Berhem froze, his face blank with shock. How could a backwater commoner like Ghislain know the royal family's most tightly guarded secret? "H-How do you know about the Shadow Knights?" "I’m the one asking questions," Ghislain replied coolly. Berhem’s fury boiled inside him. The humiliation of being interrogated by this man was unbearable. But what choice did he have? His life now hung by a thread, held by the blade of the very man he despised. The accursed priest of the Salvation Order had fled the moment news of Ghislain’s arrival in the capital spread. With Count Phalantz defeated, there was no one left to protect Berhem. Ghislain, having confirmed Flakus’s absence, didn’t even bother asking after him. It was obvious: Flakus had deemed Berhem useless and abandoned him. After a moment of hesitation, Berhem began to speak slowly. "Did you hear it from Marquis Branford? Even I don’t know much about them. All I know is that they were considered another ‘king’ of this nation." "What? A king?" "T-That’s right. Not someone who ruled the kingdom but someone who wielded power equal to the king." "Explain in detail." "It’s a royal secret..." "Then die now." As Ghislain raised his sword, Berhem panicked, shouting in desperation. "They were one of the three founding families!" "Hmm..." "The kingdom was founded by three families: the Founding King’s, the Shadow Knight Commander’s, and the Delphine Ducal House. Together, they established this nation. The three families agreed to share equal authority." Berhem, trembling, glanced at Ghislain for his reaction before continuing. "That’s why only the Delphine family was ever granted the title of Duke in this kingdom. And their house was given the right to overthrow the royal family at will if necessary." "Hah..." Ghislain raised an eyebrow in disbelief. Typically, pardons granted to founding families didn’t extend to treason. Yet the Delphine House had been given authority equal to the royal family’s. "And the Shadow Knights? Why didn’t they hold an official title?" "They chose to remain hidden. They became the ones who ruled the kingdom’s nights." "Why would the Founding King grant such power?" "I don’t know. It’s said to have been an unavoidable choice. The political situation at the time was extremely unstable, requiring the cooperation of the three powerful families." "Were there no records of this? The royal family is known for preserving its history." "There’s nothing. It’s said that all records were deliberately erased at the time." Berhem’s words aligned with the legends passed down orally. After the fall of the ancient empire, countless factions had vied for power, creating chaos. The deliberate destruction of historical records had erased much of that era’s truth. "The three families shared equal power... So how did things end up like this?" "The royal family sought to monopolize power. After all, they were the representatives of the three families. Over centuries, they worked to weaken the others." "And they succeeded, I see." "So it seemed. But the Shadow Knights had no interest in power; they focused solely on protecting the royal family. The Delphine House, too, concentrated on governing the south, avoiding external conflicts." In short, the royal family had been the only ones bothered by the balance of power. Despite centuries of effort, they had managed only to diminish the strength of the other families, not eliminate them entirely. Berhem’s voice trembled as he continued. "That’s all I know. These are stories whispered within the royal family, passed down as oral tradition. I can’t even confirm their accuracy because there are no written records." "Hmm... Then what about this artifact?" Ghislain asked, holding up the pendant. Berhem hesitated, his face betraying a deeper secret. "T-That pendant has been passed down since the time of the Founding King. It was said to be a treasure that would protect the royal family. But until recently, I didn’t even know it held divine power." "That’s it? Your expression says otherwise." Ghislain pressed the blade to Berhem’s neck, his eyes cold and unyielding. The cornered king finally closed his eyes tightly and spoke. "It’s the Saintess’s necklace." "The Saintess? Which Saintess?" If the pendant dated back to the Founding King, it must have belonged to a Saintess from that era. Berhem began to explain in a halting voice. "The necklace belonged to the woman known as the ‘First Saintess.’ She was said to have earned the love of every goddess." "A Saintess? Wasn’t the Founding King a man? Why would the royal family possess the Saintess’s necklace?" Berhem hesitated but answered under Ghislain’s icy gaze. "The Founding King was... her servant." "...Servant?" "Y-Yes. He served her, attending to her every need. That’s the secret of the royal family." The attendants nearby gasped in shock. Was Berhem suggesting that the royal family’s lineage descended from a servant? Ghislain chuckled softly. "Interesting. How does a mere servant go on to found a kingdom? He must not have been ordinary." "It’s not definitive! It’s just a myth passed down in secret!" Berhem exclaimed, desperate to deny the implications. "Perhaps. But a myth exclusively passed down in the royal family isn’t just a simple story." Ghislain studied the pendant before speaking again. "Why has the royal family kept this pendant hidden? Did they know what it could do?" "I don’t know. I truly don’t. We were only told to guard it in utmost secrecy. It was said to be of critical importance, so the royal family created countless treasures to obscure its significance." "And yet you were willing to give it to the Delphine House?" "O-Of course! I thought it was just a symbolic relic, nothing more. I didn’t know it held any real power." Ghislain nodded. If Berhem had genuinely believed it was just an old artifact, his willingness to hand it over made sense. It was clear even the king didn’t know the pendant’s full history. But piecing together the information, Ghislain began to form a theory. "This pendant must hold a significant secret. That’s why the Delphine House sought it, and why the Shadow Knights guarded it. The balance of power between the three families likely depended on it." The pendant seemed to be a linchpin in the balance of power that had preserved the kingdom since its founding. While the royal family had hidden it, the Delphine House had sought it, and the Shadow Knights had protected it. Together, they had maintained the kingdom’s delicate equilibrium. "So what happened to the Shadow Knights? Why did they disappear?" Ghislain already had an idea, having heard from Belinda about Melkir’s betrayal. But he wanted to hear Berhem’s version, particularly because it involved his mother. Berhem hesitated again before answering. "I... I allowed their destruction." "What?" "How could two suns exist under the same sky? My predecessors failed, but I succeeded!" "And how, exactly, did you succeed?" "Melkir, the vice-commander, approached me with a proposal. He said he would kill the commander and that agents from the Delphine House would assist. So I..." "So you?" "I gave my approval and revealed the commander’s hidden sanctuary—a location only the king knew." Ghislain’s grip tightened on his sword. "And then?" "The agents from the Delphine House infiltrated the sanctuary with Melkir’s help, eliminating the commander. I intended to destroy the Delphine House afterward, but my health began to fail..." Berhem seemed proud of his decision, but Ghislain’s expression darkened. "You betrayed the one sworn to protect you, using outside forces to do it?" "What else could I do? I couldn’t tolerate someone with power equal to mine! Besides, Melkir swore loyalty to me!" Ghislain glanced behind him, sensing a surge of murderous intent. Belinda stood trembling, tears brimming in her eyes, as dozens of daggers floated menacingly in the air around her. "So you were the one who enabled the attack on the commander?" The sanctuary had been a closely guarded secret, passed only between the royal family and the Shadow Knights. Even Melkir hadn’t known its location. Belinda, too, had been unaware of her mother’s whereabouts. She had assumed the attack had taken place elsewhere, but now the truth was clear. Her mother had trusted the sanctuary’s safety, only to be betrayed by Berhem. The realization struck Belinda like a dagger to the heart. