Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 302

During the week-long vacation that Laius gave him, Arendt suffered endlessly.After somehow shaking off the servants who were clinging to him with tears and snot running down their noses, the next one to barge in was Count Stadler, who was supposed to be in the magic stone mine laboratory.

After shaking off the Count, who wore a face full of such excessive concern that it was almost burdensome and kept prying with endless questions, he returned to his room, only to be greeted by the bright glow of the communication crystal ball.

It was Llewellyn.

He tried to ignore it, but the crystal ball continued to flash and show its presence.

When he finally answered the call, as expected, a torrent of complaints started pouring out.

– Why on earth do you get involved in a major accident every time people take their eyes off you? Take care of your own neck before you tell someone else to take care of themselves, you idiot!

“…You’re so noisy.”

Arendt ended the call and threw the crystal ball into the closet.

At this point, his patience was starting to reach its limit, and the moment he saw Arcus, who had abandoned the busy Union and barged in, it completely disappeared.

“So that’s why you came here.”

Neumann smiled awkwardly after hearing the general circumstances.

Arendt was always somewhat relaxed, yet never lost his air of dignity.

But today, he was so exhausted that he practically collapsed on the guest sofa and lay there.

“I’m going to lose my mind from how annoying this is.”

Arendt grumbled, chewing on his snack with obvious irritation.

Even the movement of putting the snack that Neumann had personally prepared into his mouth was oozing with annoyance.

“If it’s going to be like this, they might as well just give me some work. All they do is follow me around and won’t even let me go near any documents.”

“Heh heh, well, given the nature of the situation, it can’t be helped. I was quite shocked myself when I first heard the news.”

Neumann smiled kindly as he poured himself another cup of tea.

“But isn’t that proof that you are loved? That’s a good thing.”

“…”

Arendt just wore a sulky expression, saying nothing in response.

Neumann, who had been staring at him quietly, spoke again.

“Sir Arthur said he would come to see you before sunset, so you may make yourself at home until then.”

“…Yes?”

Arendt, who had been staring blankly, raised his head in bewilderment.

Neumann smiled as their eyes met.

“Before you arrived, I received a call from the palace. They said that Sir Arendt was nowhere to be seen, and that he might come this way, so please do not let him go anywhere.”

“…”

It was a situation that gave a strong sense of déjà vu.

Neumann spoke a few words to Arendt, who was staring blankly into space, holding a snack in one hand.

“You’re still getting along so well. It’s really nice to see.”

“Seriously, those annoying people.”

Arendt muttered wearily and stuffed the snack he was holding into his mouth.

“Is there any interesting intel?”

“It’s still the same. Nothing much has happened, but there are rumors about Captain Laius and Sir Arendt, who were chosen by the Holy Sword. And…”

Neumann looked at Arendt meaningfully.

“The incident of the statue being destroyed in the prayer room also caused quite a stir.”

But Arendt showed no change in his expression.

Arendt asked, picking up another snack.

“So what were the reactions to that incident? His Majesty declared it to be the work of remnants of the Evil Cult.”

“The people’s reactions are similar. Most people think that we should simply find and punish the villains who committed the blasphemy, but that won’t be easy. If someone can sneak in without being caught and behead the statue, they must be someone with incredible power.”

Neumann, too, did not delve further and simply gave Arendt the answer he wanted.

“It will probably be covered up soon. I heard that His Majesty is already looking for a sculptor to create a new statue. Right now, the interest in who will sculpt the new statue is greater than in catching the culprit.”

“Hmm.”

The fact that attention was drawn to the new sculpture seemed to be the intended result of High Priest Lumiel.

If it was someone like Lumiel, there was a high possibility that she would have had a vague idea of ​​who the culprit was.

This was certainly an unpleasant incident for Lumiel, who had devoted her entire life to her faith in Luce.

‘I have no excuse even if she doesn’t want to meet me again.’

But she seemed to have just pretended not to know.

It was quite an impressive display of understanding.

“I think you would be more interested in the commercial side of things than that?”

Neumann, who had been staring blankly at him, naturally changed the subject.

Arendt, who had been lost in thought for a moment, focused.

“Has anything changed?”

“As your fame grows, the names of the Neumann Merchant Group and the Khan Union are spreading. I didn’t expect this, but it seems to have had an unexpected publicity effect. That means…”

“Rumors have already spread about what happened.”

Arendt finished Neumann’s speech with a weary look on his face.

Neumann nodded briefly.

“Yes. And I have some news that might upset Sir Arendt. Would you like to hear it?”

“What is it?”

“A person sent by Count Eckhart is near the Imperial Palace…”

“That’s enough. I don’t want to hear it.”

“Heh heh heh.”

Neumann burst into laughter at his words being cut off.

“Okay, I’ll take care of it. Your father just…”

“I don’t have a father.”

“…I think the Count is just curious about Sir Arendt’s well-being.”

Neumann, who hesitated for a moment, changed the way he addressed him..

“We’ve got our informants monitoring them closely, but there doesn’t seem to be any major issues. We’ll keep an eye on things for now, and when the time is right, we’ll calmly persuade them and send them back.”

“Isn’t it quicker to just knock some sense into them instead of trying to calm them down?”

