CIATB Chapter 449
Chapter 449
In the quiet office, the only sound that could be heard was the occasional tapping of the Crown Prince’s fingers on the desk.Cantares’ gaze remained fixed on the report in his hand. After a long pause, he finally spoke.
“Have you verified the authenticity?”
“…Yes.”
Jereon swallowed hard and answered calmly.
“Since it was an investigation conducted directly by High Priest Lumiel, I believe the possibility of manipulation is practically slim.”
“Ha…”
Cantares sighed deeply and pressed his temples to soothe his surging migraine. Jereon, who had been about to say more, simply stayed quiet. He intuitively sensed the Crown Prince’s profound discomfort.
“Why didn’t I know this until now?”
Cantares spoke again in a subdued voice. Though his voice was calm, a cold anger was evident.
“Jen. What do you think? Does this make sense?”
The report crumpled as he unconsciously tightened his grip. But Cantares didn’t seem to notice.
“I don’t think I’m that incompetent. I guess I overestimated myself.”
“…”
Cantares’ words were blatantly filled with sarcasm directed at someone.
The aide, who was about to respond, closed his mouth again. Jereon was equally flustered by the situation.
‘This is what kind of person he was.’
Cantares was never a soft person.
It was a fact that could be seen just by looking at his ability to handle the war, as he was already in charge of all the affairs of the Empire at a young age.
It was a fact that he often forgot because he was used to being so casual with the Crown Prince.
“Hah.”
Cantares let out another short sigh and ran an irritated hand through his hair.
It was only later that he realized that he was taking out his anger on his aide for no reason.
“…Sorry, Jen. I didn’t mean to say that to you.”
“No, don’t worry about it.”
As Jereon shook his head, Cantares groaned and slumped back against the backrest.
“So… how am I supposed to take this? Since the information has already leaked to the temple, it’s impossible to stop it.”
“For now, I think it would be best to double-check the authenticity. As Your Highness mentioned earlier…”
Jereon, who had been silent for a moment, continued speaking slowly.
“I don’t think it’s something to be overlooked that Your Highness has not been aware of this until now.”
“…”
The aide wasn’t talking about the Crown Prince’s incompetence. Cantares, too, easily grasped the hidden meaning in Jereon’s words.
Cantares sighed as he rubbed his face.
“So that means there’s another reason I didn’t notice.”
Someone had intentionally blocked the Crown Prince’s eyes and ears.
In the Caerleon Empire, only a few people would dare to commit such a crime. Picking out suspects among them wasn’t difficult.
Cantares, who had been silent for a long time, becan to speak.
“First, contact the Khan Union. Tell the Union Leader to come to the palace as soon as possible. Oh, and the Vice Leader too.”
“All right.”
Jereon answered neatly.
Although he looked no different from usual, Cantares could see the shadows cast over his face.
“…Can I ask what you’re thinking?”
An unintentionally sharp question was thrown out.
There was even a distrust within it that he had never expected would be directed at Jereon. It was the aftereffect of the report he had just received.
Jereon answered with a bitter smile.
“I am worried that Your Highness might feel betrayed.”
“Betrayed…”
Cantares, who had been humming along with his words, burst into a hollow laugh.
“Is that so? Maybe.”
Jereon had already seen through the emotions that even he himself could not grasp.
What tore through Cantares’ mind was a sense of betrayal.
The subject, once considered a traitor, then an object of curiosity, was now the palace’s biggest headache, and at the same time, it was no exaggeration to say that he was his most reliable ally…
It was Arendt von Eckhart.
Another homunculus fell.
Laius took a slow, even breath, still holding his sword in his hand.
“Huh, ugh…”
His stamina was gradually depleting. Even for him, it was no easy task to single-handedly defeat multiple homunculi.
Laius quickly caught his breath and tried to straighten his posture.
But he lost his balance for a moment and stumbled in place. Glenn, seeing this, cried out in surprise.
“Captain!”
“It’s okay.”
But Laius raised his hand and stopped him from running towards him.
Laius looked up at the sky.
Time was slowly running towards noon.
‘Not yet.’
Before the troops were deployed, Arendt came alone and spoke quietly.
He said that once everything was over, Laius would naturally come to know as well.
But so far, no significant signal has been heard, which likely meant the operation had not been carried out yet.
Not a short amount of time had passed.
Although they tried to minimize the damage somehow, Prince Ludwin’s forces were slowly starting to gain casualties.
‘A little more…’
If they finished the fight here first, they could go help Arendt and his group.
With that in mind, Laius once again took hold of the Holy Sword.
‘I guess we need to take a bold step.’
The holy light flowing from the sword restored his stamina.
