Chapter 51
In the place Eden had left, Johan and Bezel stood in an awkward atmosphere. The servant, seeing the survivors they had brought, said he would call a few more carriages and headed to the Viscount’s manor.
“We’ll also go home to gather some necessary supplies.”
Those who could move also laid the injured in the shade, then disappeared toward their homes in groups of three or five. Thanks to that, only the two men were left behind with nothing to do, waiting for the servant and the people to return.
“Shouldn’t we… go after Eden?”
Johan was the first to speak. He rubbed his thick eyebrows with his hand as if he couldn’t stand this awkwardness.
Short chestnut-brown hair, dark brown eyes of a similar hue, a muscular build that could not suit the profession of a Holy Knight better, and neat, ascetic features. Johan was a man whose appearance contrasted with Bezel’s striking looks in many ways.
‘So she liked that kind of face. It’s completely different from mine.’
No one had told him that Johan was Eden’s ex-boyfriend, but Bezel had already figured out his identity from how things were unfolding. His expression stiffened every time Bezel showed intimacy with Eden, so it was impossible not to notice.
‘A gentle, kind man… exactly the impression Andre described.’
Bezel completely ignored Johan’s question and looked him over from beneath lowered eyes. Then, meeting Johan’s gaze as he seemed to wonder what Bezel was doing, he finally gave a rough shake of his head.
“Do you even know where she is, trying to go after her? You’d be lucky if you don’t just miss each other on the way.”
At the tone laced with faint mockery, Johan’s brow furrowed slightly. Was it his imagination that the words seemed to contain contempt?
“Come to think of it, introductions are late. I’m Johan Martin. What’s your name?”
“Why are you curious about that?”
No, it was not his imagination. This man was only maintaining polite speech while showing no actual courtesy whatsoever. [1]
When Johan clamped his mouth shut with an offended expression, Bezel smirked. The man whose purple eyes didn’t curve at all, only pulling up his lips, extended his hand toward him.
“I’m Bezel.”
If he was going to tell him anyway, why not just say it nicely instead of saying something like that earlier? Though Johan thought this, he still clasped his hand.
The man’s hand was cool, like the body temperature of a reptile. Perhaps because Johan used his body a lot, his body temperature was higher than others. Eden’s body temperature was also on the high side, so when they were together during their relationship, they would both sweat from each other’s heat. Maybe because of that, Bezel’s hand felt even colder.
Bezel was the first to let go. He shoved the hand that held Johan’s into his trouser pocket and tilted his head at an angle.
“Do you have something you want to say to me? You’ve been staring since earlier like a mutt that needs to s**t.”
At the shocking choice of words, Johan froze with his arm still extended.
They said he had divine power, and Bezel was a man whose face looked just as pious. But a mutt that needs to s**t… He looked like he wouldn’t even put such crude words in his mouth, yet the way he tossed them out with a slouched posture looked quite natural.
Keep it together. Nothing good would come from showing anger when first meeting someone. Johan tried to make his voice sound as casual as possible as he asked.
“It is less something I want to say and more a minor curiosity… Since you have divine power, as a Holy Knight, I have a few things I’d like to ask. Why haven’t you registered with the temple as someone possessing divine power?”
“Because I have no desire to become a High Priest.”
“Why not? It’s true that having divine power doesn’t mean you must become a high priest, but if you belong to the temple, you’re guaranteed many things, aren’t you? If you’re not a noble, you could dream of rising in status, and since you receive a salary, you could even save up private funds.”
Johan was someone who became a Holy Knight by looking at the positive aspects of those affiliated with the temple. Perhaps because of that, he could not understand Bezel, who was born with a precious power but did not take advantage of the opportunity.
He was the only son of a fallen noble family. Though called a noble, he had neither power nor authority, and all he would inherit from his family was his father’s gambling debts.
His father lived every day drunk on alcohol and gambling. He did not hesitate to extort money from people or steal to secure gambling funds. In short, his father was a criminal who was a noble in name only.
Johan was sick and tired of both his family and his father. He was tired of people pointing fingers at him, calling him the son of a gambler, the child of a thief.
He ultimately chose to flee to the temple. Those who belonged to the temple became children of God, not of their parents. Though it was not exactly severing familial ties and completely turning one’s back on the family, officially he was no longer recognized as a member of the family.
Johan was reborn from the son of a gambler to the sword of God. Those who had pointed fingers at him now regarded him wearing the white uniform and wielding a sword for God as the village’s pride, respected him, and praised him for overcoming hardship and succeeding despite difficult circumstances.
Moreover, belonging to the temple not only provided food, clothing, and shelter, but also guaranteed a lifetime salary and pension. For Johan, who had been chased by debt, there was no better workplace than this.
T/N: [1] ↩
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