Chapter 13
Warlocks never reveal their forms carelessly.
This was because a qualified person could feel their evil just by looking at them, and to them, ‘death’ meant being dragged to the hell to which they had sold their souls.
But they still had to be active.
To do so, the ones they ‘hired’ were the so-called Minions of evil.
“Sir Ethan. Where is the one you captured?”
Evangeline sought out Knight Commander Ethan Taton with an urgent expression. Ethan nodded with a wide smile.
“He has been handed over to the City Hall Guard. You've seen it now, haven't you? Sir Reinhardt is, by far, the most outstanding in our Taton Knights….”
“I will be back shortly.”
“Dame Evangeline?”
Evangeline left the foolishly smiling Ethan behind and headed for the Serigel Guard.
The soldiers on standby tensed up and saluted the moment they saw Evangeline. She couldn't even properly return the salute before looking for the Guard Captain.
“Guard Captain Jerad! I am in charge of Serigel's security….”
“The man you captured today, where is he?”
“Pardon? Yes! He's being held in the underground prison! The interrogator is preparing his work!”
“I need to see him. Would that be all right?”
“Would there be any question? Hans! Come running at once and escort Dame Evangeline!”
With the active cooperation of the City Hall Guard, Evangeline was able to set foot in the underground prison.
A man, covered in blood and tied up, was there.
“He is the alchemist Ben. Under the orders of a warlock, he manufactured a wicked potion, and those who drank the potion lost their sanity and became slaves to Black Magic.”
“You've found out that much already?”
“Our interrogator is highly skilled.”
Evangeline fell silent at the guard's words, which were tinged with pride.
It wasn't such a simple problem.
Minions of evil rarely opened their mouths. This was because a powerful constraint was placed on their minds.
Breaking the constraint with physical pain was impossible, and it was so strong that only high-ranking priests or people who professionally dealt with demons could barely break it.
‘But he confessed. Either the warlock ordered him to confess, or someone broke that silence constraint….’
It didn't seem like the interrogator had such an ability.
Just looking at him smiling dopily with his gruesome tools laid out, it was clear he excelled only in inflicting physical pain.
“Interrogator. Excuse me for a moment.”
“Of course. I should naturally step aside for you.”
The interrogator stepped aside with a broad smile.
Evangeline tilted her head at his action, as if he intended to leave the prison entirely.
“That wasn't my request.”
“Ah, is it alright for me to stay? I thought all knights had their own methods of interrogation.”
“Interrogation is not our area of expertise. It's just to confirm a few things… Has any other knight ever asked you to step aside?”
“Yesterday, Sir Reinhardt, the pride of our Serigel, made such a request. Unfortunately, it had no effect.”
Reinhardt's name came up again.
He had said they would start moving from tomorrow, but in that short time, Reinhardt had stopped by here to interrogate a criminal and even captured a Minion of evil.
Suspicious. Very much so.
But there was no proof. And to judge on suspicion alone, she had already made a mistake.
Reinhardt had responded to her first provocation like a true knight, and that precedent now served as a constraint, making it difficult for Evangeline to act rashly.
“Alchemist Ben. Can you hear me?”
Ben's eyelids twitched. After a moment of fluttering, Ben barely opened his eyes to look at Evangeline.
Then, a weak voice flowed from his cracked lips.
“……I can hear you. I've already told you everything I know. Nothing more will come out, no matter how much you squeeze.”
“The judgment is the interrogator's. You worked for a warlock. That is an undeniable fact.”
“Yes, I did. I didn't know it was such a potent potion, I never used it myself, and I only made it as ordered and delivered it, but I did it nonetheless.”
“To whom did you deliver it?”
“He always appeared wearing a robe. I don't know his face or voice. I… I really don't know.”
The opponent was acting as if he was truly being wronged.
But Evangeline was not fooled. If he had been controlled by Black Magic, she might have felt some sympathy, but she saw no such trace in the man before her.
He had known from the beginning and simply helped them. The reward was likely a considerable amount of gold coins.
‘It is certain that he has been completely freed from the silence constraint.’
She had confirmed all the necessary information.
Evangeline looked back at the interrogator.
“Interrogator. Please continue. This man is lying.”
“Oh my, is that so? That's welcome news. Thank you!”
Evangeline turned her back without a second thought. She heard a voice shouting something from behind her, but it didn't register.
She returned to the Taton Knights' quarters.
As soon as the news of her arrival was announced, her attendant with a serious expression came to see her.
“How was it?”
“No Black Magic was used. It was a case of being blinded by the money in front of him.”
“A foolish man.”
“Yes. Foolish. Also, the constraint was broken. They wouldn't have made an exception just for him.”
“Do you mean someone broke the silence constraint? That powerful one?”
“Or the caster himself released it.”
The attendant fell silent and shook his head. Both of them knew that was unlikely.
They were beings who tried their best to hide in the shadows, in dark places. They would not reveal their traces so easily.
“Sir Reinhardt?”
“He is resting in his quarters. He said the mission is over.”
“He has no intention of moving further? Even after finding a minion in just one day?”
