After choosing to leave, they regretted it.

"That's true, but even if hypnosis isn't used, there are other methods I can use. Anyway... forget it."

The fact that the brave man suffocated the priest was outrageous no matter how you looked at it, but since it had been done, there was no point in saying more.

Villian shut her mouth, squatted down, created a magic circle, and began to carefully examine the other party's situation.

"No, nothing was found."

After a moment, she stood up and replied.

This made Aize frown:

"No trace of spiritual magic?"

"No."

"What else? Have you found anything else?"

"No, nothing at all... Oh, there's a little bit of magic in him that doesn't belong to him."

"what happened!?"

"Judging from the composition, it seems to be human magic, and it should be juvenile, probably left behind during some... uh, intimate contact."

"……ha?"

After a brief brain freeze, Aize buried his face deeply in his hands.

Young man, translate it, little boy.

The priest and the little boy, um...

But it should have nothing to do with this incident. We just need to notify the local nobles later.

All in all, there was no trace of mind manipulation.

The results of the examination after the trial by Archbishop Colin were exactly the same as those on the church side.

Aize closed his eyes and began to think.

This went on for several minutes, with no result.

He opened his eyes and asked:

"Weir, are there any spiritual techniques that can affect a large area over a long distance?"

The witch rubbed her chin, thought for a moment, and then shook her head.

"Hmm...how big is the ultra-long-range, ultra-large-area range? What exactly does the impact mean? Psychic spells are generally very complex, consume a lot of mana, and are difficult to use. They can basically only be used against one person."

“Aren’t there any groups?”

"For mass... there are military-level spells that can cause insanity, but the range is only a few dozen meters, and the effects aren't long-lasting... Why are you asking this?"

Aize kicked the priest on the ground - now that he knew his shameful little secret, there was no need to continue to respect him.

"This guy's mental state has undoubtedly been affected by something related to Rosaline. And Rosa herself has been staying in the Holy City all this time, so the scope of this influence must be quite large."

"Furthermore, this guy is just a village priest. He has no status, and there's no point in brainwashing him specifically. Therefore, this influence should be limited—at least targeted at certain specific individuals within the range, rather than just one."

"Finally, the influence... uh, I'm not sure how to put it. Fanaticism? Blind faith? Dependence? A strong rejection and rebellion against established authority? Probably something like that."

The witch smiled bitterly:

"This effect is too abstract. How can such a technique exist?"

"……Right."

"As for the range and distance... If the Holy City could reach here, wouldn't that cover most of the continent? I've never heard of a technique of this level."

In other words, there are no clues.

Aize fell into thought again.

But after thinking about overclocking, there was still no result.

It's not surprising, as there has never been a so-called reasonable explanation when it comes to Rosaline.

In the past, if I couldn’t think of it, I wouldn’t think about it. It was no big deal.

But this time, when something is already happening, it would be dangerous to give up thinking.

So, Aize made up his mind:

"Let's go, go back."

"Back to the house?"

"No, go back to Tafia."

Aize's expression became very serious.

"Recently, Rosalyn is planning to participate in an expedition led by the Empire. Although I don't know what she's up to, it's definitely related to these inexplicable events. I want to see for myself what she's up to!"

Chapter 9 Where is not a vacation

Villian has never had any objection to the decisions made by Aize. The two quickly reached a consensus and then acted separately.

Villian went back to pack her things and deal with the traces left over from this period, including the puppets, to avoid exposing her identity.

Aize went to find the local lord.

After all, although Rosaline's matter is important, we can't just leave this x-fetish priest alone.

The guards were called and he was thrown into prison.

Then, instead of going back immediately, he came to the river bank where he had fished in the morning.

The person he was looking for was the body used by his informant in this meeting, the middle-aged man he had talked to while fishing in the morning.

Fortunately, he did not leave, but took over Aize's position and continued fishing.

He walked up to him without saying hello and spoke directly to him.

"Emergency code, 3319, immediate meeting required."

"ha?"

The middle-aged man who was relaxing leisurely was completely confused. He turned around and glared at Aize with a very dissatisfied look.

"Who are you? What inexplicable things are you talking about? How dare you disturb me..."

Then, his expression seemed to have suddenly pressed the pause button, frozen in place, and then twisted and struggled a few times like a broken puppet.

"…I'm having lunch. What's up?"