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶 "You bastard!" Swoosh! Belinda’s daggers flew forward, piercing Berhem’s arms and legs, pinning him against the wall with a sickening crunch. "Aaargh!" Berhem screamed in agony, his limbs skewered and blood dripping onto the floor. "W-Why are you doing this? I-I told you everything I know!" Ghislain shrugged nonchalantly. "This woman happens to be the last surviving member of the Shadow Knights." "W-What? But the Shadow Knights were all killed!" When Annette was ambushed, the Shadow Knights’ sanctuary was attacked simultaneously. Though strong, they couldn’t hold out forever and were wiped out. Only Belinda, a trainee at the time, survived when Annette arrived just in time to save her. "S-Spare me! I didn’t kill them myself! It was Melkir and the Ducal House!" "But without your betrayal, they wouldn’t have been able to act so boldly." "Ugh... How could you treat your king this way? The Shadow Knights were sworn to protect me! Isn’t that the promise?" Berhem’s words dripped with indignation. How could he be subjected to this humiliation? He was the king—the father of the nation! Still, he couldn’t die here. He’d done whatever it took to survive, even allying with the Salvation Order. Somehow, he had to live. Bleeding profusely, Berhem pleaded desperately. "Let me go! I’ll pardon your rebellion! I’ll live quietly if I’m allowed to recover!" Ghislain shook his head as he raised his bloodied sword. "That won’t work. Your death is necessary for this to end cleanly." Though a powerless king might not have posed much of a threat, Berhem’s continued existence would be an inconvenience to too many. Seeing Ghislain’s blade approach, Berhem’s face turned pale as he screamed. "B-But I’ve told you everything! Didn’t I tell you all I know?" "I never said I’d spare you for talking. I was just curious." "Y-You bastard!" Berhem struggled, but the daggers pinning him in place prevented any movement. The pain only intensified his despair. With bloodshot eyes, he glared at Ghislain. "You... You and your ilk wouldn’t have made it this far if the Shadow Knight Commander had been alive!" "...Hmm." Ghislain scratched his chin, unsure how to respond to such a statement. "If Marquis Branford had been here, you wouldn’t have dared to rebel!" Berhem’s words rang true. Ghislain had been careful to avoid turning the entire kingdom against him, but Berhem’s own actions had dismantled those defenses. "Are you done with your last words?" Ghislain asked, his tone cold. Just as he was about to strike, Belinda shouted. "The Lady Annette was his mother!" Berhem froze, his expression blank. "W-What?" "The Marchioness of Ferdium was Annette!" "W-W-What...?" "Annette died from the wounds your betrayal inflicted on her. But she lived long enough to marry the Marquis and leave behind her children. This is her revenge, Berhem. Even in death, she hasn’t forgotten." Belinda had no intention of letting Berhem die without fully grasping the magnitude of his betrayal. Berhem’s face twisted in shock as he looked at Ghislain. "Y-You’re... the son of the Shadow Knight Commander? That... that woman survived?" "Yes. In a way, I guess I have you to thank for my birth." "Aaargh! That woman! Even in death, she blocks my path!" Berhem screamed, tears of blood streaming from his eyes. It was unbearable to think that the actions he and the Ducal House had taken so long ago were now his undoing. Annette’s child had grown up to destroy the Ducal House and topple the royal family. Her husband was marching into the capital to become the new king. The irony of it all was overwhelming. "I should have killed her then. I should have scoured the entire kingdom to make sure she was dead!" Berhem’s regret boiled over into incoherent shrieks. Blood poured from his eyes, nose, and mouth—a side effect of the illicit procedures he’d undergone. Ghislain watched him with cold detachment. "The old dynasty ends today. A new era begins now." "Shut up, you insolent..." Swish! Before Berhem could finish his sentence, Ghislain’s sword struck. His head fell cleanly from his shoulders, rolling across the floor, his face frozen in a mix of rage and disbelief. Wiping the blood from his blade, Ghislain muttered. "Why did you have to go and provoke someone who wasn’t bothering you?" Both the Ducal House and the royal family had brought this upon themselves. They could have avoided it all by leaving well enough alone. Still, Ghislain felt a slight sense of relief. While incomplete, he’d learned more about the artifact and had taken another step toward avenging his mother. Berhem’s severed head was displayed prominently at the castle gates, visible to all. The people erupted into cheers. "Hurrah! The mad king is dead!" "We are free at last!" The capital was swept up in a festival-like atmosphere for days. Ghislain redistributed the food hoarded by the nobility, ensuring the people could eat and rest after their long suffering. Finally, when the Ferdium forces arrived at the capital, Zvalter was met with an astonishing sight. The citizens poured out of the city, falling to their knees before him. "Please, become our king!"