Chapter 95: The “Innocent” Person Entangled in Infernal Flames (Part 2)
“Since you’re nobility, why have you been hiding in the inner castle all this time?” Safiros retorted, then waved his hand to the knights holding the young man on either side, “Just let him stand.”
The knights immediately loosened their grip and stepped back. The young nobleman rubbed his arms, slightly aggrieved, and shouted, “I— I couldn’t do anything!”
“They… those demons are evil and powerful. My father took the guards for just one charge, and none of them returned! They’re like starving ghosts! I—I was just too afraid, I was scared…”
“Coward.”
One of the knights spat at the young man’s feet.
The young man’s expression changed; he was about to get angry, but Safiros interrupted with another question, “So, you let Heretics into the city?”
The nobleman’s face stiffened, and he hurriedly shouted, “I didn’t! It wasn’t me! It was the Captain of Guards who let them in! He saw my father d*e and colluded with the demons, making the decision on his own to open the gates. He already betrayed Silent Fortress—”
“Where’s the Captain of Guards?”
“The Captain of Knights, that man has already been killed by Miss Silvya,” one knight answered.
Safiros nodded, contemplating for a moment, and then looked back at the young nobleman, “I ask you, is it just the people standing behind you in this Silent Fortress?”
“Yes—”
His expression full of indignation, the nobleman clenched his teeth and said, “After the demons entered the city, they looted everywhere, killing anyone they saw, even two- or three-year-old children… I—I didn’t want them to continue killing, but I was powerless to resist, so I surrendered with my guards…”
As he spoke, he pointed to the group of kneeling people behind him, “Many among them are villagers from nearby towns, having lost their land due to the heavy rain, homeless and without food, and they have to endure threats from the demons… That demon leader, Weithermill, forced them to come to Silent Fortress to steal food. Many didn’t want to lift a hand, but if they didn’t, they would be killed…”
The rain seemed to be getting heavier. The nobleman’s luxurious clothes were quite thin, and in the downpour, he shivered, his voice shaking, sounding rather pitiful.
I stood a short distance away, watching and listening.
The nobleman continued, “Mr. Captain of Knights, what can we do… We, we can only compromise temporarily; only by biding our time can we save our lives. If we survive, we’ll have a chance to fight back… But before we can find that opportunity, you— you barged in and cleared out those damned demons, and that demon leader fled in the chaos… Honorable Captain of Knights, allow me to praise your bravery; you saved the lives of us commoners, and House Alanst will remember your kindness!”
After he finished speaking, the nobleman bowed deeply to Safiros.
The Captain of Knights remained expressionless.
“Oh?”
He sat tall atop his Horned Horse, tilted his head to gaze down at the nobleman, the corners of his mouth twitching upward slightly.
“You say House Alanst… then let me ask you again. Where are the other members of House Alanst—your mother, uncle, brothers, and sisters?”
“They…”
The nobleman was momentarily stunned, a vague look crossing his face, then he muttered, “They—all died at the hands of the demons… They were killed by the demons… Oh…”
He covered his face and began to cry uncontrollably.
At that moment, a knight hurriedly rode up beside Safiros and leaned in to whisper something in his ear.
The rain was too loud; I couldn’t catch what was said.
I only saw Safiros’s face, which seemed to subtly change color. The meaningful smile at the corner of his mouth vanished, and his sharply glinting eyes narrowed as they fixed like a sword on the still-sobbing nobleman, a hint of murderous intent emerging in his gaze.
What’s going on?
I was puzzled and instinctively guessed what had happened.
Did… the knights discover the corpses? Or… something else…
“Hey.”
Safiros called out to the nobleman, who immediately lifted his head. Safiros gently questioned, “You said all the members of House Alanst are dead. Where are the bodies?”
The nobleman’s crying immediately halted.
Then he wiped his tears and said in a stuttering voice, “In the back mountain, the demons threw… the bodies, into the back mountain…”
Safiros dismounted from his mount.
He walked in front of the nobleman, his expression shifting between dark and light, staring intently at his face, asking each word with conviction, “Are you sure?”
“I—I thought—”
“Look into my eyes. What do you think?”
“I—I saw them all get killed by the demons! I’m not lying…”
“I ask you, where are the bodies!?”
With a shout of anger, Safiros made the nobleman stumble back a couple of steps. His eyes darted away, looking extremely tense; he couldn’t help but clench his fists, “I—I don’t know! I’m not one of those demons, how would I know where they disposed of the bodies! I didn’t want to help them… We— we’re just victims…”
I noticed as the nobleman spoke, he casually sneaked a glance inside the open gates of the inner castle… it seemed like he was observing something?
That guy was likely a spoiled noble brat, pretty inept at hiding and disguising his intentions. Even I could see through the fact that he was lying.
What was he trying to hide?
“Very good.”
Safiros nodded, no longer paying him any mind, and walked past the nobleman to the group of kneeling people in the square.
“And you!” he loudly questioned, “You! Does anyone want to speak with me?”
“You!”
The Captain of Knights casually pointed at a front-row victim, asking, “Do you have something to say?”
