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“I share this story in hopes that you will understand us better. We dwarves can hear the sound of truth. Therefore, hiding anything from us is not an easy task. Knowing this, most humans tend to avoid conversing with dwarves.”

“I am well aware of that,” Repenhardt scratched his head, as Gelpheid offered a broad smile.

“However, we also listen to the sincerity in voices, not just the truth. So, if you bear goodwill towards us, there’s no need to hesitate in dealing with us. We know no deception, thus no misunderstandings arise.”

“Yes, I am quite aware of that as well,” Repenhardt returned the smile, to which Gelpheid looked intrigued again.

“You truly know this. It’s fascinating, how someone as young as you understands us so well. Of course, you couldn’t possibly share how you came to know this, could you?”

“I’m afraid now is not the time, sorry.”

Repenhardt then stood up, and Gelpheid called out to Tilla outside.

“Take some time to get yourself together. Meanwhile, we’ll have our guide prepare.”

Just as they were about to leave the room, a loud voice echoed from afar.

“Hey there! Savior, sir!”

An old dwarf burst into the room, causing Gelpheid to frown and ask, “What is it, Hetos?”

Ignoring Gelpheid’s question, Hetos frantically asked Repenhardt, “Did you happen to come here with companions? An elf and a young human boy?”

Repenhardt’s expression hardened. “Indeed, they are part of my group. Is something the matter?”

Hetos sighed deeply and stroked his beard. “It seems they have been captured and are being held at Viscount Kelberen’s castle.”

* * *

After capturing the thieves’ accomplices and returning to Kelberen Castle, Eusus von Tenes called two of his knights and issued a grave command.

“Make them confess everything! Forget chivalry for now. Any form of torture is permitted! We must find out the location where last night’s thief is hiding. Understand?”

The order was so strict that it bordered on brutal. The two knights, Lento and Baras, looked at each other in shock. Torture? They blinked, wondering if they had heard wrong. Their leader, Eusus, was the epitome of knighthood. It was unthinkable for him to utter something as dishonorable as torture.

But Eusus did not give them a chance to protest. He simply waved them off with a stern face.

“Retire for now.”

Eventually, the two knights paid their respects and left the room, heading down to the dungeon, pondering deeply. The abstract expression of their commander made it clear that this matter was of great importance. They understood that it was necessary to extract all the information, even if it meant resorting to torture.

The problem was that both were honorable members of the Tenes Knights, and torture was far removed from their practices. Of course, as knights, they had faced many battles, but torture was a different matter entirely.

“How do we even go about torturing? Just hit them carelessly?”

“What if they die? We can’t kill them, but torture means to inflict enough pain without killing, right?”

“Ah, this is difficult.”

Lento and Baras looked at each other, troubled. After descending into the castle’s dungeon, they stood in front of a cell door. Inside were a captured elf girl and a pilgrim boy, both bound.

“Anyway, it’s an order, so we must follow through.”

“Right. I’ll start the interrogation, Baras.”

“Understood, Lento.”

Sighing, the two entered. Upon opening the door, they saw a beautiful boy with red long hair, bound in chains. Drawn on the floor was a sealing circle, a special barrier installed by the priests of the sky goddess, Aerius, to suppress the pilgrim boy’s holy power.

“I am Lento of the Tenes Knights,” Lento said in a cold voice, looking at the boy, Sillan, who weakly lifted his head to meet his gaze. Lento swallowed hard.

“Uhmm…”

The boy’s delicate limbs and refined facial features made him appear pitifully frail. How were they supposed to torture someone who looked like they could die from a mere touch?

Lento began the interrogation with a sense of doom.

And half an hour later.

“…Uhmm.”

The two knights were groaning, looking at the bound Sillan.

“So, Mr. Repen’s martial arts training is a bit too harsh. You’ve heard, right? The martial arts of Fist King Gerard of Gym Unbreakable. The training they do there is like this…”

“Um, yes.”

“…They train like that. Doesn’t it seem a bit inhumane? Honestly, you knights haven’t trained to that extent, have you?”

“Um, yes.”

“Given how tough the training is, the final test is no joke either. It involves retrieving that relic. But the Tenes Count family got to the relic first, they say. If you can’t pass the test, you can imagine the consequences. If the training is that harsh, imagine the punishment?”

“Um, yes.”

“So, we’re saying we had to take that artifact, even if it meant resorting to theft, because it originally belonged to Gym Unbreakable, and we suspect that even the King of Fists didn’t anticipate the discovery of that ruin. Given how little information was available about the ruin, isn’t it proof that no other artifacts were tampered with?”

“Um, yes.”

Before the questioning could even begin, the person on the other side had already spilled everything voluntarily. Thanks to this, Lento’s only contributions for half an hour were ‘Um, yes.’ What else could he say? There was no need for torture or even interrogation when the other party was freely divulging information, including details not even asked for.

“Anyway, I wasn’t exactly in favor of this plan myself. But after hearing about the situation, I understood and ended up just staying in the village. Ah, talking too much made my mouth dry. Could I get a glass of water, please?”

