Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 422

Feeling a sharp headache, Ain slowly opened his eyes. The light pouring in from all directions obscured his vision.He tried to move his body, but soon realized that he was firmly tied to the chair.

Even his tendons seemed to have been severed, as he could tell that the strength in the tips of his hands and feet was not working properly.

Only then did the situation that had left him on the verge of fainting slowly come to mind.

‘Am I captured…?’

Then soon, the breath of darkness will soon brush over him.

In the midst of his haze, Ain thought that and closed his eyes again.

He was suddenly brought back to reality as ice water splashed on his face.

“If you’re awake, just open your eyes quickly. Why bother making it difficult?”

“…Arendt. Please. We are not thugs or villains.”

The annoyed voice was followed by a calm voice.

Ain blinked in a daze, water dripping from his chin.

“…”

Only then did the surrounding scenery begin to come into view.

He was locked in a hexagonal room.

Moreover, sitting in front of him was the unforgettable face of the Hero of the Holy Sword.

And behind him was Arendt von Eckhart.

“Are you coming to your senses now?”

Laius met Ain’s eyes and spoke coldly.

Ain, who had been staring blankly, muttered without realizing it.

“What the heck is happening…”

He didn’t lose his memory.

He did not receive Chernion’s blessing.

That one fact alone made his mind go blank.

“I never thought you’d be a real half-dark elf. Isn’t this a pretty good threat? Your elder would probably froth at the thought if he found out.”

“You get out. Or just stay quiet.”

Finally, only after Laius gave a low warning did Arendt shut his mouth.

Even though he couldn’t hear the apprentice knight’s chattering voice, Ain couldn’t hide his confusion.

It was because he didn’t understand why he was still ‘Ain’.

Laius sighed briefly and started speaking again.

“You are currently a prisoner of the Caerleon Empire. I won’t go into detail, but we have found a way to nullify the saintess’s artifact. Therefore, you will not be able to escape due to amnesia or mental confusion.”

“…Hah.”

Ain, who had been listening blankly, burst into laughter.

With eyes like Salem’s, his bright yellow amber eyes began to glow with a blatant murderous intent.

“How dare you mock the warrior of God.”

“Mock or not, if you’re caught, you’re just a prisoner. No need to talk about some ‘warrior of God.’”

.

Laius’ elbow struck Arendt’s side, who was standing behind him.

Laius, disregarding Arendt’s trembles, posed the question once more.

“In the past, the Shadow Tribe followed God Chernion. Are you one of their descendants?”

“…”

Ain didn’t answer.

But it was easy to guess that it was true just by looking at Ain’s appearance.

As the elf blood thinned over the generations, their unique beauty was almost gone.

But his copper-colored skin, amber eyes, and ears that were quite different from those of a human were proof of his lineage.

“As expected, it seems he’s been hiding somewhere and continuing his faith. Just like the spy who was hiding in the Second Elf kingdom.”

It seemed like a similar case to that of Cheltan, who was Jiklin’s teacher.

Cheltan believed that his ancestors had served Chernion, and that it was because of Luce that they lost their lives in vain.

So, he quietly worked as a spy for a long time within the Second Kingdom and even raised a monster called Jiklin.

“…”

Ain didn’t speak.

Laius’ face hardened as he faced him.

‘It won’t be easy.’

His tightly sealed lips and eyes filled with hatred indirectly showed that he would not cooperate easily.

“I already know full well that threats and torture won’t work on you.”

At that moment, Arendt, who had been watching quietly, spoke.

“So let’s both avoid those troublesome matters. There’s no need for us to be hostile towards each other, right?”

“…What are you planning?”

The bound Ain growled fiercely. Arendt met his gaze and continued speaking leisurely.

“As I said before, I won’t torture or threaten you. But I won’t kill you easily either. You know full well that attempting suicide is pointless.”

He noticed a dragon watching him closely outside the barrier.

Ain’s face hardened.

“So there’s no need to waste time. If you refuse to speak, you’ll just live on as the Count’s test subject, breathing meaninglessly.”

Arendt added, tilting his head.

“Rather than that, wouldn’t it be better to struggle to somehow be of help to your god until the end?”

“Don’t wield your sharp tongue carelessly. Such shallow tricks…”

“Luce, don’t you want to mess with that bastard?”

For a moment, a cold silence fell over the laboratory.

Those watching from outside held their breaths, and Arthur let out a short sigh.

Even Ain’s eyes widened slightly.

There was only one person who was calm at the moment: Arendt.

“I think you and I share the same goal in that regard. Of course, the captain here and…”

Arendt gestured outside with his chin.

“Those people might have different intentions, but at least I don’t. Don’t think my goal is just to kill you Chernion Cult bastards.”

“…”

“You’ve already lost your usefulness as a servant of God. So, rather than just sitting there waiting for death, wouldn’t it be better to do something?”

Arendt crouched down and looked straight into Ain’s bright yellow eyes.

“I’m probably the only lifeline you can hold onto right now.”

“…”

Ain asked in bewilderment.

“…Are you serious?”

“Of course. Well, if you insist on staying silent, then there’s nothing I can do. I don’t want to waste my energy unnecessarily.”

Those waiting outside couldn’t help but make strange expressions as they watched him shrug his shoulders nonchalantly.

“…That seems like a rather dangerous statement.”

