Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 112: A Man Who Is Braver Than He Should Be

Arthur frowned as he examined one of the frozen corpses.“What are all these?”

“I told you, they’re ghouls.”

Arendt took a long moment to catch his breath and then answered briefly.

His cold breath rose in a hazy manner and gradually dissipated.

“They were trying to trick Count Stadler into making these…”

“It looks like they managed to make them.”

“That’s not it.”

Arendt lightly denied Richt’s words, bending down to examine the rolling debris.

‘It’s sloppy.’

The ghouls that were completed with the addition of Count Stadler and Vincent were not ones that could be dealt with with just this much firepower.

In the novel, several famous people, including police officers, soldiers, and even knights, were killed by those who ran at them endlessly.

Those who failed to complete their research ended up sending out unfinished products.

“Let’s just keep going inside.”

Arendt’s gaze turned to the depths of the cave, where the darkness had gathered, the place where the ghouls had just burst through.

Laius nodded.

“Be careful, there might be remnants.”

Thud, thud.

The party’s footsteps echoed through the cave.

Occasionally, groups of ghouls would appear, but they dealt with them without a hitch and went deeper and deeper.

“It stinks.”

“It seems to get worse the further we go.”

Arthur agreed with Richt’s soft muttering. The smell of rotting corpses, barely noticeable at the entrance, permeated the air.

After going a little further, they were able to pass through the road and come across an open space.

The trained knights stopped for a moment after feeling the ominous magic that was approaching.

Arendt frowned briefly at the stench that was incomparable to anything he had ever experienced before, then raised his head and checked what was in front of him.

“…Huh.”

And then, he let out a short exclamation.

Although it was a sight he had never seen before, it was not all that unfamiliar. The scene unfolded before his eyes, just as it had been described in the novel he had read over and over again.

A giant magic stone was placed in the center, emitting an intense light, and a blood-red magic circle surrounded it.

It was so hilarious that he almost burst out laughing.

‘This was it.’

The reason Vincent and Blake came to this distant land together.

As Arendt strode in, the knights who had been standing there in a daze also came to their senses and started moving.

There must have been a problem during the creation process, as several ghouls that had not been able to escape were seen rolling around on the magic circle.

“It seems like all the ghouls that were trapped here were released in an instant.”

Laius calmly kicked one of the motionless ghouls with his foot.

It was designed so that when they sensed the presence of an outsider nearby or after a certain amount of time had passed, the ghouls would all run out at once.

Arthur began to examine the red magic circle on the floor.

“This is a magic circle I’ve never seen before. Its shape is a bit different from the ones that are usually used…”

“It was probably a seal.”

“Huh?”

The group raised their heads at Arendt’s voice that suddenly interrupted them.

The apprentice knight, who ignored the magic circle, approached the magic stone.

It was the source of the unpleasant magic that filled this space.

A large magic stone embedded in a pillar carved from black rock radiated ominous magical power.

Looking closely at the bottom of the pillar, he saw that there were a few more magic stones embedded in the area where the magic circle touched. However, they had already lost their light.

“Perhaps this big thing was the power source that moved the ghouls, and a magic circle was spread over it to seal them away.”

“Then the reason for his appearance here…”

“So this was the goal.”

It was Richt who answered Arthur’s question.

Laius added shortly.

“If we had left even a little later, the nearby houses would have been burned to the ground.”

The fact that Blake blew up the entrance so abruptly must have been a signal he sent. He must have expected that the Imperial Knights would be chasing him.

His plan was to have the knights who arrived late to discover the sight of civilians torn to pieces by ghouls.

His heart sank.

“There are more.”

At that moment, Arendt blurted out:

Everyone’s eyes were on him.

“What?”

“There must be a few more like this scattered throughout the empire.”

They wanted to ask how he knew that, but the knights just kept their mouths shut after seeing Arendt quietly staring at the magic circle.

It was because they discovered that the golden eyes had turned as cold as ice.

But that was only for a moment. Arendt, who clicked his tongue as if he didn’t like something, soon relaxed and shrugged his shoulders.

“Let’s leave for now. There’s no need to waste any more time here. If I stay any longer, the smell will make my nose rot.”

“Huh? Huh huh…”

Arendt shook the blood off his clothes, turned away from the magic stone, and walked away first, staggering.

The three people who remained exchanged glances.

There were many things they wanted to ask him, but now didn’t seem like the time.

Laius, who had been following Arendt, opened his mouth calmly.

“Let’s leave this place as it is for now. Later, we’ll ask Count Stadler and the Imperial Magicians to conduct a proper investigation. Since we’ve dealt with all the ghouls, there shouldn’t be any problems.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Arthur and Richt looked back every once in a while, and eventually had no choice but to follow Laius and Arendt out of the cave.

Henry and Arcus, who had been waiting anxiously outside the cave, could not help but be astonished at the sight of the knights.

“Are you all alright, Commander Laius?”

“There are no casualties. They weren’t difficult opponents, so there’s no need for worry. More importantly, I would like to go see the lord.”

Henry gave a distant look to Laius, who spoke indifferently.

“I’m sorry to ask you this, but… you want to go like that?”

“Ah…”

Only then did Laius look down at himself.

