Betrayal Knight’s Joyful Faith - Chapter 399



Only Noblemtl

The 399th episode of The Merry God of Betrayal

Chapter 94. Behind this stage

“……what?”

After a long time, Arendt spoke again. Iris still looked at him quietly and continued speaking in a whisper.

“You are so strange. It’s hard to tell whether you are speaking as a stranger or as Lord Arendt.”

“… … .”

Arendt’s face, which had been quietly listening, gradually grew colder. The arrogance and nervousness that she had habitually displayed also slowly subsided.

Soon, only coldness remained on the expressionless face.

It was a subtle change on the outside, but it was a definite change, almost like having a new face.

“I am a foreigner… … .”

Arendt looked straight at Iris and spoke slowly.

“Is that what your god calls me?”

A low, muffled voice filled the dark hall.

Iris let out a short laugh without showing any sign of embarrassment.

“I guess you don’t like it very much. Should I call you Sir Arendt? Or do you have another name?”

“Arendt von Eckhart.”

He spoke briefly, looking straight at Iris.

“In this place where I’m facing you, that’s the only name that has any meaning. There’s nothing more unpleasant than being called by the wrong role on stage.”

“It’s a stage… … .”

Iris followed his words slowly.

“I see. Excuse me, Lord Arendt. At first I didn’t understand it, but now that I’ve met you in person, I think I understand it.”

“What do you mean you don’t understand? What else do you want to know? Speak clearly.”

Arendt responded stiffly. But Iris didn’t give an answer right away. Instead, she smiled slightly and took a step back, making a suggestion.

“I think this story is going to be long. Would you like to take a walk?”

When Arendt furrowed her brow at the unexpected remark, Iris raised her slender arm and pointed to a wall.

Rattling.

Arendt turned her head in surprise at the sudden noise.

Only then did a huge iron gate come into view.

The heavy door that had been acting like a solid wall had gaps in it, as if it was making its own way in.

An even thicker darkness rippled through the open door.

“I will show you around. Are you curious about the identity of this place, too, Lord Arendt?”

“… … .”

Arendt looked back at Iris with an expressionless face. She intended to probe her thoughts, but she could not read anything from her porcelain doll-like face.

“Haa… … This is seriously a pain in the ass.”

Arendt, her hair tousled in annoyance, strode toward the fallen Salem.

Iris watched him and waited quietly.

Arendt laid Salem down and covered him with her outer garment, then dragged the rider over and threw him carelessly next to Salem.

“Anyway, he’s a useless person.”

Arendt grumbled briefly at the rider and then spoke to the two spirits wandering around Salem.

“Hey. One of you two, follow me.”

Then Luna, who was sitting on Salem, quickly flew up and joined Iris and Arendt.

But Luna actually seemed more interested in Iris than Arendt.

Arendt clicked her tongue as she watched Luna gently landing on Iris’ shoulder.

“Anyway, you’re just a stupid spirit who doesn’t even recognize your master.”

“Don’t worry. The imprint is sufficient.”

Iris said jokingly, stroking the tip of Luna’s beak.

“These kids just miss nature. They must have been away from home for a long time. After all, nature is all about the spirit of God… … .”

Iris, whose voice trailed off, slid into the dark door one step ahead.

“It’s not strange that you feel familiar with me. I don’t think the young spirit master understands the principle yet.”

The short hallway that they had been passing through so tediously until now welcomed the two people.

Thanks to Luna, who sat on Iris’s shoulder and served as a light, Arendt was able to look around.

The walls made of uniquely patterned bricks still had ornate candle holders still on them.

Although it was now covered in dust and had spiderwebs hanging everywhere, it was not hard to guess that it had once been a rather luxurious space.

Iris stepped forward with ease and opened her mouth.

“Many people have walked through this corridor. And many gods have walked to care for the weak. There was no excess, but there was no lack. There was no abundance, but there was no poverty. It was not hot, but it was warm.”

It was a tone that sounded like she was humming a song. Arendt, who had been staring at her back, suddenly said.

“A time when heroes had no meaning?”

“Yes. As expected, you know.”

Iris nodded happily.

“It was a time when there was not even a sign of war and everyone was happy.”

“… … .”

It was a story that Lexion had once mentioned in passing at a small lair in the Magic Stone Mine.

Before the gods Luce and Chernion became enemies, a war that would engulf the entire continent was unimaginable.

“You speak so casually of stories that even the great dragon hesitates to mention directly. Are you receiving favoritism or something?”

“Of course it will be difficult for Lexion and Nikepor, but I have the right to do so.”

When Iris answered softly, Arendt asked awkwardly.

“Because she’s a saint who can command dragons with her fingertips?”

“By getting closer to God, you become someone who is willing to go with the flow.”

Iris turned her head slightly and glanced at Arendt.

“You could say that I am the complete opposite of you, someone who deviates from the natural order.”

