Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 475

“Leave?”The young servants gathered in groups of three or five widened their eyes.

“Are you saying this all of a sudden…?”

The chief chamberlain took in all the attention focused on him and spoke as if nothing had happened.

“The palace has been in turmoil both inside and out recently. This is His Highness’ order to reorganize. First, you, who are still minors…”

“So, by reorganization, do you mean I can never work in the palace again?”

Someone asked with fear.

The other children seemed to be thinking the same thing, their faces turning pale.

The chief chamberlain, seeing that sight, spoke in a softer tone.

“No way. Given the recent turmoil, we’re focusing on retraining veterans and reestablishing discipline. Don’t worry, your salaries will remain the same during your leave.”

“…”

Only then, as if relieved, did the children sigh here and there.

However, Seton, Enoch, and Rosie were exceptions.

They instinctively realized why they were suddenly being asked to leave the palace.

Seton, who suddenly came to his senses, began to speak.

“I will…”

He intended to say he would remain in the palace, but the chief chamberlain called him first.

“Seton.”

Thanks to that, Seton ended up frozen in place.

Looking straight into Seton’s eyes, the chamberlain spoke calmly.

“Please take care of Enoch and Rosie. They have nowhere to go, so I’d appreciate it if you could let them go with you.”

“…”

Seton was speechless and moved his lips.

He didn’t want to run away, but if he said he would stay, Enoch and Rosie would surely say the same.

Even if they were told to leave him behind, as the chief chamberlain had said, they had nowhere to go.

Unlike himself and the other servants who grew up relatively wealthy, the two of them didn’t even have proper families.

“…Yes. Of course. I will do that. I don’t think Father will object.”

After a long while, Seton nodded. Then Enoch called out to him urgently in a small voice.

“Seton!”

Seton also answered with a very quiet voice.

“We’re only going to be a nuisance if we stay here. So let’s go home together.”

“…”

As always, his voice was affectionate, but his tone was firm, as if he would not allow any objections.

Thanks to this, Enoch and Rosie could no longer protest.

The voice of the chamberlain continued.

“In the meantime, let’s each work hard and not neglect to refine ourselves. It would be good to each study what it’s like to work in the palace and learn the necessary skills.”

The chief chamberlain, who had been silent for a moment, slowly added:

“I look forward to seeing you again someday. Take care of your health. If anyone doesn’t want to come back, feel free to announce your resignation. I won’t ask for any reason.”

Even the children who didn’t know what was happening could sense that the atmosphere was unusual and stayed silent. The source of thɪs content is novel⸺fire.net

After a long time, Enoch spoke.

“When we meet again, I won’t be a child anymore. I’ll do my best to make that happen.”

Rosie, who was hanging on his arm, was on the verge of tears, but the chamberlain tried to ignore her.

‘Thank you, Your Highness.’

The palace would become even busier as there would be a shortage of workers to run errands.

But it was not the right thing for an adult to leave children who knew nothing in a place where a fight could break out at any moment.

Younger servants were allowed to leave the palace, and senior servants were also allowed to take leave if they so desired.

Thanks to this, the palace became even quieter than usual.

“They move so quickly at times like this.”

Arendt, who had been flipping through the book calmly, spoke.

“I thought they were just the type to stay put, but turns out they were just plain lazy.”

Of course, the people he was referring to were not the servants.

It was the noble officials who disappeared from the imperial palace without a trace.

“Weren’t they the one who kept nagging me about reducing unnecessary damage?”

Arthur replied curtly from the sofa opposite him.

Arendt answered, looking up from his book.

“That’s true, but it’s a bit disappointing that those who used to call me a blasphemer and a traitor who threatened the safety of the Empire are the first to back out.”

“I totally agree with that part.”

Of course, the Emperor or the Crown Prince will not hold them responsible.

It was because they knew full well that it was pointless to hold on to a situation where they didn’t know what would happen.

But even as everyone fled one by one to safety, the Emperor himself ignored Cantares’ advice to leave the palace.

‘Is it in times like these that he must defend his position?’

Arendt fiddled with the paper, lost in thought.

It would be something he would consider a responsibility for the privileges and power he had enjoyed as Emperor until now.

‘Because that’s the kind of person he is.’

Cantares, who resembles the Emperor exactly, would probably think the same.

‘I hope the artifact I worked so hard to create doesn’t become meaningless.’

A frown crept up his face behind the book he hadn’t been reading for a while.

The palace was busy preparing to welcome the enemies.

Non-combatants were sent back as much as possible, and those who had been dispatched to other kingdoms were called back.

The transport was, of course, carried by Lexion, and Kendrick and the elf warriors had all returned.

So it was no wonder that others were scared and ran away.

It was concluded that the previous riot in front of the Great Temple was a declaration of war by the enemy.

‘I guess they’re suggesting an all-out war.’

It must have been their intention to gather the imperial family’s power into the palace and then destroy it all at once.

