Chapter 130
Chapter 130
Ch. 130 .｡.:✧ Hostage (2) ✧:.｡.
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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Nice to meet you. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”
“Huh? Oh? Yes? W-Who are you?”
“I’m an acquaintance of Solra’s. You’re his brother, right?”
“Ah…! Yes! That’s right!”
I offered my hand, and after a moment of hesitation, Xenon smiled shyly and shook it.
His hand was small and soft for a man. It felt like he had lived a comfortable life, sheltered from hardship. I could see how much Solra cherished his younger brother.
‘If necessary, I can use him as a hostage.’
I had been worried about my lack of leverage against Solra, but a hostage had just fallen into my lap.
Solra had dedicated his life to his brother, Xenon.
He could have earned much more as a Sword Master, running his own academy, but he became a Holy Knight to gain access to healing magic for his brother’s heart. And in the end, he would betray his principles and become a Heavenly King, all for his brother.
Xenon was Solra’s weakness, more precious to him than his own life. In other words, taking Xenon hostage would guarantee Solra’s cooperation.
“And who is this…?”
“She’s just a slave.”
“Ah. May I ask how you know my brother?”
“Of course. Apologies for the late introduction. I’m Mijung. I met Solra on the battlefield. I was a merchant supplying the Holy Knights at the time.”
“Oh! I see!”
He brought it.
Thanks to Solra sheltering him from the harsh realities of the world, he was incredibly naive.
If I were a con artist, I could probably pull off an insurance scam right here and now. He should be grateful I was actually a decent person.
“I’ve heard a lot about you. Solra says you’re a good brother.”
“Aha-ha. Really? What else did he say?”
“He said you’re very ill… and he’s sorry he can’t do more for you.”
“R-Really? He told me he wouldn’t tell anyone about my illness… You must be very close.”
“Well, yes.”
I had somehow become Solra’s best friend.
This would make it easier to gain Xenon’s cooperation later on.
“We were just chatting, but he had to leave for a mission.”
“Pfft! Aha-ha…”
“Why are you laughing?”
“No, it’s nothing. ‘He’… Aha ha!”
“…”
“It’s funny. You’re close, yet you still have such a strange misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding? What do you mean?”
“You’ll have to find out for yourself. Hee-hee.”
Xenon suddenly burst into laughter.
Had I said something funny?
I asked him why he was laughing, but he just waved his hand dismissively, avoiding the question entirely.
“Um… if you’re close with… him… have you noticed any changes in him lately?”
“Yes. He’s become more irritable. He was always a strict commander on the battlefield, known for his demanding personality, but that was only in professional settings. Personally, he was always jovial. But lately, he seems more… easily annoyed. He’s changed a lot.”
“Exactly! I feel the same way! I’m worried something happened. He always worries about me, and I worry about him. He has to live on, even after I’m gone… I don’t want to see him fall apart because of me… He’s given up so much for me… I want him to live the way he wants even after I’m gone.”
Despite his naivety, Xenon was surprisingly mature.
He had already accepted his impending death. He was more concerned about Solra’s well-being after he was gone. He wanted Solra to overcome his grief and live happily.
I decided I would do my very best to fulfill his wish.
I might not be able to guarantee his happiness, but I could at least prevent him from falling into the abyss of evil. And perhaps… just perhaps… there was a slim chance I could save Xenon, too…
“Do you know what he’s been up to lately? I’d follow him myself, but I’m not strong enough…”
“Sure.”
“He told me he’s been going to Cologne Cathedral after work. I thought he had become more religious, but when I asked the bishops, they said he’d never been there. I thought he was lying, but they said they had seen him near the cathedral. So, he wasn’t completely lying… I’m curious what he’s doing there. Maybe it’s related to the changes in his behavior.”
“I’ll look into it.”
“Thank you…”
Solra had been seen near the cathedral… This turned out to be valuable information.
‘The surface is meaningless. What’s beneath the cathedral?’
Cologne was the former capital of the Holy Empire. Any suspicious activity on the surface would be immediately detected.
That meant Solra was operating underground.
Beneath the cathedral? That area was supposed to be sealed off.
‘Ah, the rainwater tunnel.’
I suddenly remembered a scrapped map from the game.
There was supposed to be a rainwater tunnel beneath the cathedral, with events taking place inside, but that section hadn’t been completed in time for the release date.
The tunnel was simply marked as “sealed.” A sealed, spacious area, inaccessible to the public — it was the perfect place for a conspiracy.
But even underground, the entrance was still on the surface, near the Papal Office, under heavy surveillance.
Solra, as a Holy Knight, wouldn’t arouse suspicion, but other Heavenly Kings or monsters wouldn’t be able to get close.
‘Is Solra working alone? Or is he with someone who can avoid detection?’
Was there a collaborator within the Papal Office? I wasn’t sure yet. But I had pinpointed the location.
Now, all that remained was to infiltrate and neutralize the threat.
“My break is over. I have to get back to work! My shop is over there! Come visit me during the day. I’ll probably be working, unless I suddenly collapse.”
“I’ll come by soon with the information.”
Whoever the enemy was, my task remained the same.
Capture Solra’s collaborator, neutralize their plan, and prevent the conflict from spreading to the surface.
‘It looks like I won’t need to take Xenon hostage after all.’
