Chapter 116
Silence descended.
The men of the Basilian family were all frozen in place.
This time, it seemed everyone was genuinely shocked.
Milliod wore a satisfied smile.
‘Even if they’re bumpkins from the east, they wouldn’t be ignorant of the underworld.’
Since he’d mentioned the lord of the underworld, they wouldn’t dare doubt him.
Of course, he had no actual connection to the lord of the underworld.
It was all a convincingly fabricated lie.
But Milliod had told this brazen falsehood because he had something to back it up.
Nothing was publicly known about the lord of the underworld.
Only the fact that he possessed unimaginable wealth had spread far and wide.
All sorts of speculations swirled around him, but he’d never once shown his face.
So whether Milliod borrowed the man’s name for a lie or anything else, no one would know anyway.
Moreover, this was happening inside the Holy Empire of Hilderd.
No matter how powerful the lord of the underworld might be, he couldn’t possibly know about events unfolding within Hilderd.
Even if he did find out, he wouldn’t easily touch a cardinal like himself.
‘And neither the Count Basilian’s household nor Hailon would be able to properly inquire into underworld matters.’
It was a lie crafted after various calculations.
Of course, Milliod wasn’t exactly thrilled about invoking the underworld master.
He’d prepared it as a card to play but intended to avoid using it if possible.
‘Still, given the circumstances, I had no choice.’
Having played his trump card, Milliod looked at Count Basilian.
The count was frozen, his eyes wide with surprise.
A small exclamation came from the side.
“…Whoa.”
It was the voice of a boy who looked like a young beast, with sharp features.
The boy gaped, revealing small fangs, then began to giggle.
With that as the trigger, the men of the Basilian family burst into laughter all at once.
They laughed uproariously, as if they’d heard the most amusing story.
Faced with their laughter, Milliod wore a dazed expression.
He couldn’t keep up with the situation veering in a completely unexpected direction.
Only after a long while did Count Basilian finally stop laughing.
He took a deep breath and exhaled before speaking.
“The lord of the underworld, you say. This is quite intriguing. They call him the Master, don’t they?”
His voice still carried traces of amusement.
Count Basilian cleared his throat with a cough.
He smiled, folding his eyes into crescent shapes.
His narrow, sly smile felt seductive and unsettling.
In that moment, Milliod felt an intense sense of incongruity.
The fact that such a person was ensconced in the heart of the Holy Empire felt unbearably awkward.
At the same time, an urge to flee surged within him.
He didn’t know why.
He just felt an overwhelming desire to escape this place right now.
To Milliod, who was frozen like a mouse before a snake, a soft voice continued.
“Come to think of it, a story I’ve heard about the Master comes to mind. They say he leads utterly loyal subordinates who would never betray him…”
Milliod struggled to gather his wits.
He forced his stiffening tongue to move.
“Th-that… you mean the ‘Executioners’?”
“Yes. Those who displease the Master are executed by them, or so it’s said.”
The Executioners referred to the most overwhelmingly powerful among the subordinates the Master commanded.
Even the reckless scum of the underworld, who feared nothing in the world, became docile at the mention of the Executioners.
Only one Executioner was publicly known.
A man with a peculiar appearance, his eyes covered by cloth, wielding a whip as his weapon.
Since he sometimes acted as the Master’s proxy, his face was at least somewhat known.
The rest were all shrouded in mystery.
True to their name, the Executioners only moved when the Master desired someone’s death.
Anyone who encountered an Executioner ended up dead, so naturally, their identities remained secret.
“I’m sure Your Eminence is well aware of the Executioners…”
Count Basilian shifted his gaze.
Flinch.
Milliod, who had unwittingly followed the gaze, trembled violently.
The count’s eyes were directed at the twins.
The twins, who had been quietly listening until now, grinned wickedly the moment their eyes met Milliod’s.
That mischievous, nightmarish smile sent a chilling unease crawling up his spine.
It felt like his heart was shriveling.
Milliod hastily turned his head away.
But there, too, crimson eyes awaited him.
With an expressionless face, Count Basilian said,
“I trust you won’t carelessly utter lies involving the Master.”
The chilling warning took his breath away.
As Milliod merely parted his lips without a sound, the count soon smiled brightly, as if nothing had happened.
