Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 517: Prologue

There was a time when a rumor spread like wildfire that Lee Soo-hyun was leaving the theater.It was a story with some basis and a high degree of plausibility. Therefore, most members considered it not a mere rumor but an established fact.

The same was true for the director of the theater company, Kang Chang-woo.

He was even mentally prepared. If Lee Soo-hyun were to leave this dusty mess and venture into the wider world, he would send him off with a smile.

Lee Soo-hyun called him out to see him at the theater on a day when there was no practice.

Kang Chang-woo thought that the time had finally come.

‘What would happen to this theater without that kid?’

He was a little confused.

He was the leader in name only. In truth, the theatre was no different from being led entirely by Lee Soo-hyun. But that didn’t mean he could let this old theater stand in the way of Lee Soo-hyun’s future.

So Kang Chang-woo readily agreed to the promise.

Lee Soo-hyun, sitting on the old, worn-out amplifier, said something unexpected.

“Tell the kids not to talk nonsense. I turned down the casting offer.”

“What?”

Kang Chang-woo was left speechless.

He stood in front of Lee Soo-hyun with his eyes wide and mouth agape, while Lee Soo-hyun calmly sipped his iced Americano.

“What.”

At that one indifferent syllable, Kang Chang-woo let out a loud scream as if the seal had been broken.

“You, are you, are you really crazy? You turned that down? That great opportunity?”

“It wasn’t a particularly appealing condition.”

As if he had expected such a reaction, Lee Soo-hyun shrugged calmly.

Not long ago, a scout from an entertainment agency came all the way to this run-down theater to personally look for Lee Soo-hyun.

Then he handed him his business card and earnestly urged him to contact him. Watching this, Kang Chang-woo secretly cheered.

Lee Soo-hyun wasn’t the type of person to be in a small theater like this. He had no doubt that he would go out into the bigger world and someday achieve great success.

“You idiot! How long are you going to live here, digging up dirt and eating it?”

“Even if I go there, it’s not like money would magically fall from the sky. I’m busy trying to make a living. And you’re noisy, so please be quiet.”

“You really…”

Kang Chang-woo opened his mouth in bewilderment.

“Can’t I pay for a few months’ worth of food? You, please! I told you, if you need help, just let me know! Why are you acting like you’re living alone?”

Lee Soo-hyun waved his hand indifferently at him as he shouted.

“Shut up. It’s not like I need help. I don’t know when I’ll be able to pay you back. There’s no guarantee it’ll work out, and above all, I just didn’t want to do it.”

“You really…”

But in Lee Soo-hyun’s next words.

“Okay. It’s okay.”

Kang Chang-woo had no choice but to keep his mouth shut.

“I have no intention of leaving here.”

Lee Soo-hyun was staring at the old, worn-out equipment lying behind the stage with an unreadable gaze.

It was too dry to be called affection, and too warm to be called boredom.

“…But, humanely speaking, can’t you do something about the equipment? Stop worrying about feeding me and just do something about that lump of dust.”

“Hey, I might have money to feed you, but I don’t have money to replace that. The theater’s income barely covers the rent.”

“As the director of a theater company, don’t you have any intention of spending your own money?”

“This guy’s trying to rip me off so brazenly. He knows full well how much I’ve spent on maintenance out of my own pocket.”

The argument that started naturally eventually continued into an impromptu drinking party after dinner that evening.

Kang Chang-woo thought that this kind of daily life would definitely continue in the future.

But by the time the casting controversy faded from everyone’s memory…

The theater ended up losing Lee Soo-hyun forever in the worst possible way: an unexpected accident.

Yes, they’ve had that conversation before. It felt like a distant memory now.

Looking back, he thought that he quite liked that little theater. He may have considered it his only refuge in a life of nothingness.

The problem was that it took so long for him to realize the affection he had felt back then.

. What would Kang Chang-woo say if he told him this?

Lee Soo-hyun had that thought while he was in a daze.

‘Was he going to harass me by saying that I only found out about it now?’

Or maybe he would give him a hard time and ask why he’s bringing it up now. Either way, it was something he could never know.

Now, the name Lee Soo-hyun could never be reclaimed.

His whole body ached. Even the touch of the blanket and clothes against his body felt painful. The strong smell of medicine mixed with the smell of blood made him feel dizzy. He couldn’t tell where he was or what had happened.

“Ugh…”

He forced his eyelids open.

Then, a magnificent ceiling appeared, as if it were something from a Shakespearean play.

That wasn’t some crude stage set or anything, it was real.

He returned, from that fierce battlefield, back to the palace.

“Are you coming to your senses?”

A familiar voice was heard. Arendt shifted only his eyes toward the sound..

Laius sat on the edge of the bed. Next to him, Lumiel lay face down, fast asleep.

Arendt slowly closed his eyes again and let out a sigh that was a mixture of everything.

“Haa…”

A sense of relief. And a renewed sense of despair.

He couldn’t figure out what kind of face he should have when looking at Lumiel.

