episode_0127

An office located on one side of the cathedral.

Devialet, who was almost crushed under a pile of documents, held his aching head.

It has to be that way.

I have been on the front line for half my life and have seen many scenes, but this is the first time I have encountered an incident that was so unpredictable and had no clue.

‘difficult.’

I have seen many temples dedicated to strange gods. However, the ominous phrase written in the blood of devils is difficult to find even in the central library of one’s home country.

The only evidence found at the scene was the devil’s blood traces, and there were no precedents to refer to, so he was realizing the limits of his abilities.

smart-

“Come in.”

Devialet said without even checking who knocked on the door. Currently, there was only one other person who could freely enter and leave the depths of the cathedral.

“Excuse me.”

Siron bowed his head and bowed politely. He had a folder and a tray in his hands, and judging by the distinct scent that quickly filled the room, it was coffee.

Dalkak-

Devialet chuckled at the neatly placed tea tables in front of him.

“Why did you prepare all this? You must be busy with the interrogation.”

“I also need an excuse to take a break.”

“…right. Of course.”

Siron’s witty joke. Devialet laughed out loud, took his eyes off his papers and looked at his watch.

‘…It’s already time.’

The short needle points to 7. It was 7 o’clock when I checked a little while ago, and it looks like I stayed up all night again. Devialet sipped the coffee in front of him and closed his eyes.

“Brother Siron. Can I ask you something?”

“Do you need to ask for permission? You can do as much as you want.”

“I saw an editorial saying that a boss who talks about work during break times can be viewed as quite unfavorable.”

After saying that, Devialet took a deep breath. The aroma of the coffee was very good, perhaps because it was served by a noble master himself, but due to the unresolved incident, he was unable to fully enjoy the aroma of the coffee.

“How is the interrogation of the suspects going?”

“We’re now in the final stages… but we’re going through quite a bit of trouble right now. All of the suspects are denying the charges as if they were kissing each other…”

Siron sighed and lowered his head.

“True. How can a person be so shameless?”

“But that doesn’t mean we can’t conduct interrogations involving torture like in the past.”

“…You may make a false confession to avoid immediate pain.”

“I know very well.”

Devialet patted Chiron, who was shrinking.

Although the young man might have been dissatisfied with the continuous vigil, he not only did what he was told to do, but also found work on his own, which made Devialet, who was leading the investigation, feel sorry for him.

“Cardinal. Come to think of it, I received a letter from Lucerne.”

“Correspondence?”

“This appears to be the answer to the request for Seong Cheol-toi to be dispatched last time.”

“Give it to me.”

Devialet opened the envelope presented to him.

“Um…”

“Can I ask what it says?”

“Nothing much. It looks like the knights are coming to Lien soon. And it looks like a delegation will come to meet the emperor.”

“No, you are even accompanying a delegation?”

“After all, it is an issue that brings an armed group in front of the Imperial Palace. And.”

Devialet put down his empty glass and continued.

“It seems that the home country does not view this incident as a simple ploy by cult members. Don’t you have doubts deep inside?”

“…It would be a lie to say no.”

Six temple appearances. The locations all appeared on the private property of those who supported the 1st Prince, Austin. I don’t know if it happened once or twice, but as it happened one after another, I had no choice but to extend my investigative net in that direction.

Siron adjusted his glasses with one hand. Although he had good eyesight, he had to wear low-prescription glasses when he was looking at files.

“No matter how you look at it, this incident appears to have originated from a battle of interests between the 1st and 3rd princes.”

“As expected…”

Devialet squeezed his eyes shut and sighed.

I wondered if they would attract evil demons into the competition for the imperial throne, but when things turn out like this, it is natural to be suspicious.

“If you think that way, it also makes sense for those currently being ‘protected’ by the cathedral to unanimously claim their innocence. If we assume that they were tricked by someone who wanted their downfall, it would be even more true.”

“So, are you saying the 3rd prince is the culprit?”

“No.”

In response to Siron’s question, Devialet shook his head in denial.

“The person who initiated the incident is probably connected to a high-ranking devil. According to literature, demons never follow humans and only cooperate through ‘deals’.”

“…”

“I don’t think a human with enough skills to make a deal with the devil would use such a shabby move. Rather, it seems like they knew that the priests of Lucerne would intervene and were aiming to deceive them.”

