Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 365— Handle your own affairs yourself?

Glancing at the Duke who looked like a peacock with its feathers all flared up, Arendt hesitated for just a moment.‘Why are you so surprised?’

Although he was no match for the knights Arendt always encountered, such as Laius and the other Imperial knights, Duke Middleton was not a man who would be intimidated by his presence alone.

He looked older than Captain Kendrick, but his body was quite stocky for his age, and his magical power, as if he had been training for a long time, was quite abundant and stable.

‘It doesn’t seem like it’s an exaggeration to say that he’s been guarding the borders of the Lucain Kingdom for a long time…’

But Duke Middleton was frozen as if he had encountered a notorious serial killer.

Arendt, who had thought that far, suddenly realized.

‘Maybe I overdid the performance a bit.’

The Chernion Cult was, to put it bluntly, a highly suspicious bunch of lunatics.

He tried to portray them as best as he could through his acting, and he was careful not to make it look like it overlapped with the appearance of the servant Len that Llewellyn had brought.

As a result, a small figure, middle-aged tone of voice, and a deliberately hoarse voice were added to the role of this hastily put together Sword of the Broken Heart member.

On top of that, he was wearing a robe that covered him fully and was carrying a large decorative sword that he had found while wandering around, making him look unnecessarily bizarre.

And for a bit of stage effect, he even activated the Frosty Touch, so that the Duke would see him as a cult member who appeared with a chilling air, either human or of another race.

‘Hmm. I should have broken the window when I came in.’

If that had been the case, he could have expected a more interesting effect.

Although he felt a brief regret, Arendt soon changed his mind.

If that happened, it was clear that the knights would flock in right away and the cleanup would become even more troublesome.

“…Tell me your name.”

While Arendt was thinking about this, Duke Middleton spoke hoarsely. The dim moonlight illuminated the Duke’s forehead, which was damp with cold sweat.

Arendt refocused on his role and let out a hoarse, mocking laugh.

“I have no name to give to the likes of you.”

“What is your purpose?”

The Duke shouted fiercely, gripping his sword tightly.

“If you bear a sword, show appropriate courtesy.”

In that moment, Arendt caught a glimpse of the murderous intent flickering in the Duke’s eyes. Silently pushing aside the rising sense of unease, he moved on to his next line.

“Courtesy… how presumptuous.”

The relaxed voice took on an eerie rumble. Having added a spoonful of madness, a touch of useless tragedy, and a hint of deep-rooted arrogance, it was perfect.

“Am I to show respect to the sword? Or to someone as insignificant as you?”

“What?”

“My respect is only to the Great One. You and I are but insignificant beings.”

Arendt burst into mocking laughter.

“You dare expect courtesy. Do you still not understand your place?”

“…”

The Duke did not answer immediately. Instead, he simply calmly examined the intruder before him.

Arendt also quietly observed the other person’s expression from under the robe.

The Duke’s breathing was more stable than before.

Although he had been clearly flustered just a moment ago, his mind seemed to have calmed down considerably now.

‘I’ve finished all my lines…’

Now it was time to wait for the Duke’s answer.

And after a while, the Duke slowly sighed.

“So this is what happens in the end.”

Arendt’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. The Duke, who could not possibly notice it, widened his eyes again and glared at Arendt. His cold, steely gaze was filled with blatant hostility.

“Are you the one who deceived the innocent Crown Prince?”

The answer that came back was the least likely of the scenarios they had considered.

The Duke, who had made up his mind, pulled out the sword that had been resting in its scabbard.

“I knew he was a weak-willed person, but… I never thought he would betray the kingdom and Lord Luce in this way. Are you the one who harmed His Majesty?”

!

The sword was pulled out into the cold air with a sharp sound, reflecting the light and gleaming bright white.

“I warn you. If you do not restore His Majesty to his original state immediately, I will make you beg for death.”

“Hmm…”

Arendt tilted his head naturally.

This made it clear that something had happened to the King and that Duke Middleton had not fallen under the sway of the Evil God.

‘Then does that mean the mastermind might be the Crown Prince?’

Arendt decided to focus on his current role, since Llewellyn would take care of that verification himself.

He too leisurely drew his sword with one hand.

The sword, which had been left as a decoration for a long time and had become corroded, made an unpleasant squeaking sound when pulled out.

“For those who reject the blessings of darkness, only divine punishment remains.”

“Lord Luce will not forgive you and your evil group!”

The Duke shouted like thunder and sprang forward, kicking the floor. Arendt swiftly moved his slight frame, ducking with ease.

The Duke’s sword, radiating a fierce, deadly energy, sliced deeply through the window and wall instead of striking Arendt. For a brief moment, Arendt felt a pang of regret as his dramatic performance unfolded exactly as he had hoped.

“Huh?”

A burst of pure exclamation came from Arendt’s mouth.

The windows were shattered and the walls were clearly marked with gouges.

At this level, his skill was quite impressive. It was enough for the king to trust him and invite him to the palace.

But there was little time to relax, as the next attack was headed straight for him.

“…!”

!

As soon as Arendt sensed the crisis and quickly backed up, a large sword imprint appeared where he had just been standing.

Arendt landed lightly and stood on the shards of glass scattered on the floor.

