Disclaimer: Monster Girl Encyclopedia belongs to Kenkou Cross. The events of this fic are purely fictional and are not at all connected to MGE canon.
Chapter 1: A Stained Book
Have you ever heard the phrase, 'Never Judge a Book by its cover'?
A common phrase, but one that rings true in most situations. However, one must understand that the Cover of the Book is just as vital as its contents.
After all, a bad cover could mislead any reader, it could give the wrong impression. Many have abstained from reading books in poor condition, simply because it didn't look clean.
You must judge the contents of the book, but the cover is what drives the person to read it in the first place.
Humans are biased creatures, consciously or otherwise, they judge a person by their initial impressions. They look outwardly at those they do not know, internally criticizing and judging them.
From their looks to their surface personality, that 'cover' is what decides your future relationship.
So then I wonder,
If you're at the end of your ropes, when you're at your lowest points and all you have left is a bad book to help you.
Would you heed the words of a book stained with blood?
-owo-
I'm not lost yet, am I?…
A piece of paper was held in my hand, one with a written address to where I was supposed to be stationed.
I've been wandering the streets for a while now. The sun was almost down, and I don't exactly have a place to stay at the moment. The cold cracked cobblestone ground slightly shifted under my feet. Crumbling houses covered every corner, made of stone and damp wood. Worst yet, there were rats everywhere.
My eyes have seen at least 13 in the past 10 minutes. I know I used a euphemism and was being metaphoric before but they really do need an Exterminator here,
Rats creep me out,
So far, Lescatie has been… well… let's just say that it hasn't been the shining beacon of humanity it's presented to be. The dilapidated streets were one thing, the locals were another. Most of them viewed me with caution, disdain, or apathy. They kept a fair distance, but I could tell that a few eyes were keenly on my back. I wouldn't exactly say that I'm the model of wealth, if you go by what I'm wearing right now. If anything, my clothes are as average as they came.
But comparing my everyday wear to the sorry state the people here wore, it was like night and day.
Looks like I've entered through Lescatie's dark side… I didn't think I'd see it this early, but…
I hoped this was Lescatie's darkest depths, but I knew I was hoping too much. The scenes I'm looking at right now are the ones Lescatie didn't bother to hide, one can only imagine the things that happen behind closed doors. I took a deep breath, now wasn't the time.
As I walked, I eventually found myself walking past a young boy crouched under a doorway. He was sickly and pale; brown hair covered his head. Bruises could be seen on the exposed parts of his body. I wanted to say that his situation was unique, that he was the only person suffering from this, but…
It's like looking in a mirror…
It reminded me too much of… no, not now.
As much as I wanted to help him, there was little I could do at this moment. I don't have much on me, and I'm already running late. Still, I watched as his eyes turned to me. At that moment, I decided to act. Taking out my last gold coin, I tossed it to him. He looked at me with a tilted head, his eyes watching my every move. I said nothing, just walking off.
After all, it was best if he didn't interact with anyone of my kind.
Eventually, I made my way to the inner parts of the city. The dilapidated buildings gave way to more developed structures. Small cathedrals replaced churches, stone replaced wood, and the streets were noticeably cleaner. You'd think that the neglected atmosphere of the slums would disappear, and you'd be right.
It was instead replaced by a more oppressive one. For every few steps, there were guards watching my every move. Statues of saints, heroes, and the Chief God lined the streets. Their eyes looking down at the ground, their stone gaze bearing down on me. Here, Lescatie's status as a militant theocracy is apparent. Preachers congregated near the plaza, stirring the crowds. Soldiers marched to and fro, steel arms and a cool gaze.
I received a few stares, but nothing as intense as those back in the slums. Here my clothing isn't all that strange, so most would just ignore me.
This is where headquarters was located, I just needed to find it.
Walking a few more paces, I was met with an abundance of banners from different Knight Orders lining the streets. From the looks of it, it was an outwards display of unity between all of them. A sort of symbol of Lescatie's power and might. Taking a closer look though, I immediately knew what this entire thing was.
It was a dick measuring contest between all the Knight Orders.
