Episode 235
Chapter 75: Lani Salome (4)
Even with Dino Jaglun and the Colon natives involved, a mere fragment of the bio-golem’s heart wasn’t enough to launch a public campaign.
At the very least, they had to prove that those bastards had kidnapped the Holy King and installed a puppet to deceive the kingdom’s people.
“Montiano and Conyu, the two ministers, and Sir Bitura, the Grand Commander of the Holy Knights, are aware of the situation.”
“Among them, who can we trust the most?”
“There’s no one.”
Lani answered bluntly, then continued.
“Montiano and Conyu have definitely been bribed. After they found out the king was a fake, I went to confront them. They just smiled and told me to ‘face the trial well after the festival’ and to ‘serve the king properly.’ Those two are clearly compromised.”
“Is that enough to be certain they’re bribed?”
“No. I even mentioned the finger. Instead of answering, they just smiled—as if to say, ‘You’re already in our grasp.’”
The fact that those two were compromised was especially devastating to Lani.
Montiano and Conyu had been lifelong friends of Miklan since their teenage years and were the kingdom’s second most powerful figures after him.
“From the moment I was sure they sided with Ziphl, I lost all hope. Montiano oversees the kingdom’s laws, and Conyu handles administration.”
In other words, the kingdom’s law and administration were completely in the enemy’s hands. With the king replaced by a double, the situation was utterly hopeless.
A sudden thought flashed through Jin’s mind.
“The kingdom has fallen to Ziphl, so what is Runcandel doing? Are they just standing by, knowing this? Or worse, have they not even realized what’s happening yet?”
The latter seemed more likely.
No information about the battle between Murakan and Kadun in Santel had reached the public.
Besides, Santel was a territory of the Shol Principality and a Han region, meaning Runcandel had no agents there.
Jin himself only learned of the situation because Murakan was attacked near Santel and met Lani there.
Without such coincidences, they wouldn’t have known the kingdom’s true state.
“What about Sir Bitura?”
The last person who knew the king’s physical secret.
He was the only one among those who knew the king’s secret who wasn’t close to Miklan.
“I haven’t met Sir Bitura. But he’s been politically hostile to my father for a long time. He always insisted on overthrowing him.”
“Is that why you haven’t met him?”
“Also, he often argued that we should have friendlier ties with Ziphl. I thought he just hated my father, but it seems he’s been in league with Ziphl from the start.”
“So the military, law, and administration are all in their hands. That’s pretty bleak, kid.”
“Let’s meet Bitura.”
“You just heard what I said, right?”
“I did. But unlike the two ministers, you haven’t confirmed Bitura’s stance yourself.”
“My father disliked him quite a bit too. He used to grit his teeth whenever Bitura was around, even at official events. He’d throw a fit about not inviting Bitura to banquets.”
For a king to act that way, the dislike had to be deep.
Lani, influenced by her father, didn’t just dislike Bitura—she despised him.
Jin caught her gaze, as if recalling something.
“Lani, how did your father treat Montiano and Conyu?”
“Of course… he always sat them right beside him at banquets and meetings, consulting them on almost everything about governance. He even took walks with them whenever he had time.”
“If you were king, Lani, and the kingdom was being eaten from the roots by Ziphl like this…”
“Hm?”
“I’d keep my enemies close, so they wouldn’t suspect I knew. And I’d be at odds with those who could help me—at least outwardly.”
Lani blinked, then shook her head.
“That might be true. But even when it was just the two of us, my father often said he hated Sir Bitura.”
“You could interpret that as him suspecting ears within the palace. It might be a stretch, but it’s worth checking.”
“What if I get caught? If Bitura is Ziphl’s agent, he’d imprison me. Until now, they thought they held my father’s life in their hands, so I wouldn’t run. But now, from their perspective, I’m a soldier who killed bio-golems and escaped.”
Murakan shrugged.
“Then why worry about getting caught when I’m here? Do you think the kingdom’s knights can stop me?”
Lani didn’t know how much Murakan had grown stronger.
Her memory only held the image of him barely surviving Kadun’s attack.
But the real issue wasn’t whether Murakan could overpower Bitura and the knights.
“That’s not the point. Even if you two overpower the knights and get me out, what then? We’d become top-priority fugitives, and they’d… they’d…”
Lani couldn’t finish.
