“Captain!”
Bam!
The door of the worn-out barn burst open, and a man stord in. Hearing that sound, the woman who had been deep in thought at a desk in the corner of the barn lifted her head.
It was the one who had just been called “Captain.”
“You’re back? Did you check the other side too?”
“Yes. They said the sa thing arrived about an hour ago.”
“Tsk.”
The woman, Amber, clicked her tongue in annoyance.
In front of her was a letter with a familiar pattern engraved on it.
Three swords piercing the heart and a snake climbing over it.
It was the symbol of the ‘Sword of the Broken Heart’, which served God Chernion most closely.
The letter, from an unknown sender nad Roger, contained ominous instructions.
It was an order to change the plan due to internal issues within the royal family and to gather people at the designated location within two days.
“Royal issues, seriously…”
As Amber muttered under her breath, her subordinate Jason cautiously intervened.
“I heard there’s an ally of our faith within the royal family. Could sothing have happened to them?”
“But if that had been the case, there would have been an uproar in the palace.”
Despite all that, she hadn’t heard any news from the servants yet.
That’s why Amber kept hesitating.
“There are only three days left. Then we can overthrow the palace and create Lord Chernion’s world…”
Amber muttered anxiously. In just three days, the magic she had prepared would be activated, and together with Lord Chernion’s soldiers, she would be able to take over the Lucain Kingdom.
Naturally, she couldn’t be happy about the sudden change.
“I looked into it a bit through my contacts in the Neumann intelligence network…”
Jason, who had been observing for a mont, spoke cautiously.
“They say the warrior who overturned the Grand Temple of the Caerleon Empire is none other than a man nad Roger.”
“What?”
“It’s information that was received just yesterday. It seems that our colleagues from the Caerleon Empire leaked it to us.”
Amber also knew very well how accurate the information held by the Neumann informants were.
Even though they were low-ranking mbers, it was true that they had received a lot of help from the employees affiliated with the Neumann rchant Group so far.
“Then… is this really sothing sent from the headquarters?”
“The other branches seed to have co to that conclusion for now.”
Jason replied, though he seed unsure.
Amber had also heard long ago the news that all those who had stood in Laius de Winfried’s way had been arrested.
‘The Imperial Knights of the Caerleon Empire are coming this way…’
She had anticipated days ago that sohow their trail would be caught. But she believed it wouldn’t be a big problem since the miracle soldiers would wake up soon.
‘Even a hero wielding a holy sword wouldn’t be able to face them without suffering any damage.’
She didn’t think they could defeat the hero. Just holding him back for a mont would be enough.
The mont when the successor who had been recognized by Lord Chernion becos the rightful owner of the Lucain Kingdom.
If she could just buy ti until then, the revolution could succeed.
“Captain… shall we gather our comrades?”
At Jason’s question, Amber gently shook her head.
“No. For now, we need to find out what exactly the problem within the royal family is.”
As long as even the slightest doubt remained, it was necessary to assess the situation first before taking any action.
Jason didn’t refute the captain’s words either.
But they didn’t have to worry for long.
Just a few hours later, a familiar-looking criminal appeared in the marketplace, dragged by the Royal Knights.
“…”
When she heard the news of the commotion, Amber ran through the crowd to the square.
In the middle of the crowd, a familiar face was standing with his head bowed, wearing a shabby prison uniform.
He was a servant who shared their views within the palace.
“This sinner was brought to this place on the charge of conspiring with the Evil Cult.”
The knight holding the rope shouted loudly. Then the people surrounding the square began to murmur loudly.
Through the voice, the knight declared majestically.
“The Crown Prince has given a rciful order that those who surrender will be spared from extre punishnt. You must report by this evening. If you do, you will be spared from death, but if you resist to the end, you will be severely punished for the cri of rebellion.”
She noticed a few familiar faces of her colleagues among the crowd.
Their faces also turned pale.
The servant, who had beco a spectacle in an instant, simply hung his head and shed tears on the floor.
It was clearly a face of regret for his decision.
“…”
Cold sweat ran down Amber’s spine.
If they started to waver over sothing like this, the believers might begin to desert in large numbers.
“The problem is… all the people inside the palace…”
Jason muttered.
If that was the case, it would only be a matter of ti before the rightful successor to the kingdom they were to put forward was discovered.
Amber hesitated for a mont, but then made up her mind.
“Gather the people right away this evening. We need to move to the designated location.”
“Huh? Oh, yes!”
Jason, who had been staring blankly, quickly nodded.
If they delayed even a bit more, an insider might betray them. They couldn’t ss things up when the operation was just around the corner.
anwhile, in the dungeon of the Lucain Palace.
Crown Prince Victor brought a chair and faced the prisoners.
Though his face looked as if he might vomit at any mont, he held firm with steadfast resolve.
“You may leave, Your Highness.”
Duke Middleton, who had been standing by, quietly advised.
“No, it’s okay.”
But Victor stubbornly shook his head.
Before them knelt the secret spies of the Evil Cult, captured and bound.
And under Llewellyn’s direction, Duke Middleton’s n were classifying the criminals into two categories.
After Lexion rejoined, they found the remnants hiding in the palace within a matter of hours.
The thod was simple.
They caught one of the cultists and made him kneel, and then Lexion emitted a murderous aura.
