Betrayal Knight's Joyful Faith

Chapter 240

It was the first time in a while that the three knight captains and the Crown Prince had all gathered together.As always, apprentice knight Arendt and Count Stadler, who had been dragged out of the laboratory, were also present.

As soon as everyone was seated, Arendt opened the discussion.

“Lexion sent me this.”

Arendt placed the letter in the middle of the table for everyone to see.

Cantares muttered in confusion after checking the text.

“That guy? What moved?”

“Isn’t it obvious? The dragon belonging to the Chernion Cult.”

Silence fell in the conference room.

The dragon of the Chernion Cult had hardly shown its presence until now.

But now the dragon was preparing to step forward.

Kendrick, who had been staring blankly at the ceiling, opened his mouth.

“This is a big problem.”

“…Sir Kendrick, this is no time for jokes.”

When Diana glanced at Kendrick, Kendrick smiled sheepishly.

“I just wanted to try it. Anyway… that dragon you call Lexion was said to be aiming at keeping the Chernion Cult in check?”

“That’s what I viewed his actions to be. And it seemed like he was quite wary of the dragon within the Chernion Cult. They must have known each other.”

After Arendt added a brief explanation, Laius opened his mouth.

“I have already reported it to you verbally, but a ghoul tomb was discovered at the place I was dispatched to. Considering the various circumstances, I thought it was a product of the Great War that was accidentally activated for some reason. However, today, Lexion’s message reached Arendt…”

Laius’ gaze turned to Arendt, who was standing beside him.

“I thought the timing was coincidental, so I asked Count Stadler to do a brief analysis.”

All eyes in the conference room naturally turned to Count Stadler.

The Count opened his mouth with a pale expression.

“The fake spirit stone that Lord Arendt brought, a piece of the ‘Miracle Soldier’ skin, and the core that Captain Laius recovered. A faint common magical response was detected in all three.”

“That means…”

“There’s no way that Jiklin’s magic could be detected in relics from the Great War. That dragon is helping Jiklin with her research behind the scenes.”

Count Stadler answered Diana’s muttered words with a frown.

Arendt then added briefly:

“In other words, the reason the ghoul trap that was set up during the Great War suddenly activated was because of that dragon’s influence.”

Cantares, who had been listening quietly, suddenly remembered something and said, “wait a minute. Doesn’t Prince Llewellyn also have a Dragonborn artifact?”

“I already contacted him earlier. Fortunately, the artifact didn’t go out of control or anything. However, a few days ago, it suddenly started glowing dimly. So, just in case, he took it off for a few days.”

Arendt didn’t mention that he had thoroughly scolded Llewellyn, asking why he hadn’t reported it sooner.

Kendrick, unaware of the fact, cleared his throat.

“I’m glad the prince is okay.”

“I told him to store it in an anti-magic box for the time being, just in case. He’s a good listener, so you don’t need to worry.”

When Arendt answered with certainty, Cantares also leaned back in his chair in relief.

“But why now? I don’t understand this part.”

“What are you talking about?”

Cantares continued speaking in response to Diana’s question.

“The dragon may have been quiet until now, but that doesn’t mean it was completely uninvolved. According to what the Count said, it seems to have helped with Jiklin’s research, and it even created the artifact that Prince Llewellyn had. But why would the ghoul trap and artifact react to it?”

“This is just my guess.”

Arendt, standing with his arms crossed and with a defiant posture, rolled his eyes.

“The dragon stretched… how about thinking of it this way?”

“Stretched?”

When Kendrick asked curiously, Arendt added simply:

“Yes, if you fall asleep for a moment and then wake up and stretch, your arms naturally extend, right?”

Of course, in that dragon’s case, it’s not the arms that were outstretched, but rather magical power.

“Even if the dragon wasn’t sleeping, it was still a period of rest. During that time, instead of stepping forward directly, it was helping the Cult from behind the scenes. I’m sure Lexion knows this as well.”

“No matter how much I think about it, it’s incredible…”

Kendrick, trailing off, glanced at Arendt.

“It was clearly an invitation to pick a fight, but how on earth can someone roast a dragon in just a few days?”

“It’s because I’m just that good.”

Arendt met his eyes and replied shamelessly.

Kendrick burst out laughing.

“I thought you’d say that. What really pisses me off is that I can’t deny it.”

“Will Lexion show up soon? It seems like he’s searching for traces of the dragon in the Chernion Cult.”

Arendt shrugged and answered.

Seeing that Lexion had even given him this information, it seemed like the time was approaching when the deal with Lexion would soon be finalized.

These all pointed to only one thing.

Diana said in a calm voice.

“It seems they are almost ready to rise up.”

“Your Highness, shouldn’t we convey this fact to other countries as well?”

Laius made a serious proposal to Cantares.

Cantares also nodded.

“That would be good.”

“What happened in the Elf Kingdom?”

Arendt suddenly intervened and asked a question.

