Chapter 50
“You insolent brat!”
He couldn’t believe what he was seeing — the son he thought would never, ever raise a hand against him was now pointing a sword at his throat.
“How dare you threaten your own father—!”
The Marquis of Ferdian, livid with rage, suddenly stopped mid-sentence when he noticed the stares of passersby from behind the Holy Knights’ formation.
If this continued and the Holy Knights remained outside his gates, it would draw even more attention.
A father standing off against his son — a Cardinal, no less — at the mansion gates was not a sight he wanted the world to see.
Grinding his teeth, the Marquis turned toward the commander of his knights.
“…Open the gates.”
“My lord?”
“He is my son before he is a Cardinal. My son would not disgrace his own father. Open them.”
“But, my lord—”
“I said open them!”
The knights, hesitant to obey such an unthinkable command, saw no sign of their master retracting it. Reluctantly, they opened the heavy iron gate.
As soon as they did, Asteor led the Holy Knights into the mansion grounds.
The Ferdian knights obeyed their master’s order, but their hands remained clenched tightly around their sword hilts — ready to draw at any moment.
Yet Asteor and the Holy Knights showed no signs of fear or hostility. They moved with cold, unwavering calm.
Asteor looked at the Marquis — his father — whose face was set like stone, and then gave an order to Lancelot.
“Escort the Marquis of Ferdian to the temple.”
“My lord!”
The Ferdian knights turned toward the Marquis, waiting for his word — any word.
But the Marquis said nothing. His lips were a tight line, and his eyes were locked on Asteor.
You think I’ll yield to you?
He refused to bow his head to his son. His pride would not allow it.
If Asteor intended to see this through to the end, then the Marquis would let him — even if it meant watching his son destroy everything with his own hands.
If Asteor truly wanted to drag his father into the mud, let him try.
Either he would follow through to the bitter end, or his soft heart would break and he’d try to cover up his father’s sins.
Either way, it would wound Asteor deeply — a double-edged sword.
Ignoring the worried looks of his knights and the approaching Holy Knights, the Marquis took a step forward.
“I’ll walk there myself.”
“……”
“Let’s go.”
Asteor turned silently and began walking alongside his father.
That was when a man appeared through the ranks of knights.
“Father? What in the world—?”
It was Rix Ferdian, Asteor’s elder brother and the Marquis’s firstborn son.
He stopped dead when he saw Asteor beside their father. His eyes widened in shock, then hardened into fury as he took in the situation.
Striding forward, he grabbed Asteor by the collar.
“You crazy bastard… You finally come home after all this time, and the first thing you do is drag Father to the temple?!”
Lancelot moved to intervene, but Asteor raised a hand, stopping him.
Rix’s strength was nothing to Asteor — he could’ve easily shaken him off. But instead, he let his brother speak.
“You’ve always been like this — pretending to be the good one, the virtuous one, the saint.”
“……”
“I know what you’re really like. Maybe others don’t, but I do.”
“……”
“Always playing the part of the righteous man — when really, you’re just a hypocrite too scared to act on anything!”
Isn’t that right?
The mocking words rang in Asteor’s ears.
For a moment, he remembered the warmth of a hand that had once held his tightly.
“Hold on tight, okay? So you don’t fall apart.”
That bright smile… that gentle voice.
Asteor’s hand trembled — veins bulging as he clenched his fist. His once indifferent eyes grew cold as ice.
“If you’re done talking, move.”
Grabbing Rix’s wrist, Asteor pried it off his collar with one firm motion.
Rix’s face twisted in pain.
A healer shouldn’t have this kind of grip…
Asteor brushed past him without another word, leaving the mansion with his father.
He wouldn’t break.
Because he’d made a promise.
“Welcome, my lady.”
“You’re working hard as always.”
Arriving at the temple, Elses greeted the now-familiar Holy Knights at the entrance before heading inside.
It was still early morning, and the temple was relatively quiet.
Elses walked past a few worshippers and made her way toward the library, as usual.
I wonder if Asteor’s alright going alone…
He’d looked a little unsteady yesterday.
She frowned for a moment, worried — but then shook the thought away.
He’ll be fine. He’s strong.
As she approached the corridor leading to the library, Elses suddenly stopped.
Wait… Haven’t I already read almost everything in there?
She hadn’t found the information she was looking for, but still — she’d exhausted most of the collection.
Turning away, she walked instead toward a bench by the temple pond and sat down.