The wind that blew through the front made him completely covered in the ghoul’s rotten blood. In addition, he was covered in flesh and all sorts of debris, so anyone who encountered him in the middle of the night would faint.

The others did not look much different.

Henry suggested, trying to sound calm.

“First, let’s stop by the police station… you’ll be shown where to wash up. I think it would be best to see the lord after that.”

“Thank you.”

Laius, a little awkwardly, decided to accept the favor.

The group returned to the police station and surprised the waiting police chief once again.

After giving orders not to let anyone approach the cave, not even the security guards, the knights first began by removing dried bloodstains using a nearby stream.

Afterwards, they went into the town, washed themselves, and when they came out, a carriage sent by the lord greeted them.

While the knights were straightening their bearings, Henry gave the lord a heads up in advance.

By the time they arrived at the castle, it was already past evening, but even with their late arrival, the lord welcomed them without any concern.

“It is a great honor to have you visit us, Captain Laius de Winfried.”

Countess Lilliet greeted them with a bright smile.

The countess was Henry’s maternal grandmother and the ruler of the area.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Countess Lilliet.”

Laius bowed his head respectfully, taking the hand extended by the countess.

Whether it was because she was happy about the greeting or some other reason, Countess Lilliet’s wrinkled face broke into a bigger smile.

“I’ve prepared a meal. Come, everyone, let’s go to the restaurant together. Henry, you come too.”

“Grandma… It seems like you’re happier to see Captain Laius than me, who you haven’t seen in years.”

Henry’s bit of whining was naturally ignored.

As if they wanted to somehow compensate for the hardships they had endured during their journey, the restaurant had prepared a meal that was almost like a banquet.

‘He’s the main character for sure.’

Arendt thought absentmindedly, his mouth full of food.

Laius’s difficult childhood and dramatic growth story were very famous. It was natural that he would attract the attention and favor of nobles who were always looking for something interesting.

Of course, there were times when he was subject to jealousy and envy, but there were many who were drawn to his overwhelming power and upright character.

It seemed like the lord was one of them.

The lord listened intently to Laius’ explanation, which may have seemed absurd at first.

“Ghouls… This is the first time I’ve heard of such a thing. I see. Okay, I understand. I’ll have to be especially careful.”

Countess Lilliet nodded repeatedly with a serious expression on her face.

As the dinner grew longer, Arendt quietly left the restaurant first.

His leisurely pace slowly quickened as he reached a place with little people.

“Damn, nothing is easy.”

Of all the possibilities he had in mind, the most annoying and bothersome one happened.

He never thought Vincent’s belongings would show up.

The good news was that he could still stop them, and he had information. He could roughly guess where the ghouls’ lairs were and when they would appear.

But…

‘If I continued to not tell them anything, it would become quite annoying. It could even be dangerous.’

He remembered the gazes the knights had been sending him inside the cave.

It was clearly an expression that said they had a lot to say but were holding back.

As he said before he started, there was a limit to pushing forward with Arendt’s temper.

What was needed now was probability, legitimacy, or someone with the power to overpower them all.

And fortunately, there was someone in that position of power who was easy to talk to and who could act as an accomplice.

Arendt, who returned to his assigned room first, took out the communication crystal ball he had secretly brought with him.

Soon after, communication was established.

– What?

“It’s me.”

– …

A deep sigh could be heard from the other end of the communication crystal at Arendt’s sudden greeting.

The person at the other end was, of course, Cantares.

Arendt got to the point right away.

“Did you hear the report from the captain?”

– Yes.

“Listen carefully from now on. We must mobilize not only the Imperial Knights but also everyone we can, if we do not want to see corpses walking around the empire, preying on civilians.”

– What?

Cantares let out a question at the sudden remark. Regardless, Arendt quickly continued to say what he wanted to say.

Cantares, who tried to intervene several times to ask questions, soon realized it was futile and just listened.

Finally, when Arendt’s instructions were finished, Cantares asked in a slightly quieter voice.

– I see. So, Captain Kendrick and Captain Diana need to move separately?

“Yes, the knights will probably suffice for other places. Tell Captain Laius to leave for that place as soon as the sun rises tomorrow. It will take a long time to get there.”

This was the best he could do for now.

From across the communication channel, a scritch scratch sound of someone taking notes could be heard.

– I’ll order him to sortie right now. I’ll also give a separate search order to the police. Even if I ask for details, it seems like you won’t answer anyway.

“Yes.”

Arendt couldn’t say things like, “I already know what’s going to happen next because I read the novel.”

Once again a loud sigh was heard.

– Do you not realize how huge this is?

“Of course.”

– If things go wrong, I’ll be ruined too.

If the Imperial Knights were to move in vain, it would be a truly major disaster.

“I want to see Your Highness perish, but I don’t want to sink with you.”

– You shameless brat. Okay, I get it. You owe me a lot for this.

“The debt is not mine, but yours. I know full well that this is madness.”

– …Let’s just consider it as an exchange.

With that, communication was cut off.

‘I think this will be fine.’

There was no one in the Knights’ Order who was so great as to disobey the Crown Prince’s orders. And since Cantares was so skilled, he would probably be able to fabricate a plausible route for obtaining information. Follow current novels on novelhall.com

Now all that was left was to wait for Cantares to detonate the bomb he had passed on.

If the Crown Prince did it himself, then it would be considered plausible enough.