Chapter 109
Meanwhile, after leaving the imperial palace, Seth headed straight for Persen Castle. Arriving at the Persen mansion sooner than usual after whipping and speeding up the running horse, he went straight to his office in the east wing.
Climbing the stairs as if running, he opened the door to his office, which was firmly closed, and stepped inside.
“Are you here, Your Excellency?”
“What happened to the investigation I ordered?”
He was greeted by the Persen knights, who had already arrived at the mansion in advance and were waiting for him. Instead of accepting their greetings, Seth sat down in the chair in the center of the office, asking questions as if urgently wanting to confirm what he had ordered.
As if he had been waiting, Gawin stepped to his side and opened his mouth.
“You seem out of breath, Captain. Did you manage to buy some time?”
“Yes… although it’s only two days. It’s been half a day, so we only have a day and a half left.”
“That’s a tight deadline.”
“So even if I’m out of breath, I have to ask you quickly. Gawin, did you notice anything suspicious about anyone coming in or out of Rupert’s mansion?”
To his question, Gawin replied with a meaningful smile as Seth sat back in his chair, clearly in a hurry.
“The bottom line is, yes, there was. I’ve picked out a couple of recent frequent visitors to his mansion that smell a little suspicious.”
“What are their identities?”
“Well, there’s this person and another one who would enter and go in their robes. According to my informant, it was difficult to determine their gender… However, one thing is certain. They got out of Grand Duchess Blaine’s carriage and into his mansion quite often.”
“When did they say they were in and out of Rupert’s mansion?”
“I don’t have an exact date, but it must’ve been after Grand Duchess Blaine returned to the capital.”
“That means that there’s a possibility that they were deeply involved in the curse of the Grand Duchess.”
“Yes. That’s right.”
“If so, getting to the bottom of their identities is our top priority right now.”
“…I have something to tell you about that, Your Excellency.”
When Seth listened to Gawin’s report and contemplated how to find out who they were, Kay interrupted the conversation.
He looked back at Kay and asked.
“Did you find out anything about them, Sir Kay?”
“I’m not sure, but I have a guess.”
“Guess?”
“Yes. According to the report of the spy planted in Grand Duchess Blaine’s mansion, after the Grand Duchess returned to the Capital, she has been secretly using his servants to learn about forbidden magic.”
“…What? Is that true?”
“Yes. It seems that they tried to gather information from the Vatican by sending a letter to High Priest Resitia before finding out through the servants, but it seems to have failed.”
“Which means High Priest Resitia might know something about this.”
“Yes, that may be true. It’s said that after that, Grand Duchess Blaine sent her servants into the slums to find out if there’s anyone with profound knowledge of the forbidden arts, even offering a substantial reward… However, it’s said that one day, the Grand Duchess’s servants stopped going to the slums.”
“Grand Duchess Blaine has found an assistant.”
“I see, and I’m guessing that the helper is one of those suspicious-smelling people Sir Gawin mentioned just a moment ago.”
At Kay’s next words, Seth sighed in frustration and muttered to himself.
“So, Rupert and Duchess revealed my wife’s identity through the power of the assistant and accused her of being a witch.”
“…Under the circumstances, it seems so.”
“Rupert… I knew he was obsessed with Minase though I didn’t expect it to be this much. It seems that I’ve underestimated him. Had I known this, I wouldn’t have taken her to the banquet at all costs.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Captain. It’s not like any of us could have predicted that he would see through the Duchess’s identity.”
As Seth ran one hand through his hair as though to reprimand himself and spat out curse words, Gawin spoke as if to comfort him.
Smiling bitterly at his words, Seth turned his head and glanced around the room.
“By the way, where are Sir Lancelot and Sir Percival now?”
“Sir Lancelot separated from us shortly after the Captain went to the Palace, saying he had something to find out. Perhaps he went to see Gallahed?”
“Did Sir Percival also follow him?”
“No, Percy left the Vatican with me, saying he was going to meet with an informant he’d planted in Rupert’s mansion and then another on the way back. I didn’t get a chance to ask for details because he was running so fast, but I’m guessing it had something to do with the direction Viscount Rupert Guinivis’s funds were flowing.”
“I see.”
Seth nodded as if he understood and reached into his pocket for his pocket watch to check the time.