Arendt furrowed her eyebrows slightly.

“This is the very reason why I, who volunteer to be the representative of Lord Chernion, who will put everyone below him, cannot look down on you. It may sound a bit ridiculous to say this, but you are the only person who can discuss my memories.”

Iris turned her gaze straight ahead again and began to walk leisurely.

Fall, fall.

Her long robe trailed along the floor as she followed.

“Even though she was out of favor with them, Arendt survived with dignity. And I was accepted because I dedicated my entire life to her. Thank you very much.”

“… … Let’s say I am like that. What on earth are you?”

Arendt, who had been listening quietly, asked. She hadn’t really expected an answer, but Iris opened her mouth surprisingly calmly.

“It’s a vague memory now, but I think I was a small creature in the beginning.”

“The beginning?”

“He really loved me, even though I was only a handful. From then on, I realized that I was born for Him.”

Iris recited it affectionately, as if telling a fairy tale to a child.

“Each time I died and was reborn, I took on a new body. I was definitely not the same being as before, but Chernion found me among the many lives.”

The words were still ambiguous. But Arendt listened quietly without interrupting.

“As I continued living, at some point I gained two legs and two arms, and a mouth to convey His will. It was around that time that I lived here.”

Iris reached out and stroked the dusty wall, as if caressing the cheek of an old friend.

“I was just a mortal who wanted to find peace in the arms of Chernion… …. But since he told me to become a saint, I will simply follow.”

Iris pulled her hand away and let out a small laugh.

“He is not the type of person to get very upset even if I throw a tantrum, so I’m sure he’ll forgive me for today’s tantrum.”

“… … .”

“Do you understand now? Why I say that Arendt and I are on equal footing?”

Arendt was unable to answer for a while.

It was because I had no idea how to react to the outrageous story she told.

“So I’m a crazy stranger who dares to live while going against God head-on… … .”

After a while, a naturally grumbling voice came out.

“Are you saying that you are a fanatic who clings to God while living a new life several times?”

“If I had to put it in harsh terms, I guess it’s not wrong.”

Arendt burst into laughter at the affirmation that came back so readily.

“I was arrogant. I thought I was the greatest clown in the world, but there was someone worse than me.”

“You are flattering me. But isn’t it natural to bow down to the providence of nature?”

Iris nodded slightly.

“So, I would say that it is more sane than Arendt’s, who directly shows her hostility towards them.”

“You’re going to kill and exterminate all those who go against Chernion’s will? Is that providence?”

Arendt’s tone became somewhat sharper. Iris did not deny it this time either.

“If that is what he wants, I will just follow.”

“… … This is seriously not ordinary crazy.”

Arendt, who had been silent for a moment, burst into laughter.

“Providence? Let’s just have some fun with the plague. Who was it that was talking about good times just a moment ago?”

“It is not the law of nature that everyone should get along well. Sometimes, an absolute ruler is needed.”

The answers that came back were extremely contradictory.

At the moment when Arendt, who could no longer stand it any longer, was about to say something, Iris spoke first.

“Luce-nim insisted that the world was too chaotic, so let’s create new rules.”

“… … .”

Arendt paused. Iris glanced at him and smiled, then continued.

“And Chernion agreed to it. The others also decided to follow their wishes.”

Now Iris was talking about the fundamental reason why the great war broke out.

This was the background of the stage that I heard for the first time since coming here.

“… … Everyone agreed?”

“Yes. I don’t know if you truly believed that Luce-nim’s intentions were right, or if you had other intentions. How could a mere creature dare to guess their intentions?”

Iris continued speaking in a light tone.

“And the result, as you can see, is this.”

I could tell without even having to hear any more. One side became an absolute good and a hero, while the other was branded evil and executed.

Arendt, who had been silent for a while, opened her mouth.

“Why are you telling me that?”

“As I said before, you are the only one I can share memories with. It’s natural for people to become more talkative as they get older.”

While they were having that conversation, the two of them soon reached the end of the passage.

They stopped walking naturally. A door much larger than anything they had ever encountered before stood before them.

“It’s just beyond here.”

“what?”

“This is evidence that proves that my story is not wrong.”

A gentle answer came back to a prickly question.

Luna, who had flown in just then, illuminated the ornate carvings decorating the iron gate with her light.

As with everything I’ve encountered so far, it was a format I was seeing for the first time.

But it was clear that the door on the right depicted a splendid sun, while the one on the opposite side depicted soft moonlight.

“The reason I came all the way here without even telling my subordinates is also here.”

Arendt overheard Iris adding.

Somehow, I felt a pressured feeling in the back of my neck.

It felt like my mouth was burning.

‘The past that was sealed by the gods after the great war… … .’

A fragment of the truth that had taken countless lives and annihilated all of the elves of the past was placed before a nameless actor on a worn-out and dangerous stage.