I mean, come on. The banners weren't even perfectly level, some were noticeably higher than the others. They varied in how expensive they looked too, from simple cloth with an imprint to more vibrant and showy colors and symbols. Top among them being the Order of the Ice-Flower.
I stopped, my eyes looking up at their banner.
Holy Order of the Ice-Flower, the so-called pride of Lescatie. Renowned for its great military, boasting an impressive number of heroes and knights. Led by the one and only Wilmarina Noscrim, arguably the greatest hero of Lescatie.
I don't know what to think of this information, to be honest…
I hope she's doing alright,
Shaking my head, I turned to the streets before continuing on with my walk. I took one last glance at the banner before leaving. I needed to find HQ, after all.
After a few minutes of walking, I stopped by a street sign saying 'Eisenhorn Street.'
According to my notes, it should be around here…
Turning the corner, I looked at where HQ was and then…
I blinked,
I scratched my eyes, shaking my head.
I looked once more,
No… no, there's no way that this is the place…
Okay, when I say the word Inquisition, what comes to mind? A group of zealots, burning and destroying all in their path? Shadow defenders of the faith, doing what's necessary to keep mankind from falling? A morally ambiguous organization hell-bent on keeping the Chief God's vision alive?
There are a lot of images that pop up, words resembling that of infamy crossing through the mind. The phrase 'Nobody Expects the Inquisition' rang true in this situation; after all, I would've never expected it to be anything like this...
HQ–and by the Chief God, I certainly hoped that it wasn't–was large, that much was certain. But damn, did it look unkempt. The roof lost all of its colors; moss grew at the side of the walls, and the stone barrier was chest-high and crumbling. The guards were asleep…
Let me reiterate that, THE GUARDS WERE ASLEEP! Now I know that standing in one spot for hours could get tiring, but being the literal guard, you have a certain responsibility to fulfill.
I say that, but if I was in their position… I'd probably be the first to doze off.
Okay, maybe this place isn't actually HQ, and I made a mistake. There's only one real way to find out since I've never been here before. Walking up to one of the sleeping guards–the one that's least asleep at least–I cleared my throat to get their attention.
I was promptly ignored, or maybe they didn't hear me.
So I tried again,
This time, one of the guards turned their head towards me. His eyes lazily staring into my own. I perked up, alright progress.
I was about to speak… before they promptly turned their heads back and dozed off…
They ignored me…
Again,
Okay, they're doing this on purpose.
Alright then, assholes, that's it. I'm gonna keep annoying your asses until you speak up. Good luck listening to my annoying voice until you pay attention, you damned slackers.
I'm the only one allowed to slack here!
"Excuse me," I spoke up,
This time, one of them turned their head towards me. Progress was made once more, and seizing this chance, I decided to speak.
"I just want to ask, but… is this the Inquisition's Headquarters?" I asked,
The guy perked his brow, a second passed… two seconds… ten… then a minute. After that amount of time, he finally spoke.
"So what if it is?" He stated,
Well, that at least confirmed that this was HQ…unfortunately…
Still, you'd think that a Militant Theocracy like Lescatie would at least try to maintain the local Inquisitorial force, but…
"I see, just wondering…." Saying nothing else, I took a step inside. Walking a few paces, I took a few more gazes at the guards before stopping. Turning to the guards, I spoke up. "So uh… you're not gonna ask who I am or what my business here is?"
This was… completely negligent behavior on their part. Not only were they sleeping on the job, but they didn't even bother to stop a complete stranger like me from stepping in. What the hell was going on with this place?
A tired look formed on his face, eyes scrunching up as he let out a sigh. "Look, kid, we have to sit here and wait in the hot sun and the cold winter for hours on end without breaks. We're hungry, and we haven't had a proper sleep in weeks. Hell, we haven't even been paid shit in months."
Turning back to the gate, he leaned onto the wall before he continued. "The only reason we haven't left is that we want to keep our heads attached to our shoulders. Frankly, we stopped giving a shit on who comes in this dump and who doesn't.
There's nothing here of worth, anyways."
My brow rose,
Wait… they haven't been paid? That was… odd; there should've been a steady income from the government. Something was off; that much became clear. I had questions, a lot of them, but it was clear that the guards weren't too keen on answering. Sighing, I turned back to the building before making my way in.