Ziphl kept her alive only because she and her father were beloved symbols of the kingdom.
That’s why she was allowed to read the blessing at the Ayula Advent Festival.
If she messed up or caused trouble, they subtly threatened to kill Miklan.
But realistically, the real king was probably long dead.
Ziphl had swallowed the kingdom whole and had a perfect double, so there was no need to keep the real king alive.
Lani was just a pawn to be used until the people saw her fall and turned their backs.
“My father… is probably no longer in this world…”
Lani knew this too but refused to face it. Tears welled in her eyes.
“Lani.”
She wiped her tears and clenched her teeth. There was nothing to cry over.
“As you said, I’ll meet Sir Bitura. But promise me one thing.”
“Speak.”
“You want to start a public campaign, but if Bitura is the spy I think he is, driving them out that way is impossible. That’s why you want to meet him too.”
Though not impossible, if Bitura was a spy, Jin would have to bring in other forces.
Whether the Hidden Palace, the Nameless, or even breaking Runcandel’s laws to ask Luna for help.
Stopping Ziphl from taking the kingdom was something Jin absolutely had to do.
“So if things go wrong, after you become the leader, help me restore the kingdom. I want support not just from you and Murakan, but from all of Runcandel.”
Jin nodded.
“Understood.”
Calling Bitura out separately was impossible.
Though Lani was his adopted daughter, she was only a second-class knight of the Doctrine Defense Dawn.
After much deliberation, they decided to visit his residence directly.
Whether they summoned him or met at his home, if he was a spy, the outcome would be the same.
“Well, well, if it isn’t Lani Salome! The great Holy King’s daughter and the Doctrine Defense Dawn’s little troublemaker.”
Bitura sat arrogantly in the center of his spacious office, wearing a blatant smile.
Behind him stood his direct Holy Knight squad, the Golden Shield Order, their gazes sharp.
“And who are these with you?”
Bitura pointed at Jin and Murakan.
“…Friends.”
“Friends? More like the scum who killed our soldiers at the Eastern Temple and ran off with you. Heh, Lani Salome, I’ve been looking for you. How could someone who’s supposed to read the blessing just vanish like this?”
They were doomed.
Jin and Murakan shared the same thought.
“Was Lani right? Damn it. Could the real reason the king hated this man be because he was truly a spy? Was the king completely unaware and just played for a fool?”
With Murakan’s strength at 40%, escape wouldn’t be difficult.
“If you act like that, your father’s head might roll. Looks like you finally came to your senses while running away. Well, have a seat.”
Lani sat expressionlessly before Bitura. Jin and Murakan stood silently, calculating their escape.
Clink…
Bitura smiled as he poured tea.
“Kane.”
“Yes, Commander.”
The knight called Kane stepped forward.
“Take these two to the underground prison. We have many questions for them. And inform Ziphl that we’ve secured Lani.”
“Yes, sir.”
Kane and three other knights strode toward Jin and Murakan.
They had surrendered their weapons upon entering the residence.
Still, facing them wouldn’t be a problem.
‘It’ll be a pain to retrieve my sword on the way back… huh?’
Ssshh!
A sharp sound of a sword being drawn.
But it wasn’t the Golden Shield knights drawing their blades.
It was Sir Bitura Belter, Grand Commander of the Holy Knights.
Screech!
His sword pointed—surprisingly—at the very subordinates who had just passed by him.
With a single strike, the heads of all four paladins from the Golden Shield Order were severed.
The sound of metal clashing echoed as their helmeted heads tumbled to the ground.
Though the Golden Shield paladins were his direct subordinates and all ranked around seventh or eighth level in skill, there was no way to dodge the captain’s sword swung suddenly from behind.
Especially since the captain himself was a knight nearing the ninth level.
The bodies of the beheaded paladins twitched violently.
“Don’t scream, Lani. And truly, you’ve come to me at just the right time. You have no idea how much you’ve been through.”
As Lani instinctively tried to sit up, Bitura clamped a hand over her mouth.
Jin and Murakan stared at Bitura, dumbfounded.
Vankela Paladin Captain Bitura Belter.
He was not a puppet of Ziphl.
“Come closer, Jin Runkandel, Prince.”
He even knew Jin’s face.