Even though there was only a day and a half left to uncover the false accusations against her, there were still no conclusive witnesses or evidence. Seth frowned nervously at the thought, his mind racing as he went through the steps he needed to take to turn this around once and for all.
First, they would have to scour the slums to discover the identity of the person Grand Duchess Blaine had asked for help, and then they would have to investigate those who had come and gone from Rupert’s mansion.
In addition, the specific ways in which they framed and accused Min-ha of being a witch and how they tricked the people who testified at the witch trials into making false statements.
He had to do all of this in a day and a half.
‘…At this rate, I may have to take up my sword against the Emperor as Gawin said.’
Seth had a cold expression on his face as if he wouldn’t hesitate to take up his sword against the Emperor if he couldn’t turn the situation around.
“Sir Gawin! Sir Kay! Are you in your office right now? If you are, open the door for me!”
It was then.
Lancelot’s voice could be heard outside the office, calling for Gawin and Kay. His urgent voice made Seth, who was in the office, jump to his feet while Gawin and Kay rushed to open the door.
“Ha, huk…”
Just then, Lancelot, with a slightly flushed look and panting, entered the office accompanied by a young knight. The knight, clad in a white uniform from head to toe except for the red cross on his chest, followed him inside.
As he exchanged brief eye contact with the two knights who opened the door to his office, Lancelot hurriedly turned to Seth with the knight he had brought with him and bowed politely.
“Well done, Lancelot. You have carried out your orders and returned safely.”
“Well done, Sir Lancelot.”
After exchanging a brief greeting with Lancelot, Seth turned his attention to the young knight in white uniform standing at his side.
The knight smiled and bowed respectfully, with a stern face much like Lancelot’s.
“It’s been a while, Your Excellency.”
“It’s good to see you here, Sir Gallahed, after we’ve only communicated through correspondence.”
“I’m sorry, Your Excellency.”
“I don’t mean to reprimand you. I’m responsible for the fact that you were so busy that you couldn’t even come to see Lancelot.”
“No, I was just doing what I was supposed to do as a knight of Persen.”
At Seth’s blunt apology, Gallahed responded with a shy smile.
“Gallahed, man, it’s been a while!”
“Ah, brother Gawin! It looks like you’ve been doing well.”
“It’s been a long time, Sir Gallahed.”
“You’ve done a lot of good work, Sir Kay. How have you been?”
“Oh, you became quite reliable after becoming a paladin?”
The next moment, he was greeted by Gawin and Kay, who were waiting for Gallahed to finish greeting Seth. With his arms around his shoulder, Gawin asked.
“By the way, what are you doing here? Are you here to see your brother?”
“No, I have something to report to His Excellency today.”
“Has something happened to the Vatican by any chance?”
When Seth asked with a stiff face after hearing his answer, Gallahed shook his head again.
“Not even that. It’s because of the Duchess, brother Bedi, and Gareth’s affairs that I have come to see you today.”
The expressions of Seth and the knights in the office suddenly stiffened at Gallahed’s answer.
Could it be that something bad has happened in the meantime?
Looking at Gallahed and Lancelot, who stood in front of him with nervous faces, Seth parted his lips.
“By any chance, did something happen to the three of them?”
“For now, Brother Bedi and Gareth are safe. A few hours ago, the two of them were safely released from prison.”
“….!”
“…What?!”
Gallahed’s next words were enough to stun everyone.
Although he didn’t show it, Gawin, who was anxiously praying for the safety of his brother and friend, shouted loudly while Seth asked Gallahed urgently.
“What’s the condition of the two of them? Are they alright?”
“Perhaps it was because of the terrible things they had experienced in the dungeon, but their bodies were very damaged so I took the two of them to my home in the capital city for treatment. They said the two of them needed to be absolutely stable for the time being.”
“That’s good. Thank you, Sir Gallahed.”
“…It’s not me you should be thanking, Your Excellency.”
Seth breathed a sigh of relief at the news that Bediviel and Gareth had been released and were safe.
Like Min-ha, it was heartbreaking to hear that they had been falsely accused and tortured, but he felt a little relieved. However, the relief was short-lived, and Seth was taken aback by Gallahed’s bitter words.
‘Come to think of it…’
It was strange. He wondered how they’d gotten out of jail before he could do anything about it. Besides, it bothered him that Gallahed didn’t mention Min-ha’s name. So, Seth looked back at him with a firm expression on his face and asked.
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s because it was the Duchess who got those two released.”
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