CH 215

“And that’s because—” Princess Lilisain continued while twisting her body.

Eugene raised his hand and interrupted. “Stop. That’s not what’s important right now. Have you forgotten why we’re here?”

“M-my mistake! I will reflect on my negligence!” Princess Lilisain immediately responded with a bow. It really did seem as if she was born to be a knight.

Madrica and the other knights came rushing over.

“Sir Eugene! What’s going on? Why was there a monster all of a sudden?”

“Did you kill it? You took care of a twin-headed ogre all by yourself?”

“Ehem! Sir, isn’t that obvious? Sir Eugene has already edified an undead twin-headed ogre during his time on the Carls Baggins Peninsula.

“That’s right. I heard that the City of Moffern has it displayed in the city hall as evidence of his faith.”

The knights excitedly buzzed about the edification of the twin-headed ogre. It was quite a famous story, even among Eugene’s countless achievements. The knights had gazes of excitement, awe, and envy.

“You are truly amazing, sir!”

“It’s not just a regular ogre either, but a twin-headed ogre! You must be the only knight in the world who has killed two twin-headed ogres!”

“This will be a legend, sir!”

The arrogant, self-respecting knights raised their thumbs. Numerous nobles would covet a prestigious knight who had succeeded in hunting an ogre. However, Eugene had not only killed a twin-headed ogre, but he had done it twice at that. This was no longer a matter of pride and jealousy.

“That’s not what’s important right now, sirs. That’s an undead. Don’t you know what that means?” Eugene pointed out.

“…!!!”

It was impossible for the knights not to know. Undead monsters didn’t just come into existence outside of evil lands. The presence of an undead indicated the presence of a master responsible for creating the undead.

“I can’t believe that an undead would appear in the middle of the kingdom’s capital…”

The atmosphere quickly turned serious.

“This is no ordinary thing, sirs.”

“I finally understand why the people ran away and created such a ruckus. This would have escalated quickly if not for Sir Eugene.”

“No. Isn’t the timing too coincidental? As soon as His Highness and Sir Eugene entered the capital, something like this happened. That’s too coincidental, right?”

“Ah! Is it because of Sir Eugene and us?”

“Hmmph!”

‘Huh? Things are heading in a strange direction.’

Eugene pondered as he watched the knights whisper among themselves with serious looks.

His original plan was to enter the capital using Prince Localope’s identity, transform into a drake, and cause a ruckus. It would be impossible for the capital’s troops and the royal castle to subdue the monster, so the prince would pretend to offer his help and call the rest of the knights into the capital. Eugene would put on a show and pretend to run away, then revert his transformation. He would then enter the royal castle and capture the king and his nobles.

Of course, there were bound to be minor variables, but this was the best way to occupy the royal castle without losing any of his knights. But currently, the knights seemed to be thinking that the monster responsible for causing chaos in the capital was the twin-headed ogre rather than the drake.

‘This might be… good.’

Eugene was overjoyed as an idea came to mind, but he spoke solemnly, “Hmm. My thoughts align with all of yours, sirs. It seems to me that the king has resorted to evil mysteries.”

“…!!!” The knights became wide-eyed.

Eugene sighed before continuing in a calm voice, “Phew! Undead monsters aren’t made overnight, are they? It had definitely been prepared for a long time. I have faced countless enemies and monsters until now, but I have never struggled as much.”

“A-as expected!”

“What a lamentable thing! To think that a king of a nation would rely on black magic…”

“He dared to release a monster in his own capital? It’s so ridiculous that a man like that is the king!”

“Sirs! We must bring that disgraceful man down from his throne right away!”

The knights were enraged. It seemed as if they would run to the royal castle any minute and pummel the king and his nobles. However, Prince Localope and his knights couldn’t hide their shock as they watched the scene play out.

‘You were the one who made a mess in the capital!’

‘You’re going to shift the blame just like that?’

‘The word ‘insidious’ doesn’t do this man justice. Conspiracy at this level should be called art.’

Meanwhile, Prince Localope and his men were relieved that such a man was on their side. What would happen if they had to fight against someone as insidious as Eugene? Just imagining it gave them a headache.

“Sirs, I think we need to catch the evil wizard responsible for creating the undead. We won’t need many people. The elven knights and I are able to fight against magic, so we will take care of it. The rest of you can head to the royal castle and arrest the king,” Eugene suggested.

“Understood!”

“Sir Madrica, I will leave the matter of arresting the king to you,” Eugene said.

