Chapter 721: Chapter 721

There were several reasons why he had had suspicions.

‘The Salvation Church had been scheming across the continent for ages, pulling countless tricks.

Of course, they couldn’t rope in an entire kingdom like in my era. That was because today’s humanity recognized the Salvation Church as a clear enemy.

However, sowing chaos to some extent could still be done even while hiding their identity.

In fact, I had already suspected that the one who had approached the black mage Basilude in Nodehill’s territory might have been a priest of the Salvation Church.’

That was why he asked if someone had been egging the Chancellor on from behind the scenes.

The Chancellor stared straight at me for a moment, then suddenly chuckled.

“What’s your angle? Who are you trying to pin something on this time, asking something like that?”

“I’m not trying to pin anything on anyone. I’m just curious if someone was pulling the strings.”

“What a foolish question. I am the Chancellor of this kingdom. Who would dare stand behind me?”

“Then are you saying all of this was your work?”

“Yes, I came up with the idea, and the Royal Chamberlain joined in next. From there, we gradually gathered more allies. You already know all of this, so what exactly are you trying to confirm?”

The Chancellor’s gaze was firm. He looked like he had nothing to hide now that everything was out in the open.

Ghislain asked him again.

“Was it really all your idea?”

“Then whose idea do you think it was? If the plan had succeeded, I would’ve seized the greatest power. Who else would’ve been behind me?”

“……”

“If it weren’t for you, we would’ve succeeded. We were this close. And now you’re asking who was behind me? Did you come just to mock me?”

The Chancellor sneered. A natural reaction from his perspective.

Ghislain looked at him for a moment and then turned away. No matter how one saw it, he seemed sincere.

As he was walking away, the Chancellor called out.

“Even in death, I’ll never forget you. Let’s see how long you lowly mercenaries can continue strutting about.”

“Suit yourself.”

That sort of curse was nothing new to Ghislain. He’d heard it hundreds, even thousands of times, and it didn’t faze him at all.

But just as he was about to leave, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He tilted his head several times, then muttered:

“No matter how I think about it… it doesn’t add up.”

His gut kept sounding the alarm, saying something felt off if he just walked away like this.

He turned around and charged straight at the Chancellor.

Boom!

The iron bars of the cell shattered in an instant. He rushed inside and grabbed the Chancellor by the throat.

“Gghk… Are you trying to kill me now?”

“No. I just want to be absolutely sure.”

Whoosh!

Ghislain’s eyes turned violet. In the blink of an eye, the Chancellor’s eyes, locked with his, also changed to the same color.

“Gghk! You bastard!”

The Chancellor felt something invading his mind.

He clenched his teeth and tried to resist, but there was no way he could withstand the magical energy of Ghislain, a 7th-Circle mage.

In an instant, the mana pierced through the Chancellor’s body and took control of his mind.

As he stared into the now-blank face of the Chancellor, he asked,

“Who was behind the poisoning?”

“…No one. I planned and executed it myself.”

“There wasn’t anyone who subtly pushed you toward it?”

“…No one. I did it because I wanted to.”

“…”

Ghislain bit his lip. With his mind under domination, the chancellor couldn’t be lying.

‘Was I wrong after all? Was I just being overly sensitive?’

That was possible. His history with the Salvation Church was laced with too much animosity.

Ghislain sighed and began to withdraw his mana, but then the Chancellor’s lips moved again.

“Well… come to think of it… there was someone who inspired me…”

“What?”

“It’s not like I dreamed of such things from the beginning… But at some point, greed began to fester…”

“Be more specific. What made you think that way?”

“There was someone who always brought me fine tea… and looked after my health… One day, after seeing the Third Prince, he said this… That, since the prince is still young, it would be best if the other royal elders remained in good health…”

“What does that mean?”

“Exactly what I said… He suggested that if an illness were to break out and only the Third Prince survived, it’d be troublesome if I had to act as regent. So, everyone had to stay healthy…”

Ghislain’s expression hardened at those words.

“Didn’t that strike you as strange?”

“What’s so strange about it…? He was just concerned about the safety of the royal family…”

Ghislain quickly moved his mana to examine the Chancellor’s consciousness. He was trying to detect any traces of mind control.

‘Nothing. No trace at all.’

It was possible that too much time had passed, and any trace had faded. Mental domination didn’t usually last long unless connected through some kind of dark magic but even so, something still didn’t add up.

He had casually recited a scenario where a plague left only the Third Prince alive and made him regent and didn’t think that was odd?

There was no way someone who had climbed all the way up to chancellor wouldn’t notice something off. If he had been under mind control, he should’ve felt the dissonance once it wore off.

“Keep talking. So, what did you do after that?”

“…One day, the thought just popped into my head. What if it really happened? Then I’d become regent… and I could rule the kingdom. It wasn’t impossible, was it?”

“…You’re saying you thought that up all on your own?”

“Yes, from some point on… the greed inside me just kept growing. So, I acted on it. That’s all there is to it.”

“Who was it? The one who inspired you.”

“The former Royal Physician…”

“Former?”

“He said he wanted to rest… and stepped down… He was such a good man… Always looked after my health…”

He was certain his instincts had been right. That so-called Royal Physician had clearly pulled some trick.

But it wasn’t mind control. He must have used another method to provoke and manipulate.

“How did that physician look after your health? What exactly did he do for you?”

“Nothing much… Whenever I felt tired and visited him… he’d serve me tea that was good for the body… light aromatic candles… lay me on a soft bed… and give me a massage…”

“Massage?”

“Yes… it felt so good and refreshing that I always ended up falling asleep without even realizing… When I woke up, all my fatigue was gone… Even now, I think he was truly a remarkable man…”

“I see. Were there others who received the same treatment?”

