Chapter 612

"They said the corpses there came back to life as undead and escaped. That was our conclusion. But what the Empire does is, they bring the corpses and regenerate them in a huge container."

"Right."

"Then... it means that what happened there was originally unrelated to the Empire... that's what I think... Sorry, I don't mean to confuse you..."

"No, you're right."

When Ludwig tried to blur his words, Ellen firmly shook her head.

"You don't have to ask Berthus. It's definitely a different incident. And there's no reason for the Empire to touch the graves of the Holy Knights."

Grave robbery of the Holy Knights and body swapping at the national cemetery. Those are different incidents. The working methods are too different, and the Empire has no reason to touch the graves of the Holy Knights in the first place.

"Then Rowen was originally investigating the wrong suspect."

But he fell into another maze. He thought everything was the Empire's doing, but the Empire didn't kill Rowen and was unrelated to the theft at the underground grave of the Holy Knights.

Then Rowen approached Ludwig to chase the wrong suspect.

Of course, if you look at the scene, it was similar enough to be considered the Empire's doing.

But strictly speaking, they are different incidents.

Then who caused the incident in that underground place?

Did they really kill Rowen?

"I really don't know what's what anymore."

Heinrich began to tear his hair out.

"You don't have to think about this anymore. We have no obligation to reveal the truth."

Ellen said.

"I wanted to know why Archbishop Rowen approached Ludwig and whether he intended to kill me. But some of them have become clear. Rowen approached Ludwig, and the reason was to investigate the temple."

Not all questions have been answered. That's why you can let go of this incident with only the questions that have been answered.

Now that it's clear that Rowen was involved in many bad things, it's not an unfair death. She was literally a person who had done anything to deserve death.

Should we call it karma?

If someone retaliated against Rowen, it would have been something she deserved.

Ludwig muttered listlessly.

"Well, we don't need to know everything..."

The truth they already know. The reality is overwhelming enough with the truth they have learned. It's painful enough to have to remain silent and pass by the wrongdoings that are already happening.

It doesn't seem possible to dig deeper into Rowen's situation, which is now completely lost in the maze.

"But even if we give up, there is a place where there is a last possibility."

Ellen said, looking at everyone as if it was really the last chance, even though she said it was okay to let go of this incident. "The commander of the Holy Knights said that if the Popes were trying to hide something from him, he wouldn't know. And it's true that the commander of the Holy Knights was also hiding something from me. We need to find out what they're hiding, and even if it's not related to Rowen's murder, the Holy Knights are investigating the incident on their own. If we find out anything, we can share the information. If we can't find anything, let's just end it here. The incident is like a maze. If the Empire, who was a strong suspect, didn't commit this crime, then the only possibility is the heretics. But it's almost impossible to find out which heretic is the culprit. Ellen decided to visit the Holy Knights once again to find out. But it was a sensitive matter. Louise said that she didn't need to help anymore. As they already knew too much, Louise thought she should also end it. The group of four headed to the Temple. When they arrived at the Holy Knights' headquarters, the knights guarding the entrance blocked Ellen's way and lied to her. Ellen noticed that something was strange and asked why they were lying. The knights were trembling with fear and acting differently from before. Ellen approached them and asked why they were so scared." Ellen tried to enter the Holy Knights' headquarters, but the knights blocked her way. She threatened to force her way in and eventually made it inside. Once inside, they found the place eerily empty and quiet. They heard strange noises and followed them to a meeting room where they found a gruesome scene of blood and dead bodies. "The person who had only shown their back slowly turned their head. 'I told everyone not to come this way...' The person turned around and upon seeing Ellen, twisted their lips into a grotesque smile. 'I guess I couldn't stop you.' 'What...what is this?' While Ellen was in shock and muttering to herself, the others arrived. 'Huh...?' Ludwig could only stare at the scene of carnage and the person who seemed to be the perpetrator. 'Father...?' 'Ah, Ludwig...' The woman wiped her nose with the back of her hand, holding a small knife in her hand. Trying to wipe away the blood only made it spread more on her face, making her look even more eerie. 'So, Ludwig doesn't know anything...' Her expression showed a strong sense of guilt. But despite being covered in blood, her pure expression of apology made her look even more terrifying. 'Father...? What happened to Father...?' Ludwig's reaction made it clear who the woman in front of them was. Archbishop Rowen was alive. The priest who was said to be dead was committing a massacre in the Holy Knights' top meeting room. And the Holy Knights who had blocked the entrance. The empty temple. It was not a solo act. There was a huge conspiracy. And the dead people. Their clothes were so unrecognizable that it was impossible to tell who they were. 'Who did you kill?' Ellen asked. Rowen shrugged. 'The Pope and his followers.' The fact that there were five dead bodies alone made it clear what had happened. 'But have any of you seen Ilyeon Valtan? Somehow, he managed to smell us out and escape.' The fact that the Grand Master of the Holy Knights was absent was not a lie. Except for Ludwig, no one had ever seen Rowen in person. 'If you don't know, can you stop interfering and leave?' 'What?' 'Interfering in other people's business is rude.' It was unclear where the situation had started. The priest who was said to be dead was alive. And for some reason, he had brutally murdered five popes. Even all the people in the temple had cleared the way for him. Where did it start? What happened? How did this happen? Was it right to draw a sword? Ellen trembled with her eyes wide open. 'I don't like that crazy guy either, but for now, we should leave him alone.' And suddenly, a voice from behind made them turn their gaze to the hallway. 'It's good to wander around, but for now, let's leave here, okay?' All four of them were shocked to see the person who had suddenly appeared. 'Olivia...Lance?' One of the three Temple students who had disappeared with the Demon King. Olivia Lance was looking at them." Ludwig, Rudbich, and Louise were also shocked to see her, knowing that she was not supposed to be there. "I'll make it short," Olivia said, linking her arms and looking at them. "From now on, the Holy Knights and the Five Great Gods' Sect are ours. Well... strictly speaking, we're finally on the right track." "What...?" "So, you know that and go back." Olivia was looking directly at Ellen. "You're smart. You know that if you start swinging your sword here, the situation will get worse, right?" Faced with her arrogant and confident threat, Ellen felt like giving up on understanding the situation.