Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 179: Why Old Stories Are Wonderful

Compared to the hardships of going up the mountain, the way back was surprisingly easy.When the group returned with their missing families, the villagers who had been waiting for them came running out barefoot.

“Oh my god, what the heck is this… Oh my, honey!”

They were shocked by the tattered state of these people, and were terrified again when they saw the condition of the families the group had brought.

It was only natural that they were confused, since those whom they had sent directly had returned as fools.

Richt gave them a brief explanation that the townspeople were being taken in by a mad researcher to be used as test subjects, and that the mountains were infested with strange monsters.

It was a relief not to have to waste energy trying to convince people because Selick had done his job adequately.

Before entering the mountain, Arendt made two demands of the boy as a condition for getting his brother back.

One was to bring the item that his brother always carried with him.

And the other thing was that as soon as the sun rose, the party would announce to the village that they were members of the Imperial Knights.

Just in case others didn’t believe him, Arendt even lent him his knighthood badge.

This was a measure taken in case the locals came into the mountain after them.

Thanks to this, while they were away, this peaceful little town was turned upside down.

After handing the victims over to their families, the group received some basic first aid and returned to the hotel, where they each threw themselves onto their beds.

There was a mountain of things to do, but they really didn’t have the energy to lift a finger.

And the next afternoon, Richt reported to Laius via the communication crystal what had happened.

– …

The captain remained silent throughout listening to Richt’s story.

And finally, a deep sigh escaped from beyond the communication port.

– Haaah… I just sent you out to do a simple investigation…

“…”

Richt couldn’t help but sympathize a hundred times over with the captain’s groaning.

A major accident occured wherever they stepped.

At this point, it was unclear whether Arendt was loved by God or terribly hated.

Finally, Laius let out a deep sigh and changed the subject.

– So, did you find out the identity of the man who barged in?

“Like Vincent and Blake, he was wearing a mask so it was hard to tell anything other than the physique and gender. I apologize.”

– No. But judging from the fact that he chose negotiation over subduing… it seemed like he wasn’t an easy opponent.

Laius, who had been silent for a moment, added seriously.

Richt’s face also darkened.

“My judgment is the same. He was a man with an extraordinary presence. If we had faced each other in that exhausted state, I don’t think we would have been able to guarantee victory.”

But what was even more chilling was the sight of Arendt taking Jin hostage and threatening the man.

‘…It’s detrimental to mental health.’

It was a sight he never wanted to see again.

Those golden eyes that were always eye-catching and had a cruel murderous look in them would probably be hard to forget for a while.

At that moment, Arendt looked not like a troublesome apprentice knight, but like a murderer who could easily kill dozens of people with just his fingertips.

Even though he knew that he wasn’t sincere when he said he would kill Jin and die himself, Richt was momentarily overwhelmed by that abnormal murderous intent.

The same was probably true for the other people who were there.

– Richt? Is there a problem?

“It’s nothing.”

Richt suddenly came to his senses at the sound of Laius’ questioning voice.

– Is everyone okay? How are your injuries?

“There are no major issues, but I think I’ll need sick leave for the time being. In particular, Arendt would be better off not using his magic.”

Richt, now disturbed by Arendt’s appearance, let out a deep sigh.

The guy, who was a mere rookie but had once dominated the situation with terrifying confidence, was now lying in bed, looking like a pathetic, bedridden insect.

The guy who kept trying to escape despite feeling chills due to his injuries ended up getting scolded by Arthur and Llewellyn and was locked up in the best room in the inn.

After that, he kept grumbling, so he gave him a lot of snacks and asked Llewellyn to keep an eye on him.

It was quite quiet now, as if he was talking to Llewellyn.

‘When I see that, I can tell that he’s a brat.’

It wasn’t funny to see him accepting the snacks with such a sullen face.

– …But I don’t think he’ll just sit there quietly.

“Yes, haaah… It was quite difficult for him to be stuck in the room.”

Laius, who read something in Richt’s sigh, offered deep comfort.

– You’ve had a hard time.

“No. It’s something I have to do.”

– …Yeah, anyway, you said there was an elf among the enemies. And she was even the one who created the unidentified monsters?

“Yes, that’s right. According to Prince Llewellyn, she looked very similar to the species that live in the forest.”

– Understood. After reporting to His Highness the Crown Prince, we will begin our own investigation. Count Stadler and his party and the knights have already departed, so just rest there, change shifts, and then return.

“Yes, I understand.”

That ended the communication.

Richt adjusted his crystal ball and leaned back in the chair he was sitting on.

Now that the barrier had been destroyed, there was a possibility that the remaining monsters may come down to the village.

Arthur went out on patrol with Roderick, Ken, and Warren.

The commotion in the village had calmed down to some extent, and those who had become strange would gradually return if left alone, so there was nothing more for them to do here.

It was only when he had a moment to catch his breath that the belated sense of helplessness began to creep in.

But Richt quickly pulled himself together.

‘There is no time to be sentimental.’

