The Mad Priest of the Slums

In the car heading to Benjamin’s mansion.

“Are all priests of the Verdia God like this?”

“What do you mean?”

When I turned my head and asked, Benjamin pulled out a case containing cigars from his chest, took a deep sniff as if inhaling a drug, and said, “I can smell the strong scent of courtesans.”

“Oh, you mean that.”

I had been with women before, but this wasn’t my first time. It was just my first time using a place like a courtesan house.

“I heard that it’s a serious flaw for a courtesan not to get on the bed after inviting a guest into the room.”

“So?”

“I thought it was basic manners not to damage her reputation, as it’s her workplace and I’m the one seeking help.”

“So you slept with her?”

“If you want to put it that way, yes.”

Benjamin stared at me for a while and then burst out laughing so hard that his chubby cheeks shook.

“Only a naïve man would believe such a simple lie.”

“So, it was a lie?”

“What? Hahaha!”

I had no idea what was so funny, but Benjamin laughed for a long time, holding his stomach.

“Of course it’s a lie. Tell me, young priest, do you think any man who goes into a room with a courtesan comes out without doing anything?”

“Well, maybe if he saw some hideous scars after she undressed.”

“Even though this place is full of crooks, courtesan houses are businesses, and trust is their lifeline.”

“Got it.”

“Haha, don’t feel too bad. If the courtesan is as skilled as a top star in a house like that, money won’t be a problem.”

“She certainly looked well-off.”

I was about to leave because she seemed tired, but she clung to me, asking me to stay even if it meant lowering her fee.

“A handsome and clean-cut face like yours is rare in this rotten city.”

“I haven’t looked around enough to feel it yet.”

“Give it two days, and you’ll see.”

Once Benjamin started talking, I realized he was quite chatty, as our conversation didn’t stop until we reached his mansion.

**

“You’re more frugal than I expected.”

“I live alone without a family, so there’s no need to waste money on grandeur.”

I didn’t agree. What I meant by “frugal” was that, for a ruler of the northern district, his mansion was modest. But from an ordinary citizen’s perspective, it was more like a palace.

Benjamin’s mansion was three stories tall and large enough to combine three big buffets.

As soon as the car stopped, the woman who had greeted me before came over and opened the door. Benjamin opened his own door and got out.

“Would you like to eat first?”

“I won’t say no.”

The woman who opened the door seemed to be Benjamin’s secretary, as she personally guided me to a dining room on the second floor.

The place looked more like a party hall, far from “frugal.” However, it wasn’t overly lavish either. If he were the ruler of this district, he’d have many subordinates and visitors for gatherings, so such a large mansion and dining room made sense.

“What’s the best way to address you?”

“Just call me Benjamin.”

“Alright, Benjamin.”

“Yeah, that sounds just right.”

While waiting for the food, Benjamin asked questions we hadn’t covered in the car:

Why I wanted to serve two gods, what I did before coming here, and my age. However, Benjamin avoided asking anything too difficult.

“Are you sure you want to do business with me?”

“Yes.”

“Then why are you so secretive?”

I didn’t answer everything, not because I wanted to hide anything but because I thought it was better to stay silent rather than lie and risk being exposed.

Anyway, as the word “secret” was thrown around repeatedly, men dressed sharply in tuxedos—whether they were servants or employees, I wasn’t sure—entered the banquet hall with four-wheeled trays loaded with delicious food.

“Tastes great.”

“Of course. The city’s best chef made it.”

“Impressive.”

Although I didn’t say it to Benjamin, I made a mental note to dine here again.

“Very satisfying meal.”

“Glad to hear it.”

After dinner, we toured the mansion. We stopped before a giant portrait of a noblewoman hanging at the center of the first-floor hall.

“She’s beautiful.”

“Indeed. That’s my wife.”

The woman in the portrait had a grace and beauty that even Vivian couldn’t match.

“Is the man next to her a younger you?”

“Why ask something so obvious?”

I nodded quietly. The man in the portrait looked nothing like the chubby man standing beside me.

‘What happened to him?’

The younger Benjamin in the portrait was the most handsome man I’d ever seen—sharp features, intense eyes, and even a mustache that suited him.

“Benjamin.”

“Speak.”

The mansion didn’t show any signs of a woman’s touch.

“You should take care of yourself. If you meet her looking like this, she might hit you.”

“Hahaha!”

Benjamin burst out laughing again.

“You’re the first person to say that.”

“I am a bit unique.”

“More than a bit.”

With a grin, Benjamin patted my shoulder.

“Let’s go see the man you need to meet.”

