Playing the Perfect Fox-Eyed Villain Chapter 98

Episode 98. Good, but Bad

Thud, thud.

There was a figure wandering around the dark office in a disorderly manner.

Garrot, who had been frowning and looking out the window, opened his mouth in a nervous voice.

“Why, there is no contact from the Black Widows!”

The priests assisting him flinch at his words, which are as harsh as a warning.

“I don’t feel good about this, Your Highness.”

One of those priests braved his fear and opened his mouth.

“What’s not good?”

“The Black Guards follow the orders of not only the High Priest, but also the other High Priests. The ‘Seven Wisdom Battlegrounds’ is an organization that was created in this way. If by chance they had betrayed us and told the other High Priests that we had stolen the holy relics from the Holy Witness Office……”

The sight of the priest cowering in fear is heartbreaking.

That makes sense.

But, I couldn't admit it.

It is a serious crime to smuggle sacred objects out of the Holy See.

It is not certain that the crime is serious enough to strip him of his position as Archbishop, but it is enough to shake his position.

“……How about taking refuge from the city for a while just in case something happens?”

That's a fair statement.

If you stay quiet until this commotion dies down, another opportunity may arise.

“Are you telling me to run away?”

But Garrot could not tolerate it.

How much effort and investment went into getting to this point.

Leaving the church was like throwing away all the hard work I had done so far.

“What happened to Idel?”

“……There has been no contact from Sir Edel either.”

“You fu*king bastard!”

In a manner unbecoming of a high priest, Garrot swore.

Expectations for him weren't that high, but since things didn't seem to be going well, his position felt unnecessarily large.

'Yurien… …!'

If Ethel is dead, there is only one possibility.

The escort of Prince Yulsis from the Adratan Empire. Yurian Cryphat Prasson.

“Okay. Since it’s come to this, I’ll do it myself…….”

“Oh, where are you thinking of going? Grand Master Garrot.”

As Garrot was about to head to the ceremony hall, the door to his office opened wide and a woman with her face covered by a fan came in.

“……His Excellency Shallana.”

In a low, hushed voice, Garrot said her name.

“Haha, don’t frown so much. Your already grim face will only make you look older, right?”

“Thank you for your concern.”

“What, aren’t they the same minister?”

She covers her lower body with a fan and smiles.

Garrot also knows that he said this because he thought that he was not the 'same' minister.

“So, why did you come here?”

“Haha, don’t you know better?”

“Well, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Garrot could feel a cold sweat running down his back.

“You secretly took out a sacred relic from the Holy Office, right? And that sacred relic of the highest order, the Golden Relic.”

“It’s uncomfortable to be accused like this, Shallana.”

“Haha, you’re saying it’s a false accusation? I feel uncomfortable with that statement. If there were no evidence or witnesses, I wouldn’t have come to you like this, you know that, right?”

Exactly!

As she flicks her hand, a familiar face comes in.

“You bastard…….”

Of the three black guards he summoned, he was the one entrusted with watching over the other high ministers.

Shallana, with a proud expression, begins to fan herself leisurely.

“What happened to the priests who performed the ritual?”

“One appears to be dead. The other is unconscious, but he may be able to testify.”

“Oh my, what luck.”

Okay.

Shallana smiled broadly and folded her fan.

“Not only that, but there were bribery, leaks of confidential information, suspicions of assassination of Ruth and the priest, etc…… He lived a very fulfilling life.”

“Wh, what… How many false accusations are you trying to make against me…!”

“You even went so far as to use the sacred relics smuggled out to Prince Yulsis, the fourth prince of the empire.”

As Shallana continued to speak, Garrot's eyes went dark.

How did it come to this?

Originally, these were things that could have been buried in the dark, but why did it end up like this?

'It was too… hasty.'

He committed all sorts of evil deeds before rising from a simple believer to the position of 'high priest'.

If it is uncovered, it would not be strange for the position built up so far to disappear.

– 'Paris' life… … Hehe.'

Just like Yulian's previous monologue, this current position as the Grand Chancellor was created with 'the life of a fly'.

That's why I became impatient.

Those cross-eyed eyes that seemed to see through everything, eyes that didn't even show emotion, made me make hasty decisions.

“Then, we will take care of the safety of the High Priest Garrot until the trial. Don’t worry too much~ If he is truly innocent, the Sun God will help the High Priest Garrot~”

Suddenly.

Garrot ground his teeth at Shallana's words, which were full of laughter and a sly grin.

If only I could get through this one time, just this one time.

I will take revenge.

Shallana, of course! To that damn cross-eyed bastard!

***

The only exit, the stairs, had collapsed, but fortunately there was an escape route underground.

Because it is a dumping ground for demon corpses, the ceiling is structured to open and close to circulate the poison.

Although it was quite high, it wasn't that difficult for them with a certain level of ability to get there.

After we got out of there, Yulsis went to the ward, and Linne and I went to our quarters.

All along the way, Linne kept nagging me to get treatment.

“……With all those holes, aren’t you cold?”

Linne asked in a slightly blunt yet worried voice, but I shook my head.

"it's okay."

“……If that’s you, then that’s what it must be.”

I just smiled at Linne's sullen expression.

You want me to go to the ward of the Holy Nation in this state?

It will be revealed right away that Sombra, who is blocking my wounds, is Magi.

Then my neck will be gone too.

Let me say this again, my goal in this life is 'safety first.'

But, strangely enough, whether it was 'Sombra' that had a pain-relieving effect or this pathological atmosphere that was 'relieving' the pain, the pain had largely disappeared.

===

⇒ The trait “Amnesia” has been transformed into “New Swordsmanship”.

===

No, maybe it's just an aftereffect of a new trait.