There was still some time before her next appointment, and the weather was pleasant — perfect for a short break.
Since I’ve finished with the temple library, maybe I should head to the Mage Tower next… or dig deeper into the Cult of Demon Resurrection.
But the more she thought about it, the more it seemed futile.
Just chasing leads wouldn’t be enough — the temple was investigating the cult too, and the more the cult was hunted, the deeper it would hide.
Maybe I’ll have to infiltrate them myself…
Lost in thought, she didn’t notice the small creature peeking out from her inner pocket.
Rti — the tiny rabbit-shaped spirit — poked his head out, looked around, and then hopped onto the bench beside her, dragging a cookie packet from another pocket.
“Human, why aren’t you going into the library?”
“There’s nothing left to see there. I’ve read most of the books already.”
Rti’s eyes gleamed as he munched on a cookie.
“Then we don’t have to come here anymore? And you won’t see that human again either?”
By “that human,” he meant Asteor.
You’d think he’d be used to him by now… guess not.
Their natures really were polar opposites.
“I still have to come here for a while.”
“Why? Haven’t you already caught all the bad guys?”
“No, this is just the beginning. We still don’t know who their leader is — or why they tried to keep you alive.”
“The leader… you mean that guy?”
“That guy?”
“The white one — from that day you wore the shiny clothes. The one you met there.”
Shiny clothes? White guy…?
“Oh.”
Pondering Rti’s strange phrasing, Elses suddenly remembered the night of Count Lort’s banquet — and the man she’d run into there.
A man in a white mask, with eyes eerily similar to Rasiel’s.
“…Right. I’m not sure if he’s the leader, but I have to find out who he is.”
“Why don’t you know? I thought you did.”
Rti tilted his head, crunching on another cookie.
Elses blinked in confusion.
“How would I know who he is?”
“He’s your friend, isn’t he?”
“…What?”
“The one we met first when we came back to this world.”
If he meant the man they’d met when they first arrived…
Rasiel.
Elses’s pupils trembled violently.
Rti, puzzled by her reaction, simply said,
“He has the same energy as that guy.”
Elses bit her lip, trying to steady her breathing.
That day — when her fist met the masked man’s — she’d felt something achingly familiar.
The same sensation she used to feel whenever she trained with him… back when she was Luel.
I… already suspected it.
She had just refused to accept it. Because she’d been praying she was wrong.
With a voice barely steady, she asked again,
“Are you… sure? You’re not mistaken?”
“If it wasn’t him, no one could have the same energy— huh?!”
Before Rti could finish, a hand shot out from behind the bench and grabbed him.
“What’s this?”
Startled, Elses turned — and saw Tezet standing there.
When did he—?
Most people would’ve sensed someone approaching, but Tezet was an assassin by training, adept at hiding his presence.
“I’ve never seen a talking doll before.”
Rti froze completely.
Elses, equally startled, scrambled to cover for him.
“I-It’s a monster!”
“Then why are you carrying it around?”
Tezet looked at the stuffed rabbit in his hand with a faint frown.
“Monsters are meant to be killed.”
His grip tightened.
Rti squirmed furiously, kicking and shouting,
“You impudent human! Put me down! Who do you think you are to kill me?!”
Rti knew the truth — that his essence was housed within Elses, not the doll. Even if the doll were destroyed, he wouldn’t truly die.
But still…
Elses darted forward, channeling her strength to strike Tezet’s wrist.
The impact loosened his grip, and she quickly snatched Rti away, clutching him protectively to her chest.
She glared up at Tezet.
“Don’t lay a hand on my friend.”
At that word — friend — Rti flinched, looking up at her from her arms.
“…Friend? With a monster?”
“She’s never hurt anyone.”
“And when she does, it’ll be too late.”
“I won’t let that happen. Ever.”
Tezet said nothing, simply staring — at Elses, and then at the rabbit doll in her arms. His face was unreadable as always.
Just then—
“There you are, my lord.”
A familiar voice interrupted them.
It was Count Gale.
He glanced briefly at Elses, then ignored her completely as he turned to Tezet.
“Last night, His Highness the Crown Prince uncovered the mastermind behind the recent incident.”
Both Tezet and Elses frowned at once.
Gale’s lips curled into a sly smile.
“The Crown Prince has declared the current Tower Master, Rasiel Celeste, the orchestrator of the entire affair — and issued a warrant for his arrest.”
At the name that fell from his lips, Elses’s eyes widened in shock — trembling violently.
