Why Did My Brother Come Out There? (2)
My eyes must have looked tense.
Gregory, who seemed to embody a dark aura, scratched the back of his head, then let out a heavy sigh.
"There was a command from the lord."
"A command?"
"He wants you to rescue Ibril. To make up for the past incident."
Did that mean they had already spotted the plotters' intentions beforehand?
No matter how much they were from the underworld, I wondered how such a thing was possible.
Was the murderer connected to the Blue Moon?
'No, that's impossible by common sense. Since the captain isn't an idiot, the chances are low.'
Why would they go to such lengths to stir up my suspicions?
"I believe the lord has his own information-gathering channels. He's surprised more than a few times at the value or accuracy of the information."
"The mysterious leader of a mysterious group, I suppose? So, what does 'make up for the past' actually mean?"
"Well... it means protecting Ibril from the duke's hounds after she attacked him while you were playing the role of Francis's dog, thereby making the lord your enemy."
"What does that mean?"
"The lord has never shown such anger before. He decided to abandon the Francis dukedom as worthless and ordered us to relocate our base."
"In other words, the past incident was your independent action, without the lord's involvement?"
"That's correct. Our Blue Moon doesn't intervene heavily. As long as we receive only necessary commands, we can almost operate autonomously. However, after the assassination attempt on Ibril last time, a new order was transmitted across the entire Blue Moon."
He gave me a chin nudge to keep talking.
"It was: 'Do not harm anyone associated with Lord Lawrence or Count Klein.'"
"Hmm..."
The more I listened, the stranger it felt.
A leader of a legendary organization like the Blue Moon acting so cautious around me.
It seemed he had no intention of making me his enemy.
What did he know about me to act this way?
"Frankly, the captain's reaction surprised even us. That's why we don't want to clash with Lord Lawrence. Please, forgive us for the past incident."
No matter the reason, rescuing Ibril was a fact.
Even if I had moved quickly, there was no guarantee she would remain unharmed until the end, so I had received unexpected help.
I relaxed my expression and bowed my head to both of them sincerely.
"Thank you for rescuing Ibril. Let's forget the past grudge."
Gregory breathed a sigh of relief, and when he moved a step away from me, the corners of August's mouth twitched as he watched us with suspicion.
I wonder what his face would look like without all that makeup.
"Actually, your ambush wasn't much of a threat, so there's no real grudge."
I smiled faintly, and August flinched again.
I asked Gregory.
"From the current situation, it seems the lord has accepted my request, right?"
He nodded obediently.
"The lord welcomes Lord Lawrence's visit. After resolving this matter, he can come anytime."
An invitation from the Blue Moon leader.
Finding him was riskier than being found, but it carried greater meaning.
It meant they would reveal their hidden base to me.
Of course, with the Blue Moon's resources, they probably had dozens of secret bases, but they had never exposed one before.
And if they had set a trap, I could have escaped.
'Well, from their reactions, it doesn't look like a trap.'
I nodded and understood, and he handed me a bracelet-type communicator.
"It's a cryptographic communicator used by the Blue Moon. My and August's communicators are linked, so contact me anytime without hesitation."
The cryptographic communicator from the crown prince of the Lheinhatz Kingdom, the one from the Prius Republic revolutionaries last time, the one from Duchess Olivia Riberdale after forming an alliance with the saintess candidate, and now the Blue Moon's.
It felt like my collection of secret communication devices was growing.
I took the communicator and asked August.
"Was it mind control on the perpetrators?"
"Yes, yes. There were no clues to pinpoint the mastermind."
The red-suited Pierrot, who had been trying to control the mood, scratched his head and bowed.
His image was completely different from the first time.
I nodded and said to the two of them.
"You two can leave now. The world must be in chaos because the saintess candidate's kidnapping during the games was broadcast live, so it might be better to call the church's investigation team here."
"I understand. Then we'll withdraw. We'll wait for your call."
The two of them walked away as if on a casual stroll.
I tugged at the collar of my shirt, which was suddenly stuffy under the robe, and contacted the church's saintess department.
***
**[Adrian Lawrence, Duke, successful rescue of Ibril Barnet, saintess candidate kidnapped during the games!]**
**[The perpetrators were revealed to be those who assassinated the Grand Mage of the Chase Kingdom, Duke Tarnil, causing shock.]**
**[However, the mastermind behind the perpetrators remains unidentified.]**
**[Why were the perpetrators unable to kill Ibril Barnet until she was rescued?]**
**[They couldn't even kill her if they wanted to. An 8th-circle Rare Shield was used, linked to a defense system.]**
**[The duke who equipped the girl who sponsored equipment worth a Sky Fortress— is he meticulous or eccentric?]**
-I watched the live broadcast and was shocked. I'm glad our Ibril is safe.
└Are Ibril's party members safe? They looked really injured.
└The archbishop of the saintess department personally treated them, they said.
└Whew, thank goodness.
- The Lawrence duke is amazing. Did he predict this?
└There were assassination attempts even before the games started.
└No way? Really?
└There was even a media smear campaign targeting Ibril recently, so Adrian wouldn't have been unprepared, would he?
└Who was she targeted by?
└If Ibril disappears, there are many who would benefit.
- As expected, our perfect brother! With such a brother backing her up, Ibril must be happy.
└Right now, that brother is being brought to the cathedral for questioning.
└?????
└Eh? Why?
└He used equipment without the church's permission on Ibril. No one can use anything else in the games except designated equipment.