The dream he had just had and the conversation he had with Lumiel right before he passed out overlapped in his head.

Lee Soo-hyun gave up.

But now there were people who knew that he was not Arendt.

‘What should I do now…’

Because the human behind the performance was caught.

Did acting have any meaning anymore?

From the bedside, Laius continued speaking.

“Your condition has stabilized considerably, so Lord Lexion cast healing magic on you. Still, you’ll have difficulty moving.”

“…”

Arendt, who was about to say something, simply shut his mouth. After a while, he spoke again.

“The High Priest? Is she alright?”

A weak voice came out.

“Thanks to you, the High Priest wasn’t hurt at all. However, she’d been staying up all night by your side for a week, so Lord Lexion put her back to sleep magically. Just as we were about to move her, you opened your eyes.”

“…”

“Let her sleep more.”

Just as Laius was about to turn around…

“Captain.”

Arendt called after him. When Laius hesitated, Arendt spoke as if he had given up on everything.

“If you have something to say, just say it. Don’t look at me with that worried expression.”

Laius sighed briefly and turned around again.

“What are you trying to say?”

“Didn’t you hear anything from the High Priest?”

Laius gave a short reply to Arendt’s unpleasant question.

“I heard.”

“And?”

The reply that came back was somewhat sharper.

“Is that all?”

“Of course I have many questions, but I just didn’t think it was appropriate now.”

Laius spoke calmly, as if trying to appease him.

“Rest now, don’t think about anything. You’ve worked hard. You led this fight to victory.”

“Victory…”

Staring at the ceiling, Arendt let out a hollow laugh.

“That might be true right now. But since we lost the Saintess… In the end, it’s no different from not being able to eradicate the root.”

“I think you’re mistaken about one thing.”

Laius said forcefully.

“That’s not your responsibility. That’s for our descendants to handle.”

“…”

“We must strive for it from now on, just as His Majesty the First Emperor did.”

Arendt, who was about to respond, closed his mouth. Laius slowly added.

“You, me, everyone else… there’s still a lot to do.”

After a while, a somewhat strained voice came from him.

“…Us?”

“Yes.”

Laius nodded as if it was obvious.

Arendt felt something welling up inside his chest. He moved his stiff arm and placed it against his forehead.

“Do you know who I am?”

It was a tightly suppressed voice, as if someone was strangling him.

“I know you.”

Laius answered without a moment’s hesitation.

“High Priest Lumiel, His Highness the Crown Prince, and your seniors all know who you are.”

“You said you heard it from the High Priest.”

Arendt’s breathing grew rougher and rougher.

“I’m not supposed to be here.”

“There is no one who should not be here.”

“I am not the apprentice knight you were trying so hard to rehabilitate.”

“It was you who saved the world, and it was you who I tried to rehabilitate to the point of death.”

After a brief pause, Laius added:

“…One of them never changed his mind in the end, but you’re just as terribly disobedient.”

“Even if I killed that guy and took his place?”

“I don’t know the details. But I know better than anyone that you’re not the kind of person who would do that.”

A meaningless exchange of questions followed.

In the end, it was Arendt who fell silent first.

Laius looked down at him, who still covered his face.

“Arendt von Eckhart.”

“…”

“I know what you’re thinking, but it’s okay. Don’t worry. Nothing will change. You’re just you.”

Arendt still didn’t answer.

Unable to even think about hiding his expression, his face contorted, and he looked like a child alone in an unfamiliar place. A pang of pity flickered in Laius’s eyes as he watched him.

“…Rest.”

Laius carefully carried Lumiel out, giving Arendt some time alone.

The door closed. Only then, as if the seal had been broken, did a loud sigh escape Arendt’s lips.

“Ah…”

Arendt ran his hand over his scarred face.

His stomach churned.

This was a scenario he had never imagined.

‘I feel like I’m going to throw up.’

It felt like the shame he’d been trying to hide had been exposed. At the same time, it felt like the chains that had been strangling him had suddenly been released.

As soon as that thought hit him, everything suddenly felt hollow.

“…”

Nothing will change, huh?

“…Does it really matter now?”

. Arendt let his arm fall loosely onto the bed. After all, neither Laius nor Lumiel were the type of people to go around shouting about such things.

Even the fact that the two of them made him think that maybe it wasn’t a big deal.

The fighting was over, but much still needed to be done. There were things to resolve.

Although he had lost the name Lee Soo-hyun, the role of Arendt von Eckhart still remained for him.

“Hah… haha.”

It didn’t take long for the suppressed sighs to turn into a weak laugh.

“Hahahaha.”

Arendt laughed like a madman for a long time.

Just as he cherished that old, run-down theater, he also quite liked “The Blue Knight of the Holy Sword” that he had so reviled.

And in the end, he fell in love with this damn stage, this damn world.

That fact itself was absurd.

Even after his face behind the mask had been exposed, he felt no urge to leave at all.

‘Ah.’

This place was already his stage.

Far from coming to an end, his life as ‘Arendt von Eckhart’ had only just begun.