Diana muttered.

“Even if it’s to appease the enemy, this seems excessive.”

“Well, is that really the only reason he’s saying that?”

Kendrick, who had been watching quietly from her side, muttered.

It was a short statement, but it was enough to grasp the true meaning.

The apprentice knight’s blasphemy was not merely part of a scheme or the rebellion of a child.

Now they too knew better.

His actions, such as jokingly saying that he doesn’t pray to God and engaging in all sorts of ridiculous antics…

Showed that he had always truly hated Luce.

‘The creepy part is that he hadn’t shown it until now.’

Kendrick’s face hardened for a moment.

Arendt, too, was well aware that others were watching from outside.

But the reason he didn’t hesitate to speak was because he’d reached the limit of pretending to be calm…

‘Or was it because there was no need to restrain himself any longer?’

He was a master at completely hiding his true colors, so no one would know until he revealed his true intentions.

But Kendrick wasn’t entirely happy about the change.

‘Diana was right.’

That kind of attitude was too dangerous.

To Arendt himself, and to others living within Luce’s domain.

“Arendt. Stop.”

Perhaps aware of the outside eyes, Laius stopped him. Having already spoken enough, Arendt shrugged and returned to stand behind Laius.

Ain followed Arendt with bewildered eyes.

His scarred face was clearly showing half doubt and half bewilderment.

Laius let out a short sigh and rose from his chair.

“…Let’s talk again tomorrow. I think you need some time to think about it as well.”

“What the heck… In order to stop Lord Chernion, you even made such a blasphemous and insane person an ally?”

Ain, moving his lips a few times, glared at Arendt with poisonous eyes.

“Has the God of Light gone mad? To bestow grace upon such a being.”

“You call that grace? Ridiculous.”

Arendt tilted his head slightly to the side and replied.

“Wouldn’t it be better to use a different term than that disgusting one? Like, ‘The biggest mistake of a lifetime’ that God Luce made.”

“What the hell are you…”

“I’ll make it so soon enough. God probably thought I was a mere plaything. But he’ll realize it soon enough.”

Arendt added, looking straight down at Ain.

“What a huge mistake it was to let me live.”

“…”

Ain, who was about to say something else, closed his mouth.

Laius, who couldn’t bear to hear any more, cautioned him once more.

“Arendt. I clearly told you to stop.”

“Wake up from that dream. When have I ever obeyed you the first time?”

Arendt shrugged and quickly walked out of the barrier.

Laius, who let out a short sigh, had no choice but to follow him outside, leaving Ain behind.

After dismissing all of their subordinates, the captains gathered again in the conference room set up in the laboratory.

The first to speak was Laius.

“I doubt he’ll open his mouth willingly.”

“You already expected it wouldn’t be that easy. After all, he must have devoted quite a few years to the Evil God.”

Kendrick nodded.

Although he appeared to be a human in his mid-to-late 30s, Ain was a half–elf.

He must have served the Evil God for a much longer time than they had expected.

“For now, we must return to the Imperial Palace. Leave this to Count Stadler. We’ve confirmed the experiment was successful, so let’s be satisfied with that.”

“We should hurry with the supply preparations. The faster the supplies arrive, the better.”

As Diana spoke, Laius replied.

“Arthur and Arendt will continue their interrogation here. They have orders to report back immediately with any findings.”

“…Sir Arendt, you said.”

Kendrick paused for a moment and smiled bitterly.

“I’d like to say that, but the circumstances don’t seem to allow it.”

“…”

Instead of answering, Laius simply lowered his head slightly.

This time, Diana asked with a worried expression.

“Sir Arendt seems sincere. Or is he just using his signature acting skills to elicit testimony from Ain?”

“…I don’t really know about that part either.”

After a brief pause, Laius slowly responded. Kendrick shook his head.

“It’s exactly as His Highness said. The lies have really piled up.”

“What matters now is dealing with the enemies that threaten the Empire and Luce.”

Laius continued speaking slowly.

“And Arendt, even if he doesn’t pray to God, has been working excessively on the front lines. He seems to be feeling psychological pressure these days, so please be understanding of his harsh words.”

“Psychological pressure…”

Kendrick nodded with a bitter smile.

“Let’s just accept it as that for now. It’ll be much better for Sir Arendt as well.”

“Thank you.”

Diana stared at him, who was bowing expressionlessly, with somewhat complicated feelings.

‘He didn’t bother to stop Arendt.’

It was a surprise at first, so it made sense.

But before he started talking about God’s mistake or whatever, Laius could have easily stopped him.

‘But it didn’t happen.’

After Arendt was on the verge of death, Laius became sensitive to his condition.

The clashes with the Chernion Cult were becoming more frequent and had seemed to be getting worse recently.

But Laius only pretended to stop him a couple of times, and did not stop Arendt’s dangerous remarks.

It was quite contradictory, considering he was always worried about his well-being.

‘What on earth are you thinking…’

Arendt, who boldly commits blasphemy in the middle of the Holy Empire, and Laius, who was chosen by Luce to succeed the first emperor.

She couldn’t read their minds at all.

The only thing that was certain was that both of them looked terribly precarious.

‘And then there’s the ancient evidence that keeps appearing.’

Diana shook off her thoughts with a short sigh.

It was because she realized that this was not a problem that she could figure out the answer to right away.