Ch.359EP.75 – The Cogwheel Declares (7)

*Thud!*

“Ugh, disgusting.”

*Tap, tap.*

King Edmund collapsed to the floor in a miserable state.

*Squelch…*

With his pants becoming noticeably heavier.

It wasn’t strange.

‘He learned how to control his sphincter.’

Since I had ‘arranged’ it that way, this was the natural result.

Today’s experiment feels particularly productive.

But I feel no guilt.

Just.

“I’ve finished what I needed to do, so handle the rest yourselves.”

Just the satisfaction of removing a tick.

“Haa, you ended this in such a filthy way. So unclean.”

“You should be grateful it only ended with uncleanliness. I actually held back, or I could have turned this into a gory masterpiece.”

“…Sigh.”

Ihan spoke curtly, and the woman sighed.

Princess Isis Elaine de Pendragon, who had maintained an expressionless face throughout despite the king’s disgraceful state, finally rose.

*Whoosh.*

The atmosphere shifted the moment she stood up.

Edmund had collapsed into a disgraceful, filthy heap right beside her, while she maintained her noble dignity—the contrast couldn’t be more stark.

As everyone’s eyes turned to Isis…

“…Everyone has already heard it. About the crimes committed by my father, the current monarch of Pendragon, Edmund Julian de Pendragon.”

Her clear voice, neither too high nor too low, mysteriously resonated throughout the banquet hall.

“It is cruel and sorrowful, but… yes, it’s true. All of it is true.”

*Crash!*

The glass vessel that had cracked from Ihan’s roar finally shattered completely.

Like a dramatic prop enhancing the climax of the scene…!

The difference between Edmund and her was that Edmund had orchestrated everything with his own hands, while she had created this situation without even intending to.

Naturally.

“The king directly supported the heretical faction of the temple, the Blood Crusaders, whom the war god personally eliminated decades ago, providing fuel for their resurrection. Because of this, these subversive forces grew stronger and eventually transformed into a power capable of burning down not just the kingdom, but the entire south.”

[[!!!!]]

She acknowledged Edmund’s crimes, which shocked the nobles in a completely different way.

It was Isis herself, the heir to the throne, who had testified.

This was now irreversible—a major incident that would shake the entire royal family.

“Furthermore, I cannot deny the possibility that the king has maintained his relationship with them until now. That is, we cannot deny the possibility that King Edmund was involved in all the incidents that occurred last year and until now.”

*Stagger-*

People began clutching their heads and staggering about.

It was so shocking that some even felt like fainting.

‘Please, please stop!’

‘This can’t be happening!’

‘Just deny it, Your Majesty! Why are you acknowledging this?!’

The nobles screamed internally.

Yes, one cannot deny committed crimes.

But to acknowledge them so definitively is the worst possible outcome.

It was a declaration that could destroy the royal family’s credibility, or even the royal family itself.

At a time when cracks in the royal family were already accelerating, this declaration signaled a major incident that would shake the kingdom.

The nobles felt ominous.

The already terrible situation seemed to be heading toward something even more extreme!

“I swear on Pendragon, no, on dragons and fairies and mysteries. The royal family will reveal all truths in detail. And we will make this known to everyone regardless of status. Everyone…”

But Isis paid no attention to any of it.

She simply announced it dispassionately.

*Crack…!*

People heard the sound of rupture in their ears.

The royal palace….

No, it was the sound of the kingdom cracking.

* * *

– Is this really okay?

– It is.

– …Well, I’m fine with it, but this means you won’t be able to become queen either, sister?

– I don’t care. As long as father—Edmund—blocks my path, this kingdom will never be mine. No, even if Edmund were to disappear, I have no need for the current Pendragon.

– ?

– You know what? If I can’t have it completely, and it’s already rotten to the core….

*Crash!*

– I might as well destroy it all.

– ……

– It’s always easier to build something new than to fix something broken.

– …Sister, I’m not sure if I should say this, but well.

– Go ahead.

– You’re quite insane, aren’t you?

– …Cheeky brat.

*Smack!*

“…Hmm.”

Ihan unconsciously rubbed his forehead, though it didn’t hurt.

‘I wonder if her wrist is okay?’

With this irrelevant thought, Ihan recalled when he attended this not-so-amusing banquet.

They say you shouldn’t burn down the whole house to kill a tick, but that’s exactly what this was.

But what could he do?

‘There were just too many ticks.’

And they had spread too far, to the point of no recovery.

“Well, I’ve finished what I needed to do, so.”

He shrugged his shoulders.

He had fulfilled his role and completed his task cleanly.

So-

*Slide.*

“Arrest him.”

“……”

“The charge is assaulting the king. Bind him with handcuffs or rope and take him away.”

“…Would handcuffs or rope even work on you?”

“Then bring chains made of eternal steel.”