No matter how strong the enemy was, there was only one thing they had to do.

“Didn’t elves originally live in seclusion in nature?”

Arendt, who was lying on his bed, covering himself with the blanket and eating a snack, suddenly asked a question.

Then Llewellyn, who was sitting on the chair opposite, grumbled.

“That’s why I don’t understand. Normally, they would be banned from leaving the country.”

It seemed quite shocking to him that a young elf appeared after breaking through the unidentified monsters.

Arendt asked, stuffing another snack into his mouth.

“How many years do elves usually live?”

“On average, they are between 350 and 400 years old. However, during the Great War, all the elders and the central figures were killed and the remaining people formed a new nation, so there are no elves who have reached old age now.”

Llewellyn paused for a moment before adding:

“That means that the Great War, which is a distant past for us, happened less than a generation ago for them.”

The elves who had lost their parents and siblings at that time were now leading the clan.

“Then aren’t there any records of the war left over there?”

“I was curious, so I asked, and they said that there wasn’t. I heard that after sending out the warriors, they completely closed off the country. At the end of the war, I heard that everyone went to war, except for one person from each race to lead the remaining children.”

Llewellyn, sitting awkwardly, tilted his head.

“I understand that the oldest person among the forest elves is 192 years old. Even that is still considered middle-aged.”

“How many stayed in the village during the war?”

“There were some, but I heard that they all passed away. I’m an outsider myself, so I didn’t hear the exact details… Anyway, none of the elves have directly experienced the war.”

“Hmm.”

He once had a similar conversation with Cantares.

Somehow, he felt a strange sense of discomfort.

There were almost no records of war in the human world, and the existence of the evil god religion was passed down only to the imperial family, the direct descendants of the hero Khan.

He thought it was possible, since many things were lost and several generations were changed.

But the same happened to the elves who lived for a long time.

“Why is your expression like that?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

“But wouldn’t there be some records left? I don’t think they’d be carelessly revealed to the outside world. After the war, when the race almost went extinct, they began to crack down more strictly on exchanges with the outside world.”

Indeed, as an explorer who had traveled extensively, Llewellyn had a fairly detailed knowledge of rare information.

Arendt asked the question again.

“Have you ever met that girl named Jin?”

“Not even once. But it’s quite strange that she recognized me… she may have seen me from afar.”

Likewise, Llewellyn frowned as if he was bothered by that point.

“It’s been three years since I last visited them. Maybe she had remained in the elven land until then.”

“Because she said she hadn’t even met Vincent, her predecessor… Jin may have joined the cult very recently.”

As the story got to this point, one assumption was naturally made.

The cult accepted Jin, who had been conducting strange research on her own for quite some time.

Llewellyn muttered seriously.

“I need to find out more. The monster that showed up at the end is also on my mind. I’ve been looking all over the place, but I’ve never heard or seen anything like it.”

“There’s nothing you can do. You have no choice but to harass Count Stadler again.”

This time, they managed to somehow resolve the situation, but the mysteries kept growing.

He felt that the monster was not dead yet, it just felt threatened at the last moment and ran away.

After Jin and Roger disappeared, the place where the monster was summoned was searched thoroughly once more, but no trace remained.

It probably followed Jin.

Although it could make physical attacks, it could also freely change its form and offset some of the physical damage it took.

He couldn’t even begin to figure out what its identity was.

Even Roger suddenly appeared here.

Arendt scratched his head several times in vain as his thoughts became more complicated.

“We better find Lexion and that damn book as soon as possible.”

The Great War of long ago, and the only one who holds the hints to all the mysteries was Lexion.

It was still too early to conclude that he was a complete enemy, as he had sent his subordinate to indirectly help and protect the people.

Llewellyn gave him a look of bewilderment.

“You’ve been through so much and you’re already saying such things? I understand very well why your seniors are so angry.”

“It’s better to be fast than to dawdle. If you think about it, the reason I’ve suffered this much is because of that damn reptile… Achoo!”

Llewellyn’s face became even more bewildered as Arendt let out a loud sneeze at the end of his curt retort.

“Stop causing trouble and just go to sleep, you crazy bastard!”

“Hmph. Well, at least I got some clues, so that’s okay.”

But Arendt, as always, pretended not to hear.

“Now that we’ve confirmed that Gilberte really existed, we should be able to find more if we search the dragon lairs of this lake.”

“What a real bastard…”

After a brief pause, Arendt spoke first.

“You don’t have any other plans right now, do you?”

“Yeah right. I’m so busy with the work you’ve ordered me to do. I also have to do union work…”

“Good. Then let’s go back to the palace together for a bit.”

“Are you listening to me?”

“Of course I’m not listening.”

“Ahhh, I’m so pissed!”

Eventually Llewellyn started to go crazy.

Arendt watched the scene with satisfaction and threw another snack into his mouth.

Although there were many things he didn’t like, if he had to find one consolation, it was that he had gained a lot of clues here and there.

As soon as he returned to the palace, there would be a mountain of things to do.