This Wasn’t an Erotic Game?

Chapter 20
Heresy Trial
『 Translator – Divinity 』

How did she know?

No, wait.

It’s actually stranger that she wouldn’t know.

If there was a human performing miracles on this scale without any divine power, it would definitely raise suspicion.

My heart felt like it was plummeting to the depths of the earth.

And seeing that I was frozen stiff, my expression unchanging, Thüdel whistled in admiration.

“Not even a flicker of change in your expression. You’ve got quite the nerves, huh? But it doesn’t matter how brazenly you act. Nothing will change. A priest with no divine power pretending to be a saint is a serious matter. Try hiding it from the people of the Heresy Inquisition.”

She laughed.

I was realizing this now, but with her looks and the way she talked…

She really had a face I wanted to slap.

If it weren’t for the Silent Church inquisitors standing menacingly behind her, I would have really hit her.

But what am I going to do?

I’ve already been exposed!

Am I going to be ruined?

I thought I had avoided being burned at the stake!!

As I was screaming internally…

I saw the bald elder, Yodel, running towards me with a fierce momentum from afar.

“What is the meaning of this! Inquisitors of the Silent Church, what brings you here?”

At High Priest Yodel’s question, the witch Thüdel chuckled and pointed at me.

“You’re the High Priest, aren’t you? You’ve been deceived all this time. A person with no divine power has been running around pretending to be a saint.”

“We were aware of his lack of divine power from the beginning. But he is indeed the Saint of our Church.”

“I’m sorry, but I’ve also done my research. According to the Heresy Inquisition regulations of the Pantheon, even if a person is recognized as a saint within a church, the Pantheon has the authority to conduct a heresy trial on that person.”

Thüdel declared triumphantly, but Yodel didn’t back down.

“It seems you haven’t read the regulations properly. According to the Pantheon’s regulations, the authority to conduct a heresy trial on a person is limited to cases where it’s clear that the person has caused significant disruption within multiple churches and society. The Saint has never caused any social disruption. I, along with the paladins of the Sun Church and the police officers, can testify to that.”

“But how can there be a saint without divine power?”

“It’s true that he has no divine power. But even so, he is the Saint of our Church. If he were truly a fraud and not a saint, we would have reported him for impersonating a saint before the Pantheon even got involved.”

As Yodel retorted without backing down, the Silent Church inquisitors standing behind Thüdel cautiously exchanged glances and then stepped forward.

“Do you truly believe this man is the Saint of the Grace Church, High Priest Yodel?”

“I swear on my faith, he is undoubtedly the Saint of Grace.”

You should abandon your faith, gramps.

I’m a fraud.

I have no faith, and all the miracles I performed were done with erotic game abilities.

They’re skills with descriptions that would make you vomit and run away after reading the first sentence.

Anyway, I was frozen stiff, listening to their conversation.

Since Yodel was taking such a strong stance, even the Silent Church inquisitors looked unsure.

“Lady Thüdel, it’s certainly absurd that there’s a saint without divine power, but even so, if the Grace Church themselves are vouching for him like this, it’s difficult for us to conduct a full-scale heresy trial.”

“Moreover, it seems clear that he hasn’t caused any social disruption… It seems a heresy trial would be difficult.”

Thüdel looked angry at the Silent Church’s words.

“Have you ever seen people deceived by a fraud accuse that fraud? Since there’s no internal self-regulation, isn’t it our responsibility to monitor them from the outside? Everyone here might be fooled by black magic disguised as miracles!!”

At Thüdel’s words, the poor people gathered around me started to express their anger.

“Don’t slander the Saint!! You witch!!”

“What does she know to be babbling like that? The Saint isn’t that kind of person!!”

“Don’t insult the Healing Saint!! Insulting the Saint is no different from insulting all of us!!”

Despite the pouring jeers and anger, Thüdel didn’t even flinch.

Wow.

She’s a truly shameless and annoying woman.

If this were a novel, she’d be perfect for the villainess extra role.

“Isn’t it the role of the Heresy Inquisition to be suspicious and question everything? What if this Healing Saint is actually a devil worshiper or a follower of the Evil God? What if all the miracles he performed were part of the Evil God’s plan? How can there be a saint without divine power? You have to take him and interrogate him! Surely some flaws will be revealed!!”

She must have used voice amplification magic, as she captivated everyone with her loud voice.

Even the people who were shouting flinched and stepped back.

I was still frozen, my expression unchanged.

“…She’s not wrong. In principle, when a saint appears, the Pantheon has a duty to determine whether they are an imposter or a true saint, and then acknowledge or punish them accordingly. High Priest Yodel.”

“We cannot hand him over! Are you trying to insult the Grace Church!! He has never caused any social disruption! He has only saved and continues to save the abandoned!”

“We understand the Grace Church’s will. We also acknowledge that he has not caused any social disruption. With this level of good deeds, even if he is found to be impersonating a saint, it will only result in a year or so in prison. However, a heresy trial cannot be avoided, High Priest Yodel.”

“I refuse!! I refuse a hundred, a thousand times!! I will never accept the insult of putting our Church’s Saint on the heresy trial stand!…”

I interrupted Yodel and rose from my spot.

I couldn’t hear anything else.

Just now, clearly!

The Silent Church inquisitors clearly said that even if I was found to be a fake saint, it would only result in a year of imprisonment, right??

If I could be exposed as a fake saint, have everyone leave me, and avoid the Goddess’s wrath in exchange for a year in prison??

It’s a profitable deal.

An incredibly profitable deal!!

