Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 470

The situation showed no signs of calming down.It was now nearly impossible to track down the summoning stones that had been scattered to an unspecified number of people.

The imperial family and the temple tried their best to collect and deal with the case by spreading a wanted notice, but even that was not easy.

The targets were travelers, merchants, and thieves, so the search warrants did not even reach them.

Moreover, there were cases where people realized that what they had was a summoning stone and were taking it to the police or temple, when suddenly a summoning spell was activated in the city center and the entire territory became a battlefield.

As civilian casualties increased, the Empire was bound to become more chaotic.

The temple was overflowing with the wounded, and the knights, soldiers, and police officers were mobilized for recovery operations, having to move without a moment’s rest.

“Damn, I’m going crazy.”

As these reports poured in, Cantares couldn’t help but scratch his head in annoyance.

Arendt, sitting across from him, spoke indifferently.

“Stop going crazy and come up with a solution.”

“If something like that could come so easily, would I be acting like this, you shameless bastard?”

Cantares, who had raised his head, growled. Arendt simply stuffed the snack Jereon had brought into his mouth.

“There have been a few similar incidents in the Allied Forces, but it seems the Empire is the primary target. I’ve interviewed those lucky enough to survive with summoning stones, and most of them say they acquired them while traveling near the Empire.

The route was also varied. It could be handed over from a wandering peddler, or as a thank you for helping someone who had collapsed.

Sometimes they would steal something because it looked valuable, or they would buy it directly at a high price.

“It seems the Everan Kingdom has suffered particularly more damage than Lucain and Nephele ones. That’s because there’s a lot of people coming and going. For the time being, we’ve decided to close the Kingdom-operated upstream routes, block the entrances, and check each piece of luggage.”

“…How do you know something I didn’t hear?”

Arendt answered the wary question while munching on a snack.

“Llewellyn told me. He said he received a direct call from the Crown Prince. He heard about the situation in the Lucain and Nephele Kingdoms through the Neumann Group. The news arrived this morning.”

“I’m getting a terrible headache.”

Cantares pressed his temples.

“It was also concerning that Roger and Nikephoros disappeared as soon as the incident broke out.”

“Regardless, Lord Lexion and Stellar are searching for them every day.”

Arendt also responded with a rather displeased expression.

“The problem is that they haven’t found them yet.”

Jereon quietly approached and refilled the plate of snacks. Arendt grabbed another snack without even a word of thanks.

“He says they’re expanding the search scope beyond the Empire… but I don’t think Lord Lexion is very hopeful.”

Cantares, who had been staring at him eat blankly, asked incredulously.

“…Is it delicious?”

“Yes. It’s delicious.”

Jereon, hearing the shameless answer, quietly intervened from the back.

“I’ll pack some for you when you leave later.”

“Yes. Thank you. Still, Llewellyn’s side isn’t without its harvest. The number of items recovered by the explorers is increasing, so we have no choice but to resolve the situation as quickly as possible. Of course, it won’t be easy.”

He should be getting used to it by now, but it was absurd to see Arendt enjoying refreshments with such a haughty attitude while making such a grim report.

He felt even more whiplash because he knew that until just yesterday, Arendt had been roaming the battlefield at his dispatched location, mercilessly subduing ghouls.

‘If you face many enemies, you might become more sensitive…’

He had heard that the knights and soldiers were becoming quite mentally exhausted from dealing with the ghouls.

But unless Arendt was seriously injured, he always showed up looking neat.

That guy’s mental power was more frightening than the ghouls’.

“What are you looking at? Is this your first time seeing such a handsome person?”

“…Okay. Eat a lot.”

Cantares responded with a tired expression and brought the topic back to the original one.

“Anyway, my top priority was to keep the front lines from reaching our current borders…”

Arendt waited quietly for his answer, leisurely eating a snack.

Cantares, who had been silent for a moment, added:

“In the end, the battlefield spread even within the Empire.”

“That’s the point.”

Arendt frowned, leaning back on the sofa and crossing his legs leisurely.

“There were similar things at the beginning of the war, but now their purpose is completely different.”

“There’s no need to say anymore. They’re inducing a war of attrition, those bastards.”

Arendt’s brow furrowed.

“Even key players like Nikephoros and Roger are hiding, conserving their power. The reality is that we’re the only ones struggling.”

Another snack disappeared into his mouth.

Of course, they weren’t the ones who would take it easy.

Lexion no longer hid his identity and actively participated in the battlefield, acting as a transporter who quickly teleported knights to the scene of the incident.

Of course, he seemed to feel great regret at being treated as a means of transportation, but Arendt naturally ignored the dragon’s pride.

In addition, the method chosen by Laius to prevent the attrition of troops was also extreme.

Rather than using the security forces or regular soldiers to block the ghouls, he actively utilized the Imperial Knights to eliminate the enemies as quickly as possible.