Accompanied by a cold and dissatisfied voice, it returned to the same state as before.

This means that Aize’s intelligence chief is online.

The other party is currently in the Holy City, relying on his unique skills to temporarily take over the bodies of others to transmit information.

Generally speaking, this transmission is one-way, but through a specific language similar to a code, it is still possible to forcibly contact the other party in an emergency.

Just like it is now.

This is rarely done because it violates the principle of concealment first and carries the risk of exposure.

"There's something new."

Time was urgent, and Aize didn't bother to disguise his identity. After looking around to make sure there was no one around, he directly explained what had just happened.

This made the other person's expression change from gloomy to cheerful.

After listening, she sneered:

"This Rosalin is getting more and more outrageous. So, what do you want from me? Do you want information about the expedition? Unfortunately, the informant from the Empire hasn't responded yet."

"No, I know everything about the expedition. It will be faster if I participate directly through Chris. You don't have to worry about it for now."

"Then what should I worry about?"

"Notify your informants in various locations. Under the premise of ensuring safety, contact local church clergy, priests, nuns, or anyone else. It doesn't matter. Lead the conversation to Rosaline and see if there are any unusual reactions."

This aspect is to assess the scope of the impact and whether it is really as exaggerated as expanding to the entire continent.

On the other hand, it is also an insurance policy.

What if the priest just now was an exception?

What if he is really just a Rosalind's bootlicker?

Then wouldn't it be just a blind guess if I just kept thinking about it here?

It never hurts to investigate.

The other party nodded:

"Okay, what else?"

"Go investigate the information related to the Pure White Saint Sect."

This request made the other party suddenly unhappy.

He crossed his arms and said in a complaining tone:

"Wasn't this investigated over a year ago? Subsequent tracking and surveillance have been ongoing. The conclusion remains unchanged: no anomalies, no contact with other forces, and no suspicious movement of funds, supplies, or personnel—until now. What? Don't you trust my findings?"

This guy has a bad temper, especially when his work content is questioned.

Aize quickly waved his hand to apologize:

"No, no, no, that's not what I meant. I want information about their members."

The other party raised an eyebrow.

"Members? They're all ordinary civilians, with a few guards at most. They have absolutely no background worth mentioning. What's the problem?"

"Just pick a few of these people... uh, maybe a dozen or so, and investigate them in detail. It would be best if you could dig out every detail from their life to the present. Then, package it up with the agreed-upon intelligence and send it to me."

The other party did not reply, but looked at Aize.

Then he shifted his gaze and looked back at the fishing line rising and falling on the lake.

Then he said:

"What? Did you think of anything?"

"Not yet. I just feel that these affected people must have something in common that we've overlooked. I want to re-investigate it, which may be a breakthrough in the incident."

"Okay, leave it to me."

The other party exhaled slowly, sat back in the chair of the original owner of the body, revealed a somewhat tired expression, and said with a wry smile:

"This job is really hard. Not only do we have to guard against demon invasions and nobles causing trouble, but now even heroes can't be trusted. Oh my god~ maybe I should just quit."

As he spoke, he even leaned back in his chair and stretched out, his fat body causing the chair to creak.

Then he turned his head and glanced at Aize with a teasing expression:

"Master Aize, if I resign now, what will you do? Will you feel troubled?"

Aize's intelligence chief is undoubtedly a woman, so both her actions and tone are quite feminine.

But in the joints, most of the people who use them are men.

Aize still hasn't fully adapted to the weird and funny feeling of dissonance brought about by the conversation.

Just like it is now.

Watching an obese middle-aged man complaining about being tired from work and wanting to quit in a girlish tone and gesture...

How should I put it? It was a truly amazing experience.

As for what she said, Aize could only hold his forehead helplessly.

"...If that happens, the intelligence system will be paralyzed, and it will be a disaster."

This world has no internet or telephones, and the techniques used for long-distance communication are extremely complicated and inconvenient, so information transmission is extremely slow and unsafe.

In comparison, this young lady's abilities have already reached the level of Feng Ling Yue Ying.

If she did resign, it would mean the entire system would have to be rebuilt.

Needless to say, it will cause paralysis for a period of time. Even if it is rebuilt, it can only rely on traditional techniques such as carrier pigeons or trained monsters to deliver messages.

Then we will not be able to achieve the current effect at all.