‘I don’t really feel like showing off my swordsmanship here…’

Arendt, who had been thinking for a short moment, soon grasped the sword firmly with both hands and visualized Glenn’s movements.

It was the moment when Glenn was chosen as a scapegoat without even knowing why.

‘Was it a method of keeping distance and then just striking down with brute force?’

Then, without hesitation, he sprang forward and charged at the Duke.

!

Their swords clashed, sparks flying in the darkness. The Duke parried Arendt’s sword and swung again, but he deftly dodged using his small frame and knocked over the lamp resting on the desk.

The oil-spilled lamp had gone out, and now the only thing illuminating the room was the dim moonlight.

“This bastard!”

The Duke charged forward and brought his sword down in a heavy strike.

The desk where the Duke had been working just a moment ago was split neatly in two. Arendt glanced around to check the surroundings.

Even though they had only exchanged a few blows, the surroundings were in shambles. Even the dullest knights would have noticed something unusual.

‘There’s no need to drag it out for so long.’

Because the goal has already been achieved.

Arendt focused on the Duke again. Now all that was left was to shake off that boar-like Duke and run away.

Just then, he began to sense a group of people running down the hallway.

The Duke seemed to notice it too and flinched.

Before long, !

Someone started knocking roughly on the door.

“Your Grace, what is the matter? Are you okay?”

“It’s an intruder! I’ll take care of this place, so block the entrance quickly!”

The Duke readjusted his grip on his sword and shouted fiercely. It was time to step aside.

Arendt smirked quietly, then quickly stepped back and stood on the windowsill.

“Let’s leave it at that for today.”

“Hey you, are you running away? Aren’t you ashamed?”

The Duke had no choice but to grit his teeth and snapped.

Of course, Arendt had nothing to be ashamed of.

The one whose honor was at stake was the Evil Cult, not him.

“I hope we have the chance to meet again, Duke.”

At the moment when the Duke hesitated due to the momentum radiating from his small body, Arendt spoke.

“Since you asked me for my name, I will tell you specifically.”

Arendt lowered his voice even further, his tone dropping into a deeper, huskier register.

“I am the one who serves the great darkness, the one who brings down divine punishment on you who do not know how to respect Him…”

Though eerie, each word his voice spoke struck sharply and clearly in his mind. Overwhelmed, the Duke stared blankly at him, seemingly stunned.

Arendt smiled and spread his arms wide.

At the same time, he intensified the Frosty Touch a little more. An eerie chill enveloped the two of them.

“My name is Roger. Remember it well.”

“Roger…?”

The Duke muttered absentmindedly, his face crumpling. The moment he saw that, Arendt jumped down from the window.

“Hey, you!”

Snapping back to his senses, the Duke hurriedly rushed to the window. The intruder, moving swiftly, was already fleeing into the darkness beyond.

A few knights seemed to be chasing him, but they were no match for him.

“Haa…”

The Duke sighed in vain and wiped his damp forehead. Even as he did so, he remembered the name that was engraved strongly in his mind.

“…You said Roger.”

A cold voice slipped from the Duke’s lips, his eyes filling with unmistakable hostility.

“You’re acting so proud, even though you’re running away like a coward.”

Duke Middleton was determined not to let him go the next time they met.

“Come up with some excuse, you bastard.”

Llewellyn spoke in a murderous tone, grabbing Arendt by the collar.

Behind him was Crown Prince Victor, his face pale and the healer still asleep.

Arendt looked at Llewellyn and answered him shamelessly.

“I was just doing my job, so why should I make excuses?”

“Hey, you bastard, is that something you say right now? You said you were just going to explore for a bit, but how can you turn the entire palace upside down?”

Llewellyn snapped at Arendt and shook him viciously.

However, Arendt was not someone who would listen to that carefully.

“Oh, what should I have done then? Then I’ll just lie in wait all night, not be able to come to a proper conclusion, and just waste my time? If I’m going to do it, I might as well do it properly.”

“Handling it properly, my ass. Can’t you see the palace is in chaos right now? Isn’t this guy completely crazy?”

Llewellyn, lowering his voice as much as possible so it wouldn’t be heard outside, still let out a barrage of curses.

“Are you really so crazy that you want to die? Why are you causing trouble in someone else’s palace?”

The entire palace was turned upside down as people searched for the missing intruder. Taking advantage of the commotion, Llewellyn dragged Crown Prince Victor to the treatment room where Arendt was.

And soon after, he encountered Arendt, who had returned after shaking off the knights.

“Haven’t I told you before? If you’re dissatisfied, move more quickly.”

“Oh, damn it!”

In the end, Llewellyn roughly let go of Arendt. Arendt shook off his clothes and looked at Victor, who was standing behind Llewellyn.

The Crown Prince was completely dumbfounded and his mouth was agape.

“So… weren’t you a servant?”

The Crown Prince, whose eyes met Arendt’s, finally turned to Llewellyn and asked.

But it wasn’t Llewellyn who answered that question.

“Am I a servant? How can you survive in this harsh world when you’re so blind?”

Arendt, in the form of servant Len, looked straight up at the Crown Prince and sneered.

Victor was left speechless by this treatment, which he had never experienced before, and Llewellyn simply buried his face in his hands due to the unimaginable disrespect.

He honestly felt like a hole was going to be torn in his stomach.