I’m an Immigration Officer!

Erzena's divine aura trembled for the first time at the direct strike of his words.
As the ominous aura that had been swirling menacingly around her slightly receded, the air around the two finally lightened, and a breeze swept in.

The Saintess and Moahim exchanged glances.
Moahim, too, looked just as shocked as she was.
‘How could he possibly...’

Moahim’s plan to pass through the Kingdom of Crossroads was flawless.
If only the Holy Knight and the Saintess headed north, it would undoubtedly be considered a political move, so they formed a pilgrimage group to dilute their true intentions.
They assembled a massive procession, disguising military supplies and weapons as humanitarian aid and Holy Relics.

By the time the immigration officers, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of goods and people, noticed anything suspicious, it would already be too late.
The key figures in the procession would have already passed through and headed north.
As long as the First Order of Holy Knights and the Saintess could cross through the Kingdom of Crossroads, it wouldn’t matter if the rest got held back.

Yet, their plan was blocked right from the start.
‘It should’ve taken at least half a day before they caught on.’
Erzena clenched her fists tightly, trying to hide her inner turmoil.

‘Stay focused. The opponent is a member of the Cult of the Evil God. It’s only natural for him to be suspicious.’
Fortunately, it seemed that the Chief Inspector was still only suspicious and not certain.
If he truly knew the real purpose of the Northern Expedition, he would have done everything in his power to stop her entry from the beginning.

But until the very last moment, when he was about to stamp her entry permit, he had been very cooperative.
If not for that one element, she would’ve already crossed the border.
‘The documents the aide handed over. The moment he saw them, his demeanor changed.’

The young man who had been all smiles and politeness was gone.
Now, sitting across from her was the Immigration Officer, looking at her as if he could see straight through her.
And then, in a voice devoid of any warmth, he spoke:
“You will answer me, Saintess.”

And the heretic already knew.
 
****

“Ha.”
The first reaction she showed was a hollow laugh.
“A Holy War?”

The second was a question accompanied by an exaggerated gesture.
I nodded.
A Holy War.

It was the word ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ every religion shouted when they intended to wield absolute power.
A term used to completely crush something or someone at the organizational level of the church.
‘There’s no other possibility.’

And based on all the clues revealed so far, there was nothing else that could be the true objective other than a Holy War.
‘It’s not a war. The Church wouldn’t wage war against a nation.’
After all, a nation is a place where potential believers live, so they wouldn’t provoke one.

But a full-scale war against another church? That was entirely possible.
There had been cases in history where churches accused each other of heresy, crushed their opponents, and seized their followers.
That was why I decided to throw out the bait.

Erzena looked up at the sky without saying a word, then closed her eyes and quietly muttered,
“So, the world has fallen to such depravity... If he’s already figured out our objective to this extent...”
Bullseye.

As expected, the pilgrimage was not the true purpose. It was clearly a secondary or false reason.
Then the only thing left was the Holy War. Just the Holy War.
‘Alright, then what do I do now?’

But the problem still wasn’t resolved.
This was not a simple case of an individual attempting to enter illegally.
The Kingdom of Crossroads would never open its borders to allow military actions.

No matter who they were.
Therefore, right now, I should stamp [Entry Denied] on every document related to the entire pilgrimage group.
But before that, the minister’s words echoed in my mind.

— Make sure nothing happens to the Saintess. Nothing good, nothing bad.
No matter the situation, if it’s related to the Saintess, there should be no problems whatsoever.
The minister’s orders usually took precedence over standard regulations.

They were designed to allow for flexibility in emergencies.
And the bonuses and Day of Safety incentives were not something to ignore.
But that only applied to minor infractions, not major incidents like allowing a military force to cross the border.

‘Still, an order is an order...’
If I acted hastily and stamped the documents, all the responsibility would fall on me.
A conflict between orders and regulations.

What to do?
‘Should I contact the minister first?’
As I was contemplating how to resolve the situation, Erzena, who had been silently praying with her eyes closed, suddenly rose from her seat.

“Huh? Is something wrong?”
When she finished her prayer and opened her golden eyes again, they were blazing with determination and fury as she glared directly at me.
“If it is the will of the Lord, then I will carry it out right here and now.”

She slowly pulled a makeup brush from inside her robes and began writing something on her forehead.
[Paradise for the Believers, Hell for the Unbelievers]
What the...

Why write such horrible words on that pretty face?
She then drew a bright red cross on her cheek and said,
“No more games, Chief Inspector Nathan Kell. We knew who you were from the start.”
“...”

Her perfectly straight finger pointed right between my eyebrows.
I couldn’t say a word.
‘Well, yeah, of course, you know who I am. I’m the Chief Inspector at the border.’

I literally introduced myself earlier.
What the hell is this nonsense?
“If you think this will somehow affect the inspection results, then-,”
“Silence! Stop trying to deceive me!”

Erzena’s shout instantly shut me up.
“The First Order of Holy Knights, hear me! Our enemies have already spread their roots throughout the world!”
From her frail body, a booming voice echoed across the entire border station.

And at that moment, I immediately realized what she was trying to do.
‘Ah, one of those types.’
There were always people like this.

When they sensed they were about to fail the inspection, they’d blow up and start making absurd accusations.
They were the most common type of problematic visitors.
‘It’s kinda refreshing to see a Saintess pulling this stunt, though.’

No matter how high and mighty they act, in the end, people are still people.
Once their true intentions are exposed, all that nobility and grace goes out the window, and their true nature bursts forth.
‘People are the same everywhere.’

I couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.
“You dare to laugh?!”
Erzena, even more infuriated, pointed her finger at me and shouted:

“You, filthy heretic! Pretending to be an emissary of the Lord’s love to obstruct our sacred mission —!”
“Saintess!!!”
But her rant was swiftly interrupted by Moahim, who stepped forward with a stern expression.
“Enough. You have already caused enough of a disturbance for today.”
“Moahim! But that man... that man is...!”

She stomped her foot like a child who had been denied a toy.
But Moahim cut her off coldly with a sharp voice:
“A conflict at the border is as significant as a war incident. You have already broken your promise to me and disregarded diplomatic etiquette, so enough. From now on, I will handle this.”
“But... but this is...!”
“...Enough.”
“Ugh! Just this once!”

Erzena, still fuming, sat down heavily and began rubbing the horrid words off her face.
Moahim turned to me.
“Inspector.”
“Sir Espirence.”
“I will be honest. We are heading north for a Holy War.”
“So, you’re admitting that my suspicions were correct?”
“I concede.”

Oh-ho, a direct approach. That’s rare.
My eyes gleamed with interest.
Let’s see how he plans to justify this.

“And that is why I intend to show you this.”
Moahim pulled out a crystal orb.
“This is...”
“You uphold the regulations and guard the border. But we, too, have a reason why we must cross it.”
“Everyone has their reasons. But being a church doesn’t grant you special treatment.”
“I am confident that once you see this, your perspective will change.”
“What does this crystal orb have to do with crossing the border?”
“A great deal.”

With that brief response, he channeled mana into the orb.
Within the orb, an elderly man tending to a garden appeared.
“Apologies for disturbing you during your vacation.”

The old man turned to Moahim and waved casually.
— Ah, First Order of Holy Knights. If you’ve activated the orb, then something must have gone wrong.
“Yes. Just as you predicted, the Kingdom of Crossroads is holding us up at the border.”
— Hahaha. I thought as much.
Moahim and the old man spoke as if they were old acquaintances.

And what the hell does this old man have to do with me?
“Excuse me, but may I ask who this is?”
Moahim pushed the orb closer to me and said:

“Inspector, please greet His Holiness, the Pope.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.