“Huh? Oh, sure.”

Baras, who had been standing there dazed, got swept up in the moment and fetched a glass of water.

“Ah, refreshing. Anyway…”

Really, he was quite talkative. Moreover, his calm demeanor, despite being tied up, made it almost seem unfair to think of him as pitiful. Listening to him, one might even start worrying for Lento instead.

“Hey, look. Even if it’s about your companions, is it really okay to tell us everything? What about loyalty?”

“There’s nothing to hide, really.”

“But if it becomes known that the heir of the Fist King resorted to theft, it could tarnish your honor…”

“If we were concerned about honor, we shouldn’t have stolen in the first place, right?”

“Well, yes.”

Thus, Sillan went on to detail everything from his background and how he became a priest of Philanence to how he met Repenhardt and Siris, and how he ended up here. Even in the process, he cleverly skipped over any potentially damaging information—such as incidents caused in the Chatan Principality—so smoothly that Lento and Baras didn’t find it awkward at all.

Despite feeling something was off, they got so caught up in the story that they just nodded along. Eventually, Lento had no choice but to interrupt Sillan’s monologue to ask a crucial question.

“Anyway, I understand the situation. But what’s important is the whereabouts of the stolen artifact. Are you saying you don’t know where it is?”

The answer came promptly.

“I don’t know. We just decided to return to that inn, after all.”

Lento finally caught a loophole. With the stern attitude of an interrogator, he thundered.

“What are you talking about! You must have arranged a way to contact in case of an emergency, hadn’t you?”

“Why would we? You know by now, don’t you? That man is an Aura User. Who would imagine an Aura User failing at mere theft?”

“That, that’s true.”

Intending to scold, Lento found himself speechless in the face of Sillan’s logical response. Thus, the interrogation ended with Lento and Varas leaving the cell with awkward expressions.

“Is this how interrogation is supposed to be done?”

“Something feels off about this…”

Nevertheless, having gathered the necessary information, they had to report to Eusus. Shaking their heads in confusion, the two knights ascended the stairs heading upstairs.

In one of the reception rooms of Viscount Kelberen’s residence, Eusus was silently looking out the window.

Suddenly, he recalled the voice of Sir Lot.

‘Why are you so concerned? Of course, the honor of the Tenes Knights has been slightly tarnished by this incident, but it wasn’t an ordinary opponent, so it doesn’t seem to be a big problem.’

Sir Lot’s words were not wrong. It would indeed be a disgrace if the Tenes County’s estate was robbed by a mere thief. However, the Tenes Knights had not simply been overrun; they had indeed repelled the enemy. Moreover, it was already known that the opponent was not an ordinary thief but an Aura User. Even without manifesting Aura, having matched Eusus, who manipulates Eldrad, proved he was an Aura User.

There were countless relics from the ruins of Elucion, and only one unidentified relic was lost. Besides, they managed to splendidly repel the intruder, even though they let him escape. In this regard, there shouldn’t be any damage to the honor of the Tenes Count family.

So, it wasn’t unreasonable for Sir Lot and the other knights to think Eusus was overreacting a bit strangely.

“No, it can’t just be a coincidence. Otherwise, why out of so many relics, that one had to be taken…”

Looking out the window, Eusus murmured to himself, recalling an event from a month ago.

‘Yes, that young man with black hair…’

Eusus was, as usual, deeply engrossed in his training at the mansion’s private training ground. It was then that a young man suddenly appeared from a corner of the training ground.

“Are you Sir Eusus, the Golden Knight of Graim?”

It was inevitably surprising. His training ground was among the most secluded places within the Viscount’s estate. And to think that someone had breached the strict defenses of the Viscount’s estate? The word ‘assassin’ would normally come to mind first in such situations.

“Who are you!”

Eusus shouted, glaring at the intruder.

The young man was remarkably handsome, with jet-black hair and obsidian-like eyes, and despite his appearance, his body was well-developed in a balanced manner, indicating he was a formidable martial artist.

He seemed like a challenging opponent, especially since Eusus was not wearing his magical armor Eldrad during his training. As Eusus was on high alert, the young man pulled out a small emblem from his bosom.

“If you are the heir of the Count Tenes family, you should recognize this emblem.”

A silver emblem, intricately crafted with various mythical creatures among giant trees, suddenly made Eusus ask in surprise,

“The Silver Sage?”

It was on the day he officially became the heir. That day, Eusus had been entrusted by his father, Viscount Tenes, with a secret passed down only to the heirs of the family.

A secret shared only with the most loyal and trustworthy families of the Graim Kingdom.

About the existence of the ‘Silver Sages’.

Beings with the power to even destroy a nation.

Sages who far surpass the current age’s wisdom and knowledge.

Despite possessing the power to influence the entire continent, they never reveal themselves, existing only in the shadows, invisibly protecting humanity and only appearing when humanity is in crisis.

The idea that such beings, capable of influencing the continent while remaining hidden, existed was shocking to Eusus. It was also unbelievable. The world is not so simple as to be manipulated by just a few individuals.