“What’s that?”

“Right, that doesn’t exist. Just do your job. You’re soldiers, aren’t you? Then carry out your duty.”

“…You’re a soldier too.”

“…Can one continue being a soldier after reducing the highest authority in the nation to that state?”

“……Haaah!”

The knights sighed in despair as the knight held out his arms willingly to be arrested.

And so, with a sigh mixed with despair, they…

*Click.*

“Ihan Turtle. You are under arrest for assaulting the king and insulting the royal family.”

“That’s more like it.”

Ihan accepted the hands binding his wrists without resistance.

Yet no one looked relieved at the sight.

However…

“Let’s go.”

The one being arrested, or rather, allowing himself to be arrested, walked proudly and voluntarily toward the prison.

[[[──.]]]

The nobles watched him with complicated expressions.

What was it?

What made him so confident?

After reducing the king to such a state and creating such a rift in the kingdom, what gave him such confidence…?

They wondered about it but didn’t want to understand him.

His actions were simply unacceptable by noble standards.

Even if the king was a criminal, even if he had committed serious crimes, one shouldn’t act so barbarically.

One should follow proper form and procedure…

“-What is it?”

“……”

*Thud.*

…Before their confusion could continue, someone blocked the knight’s path.

A man with black hair and black eyes, symbolizing Lionel.

“L-Lord Roen.”

Roen Dmitri de Lionel.

He stood in front of the knight.

“What?”

“I came to ask a question. Please answer.”

“…In this situation?”

“It’s because of this situation that I’m asking. Besides, you’re still my instructor. Surely you’ll answer your student’s question?”

“That logic seems a bit strange…?”

“I learned it from you.”

“…You only learned the strange parts.”

A casual conversation.

It was a dialogue that didn’t fit this situation at all, and people wondered what he was doing.

However, no one stopped Roen, and even the Silver Lion knights looked at the knight.

“Instructor, do you desire power?”

“Not particularly. Don’t need it.”

“Then were you promised vast wealth?”

“Money is enough as long as I have enough to live on.”

“Then do you want honor and justice?”

“If I wanted those, would I have done something like this?”

“…Then why did you do this?”

Roen wore an expression of incomprehension.

How could someone who needs neither power, money, nor honor commit such a radical act?

To such a question…

“Black one, do you need an answer to that question right now?”

“Yes. I want to hear it.”

“Well, hmm, you might be disappointed by the answer.”

“I’ll try not to be disappointed.”

“…You’re putting pressure on me too.”

“I apologize.”

“No, there’s no need to apologize. It’s just that the real reason isn’t much…”

*Tsk-*

With an awkward expression but a refreshing smile…

“Because… no one else would.”

“……”

“No one, absolutely no one, held that person accountable, so I did. That’s all.”

“…Do you have the right to hold him accountable?”

“I do, because I’m the victim.”

“……”

“Think simply. I lived in hell for ten years because of what that man did, and I suffered because of it. And when I learned the truth, I made him pay the price.”

“……”

“You and others keep nitpicking and getting caught up in laws because you think of that person as a king, so let me ask you this. Can you judge that person by law?”

“……”

“Right, you can’t. It’s impossible to judge him by law. While claiming to respect the law on the surface, the law’s standards are always kind and generous to those in power. It’s quite funny.”

“That’s…”

“Ah, I’m not blaming you. I’m not asking you to understand my grievances either. But just know this one thing. There are many cogs in the world. Tiny cogs that keep this world turning. And power always discards and abandons these cogs. Without any mercy.”

…At some point, people were paying attention to his voice.

The knight who had seemed so violent and aggressive just moments ago now appeared incredibly upright.

His words resonated and somehow pierced the heart.

“People suffer when they have no power. This is an unchanging truth. But fortunately, I have power. The power to show that I, this cog, exist. It’s fortunate. Thanks to that, I could act on behalf of countless cogs.”

He was smiling.

“This will throw the kingdom into chaos. Many people will resent me because of it. But I have no regrets. Would someone solve my grievances if I endured? No. No one shouts on my behalf. So I must make noise. I must move, because nothing changes otherwise.”

*Gulp-*

The knight didn’t display any intimidating aura.

He didn’t raise his voice, nor did he exude power.

But his words carried weight, and there was not a hint of wavering.

Because he didn’t avoid his crimes and showed no regret for what he had done, with complete confidence.

“Let me say it again. I’m not saying what I did was right. There might have been a better way. So don’t assign any meaning to my actions. I just put into practice what no one else would do. …That’s all.”

*Thud.*

…With that, he walked forward again.

With a dignified, triumphant gait like a victorious general.

As if there was nothing to be ashamed of.

He had already passed Roen and was moving forward, and Roen…

“…Do you know? Watching your back makes me want to live like you.”

Confidently, without hesitation. And with passion.

-Without regrets.