After a long pause, Count Stadler smiled awkwardly.

“…I don’t really understand what you mean by similar situations.”

“Well, I think someone of your caliber would have a rough idea. You probably know who I am.”

Who was Arendt?

Count Stadler knew better than to believe the rumours fully. Arendt was the troublemaker apprentice knight of the Third Knights, but that didn’t seem to be the answer Arendt wanted right now.

Beneath the formal attire he wore, a silver bracelet sparkled in the moonlight.

Count Stadler unconsciously bit his lip.

“Do you really think that I picked on Marquis Grieg for no reason?”

“Yes?”

Arendt crossed his arms and looked down.

“The tail that grows longer will eventually get caught. His Highness the Crown Prince is suspicious of Marquis Grieg and is keeping a close eye on him.”

“Then, could it be that the commotion today was caused by… His Highness the Crown Prince’s orders?”

Arendt nodded slightly to the Count, who was stunned and stammering. The Count’s lips moved for a while soundlessly, and he barely managed to utter his next sentence.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Since the Count offered his help first, I thought it was only right to give him this much advice.”

It was a remark that Arthur would have probably slapped him for if he had seen it and then he would have questioned Arendt about when he started to be reasonable.

“Besides, the Count still seems to have room for reform.”

“Reform… are you talking about that?”

“Count, it is better to not to do anything you will regret.”

There was another long silence.

Arendt waited leisurely. He could guess the Count’s next line.

“How do you know, Lord Arendt, that that is something to regret?”

As expected, he guessed it right. The Count’s voice trembled slightly and the guilt in it was perfect.

Arendt looked up and met Count Stadler’s eyes.

“Because I’ve done similar things before. Don’t just grab the hands of suspicious guys.”

Count Stadler found himself staring blankly.

A few seconds later, his already pale face turned as white as a sheet of paper. It was only then that he realized that Arendt really knew everything.

Arendt nodded and continued.

“Have you received any sweet offers? For example, offers to help you conduct research that is forbidden in the Imperial City…”

He could understand it without even having to hear the answer. The Count’s expression, which looked like he would fall over at any moment, spoke for itself.

“Count, aren’t you really bad at controlling your facial expressions? Why would you do something so bad with such a flaw?”

“Lord Arendt, let me tell you my story…!”

“Don’t worry. I have no intention of reporting you or anything.”

Arendt blurted out, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

Count Stadler was completely dumbfounded. Arendt gave him a moment’s silence to collect his thoughts.

The night sky was beautiful. The still-full moon stood out clearly among the stars, like the brightest jewel.

Amidst the distant sound of cheerful music and the murmur of conversation, Count Stadler wiped his face with a trembling hand.

“…I wasn’t deeply involved with them. I was just asked to do a few studies.”

“From what you said, it seems like you have a rough idea of ​​what those guys are,” Arendt asked nonchalantly. Then Count Stadler slowly nodded.

“Yes, I don’t know the details, but I guessed as you said. I knew that there was a group of people who were keeping a close eye on the imperial family.”

Count Stadler let out a deep sigh, as if his chest was tight.

Was it okay if he talked more?

The Count hesitated for a moment, but soon cleared his head. He realized that there was no point in hiding it any longer.

“Their existence really came to the surface after the note that was said to have first reached His Highness the Crown Prince. I also participated in the research to trace the sender of that note.”

“Aha.”

This was something Arendt didn’t know.

Count Stadler continued speaking.

“In the end, the pursuit ended in failure. And then… that is, not long after you were released…”

Count Stadler lowered his gaze.

Arendt waited silently for what would follow.

“I received an offer from Marquis Grieg. He said he knew a wealthy man who was looking for someone to conduct research anonymously.”

Such cases were not uncommon. Although he worked for the Imperial Magician’s Order, Count Stadler, who was not a member of the organization, often received separate commissions to conduct research.

“I thought it was nothing serious, so I agreed, but the first request I received at that time… was something I could never have imagined.”

From now on, the real content started.

Arendt’s eyes lit up with color.

“It was a magical specimen of a kind I had never seen before. The request was simply to analyze it, and there were no other instructions.”

Count Stadler swallowed dry saliva after saying that.

“As a researcher, how could I not be interested in something I saw for the first time? I worked day and night and I got results that satisfied both the client and myself.”

“What were the results of the study?”

When Arendt expressed his curiosity, the Count moved his lips briefly, as if he was hesitant to bring himself to say it out loud.

“… It was a fusion of the magical powers of two different species of creatures. It was ridiculous. I was madly curious about who on earth sent the sample and what they did.”

Arendt’s face hardened slightly at the words that came out.

The research on ghouls had already begun before Count Stadler joined.

“Fortunately or unfortunately, Marquis Grieg has already handed over the next specimen.”

Count Stadler continued his story as if he was confessing.

“That was also a magic of a nature I had never seen before… and it was also a little different from the first one. Yes, the requests continued like that.”