Seriously, what is going on with this place? I'll get my answers soon enough.
-owo-
I thought that maybe the interior of the building looked a little better, but it looked like I just got my hopes up. Let's list down everything I can see, shall we?
A few cracked windows? Check.
Wear and tear on the walls? Check.
Creaking and rotten flooring? Check.
Dust everywhere? Check that in droves.
Honestly, I didn't expect anything in the level of the Grand Cathedral, but this was just sad. Of course, from what I can infer from the guards, the Inquisition here has a bit of a monetary issue. That's going to make the whole hunting down heretics and monsters part of our jobs harder.
There had to be an explanation for this,
That had to wait, however. Right now, I needed to find the master of Lescatie's branch of the Inquisition. I was supposed to report to him this morning, but I got held up.
Walking through the halls, I was met with a few of my new coworkers. Some were walking around carrying papers, others were sitting and casually talking to one another, somewhere cleaning a bit, probably an attempt to salvage this horrible place.
Safe to say that it'll take a lot more than a few sweeps of a broom to fix this.
I was caught up in this place, to the point where I almost forgot about my original reason for coming here. It'd be faster if I got directions instead of wandering aimlessly, so I'll just pester the next Inquisitor that I see. Walking through the halls, I found myself stepping into the lounge.
Or at least I think it's a lounge. There were a few seats, and empty shelves. Other than that, it was both bland and dusty.
There were two other Inquisitors, judging by the uniforms that is. One male, the other female. The former was struggling to move some documents onto a shelf nearby, while the other was just lazily sitting on the couch without much thought. Her arms were resting on the backrest, her eyes just lazily glanced at mine.
Seizing this opportunity, I decided to speak.
"Uh-hey," I sounded, raising a single hand.
She raised her own hand in response, "Yo," she uttered out.
Getting a closer look, I saw her light brown hair and brown eyes. She had bangs covering the side of her head, while the other side was clipped. She had a bow on her head, an accessory that wasn't part of the uniform and one that I never really expected from an Inquisitor.
"I was just wondering where the Acting Master of this place is?" I asked,
She tilted her head to the hall, "Down the hall, to the left."
With a nod, I made my way over there before…
"Hold up," she suddenly spoke up again. She leaned forward, placing her elbows on her lap as she rested her chin on her hands. "I've never seen you before, who are you?" She bluntly asked.
Her tone was nonchalant, non-threatening, a tone that didn't fit with the image of an Inquisitor at all. That was a nice change of pace in my opinion,
"Wait, is he the new Inquisitor that was supposed to come here this morning?" The other guy said. Moving my eyes to him, I was met with a man with neat black hair and glasses over his eyes. He wore his uniform cleanly, and was doing his best to keep the place as tidy as can be.
Even still, no amount of cleaning is fixing this place, I still appreciate the hustle, though.
"Oh shit, are you?" The girl said, her eyes widening as she leaned forward.
I blinked slightly, I didn't really understand the enthusiasm. Inquisitors get transferred to various places all the time. "Uh… yeah, that's why I should probably report to the Master now so-"
"Oh my God… I can't believe they actually transferred one here, especially after the-'' She trailed off, her lips pursing before the young man decided to finish for her.
"Since your transferral request happened weeks ago, I assume you haven't heard the news." The boy stated, his eyes turning to me as he observed my every movement. And I do mean every; it was like I was being judged for the mere act of blinking.
I know that I'm new here, but do you have to stare at my every movement? There's nothing interesting about me at all.
"What news?" I asked, my eyes turning to the glasses-wearing boy before he sighed and spoke.
"...I think it's best if you let the acting master explain; it's uh… somewhat personal to her." He uttered, turning around as he began filing the papers on the shelves.
Wait, 'her'? I could've sworn that the master's name was Nichol Myers. Maybe I just got the genders wrong… still, is this related to why the whole place is in this state?
"Is this related to why we're stationed in this… place?" I asked, trying to find a euphemism for the current place we're stationed. I mean, I meant no offense, but this place looked like it weathered a hurricane and was then pissed on by a giant…don't ask me how I know what that looks like.
