Brainwashed Then Woke Up To Find My Childhood Friend a Hero

45. Information Gathering

While drinking juice at a café, Aira shouts,

“Ugh—! This is just hopeless!”

She rests her head wearily on the table.

“It can’t be helped; the Saint herself was appointed after the war, so the stories that come here might be dubious, whether true or false.”

Wide speaks soothingly to Aira.

The two had been gathering information outside, asking about the Saint in the main street and shops.

During that time, they pretended to be newspaper reporters, saying they were researching the popular Saint to spread the word in other countries, and most people happily shared what they knew.

However, what they ended up saying was:

“The Saint was granted powers from above through her generous mercy!! With that, she has vanquished countless villains, and now she is the most important person in the Holy Nation…”

“When the Demon King’s army attacked back in the day, the Saint was deeply pained and rained down divine punishment from the sky!”

“The Saint has torn apart numerous demon races with divine might and even brought divine punishment upon the Demon King in the name of God!”

And so on; the embellishments were so excessive that the content was hard to grasp, and the connections between thunder, divine might, and the powers of otherworldly artifacts were completely lost.

“Another dead end. I really hate this feeling of being stuck without any clear direction.”

Aira shakes the ice in her cup, letting the sunlight filter through.

“Well, well… It’s fine as long as we can learn something. We’re limited to investigating matters related to the Saint.”

Pout!

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Aira puffs her cheeks, clearly annoyed. Seeing this, Wide responds calmly, albeit with some concern.

“Are you interested in the Saint?”

The two are suddenly addressed and turn around simultaneously to find an elderly priest standing there.

“Oh, yes! We’re reporters and were looking for stories about the Saint, but since she’s such a great figure, there’s so much information…”

Wide quickly shifts into reporter mode and responds promptly.

“Oh? That’s wonderful!”

—

The aging priest spoke with shining eyes.

“Well, well! I am a huge fan of the Saint!

For those of you with such deep faith and love for your neighbors, I absolutely must share everything I know about the Saint!”

As he spoke rapidly, Wide felt a trickle of cold sweat while being gripped by the priest’s shoulders. He glanced at Ayla, who seemed equally flustered, unsure of how to respond.

“It may take too long to discuss here and could become a nuisance! So! Please come to my orphanage!”

“Y-you mean the orphanage? If you don’t mind me asking, what is your name…?”

The priest nodded vigorously in response.

“Yes! Yes! I apologize for not introducing myself sooner! I am one of the three bishops of the Holy City! I am the eloquent Atsuku!!”

“B-bishop!?”

In the hierarchy of this country, a bishop ranks third from the top, and the bishops are primarily responsible for domestic affairs. Above them are only the Saint and the Pope.

“Oh, no, no! No need to be so formal! We are comrades! Now! Let’s talk until dawn breaks!!”

The bishop grasped Wide’s and Ayla’s shoulders, gently kneading them as he led the way.

“Oh, I’m so looking forward to this!”

““Absolutely! Haha~””

The two followed along, feeling anxious but not daring to resist the flow.

◇◇◇

In a back alley, a hooded man named Rainer had dismantled a fairly strong organization and was squeezing out information.

“Hey, if you spill what you know, it’ll be easier for you, you know?”

He transformed his fingertips into electricity, pressing them against the man’s body like a burning cigarette, producing burns in abundance.

“Ahh!? W-wait, I’ll tell you!”

Despite his screams, the man began to spill his words.

“Y-yes, so what about the Saint?”

“Hah… I don’t know anything!”

The moment the man claimed ignorance, Rainer transformed his entire hand into lightning and pressed down, ensuring the man’s life was extinguished.

“Ugh, this is going nowhere. I’ve taken down six of them, but not a single piece of useful information has come out.”

Rainer and Gildia had decided to split up and eliminate groups that seemed likely to have information.

“Even if they gathered, it’s just that the Saint hasn’t shown up in a month, and that she’s often at the temple.”

Rainer clenched the parchment he had written on and sighed.

“In the end, I need to confront the Saint, so I need information about the battles.”

In that moment, a few rioters attacked from behind.

Sizzle!

Rainer immediately transformed into lightning, incinerating the rioters.

“Oh my, is that really possible?”

As Rainer turned toward the source of the voice, he saw a girl with pink hair, a voluptuous figure, and heart-shaped eyes that seemed to draw him in.

“What’s this? You’re acting all cool after suddenly attacking me.”

“Well, you see, you’re quite dangerous. Your strength and speed are both a threat.”

“So, does that mean you want to belong to me?”

At that moment, Rainer sensed danger and leaped back.

“Hah… Hah…”

“Oh dear? You dodged it?”

What is this? Clearly, if it had gone on like that, I would have taken a hit… Not magic, so it must be divine inspiration!

“It seems you have something rare! Can you keep up with my speed?!”

Rainer transformed his limbs into lightning and kicked off the narrow alley walls, trying to outmaneuver her.

“Then how about this?”

The girl stripped off her clothes, leaving only her underwear.

“What’s this, miss? Trying to seduce me with your body?!”

A thick pink mist erupted all around.

This is bad! Rainer judged the situation and kicked off a building to retreat from the battlefield.

“Oh dear? You managed to escape?”