Chapter 96
A silence fell.
Seeing this, I was about to detonate the bombs, having already planned to blow everything up and make our escape. Ruen, her face uncharacteristically blank, opened her mouth.
If you wish, I will relinquish my position as Saintess. However... if you intend to punish me, I believe it is only right to hold Archbishop Mikhail accountable as well.
They looked flustered, as if they hadn't expected Ruen to openly mention Mikhail Archbishop.
“Then again, considering Ruen”s usual personality, it makes sense.'
She was gentle, a person who couldn't bear to harm anyone. Yet, when confronted with those in pain, she was someone who would throw herself into danger to save them.
Even if Ruen wasn't a true Saintess, but a fabricated Fake Saintess. I considered Ruen to be more of a true Saintess than any real one. As I was lost in thought, Ruen delivered a bombshell statement in a calm voice.
Mikhail Archbishop, for what purpose are you colluding with the Dark Mages?
Even I hadn't expected Ruen to say such a thing. As I was admiring her internally, Shiren, who was beside me, shook her head and spoke to me.
Ruen's caught your influence, Damian.
“Caught it”... she talks as if it's an infectious disease. Feeling a bit wronged, I looked at Shiren, but she seemed to have no intention of retracting her words and sharply turned her head away.
“Well, I need to prepare to get her out, anyway.”
I pulled out the bombs I had stored within the Shadow and smiled.
* * * * *
For the first time, Ruen met the gaze of those looking down on her from above.
... For a long, long time, she had lived according to their dictates.
She had been forced to prioritize the Order's future, not humanity's. She had been pressured to turn a blind eye to those driven to the brink.
Because her very essence was a 'lie', she hadn't even conceived of fighting against such oppression until now. But perhaps because she had found true Comrades, people who would catch her if she fell, she continued to voice things she would never have dared to say normally.
... And is it right to abandon countless people suffering at the hands of Demonkind and Dark Mages like this? If this is the Order, then surely...!
Just as she was about to launch into a passionate speech, Mikhail Archbishop, seated above, spoke with a sneer.
Saintess Ruen, you are uttering words that others might misunderstand. I have never colluded with Dark Mages. Do you intend to state this as truth without any evidence? Of course there's evidence! You, a High-ranking Executive Dark Mage, in The North... Let me correct you. Do you have evidence like recordings or physical items? That...
If she had asked Liana, she would have brought it immediately... The problem was that she had no means to summon Liana right now, and doing so would require revealing Liana's 'identity'. No matter how she thought about it, only unfavorable outcomes came to mind, so she had no choice but to hesitate.
Pfft... Ah, Saintess. Even if you're cornered, you shouldn't resort to such lies, should you? I wondered what you were going to say, but collusion with Dark Mages... *ridiculous*.
A warning bell rang in her head, telling her she couldn't just stand there and listen, so she presented evidence to break through the situation.
That would be the result if you investigate, wouldn't it? Besides, I have other collected evidence, so if you postpone this trial, I will submit it immediately... No, there's a possibility of escape, so that's not allowed.
Mikhail Archbishop, the Cardinal, and the Pope were also colluding with Dark Mages, so the Courtroom seemed to be biased in Mikhail Archbishop's favor. The judge dismissed her words as if they weren't even worth listening to, stating,
And that story has no relevance to this trial, so everyone, please be quiet.
If she let this pass, they would pile all sorts of charges on her. And without even giving her a chance to refute, they would bury her. The possibility was extremely high. Therefore, she tried to break through the situation using pity, public opinion, doubt, or anything else...
*'... Do I have anyone on my side?'*
From Pernoer Village to Chetika Port City. Her supporting factions had all disintegrated from dealing with numerous enemies, and she was thoroughly isolated due to all sorts of political maneuvering. Sitting in this Courtroom, she realized that no one was on her side.
...
Still, she couldn't just stay silent like this, so she tried to open her mouth. But the judge forcibly silenced her and continued the trial.
As I thought this entire spectacle was like a crudely staged puppet show, my expression darkened.
Suddenly, a man in a blood-stained Black Robe stumbled out of the Waiting Room.
*'A Dark Mage...?'*
Seeing this completely unexpected person trudging out, I looked around in surprise. Everyone looked at each other, showing signs of bewilderment. It seemed no one could understand how a Dark Mage had appeared.
