Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 374: Rather than a uselessly grand name

“…Why on earth did it turn out like this?”Victor, who had been silent for a long time, finally began to speak.

“I don’t doubt it. But I just don’t understand. How on earth did things get to this point…”

Victor muttered in confusion.

“It surely must have been peaceful. I thought I was doing well. I worked hard with His Majesty, and my mother and the noble consort always encouraged me, saying I was doing well. But, why on earth…”

“Your Highness. Calm down.”

Duke Middleton placed a hand on Victor’s shoulder. When Victor raised his head at the rough touch, the Duke spoke forcefully.

“I could not protect His Majesty, but I will definitely protect Your Highness. That would be the least I can do to atone for my brother. I will sacrifice my life to protect Your Highness and the kingdom.”

“Uncle…”

Victor muttered blankly.

Meanwhile, Llewellyn flinched slightly and stole a glance at Arendt standing behind him.

As expected of a genius at controlling facial expressions, he kept his head bowed in a quiet manner the whole time.

But he couldn’t hide the look of displeasure in his two fiercely glaring eyes, no, he didn’t hide it.

Maybe it was fortunate that he was disguised.

If he had been in his original form, that insolent mouth would’ve been dealt with long ago.

The back of his head stung from the piercing gaze.

“Oh, anyway. Let’s not risk our lives if we can help it. The Duke will have to support His Highness for a long time.”

“…Yes. I will. Especially in situations like this. But if the time comes, I will not spare my life.”

A look of determination came over the scarred face of the old duke. Llewellyn found himself speaking frankly.

“I’m sorry, but weren’t you suspicious of each other just a few days ago?”

“…”

Victor and the Duke suddenly looked taken aback.

Only then did Arendt finally soften his fierce gaze, while Llewellyn, on the other hand, felt an urge to punch himself in the mouth.

It was clear that he had been infected by Arendt.

Llewellyn quickly changed the subject.

“Ah, anyway, first, the two of you should assess the forces. We still don’t know how the situation will unfold, so it’s best to be prepared. And I hate to say this, but… the Third Knight Order of the Caerleon Empire and the Royal Guard from the Second Elf Kingdom are already en route to the Lucain Kingdom.”

“Oh, come to think of it, wasn’t there another person in your group?”

Victor suddenly came to his senses and asked.

“Where is he now? I heard he’s a wizard.”

“He was sent out on a reconnaissance mission. The mood throughout the kingdom seems ominous.”

Llewellyn dodged the topic briefly before giving a brief account of the frequent disappearances that occurred across the continent.

“If you add up all the missing people, it amounts to a fairly threatening number of troops. There are surely cases we haven’t identified yet. On your side, no concrete evidence has been found so far, so it’s still just speculation. But now that something like this has been discovered inside the royal palace…”

Llewellyn nodded to the pieces of paper on the table.

“You two can’t just let this slide, can you?”

The Duke and Victor swallowed dryly at the same time. For a while, silence fell over the Crown Prince’s office.

Victor, who had been silent, glanced at Arendt, who was standing behind Llewellyn.

“…I will do as you advised. I am grateful that the Caerleon Empire is actively helping us. And shameless though it may be…”

Victor opened his mouth stubbornly, even though his throat was burning again.

“There’s one thing I’d like to ask you.”

Llewellyn realized that Victor’s words were directed at Arendt, not at himself.

“I will listen, brother.”

“I love my family more than anyone else, so it is impossible for me to fairly judge whether they are guilty or not.”

Victor continued speaking slowly.

“I know that the most likely suspects are my mother, my aunt, and my two younger siblings. So I would like to ask you for a favor.”

“Your Highness!”

Duke Middleton called out to him in surprise, but Victor’s resolve was firm.

He looked straight into Llewellyn’s eyes and, beyond that, to Arendt.

“I won’t interfere. If necessary, I’ll also leave my fate in your hands. For an incompetent man like me, that is the best I can do. I sincerely apologize for shirking the responsibilities I ought to bear.”

Llewellyn could well imagine how long it must have taken the compassionate Crown Prince to say such words.

Llewellyn nodded with a stern face.

“I understand what you are saying.”

“I will prepare the meal for you shortly.”

They were asking to judge guilt or innocence on the spot.

Just as Llewellyn was about to readily agree…

“Cough, hmmm.”

From behind came a clearing of the throat, like a subtle nudge.

It was Arendt.

Llewellyn and Victor both paused at the same time. Then, as if on cue, they subtly shifted their gaze to glance at Arendt, who stood behind Llewellyn, not a servant, but Arendt himself, trying to read his expression.

Arendt looked at the two men with an extremely indifferent expression.

They couldn’t tell the details, but they were sure that he wasn’t very happy with the conversation that was going on.

Llewellyn quickly changed the subject.

“…Shall we talk about that later, brother?”

“Yes, yes. That would be good.”

Victor also nodded his head sheepishly.

“Seriously, again? What are you dissatisfied with now?”

As soon as they got back to the room, Llewellyn asked in a weary voice.

It was because he was sweating profusely while watching Arendt’s expression throughout the conversation.

Arendt responded grumpily.

“I didn’t like it from the start. While his determination is admirable, the Crown Prince himself must carry out the punishment. Only then can he fully take responsibility for his bloodline.”

“No, but…”

“No matter how much of a black sheep you are, can you really stain your hands with the blood of another kingdom’s royal family?”