“Yes. But he seemed to be unaware. As if he couldn't imagine there was anything more to it.”
If one were to consider the attendant's words alone, it was certainly not a strange thing.
Not many people knew in detail about the warlock's system.
It was information known only to the Paganoa Knights or some groups with a comparable status.
But it felt strange.
It might have been different for another knight, but it was an attitude that did not fit the image Reinhardt had already shown.
“I will inform Sir Reinhardt that you will be visiting.”
The attendant moved quickly.
Evangeline slowly followed him.
The only way to resolve the current doubt was to face him directly and confirm it.
***
The suspicion must have deepened.
Reinhardt thought so as he waited for Evangeline to arrive.
‘Evangeline isn't a stupid character. In a situation like this, even I would naturally be suspicious.’
The situation was very coincidental.
That is, from Evangeline's perspective, it certainly was.
She had seen Reinhardt grow stronger in an instant, and within hours, he had captured a Minion of evil.
An average knight like Ethan Taton would just think it was amazing, but for Evangeline, it was different.
“Sir Reinhardt. Dame Evangeline is on her way. Will you be alright?”
“I shall prepare.”
What was bound to come had finally come.
Reinhardt hurriedly got dressed. He even groomed his hair to look more knightly than anyone else.
The reflection in the mirror was, in every sense, a knight.
A Knight of Light, as if freshly taken out of the game, was there.
Click.
Reinhardt opened the door to his quarters. The waiting attendant bowed his head, and he could see Evangeline approaching from a distance.
Her noble gaze held a clear will.
It was plain to see her intention to resolve her doubts and, if necessary, draw her sword at any moment.
“Sir Reinhardt. Thanks to you, we were able to capture the Minion of evil.”
“I have only done what was natural.”
“Is the mission suspended here?”
“Is there more to be done? I thought I had completed it.”
Evangeline's eyes wavered slightly before settling.
Reinhardt did not avoid her gaze. He met the stare that seemed to read his inner thoughts head-on.
‘Don't say it. Don't say it….’
Reinhardt prayed desperately inside. If she were to say that there might be other warlocks or that they had to find the mastermind, things would get very complicated.
‘Anyway, it's information you can't even tell an unqualified outsider.’
Reinhardt was an outsider.
Moreover, he was just an ambiguous knight from a provincial city who hadn't even acquired sufficient qualifications.
Considering the ‘internal regulations’ of the Paganoa Knights, Evangeline was in no position to tell Reinhardt about the rules of warlocks.
“How did you find him?”
As expected.
After fidgeting with her lips for a long time, Evangeline finally brought up the obvious question. She added an excuse as she did.
“I'm asking because I have a reason to confirm. There's no other intention….”
“I thought that I had to find him.”
“What do you mean?”
At Evangeline's question, Reinhardt set the mood.
With utterly serious eyes and a solemn voice, he began to act the part of a knight with not a shred of flexibility.
“When the moment comes that I must, I draw my sword. If an evildoer has hidden somewhere in the city, I will surely find him. That is all there is to it.”
“I don't understand what you're saying.”
A look of bewilderment was plain on her face.
Even for the Paganoa Knights, teeming with superhumans, this was a case they had never heard of or seen before.
“It has always been this way since I became a knight. It means there have been times when I exerted a power beyond my own abilities.”
“Is that case, a moment that must be?”
“That is correct. When a duty as a knight is given.”
Reinhardt spouted nonsense in an unwavering voice.
Of course, it wasn't entirely wrong. Except for the fact that it was compulsory, he was indeed in such a position.
And surprisingly.
The Knight of Frost, Evangeline, was fully convinced by Reinhardt's explanation.
‘My guess was right.’
She organized Reinhardt's explanation in her head. A quick glance at the attendant showed that he seemed to have gotten a similar impression.
Evangeline once again questioned the honest knight before her.
“You said you exert a power beyond what you possess.”
“That is correct.”
“And I suppose you don't know the reason you gained such power.”
“I do not. At some point, I just became able to do so.”
It was a classic symptom shown by a Minion of evil.
The crucial difference was that Reinhardt himself seemed unaware of this fact.
Given his upright character, it was clear he truly believed he ‘just became able to do it’.
“Was it for the same reason you asked the interrogator to step aside?”
“No. It was to maintain my dignity as a knight. I had to adopt a somewhat rough demeanor. But there was no progress.”
“I see…….”
This upright knight seemed to have no intention of hiding his secret.
Because he truly didn't know.
Because he wasn't even curious as to why he had gained such power.
Reinhardt was just revealing himself frankly.
“Dame Evangeline. I believe….”
Just then, the attendant approached and whispered.
Since he seemed to share the same thought, Evangeline just nodded and looked back at Reinhardt.
“I will visit you again in a few days, Sir Reinhardt.”
“Is it a new mission?”
“No. It is just….”
Evangeline couldn't find the words to explain. She just mumbled and turned away with an ambiguous attitude.
Reinhardt did not stop her. He seemed oblivious to the situation he would soon find himself in.
“I will send a messenger to Paganoa.”
At the attendant's subsequent low voice, Evangeline could only nod with a lingering sense of unease.