Chapter 88: Chapter 90

“Did he overhear the whole thing?”

“Yeah.”

“Then stay still for now. We still have six hours until Evan’s judgment.”

Or was it five hours now?

It didn’t really matter.

However, Sellen seemed to misinterpret my words. She said, “Are you uncomfortable with it because you’re friends? Or do you dislike the idea of killing people?”

“You should always dislike that.”

I wasn’t going to disagree that there were many people in this world who deserved death, but treating death lightly was a whole different matter.

Sellen looked frustrated as she glared at me.

“We don’t have time. The Instructor of Doctrine said six hours, but we don’t have any guarantee that you’ll last that long.”

“So you’re going to kill for my sake? That brings a tear to my eye.”

Crack.

Sellen ground her teeth.

“Do you not understand the situation? At this rate, you’ll die. Are you going to lie down and die when your life is in danger?”

“I have no intention of lying down and dying. And your justifications are all over the place. Has Evan ever said that he would kill me? From my perspective, you are the ones who went insane.”

Only now did Sellen look like she understood my motives.

“...So in the end, you aren’t going to kill Evan Helvin.”

After that, Sellen—somewhat unexpectedly—didn’t say anything further.

I’d expected her to try to pressure me or argue with me a little more, but she just quietly looked at me.

...Something’s odd.

She wasn’t the type to passively accept my opinion like this.

No, wait.

I suddenly had a thought.

Maybe...?

I tried to walk past Sellen, but she blocked me.

Sellen was blocking my path.

“Get out of my way.”

“Follow the Instructor of Doctrine’s command. We are here to try and find traces of our helper.”

“And while I’m doing that, you guys are going to kill Evan?”

“...”

As I thought.

“That’s surprising. Did everyone except me agree to this?”

“Hector hesitated the longest, but he agreed when we told him you didn’t have long to live.”

“...”

“I can tell by your condition: you can’t defeat me right now. So stay still. It’s not wrong to rest in this situation.”

“You made a mistake.”

“What?”

I clenched my fist.

“When you tell me to do something like that, I suddenly don’t want to.”

* * * * *

* * * * *

Just like every other young boy, Evan Helvin had once dreamed of becoming a knight.

Knighthood had been Evan’s dream even before he knew what a hero was.

Of course, though his dream had changed to becoming a hero, he’d never once looked down on knights.

After all, Evan’s father had himself been a knight.

“...”

Evan closed the eyes of the nameless knight.

There was no trace of pain or fear on the face of the knight who had suddenly met his death.

The knight had died without knowing he was about to die.

Could he say that the knight had been fortunate?

Evan recalled Pam's fearful face as he pondered that question.

“Fuu...”

The chill seemed to assault his cheeks.

Evan let out a sigh as he stood up.

Joining the expedition team had been an impulsive choice on Evan’s part.

If someone were to ask him why he had joined, he wouldn’t be able to give an honest answer.

However...

For some reason, Evan had felt that he would be miserable if he didn’t join.

Though that might be a little rude to all the people who didn’t join.

Thankfully, since joining the group, Evan had realized his true aspirations.

Hector, who had an encyclopedic knowledge of the forest.

Charon, who was the perfect guide through the area.

Sellen, who had swept apart dozens of demons at once.

And Luan Bednicker.

...Evan didn’t just want to be a burden.

He wanted to be helpful.

He wanted to use his intelligence among these capable young heroes and prove that he wasn’t falling behind them.

“Evan Helvin.”

Evan's thoughts stopped as he suddenly heard a voice.

The Instructor of Doctrine had appeared behind him without making a sound.

Hadn’t everyone spread out to search the area?

“How much do you know about the Church of Darkness?” Juniang randomly asked.

“...The cult?”

“Yes.”

“Why are you asking me...”

“Don’t. Just answer the question.”

Something about this situation was making Evan feel oddly pressured.

“Aren’t they the main enemies of the heroes, and The Empire in turn?”

“Is that all?”

“Ehm... sorry. If I survive this situation, I’ll study more about the cult—”

“The high priest is calling you the vice-cult leader.”

Evan blinked in shock.

“The vice-cult leader?”

“Yes. Someone who has inherited the blood of the cult leader.”

“Uh...”

“Do you accept that truth?”

“W-wait... I don’t understand what you’re saying. I—”

Evan stopped talking.

At the Instructor of Doctrine’s sides, Charon and Hector appeared.

They were looking at him with the same eyes as the Instructor.

Suspicion, doubt, hostility...

And...

“...”

Sometimes, the look in someone’s eyes was worth more than a hundred words.

Evan realized that these people weren’t here to listen to his words.

If he couldn’t clearly prove his innocence, there was no point in saying anything.

Badump.

Even though he hadn’t even been running, he felt his breathing accelerate.

