Episode 425

“William Siemens. Ah, yes, I almost forgot about him.”

Since being captured by Zeke, William had been held under the guise of protection at the Black Sword Knights’ camp.

While other imperial soldiers were released after agreeing to follow Julius’s lead, William remained under watchful eyes.

Karus had visited William Siemens to verify the rumors about the Siemens family and seemed to have gathered some additional information.

“Did William Siemens talk willingly?”

Karus nodded in response.

“Given the circumstances, he seemed to think he had no choice. Eventually, he shared quite a bit.”

Zeke pondered Karus’s words for a moment.

“If William Siemens is the heir, he must know something about the Siemens family’s secrets.”

Zeke decided he needed to learn more from William about Ramon Siemens’s intentions, his connection to the Abyss, and the mysterious rites.

He stood up.

“I should pay William Siemens a visit.”

Karus was taken aback.

“At this hour? You’re not planning to torture him, are you?”

“What do you take me for? I just have some questions about the Siemens family. By the way, have you gotten any closer to Prince Leo?”

Karus sighed and shook his head.

“Leo and I were never close, even back in the Empire. He was always swinging his sword, never one to join in any fun. I invited him to parties a few times, but all I got was a lecture. After that, we lost touch.”

Zeke gave Karus a look of mild disdain.

“Maybe you should follow Prince Leo’s example and pick up a sword. Sitting around drinking all day isn’t good for your health.”

“La la la, I can’t hear you!”

Zeke clicked his tongue, shaking his head at Karus’s antics, and left him behind to visit William Siemens.

Though technically a prisoner, William was being kept under the pretense of protection, enjoying a guest room and quality meals.

Guards stood watch outside William’s room, saluting Zeke as he approached. He returned their salute and entered.

Inside, William was seated at a desk, engrossed in writing.

“You’re busy for such a late hour,” Zeke remarked.

“Hard to sleep when you never know when an uninvited guest might drop by,” William replied coldly, not bothering to look up.

He finally set his pen down and turned to glare at Zeke.

“What brings you here, Zeke Draker? Another interrogation?”

“I’d be lying if I said no.”

Zeke pulled up a chair and sat across from William.

“Do you know what’s happening in Rom right now?”

William remained silent.

“I heard from Karus about the Siemens family. Quite the industrious bunch, aren’t you? Always scheming.”

William continued to glare, saying nothing. Zeke pressed on.

“What I’m curious about is what Ramon Siemens plans to do with Abel’s body.”

Abel had been killed by Zeke’s own hand. Reviving the dead was beyond any magic or miracle.

It seemed Ramon Siemens was using Abel’s corpse to create the illusion of life.

William listened quietly before speaking slowly.

“I’ve told you everything I know.”

“That’s for me to decide.”

Suddenly, a powerful aura emanated from Zeke.

Having absorbed Caligula’s power, Zeke was growing into a formidable king.

Though not a tyrant like the bloodthirsty Caligula, his natural authority was overwhelming, even for the heir of Siemens.

“Ugh.”

Unconsciously, William averted his gaze, trembling.

Zeke observed him and spoke again.

“Resistance is futile, William. You cannot defy me.”

William struggled against Zeke’s imposing presence but found it increasingly difficult.

Then, Zeke used the power of the Third Eye on William.

A hum resonated as a blood-red eye appeared on Zeke’s forehead, and William’s eyes turned crimson.

Already subdued by Zeke’s aura, William succumbed to the power of the Third Eye.

“What is Ramon Siemens planning with Abel’s body?” Zeke asked.

William’s lips quivered, but he couldn’t speak, as if something blocked him.

Watching closely, Zeke realized William was under a binding spell.

“They even put a binding spell on their heir?”

Zeke was appalled by the Siemens family’s ruthlessness.

The Third Eye’s power compelled the spirit to obey, but forcing William to speak could trigger a fatal backlash.

Zeke withdrew the power and approached William slowly.

“Can I use the Dragon’s Wisdom twice in one day?”

Despite his doubts, Zeke saw no other option. He placed his hand on William’s head and activated the Dragon’s Wisdom skill.

A hum filled the air as Zeke sifted through William’s memories, searching for anything related to Ramon Siemens, Abel, the Abyss, and the rites.

Surprisingly, William knew little about these matters, and the data was sparse.

He only knew about transplanting a dragon’s heart into Abel.

“Does William not know what Ramon plans to do with Abel’s body?”

Then, unexpectedly, the data Zeke was viewing began to distort, transforming into strange symbols.

“What is this?”

Zeke had accessed karma data many times but had never encountered this.

The broken symbols coalesced into a shadowy form.

The shadow flickered, approaching Zeke like a phantom.

Zeke watched intently as the shadow opened its mouth to speak.

『■◆◀□■ ■■ ◆◀ ■■■!』

But the words were incomprehensible to Zeke.

The flickering intensified until the shadow disintegrated completely.

