episode_0131

Orde’s words were filled with intense emotions and persuasiveness as if he would spit out fire right away, but unfortunately, they didn’t resonate with me at all.

No matter how good the message is, if the messenger is trash, it lacks persuasiveness.

A swindler, a robber, and a murderer gathering to denounce government corruption—would anyone take that seriously?

Therefore, instead of responding sympathetically to Orde’s words, I responded with a sarcastic laugh.

Perhaps not expecting such a reaction, Orde cleared his throat awkwardly a couple of times before explaining the reasons properly.

“So… Heid tried to kill you all viciously, so you decided to strike first before being struck?”

“…In a way, if you look at it from the organization’s perspective. My motivation is as I mentioned earlier.”

“Ah, that’s enough.”

Yes, yes. So that’s the setting. You seem very sincere about the concept of being in your late teens. But who would believe that?

“Alright, I understand the reason. You drew your sword to survive, right?”

“….”

As I expected, their resolve to kill the hero wasn’t based on some grand moral cause but simply because the hero attacked them first.

Orde, along with another officer Hix who aimed for Yotun’s heart, encountered the Heid party, sparking the battle.

That day, Orde lost half of the monster legion, and Hix had his throat cut and was hung on the city wall.

After that, Heid relentlessly tracked down signs of counter-revolution, cutting off limbs one by one, it seems.

They swiftly attacked one of Arianne’s hideouts, burned it down, annihilated two branches of the cult serving Ganagel as the Lion of God, and destroyed numerous subordinate organizations.

So, leaving them alone might lead to the organization being uprooted, eventually deciding to eliminate Heid….

“So, do you have a plan?”

Now that I knew the reasons, it was time to ask about the plan.

Were they pushing vague, empty theorizing like a delusional patient’s diary, or did they actually have a plan to defeat the hero? I needed to know.

“Well, there is a plan… but it seems too early to reveal it.”

For some reason, Orde hesitated, his words becoming vague towards the end.

Ha, really. It’s pathetic to be full of doubts and fears. He had more guts than me, who had lost my tail.

“Each case is different, right? I can’t just cooperate blindly without knowing the plan. I don’t intend to join the delusional suicide parade.”

I shrugged lightly and took a step towards him.

“He’s not just any enemy; he’s a hero. A hero who has killed one and defeated the other simultaneously. And not just any hero, but Prince Naurishi of Herbor.”

While your proposal is intriguing, I’ll shake hands immediately once a few troubling points are resolved.

“If you were in my shoes, could you get involved in such a dangerous affair without knowing the plan? Instead of stepping into such a risky situation without knowing anything, it might be safer to continue living as a fugitive.”

Frankly speaking, once you obtain the helmet of Valquoria, there might be no way to live as a fugitive. Just by mingling in the crowd, the number of pursuers would decrease significantly.

“You speak well. Do you have the confidence to live as a fugitive? How long do you think just the two of you can hold out?”

“Well, perhaps longer than you guys?”

Orde, who did not seem to acknowledge the fact that I had such an item, seemed to consider it mere pretense.

“You’re quite confident. Do you have some belief in something?”

“Well, even if I do, you understand that I can’t tell you, right? There’s no way a fool would teach his lifeline to someone else.”

“Hmm….”

Orde stiffened his expression and let out a long sigh. His internal conflict seemed serious, though the only visible part of him was his lips.

◆◆

In the end, after deep contemplation, Orde agreed with me.

I expected that. In an argument, the one who originally steps back must continue to yield. The initiative of the conversation had completely shifted to my side.

“Sigh, there isn’t enough time to explain everything, so I’ll summarize roughly. That should be enough, right?”

“Probably?”

Orde, who seemed unwilling, elaborated on the plan in a tone that showed no intention of concealing annoyance.

“Hmm… Alright then. It’s a story that will unfold well.”

To my surprise, the explanation was somewhat convincing.

In my judgment, in order to kill a hero and survive unscathed, three essential conditions had to be met.

A strategy to lure the hero into their grave, the power to kill them, and a way to cover up the aftermath of the hero’s murder.

If any of these three elements were lacking, failing to kill the hero or succeeding would result in death for us as well.

And Orde’s explanation was barely meeting those three essential conditions.

It was simple to lure Heid. It was good for weakened Orde to expose his actions by losing many monsters; Heid’s party would rush in, right?

Thus, luring Heid’s party near the border area was the first step of the plan.

The second step was to secure the force to defeat Heid. That was the reason they were trying to lure me in.

My role was to openly cause trouble within the Line Kingdom, leading as many kingdom soldiers as possible to chase after me.

Then, when Heid and the kingdom soldiers arrived at the traps set in the border area, the key point of the plan was to trigger a large-scale illusion magic to confuse them.

Heid’s party might resist the illusion magic, but the kingdom soldiers would be a mob, so ultimately they would have no choice but to fight each other.

The Abyssal Priests’ role was to snipe only Heid’s party from afar while they were distracted fighting each other.