“That means it wasn”t prepared by the Order Faction...'
As I was flustered, wondering if Damian had done it, the Dark Mage pointed at Archbishop Mikhail with a bloodied hand and spoke.
Mi-Mikhail Archbishop... because you broke your promise, the Artificial Sun is gone!
It was a promise: the Artificial Sun. The moment those words escaped, a profound silence descended upon the entire area. The Dark Mage, ignoring everything, roughly charged forward, beginning to attack Mikhail Archbishop.
Splattering sticky blood, he moved forward quickly, but a Paladin nearby, moving with invisible speed, sliced through the Dark Mage's body and spoke briefly.
How did a Dark Mage get in?
At those words, the Holy Knights stationed everywhere were visibly flustered, unable to even answer.
Search immediately.
The moment the short command was given, numerous Holy Knights drew their weapons and stormed into the Waiting Room. Greatly surprised by that sight, just as I was about to rush into the Waiting Room to save Damian,
Pa-Paladin, there's a bomb here!
As the Holy Knights shouted "bomb," a powerful wave of mana began to erupt.
...?!
I was flustered and about to say something, but suddenly the floor gave way and I started to be sucked downwards.
"Ugh."
Too surprised, I made a strange sound as I fell to the floor, and the Shadow City spread out before my eyes.
You're here?
As I descended, I saw Damian greeting me.
Seeing this, I blinked with a dumbfounded expression.
Damian patted my back and spoke.
You did well.
Was it because of relief? At that one word, "You did well," I felt the strength leave my legs and could only nod blankly.
* * * * *
I was entering the castle and picked up Ruen, who was sitting on the floor. Ruen looked up at me with a blank expression and asked a question.
Uh, what happened?
It seemed from her asking "how" she realized I was the one who sent out the Dark Mage.
I calmly answered her.
I used one of the Dark Mages I had captured in the Shadow City before.
After taking out the imprisoned Dark Mage, I manipulated their memories by infusing Shiren's magic into them. Of course, due to time constraints, I didn't perfectly manipulate their memories as I had with Elysia. It was a makeshift brainwashing that only temporarily altered a part...
“I was going to kill them anyway.”
The possibility that by the time they tried to regain their memories, they would already be dead was extremely high, so there was no major issue.
“And indeed, the Paladin killed the Dark Mage.”
Honestly, I hadn't expected the Paladin to step in personally, but seeing him do so, I realized he must have been quite desperate.
I recalled what had happened earlier, smiled contentedly, and then spoke.
"Shall we make a run for it?"
"How are you going to escape?"
"Through the Shadow or Teleportation."
We can escape through the Shadow connected to the Main Family Residence. Or I can ask Shiren for Teleportation, and we'll be able to get out without much difficulty, so I waved my hand to reassure her. Ruen nodded blankly, then spoke to me.
"What do you think happened to the Order...?"
"Well, it probably got sufficiently disrupted, didn't it?"
Considering that Mikhail Archbishop didn't die in The North... there's a high probability that we couldn't kill the Key Figures.
Still, it wasn't a bad outcome, as we could inflict immense damage on the other personnel.
“On top of that, I”ve planted the Seed of Doubt.'
Soon, such rumors will spread within the Order. The rumor that Mikhail Archbishop is involved with Dark Mages will be among them.
The high-ranking Clergy would know this fact.
What would the majority of the Clergy, who had no access to such information, think? I couldn't know exactly what they would think... but at least it was certain that they would likely question the Order.
I decided to bide my time for a while, allowing Internal Strife to brew within the Order.
During this waiting period, I decided to rise to High-grade Expert as quickly as possible.
'There's only one way, right?'
The Castle Underground is located in the Training Ground.
I narrowed my eyes, resolving to explore the place I hadn't been able to explore last time.
In the original work, it was clearly a place where Damian could rise to Highest-grade Expert.
If I went down, I would surely be able to gain even more than what I had gained above. So, I decided to reach at least High-grade Expert and go down.
“Oh, and it would be a shame to leave the Order like this.”
Thinking I should steal a few things from the Order before leaving, I asked Ruen if there was anything worth stealing.