Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 157: It’s possible if you smile.

The Emperor, Philip Al Caerleon, looked at the young man quietly.He felt the same way when he first saw him at the banquet, but Arendt was a very unique young man.

Watching him quietly like this, he felt incredibly calm for his young age.

So much so that at first glance it seemed like he had no interest in anything.

His handsome or beautiful face, which was both indifferent and cold, seemed to not match his flashy actions and statements from before.

Cantares also often said:

It was the same even then.

It was true that he was the one who suggested that they talk later, but what kind of crazy guy would dare call the most important person in this country by sending a note through a servant?

He was not an idiot, so he definitely knew what he did, but seeing him ask for a favor without any nervousness or fear…

‘I guess I didn’t misjudge the person.’

He thought he knew why the Crown Prince, who was picky about personnel matters, kept him by his side even though he cursed at him so much every time.

Emperor Philip was pleased.

“Yes, actually, I had a rough idea of ​​what the matter was when I saw the note. There aren’t many problems in this Empire that the Crown Prince can’t solve.”

The Emperor rubbed his chin with a wrinkled hand and spoke in a seemingly light tone.

“And, I am partly responsible for things turning out this way… Since this is the case, I will say that the rudeness shown up until now is not a problem. Of course, I will not scold those cute servants you sent.”

“What do you mean by responsible?”

“Literally. I was the one who put that guy, Theodore, in the position of the High Priest, and I was the one who left most of the state affairs to the Crown Prince and withdrew to the back room, so you could say that I was the one who eliminated any means of keeping the High Priest in check.”

After saying that, the Emperor paused for a moment and then continued.

“If I may add an excuse, it was a decision I made because I could not have foreseen this situation. When I was still in the frontline, the Empire was at peace, and the Crown Prince was capable, not just because he was my son, but because anyone could see that he was capable. He has great qualities both politically and as a monarch. Although it was a little early, I thought there would be no problem.”

“I still feel like you’ve stepped down too early. Would you mind if I asked the reason?”

At this point, Arendt asked something he had been wondering about.

While his similarly aged counterparts, Priest Lumiel and High Priest Theodore, are still active, the Emperor has stepped down from his duties early on, handing over much of his authority to the Crown Prince.

The fact that the Crown Prince was able to control the nobles early on and take power relatively without much fuss was also because the Emperor was very considerate and erased his own presence.

“Haha. I inherited this position during the most peaceful times, and I just lived comfortably. It would be of no benefit to the Empire for someone like this to occupy this position for too long.”

Philip ran a wrinkled hand down his chin.

“And recent events have proven that my judgment was correct. Everyone has different abilities. I am good at maintaining peace, but I think the young Crown Prince would be better at overcoming troubled times.”

“…So, aren’t you saying that you ended up leaving the troublesome matter to His Highness the Crown Prince?”

“Hahaha! As expected, you really see through the essence.”

“I don’t think it’s something to laugh about.”

“Hahaha. Yes, the Crown Prince is capable, but he is still young.”

The emperor burst into laughter and stared at Arendt with mischievous eyes.

“So, it looks like you want to stir up that old man in the back room again.”

“There’s no point in not using the most powerful card you can play right now.”

“Haha. You dare use me as a means. Have you ever seen such a fool?”

Even as he said this, the Emperor seemed delighted the whole time. It seemed as if his conversation with this arrogant but capable young knight was simply amusing.

Arendt was also slowly realizing that the emperor he was facing was no ordinary person.

He thought he knew where the eccentric side that he sometimes saw in Cantares came from.

In that case, it seemed that the actions that this side should take would also be sufficient as per ‘Arendt von Eckhart’.

“I am truly sorry, Your Majesty, but I too am somewhat in a hurry.”

“If you say you’re sorry with a face that shows no remorse at all, I don’t know what to say in response. Anyway, yes. I’ve already heard the details of the situation. Even the Crown Prince came forward and submitted a petition, but he ignored it, right?”

The Emperor added playfully, then changed the subject to a more serious tone.

“And you want me to persuade the High Priest, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm…”

As if pondering, the Emperor slowly leaned back in his plush chair.

Arendt’s brow furrowed slightly as he observed the emperor’s every move.

It was clearly an intentional act to show that he was troubled. Perhaps the Emperor had already decided on an answer in his head from the moment he received the note from Seton.

And Arendt’s prediction turned out to be surprisingly accurate.

Emperor Philip asked plainly, his eyes darting around like a mischievous child.

“Then what can you do for me?”

“…Are you talking about a deal?”

“As I said earlier, I heard that you like to trade. I heard that you got connected with Khan in that way too. I would like to join in on the fun.”

Although the tone was light, his gaze seemed to be like a grandpa looking at a grandson, but unlike before, his deep blue eyes were studying Arendt as if searching for something.

It was clearly meant to be sincere.

“Is there anything Your Majesty would like?”

“Oh, you’re not even embarrassed. What I wish from you… Well, guess. What could I, the master of the Empire, wish from a mere apprentice knight?”

