Chapter 42
An Uncomfortable Reunion (1)
The clearing at the center of the village was packed with people.
Church soldiers, several holy knights, priests and monks, as well as the villagers themselves—more than a hundred people had gathered in orderly rows.
Every one of them was staring at a particular hut.
Their attention had been drawn by the bizarre behavior of the young nobleman who had burst through its door.
As if offering alms, he had tossed something in front of the Church’s forces.
It was a small red imp.
The moment they identified it, every soldier drew his sword.
All their blades pointed toward the imp.
“Restrain it!”
A cage-like iron enclosure dropped over the imp.
The trapped creature stared blankly at the hut.
More precisely, it was staring at the boy.
The moment the imp was captured, every gaze returned to Johan.
The blades were now pointed at him.
A knight clad in holy armor approached on horseback.
“Identify yourself! Until your identity has been confirmed, you will receive no respect—”
He couldn’t finish speaking.
The moment he looked into Johan’s eye, an unfamiliar emotion welled up inside him.
For some reason, he felt compelled to show the boy respect.
“Ahem.”
The holy knight quickly brought his emotions under control.
He couldn’t allow himself to be swayed by personal sentiment. As agents of divine punishment, composure was not a choice for them but a duty.
He spoke again.
“State your full name at once!”
The boy before him was clearly a noble. His appearance alone distinguished him from the villagers.
Johan bowed slightly.
“I am Johan Myatro. It is an honor to meet one who stands at the forefront of the holy war.”
The moment he heard the family name, the holy knight dismounted.
He still looked down at Johan because of their overwhelming difference in height. The man appeared to weigh at least three times as much as Johan.
“So you are a member of the family that watches over the Abyss. I am Holy Knight Kainak Zahad. Forgive me, but do you possess any means of proving your identity?”
Johan quietly clicked his tongue so that no one nearby could hear.
‘He’s remarkably strict.’
Should he have brought his family’s seal?
While Johan was considering the troublesome situation, a woman stepped forward from among the soldiers.
“Sir Kainak, I will vouch for his identity.”
Her red hair fluttered in the night breeze.
Johan recognized her immediately.
‘Shaperia. As expected, she came.’
She would have moved the instant she saw the Church’s beacon.
Even after losing all her power, she remained unbroken. She would continue living by her convictions until the day she died.
Johan felt somewhat uncomfortable.
The bitterness he had forcibly buried resurfaced.
Would it have been better to kill her back then?
He didn’t know.
No matter what choice he had made, however, the emotional burden would have followed him.
Johan could only carry it and keep moving forward.
“Sir Shaperia, I see you have already arrived.”
“I rushed here the moment I saw the beacon. But how did you come to be here, Lord Johan?”
Myatro territory was quite far from this place.
Even the well-trained Shaperia had barely arrived despite focusing solely on the journey, yet Johan had arrived before her.
Nor had they encountered each other along the way.
It was strange.
Johan answered,
“I had business in a nearby village when I saw the beacon rise. I couldn’t simply ignore it, so I came here immediately.”
Nobles had a duty to answer the Church’s summons.
Holy Knight Kainak murmured in admiration.
“Impressive for someone so young. The Myatro family has a bright future ahead of it.”
Shaperia traced the holy symbol.
“Saint Margiel. The Great Saint will surely recognize Lord Johan’s devotion.”
Johan returned the gesture by tracing the holy symbol as well.
Kainak nodded in satisfaction.
“Young master... No, that would be discourteous. Your identity has been confirmed, my lord. I have only a few questions, so I hope you will cooperate.”
“Of course. Ask me anything.”
Kainak pointed toward the caged imp.
“First, I would like an explanation regarding that creature. How exactly did you capture it?”
An imp might be weak, but it was still a demon.
It would be difficult for an untrained civilian—especially a young boy—to subdue one.
It might have been possible if Johan possessed aura or divine power, but Kainak could sense no supernatural ability from him.
He was remarkably mature for his age, but still an ordinary boy.