Cantares groaned and rested his chin on his hand.

“They said that the First and Third kingdoms have shown their willingness to cooperate. But apparently, the Fourth kingdom is still left. It’s a place where only reclusive elves gather, so it seems like it won’t be easy.”

The establishment of diplomatic relations with the Second Kingdom was soon completed.

A delegation led by Zakar visited, and now the Caerleon Empire and the Elven Kingdoms were officially allies on paper.

At those words, Arendt spoke.

“It would be a good idea to inform the Elf Kingdom that the dragon had intervened. Then, the elders of the Fourth Kingdom might change their minds.”

“I guess I should do that.”

As he watched Cantares nod, Arendt became lost in thought again.

Now, it had become impossible to know where war would break out first.

According to the novel, it would have broken out in the form of a civil war somewhere within the Caerleon Empire, but Lexion said that other possibilities should be kept in mind.

That meant they could pop up anywhere near the Caerleon Empire.

‘Then it would be risky to gather troops towards the Empire in advance.’

If they hastily concentrated their power only in the Empire, other countries might be conquered by the cult first.

Moreover, since the cult possess powerful weapons of faith and brainwashing, they had to consider the possibility that land seized by them could quickly turn into enemy territory.

Just as those thoughts were forming and Arendt was about to speak, Laius spoke first.

“It seems that our first priority is to send a warning to neighboring countries so that they can prepare sufficient troops.”

Arendt, who had lost the line he was about to say, closed his mouth again.

He glanced at the captain and then quietly stepped back.

There was no need for him to intervene.

Laius, who had no way of knowing his thoughts, continued speaking calmly in his usual monotone voice.

“Since we don’t know when the enemy will attack, we must be able to respond from our respective positions at any time. And if possible, I suggest requesting support from the Elven Kingdom in advance.”

“Why? That seems a bit early.”

“The Elven Kingdom is too far away to join in once the battle has begun.”

When Cantares asked curiously, Laius answered calmly.

“And because of the geographical characteristics, it is less likely that the first battle will take place there, so it would be better to move significant forces here in advance. If possible, it would be better to establish a position as soon as possible and establish relations with the Elven Kingdom and other countries.”

The elves have been closed off for a long time.

In order to coordinate properly when the war breaks out, it would be better to clear up any lingering grudges, share points of agreement, and establish connections with other countries in advance.

Cantares was convinced by Laius’ explanation.

“That makes sense. I will suggest the same to Grand Elder Altair and report it to His Majesty.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

“Okay, let’s leave it at this for now.”

As Laius bowed politely, Cantares turned his gaze back to Arendt.

“Arendt, if you receive any separate contact from Lexion, report it immediately.”

“Okay, I understand.”

“I heard you just got back from your mission, but you’re getting so much work that you don’t even have time to catch your breath. Are you okay? I heard there’s a problem with the Union side as well.”

As Kendrick spoke in a joking manner with a wry smile, Arendt replied sullenly.

“It’s not okay, but I plan to separately discuss my overtime pay with His Highness the Crown Prince.”

“He’s got plenty of money, yet he’s so greedy.”

Arendt responded calmly to Diana’s criticism.

“His Highness’ expression when he’s getting his allowance taken is quite amusing.”

“Evil bastard,” Cantares grumbled.

Then, as if on cue, everyone except Arendt and the Crown Prince burst into light laughter.

After the meeting, Arendt returned to his room and immediately reached for the envelope of documents that had been carelessly thrown on the table.

“Okay, next is…”

It was time to check out what this annoying blood relative was up to.

Arendt merely advised Henry to use the Neumann Group’s information brokers, but didn’t ask him to send any information this way.

‘But why did he send this to me?’

It meant that something unusual was happening.

Arendt broke the seal, took out the contents, and sank into the sofa.

As expected, it contained information about several names he had never seen before.

Arendt read the text with indifferent eyes.

‘There are four of them and all of them are lower-ranking officials of Count Eckhart’s estate.’

It was roughly what he had expected.

At this point, it seemed safe to assume that the Count’s purpose was to spy on the Khan Union’s business.

But there were still some parts he didn’t understand.

‘What’s the point of doing this?’

The Count’s talent, wealth, and influence were certainly not to be ignored.

However, the opponents were Duke Lancelot and the Crown Prince.

As long as the Crown Prince was behind the business, the Khan Union would never fall into ruin.

Even the most recent investor on the surface was Duke Lancelot.

Even if it was to get back Arcus, it didn’t seem like the quick-thinking Count would take this level of risk.

‘Was the obsession with the eldest son greater than expected…or…’

Arendt, who was reading the remaining text while lost in thought, suddenly stopped turning the pages.

After a few seconds of silence.

He suddenly sat up.

“…Are you serious?”

Without realizing it, a dumbfounded voice slipped out of his mouth.

Meanwhile, Arendt’s gaze was fixed on a sentence added to the end of one person’s document.

Arendt facepalmed.