Ch.206206. The Royal Palace (5)

Exactly 30 minutes after pouring the truth serum into the maid’s body.

“….Huh. I didn’t want to believe it, but that bastard actually betrayed us.”

“Your Majesty….”

Contrary to our concerns, the maid under the influence of the truth serum spilled everything she knew, and since she wasn’t just a low-ranking servant, we were able to grasp almost everything about this incident.

Even Louis VII, who had weathered countless storms, let out a sigh filled with bewilderment—the truth was so horrific it felt cruel.

First of all, this incident was orchestrated by the Marquis of Bordeaux, one of the leaders of the nobility faction.

As the Duke of Orleans maintained a close relationship with Louis VII, the Marquis, who was effectively the head of the anti-royalist faction, apparently planted informants among the servants, where identity verification was less strict.

People of this era tend to treat servants not as humans but as living tools, so information is shared regardless of whether servants are present or not—a fact the Marquis exploited.

This method worked so well that the Marquis quickly noticed our countermeasures against their plans and attempted to draw me into their faction to thwart our strategy.

Since I am technically a lord with my own estate, they calculated that I wasn’t impossible to recruit, which formed the basis of their logic.

In this process, the Marquis recruited or bribed servants and maids who had been pushed out of the power structure to secretly contact me. He tried to build a more sophisticated information network to lure me in, but….

As it happened, the maids and servants he bribed were actually members of a cult.

The cult that these servants belonged to, worshipping the outer god “The Faceless One,” was called “The Nameless Society.”

Though they called themselves a society, they were classified as an outer god cult organization formed among the castle’s servants and attendants.

Their outward claim was the overthrow of the monarchy and liberation of the proletariat. It sounds very communist, and indeed, they are communists.

From the beginning, most of the doctrines and ideologies of “The Faceless One” resemble communism, and considering that outer gods are divine beings from other worlds, one cannot dismiss the possibility that this might literally be a deified communist.

And…. surprisingly, the leader of “The Nameless Society” that worships “The Faceless One” was the royal head butler.

“The… head butler. How could you?”

He was born among the core royalists and had devoted his entire life to Louis VII—a man who could undoubtedly be described as a loyal servant.

In modern terms, he would be equivalent to a chief of staff, perhaps like the White House Chief of Staff.

Given that such a high-ranking confidant had betrayed him, even Louis VII seemed unable to accept this shocking reality.

“….Your Majesty.”

Unfortunately, the situation was too urgent to comfort him now.

“….I understand. Sigh, yes. I must steel myself.”

And Louis VII, who knew this better than anyone, set aside his own melancholy and continued to listen to the maid’s confession.

Anyway, the cult led by the head butler had little to do with this incident.

The cult, whose original goal was to assassinate Louis VII, simply pretended to be bribed and helped with the plan, further inciting conflict between nobles—a typical traitor’s move.

But cultists are problematic by their very existence.

All acts of following demons or worshipping outer gods inevitably lead to evil deeds—this is one of the “truths” engraved in this world as an undeniable fact, regardless of individual morality.

At first glance, the power of cultists seems easily obtained without much effort.

But the demons and outer gods that cultists worship are obviously not philanthropists, so they demand payment, and the price for such power is invariably horrific.

The lives or souls of others, body parts of innocents, control over one’s own body, lifespan, soul, or even one’s very existence.

Power obtained through such contracts doesn’t originate from oneself, so it can’t be developed through personal effort. No matter what happens, in the end, the cultist loses while the outer god or demon gains—that’s how the structure works.

Moreover, the countless victims that arise in this process, mostly human sacrifices, are inextricably linked.

And considering that fact….

‘….There will be bloodshed.’

No matter how optimistically I tried to think about it, considering that the cultists would have to be completely eradicated, a period of political turmoil was inevitable.

※ ※ ※

After the maid’s confession ended, having consumed a near-lethal dose of the potent truth serum, she was naturally on the verge of death.

“Guh, guhhh….”

She was foaming at the mouth with incomprehensible groans, her limbs trembling violently, giving the impression she might die at any moment.

Of course, Louis VII, the true leader of this era, was looking at the maid with a cold expression, as if traitors deserved no mercy, but….

[Earth, heal this person.]

After healing the maid with a short incantation, I boldly said to Louis VII, who looked at me as if wondering what I was doing:

“Your Majesty, do you intend to let a traitor die peacefully?”

“….That’s right! I almost forgot.”

Given this world’s characteristic of having healing magic, a quick death would be merciful. After imprinting this fact in his mind, I tied the woman up tightly…. and began the meeting to discuss our response.

The main topic was how to deal with these two groups.

First, we quickly decided on the fate of the cult “The Nameless Society.”

“Total annihilation—there seems to be no other way.”

“….I agree, Aleinos.”

No matter how gently we tried to approach this, there was no way we could leave this cult alone.

Three-tenths of the castle servants, five maids, four manservants, and even the head butler—this was just the number of their group that the maid knew about…. but I strongly felt this wasn’t all of them.

Would a cult centered around the head butler, with at least hundreds of castle staff members, have only reached out to servants and attendants?

Of course, considering that the head butler is the superior of all servants and attendants, it’s not strange that the cult is primarily composed of them, but….

It’s also strange that worshippers of an outer god would exist only among the servants.

Court nobles working as high officials in the castle. Administrative officials handling various tasks. Court magicians who stay at the royal palace to provide magical advice. The Frankish Knights directly under the royal family. Even the royal guard in charge of palace security.

Especially considering the characteristics of the followers of “The Faceless One,” who excel at infiltration and disguise, wouldn’t it be stranger if there wasn’t a single believer among them?

“….This is terrible.”

“Your Majesty, what’s the matter?”

“The tutor currently teaching the crown prince was recommended by the head butler.”

“Ah….”

Given the social characteristic of selecting talent based on connections, it wouldn’t be strange if those cultists deliberately recommended their fellow believers.

On top of that, the other side was also a serious obstacle.

The nobility faction, or perhaps better called the anti-royalist faction.

“Dealing with them along with the cultists….”

“If we did that, we’d be implicated too. They don’t know about the existence of the cultists.”

The first thought that came to mind was naturally to deal with that faction and the cultists together, but Louis VII dismissed this idea and gave a simple explanation.

Currently, the power structure in this kingdom is balanced with the royalist faction at 4, the nobility faction at 3, and the neutral faction at 3.

Unfortunately, the justification is too strong, and if we were to link them together, one of the factions—either royalist or nobility—would seriously have to collapse.

One might think that would be good, but the problem is that while the political initiative lies with the royalist faction, in terms of pure power dynamics, it’s hard to say either side completely dominates.

Therefore, if war broke out, that day would be the day the kingdom splits in two and civil war begins, and the result of civil war…. would likely be a pyrrhic victory for one side.

In any case, as the monarch of this kingdom, he wouldn’t want such an outcome….

“Your Majesty, then I will step forward.”

“….Are you sure?”

“Yes. How could I forgive those who dared to use ‘Aleinos’ as a chess piece?”

I wanted to prove to them through terror why I am “Aleinos.”

After all, humans, as animals, cannot feel genuine respect without emotions like fear.