“I’ll sort it out quickly. Honestly, I’m kind of afraid that you might end up beating them up yourself.”

When the merchant leader spoke so quickly, a hint of regret flashed in Arendt’s eyes.

“By the way, could you tell me more about the other groups? There have been people trying to make contact with the Neumann Group, right?”

“Yes. The war is about to break out, so they want to establish a link between the imperial family and the front lines to supply supplies before it does. In addition, since you, Sir Arendt, who has ties with me, has gained some more notoriety, I can’t say that your influence hasn’t played a role

The Neumann Merchant Group was supplying various items to the imperial family, so the other merchant groups believed that they could get in touch with the imperial family through him.

Neumann added seriously.

“War is also a battle of supplies, so I’m managing things properly without refusing most of them. The more allies we have, the better. Of course, we’re conducting thorough investigations, just in case the enemy is among them.”

“That’s a good thing, but…”

Arendt frowned slightly.

“How is my reputation like?”

“Haven’t you already felt it in the palace?”

When Neumann asked with a puzzled look on his face, Arendt grumbled in annoyance.

“I can’t even investigate properly because my seniors and the captain are interfering.”

The nobles were unable to even dare to speak to Arendt due to the chilling momentum of Laius and the Third Knights.

Arendt also found himself unable to move, although he initially found it comfortable, because whenever Arendt tried to do something, the knights would foam at the mouth and go wild.

He never dreamed that he would be treated like this in his life.

Neumann burst into laughter as if he knew what he was talking about.

“Oh, I see. Well, let me give you an example to make it easier to understand.”

“An example?”

“Yes, while Sir Arendt was still in bed… a devout noble contacted me and said he was planning to build a new temple for Luce.”

He wanted to obtain materials needed for construction.

Arendt’s brow furrowed at the ominous feeling that was already creeping in.

“And?”

“It was about wanting to build a temple in the territory to commemorate the awakening of the Holy Sword, but to cut to the chase…”

There was a hint of pity in Neumann’s eyes as he looked at Arendt.

“He mentioned wanting to build a prayer room for Sir Arendt.”

“Pfft, !”

The snack flew out of his mouth.

“Oh my, are you alright?”

Neumann hurriedly handed him tea as he coughed repeatedly, his face turning bright red.

Only after gulping down the tea and pounding his chest could Arendt raise his head again.

“, wait a minute, what are you saying? What did he want to build?”

Arendt asked back in disbelief, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

Neumann answered with a weary look on his face.

“It is as you heard. He said he would place the statue of Captain Laius in front of the statue of Lord Luce, and make a small prayer room for Sir Arendt next to it.”

“This crazy…”

The apprentice knight’s gaze turned to the sky as he muttered in confusion.

Neumann looked at him with pity and took a handkerchief from his pocket.

“Please use this. Fortunately, it was said that the plan fell through because the Great Temple did not grant permission, but that’s about it.”

Arendt took the handkerchief, wiped his face, and asked again.

“No one found that strange?”

“Yes, that’s what it seemed like. Rather, everyone seemed to be wondering why permission wasn’t granted.”

“This is driving me crazy.”

Arendt, who had regained his composure, threw the handkerchief down on the table.

Neumann asked him cautiously.

“What will you do? Honestly, I’m having trouble making a decision. As a merchant, it’s true that there are profits to be made, but I’m concerned as it seems there’s nothing good for Sir Arendt in this situation.”

Arendt was always adept at capturing attention and using it in all sorts of unusual ways.

But at least this time, it was something that Arendt had not intended, so it was difficult to predict what the results would be if he moved recklessly.

Arendt thought the same thing.

“Aside from it being annoying, it’s not a very good situation.”

It wasn’t a problem that could be solved just by Laius’ nagging.

They say that everyone in the palace was keeping their mouths shut out of fear of the hero of the Holy Sword, but there was nothing they could do about the public opinion that was outside.

“Why do you think so?”

“There are restrictions on your future actions. A troublemaking, reckless apprentice knight will do whatever they please, but…”

Since he had been given the grand nickname of “The Hero’s Benefactor” by God, whatever he did from now on would be met with interference.

That was not a role that suited Arendt von Eckhart.

It didn’t make sense for a supporting character to receive as much spotlight as the main character in the first place.

While Laius was doing his job, Arendt had a lot to do in the shadows.

“…What should I do?”

Neumann let out a short sigh as he saw the golden eyes sparkle.

“Well.”

That was the look in Arendt’s eyes when he started to plot something, but Neumann didn’t intend to stop him.

‘It’s a miracle that he’s been quiet until now.’

He knew that it would be a bit frustrating for the knights, but they couldn’t keep fighting with that temper forever.

Above all, Arendt preferred it when he was at least causing a bit of trouble here and there.

“If you need anything, please let me know. As always, I will be happy to help.”

“Hmm…”

Arendt straightened up, crossing his legs.

He started to really think about it.

At a time when all eyes were on him, struggling and telling them not to look was pointless.

After drawing attention to the main character, Laius, he had to leave him in the middle of the stage and exit naturally.

That way, he could do some backstage tricks or schemes.

‘Then…’

After a while, a smile appeared on Arendt’s lips.

“Well then, that’s good. There is something Lord Neumann can help me with.”