Chapter 22
* * *
“The investigation is complete. It seems the knights have already eliminated all the dangerous elements. There’s nothing else of note.”
In the garden under the papal authority, which had been the entrance to the hidden underground space, Priest Nuaves spoke after they had thoroughly ransacked the opulent interior.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”
Without even waiting for a response, the priest, claiming he had something else to confirm, coolly took his exit. Two soldiers carrying the stretcher with the Pope’s body saluted and followed him out.
“That woman…”
Jerad was the first to speak, his face a picture of awkward discomfort.
The elite knights, who had been unceremoniously kicked out, stood around feeling embarrassed.
“Are we sure she’s not really a witch?”
Jerad’s eyes still held a deep-seated suspicion.
The Empire’s hostility toward the Holy Kingdom wasn’t actually that old. Just a decade ago, most Imperial nobles were quite devout believers, and Jerad’s own parents had delivered a significant amount of donations to the temple every year.
Even if relations with the Holy Kingdom had soured and they now rejected it, negating the beliefs learned in childhood was a different matter entirely. This was especially difficult for Jerad, who came from a surprisingly devout family and whose talents were specialized in physical combat, making his mental gears turn a little slower.
Dilton immediately scolded him with an exasperated look.
“Ugh, this guy, I swear your stubbornness is in a league of its own. It’s because you’re ignorant, just plain ignorant.”
“What?! You think just because you got promoted you can act all high and mighty? You scrawny little…!”
“Ha, is your memory as short as a goldfish’s? Has it even been an hour? The priest himself said she’s not a witch! And do you think the Captain would have left her there if he thought she was a threat? You big oaf…!”
“Hey! You call that ‘not a threat’?! It’s your memory that’s the problem! Back there! That… That… cannon of a thing… was captured so helplessly! And no matter what we did, that vicious hand wouldn’t let it go!”
Jerad shuddered just at the memory.
“Besides… the Captain must have wanted to get rid of it so badly that he even let us handle his… body. The Captain we’re talking about?”
Dilton faltered, momentarily speechless. Unable to hold back any longer, Riot, the rookie of the elite squad, chimed in.
“But, you know… because of that, doesn’t it feel like we got a little closer to the Captain today? He even yelled at us properly. I kind of liked it, so…”
“Hey, rookie. Is that really something you should be saying?”
At Dilton’s sharp look, Riot quickly shut his mouth. The silence, however, didn’t last long.
Prompted by Gillion’s genuine question, Riot opened his mouth again.
“But seriously, what is their relationship? From the looks of it, the Captain seemed to know her. It’s surprising enough that the Captain knows a woman, but the fact that she’s a mage, of all things… and one he’s never mentioned…”
“That’s the first time I’ve ever seen the Captain so shaken. Normally, wouldn’t he have just chopped the hand off without a second thought?”
The knights all nodded in agreement. This was the man who never once wavered, even in the most desperate battles. If the Captain felt something was an obstacle, he would definitely have cut it down without hesitation.
For them, seeing their superior so unsettled was a first.
“Ah, forget it. Riot, Gillion. You’re on guard here until the second shift arrives. The rest of us just need to follow the Captain’s orders. Don’t overthink it.”
Leaving two knights at the garden’s entrance, the rest of the group filed out in unison.
* * *
“You have been most helpful. So young, and yet you have already rendered a great service.”
“The future of the Dukedom is truly bright, Your Holiness. A fitting successor to the House of Xtion, which founded and protected the Empire.”
In the past, when exchanges between the Vertean Empire and the Holy Kingdom of Grite were flourishing.
The ministers of the Ducal house were tasked with receiving honored guests from the Holy Kingdom of Grite.
About a month after their return, the Pope and his retinue, for some reason, personally visited the Ducal mansion in the capital once more.
They bestowed gifts upon the boy, along with lavish praise. The gifts were excessive, even for the heir of a Duke.
And the boy couldn’t understand a single word of what he was hearing.
“Haha, indeed! The complete eradication of the witches, you say? Truly, God is always with us. What marvelous fortune follows you! Haha!”
The priests’ chatter buzzed in his ears like a hollow echo.
And amidst the countless luxuries, one thing stood out, utterly out of place: a cat.
It was the boy who hid his tears, retreating to the dense, quiet woods behind the mansion. And the long-haired stray cat that would quietly seek him out, sharing its coiled warmth. The creature that used to find him at least once a week had lately stopped showing up. Just like the black-haired girl who had saved that very cat’s life.
Worried sick, the boy had scoured the woods day and night. He waited and waited.
He had just visited the woods behind the annex training ground moments before. He stood blankly by the old tree where they used to spend time, thinking, Today, it will come. Today, it will… It will come looking for me again…
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