A heat that made him momentarily forget the cold rose up his throat.

Anger, confusion, sadness, and resentment... Complicated emotions began to flow out.

That combination of emotions made Evan do something meaningless.

“N-no. I’m not... anything like a vice-cult...”

Even while knowing it was useless, he tried to declare his innocence.

At that moment, Charon and Hector both charged him.

Schwing!

Evan drew his sword to respond, but he wouldn’t have been able to defeat them one-on-one, let alone one-on-two.

Unable to exchange many blows with the two of them, Evan’s sword was soon flung from his grasp.

“...”

Flop.

Evan crumpled to his knees on the spot.

At this moment, the emotion Evan felt most strongly was not anger or sadness but futility.

Evan had sparred against both of these young heroes.

At that time, even though he’d clearly felt the difference between them, he had held one thought in his heart...

It would be different in a real fight.

He wouldn’t lose so easily if he fought with his life on the line.

He now realized just how foolish that thought had been.

They also had more real combat experience than Evan.

After Evan crumpled in despair, Juniang approached him.

“I will tell you about one of the cult’s most wicked sorceries.”

“...Pardon?”

“It hides parts of one’s memory.”

Juniang tapped her head with her index finger.

“Should I simplify that for you? For example, what if a cultist hid ‘all of their memories of being cultist’? Would they become confused because of the gap in their memories? Or would their mind crumble?”

She wasn’t asking because she wanted him to answer.

Juniang proceeded to answer those questions herself.

“Both are wrong. They just become completely different people. A clear personality that doesn’t have a single speck of dust, someone who nobody would ever think was a cultist.”

“What... do you...”

“I haven’t told Luan Bednicker yet, but I have already found proof that you are a cultist. At some point, a cultist must unseal their hidden memories, so they always carry their medium with them. Of course, in this training camp, you were forbidden from bringing in most magic items,” Juniang paused for a moment before continuing, “except weapons.”

She grabbed Evan’s sword that had been flung away, then wiped its blade with her finger.

She was acting like she was just wiping away dirt, but she was surging divine power into the sword.

Bzzt!

The blade sparked with black light, and words appeared on the sword.

The pure white sword immediately turned black and began emitting ominous energy.

“Even if you don’t know the demon language, you should be able to feel the demonic energy of the cult, Evan Helvin.”

“This can’t be...”

“Where did you get that sword?”

“The sword...”

Where had he gotten the sword?

Evan grabbed his own head.

“I-I can’t... I can’t remember...”

Juniang looked at him as she closed her eyes.

...Lord Aton.

It was a scene she had seen many times as a heretic inquisitor, but she called for her god every time it happened.

In her mind, risking her life fighting against a demon was preferable to seeing this.

It made her feel like she was framing an innocent person with another’s sins.

This was why Juniang hated the cult.

“Luan Bednicker will soon die.”

“...”

At that, Evan looked up in a daze.

“There are roughly five hours left. I still think of you as a cultist, but I will trust the behavior that you have shown so far.”

“...What do you mean?”

“Die a hero.”

“...”

In a low voice, Juniang said, “If you truly are Evan Helvin, if you have any attachment to the relationships you have made, accept your purification. The fact that you were a cultist will be buried with you. Evan’s name and the name of House Helvin will maintain their honor.”

“...”

“This is my offer to you, to respect Evan Helvin.”

The Instructor of Doctrine threw the sword toward him.

Clang...

The black sparks that had appeared on the sword disappeared, and the letters hid themselves.

“...”

Evan closed his eyes.

His first thought was of the face of his father.

If his father realized that his son had been a cultist, what would his reaction be?

It was obvious: he would end his own life.

...Are these thoughts also fake?

Pehehe.

Evan let out a dejected laugh.

One thing was certain...

Evan still wished to become a hero. He still hated the cult.

Thinking of it that way, there had only ever been one choice.

Evan opened his eyes again.

After looking at the three of them with a calmer mind, he noticed their true feelings.

The Instructor of Doctrine, Hector, and Charon, all three of them were desperate.

They were struggling as hard as they could so that they could live, so that they wouldn’t meet death.

The others here were likely thinking the same.

Since he’d begun to dream of being a hero, Evan had sometimes thought about the moment of his own death.

One of the most extreme possibilities he’d imagined was dying in his allies’ stead.

Just like a scene from a story.

It was funny.

Right now, Evan was trying to die for his allies, but there was no honor in this act.

“Instructor.”

“Speak.”

“The words you said to me just now, please keep them.”

Juniang nodded.

“I swear upon my lord. I promise.”

Evan grabbed his sword with both hands.

The sword was still emitting disgusting dark energy.

...I wanted to be a hero.

Stab.

Evan Helvin stabbed the sword through his own heart.