Chapter 52

Adrian stood up.  

“Did you detonate the bomb even with Rivera nearby, just to save her and win her heart? Or was it…”  

Adrian pressed his foot hard against Antonio’s leg as he knelt on the floor.  

Crunch.  

“……!!”  

“Was it really just an accident?”  

Antonio couldn’t answer. The knight standing behind him covered his mouth, preventing him from screaming.  

“You’ve had that look of curiosity on your face for a while now, wondering how I found out.”  

“Ugh, mmph!!”  

“It must be amazing to you, since you thought I couldn’t read your mind. But you see, I never relied solely on this ability of mine.”  

Crack.  

Adrian shattered Antonio’s leg bone. The sight of the man crying, snot and tears streaming down his face as he screamed silently, seemed to alleviate some of Adrian’s past pain.  

“I tortured the attackers who raided the temple, demanding they tell me everything they knew. One man showed me a portrait and said, ‘This is the worst of them all. He should be killed.’”  

“…Hic…”  

“I separated the priests who seemed to have been killed intentionally from those who were murdered indiscriminately. And isn’t it fascinating?”  

Adrian snapped his fingers.  

“They were all connected to one person. You, Antonio.”

He waved a stack of documents in front of Antonio’s face, saying the evidence was more than sufficient.  

“I never thought you’d kill a High Priest just to become one yourself.”  

Antonio begged pitifully.  

“L-Look, Duke of Bartman. Surely you don’t plan to report this to the temple?”  

“Why wouldn’t I?”  

Adrian smirked.  

“Do you think someone like me, who always deals with enemies quickly, wouldn’t have already informed the temple?”  

As Adrian stepped aside, people waiting outside the cave entered. Among them were High Priests and the Saintess from the temple. Standing at the forefront was High Priest Met, who looked at Antonio with utter contempt.  

Adrian whispered into Antonio’s ear.  

“You never should’ve gone up against someone you couldn’t beat.”  

As Adrian stepped back, the Saintess’s face twisted with betrayal.  

“High Priest Antonio, how could you do something like this?”  

The temple raid was a shocking event for many, including the Saintess. Antonio had killed his own mentor, both to gain Rivera’s heart by rescuing her in a moment of danger and to oppose Adrian.  

“N-No, you misunderstand. There seems to be some kind of mistake. Let’s discuss this calmly…”  

“Mistake? At this point? Do you think we’re fools?”  

Antonio shouted desperately. If he made one wrong move here, he was as good as dead. He needed to buy time to explain.  

“Whatever the Duke of Bartman said is a lie! Think about the evil deeds he’s committed in the past. The man lying dead behind me is said to be the missing Crown Prince of Lenin. The Duke of Bartman killed him! Now, who do you think is more trustworthy?”  

“You continue to disappoint me.”  

The Saintess frowned at the disgraceful sight before her. High Priest Met stepped forward.  

“Saintess Ariel, allow me to handle this.”  

“Are you sure you’re okay?”  

Knowing that High Priest Met had once trusted Antonio, Ariel looked worried, but Met nodded, saying he was fine.  

He approached Antonio, his face filled with regret, and delivered a sharp rebuke.  

“High Priest Antonio, trusting you was the greatest mistake of my life. I shared some of the temple’s secrets with you, believing you were a friend. But there’s something you don’t know.”  

“…What do you mean?”  

“The secrets you learn after becoming a High Priest aren’t just about the Duke of Bartman’s abilities.”  

“W-What…?”  

“There’s more. The temple and the Bartman Ducal House have been secretly helping each other for a long time.”  

“That’s absurd! The Duke has always been hostile to the temple! How could that be?”  

“That’s exactly why he exists.”  

Met spoke calmly.  

The fact that Adrian could read people’s thoughts was a secret known to only a few. But that ability came with a fatal flaw: Adrian could not be healed with divine power.  

“Did you know that divine power doesn’t work on the Duke of Bartman?”  

“That’s… because he’s cursed by the gods…”  

“No. If that were true, then we, who can’t heal ourselves, would have to say we exist solely to serve others for life. We can’t even heal our own bodies.”  

A sense of foreboding crept over Antonio, and his fears were soon confirmed.  

“Think about it carefully. Divine power doesn’t work on the Duke of Bartman. But the Duke’s ability can’t read our thoughts. Why is that?”  

Antonio could only think of one possible explanation.  

“…The same attribute.”  

“Exactly. It’s because it’s the same power. Like magnets repelling each other, our powers clash and cancel each other out, rendering us immune to each other.”  

From the moment Antonio went against Adrian without knowing this, his fate had been sealed.  

“If you had opposed the Duke of Bartman for a just cause, we might have supported you. After all, why would we side with someone who exists solely to monitor the temple? But… k*lling your colleagues and threatening him for absurd reasons is unforgivable.”  

