episode_0026

Meanwhile, Lian was causing a ruckus in the basement of the orphanage.

In a corner of the Holy Kingdom, the paladins and priests were bustling around.

In particular, there was a place where many footsteps were heading towards – the personal quarters of Bishop Tron, who had provided Homunculus to Hainel.

Bang!

The knights burst into the room, kicking the door open.

The knight at the front shouted loudly, “Bishop Tron! We will arrest you for child abuse and forbidden life creation!”

“Quiet… Hng!”

As the knights entered the room, they each drew their weapons and put on a stern expression.

However, upon seeing the interior, they were taken aback and showed a shocked reaction.

The room was filled with blood and unidentifiable chunks of flesh.

Bishop Tron, who should have been there, was nowhere to be found, and a grotesque scene unfolded before them.

“What in the world…?”

“Wait a moment.”

Among the knights, Roland was the only one who remained calm.

He knelt down and examined the scattered flesh on the floor.

While the other knights were shocked by Roland’s bold actions, he paid no attention and continued his investigation.

Finally, Roland found something shiny in the flesh and pulled it out.

“Rosario necklace…?”

“Oh! Wasn’t that the one that Gale’s fiancée gave him recently, and he was bragging about it?”

“Come to think of it, Gale was Bishop Tron’s bodyguard, right?”

“Does that mean the identity of this flesh is…?”

Feeling the impending death of a close comrade, the atmosphere grew somber.

Some bowed their heads in sorrow, some clenched their fists and trembled, and some eventually showed tears.

Moreover, the victim was not just Gale.

Those associated with Bishop Tron were likely to have suffered a terrible fate, and the knights recalled their acquaintances.

“Now is not the time to mourn. We must track down the heretic who committed this heinous act and fled.”

Roland made a rational assessment of the situation and made a decision, but his expression was not good.

The magic circle engraved behind the bookshelf in the corner of the room.

The type of magic circle recently used and seemingly ineffective was none other than Teleportation Magic.

Roland suspected that Bishop Tron activated the magic circle after committing the massacre and left.

It was highly likely that he had already escaped abroad, making tracking him down difficult.

“It’s a shame.”

***

As Roland had predicted, Bishop Tron had already crossed the border and was heading south.

On his right armpit was a specimen similar to the Homunculus he had given to Hainel.

Although not as powerful as the specimen in the orphanage, it still contained a decent amount of sanctity.

“Tsk! I thought you would cause a great commotion…! You useless brat who can’t even do one simple thing properly!”

Bishop Tron wanted to burst out onto the bustling street where the Homunculus had been causing chaos.

In the meantime, he tried to take the relics of the Holy Kingdom with him, but unfortunately, he failed.

The Homunculus was tied up in the orphanage, and the relaxed knights were trying to arrest him.

As a result, Bishop Tron had no choice but to flee, leaving behind only the creations he had made during his time in the Holy Kingdom.

He had planned a magnificent masterpiece, but the actual result was just a single portrait.

Considering that he had spent a preparation period of just five years, it was natural for frustration to well up within him.

“Rich, who promised to invade the Holy Kingdom according to the situation, was defeated by the Holy Sword, and the brat who said he would come back with only the Magic Stones suddenly lost contact…! Damn it, nothing ever goes right!”

Tron Bishop’s plan was originally the downfall of the Holy Empire.

While Homunculus was rampaging in glory, he plundered the major relics to weaken the national power.

The weakened Holy Empire was expected to be swept away like fallen leaves by a combination of undead armies and high-ranking demon trainers.

However, the invasion from the outside by the Lich and demons disappeared, and the relics ended without even touching them.

It was truly a miserable and hopeless ending.

“Where did it go wrong?”

Was it the news of the Sword Saint and Roland heading north to defeat the Lich?

It could only be seen as bad luck.

Was it joining hands with the naturally reckless demons?

Even so, it was incomprehensible to hide the invasion of a Holy Empire that produced heroes.

Was it overestimating what the High Priest Hainel would do?

In fact, Bishop Tron believed in the performance of Homunculus he created, not in Hainel.

“Ugh…! How can I explain this to the Demon Lord!”

At least one thing had to go according to plan, but it didn’t.

Now, with rumors circulating about the return of the Sword Saint who had defeated the demon general, things were getting worse.

Tron Bishop, who had been a spy from the demon world, sighed more and more each day.

“At least the rumors about the Sword Saint are just rumors, so it’s better to exclude them for now.”

Tron Bishop, who had never thought that the one who ruined his plans would be the Sword Saint, was in despair.

***

“Ugh…!”

“Oh, you finally came to your senses.”