“Then…”

“There are many possible assumptions, but I first considered two cases.”

Devialet began writing on a blank piece of paper.

“I heard that the 3rd prince has a weaker political foundation than the 1st prince. In that case, it can be seen as an act of informing the world that the 3rd prince took unreasonable measures to reverse the difference. In other words, I think it was done in hopes of the Third Prince’s downfall.”

“So, are you saying that the 1st Prince faction arbitrarily committed the incident?”

Siron touched his lips and focused on Devialet’s remarks.

It was an act done to tarnish the reputation of the 1st Prince, Austin, but he had to be careful as the fire could spread to him for no reason. He didn’t say anything and waited for his next words to continue.

“That means that such an interpretation is possible.”

“What is the second one?”

“…Can you come this close?”

Devialet gestured to Siron and cleared his throat.

“It’s a cultist’s deception.”

“Yes?”

Now that we’re back to square one, Siron’s eyes widen at the completely unexpected remark.

“Why does that happen? Isn’t there an example of the 3rd prince making a deal with the devil to turn the unfavorable war situation?”

“You are a citizen of Lien, right?”

“Yes, well… that’s right.”

“How many times have you been dispatched? Except for Lucerne and Lienne.”

“We still have little experience, so we are outside the southern conflict zone…”

Siron said while massaging the back of his neck. For some reason, it feels like the story is falling into the middle of nowhere, and it’s a strong feeling.

Devialet, not caring about Siron’s reaction, began drawing a map on a blank piece of paper. A mountain range that is almost like a line drawn on a huge continent. Lien’s border blocks the waves of demonic beasts coming over him.

Devialet, who realized the approximate situation, opened his mouth.

“There are more people than you think who wish for Lien’s downfall.”

“What is that story about? If Lien falls, who will stop the demonic beasts?”

Instead of respecting Lien’s ‘hegemony’ that extends across the continent, other countries, including its princely state, use Lien as a kind of breakwater. That is the diplomatic principle that extends to this world.

“It is assumed that there is a country that shares the same views as the cultists who worship evil gods, or an interest group of a similar size.”

“It was the work of an external agent… That’s what you’re saying.”

“This is my personal opinion, so don’t take it too seriously.”

After Devialet finished speaking, he started organizing his desk.

“The second assumption is too far away. I think it is right to act based on the first assumption. What do you think?”

“There is no particular difference of opinion, but there are some issues.”

“What?”

“Didn’t you say that the Holy Mace is coming from Lucerne right now? If it is solely due to political strife, if there is a clear result to be achieved, it seems likely that the situation will be resolved before the situation escalates further.”

Siron turned his gaze to the document Devialet was holding.

As the board gets bigger, the variables increase. If that happens, you will be unable to control the situation.

What Siron wants is the downfall of the first prince, not the international diplomatic arena, which he does not want to get involved in.

But even excluding that, Austin is probably in a difficult situation in many ways right now.

If the Holy Imperial Kingdom’s full-scale intervention takes place, the emperor will also delay the installation of the crown prince.

‘I’ll do something.’

From what I saw last time in Night of the Long Sword, Austin seemed quite eager to become an emperor. It was not difficult to infer that just by looking at his actions of openly crushing his rival, Viktor, in a public place.

In the end, Austin will die before living his life. In the original, Viktor died before graduating from the academy, so even he, who knows his condition well, must be in a lot of trouble.

“If it were me. I think we can make extreme choices.”

“Assassination?”

“…I think that went too far.”

A bloody sound that came out of nowhere. Anyway, I had no intention of assassinating Austin. Siron cleared his throat in embarrassment for a moment and tried to continue the conversation.

“I think I will commit perjury to accuse my competitor of being a devil worshiper. If you expose the devil to the world and make him say the other person’s name, wouldn’t the situation end there?”

Siron stared at Devialet, who was looking at him with interest.

“So. My opinion is that it would be better to conduct surveillance under the pretense of escorting.”

If you offer not only the justification of being a suspect, but also the justification of escorting him, Austin won’t be able to refuse. It’s probably a situation where you can’t sleep properly because of an invisible devil.

In the meantime, if Victor’s foundation is built, victory is a given.