The Calm Before the Storm (5)
"..."
Arwen stared back at his opponent in silence.
Certainty was already written plain in Jacques von Heibrun's eyes.
It seemed his claim of identifying the culprit through the Retrospective Eye of Aether was no mere bluff.
"How fascinating," Arwen said.
Even so, he did not lose his composure. He merely let out a soft chuckle and laced his fingers together.
"Smuggling a holy relic out without proper procedure is a grave offense."
"..."
"It would not only mean my political ruin, but it would also give Midtemple every right to strip the Goldheart family of its status as a Holy Family."
The air froze instantly.
A suffocating silence filled the office, and the unspoken tension wound around them like an invisible rope.
Yet, Arwen kept his smile as he continued.
"I am sure you are well aware of that fact, Lord Heibrun. So why have you come all the way to the patriarch's office instead of reporting me?"
Jacques remained silent, his expression unreadable.
A complex web of emotions flickered across his cold, rigid face.
In that moment, Arwen knew for certain. At least in this conversation, he held the upper hand.
"To whom did you hand the relic?" Jacques demanded, breaking the silence with a sharp question.
Arwen answered without hesitation.
"I gave it to Lord Gaon."
"...!"
Jacques flinched, his eyes wavering.
The Sword Master, Gaon.
The moment the expected name left Arwen's lips, Jacques's face contorted even further.
"Just before the Sword Master left Midtemple, he requested the Retrospective Eye of Aether. He said it was an urgent matter, so there was simply no time to go through the proper channels."
"Do you think that excuses your actions?!" Jacques snapped, his temper flaring.
"Regardless of the circumstances, if you were going to remove a holy relic, you should have notified the other council members...!"
"Lord Heibrun."
Arwen leaned forward, cutting him off.
He smiled with his eyes, continuing in a leisurely tone.
"Surely you haven't forgotten? The sacred covenant Lord Gaon forged with the Great Ones?"
"..."
"I swear that all my future actions shall follow this premise: I will save this world from ruin."
Indeed. Who could possibly forget?
It was the covenant that Sword Master Gaon had declared before everyone during the heresy trial just a few days ago.
Reciting the oath word for word, Arwen smiled brightly.
"To ignore Lord Gaon's request would be tantamount to standing by and letting this world fall into ruin. After all, every single one of his actions is predicated on the premise of saving the world."
"That is..."
Jacques von Heibrun gritted his teeth, his voice trailing off.
He wanted nothing more than to drag Arwen to a heresy trial right this instant, but the battle was already lost.
Even if a trial were held, the moment Arwen invoked that greater cause, there would be no way to defeat him.
"Proper procedures are necessary to use a holy relic. Naturally, we cannot allow items imbued with the power of the Great Ones to be handled carelessly."
"..."
"But think about it, Lord Heibrun."
"..."
"Would Lord Gaon, bound by a covenant that dictates all his actions must save the world from ruin, ever ask for a holy relic for some trivial reason?"
Jacques von Heibrun's expression grew darker by the second.
Not a single word was wrong. That was undoubtedly why Arwen had remained so relaxed from the start.
In truth, I am the one in danger.
The moment what he had done in the Sky Ocean Forest was exposed, he would lose not just his political standing, but his very life.
"The moment you came to see me instead of officially reporting me, you essentially confessed to your own guilt. If you were innocent, you would have questioned my crime first."
This, too, was entirely correct. If Jacques had been innocent, he would never have sought out Arwen like this.
Instead, he would have reported Arwen's violation of Midtemple's regulations. Had he done so, he could have tarnished Arwen's reputation in one way or another.
"Yet, here you are, standing before me..."
Arwen flashed a relaxed grin.
"Could it be that you have a guilty conscience and want to make a private 'deal'?"
"..."
A brief silence followed.
Before long, Jacques let out an involuntary chuckle.
"Damn it."
He had to give credit where credit was due.
"Young as you are, you truly are the patriarch."
Setting aside his ability to read the situation, Arwen's skill in gradually tightening the noose through conversation was extraordinary.
"You Goldhearts are always so sharp. It's almost unpleasant."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"I have no idea how such a devious family could produce a daughter as airheaded as Adelia."
"My innocent sister has lived a life far removed from politics since she was a child."
Jacques chuckled softly.
"Don't treat me like a fool, Arwen. Wasn't it because Adelia is so pure that you intentionally kept her out of the political arena to protect her?"
"Ahaha."
Arwen returned a warm smile. It looked perfectly natural on the surface, but there was an underlying hint of artificiality to it.
"Well, I won't deny it. You have a rather sharp side yourself, Lord Heibrun, not unlike my own family."
With that brief exchange over, the air in the patriarch's office turned cold once more.
The warm smile on Arwen's face vanished in an instant, replaced by a blank expression.
"So... what exactly did you do?"
It was a direct hit. Jacques von Heibrun did not back down either, answering straight.
"I attempted to make a contract with them."
"By 'them,' you mean...?"
"The evil gods."
"...!"
Arwen froze.
For a moment, shock flickered across his face. It was clear he had never imagined Jacques would commit such an atrocity.
"Lord Heibrun, speak clearly. You said you 'attempted' to make a contract..."