That was Kainak’s assessment of Johan.
“I was fortunate. It approached me and whispered temptations, but I remained unmoved. Quite apart from my devotion, its powers of persuasion were abysmal.”
“It could not have been easy to resist its temptations. You possess willpower befitting a descendant of the Watchers. But did the creature not attempt to harm you physically?”
Even such a tiny imp was still a demon and could easily kill a young boy.
“It had already exhausted all its demonic energy. It approached me after failing in a previous hunt and was exhausted from the beginning.”
“You were fortunate that it was so inept. You could have been in grave danger. From now on, I advise you always to travel with an escort. Remote mountains such as these conceal many dangers besides demons.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
Kainak slowly nodded and gestured toward the troops behind him.
A man dressed in white clerical robes stepped forward.
Kainak addressed him.
“Anything unusual?”
“No. At the very least, we found no traces of White Horn among the villagers.”
The Church had divided its forces into several companies to search the interior of the sacred containment formation.
Their objective was to find White Horn, who had vanished like smoke.
Kainak released a deep sigh.
“If he isn’t hiding inside a human body, where could he possibly have disappeared to?”
“Do not be too impatient. He is a rat trapped in a barrel. We will hear good news soon enough.”
“You are right. His Highness’s spear inflicted a fatal wound upon him, so he shouldn’t have enough power left to tear through the barrier. We must capture White Horn during this opportunity, whatever it takes. If he truly is an Apostle, this may be our last chance.”
As expected, the Church also suspected Johan of being the Great End’s Thirteenth Apostle.
‘Haah...’
Johan couldn’t help sighing inwardly.
He was supposedly an Apostle, yet he didn’t even possess the power to break through a sacred containment formation.
Even if Gawain hadn’t injured him, Johan would have been unable to tear through the barrier.
His reputation made his enemies stronger and more cautious, while he himself remained weak.
He had to find a way to grow stronger.
The priest spoke.
“I agree. We must not become impatient, but some urgency is still necessary. Our work here is finished, so we should continue onward.”
Kainak nodded.
“One last matter. Who is the headman of this village?”
An old man emerged from among the villagers standing in orderly rows.
“I am, sir.”
It was the old man who had cared for Johan.
“Forty-one people in total. Is that the correct number of residents?”
Before the headman could answer, Johan interrupted.
“There is one more, Sir Kainak.”
Kainak looked at him.
“Where?”
“A child is sleeping inside the hut I just left.”
Kainak directed a heavy gaze toward the headman.
“I ordered everyone to gather here.”
“W-Well, that is...”
Johan answered in place of the flustered headman.
“The child was the imp’s first victim. He collapsed from exhaustion after resisting its demonic energy and has yet to regain consciousness.”
The headman’s face turned deathly pale.
His grandson had been attacked by a demon. It was something he had never imagined.
As soon as Johan finished speaking, Kainak gestured to the priest.
The priest hurried into the hut.
A short while later, he emerged and shook his head toward Kainak.
The headman sank to his knees in despair.
“O Great Saint! How could you take even my grandson from me?”
The priest addressed Kainak.
“I sensed only faint demonic energy. There were no traces of White Horn.”
He then looked expressionlessly at the headman.
“He isn’t dead, so get up.”
“Th-Then...”
“I have taken measures to awaken him shortly. He must undergo questioning.”
Before the headman could even rejoice that his grandson was alive, despair overtook him again.
The Church’s interrogations were infamous.
Torture was standard practice, and people frequently died during questioning.
He had every reason to be afraid.
Trembling, the headman said,
“Wh-What has my grandson done to deserve an interrogation?”
“We found traces of contact with a demon. He may have allowed it to use his body during that encounter, so naturally, an investigation is required.”
If the boy had willingly allowed a demon to possess him, he would have no defense even if sentenced to death.
Possession occurred through mutual consent. Anyone who allowed it was considered an apostate who had surrendered himself to a demon.
The boy truly had lent his body to the demon.
Death awaited him at the end of the investigation.
