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Interrogation (2)

Raven climbed the stairs to the deck and hurried to the ship’s officers’ quarters.

When she arrived, all the platoon leaders of the battalion, as well as the subordinate officer she had sent earlier, were already gathered.

“Deputy Commander Raven! You’re safe! Thank goodness! We were about to form a support unit ourselves because you were late—”

“I need to make a report, so please clear the room.”

“…Pardon? Ah, yes!”

Seeing Raven’s urgency, the gathered officers didn’t question her orders and quickly complied.

In mere seconds, the officers’ room was completely empty.

“……”

With a complex expression, Raven placed her hand on the military message stone in the cabin.

“Nia Raphdonia. This is Alluva Raven, Vice-Commander of the 3rd Mage Corps. The evacuation of my unit caused a delay, and I have just now returned. Please update me on the current situation.”

[Nia Raphdonia. This is Eltra Tercerion, Chief of Staff of the 3rd Corps. We heard you went to confront the Blood Knight and were worried, but it’s a relief that you’re safe.]

“Pardon me, but why is the Chief of Staff contacting me instead of the Corps Commander…?”

[In times of war, if the highest-ranking officer is absent, the second-in-command takes over.]

“Absent… you say?”

[Viscount Lamriond has fallen in battle. While issuing orders to assemble the troops and moving, he was ambushed by rebels and a group of criminals led by Ricardo Lühensprache, aka the traitor]

“That can’t be….”

[The attacks stopped after all forces retreated to the lake, but we can’t be sure of what will happen next. Until further orders, you are to oversee your unit and maintain vigilance in the area.]

The following exchange provided succinct and clear information about the scale of losses and details on the enemies who carried out this recent attack.

And then…

[I believe I have shared everything you need to know. Now, it’s your turn. Was it truly the Blood Knight?]

Raven gave a concise, unembellished report on what had transpired.

She described how she stayed behind to stop the Blood Knight.

How enemy reinforcements arrived as they pressed on.

And how, during the battle, she killed the “Lighthouse Keeper” and retreated using a teleportation spell.

She skipped over the details, keeping her report as brief as possible.

It wasn’t merely to save time.

[You killed the Lighthouse Keeper… That’s excellent news. You did well. Let the Blood Spirit Queen know that she will be rewarded for her contribution.]

The superior believed that this major was achieved thanks to the contribution of the Blood Spirit, but the reality is completely different.

Her superior assumed that this success was attributed to the contribution of the Blood Spirit Queen, but that wasn’t the truth at all.

Rihen Schuiz

It was thanks to him that no one suffered at the hands of the infamous Blood Knight, and he was the one who killed the Lighthouse Keeper in the end.

However…

[I’ll end this communication now.]

In the end, Raven did not tell the truth.

No, it wasn’t just that.

‘Amelia Rainweilz.’

She didn’t mention the woman who fought as valiantly as the Blood Duke. Despite knowing that the woman she met on Farune Island was the same one from Noark.

She deliberately withheld information.

While she hadn’t lied, she had undeniably failed in her duty as a soldier.

“Sigh….”

Raven, who had always diligently fulfilled her role, felt a deep sense of guilt.

But what could she do?

She needed time to sort out her thoughts.

‘Rihen Schuiz…’

The man who introduced himself with that name.

Until then, she thought that man was someone that Erwin had rescued who looked like that person.

Until recently, she thought he was just someone Elwen had found who looked like that person and brought along.

But after seeing his [Gigantification], she began to wonder.

What if it wasn’t just a resemblance?

What if Erwin called him “uncle” for a reason?

What if… he was truly alive?

“I… I don’t know.”

She was confused.

It was hard to be certain of anything.

Sometimes she felt sure he was that man, but at other times, she thought he was simply someone with many similar features.

There were also very clear differences.

“His height and face.”

And…

[You… y-your back…!]

When she unconsciously reached out to the wound, the blood she touched was hot and sticky.

If it were his blood, it should’ve burned.

There was another key difference.

“He’s too powerful.”

A body capable of resisting the Blood Knight’s aura.

A strange ability that deflected magic.

And the skill to manipulate wind to pull enemies toward him.

The Jandel she once knew could never have displayed such divine strength against such formidable foes.

However…

“Time has passed.”

It was possible he had grown stronger by consuming a new essence.

Erwin, a member of the Seven Pillars, and even she herself had changed a lot in the past two years.

“In that case…”

As Raven sorted through the massive influx of information, she found herself leaning more and more towards the possibility that Bjorn Jandel had survived.

The deciding factor was Amelia’s presence.

While she hadn’t been able to uncover the truth, she couldn’t shake off her lingering doubts about his death.

But now, the person who had disappeared with him is alive and well?

That was as good an indicator that he might still be alive.

But the problem was…

“If it really is Jandel, what am I supposed to do?”

Bjorn Jandel was declared an evil spirit.

The royal family had officially proclaimed him as such, and she had known this even before the proclamation.

She had seen Misha’s expression.

[You said there would be rumors that Jandel is an evil spirit, but that’s… not just a rumor, is it?]

Misha, who had the longest and deepest relationship with Jandel among the comrades, didn’t answer.

But in her trembling eyes, the truth was contained.

Clack, clack.

Raven bit her nails for the first time in a long while.

It was a habit that only came out when she was psychologically pressured.

Unlike usual, she couldn’t think objectively at all.

Part of her wanted him to be Jandel, while another part wished he wasn’t.

But…

“Well, what choice do I have? I have to confirm it.”

