Chapter 429: Entanglement
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 429: Entanglement
"A merchant from the Independent City Arielze?"
The silver-armored knight inspected the identification in his hand, carefully comparing the portrait to the portly, middle-aged man standing before him.
"Berkeley Heller?"
"Yes, yes, that would be me. I am the president of the Berkeley Merchant Guild. The Holy City ordered a shipment of goods, and I’ve come personally to deliver them."
The middle-aged man was all smiles, bowing and scraping with extreme deference toward the knight. With a casual flick of his sleeve, several high-denomination banknotes slipped into the knight’s palm.
The knight’s brow furrowed slightly, appearing displeased, but with a practiced turn of his hand, the money vanished. He slapped the identification back against Berkeley’s chest with a sharp thwack.
His gaze shifted past the man toward the caravan behind him.
"And these..."
"Goods, just as I said. Supplies for the Holy City—mostly daily necessities. Nothing dangerous, I assure you," Berkeley said, rubbing his pudgy hands together.
The knight acted as if he hadn't heard a word. With a stony face, he signaled his subordinates to inspect the carriages one by one.
The search was exhaustive. They didn't even miss the undersides of the carriages or the bellies of the horses. The knight found that the cargo consisted entirely of mundane items like cloth and clothing—cheap, unremarkable goods.
Once the inspection was finished, the knight’s attention turned to the personnel accompanying the wagons.
"They are..."
"Ah... all guild employees. If you need their identification, I can provide their employment certificates. Every one of them is a law-abiding citizen I recruited myself; absolutely no criminal records."
"No need. Just register them under your guild’s name in a moment... Wait."
The knight’s brow suddenly knit together, his gaze sharpening as he looked at a small figure at the very back of the line, hidden beneath a deep hood.
"That person... why is their face covered?"
"She... her?"
Berkeley’s expression became strained. He offered a forced smile.
"She’s not quite fit to be seen. Sir Knight, perhaps you could..."
As he spoke, Berkeley tried to inconspicuously press several more high-denomination banknotes into the knight's hand.
"A little leniency? It’s just one person, Sir Knight, surely you..."
"Move!"
This time, the knight shoved Berkeley aside and marched straight up to the small figure.
"Take off the hood."
"Sir Knight, I..."
The small figure tucked their head down, their thin frame trembling beneath the oversized robes. They looked quite pitiful.
"Take it off!"
The knight stared intently at the figure, his hand silently tightening around the hilt of his sword. With his other hand, he made a gesture behind his back, and several of his subordinates began to subtly surround the group.
"Don't make me say it a third time!"
"Ugh..."
Amidst the cold atmosphere and palpable killing intent, the small figure let out a soft cry of distress. Seeing no other choice, they reached up and slowly pulled back the hood.
Berkeley squeezed his fat face shut and let out a long sigh.
When the knight saw the face beneath the hood, his stern expression froze. The hand gripping his sword trembled slightly.
It was a hideously grotesque face.
Half of the face possessed the fair skin of a young girl, but the other half looked as if the fresh skin had been torn away. It was a mass of angry red, shriveled and scarred like parched, cracked earth, extending all the way down the neck to the ear. Compared to this, the face of a ninety-year-old woman would have seemed like a celestial beauty.
"She is my youngest daughter," Berkeley said, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe a tear from the corner of his eye.
"A year ago, she ended up like this in a great fire. Extensive burns. She usually doesn't dare to show her face to anyone. To be honest, a large part of why I came to the Holy City was to bring her here for treatment. I heard that when Her Highness the Saintess ascends, the Goddess will bestow a special blessing, so I wanted to try our luck. I’m truly sorry for startling you, Sir Knight."
"..."
The knight remained silent for a moment. He reached out and gently pulled the hood back over the poor girl’s head.
"It was I who was rude. My apologies. You may go."
"Thank you, Sir Knight!"
Overjoyed, Berkeley directed the caravan to move quickly into the city.
"Wait."
The knight suddenly called out. Berkeley turned back, heart pounding, only to find the knight handing back all the high-denomination banknotes.
"Sir Knight, this is..."
"Before you go to pay your respects to the Saintess, take her to a clinic. There are several excellent doctors in the Holy City; they might be able to help."
"Thank... thank you!"
Berkeley stunned for a moment, then his eyes welled with tears of gratitude.
"I shall remember your kindness forever!"
The knight nodded expressionlessly, seemingly indifferent to the thanks.
*
Half an hour later, on a street within the Holy City.
"We’re safe."
Berkeley glanced around shiftily. Once he confirmed no one was watching, he grinned and beckoned to the small figure at the back.
"Just as you asked. It’s done."
"Mm, not bad."
The small figure removed her hood, revealing the grotesque face that would make any normal person recoil.
However, with a gentle tug behind her ear, a perfectly fitted face mask was peeled away, revealing the fair and delicate face of a young girl.
The small figure was, of course, Ariel.
After determining she couldn't enter the city through the main gates openly, she had chosen another path: paying her way into the Berkeley Merchant Guild and having them smuggle her in.
Though the process had been a bit nerve-wracking, the result was as expected. She had successfully entered the Holy City.
Hmph, I didn't expect that stiff knight to have a compassionate side.
Recalling the scene from earlier, Ariel felt a slight twinge of guilt for her deception.
But in the joy of being so close to seeing Liya, that faint ache was quickly tossed to the back of her mind.
"Here is the rest of the payment we agreed upon."