Johan spoke.
“I vouch for the boy’s innocence. He resisted the temptation until he collapsed from exhaustion.”
“That is insufficient. A few words cannot simply—”
The priest couldn’t finish speaking.
The moment he met Johan’s gaze, a powerful sense of trust toward him welled up inside.
“If the demon had successfully possessed him, how could I possibly have extracted it?”
Kainak, who had been listening to their conversation, nodded.
“An ordinary method cannot extract a demon that has completed its possession.”
A specialized exorcism ritual would be necessary. It was not something an ordinary person could perform.
Johan was supposedly an ordinary person, yet he had undeniably been holding the imp in his hand.
Based on appearances, it was more reasonable to conclude that no possession had occurred.
The priest spoke.
“...After hearing both of you, it seems my judgment was hasty. There should be no need for an investigation.”
“I agree.”
“Thank you for reconsidering.”
Color gradually returned to the old man’s face.
“Thank you! Thank you so much! I will never forget this kindness, sir!”
He repeatedly bowed toward Johan.
Kainak spoke.
“We have already lost considerable time. We should get moving.”
The instant he finished speaking, the troops began arranging themselves with perfect coordination.
A soldier hurried over and picked up the iron cage containing the imp.
Johan asked,
“Are you not going to dispose of it immediately?”
The imp tightly gripped the bars and stared intensely at Johan.
It seemed to be demanding that Johan keep his promise if it returned alive.
Kainak answered,
“Every demon captured within the containment formation will be interrogated first. There may be some connection to White Horn, however slight.”
“I don’t know much about demons, but I imagine forcing one to speak will not be easy.”
Surprisingly, demons were adept at keeping their mouths shut.
Physical pain alone could not extract the desired information from them.
“I am skeptical as well. Nevertheless, those are the Church’s instructions, so I will obey them.”
Johan nodded.
That was the nature of soldiers, and holy knights were no different.
“I hope your efforts bear fruit.”
“As do I. Please take care of yourself. I hope we meet again someday.”
Johan was about to respond when someone shouted loudly.
“We greet His Highness, the Third Prince!”
Every soldier simultaneously dropped to one knee.
A man was approaching through the huts ahead.
His short purple hair swayed with every step.
‘Gawain!’
The instant he saw him, Johan also dropped to one knee.
The slash-and-burn farmers panicked and prostrated themselves on the ground.
They could barely think straight. To them, royalty was something they could only ever encounter in dreams.
Despite the commotion, Gawain paid it no attention.
He merely approached the group while continuously muttering to himself.
“It should be somewhere around here. But the trail ends abruptly. Haah, I don’t understand. This has never happened before.”
He stopped in front of Kainak.
Still kneeling, Kainak spoke.
“Your Highness, have you still not found it?”
“Ah, Sir Kainak. No, I haven’t. I can hear Espada crying, but I cannot determine its location at all. It is somewhat unsettling. I have never experienced anything like this.”
The Holy Spear Espada never remained separated from its master.
No matter how far it was thrown, the Holy Spear would inevitably return to him.
This time was different.
Espada had not returned to Gawain.
He couldn’t even pinpoint the spear’s location.
Kainak said,
“We are continuing to search for it as well. We will contact you the moment it is found, so please do not worry too much.”
“Sir Kainak, please concentrate solely on finding White Horn. I will handle Espada myself.”
After saying that, Gawain continued surveying the vicinity.
“I’m certain it’s somewhere nearby, but the trail ends here. This is truly troublesome.”
As his gaze wandered around, it abruptly stopped in one place.
“Wait a moment.”
He was looking down at Johan.
Gawain bent at the waist and met Johan’s gaze.
Johan spoke first.
“Johan von Myatro greets His Highness, the Third Prince.”
“Have we met before?”
“Not to my knowledge, Your Highness.”
“I see. Would you stand up for a moment?”
Johan rose to his feet.
Their gazes intertwined in the air.
After staring at Johan for a long moment, Gawain finally spoke.