"It's shit, isn't it?" The girl just bluntly said, not even a single euphemism. I'm jealous–I want to be just as blunt as she is, alas…
"Rena!" The boy yelled out,
"What? Don't tell me that this place isn't shit. Even you have to admit that, Rollo." The girl, apparently named Rena, retorted with a dry look.
"I-I know, but…." Rollo muttered with twitching lips before he sighed. "...Look, our situation is just not very good at the moment."
I can tell,
Probably shouldn't voice that out. From the sleeping guards to the dilapidated building, anyone could see that this place wasn't going so well. Still, as much as I wanted to ask them about this, I still had to report to the master.
"I see… in any case; I think I'll go and report to the master now." I spoke up, turning around as I walked to the designated room.
"Good luck out there; try not to get overwhelmed!" Rena yelled out, her tone just as dry as it was playful.
It was a paradoxical tone, how the hell did she do that? But more importantly, what the hell did she mean by that?
-owo-
After weeks of traveling, I finally found myself here. Beyond this door is the official beginning of my time here in Lescatie. Not gonna lie; I was excited at first… after all, the city of heroes was such a renowned place. But now…
I'm not so sure…
Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.
Silence…
I waited for a few minutes, trying my best not to be rude. Before long, I heard a loud thud coming from inside the room followed by a loud 'Kya!'
…
I'm just gonna pretend that I didn't hear that,
Soon enough, the door opened revealing a girl with blonde hair and red eyes. Her eyes were dry, almost like a dead fish's. She had bags under her eyes, and her hair was messy. She gave me a short glare, observing me from head to toe. I stood still, letting her inspect me. This was… kind of awkward, should I say something or should I just let her-
"Who are you and what do you want?" She sharply asked,
Standing up straight, I answered her as best as I could. "Ciel, and I'm here to report to the master."
She raised her brow, her eyes gave me a judgmental look. The awkward silence continued, and I was itching to just get away from it. But I held my ground, first day on the job after all.
Still, who was she exactly? She looked terrible, was she some kind of assistant? If so, then I feel a little sorry for her.
Suddenly, the girl let out a sigh before she beckoned me to come in. Nodding, I let myself inside.
The first thing I noticed when I entered was that… this place was ridiculously messy. Books were thrown all over the place, piles of papers were spread around every corner, and there were even places with spilt ink covering the surface. What caught my eye is the single candle lighting up the entire room placed on the desk a distance away from the documents.
At least it wasn't near any of the papers,
This place was a fire hazard. From the rotting dry wood to the piles of papers, it was clear that a single spark could set this entire place ablaze.
The blonde woman eventually went over to her desk before she looked around for a piece of paper. As she did, my eyes wandered to the papers around. Let's see, financial plans, financial plans, more financial plans…
An eviction notice, a few letters, mission documents…
"You should keep your eyes from wandering," She sharply admonished. I froze, giving a small nod before I stood up straight. When she finally found what she was looking for, she placed it atop the desk before she began to read it.
"...you are Ciel, correct?" She asked,
"Yes, and you are?" I asked curtly,
"Vania, Vania Myers." She answered, her eyes turning down before she continued to read the contents.
Myers, must be the daughter or something. Not too uncommon for families to become Inquisitors, especially not for those in high positions.
Silence resumed once more, her eyes scanned the text as we established visual contact a few more times.
"So…" I began, my eyes wandering around.
"I'm sorry for asking this, but… where's the master of this place?" I asked,
Immediately, the girl suddenly perked up. Her brow was raised, and she looked at me as if I was being serious with my question. What? Did I do something wrong? I was just asking where the master was. Rollo and Rena said that she was here, but the only one here was…
Oh…
…
"Wait, are you the-"
"Yes," She cut me off.
Judging by the fact that she didn't elaborate, it was clear that she wasn't going to explain. But judging from the large amounts of papers, the disheveled look on her face and the sheer dilapidated look of the building.
I came to a soft realization on what may have occurred.
"...Ciel, you were supposed to report here by the morning. Yet you arrived here late at noon. Your face is bruised, indicating that you've had a little scuffle before coming here."