Ariel grandly tossed a thick stack of banknotes to Berkeley.
The old Ariel would never have been so generous, but after her journey through the ancient ruins, she had undergone a total transformation.
If nothing else, she was rich!
Berkeley counted the notes, a delighted smile spreading across his face.
"The amount is correct. I wish you a pleasant stay. By the way, I can also provide a guide service for the Holy City, if you're interested..."
"No need. I have someone waiting for me in the Holy City."
Ariel puffed out her chest, wearing a proud smile that suggested she had high-level connections. Without lingering, she quickly bid farewell to the guild members and merged into the main thoroughfare of the Holy City.
The sunlight was perfect, and people bustled to and fro. As Ariel looked at the city, which seemed painted in a holy, golden glow, her mood grew even brighter.
She could feel it. She was getting closer and closer to Liya.
*
After Ariel left, the atmosphere in that secluded, gloomy alleyway suddenly turned eerie.
An attendant from the guild walked up to Berkeley, made a throat-slitting gesture, and said darkly, "Boss, that person just now... shouldn't we deal with her?"
"No need. This is the Holy City; killing people randomly leaves too many tracks."
In the shadows, Berkeley’s previously amiable face suddenly turned cold. His entire body radiated a faint, bloodthirsty aura, making him look like a completely different person from the portly middle-aged merchant of before.
"Besides, we should thank her. Without her, it might not have been so easy to get in. Who knew the Holy City’s inspections would suddenly become so strict? We wouldn't have been able to make your paperwork look flawless!"
Berkeley barked at the group in a low voice, "This is a critical moment. Do not cause unnecessary trouble. Act according to the plan."
"Understood!"
The orders were given, and everything began to proceed with mechanical precision.
With a muffled cry of pain, the horses of the caravan collapsed into pools of blood. The attendants skillfully used daggers to slice open the horses' bellies.
Spatial magic devices hidden inside the horses were retrieved. With a flash of light, a mountain of alchemy weapons appeared—many of which were contraband on the prohibited lists of various nations. Their power was terrifying; they were forbidden items that were absolutely never allowed within the Holy City!
Especially during such a sensitive time!
"Tomorrow is the day the Church’s witch ascends. We will never allow that hypocritical Goddess to delude the people again. We shall proclaim the truth to the world!"
Berkeley’s eyes were bloodshot as he swept a commanding gaze over everyone.
"We have prepared a long time for this moment. This time, there is no room for failure!"
"Understood!"
The attendants picked up the alchemy weapons, their bodies beginning to radiate a fierce aura that certainly didn't belong to mere merchant guards.
Soon, under their meticulous planning, this inconspicuous merchant caravan had been armed to the teeth. With the power they now possessed, they were capable of stirring up a catastrophic storm even within this heavily guarded Holy City!
"Move out!"
Berkeley gave the cold command, his eyes burning with a raging fire.
The team began to move, rushing toward—
Pop.
Pop.
Pop.
In the next instant, a sound like bubbles bursting in the sunlight echoed through the alley.
To the horror of the group, before this team—which was meant to inflict a bone-deep wound upon the Holy City—could even step out of the alley, they suddenly collapsed one by one like wheat before a scythe.
Berkeley’s face paled. He gripped a man-sized alchemical blade, his body suddenly swelling as dragon-like muscles tore through his clothes and needle-like hair covered his skin.
However...
Zing—
With a sharp ring of a blade, a silver-white longsword swept out from the shadows, resting lightly upon Berkeley’s shoulder.
He coughed up a mouthful of blood, and like a punctured balloon, his body rapidly deflated.
"This is... the seal of the Great Barrier?"
Berkeley looked on in terror, staring blankly at the figures surrounding the alley, and then at the familiar silver-armored knight standing not far away.
"It’s you? Why?"
To be qualified to mobilize the Great Barrier, one could not be of low rank among the knights of the Holy City.
How could such a high-ranking figure be personally guarding the gates?
"Heh... Naturally, it's because we knew long ago that someone was plotting to assassinate Her Highness the Saintess. We’ve been prepared," the knight sneered.
"Then how did you find us? I..."
"How did I find you?"
The knight raised an eyebrow and said mockingly, "Didn't you lead me here yourself?"
"What..."
Berkeley froze, then his face twisted in rage. "Those banknotes! You!"
Berkeley tried desperately to muster his remaining strength to counterattack, but before he could even lift his weapon, a gargantuan force pressed down on him, rendering him immobile.
And the knight was merely standing there.
*
In a corner of the Holy City where the sunlight couldn't reach, a thick, nauseating scent of blood hung in the air.
Some of it came from the disemboweled horses, and some, naturally, came from men.
An assassination plot against the Church’s Saintess had been snuffed out just like that—easily and completely, without even causing a ripple.
No, perhaps not entirely.
"Lord Xier, the headcount is complete. We are missing one."
"Missing one?"
Xier, the silver-armored knight, scanned the assassins—some dead, some captured—and his brow furrowed involuntarily.
The grotesque face of that strange little girl flashed through his mind.
Among this group of killers disguised as a merchant guild, that most suspicious girl had vanished the moment they entered the city...
There was no way she wasn't involved!
"But... do you really think you can escape? This is the Holy City!"
A cold smile curled on Xier’s lips. He barked an order to his subordinates:
"Pass down my command: initiate a city-wide search. Find that disguised individual. Before the Saintess’s ascension ceremony tomorrow, we must extinguish every element of instability!"
"Yes, sir!"