“Most of the high officials in the royal capital must’ve received it at least once or twice…”

“What about the Royal Mage?”

“I believe he had it done a few times too… But he said it wasn’t as good as the rumors claimed… As a mage, he was picky, after all… Always full of complaints and grumbling…”

A faint smirk twisted his lips. Now he understood.

That so-called Royal Physician must’ve spent a long time subtly targeting the unconscious minds of his victims.

Amplifying the desires they already held or gently nudging them in a certain direction.

That explained why there was no trace of mind control. The Chancellor genuinely believed he’d made his decisions on his own and the physician likely chose only those without mana manipulating them little by little.

“Did you persuade the Royal Mage yourself?”

“Yes… I needed him to avoid suspicion… I promised him wealth and power… He never had any loyalty to begin with, just overflowing greed…”

“I see.”

The Royal Mage was a 6th-Circle master. Someone like that wouldn’t easily fall to mind control or brainwashing.

Which meant that the Royal Physician had done nothing to him directly. He couldn’t afford to raise any suspicions.

Instead, the Chancellor had personally persuaded him. That approach would’ve worked better on someone like the mage.

In the end, that former Royal Physician achieved his aim and vanished. Those left behind were thrown into chaos, fighting for power.

Grrrrk…

Blood began to trickle from the Chancellor’s eyes, ears, and mouth.

His body had begun to collapse under the strain of forced mind domination.

“Alright. I understand now.”

Ghislain withdrew his mana and released him.

The bastard who ran away had surely hidden his identity, so there was no way to find him now.

“Kugh…”

The chancellor vomited blood and collapsed. Being an old man, he couldn’t withstand the shock of the mind control.

Before he knew it, soldiers had gathered around them. They must have rushed over after hearing the sound of the iron bars shattering.

However, after hearing the conversation between the two, they held off for a moment. It seemed like something serious was going on.

A soldier responsible for the prison asked.

“Wh-what’s going on here?”

“It’s nothing. I was just checking if there were any other accomplices. Move him to another room and keep a close watch.”

“Y-yes, understood.”

Ghislain made up an excuse and left. Later, he shared the information he had uncovered with his group.

They were all shocked. Just as he had suspected, there had indeed been another accomplice.

After a moment’s thought, Julien asked.

“Could it be… the same person who contacted the black mage of Nodehill?”

“It’s possible. They might even be part of the same group.”

“In that case…”

Everyone swallowed hard. Saying that name out loud was uncomfortable.

I nodded and said,

“Yeah, I’m certain that person came from the Demonic Abyss.”

There was no proof. But they stirred chaos wherever they went without any desire for power. That could only be explained by a connection to the Demonic Abyss.

Because for them to win, they had to plunge the continent into chaos and weaken humanity.

Kyle asked urgently.

“So, you’re saying everything that’s happened until now was all their doing?”

“That’s unlikely. They wouldn’t be able to approach power figures like Marquis Falkenheim. They probably only targeted places they could actually touch.”

“Then that means real disputes were mixed with fake ones?”

“Exactly. They’re trying to cause as much confusion as possible.”

“Hmm, then shouldn’t we tell everyone about this?”

“We should at least inform the kingdoms we have ties with. But even that won’t be enough.”

“Even if we told them, the most they could do is to be cautious. There is no solid proof or direct damage that could justify openly searching for traces of the Demonic Abyss.”

“Besides, the kingdoms we have no ties with would surely ignore our warning. No kingdom would listen to mere mercenaries.”

“We need evidence.”

“With concrete proof, we could resolve everything in one blow. All we have to do is hand it over to the Pope of the Holy Empire.”

If the Pope declared it, every kingdom on the continent would be forced to acknowledge the Demonic Abyss was making moves.

At those words, Kyle asked again.

“How are we supposed to find evidence? Those bastards are extremely careful.”

“We’ll have to start looking now. They’re definitely up to something somewhere.”

Everyone nodded. It wasn’t certain if the Demonic Abyss was involved yet, but they had to confirm it.

After all, a mysterious figure had already contacted the black mage of Nodehill. If that person was truly a priest of the Salvation Church, it would be a serious problem.

Ghislain informed the king of Arsena about this. The king found it hard to believe but couldn’t ignore the warning.

“I understand. I’ll be cautious.”

At present, most of the kingdom’s high officials had been caught up in the rebellion. For a while, the kingdom would be plagued with turmoil.

Though the chances of the conspirators returning were slim now that their plot had been exposed, that very assumption could be used against them. They might exploit the kingdom’s vulnerable state.

That’s why he gave a firm warning, and the king didn’t take it lightly either.

Ghislain decided to change plans and stay in the Kingdom of Arsena for a while.

“Let’s mobilize the mercenaries in each branch. We need to gather intel on what events are happening right now.”

As soon as they heard the call, the gathered mercenaries sprang into action. They quickly sent a flood of information to him.

And he carefully sifted through everything he received.

* * * *

[A flood of information came our way. Thanks to the king of Arsena actively supporting us, we gathered more intel than expected. In such a chaotic world, incidents and accidents were nonstop. Too much information poured in like a tidal wave.]

[I just wanted to enjoy a bit of romance, but we didn’t get a moment’s rest and had to comb through all the information. We needed to find even the slightest sign of something suspicious. Even someone like Ghislain couldn’t confidently pick out what was connected to the Demonic Abyss from that mountain of intel.]

[Days passed without a single romantic moment as we focused solely on sorting through the intel. There were too many suspicious cases. But confirming all of them was impossible. So, we picked the one that seemed most likely. We couldn’t be sure, but we also couldn’t just keep drowning in documents. If this ends soon, maybe then I can finally… romance…]