Eventually, Raven made up her mind.

She knew.

That no matter how scared she was, she couldn’t delay and run away from what she had to do.

***

No. 399: The Cage of Silence.

A numbered item that activates when a spatial movement ability is used within a certain radius.

“She’s not going to just leave us here forever, right?”

“She’ll come. Probably very soon.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because this cage won’t last forever.”

To be precise, once activated, it lasts for two hours.

 After that, it required an extended cooldown period before it could be used again.

‘Besides, it’s impossible to attack someone trapped inside.’

That was the biggest flaw of the Cage of Silence.

It was purely an item meant for containment.

Once it is activated, even external attacks would be completely blocked.

Thus, the usual strategy was to trap the target, wait, and then ambush them the moment it deactivated.

Tap.

As footsteps echoed from the corridor, the guard assigned to watch over them quickly saluted in that direction.

“Nia Raphdonia!”

So, she’s here.

“Thank you for keeping watch. I have something to discuss with them, so could you step outside for a moment? And please keep everything that happens here a secret.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Raven, who had returned after about an hour, was alone, and after dismissing the guard, she ensured that there were no other ears around.

It was a promising sign, but it wasn’t time to relax yet.

Raven stopped in front of the cage and silently stared inside. Finally, I decided to break the silence first.

“…What do you intend to do with us?”

“Are you still going to speak to me in that tone?”

Wow, she’s coming on strong from the start.

Maybe it’s time to reveal my identity and try to convince her to help?

As I pondered, Raven continued speaking.

“…Take off your helmet.”

Since I had already revealed my face once, I obediently removed the helmet, still stained with the blood of the Lighthouse Keeper.

Raven’s expression remained unchanged.

“…And the armor too.”

What the hell does she take me for?

I almost wanted to laugh.

“There are limits to what I’m willing to do. If I were a woman, would you still be—”

“What are you even talking about?”

I tried to explain logically why I couldn’t take off my armor, but Raven just stared at me with a stern expression.

This was… nerve-wracking.

“I haven’t reported anything about you yet. Nor about Rainweilz over there. But if you refuse to comply, the story will change—”

“Fine, I’ll take it off.”

“Your tone… It’s less formal now, isn’t it?”

Whatever, there’s no escaping this situation anyway.

Without further comment, I took off the armor that was shattered at the back.

And then…

“……!”

For the first time, Raven’s expression shifted.

Her gaze, somewhat shaken, was fixed on the tattoo hidden under my armor.

Hah, in a way, this feels relieving.

“It’s been a while, Raven.”

“…….”

“Weren’t you expecting this?”

At my question, Raven bit her lip and glared at me.

“Still… I was hoping it wasn’t true.”

“Because I’m an evil spirit?”

“Yes. I wished you could’ve remained a cherished memory.”

Her voice trailed off with a hint of bitterness.

A painful tightness gripped my heart.

So, you can’t accept that I’m an evil spirit, can you?

“Wait!”

“…?”

“Raven, this evil spirit thing… it’s a misunderstanding.”

I hurriedly tried to steer the conversation toward convincing her.

“A misunderstanding?”

“Yes, I’m not an evil spirit.”

“Then what’s with your current state?”

Looking at me, Raven clenched her fists tightly.

“I assume you took some essence, like Aynar did with the Bone Knight’s essence, to shrink yourself…If you’re not an evil spirit, there’s no reason to go to such lengths to hide your identity, right?”

That’s the question I anticipated.

“When I returned, the royal family had already declared me an evil spirit. After some investigation, I found several suspicious inconsistencies. So, I decided to keep my identity hidden for a while.”

“…I admit that there were suspicious elements in that proclamation. But ‘for a while’? And ‘returned’? What does that mean?”

Okay, I’ve piqued her curiosity.

“It’s a long story. There’s something called the Fragment of Records—”

“Wait!”

As I was about to delve into my explanation, Raven cut me off.

“There’s no need for long-winded stories. This will suffice.”

She held up a familiar object.

No. 7234: Misaligned Trust.

A numbered item that, once activated, will prevent anyone within a 10-metre radius from telling a lie.

“Mr. Jandel, you know what this is, right? We got it from Mr, Parteian in the Doppelganger Forest. I made sure to recharge its uses with military funds.”

Ah, thorough as always, aren’t you?

Whirrrrr—!

In the meantime, she had even pressed the power button; as the compass-sized device’s needle began to rotate.

And then…

“Now, answer me. Is it really just a misunderstanding?”

Raven’s gaze pierced through me.

‘This had better work.’

Even as I thought that, I was quite nervous.

I hadn’t actually confirmed whether Auril Gavis’s ‘Gift’ 

I had planned to test it out with Misaligned Trust or something similar later on.

However…

“Raven, it’s truly a misunderstanding. I’m not a an evil spirit.”

Yes, since I’m able to speak like this, it seems the ‘Gift’ is working—

Click.

At that moment, the needle stopped..

“……What did you just do?”

“Uh…”

As I trailed off, the hour hand began moving again.

Was there a temporary error?

“I don’t really know…”

As I hurriedly feigned ignorance, ‘MisalignedTrust’ stopped again with a ticking sound.

And then…

Tick, tock.

“…Why does the needle stop every time you speak?”

Raven’s question made me gulp.

At Raven’s question, I swallowed hard.

‘Didn’t he say I wouldn’t be affected by such items from now on…?’

Damn old man.

If it was going to be like this, he should have told me in advance!