‘That’s possible because Lexion is acting as a teleporter.’

And that was the result of the leaders consistently accepting what Arendt had been arguing for.

Even Captain Laius was personally dispatched…

Thanks to this, a quick and reliable response was possible, preventing further damage.

And Lexion, who was patrolling in search of Nikephoros and Roger’s traces, would sometimes do a favor and sweep away the ghouls all at once.

“At this point, I think I know what they’re up to without even needing to think.”

As Arendt grumbled displeasedly, Cantares nodded.

“They must be aiming for a surprise attack.”

That was what the Imperial Knights were most wary of at the moment.

There’s a good chance they would raid the palace while Laius is away on site to deal with the situation.

“However, it’s difficult to remove the captain from the field, so we’re working towards his return as quickly as possible. Strategically, it would be far better if the captain were to take action.”

“When you say strategic, do you mean a fight with the temple?”

Arendt nodded.

“Yes. It shows how powerful a hero who turned his back on the gods and was rejected by the temple can be. Wouldn’t it be quite a spectacle?”

“…You were quite genuinely flustered back then, weren’t you? It seems like you’re using the situation too well to have acted like that.”

“He’s asking me to use him, so of course I should. What good is a hero’s name? And it’s true that if he steps in himself, the ghouls will be wiped out in an instant.”

Arendt shrugged shamelessly.

“However, I try my best to ensure the captain isn’t away for more than half a day. so don’t worry about that. And when the captain isn’t around, I asked Lord Lexion not to leave the area.”

“Well, Lord Lexion doesn’t have multiple bodies either. Isn’t he too busy?”

Arendt answered Jereon’s question quietly.

“If a dragon can’t do that, it can’t be helped. And even if he’s busy, is he really that much busier than me?”

Neither of them had anything to say to that.

It was probably the same for the others.

So, Lexion, Laius, and Llewellyn were being treated harshly without saying a word

“…Okay, then go and get some sleep. I heard you came back early this morning?”

“I would have done that without Your Highness even saying anything. But before that, I have a few more things to report.”

Arendt changed the subject.

“Yesterday, during a subjugation, we accidentally destroyed one of the Luce temples. Naturally, all the priests had fled.”

For a moment, a strong look of distrust flashed across the eyes of the Crown Prince and his aide.

“A mistake?”

Arendt shamelessly responded to Cantares’ skeptical question.

“There’s no particular reason to lie about that. Regardless of my true feelings, wouldn’t it be better to just accept it that way? Anyway, please try to sort things out. It’s not a good thing for the Imperial family and the temple to be so hostile.”

“I’m going to go crazy. What on earth did you eat to be so shameless?”

Cantares responded in bewilderment. Jereon burst into empty laughter.

“Haha… I will contact the Great Temple and process the compensation.”

“Yes. And there’s one more thing.”

Instead of thanking them, Arendt changed the subject again.

“Where do you think His Majesty and Your Highness will be when something happens?” Read complete versıon only at novel·fiɾe·net

“What?”

It was a rather random remark.

The Crown Prince blinked twice and frowned.

“What kind of question is that? What are you talking about?”

“As you said, the battlefield is expanding. It’s moving from the border into the inland regions, and closer and closer to the imperial capital. Your Highness, you’ve probably already read the report, so you know that.”

Arendt added, tilting his head.

“The Imperial Palace might not be entirely safe. No, it isn’t. At this point, I can only be certain that this is clearly their target.”

“…I guess so.”

Cantares answered with a slightly hardened face.

“If the time comes, I intend to advise His Majesty to take refuge. But I must remain in my post.”

“Well.”

But Arendt didn’t seem to like that answer very much.

“Well, it would be difficult to vacate the position immediately. But if the imperial palace is attacked, I would recommend that you take refuge with His Majesty.”

“Why?”

“It’s annoying. It’s cumbersome and tiresome. It’s no use having someone who doesn’t even know how to fight brag about it.”

Cantares stared blankly into space for a moment at the sudden, savage retort.

Arendt picked up another snack.

“Captain Laius will take care of it. But with the administrative system practically down, wouldn’t the messages be completely useless?”

Cantares, who had been pressing his temples, let out a curse he couldn’t bring himself to suppress.

“…You shameless brat.”

“If you have any complaints, why don’t you try to refute them? After all, if there’s a sudden attack, we won’t be able to strike and then let our guards down.”

Arendt took a leather pouch from his pocket and placed it on the table.

“Hmm?”

Leaving aside the unfortunate remarks, Cantares opened the package.

On their surfaces was a magic circle that sparkled with gold, and the magic stones were filled with Lexion’s black magic power.

Cantares asked curiously.

“What are these?”

“What else could they possibly be? They’re teleportation artifacts to escape in emergencies.”

Arendt folded his arms and leaned back against the sofa.

“I pressured Count Stadler and Lord Lexion nonstop to make it happen. I hope you appreciate it.”