…Probably should've avoided the hit there, would've saved me the trouble. "I had a little incident with the city guards,"
"Is that so?" She asked before she sighed, "I see, very well then… just sign here and you'll be sent on your way. Your first assignment should come tomorrow morning."
Well, at least she was understanding. Moving forward, I read the contents before I signed it. It was the pledge of allegiance, a document of your solemn oath to dedicate everything you have to the Chief God. It was different from a hero's oath, in that it didn't have the usual flowery language.
It was blunt, but it showed the difference between the Heroes and the Inquisition.
"I'm sorry to say this much, but I'm afraid that your pay may be a little delayed."
I wanted to say that I'm surprised, but I'm not. If the sorry state of this place was to be believed, something has definitely gone horribly wrong.
"So, I just want to ask but… what exactly is going on here?" I asked,
Her eyes turned to my own, "So you've noticed,"
"Kind of hard not to," I bluntly stated,
I received a glare in response.Hey now I was just being honest, any idiot could tell that this place isn't in the best shape.
She gave out another sigh, that was her third time by this point. Just how tired was she? A dead fish from the street might look better than she currently did. No offense, just a casual observation on my part.
"Look, the Inquisition's position in Lescatie is…well…" She began, cupping her chin as she tried to think of proper euphemism.
"Shit?" I said, using the word Rena used to describe this place,
She glared at me again, I should probably keep my mouth shut next time.
"...I was going to use the word tenuous, but that works too." She began before she sighed…
Again.
I should start counting the amount of times she's sighed in the few minutes I've known her.
"Something happened, our funds had run dry and now we barely have enough to keep ourselves afloat. We've fallen so far off that the nobility and the factions within them barely consider us a threat." She continued on,
Looking at the various files and papers, it looked like she was working herself to the bone just to keep this place afloat. It was honestly quite admirable, if not a little sad. Judging from her age, she must be new to the job. Inquisitorial Masters, at least the ones I knew, were middle aged or older. She looked just around my age, if not a little older.
"What exactly happened here?" I asked,
She just gave me a tired look before she spoke again.
"It's none of your concern, just let me handle it. Go on and find yourself a place to stay, we have guest rooms here you can stay in… as bad as it looks, they're mostly stable." She continued on, her eyes turning to the rest of the papers.
That doesn't put my mind at ease at all,
"Wait, hold on. Being a new Inquisitor here, doesn't this make it my concern as well? I mean, maybe I can help-"
"As much as I appreciate your desire to help me, Inquisitor Ciel, It would be unwise to thrust you into these matters so suddenly." She retorted, not even bothering to look into my eyes.
Looking at her eyes, I can see that she's not gonna take another answer.
"...I see, alright then." I uttered,
I would probe for more information, but much like the guards, it was unlikely that she'd have the time or energy to answer. With one last glance, I left the room. Seriously, what the hell happened to this place. I could form a picture in my head, but nothing too concrete or surefire.
Shutting the door behind me, I let out a small sigh. Usually, transferals are met with a more festive introduction. Nothing too big, just a small ceremony with a few people and the new arrival signing a paper. But here, she just had me sign the paper straight up.
I guess that we just can't afford that courtesy right now, understandable but damn…
Looking down the halls, I decided to go and find these guest rooms to go and sleep early. Despite only being awake for a few hours, this entire revelation left me somewhat exhausted.
I let out a dry laugh, if I get tired from this much then who knows how I'll do tomorrow.
I guess I'll just give it my all.
Author's Notes:
Alright, a few things first.
The Chapter's a little slower than the last one, but it should set up a few things I have planned here. I think I'm getting the hang of writing in First Person, still, it feels weird not eriting the internal thoughts of characters different from Ciel.
I should probably say this now, the Monsters won't show up for a while. The initial stages of this would be Order Centric, so it cou take a little while before even the first monster shows up.
The next chapter could take a while since I'll be focusing on UTGO's next chapter. It's almost done and would be out pretty soon.
In any case, feel free to leave a few reviews and criticisms since this is still pretty experimental for me. Writing Ciel is a challenge since I've never written something in first person until now, so feedback would be appreciated.
Have a nice day!
Whamo out!