└No way, that was for emergency use! When I checked online diaries, they said they imposed many restrictions so it doesn't activate during normal games?
└Well, rules are rules.
Because the saintess candidate's kidnapping happened during the live broadcast, the media and public interest was at its peak.
Sharon Sylvester, the saintess, closed the news window while I was checking online reactions on the communicator and glared at me.
Sitting across the table from her, I forced a smile and waited for the next words.
"You must be relieved? There are many who are on your side."
"Ah, haha. I have some influence."
"Influence? You just have the noble concept that makes commoners like you, that's all."
"Concept? I have worked hard for the personality development of commoners who suffer discrimination in the hierarchical society."
"Yes, hiring a salaried acting lord, huh?"
"I'm still busy, so I haven't directly managed the territory, but I've set the framework for administration and laws."
"But they say you waste most of your time playing games?"
The person with the talent to make one speechless.
If she wasn't the saintess and wasn't the old lady's real self, she would have gotten a slap on the cheek.
"W-well, that's my training method."
"Okay, I'll believe you."
"Really..."
It looked like we were just chatting, but this was an interrogation.
The interrogation content, as seen in the knight's comments, was the use of unauthorized equipment.
Even if I had requested approval in advance, it wouldn't have been accepted.
The church wouldn't accept unfair conditions.
This was completely different from the last time, where we reinterpreted the rules and made the investigators party members.
"Do you know how the upper ranks of our church refer to Lord Lawrence?"
"A young, handsome, capable man?"
I tried a joke to lighten the mood, but she said it straight.
"A rule breaker."
"What?"
"Rule breaker! A rule destroyer!"
Of course.
Since I had expected this reaction, I sighed inwardly and asked seriously.
"If it weren't for my action, Ibril would have been found as a cold corpse."
"That's just hindsight."
"But that outcome is everything. Originally, that artifact doesn't activate during the games, and even if it did, I would have faced consequences."
For such a person, it's better to confront them directly than to circle around with vague words.
I said calmly to the saintess, who narrowed her eyes.
"But this is a different case. If the church had properly managed the scene, this wouldn't have happened. Using unauthorized artifacts is clearly wrong. But as someone who has already experienced her assassination attempt, it was an unavoidable choice. And because of my action, Ibril is alive."
"In other words, Lord Lawrence broke the rules because of the church?"
"Actually, yes. Ibril was kidnapped by those who invaded during the games, and even after I searched for her, the church couldn't find any clues."
The good image she had built with me seemed to have ended here.
From her perspective, few people would openly rebel with such eyes wide open.
"Leaving everything aside, please evaluate Ibril's potential. She's a victim, and she shouldn't be eliminated because of this. The sin of breaking the rules is mine, so please punish only me."
Is it because I pleaded with emotion that she acted so boldly?
The saintess looked dumbfounded.
"Hoo."
But that was momentary.
"You are really an interesting person."
"What?"
Her next reaction was strange.
[Relation: Favorable / Neutral]
[Status: Awe / Curiosity]
Even the emotion shown in the Mankyung was favorable.
Since I couldn't understand which part of my words had caught her interest, I tilted my head, and she gave me a seductive smile, then leaned her face closer.
"You young hot-blooded type. If I were ten years younger, I would seduce you."
Why is this, grandma?
Even though she looked in her early twenties, she was still 67 years old.
Yet she brought up something unexpected.
"Actually, the suspicion that this incident was a self-deception by Lord Lawrence came from inside."
Only then did I realize this place wasn't prepared just for interrogation, and I frowned.
"So, you were testing my reaction?"
"Sorry, but that's true. The use of unauthorized equipment on Ibril is indeed a problem. But that equipment wasn't for gaining an advantage in the games, and in the end, it saved Ibril's life, and thanks to Lord Lawrence's wisdom, we avoided disaster. In this situation, we are not such a tightly sealed group that we would only discuss punishment based on principle."
"But if I manipulated this situation, it would change the story, right?"
"Yes."
"So, what was the conclusion?"
She placed something the size of a palm on the table.
It looked like an old bronze mirror, with a blue aura flickering in the center, so it was likely a holy relic.
"I confirmed that there is no falsehood in Lord Adrian Lawrence's story."
"Wha-what? So it's the Mirror of Truth?"
"Yes."
The Mirror of Truth.
One of the major holy relics of the Sepia Church. It allows you to know if the person you're talking to is lying or not.
When important issues arose between countries, they often requested the use of the Mirror of Truth from the Sepia Church.
Since it was the first time I saw the real thing, I couldn't help but admire it.
'I didn't make any slip of the tongue, right.'
At the same time, my mouth went dry the moment I found it.
I couldn't afford to reveal facts that could be exposed as slip-ups.
"I hope you don't feel uncomfortable. Your innocence has been revealed because of this matter. We have no intention of holding you or Ibril accountable for this incident."
No, no, it can't end there.
With this, wouldn't it be easy to catch the culprits?
"Anyway, since we've learned of your innocence, we'll also interrogate the other saintess candidates. Unless there's a personal grudge, the culprit must be in another candidate's camp."
"Oh..."
I was impressed.
I didn't think the matter would be settled so easily.
My expression brightened, and she looked at me with a happy gaze, as if looking at a cute grandchild.
"But playing games is really for training? I was surprised the mirror didn't react."
"..."
I scratched the back of my head to dodge her question, which I couldn't go too deep into.
Where was the mastermind who wanted to harm Ibril?
It would be great if it was the Francis dukedom.
It would be so nice if it went down in flames.