If I spent a year or so in prison, living like I was dead, by the time I got out, I would have already been exposed as a fake saint.

The Grace Church wouldn’t have any reason to chase after me with the Miracle of Tracking or anything, right?

And even if I was exposed as a fake saint, I did heal and save many people, so they wouldn’t put a bounty on my head and try to hunt me down, right?

They’d probably just think, “That damn scammer really confused us. But he did heal people, so… let’s just forget about it.”

Wouldn’t it end like that?

This is perfect!!

I’m suddenly grateful to that witch, Thüdel.

To think she would create a path to survival for me!!

“Take me to the Heresy Inquisition. I will undergo the trial.”

Yodel jumped at my words.

“Saint!! No!! You can’t!! You are the true Saint!!”

No, I’m not!!

No, I’m not!!

I’m a human who doesn’t even know the first thing about Lilia!!

I’m someone who lived without any faith, both before and after reincarnation!!

A person without faith is impersonating the Goddess’s Saint!!

If this continues, I’m going to die!!

That’s why I need to be taken to the Heresy Inquisition and be judged a fake saint as soon as possible.

After spending a year in prison, I’ll use Body Modification on myself, change my face completely, and live quietly like a mouse.

If I completely change my face, no one will recognize me!

Not even the Goddess’s divine punishment.

A quiet and ordinary life, free from the threat of being burned at the stake.

Ah.

It’s so good.

“I will comply with the Pantheon’s decision. Take me and interrogate me. I will reveal everything there without hiding anything.”

“No!! Saint!!”

I glared at Yodel.

Don’t try to interfere when I finally have a way to escape!

“This is my will, High Priest Yodel. This is the right thing to do.”

At my words, High Priest Yodel hesitated and then stepped back.

“…If that is your will…”

Alright!!

Finally, there’s a time when having a yes-man is helpful!!

I held out my hands to the Silent Church inquisitors.

“Take me to the Pantheon and begin the heresy trial. I willingly accept it.”

The poor people around me wailed and collapsed at my actions.

“Saint!! Don’t abandon us!! Saint!!”

“Ah!! No! Saint!! We need you!!”

“Don’t leave!!”

Their cries were so loud that it was hard to hear anything else.

Even the Silent Church inquisitors hesitated as they cast a suppression miracle on me.

Is this right?

They seemed to be contemplating as well.

Only Thüdel had an expression of pure joy.

And I smiled inwardly along with her.

Thank you, Thüdel.

Thanks to you, I can escape.

Just…

Just one year, and I’ll be out.

Then I can reset.

A life of worrying about the Goddess’s wrath, a life of fearing being burned at the stake…

Goodbye forever.

“Do not rely on me. Rely on the Goddess of Grace. I am only here for a short time, but the Goddess of Grace will always be watching over you. Never!! Never!! Despair and cause chaos or riot because I am gone.”

I’m just going to live for one year and then get out.

Don’t cause any riots or anything and make me responsible for social unrest, okay?

A fake saint causing social unrest?

You’re getting burned at the stake.

It would be troublesome to have a “burn, baby, burn” ending, so…

“Even when I’m gone, continue as you have been. Sweep the streets, feed the hungry, clean, and care for each other. If you do so, perhaps our paths will cross again someday.”

It’s just lip service.

Our paths won’t cross again.

I’m going to leave this place forever.

It was truly disgusting meeting you all, and let’s never see each other again.

As I was saying this to the people…

Jonathan Karma and his family, having heard the news, came rushing towards me.

“What’s going on!! This man is definitely not a fake saint!! He saved our family! This is tyranny!! He is absolutely not a fraud!!”

You’ve arrived, Mr. Jonathan Karma.

The key to my plan to bankrupt the Lilia Church.

But I don’t need you anymore.

Because I’m going to be judged a fake saint, rot in prison for a year, and then quietly disappear.

Until now, I said I would fully support you to bankrupt the Church, but in a year, I’ll have nothing to do with the Lilia Church.

Since I’ll soon be a stranger to them, let’s change the story a bit.

The Lilia Church has treated me well.

Because of my personal greed, I should prevent them from going bankrupt by having an incompetent person as their leader, right?

“Mr. Jonathan, I have a favor to ask of you.”

“Anything! Anything you wish!!”

“I’m sorry that you’ve taken on such a burden because of me. Now that I, the one responsible, will be gone, if the business doesn’t go well, you can immediately stop and leave.”

Knowing that you’re incredibly incompetent, I’m subtly telling you to cut your losses and leave if you think you’re going to bankrupt them.

You’ll understand this much, right?

At my words, Jonathan Karma, with an incredibly touched expression, teared up and grabbed my hand.

“I swear!! I will wait for you here!! I will make the Lilia Church the richest church in the Empire!! And I will wait for you in that state, no matter how long it takes!! Saint!! I swear on my soul and my name!! All the money I make is solely for you and the Church!”

Uh, you don’t have to do that.

I know you’re incompetent, so if you think you’re going to ruin everything, just cut your losses and run.

I’ll have nothing to do with the Lilia Church soon anyway.

“I believe you, Mr. Jonathan.”

Since this was the last time, I gave them a superficial smile and some more lip service, then let myself be taken away by the Silent Church.

“Saint!! Saint!!”

“Ahhh!! Grace, protect him! Protect your apostle!!”

Those burdensome cheers erupting behind me… this was the last of them.

Hooray for Thüdel!!

Hooray for the Heresy Inquisition!!

Hooray for the fake saint!!

The Goddess’s wrath won’t strike my head anymore!