Chapter 7 – Part 5

As soon as Evan stepped into the shabby building, he asked the man,

“What’s your name?”

“…Call me ‘Pel.’”

“Pel? You’re not joking, are you?”

The man hesitated and whispered,

“It’s true.”

It almost seemed like he was making fun of him. Pel was a common name, often used as an alias. It was suspicious for a man who looked this shady.

However, Evan leaned against the wall, sensing that the man’s eyes weren’t lying.

“So, shall we get to the point?”

Pel hesitated quite a bit before finally opening his mouth.

“…I’ve been on the battlefield for a long time. As an informant.”

He took a deep breath and continued,

“I had a rare chance to prove myself, but it turned out the outcome of this war was already decided.”

“What?”

“Do you know about the battle in Veronia beyond Calohas?”

There had only been one battle in Veronia during this war. Evan sighed, almost laughing, but then his expression hardened.

The thought that this man might know something about that battle crossed his mind.

“Were you part of that battle?”

“Yes, I was. What I want to tell you is that there were many suspicious things during my mission, and I couldn’t understand why they used such tactics.”

“Tactics are the prerogative of the commander.”

“Yes, I thought so too and brushed it off. But I had a hunch. The enemy knew our plans. Otherwise… I can’t explain what I experienced.”

At those words, Evan showed a shocked expression.

After Anne death, Evan knew that Connor Johannes was a traitor, but it was curious that even a vagrant knew about this.

“And?”

“Isn’t it strange? that Terossa is struggling so much.”

Evan nodded silently.

“These top brass don’t care about winning or losing the war. They care about their own gains from this war.”

Evan slowly looked at Pel.

If he listened to this man, it seemed his carefully laid plans would unravel.

So far, Evan’s plan was simple: not to become Anne Riley’s lover and to buy time until she was safe.

Yet deep down, he wanted to see her happy, growing old in a peaceful life. Was that too much to ask?

Clenching his fists, Evan couldn’t suppress his greed and asked,

“Do you want the empire to fall?”

Despair flashed in Pel’s eyes, but he shook his head, his face turning pale.

Contradicting his earlier behavior, Evan opened a drawer. Among the many unopened love letters, he pulled out a gun and asked Pel again,

“You boasted drunk about the empire’s fall. Why are you now so sad about it?”

“……”

“What is your identity?”

Evan walked up and pointed the gun at Pel’s forehead. The cold metallic click of the gun didn’t elicit a response from Pel.

Evan kicked the man’s shin, making Pel groan and fall.

With Pel kneeling, Evan pressed the gun to his head and asked in a low voice,

“You won’t answer, even with your head on the line?”

“……”

Seeing the man’s severe trembling, Evan clicked his tongue.

“You’re quite naive.”

“I wasn’t always like this.”

It was strange.

Pel alternated between acting like a proud knight and a street thug full of anger and weakness.

“Think about it. Is dying here better, or are you telling me everything?”

Evan’s eyes twitched. Perhaps Pel was pursuing the same goal. If so, listening to him might be worthwhile.

“Hey, you said your name was Pel?”

“…Yes.”

“I’m about to take a risk.”

“What?”

“Connor Johannes. That’s the name of the traitor I know.”

“……”

Pel’s face turned white at those words.

“Though I don’t have concrete evidence yet, I’m sure.”

“…The current Crown Prince’s aide, right?”

As expected. Evan smiled, realizing Pel knew more than he thought.

It was strange that such a person was in the back alleys. Evan handed him a few gold coins and said,

“I’d like you to be my spy.”

“…That’s impossible. I’m already considered dead.”

“What?”

‘Someone considered dead.’

In the empire, people carried identification tags. If he were considered dead, living a normal life would be nearly impossible. Evan knew this well.

“…My identity has been erased. It’s known that I died in the war.”

Evan stared at the man expressionlessly. There had to be a reason he was living as a homeless man, despite his erased identity.

“Answer me. What’s your real name?”

“You really don’t recognize me… I’m Ferrell Klein.”

Evan let out a hollow laugh.

Ferrell had been his childhood fencing instructor and was renowned among noblewomen for his good looks.

Now, he was a beggar with a swollen face, likely from numerous beatings.

The beard and his battered appearance had made him unrecognizable.

But Ferrell was supposed to be dead.

Even Carly Dehart, his lover, believed him to be dead.

“I understand you’re confused. My face has changed a lot.”

“Why did you disappear?”

“I didn’t disappear. I really was as good as dead.”

“A year ago, in the Battle of Vorenia?”

“Yes.”

Ailon Terossa, blamed as the sole survivor, and Ferrell Klein, who had undertaken a secret mission with the Crown Prince, both survived that battle.

If anyone knew why the entire army had to be annihilated in Vorenia, it would be Ferrell Klein.

“What happened?”

Ferrell brushed away the gun aimed at his head and pulled his hood back over his head.

“…It’s hard to explain everything right now. No matter how much my appearance has changed, someone might recognize me. I still have to move my place of residence frequently.”

“If you know a traitor’s name, tell me now.”

Seeing the previously composed Evan now in a hurry, Ferrell frowned slightly.

“Out of concern, I must tell you. His Highness… he tried to protect you until the end. So don’t misunderstand. His Highness is not on the same side as Connor Johannes.”

Evan roughly grabbed Ferrell by the collar and shouted.

“I know that already. So answer me. What do you know?”

Ferrell looked at the angry Evan with curiosity.

Back when he was teaching him… or even when he killed the previous Duke, he always maintained his composure.

But now he exuded a completely different atmosphere.

What had he gone through to lose control and expose his emotions like this?

“I can’t tell you everything yet. No master would watch his student face great harm.”

“Master, is it? Then you’d better answer before I go crazy.”

“Those who want to betray the empire are not few. Dealing with Connor Johannes alone won’t solve the problem. So… steel yourself. My advice is to control your emotions.”

Evan ran a hand over his face and said,

“So you’re just going to disappear?”

Ferrell nodded and picked up a moldy piece of bread from the kitchen, then said,

“When the time comes, I will ask for help.”

“What?”

“I was a reliable master, wasn’t I? I won’t betray you.”

Ferrell thought to himself.

Evan was still famously the Emperor’s hound. It was too early to tell him everything.

Evan seemed slightly less angry after Ferrell’s advice.

Ferrell, looking troubled, continued,

“…Don’t worry. I’ve set up a means of contact.”

“What?”

“Even if not now, I always planned to find my former student, Commander Evan Davis, someday. You know what I was best at.”

“…You trained birds?”

“Fortunately, in my old home, I found a small training outfit you used. I wore it and practiced swordsmanship several times, so the scent didn’t fade easily.”

Evan, with an incredulous look, asked,

“You dressed the same and trained them on purpose?”

Realizing it, Evan saw Ferrell sheepishly nodding.

Having spent so much time together, he knew his master’s pranks well.

Whenever he lied, his throat bobbed up and down.

He must have intended to use Evan, the future Duke.

Ferrell was a quick-thinking man, adept at leveraging situations to his advantage.

“Anyway, I’ll be off now. I’ll send a note soon.”

“……”

Without waiting for Evan’s response, Ferrell Klein jumped out the window.

Despite his height, he landed deftly on an awning and vanished into the crowd as if nothing had happened.