“Ooohh! It’s an honor. I will make sure to bring down that unrighteous king from his throne. Someone who has betrayed righteousness does not deserve to be the king!” Madrica exclaimed with joy. As a person who liked to stand out and show off, he was elated to be entrusted with such a monumental task.

“Your Highness. They will need you to enter through the gates of the castle, so please go with them,” Eugene said.

“All right.” Prince Localope nodded. He had already decided to jump on the tiger’s back.

“Sirs! Let’s go! Today, we will use our hands to correct the justice of this ruined kingdom!”

“Uwoooooh!!!”

The knights quickly headed toward the royal castle along with Prince Localope and Madrica. It wouldn’t be much of an issue to occupy the castle with so many knights, especially when the capital was in chaos due to the appearance of a drake. There was no need to mention the skills of the knights serving a prince of the Roman Empire either.

Eugene turned back toward Princess Lilisain and the other elves.

He then said, “The ogre’s master, a black wizard, should definitely be around. Unfortunately, I failed to pick up on their trail. I don’t think they are an ordinary wizard, so let’s split up into pairs and look for traces.”

“With all due respect, Your Excellency, you won’t have to go through all that trouble,” Princess Lilisain responded.

“Huh?”

What was she on about now?

Eugene frowned, and Princes Lilisain continued with her head held high, “As I said before, pure-blooded elves of Eland have the ability to detect mana.”

“…!”

Eugene took on a surprised expression, and Princess Lilisain suddenly felt hot.

‘W-what an adorable expression. It’s somewhat alien to his usual bravery and dignity, but it’s to my liking! Aaaahhh, I want to touch him! I want to embrace him until his skull cracks and… Ah! W-what am I thinking?’

Princess Lilisain started to drool while staring at Eugene with dazed eyes, but then she suddenly came to her senses.

“So, you’re saying that you can locate the black wizard, Princess?” Eugene hurriedly asked when he felt a sudden, strange chill running down his back.

Princess Lilisain nodded while wiping her mouth. “It’s possible. Actually, I can already feel the flow of evil mana. All we have to do is follow the flow.”

“Let’s go, then,” Eugene said.

“Yes!”

Eugene and the other elven knights followed behind Princess Lilisain.

***

“Dragon? Are you saying that an evil dragon has appeared in the capital?”

“That’s right.”

“…!!!”

The holy knights gathered in the cathedral were appalled. However, their shock soon transformed into ferociousness.

“Sirs! This is not the time to be standing around! Let us go and kill that evil dragon immediately!”

“This is a trial and a test from god. We must kill the evil dragon with our own swords.”

“God…”

“Give us courage!”

The holy knights drew their swords and kissed their blades before drawing the holy symbol in the air.

‘No, you crazy bastards!’

The cardinal was flustered, but he attempted to put on a calm, benevolent expression.

“Ooohhh! The faith of all of you sirs is truly noble and holy. However, sirs, you must not forget your duty,” the cardinal hurriedly spoke.

“What?” The holy knights turned their gazes and asked. They were burning with ambition disguised as faith.

“What is a holy knight? Is it not one tasked with the duty to defend the will of god and his holy divinity?” the cardinal added.

“Ah!”

“Hmm!”

The holy knights appeared startled. The cardinal continued, convinced that everything was going as intended, “Then I will ask you again. Where is faith, and where is divinity? His Majesty? The royal castle? No! It’s right here! It’s the house of the servants who had always performed the work of god. This cathedral had always remained upright in preaching faith and establishing the divinity of god, even when the nation’s royal family kept on changing hands!”

Oooh…!

The holy knights fell down on one knee and drew the holy symbol with enlightened expressions. In the first place, more than half of the holy knights stemmed from families with close relationships with the cardinal. Moreover, most of them had lived in the cathedral since childhood and had received religious education and training. In other words, the cardinal was essentially the mentor of their souls and the father of their faith. It was only natural that the holy knights would blindly believe in the cardinal’s words.

“We—the holy servants of god—must obey his will! Let us defend divinity from the evil dragon, brothers in faith!” the cardinal declared.

“We follow your will!” the holy knights answered in unison. Some immediately started praying, while others even started to shed tears.

‘Good, good…’

‘As expected of the cardinal!’

The priests looked at the holy knights with satisfaction.

It was then…

Boom!

A roar resounded from outside.

“Hiek?!” the cardinal squealed and crouched with no consideration for his dignity.