This would assist the Line Kingdom in killing Heid.

Wouldn’t everything be resolved then?

Ultimately, if the Line Kingdom killed the hero of Herbor, it was obvious that the conflict and chaos between the two countries would intensify.

Since neither Line nor Herbor would pay attention to the likes of Abyssal Priests, they could quietly disappear amidst the chaos.

I asked if we could really be at ease with just that much, and Orde replied that there was no problem since there were noble backers in Herbor Kingdom to help them disappear.

“Nobles? Who are they? Are they powerful individuals?”

“You could say that.”

Perhaps the most crucial information.

I relentlessly pried into the identity of this ‘noble’ backer, and eventually, with a tone of annoyance, Orde disclosed the individual’s name and position.

Careless.

Thanks to the numerous compliments he had given throughout his explanation of the plan, it seemed like I had completely won him over mentally.

“I’ve told you everything I can. So now it’s time to hear your answer.”

Seeing his decision-making tone akin to a final ultimatum…

If I said NO here, he would probably attack right away, claiming that I knew too much to be left alive. In that case, my response would be…

“Alright, I’ll cooperate. Just one more thing to ask.”

“Again? What else do you want to ask? Isn’t this enough?”

Orde twisted the corner of his mouth as if sneering.

“No, it’s really nothing special. Just, well… until the execution date, there’s still some time left, right? I was wondering how we would keep in touch until then. You burned the clue that could have tracked me earlier.”

A question based on cooperation.

“Ha, I see. I forgot about that explanation.”

Orde seemed to consider it a matter significant enough to inquire about, relaxing his expression and letting out a hollow laugh.

“There’s a hideout prepared a couple of hours away from here. You can stay there until the preparations are complete.”

“Oh, really? Quite meticulous of you.”

Although there is no way to track me, he had prepared a residence in advance for easy contact when needed.

“That should be… yes, enough to join hands.”

I smiled and extended my right hand towards him.

Having understood all that needed to be known, it seemed like a gesture of putting aside suspicions and committing to full cooperation.

“Let’s do well from now on.”

“…Hmph.”

Orde stared at my outstretched hand for a while, then lightly chuckled and shook hands with me.

Thus, the dramatic negotiation between the Knight of Betrayal and the Abyss Priest came to a conclusion.

I firmly grasped Orde’s hand, shaking it lightly as if displaying unwavering trust.

“Umm. Can you please let go of my hand…”

Ironically, Orde seemed uncomfortable with this kind of physical contact, slightly twitching his shoulder as he tried to subtly withdraw the hand we held together…

“Huh? The hand? Oh, right.”

No, no. After finally holding hands like this, we should shake hands properly, shouldn’t we? Isn’t that right?

Just as I grabbed his hand…

In the next moment, my dagger was embedded in Orde’s throat.

◆◆

– Clang!

The blade pierced through the opposite side of the throat, and bright droplets of blood gradually stained the gauntlet of the left hand.

“What…?!”

Shuddering as if struck by lightning, Orde let out a eerie groan, his eyes rolling back.

Pulling back my right hand that I held onto, I drew out the dagger and struck swiftly. Without even reacting, he surrendered his head to me.

It was inevitable. Strong as he may be, ultimately, he is a spellcaster. How could he respond to a knight’s ambush on these streets?

The moment our hands met, his life was already in my hands. I swiftly took that life without hesitation.

“How foolish. Calling me the Knight of Betrayal, not even harboring a suspicion that I might betray you, huh?”

I laughed mockingly, facing his face while gripping the dagger handle like a handshake.

From the start, I gently probed for information and planned to betray.

Already bearing the stigma of collaborating with the Abyss Priest, helping them in such a situation would only solidify that accusation into truth.

If that happened, there would be no way to explain. I would have to live my whole life as a top wanted criminal.

They probably knew this well, hence why they mentioned ‘companion.’ Once you’re in, it implies you can’t escape.

People like them are like drugs; once you get involved, you can never return to your old life.

Even if I tried to break ties after killing the hero, they would likely manipulate and exploit me using the excuse that I intervened in the hero’s assassination.

Probably.

So what can I do? I have to kill.

Originally, I planned to blend in among them as a comrade and strike at the crucial moment, but given the messed-up plan, that opportunity seemed unlikely to arise.

I also doubted if I could pull off such an act convincingly.

If, by any chance, my true intentions or Freide’s identity were exposed among them, that day would become our final reckoning.

Therefore, after a brief moment of consideration, I decided to kill Orde Nom here without even asking him any questions.

He was babbling away without even knowing if today was his last day. This guy is really hilarious, almost died laughing.

– Squirm.

I twisted the dagger like a lever into Nom’s head, released my convulsing right hand, drew out the longsword, and hacked his body to pieces.

Even if he had a dangerous ability like regeneration, it would be thoroughly impossible to dream of regeneration.

“As expected, Mr. Hilde! I believed in you!”

Freida, who was watching, cheered. I felt a little better as if I had done something good after a long time.