A dark and damp underground chamber.

Knight Commander Lutgen, who had lost consciousness after having one arm torn off by Hainel, finally opened his eyes.

Although his mind was slightly foggy due to the shock of being thrown against the wall, the man looking down at him was as clear as day.

“Who are you…?”

“You were unconscious when you entered. More accurately, you pretended to be unconscious.”

“Why would you do such a thing…?”

“I had to hide my identity. Because of who I am.”

Lian lowered the mask covering his mouth, revealing his face completely.

Lutgen stared blankly at Lian’s face for a moment, then suddenly remembered something and widened his eyes.

“Y-You’re the hero?!”

“Not the Sword Saint, but a hero. It feels strange to be called that…”

Lian, who was now realizing Alaina’s words about declaring himself a hero, felt a sense of responsibility.

Meanwhile, Lutgen grabbed Lian’s hand as if he had finally found hope.

“Hero! Although it may be a slim chance, I will do my best to assist you in defeating the monsters together!”

“Oh, I already took care of that guy.”

“Excuse me…?”

“Believe it or not, I eliminated him without leaving a trace. I was actually planning to deal with him a little earlier, but I had to postpone it because of you and the paladins coming in.”

“Haha…! As expected of a hero! We were just wasting our time.”

Lutgen felt disheartened at the thought of easily defeating an opponent who had given them so much trouble.

However, without showing it, he praised Lian.

Although it wouldn’t be out of place to be conceited, Lutgen instead reflected on his own immaturity and felt ashamed.

Lian smiled wryly at Lutgen’s self-blame and encouraged him.

“Don’t think of it as a waste. Thanks to your selflessness in prioritizing civilian rescue, I was able to rampage in glory.”

Smiling coolly, Lian pointed to the entrance of the underground chamber.

The collapsed stones were blocking the entrance, indicating that the building collapsed during the process of dealing with Hainel.

If Lutgen and the paladins hadn’t been there, Lian would have become a human like Hainel.

“Looks like I’m in a pickle. I’ve become a lone wolf, but I’ll do my best to clear away the rubble.”

“That’s right! I’ve restored your lost right arm, but let’s check if it’s functioning properly.”

“Really?”

Lutgen looked at his right arm that had been torn off by Hainel.

The arm guard connected to his armor was torn off, but the arm itself was intact.

“I can’t believe it! How did you manage to do that?”

“Well, you see…”

Lian turned his head towards the spot where he had pretended to faint.

Aleyna, who had fainted in the joy of being embraced by Lian for a long time, was now gasping for breath and sending tears of joy down her cheeks between her lips.

“Hero?”

“Sorry, but it’s a secret. Please don’t ask for the reason.”

“Oh, I understand.”

Lian couldn’t bring himself to admit that he had used Aleyna’s tears.

He had used the tears of the Holy Sword.

There wasn’t a big issue, but at the moment, it was like smearing a woman’s bodily fluid on a damaged body part.

It was so bizarre that he couldn’t even mention it.

“Anyway, I’ve treated your wounds and revealed my identity to you because your mindset is excellent, so you can be proud of it.”

“It’s an honor!”

“In that sense, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”

“Whatever you say, I’ll follow!”

“I have a goal that I must achieve. To accomplish that, it’s best if no one else finds out about my existence.”

He had to keep his identity hidden.

Despite that, Lutgen felt a great sense of duty in boldly revealing his identity.

He was trusted by the strongest hero.

Just that fact alone made Lutgen’s heart beat stronger than usual.

“As a true Paladin, I swear by my name and honor to assist you, Hero.”

“You’re reliable. Just do as I said earlier.”

“Understood!”

Just then, voices could be heard from above the blocked entrance to the underground chamber.

It was the knights who had come to rescue the Knight Commander from the ruins of the orphanage.

Lian tapped Lutgen’s shoulder and put on the mask he had taken off, then returned to his original position, pretending to faint again while hugging Aleyna.

“Such convincing acting…! Truly, an exceptional hero in every way!”

The hero pretended to be an injured person.

Although he appeared unimpressive on the surface, even that sight of Lian seemed dignified to Lutgen.

“Oh! Stop fooling around! Someone might think there’s a flood coming!”

[A water magic of Archmage level…!]

However, in reality, Lian was far from being dignified.

He showed a disgruntled expression while drenched in Aleyna’s tears during the act.

“What a noble and thunderous voice! If heard on the battlefield, it would surely boost the morale of our allies!”

Nevertheless, Lutgen’s gaze did not change significantly.

The Knight Commander, who had been properly scolded by the Holy Sword, was still the same.