It was by no ans easy for a human who could not even control magical power to withstand the presence of a dragon.
In the end, the first servant who was caught confessed the nas of all the colleagues he knew, even to the point of vomiting.
After repeating this several tis, they were able to capture close to forty people.
The types varied: servants, stable hands, kitchen cooks, library caretakers…
‘There are so many people…’
Though his mind kept threatening to slip away, Victor barely held on. Then, he quietly watched Arendt’s back as he walked among the criminals.
He had once again reverted to the appearance of the young servant ‘Len’.
“That should be enough for now.”
Having finished his task, Arendt turned around.
“These here are the ones who can still be rehabilitated. As for those over there, it seems they have no intention of bending their stubborn wills.”
Arendt nodded to the spies gathered on one side.
Then, the servant, unable to overco his sense of humiliation, began to curse.
“God will never overlook this! Lord Chernion’s divine punishnt will rain down upon the palace!”
As if that was a trigger, enraged shouts erupted from all around.
“rciful Darkness is with us. Your Highness, you must open your eyes quickly!”
“Don’t listen to those bastards! It’s ti for the world to change!”
In the dark underground, voices filled with madness echoed. Victor’s face turned even paler, but Arendt remained unmoved.
“You see? They’ve already lost their minds. If they’re like this even without being baptized by the saintess, they won’t change their hearts easily.”
“…I see.”
Victor nodded stiffly. Then he nodded to Duke Middleton.
“All right.”
Duke Middleton, having received the order, raised his hand toward his subordinates. Then the knights drew their swords.
The scene that followed was one that Victor could not bear to watch.
“Ahhhhh!”
“This fucking… ugh!”
Thud, thud.
He closed his eyes tightly, but it seed as if he could still see the tragedy clearly.
Screams, the sound of swords cutting flesh, prayers to the Evil God, and the sll of blood all mixed together.
And exactly ten minutes later, Llewellyn spoke up.
“It’s over, brother.”
“…”
Only then did Victor barely raise his head.
Those whom Arendt had classified as beyond redemption were now lying on the cold floor as cold corpses.
The stones on the floor were covered in blood, and the knights’ swords were also dyed red.
The scent of blood, unfamiliar to him in his life, struck his nose.
And the criminals who witnessed the brutal execution were so terrified that they could not even groan.
“Have you seen it?”
Arendt turned his head towards the remaining sinners.
The sinners began to tremble even more violently than when they had faced the dragon earlier. So of them even began to sob.
“While you’re locked up here, what’s the state of affairs outside the palace?”
Arendt stopped in front of them and said nonchalantly.
“It’s so peaceful. They won’t even know that you’re gone.”
“…”
“You should be glad that you are sinners. Those guys will disappear without a trace of ever having existed.”
The sinners also knew very well that Arendt’s words were not false.
Since they had been dragged here as if kidnapped, even their coworkers likely hadn’t yet realized they were missing.
And now, half of them had lost their lives in ways more disgraceful than those of insects.
As if they weren’t worth existing in this world.
“They fled after joining the Evil Cult… I guess that’s enough. If their kin have any sense, they won’t bother searching for them.”
A cold voice was added to the thick scent of blood.
“No matter how much you pray, God won’t save you.”
A gloomy voice echoed through the blood-filled prison.
“It is not thanks to God Luce or God Chernion that you were saved.”
Arendt walked through the pool of blood on the floor and approached the criminals.
“It is thanks to the rcy of that foolish Crown Prince.”
A hero’s epic didn’t need more blood than necessary.
But since this was reality and not a stage, soone had to be cruel to prevent further trouble.
In that case, keeping it hidden from the outside world was also a viable option.
“…”
Arendt stopped walking and stood before the survivors.
A calm tone of voice ca from the young-looking servant, completely out of place in the situation.
“Now, is there anyone else you would like to talk about? Who was it that you wanted to crown as king?”
But that alien presence only deepened the survivors’ terror.
Although he was rely a servant brought by Prince Llewellyn, they instinctively realized that he was the one who held the initiative here.
“If you don’t know, tell who your higher-ups are. I’m sure one of you will know.”
The survivors began to look around, but their worries did not last long.
The oldest servant among them spoke.
“I, I know…”
A trembling voice flowed out. Arendt nodded.
“Speak.”
“…I don’t even know who the successor is. Ah, but.”
The attendant swallowed his saliva and barely managed to continue speaking.
“It was the aide who gave us orders. After the aide left for vacation, the chief chamberlain took over.”
Victor, who had been watching quietly, licked his lips.
“This can’t be happening…”
“It seems, Your Highness, that you have little fortune with loyal followers.”
However, Arendt rely uttered the words in a tone devoid of any emotion.
“Or perhaps you lacked virtue.”
“…”
In the grim situation, Victor was left speechless.
Finally, Llewellyn, unable to stand it any longer, stepped forward to say sothing to Arendt.
“Hey, that’s a bit…”
“What are you doing?”
But Arendt pretended not to hear and turned his head to look at Duke Middleton.
“The chief chamberlain and the aide. Bring them both.”
“…”
Though it was a commanding tone, in a situation where the kingdom’s sha had been fully exposed, no one dared to point it out.
Duke Middleton simply nodded silently.
“Okay.”
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