“Alright.”

Benjamin’s tone shifted from “young priest” to “you,” but I didn’t mention it.

“This place has a basement?”

“Not something I show outsiders.”

“It feels that way.”

As soon as we stepped down, the atmosphere shifted from modern to medieval.

“I apologize.”

Benjamin habitually lit a cigar.

“It’s fine. A smoke after a meal is polite.”

“Ha, you know your manners.”

Benjamin transferred the flame to a lantern.

“It’s rather gloomy here.”

“It’s for locking up fitting people.”

The person who would decide our future dealings was locked in a nearby cell.

“Boss!!”

A man rushed to the bars.

“I didn’t leak any information! Please believe me!”

“What do you think?”

I gave my first impression of the man in the cell.

“He’s younger than I expected.”

“I trusted him, and he stabbed me in the back.”

“Boss, please give me a chance to explain!”

His face looked genuinely desperate.

“I’m here to help. But first, listen.”

“R-Really?”

“Shh.”

The man clamped his mouth shut.

“I’m a priest. Benjamin hired me to find out if you’re truly innocent.”

“…”

Benjamin slightly raised one corner of his eye, then shrugged and gave a small chuckle.

“Read this and sign if you agree.”

“If you agree after reading this, please sign here.”

While holding Olivia from the Moon’s Enchantment for a brief moment, I handed over the pre-prepared contract for Vishua.

“1. All interrogations must be conducted within dreams.”

“If it’s in a dream, my physical body won’t be harmed, right?”

The man rolled his eyes to glance at me briefly before continuing to read the contract.

“2. The assistant must be Olivia, the courtesan working at the Moon’s Enchantment… Olivia?!”

“Yes, that Olivia.”

Contracts made in Vishua’s name permit no falsehoods.

Knowing this, the man started reading faster, avoiding looking at my face.

“3. The assistant may leave the dream at any time if they wish.”

“4. For the safety of the assistant, the subject’s hands and feet must be restrained during the interrogation.”

“5. All of the subject’s senses will remain amplified by a factor of ten during the interrogation.”

“6. The boss takes no responsibility for any sexual dysfunction caused by excessive pleasure in the real body.”

“7. The interrogation lasts for six hours of dream time.”

“8. If the subject endures the full six hours, they win and may leave the dream without saying anything.”

“9. If the subject surrenders before the six hours are up, all their memories will be recorded in the boss’s dream in book form.”

“10. Regardless of the outcome, the subject forgets everything that happened in the boss’s dream upon leaving. This clause, for the assistant’s human rights, is non-negotiable.”

After finishing the reading, the man swallowed nervously with his dry tongue, looked up, and spoke.

“J-just add ‘ace courtesan’ next to her title, and I’ll sign right away.”

“Certainly.”

I pulled out a fountain pen from my front pocket and amended the contract as he requested.

“Is this good?”

“Wait, just one more thing…”

He scanned the contract one more time.

“At the end, add that the boss will take full responsibility for protecting me if I prove my innocence.”

“That will require drafting a separate contract.”

When I said this, Benjamin threw his half-smoked cigar to the floor and extinguished it.

“Do it.”

“Very well, one moment.”

I generated another contract with the necessary funds and included the requested clause, handing both it and the fountain pen to Benjamin.

Scratch, scratch.

Without reading it, Benjamin signed, and I handed him the signed contract back with the pen.

“Th-thank you! Thank you, boss!! I’ll prove my innocence no matter what!!”

The man signed his name on both contracts himself.

Fwoosh!!

Unlike Verdia’s contracts, which vanished like smoke, Vishua’s contract burned to ashes as the agreement was sealed.

“The interrogation will start tomorrow afternoon. See you then.”

“I’m counting on you, priest!”

He repeatedly banged his forehead on the floor in gratitude, and I shrugged as Benjamin and I headed back upstairs.

“Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed.”

“In what way?”

“In every way. I think you’re underestimating these underworld types. Tenfold? Drugs are easier to get than freshly baked bread. I guarantee that no matter how skilled that courtesan is at nighttime arts, you and I won’t get what we want.”

Benjamin looked bitter and disappointed.

I tilted my head and asked him.

“Mr. Benjamin.”

“What?”

“Was there any mention in the contract about how the interrogation would be conducted?”

“Of course there was…”

Blink.

Benjamin blinked several times before staring at me.

“Why is it missing?”

Because I didn’t include it.

Instead of revealing the answer, I returned his earlier words, slightly altered.

“Tomorrow, you and I will both get exactly what we want.”