we didn't even have the standing to look him in the eye, let alone fight him..."
At this, the two of them fell suddenly silent.
Ince Zangwill, the very target of their vengeance, was likely already a Sequence 4 Beyonder by now, which meant that with their current strength, the two of them stood no chance against him at all.
A deep, festering hatred stirred in their hearts, with nowhere to go.
How much longer would it take before they reached Ince's level? And by then, would Ince have advanced even further still, or simply vanished from sight entirely? If that turned out to be the case, would everything they were doing now end up being for nothing?
Daly forced down the anger simmering behind her eyes and shifted to a new topic. "Actually, the reason I came looking for you today is that there's something I wanted to ask."
"Uh, what is it?"
Leonard asked reflexively.
Then he saw Daly suddenly lift her head, looking him straight in the eye, and ask quietly, "A few days ago, you went to Tingen, didn't you?"
Leonard froze.
"Miss Daly, where did you hear that?" He recovered quickly and said, half joking, "You've even got my movements tracked."
"I heard it from Soest," Daly said, her gaze never wavering from him. "And that's not all... From what I've observed, ever since you got back from Tingen, your mood has been off... Leonard, did you find out something?"
Find out something?
Yes, he had found out that the teammate he had once believed dead was in fact still alive, and not just one of them, but two... The discovery had, for a time, even made him question the choices he had made...
Leonard hesitated inwardly, unsure how to answer.
Should he tell Miss Daly, and let her share in the same pain of learning the truth that he had gone through? Or should he keep it hidden, and let her go on carrying her pure, uncomplicated desire for revenge?
Fortunately, at that moment, a flat, indifferent voice suddenly rang out.
"Good afternoon."
At the sound of that voice, the two of them turned sharply, and saw the very powerful Beyonder they had just been discussing.
"Greetings, Your Excellency Ishmael."
Leonard and Miss Daly spoke at the same time, offering their respects to the strong one before them.
"Mm."
Silas's gaze swept across the faces of these two old acquaintances, and a complicated feeling stirred faintly in his heart, but he quickly suppressed it on his own. "Am I interrupting something?"
"Not at all."
Even if it truly had been an interruption, there was no way Leonard would admit to it. He simply asked in return, "Your Excellency, was there something you needed from me?"
"It's like this."
Silas said, seeing this, "Leonard, I've recently been going through the Church's old files, and I came across the incident that happened in Tingen last year. I'd like to learn more about it... You were there in person at the time, so, would you be willing to share it with me?"
In truth, he also wanted to see the events of that day from someone else's perspective, in hopes of finding some new lead on Ince.
Something stirred in Leonard's mind.
His Excellency Ishmael was interested in Ince?
If a powerful Beyonder like this could lend a hand, the odds of taking that man down would rise considerably...
"I'd be glad to."
He came back to himself and answered earnestly, "It was precisely to hunt him down, to see justice done for my fallen comrades, that I joined the Red Gloves in the first place."
"Good, then."
Silas gave a slight nod. "Let's find somewhere we can talk properly... Mm, I know a decent café."
Staying inside the church always gave him the feeling of being watched by unseen eyes.
It was probably just him being overly cautious, but to keep his spirits from feeling so weighed down, he made it a point not to linger in the church longer than his duties required.
"Not in the church? Ah, of course, that's fine."
Leonard blinked in surprise for a moment, then quickly agreed.
Just as he was about to say goodbye to Miss Daly, he saw her suddenly step forward and address the deacon. "Your Excellency Ishmael, I'm Daly Simone, one of the Red Gloves' squad leaders.
Might I ask if I could sit in as well? I was also part of the Tingen squad before, and I'd like to offer what help I can in resolving this case."
Miss Daly...
Leonard opened his mouth, unsure what to say.
"That's fine."
Silas had no objection.
Some time later, in a café two streets away.
"I've noted down everything about the situation at the time, and your subsequent investigation." Silas set down the glass of lemonade in his hand and asked, "Is there anything else you'd like to add?"
Leonard hesitated once more in his heart.
Should he tell him what he'd discovered?
No, he couldn't be too hasty about this. This deacon had only recently arrived, and he didn't yet know enough about the man's background.
Revealing too much of himself might draw unwanted attention, and after all, he himself had a few secrets of his own to keep...
"Nothing for now."
He answered, his expression sincere.
Silas glanced at him.
"Very well, then. Thank you both for your cooperation." Silas nodded, then suddenly asked another question, "One more thing. Regarding the previous deacon, Sylvester, what impression did you have of him?"
Leonard and Daly exchanged a puzzled glance.
"His Excellency Sylvester was kind to everyone."
Daly answered, "He cared deeply about his subordinates, and at the same time held unwavering faith in the Goddess.
His competence was beyond reproach... He often took part in various charitable activities, and maintained good relationships with many nobles. He was a fine bridge of communication between our church and the upper echelons of the state."
"Yes, after His Excellency Sylvester became an ascetic monk, we were all quite sorry about it. From now on, dealing with the nobility falls entirely on Archbishop Anthony's shoulders," Leonard added. "But the Archbishop is already so busy, there's no way he can be as thorough as Sylvester was..."
Connections with the nobility?
Could that have something to do with his death?
Silas thought to himself.
The three of them chatted a bit longer, and as the time drew close to three in the afternoon, he decided not to press further, and rose to take his leave of the two of them.
"Your Excellency."
Daly looked him in the eye, and suddenly spoke with great seriousness, "If word of Ince's whereabouts ever comes, I beg you, please let me join the party sent to bring him down."
She no longer wanted to stay on the sidelines, far from the heart of things, only to hear the grim news after the fact, the way she always had before.
"Me too!"
Leonard added quickly.
Silas glanced back at the two of them.
"I'll consider it."
he said.