As the research progressed, Marquis Grieg continued to appear in a low-key manner and Count Stadler only found out the reason after receiving his fifth commission.

“The client was satisfied with my research results and expressed his intention to conduct research together in earnest. It was only then that I learned the name of the group.”

Gradually, the Count’s breathing became more rapid.

The Count took a deep breath and chewed on the name as if spitting it out.

“The Sword of the Broken Heart. That’s what they called themselves.”

He knew it. Arendt’s eyes grew cold.

The Count buried his face in his hands, perhaps finding it difficult to control his emotions.

“Honestly, I knew it was dangerous. The moment I received the first sample, I knew it. It was taboo research.”

Arendt just stared at him with impassive eyes.

“So I asked for a break, and he said he was going to introduce me to some new people that I would be working with today… he said that if I talked to them, my thoughts would become more solid.”

The researcher’s shoulders began to shake slightly.

“Ah, but now that things have come to this, I have no hope. My life as a researcher is over.”

It was truly a fatal trap for the Count. Count Stadler became increasingly addicted to the bait they offered.

He must have been drawn into an unknown world that he didn’t know about, and even though he knew the danger, he eventually reached a point where he couldn’t pull away.

It wasn’t just guilt that made Count Stadler feel so sorry now.

With his plight discovered by the royal knights and his connection with Marquis Grieg severed, he must have felt frustrated at not being able to set foot in that unknown world any longer.

‘I’m on the verge of going crazy.’

It was the words of a fool who eventually met his doom at the end of a tragedy. In fact, that was the end of Count Stadler in “The Blue Knight of the Holy Sword”.

Arendt sighed deeply.

“It’s not over.”

At the indifferent voice, Count Stadler suddenly raised his head.

“Yes?”

“It’s not over yet. You haven’t received the offer yet. Then it’s okay.”

“But…”

The eyes behind the monocle were bloodshot.

Arendt’s head tilted to the side as he looked into the Count’s watery eyes.

“Why? Then what, are you going to join the rebels? If you plan to do so, please let me know in advance. I will report this to His Highness the Crown Prince. You will probably be standing in the same court as I did.”

“Oh, no. Wait a minute, Lord Arendt!”

“Or you could just run away and live in hiding. Since you helped me, I’ll turn a blind eye to that, but those above will probably search the entire empire to find you, Count.”

Count Stadler’s face became even paler.

The terrified Count suddenly grabbed Arendt by the shoulder.

“Help me, Sir Arendt! Don’t you know what to do in such a situation?”

“Instead, you should have run to His Majesty and reported it from the beginning: that it seemed that a suspicious group had tampered with forbidden research.”

Count Stadler shouted as if he was going to eat him, but Arendt’s response was cold.

“You were blinded by curiosity, so you have to take responsibility for it yourself.”

The strength gradually drained from Count Stadler’s eyes, which had once been filled with agitation.

With a plop, his bony hand released Arendt and fell limply.

“…That’s right. It’s all my fault. What a shameful thing to do, clinging onto a young knight.”

“But I didn’t say there was no way out. I told you from the beginning, there is room for reform for the Count.”

Count Stadler raised his head at Arendt’s subsequent words.

Arendt took a brisk step toward the Count, and then he spoke out forcefully.

“You may fight back, Count.”

The Count’s pupils dilated greatly.

If fate has brought ruin, then just twist it.

“The Count got too close to them. He might have been eaten in one breath.”

It would have been possible to do this just by adding a few lines of dialogue.

“But that also means you can stick a knife in their necks.”

Count Stadler, who had been blankly staring at Arendt, began to shed tears.

“Take your sword in your hand, Count, and take cover under the safest roof and protect yourself. If you fight, you will give up nothing.”

Although his voice was not loud, Arendt’s every word, engraved under the bright night sky, had the power to pierce his heart.

“We don’t know our enemy very well, so we need someone who can delve into their skills and abilities. There is currently no one else who can do that except the Count.”

Arendt, his lips slightly pursed, lifted both arms lightly.

Pure white moonlight poured down on Arendt like stage lights.

“The research results that the Count will produce will certainly be the best. The future will depend on where they are used.”

The young man, who was completely immersed in the moonlight, seemed to dominate the space. At the same time, he was the Count’s only hope, the only lifeline that had descended from the sky.

The Count’s face, which had been unable to take his eyes off Arendt as if possessed, gradually became distorted.

Dump.

The Count eventually collapsed on the spot.

He appeared to be kneeling before the apprentice knight, but Count Stadler paid no attention to him at all. Tears welled up in his eyes and streamed down his cheeks.

“…I will fight. I will!”

He nodded his head repeatedly, shouting in an excited voice.

A satisfied smile appeared on Arendt’s lips.

‘Okay, as planned.’

The crazy nature hidden beneath his polite face would not change… but if he was going to go crazy anyway, it would be a hundred times better to go crazy in a way that would be helpful.

The sound of Count Stadler sobbing could be faintly heard as background music.