The High Priests standing around Antonio raised their hands, summoning divine power.  

“P-Please spare me. I beg you…! Just one more chance…!”  

They cast their spell.  

“May you suffer for a long time.”  

As a brilliant white light erupted from the ground, the earth rose and encased Antonio’s body.  

The Saintess, looking at Antonio with disgust, spoke her final words of farewell.  

Moments later, Antonio vanished into the light. He was now trapped in a void, a dimension where he would neither age nor die, living in eternal torment until his soul eventually shattered and disappeared.  

That was the punishment for defying the gods.  

***

Adrian stepped out of the cave to find the world still shrouded in darkness.  

The thought of returning to the Bartman Ducal House made him feel weary. How nice it would be if he could blink once and instantly be by her side.  

“You’ve done well, Duke of Bartman.”  

Saintess Ariel approached him from behind.  

She was the most noble woman in the world, someone with the authority to reject even the Emperor.  

Adrian and Ariel had a long-standing relationship. The Bartman family and the temple had maintained a close, cooperative relationship for generations, though Antonio’s actions had nearly destroyed it.  

“You don’t seem too busy these days. I didn’t expect you to come here yourself.”  

“When I heard that some fool had not only messed with you but also killed High Priest Houston, I had to come, no matter how busy I was.”  

The Saintess expressed her sorrow over the sacrifices that had been made.  

“You’re so cruel. If you knew about this, you could’ve given us a heads-up.”  

“Blame yourselves for sharing my secret with someone who wasn’t even a High Priest yet.”  

The Saintess seemed to acknowledge his point.  

“I’ll make sure High Priest Met is disciplined. We should’ve trusted you from the start.”  

It had been Adrian who delayed Antonio’s appointment as a High Priest. Suspicious of Antonio’s actions, Adrian had asked for the ceremony to be postponed. However, the Saintess had insisted that the temple would handle its own matters and proceeded with the ceremony.  

As a result, a traitor had become a High Priest. Without Adrian, they might never have discovered the truth. The thought sent shivers down her spine.  

The goddess who loved humanity had given Antonio a chance to start anew, hoping he would become a better person. But his foolish desire for revenge had led him to commit unforgivable acts.  

“I deeply regret what happened.”  

Mounted on his horse, Adrian didn’t seem inclined to accept her apology. He turned his horse’s head, ready to leave. The Saintess looked as though she wanted to say more.  

“Do you still hate us?”  

“Why would I have any reason to like you?”  

“But I like you. You always walk the righteous path.”  

“You must be mistaken. The Bartman Ducal House wasn’t created to be friends with the temple. It was established to stop you from straying down the wrong path.”  

Adrian frowned.  

Faith in the gods wasn’t always righteous. Excessive devotion could lead to corruption, and it was the Bartman family’s role to curb and prevent such excesses.  

“Still, you could be kinder. I have feelings too, you know.”  

“Get lost.”  

Adrian’s voice was filled with irritation.  

“You’re as cold as ever.”  

“If you don’t like it, find someone else to monitor you.”  

“Do you think it’s easy to find someone as competent as you?”  

“Hmph. So you rely on me? Maybe it’s time you formed your own investigative team.”  

“I’m considering it.”  

“You’d better hurry.”  

According to Adrian’s investigations, some within the temple had been secretly accepting money in exchange for healing services. While charging for healing wasn’t inherently wrong, some priests had used this as a means to wield power, acting like lords and even forming cults that worshipped them as gods.  

These individuals exploited the chaos of war-torn nations, claiming that safety could only be found under their protection. They manipulated the sacred non-aggression pact signed by all nations, which prohibited attacks on temples, to establish their dominance.  

Even Adrian couldn’t simply lead an army into a temple and kill the enemies hiding within its walls.  

“The temple isn’t always clean. Somewhere, it’s bound to get dirty. But you all believe, don’t you? That your people would never do such things.”  

Saintess Ariel couldn’t argue. His words struck her deeply.  

“That’s where you’ve gone wrong.”  

***

It was late at night when Adrian returned on horseback. Seeing Rivera sitting on the steps, he helped her to her feet.  

“It’s late. Why aren’t you sleeping?”  

“I was curious.”  

She wanted to know what had happened to Antonio. She was also scared of the possibility that he might appear before her again.  

Understanding her worries, Adrian gently stroked her hair.  

“That man will never show up in front of you again.”  

“Never?”  

“Never.”  

Relieved, Rivera let out a breath of relief, and Adrian wrapped his arm around her shoulders.  

“So don’t worry. Let’s go inside. It’s cold.”  

Taking off his coat, Adrian draped it over her shoulders.