Inside the cathedral, Liandra stood in front of one of the heroes who was currently crouched down, hugging her knees, crying. Her expression was not too good at this time. As a holy knight, she was supposed to abide by the church's orders, but this was different. When it came to the heroes. The hero's own well-being was to be taken into consideration first. “How many of you have suffered?”

“Just a few of us. They act like we are enemies since we have not been baptized. But from what we have heard, the baptism is no baptism but more forcing us to have sex with many priests. I don’t want that!” The girl who was crying in front of Liandra was Nana. One of Shizuku's classmates and one of the girls who had yet to be officially baptized.

“Knight Liandra, I would like it if you left the heroes alone. They are still homesick.” Helen hurried over. She did not wish for things not to be said to be said.

“Head Priestess, Helen. It is not your place to get involved in an investigation. From this moment on, I will be taking all heroes under my wing. They will no longer be in the care of the priestess as they will need to learn to fight anyway. They will be staying in the knight’s barracks as they should have been upon being summoned.” This was the only way Liandra could save these girls. She did not know what was going on with the church at this time. She would need to speak with her captain and ask if he knows what to do about this. But under her current authority, this was all she could do. 

Liandra hated to admit it, but her eyes have been slightly opened. She once used to get naked in front of the priests when they asked, but now she questioned why they would ask such a thing. The words Shziuku and Margret stated to her were things she never thought of. And she would not have even questioned anything if not for the fires. After speaking with the heroes, she came to understand that the head priestess was doing things she should not. Despicable things that went against the teachings of the church.

“You can not!” Helen suddenly shouted. “They must stay here until they undergo….” 

“Their baptism, correct? Well, why were they not baptized the day they were summoned as per the rules of the church? Why are you waiting almost two months to do it? Baptism is no more than a formality, to begin with. You use some of the water you get from the well and dab it on their foreheads. 
    
    “Head Priestess, I am one who always thought that you and the priests were good people. That you would not do any wrong. But why is it that I hear otherwise? Why are you forcing the heroes to have sex with the priests? It seems to me that you are doing things against the rules. As for me taking the heroes…. This has been the rule since the founding of the church. This is what you taught me yourself, is it not?” Liandra’s questioning eyes made Helen’s face contort with anger. She had no retort. She could not argue with anything Liandra had just said.

“Everything I do is for our goddess!” Helen suddenly shouted.

“No. Goddess Yunni has already sent down punishment for the sins you have committed. The sins against the heroes. I will be taking them under my wing. If you wish to fight my decision, please have His Holiness pass down the rule after all the holy knights are under his rule.” Liandra did not know how long she could keep the heroes safe, but she knew one thing: the heroes were not from this world. They were forced here by them in which they were the highest honorary guests. They were to be treated with the utmost care and never taken advantage of. These were the rules passed down that she had grown up on. She never thought the head priestess who had taught her these rules would break them herself.

Liandra knew she was going against everything she once believed in by not believing in the church. But now that the seed of doubt had been placed in her heart, she could not allow things to continue without proper investigation, and the heroes needed to be in a safe place from this moment on. “Your name was Nana, right? Go tell the other heroes to pack their things. If there are those who wish to stay, let them stay. Bring only those with you who wish to follow.”

“You will regret this, Holy Knight Liandra!” Helen turned and left in anger. She could not stop what was going on, but she would make sure Liandra suffered somehow.

Nana ignored Helen’s outburst and quickly stood up and bowed to Liandra. “Thank you! I will go now!”

As for Shizuku, who had been partially responsible for Liandra’s actions, she was currently standing at the entrance of the long Beard Smithy. “Nora! I have come to buy armor!”

“Oh? You came for the cutie kitty?” Nora asked as she stood up. She looked at  Miyumi who had many marks on her neck and grinned. “You really don’t waste any time when it comes to your slaves, do you?”