Llewellyn, who was about to refute, shut his mouth tightly at the cold voice that followed. Arendt clicked his tongue.

“Yes, you could stain your hands. Even if they are members of the royal family, they are all just the same people. But even if the Crown Prince gave us that kind of authority, there is no guarantee that it won’t become a problem later.”

“…”

“Even if the situation calms down, do you really think that person will firmly grasp the royal authority and push forward according to his own will? Honestly, whether it’s this guy or that guy, they’re all useless.”

Just as Arendt was about to irritably sweep his hand through his hair, he caught sight of himself and stopped.

Llewellyn replied in a complicated manner.

“But I can understand. It seems like my brother considers them as his family.”

The fact that he naturally called her “aunt” was proof of that.

“I honestly think that just by deciding to judge his loved ones, he showed the true face of a Crown Prince. He won’t back down now.”

“No, for the Crown Prince’s own sake, we must not do that.”

But Arendt was resolute.

“Just imagine leaving your beloved family in the hands of others to be executed. Are you really sure you won’t regret it? Wouldn’t it be better to condemn them yourself?”

“…”

Llewellyn couldn’t bring himself to refute that.

Arendt glanced at him and sighed deeply.

He didn’t like it either way.

Whether Crown Prince Victor left it in someone else’s hands or executed them himself, it was just an unpleasant tragedy in itself.

There was a brief pause in the conversation, and Arendt’s communication crystal began to glow. Arendt frowned as he answered the call.

“What.”

-…The captain called, so why are you saying that? What would you do if it was His Highness who called and not me?

Laius’ calm reply came from beyond the communication port.

“My answer wouldn’t have been much different.”

-…

Laius fell silent. Llewellyn couldn’t help but feel a moment of sympathy for him, forgetting the situation for a moment.

After a while, Laius changed the subject, seemingly giving up on everything.

-What’s the situation over there?

“We’re in big trouble now.”

Laius had to remain silent for a while after hearing the sudden remark. During this time, Arendt briefly reported the situation inside the Lucain Palace

In a situation where saying ‘we’re in big trouble now’ wasn’t an exaggeration, Laius sighed.

-I understand that, but can’t you show a little bit of urgency?

“What do you want me to do? You know that’s just how I am.”

“Honestly, I think it’s not normal for a captain to be asking questions like that in this situation.”

Llewellyn, who had been listening to the conversation between the two, couldn’t hold it in any longer and said something.

But Laius pretended not to hear and continued talking.

-It’s fortunate that the prince is here. We’re currently en route to the Lucain Kingdom, but an unforeseen situation has come up, so I’m reaching out urgently

“What is it?”

Laius gave a short answer to Arendt’s question.

-We were attacked while passing through a village.

“What?”

Llewellyn let out a surprised voice without realizing it.

Arendt frowned slightly and urged him to continue the story.

“Were they the Chernion Cult?”

-That’s right. To move quickly, we chose the least traveled routes, but a pursuit squad caught up with us along the way.

This was another unexpected development.

Laius’ explanation continued.

-They weren’t modified humans or homunculi. Most of them didn’t even have magical powers, let alone divine powers.

“…This is driving me crazy. Are you saying they were all civilians?”

-That’s what it seemed like. They seemed to have had some training, but it was still a bit awkward. Judging from the fact that they were imitating tactics similar to those of the security force, they seemed to have trained together. I’m guessing that no high-ranking figures were involved, and there were no signs of them being affected by artifacts.

The fact that there was no trace of the Breath of Mnemosyne at work meant that they had fought the Imperial Knights and the Elven Guards solely of their own free will, without being controlled.

-We’ve captured them all and handed them over to the security forces, and we’re moving on. It’ll probably take a few more days… I guess we’ll have to hurry.

“Check their identities with Lord Neumann and the Khan Union. They might be missing persons reported to the Information Bureau.”

-I already reported this to His Highness the Crown Prince. I heard that Captain Diana will be in charge of it.

Laius answered as if he knew that he would say that.

-Nothing is certain yet, but I think they are trying to stop us from heading to the Lucain Kingdom.

“Ha, seriously.”

Arendt scratched his head, irritated.

“Since Llewellyn is here… it must have been obvious where the knights who set out from the palace were headed. That means there must be people watching near the palace.”

-That’s right. It seems like there’s an organization that has connections with the people inside the Lucain Palace. Their headquarters is probably inside the Lucain Kingdom…

Laius, who had paused for a moment, added:

-If this situation continues, there is a high possibility that it will develop into a civil war.

What was even more eerie was that there was still no sign of interference from the Chernion Cult.

Even if the Sword of the Broken Heart did not come out directly, it meant that the Chernion Cult had begun to exert influence sufficiently among the civilians.

-Be careful, it’s dangerous. Move with the safety of the prince and yourself as your top priority, and focus on protecting His Highness Victor.

“I would have done that even if you didn’t say anything. I will take good care of the life of the Crown Prince, who is like a lump of scrap metal. I think even the most noble Duke will fully cooperate.”

“A lump of scrap metal…”

Llewellyn muttered. Laius was also silent for a moment before calmly speaking.

-You shouldn’t call His Highness Victor a lump of scrap metal.

“If you don’t call scrap metal scrap metal, then…”

Just as Arendt was about to complain, Laius changed the subject.

-Oh right, and one more thing.

Unlike before, his voice sounded somewhat regretful.

-Arthur asked me to tell you he was sorry.

“Yes?”

-There’s a good reason for that.