In the battle with Idel, I was able to see text that said that the characteristics of the sword used by 'Geomseong' had changed.

'A new swordsman… … .'

It is a trait and title that I am seeing for the first time.

In the first place, the modifier 'new' in the title 'Geumseong' has no meaning.

The main character of this work was 'Geumseong', and the appearance of the modifier 'new' signifies the death of the main character.

'Are you really asking me to be the main character?'

I thought, 'Surely not, that's not possible,' but at the same time, I also thought, 'Maybe.'

A swordsman who neglects his duty and has even planted demonic energy directly in his body cannot be the main character.

“I will go and check on His Majesty the King’s physical condition.”

Linne's voice breaks my thoughts.

Linne, just in case, went to see Yulsis, who was receiving treatment elsewhere.

It may be that they are acting that way because this place is a potential enemy country and there are many incidents and accidents.

When she disappeared, the surroundings became quiet.

It was an environment that was easy to organize my thoughts, but I was followed by a presence.

After confirming with 'Mana Sense', its identity was 'Black Widow'.

'Are you here to finish things off?'

Perhaps this guy is one of the people who have been following me since before.

He must have come under the orders of the High Priest.

In the underground, they cooperated because they had a common enemy called 'Demon', but that may not be the case anymore.

I was so nervous that I… … .

“Sir Yurian, no…….”

hmm?

“Bishop Yurian, I apologize for greeting you so late.”

I felt dizzy for a moment at Heukwi's words.

Oh my, is there a swindler from the Yeomyeonghoe here too?

“I guess you noticed it after all, since you don’t seem flustered.”

I'm just speechless because it's so absurd.

“How can you not recognize a colleague who shares the same goal?”

“……So that’s why you left it alone even though you noticed the tailing.”

No, the reason I left it alone was simply because I didn't want any commotion to occur…

“If it weren’t for that, you wouldn’t be alive and talking to me. Hehe.”

Still, I decided to fuel his imagination.

In the first place, this was something 'Yurien'-like, and at the same time, it wasn't a losing business.

Gulp.

As Heukwi swallowed his saliva at my warning that wasn't a warning, something familiar came into view.

A purple haze that symbolizes fear.

'I can't believe you're reacting like this even though you know there are three holes in my body right now.'

To be honest, the people of the Holy Land tend to be a bit insensitive to the name 'Yurien', so it was a bit disappointing.

Am I becoming more 'Yurien-like' now?

It seems like the title 'Seed of Interest' has become engraved on me.

This is the taste of the mainland.

'By the way, there's a member of the Dawn Society here too.'

I wonder how far the roots have spread.

“What happened to the high priest who caused us such trouble?”

Is this what the Grand Master did?

It is a metaphorical expression that hints at the dark side.

“……Currently, Archimandrite Shallana has secured Archimandrite Garrot’s safety on charges of smuggling out the holy relic.”

As expected, the High Priest's actions were correct.

Even, it was Garrot who personally performed the baptism for Yulsis.

Just as Yulsis considered peace with the Sacred Nation as a lifeline, Garrot would have thought of the imperial prince in the same way.

Was he trying to make that line a little stronger by throwing in some kind of 'hint'?

“I’m sorry. I should have informed you sooner or taken action, but there were a lot of people looking at me.”

“It’s okay. Being a spy is like walking on thin ice.”

“……Thank you for understanding.”

Don't you understand! I almost died!

“By the way, you know that all of this is the work of the Arch-Chief Garrot… It seems that the battle in the Battle of Solitude was also planned.”

Black Widow, a member of the Yeomyeonghoe, opened his mouth with a tone of slight admiration.

“That lonely battle was something that Geomseong created for his own safety. Now that he has completely overturned that lonely battle…….”

What the heck is this nonsense?

That lonely battle was not created by the High Priest but by 'Haydn Reich'?

'He's going to go all the way. You crazy bastard.'

The one who is crazy about power is 'Yurien', but in reality, when I experienced it firsthand, I found out that his swordsmanship is no joke.

Of course, it was the 'player' who made the swordsman into a gentleman through his choices, but his original methods were extremely merciless.

But still, I really liked the 'black' color I chose.

“Archbishop, no, even His Eminence the Archbishop Tenelon will be satisfied.”

I didn't do it for his satisfaction.

I just did it to survive.

But now that things have turned out this way, what does that matter?

Let's just give some lip service and move on.

“It was something I had to do. It’s all for the sake of the Dawn Society. You’re doing well, too.”

“Thank you for saying so, Sir Yulian!”

The slightly shrunken face of Heukwi regained color and his eyes were filled with respect.

***

A swordsman who formed the 'Lonely War' to gather the demon's magic.

The high priest who smuggled out the holy relics and pointed his sword at us.

They were incidents of such magnitude that they could not be ignored, but this is the one that poses the greatest danger to my life right now.

‘… …Yulsis can’t open his eyes at all.’

The activation of the holy relic, 'engraved lie', is blocked.

One, something may have happened during the preparation process.

For example, you may have had a head injury or something may have gone wrong with your brain, a vital organ.

‘If by any chance Yulsis doesn’t wake up… .’

It's easy to predict what will happen to me as an escort.

Even if Yulsis has many older sisters and older brothers and has no relation to the right of succession to the throne, isn't the imperial family still the imperial family?

Even if I am not held accountable for my crimes because of my position, there are many lynxes in the royal family who are anxious to send my head to the guillotine.

So, if Yulsis can't open his eyes here or is declared dead, we have to make a cool-headed decision.

‘… … I might really have to follow the swordsman.’

Bam.

While waiting outside, the door to the arena ward opened, and Linne, who had been checking on Yulsis' condition inside, jumped out.

“His Majesty the King has awakened!”

Well, fortunately, it looks like I won't have to prepare for exile.