"It means I stopped midway."
"...Sigh."
Arwen let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his face with his hands in sheer disbelief.
"At least you didn't cross the line. You almost crossed a point of no return."
"I do not believe there was anything wrong with my actions."
"...?"
Arwen frowned deeply.
Regardless, Jacques pressed on.
"Is there not already a Sword Master who has made a contract with them?"
A seeker who had obtained immortality by contracting with an evil god.
Heukgol, the Black Bone Sword Master.
Despite his contract with an evil god, he was the Sword Master who maintained the closest ties to Midtemple.
His recent visit to the Holy City to assist with the heresy trial was proof enough of that.
"As you know, I have been stagnant for years. As one who walks the path of the sword, and as a leader of Midtemple, I could not accept the limits placed before me."
"That is sophistry," Arwen cut in sharply.
"Does it not strike you as a contradiction for a pillar of Midtemple to hold hands with an evil god?"
Jacques shook his head.
"It would be, if it were out of personal greed. But my attempt to contract with them was to use them as a 'tool.'"
"...A tool?"
"Yes. I intended to borrow the power of the evil gods to transcend, and then return to the embrace of the Great Ones. It is no different from the situation of the Black Bone Sword Master."
This time, Arwen shook his head.
"Your situation is fundamentally different from Lord Heukgol's. He walked that path under the revelation of the Great Ones. You, on the other hand, acted entirely on your own judgment—"
"The Old Ones have waned."
Jacques's cold voice cut him off.
His eyes, fixed on Arwen, burned with an inexplicable, stubborn intensity.
"Those were the very words the Sword Master you support uttered during the heresy trial."
"..."
As Arwen fell silent, Jacques von Heibrun pressed his point.
"I have no intention of waiting idly for the judgment of the Great Ones anymore. Midtemple has done so for centuries, but after watching that path lead this world to the brink of ruin... I can no longer stand by."
Arwen let out a dry laugh. It was a ridiculous excuse.
"It seems you have been infected by the ideology of the Reformists in such a short time, Lord Heibrun."
Taking proactive action without waiting for the revelations of the Great Ones—this was the core doctrine of Midtemple's Reformist faction.
Yet here was Jacques, the leader of the Traditionalists, suddenly changing his tune to spout such rhetoric.
It was pathetic.
To defend his succumbing to the temptation of an evil god, he had discarded the very beliefs he had upheld for decades.
"Well, thinking about it now, the Reformists' arguments do have some merit."
"What is it you actually want?"
"..."
There had to be a reason Jacques was defending the Reformists, even at the cost of abandoning his lifelong principles.
Arwen asked directly to uncover his true intentions.
Jacques did not beat around the bush either, stating his demands plainly.
"Speak to Lord Gaon and have him sweep this matter under the rug. In return, I will cease to be your political rival and throw my full support behind the Reformists."
"..."
"Think carefully, Arwen. If I am executed under the current circumstances, it will only bring further chaos to Midtemple."
He was not wrong.
If Jacques were executed while the world was already in turmoil, and if the reason—succumbing to the temptation of an evil god—were revealed, it would trigger massive unrest, just as he said.
Considering the immense influence Jacques wielded over Midtemple, Arwen had to tread carefully.
It might indeed be wiser to cover up the incident quietly and secure the backing of the Heibrun family.
After a moment of deliberation, Arwen gave a reluctant nod.
"For now... I will speak with Lord Gaon."
He did not know what past events had been recorded on the relic Gaon had borrowed.
Still, he figured it would be better to choose a relatively peaceful path rather than the extreme measure of destroying the Traditionalist faction.
Of course...
No matter what, I will follow Lord Gaon's will.
He only intended to 'speak' with him. He had absolutely no intention of trying to persuade or sway Gaon beyond that.
Arwen had anticipated only two options.
Either protect Jacques von Heibrun to maintain order in Midtemple, or expose his crimes fully and accept the ensuing chaos.
But as the saying goes, life is unpredictable.
The situation took a turn that no one could have foreseen.
Thud!
The door burst open, followed by the sound of ragged breathing.
A pale-faced butler stood at the threshold, dripping with cold sweat.
"M-My Lord! We have a crisis!"
"...What is the matter?"
Arwen's voice was calm, but his eyes trembled slightly as he looked at the butler.
It was highly unusual for the butler to be this panicked.
"This..."
With a trembling hand, the butler held out a thick document.
The moment Arwen took the paper, his own fingertips began to shake.
Defendant: Gaon
Charges: Forming an alliance with the Five Nightmares, acting as the leader of the heretical cult 'Shadow Society'...
"What on earth is this..."
Arwen's voice cracked as he read the header. After staring at the document for a long time, he let out a hollow laugh.
"...This is so absurd, I'm at a loss for words."
He shook his head in disbelief.
"Who in their right mind would accuse Lord Gaon of such charges? Does anyone actually believe this nonsense?"
"..."
"Lord Gaon, who defeated Camilo von Taribas, forming an alliance with the Five Nightmares? And acting as the leader of the Shadow Society on top of that?"
"T-That is..."
The butler stole a glance at Arwen before replying in a trembling voice.
"They say... Lord Gaon turned himself in."
"...What?"