The Dragon’s Wisdom skill deactivated, and Zeke returned to normal.

“What did I just witness?”

Zeke stood in a daze, looking down at William, who was now slumped and unfocused.

Zeke quickly checked William’s condition.

His breathing and pulse were normal, but he remained unconscious.

Using the Third Eye, Zeke examined William closely and frowned.

The binding spell had shattered, leaving William’s mind severely damaged.

Ramon Siemens had placed a cruel binding even on his heir.

“Ramon Siemens. What a ruthless man.”

Zeke speculated that the shadow was the secret the binding spell had concealed.

He called for a healer to move William to a medical facility.

The healer, deeming treatment impossible on-site, transferred him to Helly’s city hospital.

Zeke, informed of the situation, ordered the best care for William, though he knew there was no way to restore his mind.

In essence, William was brain-dead.

“This leaves a bad taste in my mouth.”

Zeke returned to his room and lay on his bed.

Though he hadn’t directly destroyed William’s mind, he felt a twinge of responsibility.

But he quickly steeled himself.

“It’s unfortunate, but there’s no need to pity William Siemens. This is all the doing of the Siemens family.”

Zeke hadn’t expected to glean much from William’s memories, but the outcome was still unsettling.

The Siemens family’s cruelty was evident.

Yet, he hadn’t come away empty-handed.

Zeke recalled the shadow’s words.

“System, can you interpret that language?”

The system responded.

“Searching for related language data.”

“Similar language group found, but insufficient data to interpret the language.”

“What language group is it similar to?”

“Traces of a similar language group were found in murals and reliefs at the Siemens Apollyon ruins.”

“The Siemens Apollyon ruins?”

The fortress where Gaia’s soul was imprisoned was the Siemens Apollyon ruins.

“If it were a demonic language, the system would have translated it. Strange.”

Zeke pondered for a moment, realizing he had a lot of questions, and decided to summon the Sage of Stories directly.

He took out a mirror and signaled to the Sage.

But there was no response from the other side.

“Strange. Last time, he insisted I answer immediately… Could something have happened?”

Though he grumbled, he knew that with the continent overrun by beasts and monsters, even the high-ranking Sage of Stories might have been urgently summoned.

Zeke decided to postpone contacting the Sage and catch up on some much-needed sleep.

He usually slept only about three hours a day, but having gone nearly a week without rest, exhaustion was catching up with him.

He soon fell asleep on his bed.

How long had he been asleep? Someone knocked on his door and entered in a hurry.

“My lord!”

It was none other than Felix.

Zeke, roused by Felix’s voice, sat up.

“You came in without waiting for a response. What’s going on, Felix?”

“My lord, an envoy from the Empire has arrived.”

Felix hesitated briefly, as if realizing a mistake, then quickly continued. Hearing this, Zeke frowned and stood up abruptly.

“An envoy from the Empire?”

“He introduced himself as the commander of the Twin Arches, one of the Empire’s 13 legions.”

Zeke’s eyebrow twitched.

The Twin Arches was one of the legions under Azmun Barrios, the commander of the Magal Archers.

‘If it’s the commander of the Twin Arches… it must be him. Castro Pollock.’

The Pollock family was a prestigious lineage within the Empire.

And Castro Pollock, despite his noble heritage, had the unusual background of graduating from Valhalla.

Perhaps because of this, he was regarded as a new-generation knight with flexible thinking, intelligence, and skill.

But Zeke, who had fought in the Continental War in a past life, knew Castro Pollock’s true nature.

‘An extreme purist.’

Castro Pollock did not acknowledge any race other than humans, viewing them as inferior beings who should be subjugated by humans.

During the Continental War, he showed a benevolent side to human prisoners but committed unspeakable atrocities against non-human captives.

He considered the northern continent, with its diverse non-human population, to be filthy.

In his so-called purification efforts, he indiscriminately unleashed magic and set fire to non-human villages.

Having witnessed Castro’s madness firsthand, Zeke was not pleased by his visit.

‘I don’t know why he’s here, but I suppose I should meet him.’

Zeke prepared himself and headed to the reception room where Castro Pollock awaited.

As soon as he entered, Castro, with his soft blonde hair, blue eyes, and fair skin—an archetypal Imperial appearance—greeted him warmly with open arms.

“Sir Zeke Draker, the Knight of Salvation! It’s truly a pleasure to meet you. I am Castro Pollock, leader of the Twin Arches.”

To an outsider, Castro’s friendly greeting might have suggested they were allies.

Zeke returned the greeting with a nod and took a seat.

As soon as he sat down, he addressed Castro directly.

“What brings you here, Sir Castro?”

Castro’s face briefly showed disappointment at Zeke’s curt tone, but he quickly smiled and replied.

“Haha, there’s no need to be so wary of me. I’m here to assist you.”

He spoke kindly, but then his expression turned serious, and he lowered his voice.

“Sir Zeke, you must not go to Rom. It’s a trap set by Azmun Barrios.”