“W-what is it!?”

“Has the evil dragon arrived?”

“Brothers, get ready!”

The holy knights prepared to rush out, but just in time, the door burst open, and a group of knights rushed in.

“Who is it?!”

“Who dares! Do you realize where this is?!” the holy knights screamed. Their momentum was great. As holy knights residing in the capital’s cathedral, they were literally plastered with equipment containing divine energy, and they were quite skilled as well. In the first place, Payle the 2nd had sent off his elite soldiers to deal with the noble union without hesitation because the cathedral’s holy knights were here. However, the king had met his vain end in the hunting ground. The holy knights were unaware of this fact, so they aimed at the uninvited guests who dared to invade the cathedral rather than the royal castle.

“You pathetic men!”

Bang!

The black knight who led the intruders shouted while striking the butt of his spear against the ground.

“What are you all doing while an undead is ravaging the capital?!” the knight exclaimed.

“W-what…?!”

Clack!

Eugene raised his visor and looked over the knights with fierce eyes before raising his voice, “I am Duke Jan Eugene Batla.”

“Duke Batla?”

“Jan… Eugene?” some of the holy knights muttered his name with puzzlement.

However, one man recognized Eugene’s identity and shouted with fury, “You heretic! You killed my brothers!”

He was the one man Eugene could never forget—Jung Dircht.

“Sirs! It’s him! He is the heretic who killed our brothers using dirty tricks under the order of that traitorous Winslon! He is a member of the evil Tribe of Darkness!”

“What?!”

“You!”

Chaechaeng!

Swords and spears overflowing with divine power were immediately raised against Eugene. Eugene had been prioritized as a target to be immediately eliminated after the incident in the knight competition held in the Winslon County. As such, the central church had begun collecting information about him.

They discovered that Eugene had become a duke after crossing over to Brantia, and they had also heard the rumors about him being a vampire. Today, their target to eliminate—the heretic—had suddenly appeared in the cathedral. The holy knights were greatly angered and shocked, but this was also an opportunity of a lifetime for them.

However, Eugene stood unmoving and glared at Jung Dircht with cold eyes before continuing, “Me? That’s funny. Listen here, sirs. Could a member of the evil Dark Clan step foot into the cathedral on their own?”

Naturally, he had received an invitation as a member of Prince Localope’s party, but there was no need to say it. Moreover, it was evident that his plan was working, judging by how some of the holy knights flinched in response.

“I asked if it was possible for a member of the Dark Clan to enter a cathedral protected by god, Sir Jung Dircht,” Eugene said.

“T-that’s…” Jung Dircht could not find the words to retort. Eugene was simply too confident, and the current situation was contradictory to what he knew and believed. The same was true for the other holy knights.

‘Huh? Come to think of it, that’s true.’

‘How can a vampire enter a cathedral protected by pure silver and divine power? Especially in broad daylight?’

“Since the current situation is urgent, I will disregard the plot you have laid against me, sir,” Eugene added.

“Ugh…”

“More importantly!” Eugene shouted, showing off his superb acting skills against the confused knights.

He turned his gaze to the cardinal, who stood dumbfounded on the podium, “The one who created the undead that broke into the capital is here. Cardinal, do you know who they are?”

“W-what did you just say?!”

“What nonsense!”

The holy knights retorted with disbelief.

“It’s true. I can testify.”

“…?!”

“I am a direct descendant of Eland’s royal family,” Princess Lilisain continued while taking off her helmet and mustering mana. The gazes of the holy knights fixed on her.

“What?!”

“E-elf!” the holy knights exclaimed.

Princess Lilisain possessed the beauty of a goddess, but the mysterious mana accentuated her appearance. The way she stood against the backdrop of the colorful glass of the cathedral could only be described as holy.

“Ooohhh…”

The cathedral was filled with a storm of admiration and shock. Princess Lilisain could easily be mistaken for a saintess.

Thud!

“What?”

Everyone was filled with disbelief when one of the elven knights threw two objects on the floor. They were the two heads of the twin-headed ogre. The spoils of the battle still emitted an evil energy, which the holy knights and priests easily recognized.

“I-it was true?”

“An undead in the capital…”

“And that knight?”

Neither the priests nor the holy knights could come to their senses when they were presented with a series of clear evidence.

‘I can’t believe that the wizard actually fled to the cathedral. If all goes well, I will be able to take care of the wizard and these church bastards all at once.’

Naturally, Eugene felt like taking to the skies in joy.