If they could destroy the Caerleon Empire, it wouldn’t be difficult for them to swallow up other kingdoms.

Furthermore…

‘For them, mutual destruction might be one of the options.’

Iris can return even if she loses her life.

It was quite different from Luce’s hero, who could only act after being chosen by the Holy Sword.

It seemed that even Iris herself did not know when or in what era she would be able to reincarnate.

But if she sacrificed her life to crush the Caerleon Empire, it would be easier to take over the world in her next life.

Now that more and more people were turning their backs on the temple, and if the Empire was defeated, there wouldn’t be many people who follow Luce anymore.

‘If we win the war…’

Could they completely exclude God Luce?

It wouldn’t be easy as the Great Temple still stood.

‘It’s a miracle that we’ve achieved this level of success in the first place.’

Because things turned out in a way he never imagined.

Arendt stroked the corner of the book, lost in thought.

“Hey.”

At that moment, Arendt suddenly came to his senses and raised his head at the sound of a voice.

Only then did Arthur, looking at him with anxious eyes, come into view.

“What are you thinking about again?”

“I’m hungry. There’s a snack in the room, but I don’t want to bother going to get it. Could you bring me some?”

All it took was one line of dialogue to turn anxiety into disgust.

Arthur, who had been looking at him in bewilderment, sighed deeply and got up.

“I’m going on patrol with Senior Riicht. Don’t go anywhere and guard the dormitory.”

“What kind of house am I guarding?”

“You’re more adept at running around than the neighborhood dog. Anyway, I’m leaving.”

Arthur waved his hand and left the dormitory.

Only then was Arendt left alone, sighing deeply and sinking into the sofa.

“Honestly, having good instincts alone just isn’t enough.”

The Allied Nations asked if they needed assistance, but Cantares mostly refused.

Of course, Arendt also agreed with that decision.

‘Because it won’t help.’

If the Empire couldn’t fully handle the enemy, then no matter how many Allied reinforcements come, it would be meaningless.

The number of corpses that need to be cleaned up will just increase.

It may seem like an arrogant judgment at first glance, but that was the reality.

In “The Blue Knight of the Holy Sword”, the scene where Laius shouldered all the burden was narrowly avoided.

However, it was an undeniable fact that the power of the Empire and the other kingdoms differed greatly.

Arendt tilted his head back and stared blankly up at the sparkling chandelier.

‘Is this the end?’

This was a stage, and at the same time, it was not a stage.

His raised hand absentmindedly touched the pearl earring that still felt awkward.

His pensive eyes lowered again.

How long has it been since then?

Suddenly, Arendt realized that the surroundings were unusually quiet.

“…”

The silence felt alien. Arendt stopped moving and quietly sharpened his senses.

There was nothing particularly strange.

Seton and the other young servants had all left the palace two days ago. And Laius, Kendrick, and the elf leaders were currently in a meeting with the Crown Prince.

Most of the others were on patrol or training autonomously in the training ground.

So now, the only people in the building were himself, Rider, and Glenn, who had gone into their private rooms to rest.

‘This isn’t the first time this has happened.’

In principle, the dormitory was not supposed to be empty, so there were a few times when he had to guard it alone.

But today’s silence felt particularly strange.

The moment Arendt closed the book, lost in thought for a moment…

.

A knock broke the silence.

“…”

Arendt didn’t answer and just stared at the door.

The other person was also just waiting quietly outside the door.

He soundlessly put down the book and silently reached out his hand towards his sword placed next to the sofa.

The knocking sound was heard again.

“Are you there? I have come to run a quick errand for the main palace.”

Somehow, he heard the familiar voice of the chamberlain, a rather experienced fellow who hadn’t joined the evacuation this time.

Even if he really had come on an errand, it wouldn’t have felt out of place.

But Arendt drew his sword as soon as he heard the voice.

At the same time, he activated the Frosty Touch, and ice formed on the marble floor.

Pure white frost enveloped the sword.

Arendt, jumping out of his seat, swung his sword sharply toward the firmly closed door.

And the moment Arendt took action, a blindingly bright red light burst out from beyond the crack in the door.

“Hick, hick, hihik, ha, hahaha!”

There was mad laughter.

“Hahahahahaha! It’s time for the darkness, the darkness, to come!”

Of course, it was a completely different voice from the one that had spoken politely earlier.

Arendt’s blow struck the door. But far from shattering, it barely left a scratch.

“Fuck.”

Eventually, swear words came out of Arendt’s mouth.

Something was seriously wrong.

“The darkness will destroy the world of false light.”

!

Blood spread in all directions, and a massive summoning circle bloomed magnificently across the door.

And then, .

He could hear the intruder outside cutting open his own stomach.

As if that was a signal, ghouls resembling vampires began to emerge from the summoning circle one by one.

The fanatic beyond the door continued to rave, coughing up blood.

“The first sacrifices are you and me, Arendt von Eckhart.”