Arendt, who was quietly looking at the smiling Emperor, let out a short sigh.

“I think you should change the subject a little. I am not just a mere apprentice knight, but a rascal, a troublemaker, a scoundrel of the Third Knights, and even someone who is a scoundrel to the Crown Prince. You must have something to expect from a scoundrel apprentice knight.”

And one of the things Arendt did best was…

“If I may venture a guess, I think you are suggesting that I get rid of something you don’t like.”

“As expected, it’s a well-deserved reputation. Then guess one more thing. Who do you think I hate seeing?”

“Based on the flow so far, it would probably be High Priest Theodore. Am I wrong?”

“That’s correct. That’s the answer.”

The emperor applauded with admiration a couple of times.

“Is it okay if I ask for the reason?”

“That’s because he’s an old man who missed his chance to step down.”

Arendt burst into laughter at the concise answer that came back without a moment’s hesitation.

“You said it was persuasion, but you had no intention of ending it on good terms from the beginning.”

“This is a lame excuse from an adult, Lord Arendt. I tried to persuade him several times, surprisingly enough.”

This was the first time he heard this story.

As Arendt blinked, the Emperor continued speaking slowly.

“It was before I handed over my authority to the Crown Prince. I suggested to him that it was time to slowly prepare to step down.”

It wasn’t a request to immediately give up the position of the High Priest. It was just advice that it would be a good idea to gradually establish a successor and prepare to step down.

“He pretended to understand, but he didn’t keep his promise.”

“Did something happen?”

“At that time, there were several disciples that Priest Lumiel was interested in and nurturing. They were of a fairly good age, and there were often stories about them being the successors of High Priest Theodore and Priest Lumiel. They were pretty good in my opinion, but were still far from catching up to Priest Lumiel.”

The Emperor continued speaking, adding a playful remark.

“Do you know what happened shortly after I made that suggestion to the High Priest?”

“…Did something happen to those disciples?”

“They were suddenly sent to a temple far away from the palace. I heard they are now living a leisurely life there.”

“The exit route must be completely blocked. Wouldn’t that be a demotion?”

“Well, some people, including me, thought so, but most people didn’t take it that way. Since they were all appointed as the head of each temple despite their young age, it didn’t seem like such a bad thing at first glance.”

“…”

As Arendt’s expression became strange, the Emperor asked slyly.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I thought, ‘He’s a sinister old man.’”

The Emperor, who had been dazed for a moment, burst into laughter at the words.

“You really don’t know what it means to be gentle. How can you treat the world’s greatest high priest like that?”

“I hear that often.”

“…Your personality is no joke.”

To the Emperor who looked at him with absurd eyes, Arendt again asked the Emperor.

“Is His Highness the Crown Prince among those who shared the same opinion as Your Majesty?”

“I guess so. But there was no evidence, and it wasn’t something that could be stopped, so I just let it go… So this is how the mistakes from back then come back to haunt me.”

The Emperor added bitterly.

Since the ’emperor’ of a country admitted his ‘mistake’ in front of his subjects, it was clear that he deeply regretted his decision at that time.

Arendt added one more piece of information to the character of High Priest Theodore.

Several of the questions he had so far have been answered.

‘That’s why he had almost no presence in the novel.’

When the Emperor handed over power to the Crown Prince early on, he probably couldn’t have predicted that this situation would come to pass… but looking back at the situation at the time in “The Blue Knight of the Holy Sword”, it was an understandable decision.

The Empire, which had been in a long period of peace, began to show signs of rotting from within as its nobles began to boil over.

The Emperor, sensing danger, boldly chose a generational change.

In fact, Cantares successfully carried out the Emperor’s intention and seized power, so his intention was fully successful.

Thanks to this, the fight against the evil cult was almost entirely left to the Crown Prince.

Arendt thought for a moment, then finished calculating in his head.

“…I understand what Your Majesty said. Since you mentioned the deal first, I think it would be okay for me to proceed with the conversation.”

“Of course.”

The Emperor smiled warmly, looking upon the capable young talent of the Empire who had a slightly prickly attitude.

But it didn’t take long for that smile to crack.

“Taking all the circumstances into consideration, I dare say…”

“Okay, feel free to talk.”

“It doesn’t add up.”

“…”

The Emperor’s mouth opened slightly.

But Arendt just stared shamelessly straight ahead at the emperor as if nothing was wrong.

“If I didn’t know anything, I wouldn’t know it, but when I look at it this way and that, it’s overwhelmingly disadvantageous to me.”

In all the years he lived as the master of this Empire, he had never once heard such a presumptuous… no, it was beyond presumptuous, it was so arrogant that it was ridiculous.

Unlike the Emperor, who was speechless at the absurdity, Arendt laughed heartily.

“Up until now, we have only exchanged where we stood, but the real negotiations start now. Are you ready, Your Majesty?”

The golden eyes stood out particularly under the warm light, curving like crescent moons.