They all call me Great Master

Mimi hid in the carriage filled with food and water barrels as she entered the concealed tunnel within the mountainside.

As early as fifteen days ago, Mimi had located the only surviving bastard who had killed that woman.

But the place where he was hiding was really too special.

The main entrance was heavily guarded by troops.

The ventilation ducts were monitored with Secret Technique detection methods.

Even for Mimi... no, that was the name the woman used to call it.

Now that the woman had died, there was no need to be called Mimi anymore.

It should be called...

It would still be named Mimi, though.

It sounded nice.

Mimi, lurking in the shadows of the carriage, couldn't help but remember the woman again, the one who had saved it from the brink of death and fed it precious herbs.

That woman was a good person.

But...

The woman was dead.

Therefore, the people who killed that woman, they all deserved to die.

It had killed all of them.

Now there was only one left!

After killing this guy, it would return to the forest and never come out again!

The carriage passed through the secret passage, and the soldiers inside the secret base began to unload the unconscious people and goods.

During this gap, Mimi slipped out.

Compared to those two fully armored men guarding the gate, these ordinary soldiers were like field mice to Mimi, insignificant.

Sniffing the scent, Mimi quickly found the last guy—

"Damn it! Damn it!

Why did that old woman find the Dolan Fruit we had been searching for so long?

Why was there an Arcane Creature by that old woman's side?"

The roar echoed through the room.

Desperation appeared in Malory's eyes as he reiterated his experience for the seventeenth time.

From his unfortunate injury while searching for 'Dolan Fruit' in the forest to being saved and healed by that woman, accidentally discovering that she had collected the 'Dolan Fruit' they had long been unable to find, but with the protection of an Arcane Creature by her side, he had no choice but to suppress his excitement and then decided to incite the residents of Saint Xis to burn the woman alive; however, he neither found the 'Dolan Fruit' nor saw the Arcane Creature again.

"Why didn't you call for reinforcements!

Be it a Deacon from the Religious Tribunal,

or the guards from the local church, they could have helped you.

You could even have requested reinforcements from the 'Paladins'!"

The bald man in front spat saliva onto Malory's face.

Malory didn't respond.

But inside, he was cursing up a storm.

Call for help?

Why wouldn't I call for help?

If I had called for help, would there be any credit left for me afterward?

Malory knew all too well the true colors of these local fellows, and he was clearer than anyone that if he had called for help, he would not only have missed out on any credit but also likely have lost his life.

The northern battlefields of the Empire had long since become corrupt.

Many were already planning to find a way out.

He was no exception!

He planned to use the 'Dolan Fruit' as a stepping stone to gain the recognition of that significant person.

And then?

Of course, to leave the current quagmire behind.

These things Malory knew.

Moreover, Malory was aware that the guy in front of him knew them too.

Just because the other party knew, he was being nagged incessantly.

Humiliation!

The man was humiliating him!

Moreover, he intended to use this as an excuse to harshly punish him.

If Malory showed even A Tiny Bit of weakness...

He would be sent to the Burning Stake.

And then?

His position would be taken by someone loyal to this man.

So, he reported 'truthfully' every single time.

And every time, he would request that a Punitive Deacon from the Religious Tribunal be present as an observer—because the Punitive Deacon possessed Secret Techniques capable of discerning whether he was lying.

In the past, he always felt loathing towards those Punitive Deacons.

But at this time, he felt grateful.

Just like at this moment—

After another routine inquiry, this ordinary Deacon of the Religious Tribunal respectfully saluted the Punitive Deacon.

As for that 'Honorary Knight'?

The Deacon didn't even give him a glance.

Once both men had left and the door was once again closed, the Deacon sat back down on the bed.

The Deacon contemplated his next steps after this.

'Twenty Inquisitions' had already subjected him to seventeen sessions, with just three more to complete the 'Twenty Inquisitions'.

Afterwards, he would be 'Innocent Released'.

But he would certainly not be trusted with important responsibilities again.

In fact, he might even be exiled.

But that was before; now?

The odds were he would be sent to the north.

'The battlefield?'

The Deacon murmured in his heart, a look of fear appearing in his eyes. He had not seen the northern Barbarians, but he had heard of them—each one was tall and strong, seemingly inhuman, their roars like thunder and the battle axes in their hands like whirlwinds of Death, reaping the lives of Empire soldiers.

Both of the Deacon's older brothers had died on the battlefield.

He didn't want to go there.

'Should I take to the sea?'

The Deacon couldn't help but think.

Saint Xis was near the ocean; it should be possible if he set out from Saint Xis.

Amidst the whirl of thoughts in his mind, the Deacon fell into a deep sleep.

Allowing one's body and mind to endure the Secret Technique of a Punitive Deacon was no easy task.

An ordinary person couldn't withstand it for minutes before fainting.

This Deacon was quite exceptional.

But this exceptional Deacon did not at all perceive the presence of Mimi lurking in the shadows.

Mimi appeared silently at the Deacon's bedside.

Familiar scent.

Familiar face.

This was the last bastard who brought about that woman's Death, the very beginning of the initial chaos!

Mimi had heard the recent words spoken.

Ever since that woman had fed it the Dolan Fruit, not only had its strength significantly increased, and its fatal injuries had recovered, but it also gained the ability to understand human language and comprehend its meaning.

So, at that moment, Mimi did not hold back its claws.

Pfft!

The sleeping Deacon suddenly felt pain in his neck.

Instinctively opening his eyes, the Deacon saw the cat.

No!

It was that Arcane Creature!

The Arcane Creature's eyes were coldly fixed on him, and then...

It raised its middle finger!

Indeed, it was the middle finger, erected with a Cat Claw!

And this was the last image seen by the Deacon!

After getting rid of its last enemy, Mimi leisurely knocked over the oil lamp.

Whoosh!

The flames immediately soared.

As thick smoke billowed, the 'Honorary Knight' who had left earlier was the first to rush back, his face changing as he saw the dead body of the Religious Tribunal's Deacon, and a thought flashed through his mind.

Then, he shouted loudly—

"Malory committed suicide from fear of punishment!"

With that, he ran outside.

Clearly, he wanted to frame the incident before an investigation could begin.

And Mimi had anticipated this.

Ever since eating that fruit, it had been able to guess things among humans that it previously didn't understand.

Walking with cat-like steps, Mimi stuck close to the corner of the wall.

It planned to leave amidst the chaos.

But just at that moment, a voice suddenly echoed in its mind—

'Stop immediately, if you don't want to die.'