Then, as if gently coaxing, he murmured sweetly,
“By any chance, could I meet this so-called birth father? It’s not that I don’t believe you—I’m just curious.”
It was at that moment, as he was asking various questions like whether the black mage was captured in the heresy interrogation room.
Suddenly, a brilliant white light flashed outside the window.
The light that instantly illuminated the silent darkness was divine power.
Both the Basilian men and Milliod froze like statues for a moment at the divine power that abruptly lit the outside like broad daylight.
The first to move was Count Basilian.
He immediately leaped from his seat and picked up his sword from the corner.
“You two, check on Chesha. Belzeon, follow me.”
The three brothers moved at once.
The twins burst through the door and dashed out, and the eldest son also grabbed his sword.
Milliod shouted belatedly,
“W-wait! Drawing a sword within the Holy Empire…!”
It was the most basic common sense that one must not carelessly draw a sword within the Holy Empire.
However, Count Basilian instead commanded Milliod,
“Do not go outside; stay here with your escorts and wait.”
“What? What do you mean! Where are you going, Count!”
As Milliod blocked his way in a burst of anger, Count Basilian passed him and said curtly,
“Monsters.”
Beneath his annoyed red eyes, his sleek lips twisted.
“If you wish to die, feel free to follow.”
If he could just secure evidence that fairies were imprisoned within the Holy Empire.
Then Hailon could launch a full-scale investigation as a heresy inquisitor.
Normally, he would start an investigation on suspicion alone, but this time, clear evidence was necessary.
Because the targets of condemnation might include the cardinal and even the Holy King.
He had to gather perfect evidence, seal off every escape route with an airtight encirclement, and strike all at once.
Chesha was considerably surprised by the fact that he had resolved to condemn even the Holy King.
‘To think I’d be the first.’
Every time she recalled Hailon’s words, her face burned hot.
To act nonchalant, Chesha had to make a considerable effort.
“…Anyway, I just need to find the fairies, right?”
At her words, spoken while deliberately looking elsewhere, Hailon replied briefly,
“If possible.”
In the past, he would have flatly concluded it was impossible.
Chesha herself had wandered in search of other fairies for a long time but had never once encountered one.
But now, things were different.
Ever since touching the Fairy Queen’s crown and being changed into that strange dress, Chesha had felt that something about her had transformed.
She couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had changed or how.
Just…
‘Maybe I can find the fairies?’
This strange confidence kept welling up inside her.
“I’ll give it a try.”
To move together with Hailon, Chesha extended her hand to him.
He looked down at the offered hand for a moment, then slowly grasped it.
Her hand was enveloped snugly in his large one.
From the moment she thought of finding the fairies, an intense sensation arose.
Following her intuition, Chesha carefully channeled her power.
The place they arrived at, along with blooming flowers, was an underground cave.
Looking around, Chesha murmured in puzzlement,
“…A wine cellar?”
Torches flickered here and there in the cool, damp cave, and oak barrels filled with wine were stacked abundantly on both sides.
Before Chesha and Hailon stood a massive iron door.
If her intuition was correct, the fairies should be imprisoned inside.
Indeed, she seemed to faintly sense fairy power from beyond the door.
But strangely, a sense of repulsion arose.
As if she were touching something forbidden that must not be opened…
Goosebumps covered her body.
Two voices whispered simultaneously in her mind.
One urging her to open the door, the other insisting she absolutely must not.
Both were so desperately earnest that she couldn’t easily choose.
Hesitating, Chesha turned to Hailon.
“…”
Even in this moment when he might obtain crucial evidence, Hailon did not rush her.
He simply waited quietly by her side.
Thanks to his serene blue eyes, the choice she had to make became clear.
Since the teleportation was complete, she could let go of his hand now.
But Chesha kept a firm grip on Hailon’s hand and opened the door with her other one.
Strangely, the iron door pushed open as lightly as a feather.
As if it had been waiting for a very long time, it yielded easily to Chesha’s touch without a single lock.
“…!”
And the moment the door opened.
Black darkness poured out.
What awaited Chesha beyond the door was not fairies.
What covered everything in all directions was…
Monsters that should have been in the Black Forest.