Laius swung his sword without even looking.
The priest who had been quietly approaching him was cut down helplessly.
Rotten blood splattered, staining the uniform that marked him as the captain a deep black.
Even the sleeves and the hem of his trousers were already a mess of enemy flesh and blood.
But as if none of that mattered in the slightest, Laius took a step forward.
At that moment, an unfamiliar voice stopped his steps.
“They say you are the hero chosen by God Luce.”
The voice was too low and hoarse for a normal human. With a blank expression, Laius turned his head to look at the other person.
“Do the people of the Holy Empire praise someone like you as a hero?”
Covered entirely in black robes, he resembled other battle priests of the Chernion Cult. However, his overwhelmingly abundant divine power proved he was no ordinary priest.
“Your current appearance would be more like that of a berserker. You show no respect for the gods in your approach to battle.”
“Is that so?”
Laius sheathed his sword and turned towards him.
“It’s nice to hear that.”
“…”
The priest closed his mouth. His face was obscured by his robes, but it wasn’t hard to tell that he was frowning.
“Are you the captain of the priests?”
Laius, who had shook off the flesh clinging to his sword, took a step towards him.
“Stop talking nonsense. If you have something to say, do it quickly. Either attack me directly or summon a homunculus.”
There was a blatant murderous intent in his blue eyes.
“I’m not in the mood to entertain pointless chatter for too long.”
“…Insolent wretch.”
The ghoul, his face distorting, pulled out a dagger, leaving a long wound on his arm.
Black, rotten blood poured onto the ground. And a moment later…
A strong gust of wind blew, and a blood-red magic circle appeared between the priest and Laius.
“This is the end, Laius de Winfried.”
The priest caught in the magical storm laughed bitterly.
Beneath the hood, which was fluttering around without mercy, one could see gums and teeth that had almost completely collapsed.
“Even if I die, I will live forever in Lord Chernion’s arms with my brothers.”
The wound on his arm, with the bone exposed, began to boil. At the same time, a massive, black head emerged from the center of the summoning circle.
“Ugh!”
A terrible roar echoed through the blue sky.
The ground shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck. The waves were stronger than any previous summoning.
“Captain!”
“Everyone, step back!”
Laius quickly responded to Rider’s shout.
A giant human figure was struggling to pull itself free from the summoning circle.
A humanoid with obsidian skin and jet-black hair, eyes rolled back in agony as if in unbearable pain.
“Ahhhhh! Aahhhhh!”
A scream, almost human, burst out from its gaping mouth.
The homunculus, who had been turning its head like crazy, soon discovered the priest standing next to him.
The priest spread his arms as if he had been waiting.
“Miracle Soldier, take my body!”
Then, suddenly, the screaming ceased, and a thick arm burst forth from within the summoning circle. A hand with five intact fingers shot out and immediately snatched the priest.
The gruesome sound of bones breaking and flesh being torn apart was heard. But the priest didn’t even groan. He simply smiled brightly, as if in joy.
The maddening smile continued until the priest disappeared into the homunculus’ mouth.
A terrible sound was heard as a person was crushed by teeth.
It was a sight that made the knights accustomed to the battlefield freeze for a moment.
“What the heck is that…”
Glenn muttered in a daze, his voice barely more than a groan.
Meanwhile, the homunculus was completely summoned, including the lower body.
A black shadow gathered in the grasp of the homunculus who slowly rose, and soon a huge sword, befitting the giant’s size, appeared.
By sacrificing the leader of the battle priests, a monstrous being of unprecedented scale had been summoned.
Laius’ bright blue eyes were glaring at the newly appeared enemy as he spoke.
“…Everyone, go ahead first.”
“Huh?”
The surprised knights looked at Laius, but Laius did not withdraw his order.
“I’ll follow you soon. You guys continue to attack the castle.”
“No, but!”
Glenn, who was about to refute, ended up shutting his mouth at the captain’s cold gaze.
“Considering the fact that the captain sacrificed himself, this homunculus must be the last one available for immediate use.”
Laius, who had silenced his subordinates, looked at the giant homunculus again.
“So go. By any means necessary…”
The homunculus, standing tall on two legs, looked exactly like a human.
This was especially true because of its delicate muscles, long flowing hair, and well-shaped facial features.
It meant that it was a much more powerful entity than the long, shadowy entity that had appeared before.
Laius spat out the words harshly.
“Recapture this castle.”
“…”
The knights’ faces hardened. Glenn, who had been biting his lip for a moment, glared at the captain.
“If you get hurt even a little, we will be very angry.”
Laius smiled faintly and answered briefly.
“That’s what I’m supposed to say.”