Thanks to him, I had gained valuable information. Because of this, there was no need to resort to threats.
“Oh, right.”
As I was about to head toward the Papal Office, I remembered that I was currently wanted for attempted rape. And the only one who could protect me was buried underground… What should I do?
“Undecided, I need your help.”
“Okay…”
“Want some blood?”
“Okay…”
There was no other way. I had to force my way through.
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“Thank you for attending mass, Saintess, despite your busy schedule.”
“Not at all. I should be attending more often… I’m the one who should be sorry.”
After mass, I walked down the hallway with the bishop, who kept bowing his head.
“Bishop…”
“Yes, Saintess?”
“Was Cardinal Nicholas always… narcoleptic? Did he always have that… condition?”
“Narcoleptic? I’ve never heard of that.”
I explained what I had witnessed.
How the cardinal had become cold and stiff, like a corpse, and how he suddenly regained his color and composure.
The bishop looked puzzled and whispered,
“I’ve never seen him like that. That’s strange. Falling asleep standing up, with his pulse so weak it’s undetectable…”
“And didn’t he seem… different?”
I wasn’t close to Cardinal Nicholas. We only exchanged greetings at major events. But even with our limited interactions, I felt like he was different.
Not just changed, but a different person altogether.
“He has changed quite dramatically. He used to always wear his formal robes, but lately, he’s been dressing more casually. I’m starting to think he’s trying to be more frugal.”
So, it wasn’t just me. The bishop had noticed it too.
This was definitely suspicious.
I would request a thorough investigation of Cardinal Nicholas during the next inspection season. Even cardinals and the Pope couldn’t refuse an audit requested by the Saintess.
If he was innocent, he had nothing to hide.
Boom!
“Huh?!”
A sudden explosion echoed from outside.
A terrorist attack?
The bishop and I rushed outside, only to be blocked by guards rushing in.
“It’s dangerous! Please take cover!”
“No! I have to see what’s happening …!”
“We’ll handle it! Your safety is our top priority!”
Frustrated, I was dragged toward the shelter.
I could only watch the scene unfold through the window. Soldiers swarmed a hooded girl who was making strange gestures with her hands.
“… Domain Expansion.”
“A curse?”
The girl vanished.
The soldiers were startled and confused. A few rushed to where she had been standing, but she was long gone.
“Formation magic…”
Faint traces of demonic energy lingered where the girl had disappeared.
There were no totems or cursed dolls, so it must have been formation magic, curses inscribed directly into space… The most troublesome type of curse users. But what was a curse user doing here? Had they attempted a terrorist attack and retreated due to the tight security?
“Wait a moment.”
“What is it, Saintess?!”
I sensed it.
Demonic energy.
It was much fainter than the residue from the girl, so most people wouldn’t have noticed it, but I, sensitive to both magical and demonic energy, could definitely detect it. And it was coming from…
‘The sewer entrance?’
There were traces of a formation being activated and deactivated near the sewer entrance behind the cathedral, the one leading to the rainwater tunnel.
‘I’ll pursue them.’
Perhaps this was related to the white smoke earlier. I had to follow this lead.
“Saintess! Where are you going?! The shelter is this way!”
“I sense demonic energy over there. Follow me.”
“Saintess!”
I led the guards toward the back of the cathedral.
Security was tight here as well, but they hadn’t noticed the demonic energy. And they hadn’t considered the possibility of the enemy infiltrating through the sewers.
“We’re going down.”
“It’s a dead end down there. The rainwater tunnel is sealed…”
“Then I’ll go down alone.”
“Saintess! Very well… We’ll lead the way.”
We descended into the old sewer, one by one, using a ladder and illumination magic. I hoped the guards were right, that it was a dead end and there was no one down there.
“What?! This is …!”
But as I feared, the barricade blocking the path to the rainwater tunnel had been destroyed.
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“Haa… Manager, can I take a break?”
“Sure. Go ahead. You don’t have to ask.”
Thud.
Xenon, who had been serving customers non-stop for thirty minutes, collapsed onto a chair on the terrace, exhausted.
His heart felt like it was about to explode. He used to be able to work for at least an hour without rest, but he was getting weaker by the day.
He could feel his heart failing.
The end was definitely near for him.
“Xenon.”
“Huh? Cardinal?”
Xenon turned around and jumped to his feet.
It was Cardinal Nicholas, dressed in his usual plain clothes. But his usual relaxed demeanor was gone, replaced by anxiety.
“What are you doing here?”
“Xenon, where is Solra?”
“Huh? He’s probably on a mission.”
“You don’t know for sure? He hasn’t visited you today?”
“No. I guess he’s too busy.”
“Damn it… What is he doing? I assigned him to surveillance, but what was he doing until he contacted the Saintess …?”
Nicholas muttered under his breath, biting his fingernails.
Xenon was puzzled.
This wasn’t like him.
“There’s no other way. I’ll have to move up the schedule. You’ll be number 666, Xenon.”
“Number 666? What are you talking about?”
Nicholas stared down at Xenon with cold eyes.
Xenon felt a chill run down his spine and took a step back.
“Xenon! Xenon! What the… weren’t you resting here? Did you go to the bathroom without telling me?”
Moments later, the manager came out to the terrace looking for Xenon, but he was gone.
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