The person flailed their hands in panic, “My lord, I know nothing… I just do what they tell me to do, I don’t know…”
“And you!”
Safiros pointed to another person.
“My lord, I—I am guilty… but I was forced by the demons, I had no choice… I want to seek the Deity’s forgiveness…”
“What sin have you committed!”
“I—I assisted the demons, delivering spare arrows to them when you attacked the castle…”
“And what else!”
“N—nothing else, my lord…”
That person hunched on the ground, trembling, not just from cold but from fear, their posture utterly submissive.
Safiros stopped questioning.
He lifted his head and scanned the crowd; all the kneeling people bowed their heads, no one daring to meet his gaze.
“You all seem to be in sync.” The Captain of Knights smirked coldly.
He returned to the nobleman’s front, looking into his eyes, and began to speak slowly, “There are two reasons for your sync.”
“First, you really are just a group of innocent folks who know nothing. After the disaster victims entered the city, they behaved themselves and did nothing, knowing nothing… The Heretics are incredibly kind; they see you all being so good-hearted, they’re moved and thus allow you to stay in the city, providing you food and treating you well.”
“And you, all your family members are dead. When it was your turn, the Heretics suddenly found their conscience, deciding that killing was wrong, so they spared your life, thinking you pitiful, so they fed you to keep you alive… See, your clothes are still clean. When we just found you, even your hair was neatly combed… Now, you’re drenched in rain, but it’s evident those Heretics have treated you better than we have, and you’ve really suffered no hardship, right?”
The Captain of Knights lightly patted the nobleman’s cheek.
“Actually, those demons you speak of, they have kind hearts and are willing to shelter starving victims. Even while killing here, they don’t want you victims to get bl**d on your hands… All the evils are done by those demons, and they’ve taken good care of you, so you really have done nothing and know nothing, that’s why you all keep quiet.”
Safiros stared intensely at the trembling, tightly wound nobleman, his eyes squinting, a cold smirk growing on his lips.
“Is scenario one… even possible? You tell me.”
“……”
The nobleman said nothing.
The Captain of Knights watched him for a moment, then extended two fingers.
“Now for the second reason.”
He pointed at the nobleman’s nose, then gestured to the group of people kneeling behind.
“You, you all… did something that the demons approved of, which is why they accepted you. I guess it’s something extremely despicable and contrary to humanity… yes, something very much in line with heretical behavior. And now, you all want to cover up that fact; none of you dares to speak the truth, because everyone here is an accomplice, and that’s the reason you are still alive. In front of me, you can only remain silent.”
“Hey.”
Safiros waved his hand in front of the dazed nobleman.
“What do you think, which scenario is it? Or do you think I’ll believe it’s the first one?”
“……”
“…No answer?”
“Well then, I’ll ask you two final questions.”
“First, our knights just found the granary inside the city; it’s nearly cleaned out, leaving only a bit of wheat, coarse flour, and potatoes. However, the knights checked the castle kitchen and found that your last meal was meat. Um, they even found some bowls on the battlements and in the castle’s dining area that still had leftover meat soup. What’s going on?”
“I—I don’t know…” The nobleman shivered, shaking his head repeatedly, “I don’t know, I really don’t know… It wasn’t me, I didn’t eat the meat…”
Safiros patted his shoulder, laughing coldly.
“Tsk, your admission without interrogation… Don’t be nervous, I haven’t even finished… Now, for the second question. Where have the elderly, women, and children in this castle gone?”
As the Captain of Knights spoke, he looked around the central area of the square, observing the silent, trembling crowd braving the rain.
“All your family members are dead, so… what about their families?”
“What about their women, children, and parents? Have they all died too?”
“Well, isn’t that convenient, wouldn’t you agree…”
！！！
Safiros’s words, though muffled by the rain, struck me like a thunderclap.
I turned to look at the crowd, only then realizing— kneeling here were all young and strong men, the oldest perhaps not even being forty years old. There were no elderly, women, or children at all!
Could it be…
A chill ran down my spine, a sense of absurdity rising within as I gaped at the silent bald-headed man beside me: “Isaac…”
From the direction of Safiros came his furious roar: “SPEAK, WILL YOU!!!”
Boom—
Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed from the inner castle, causing the ground beneath to tremble slightly.
What’s happening!
Are there still enemies?
My heart raced with vigilance.
Clank, clank, clank—
The surrounding knights drew their swords, and the kneeling crowd in the rain erupted into chaos; some attempted to stand and run but were immediately pinned down by alert knights. The nobleman tried to escape but as he turned, Safiros grabbed his collar and flung him to the ground like a rag doll.
The Captain of Knights shouted, “Why are you running! Huh?! Why are you running—”
“Keep an eye on these people! Anyone who dares to run, k*ll without mercy!”
Isaac commanded the knights beside him, then proceeded towards the castle. I hurried to keep up with him, taking down my leather case, preparing to pull out Captain Gray, when I saw several knights hurrying out from the inner castle gates.
“What’s going on?” Isaac approached to inquire.
“Lord Isaac, there’s a large cellar behind the inner castle,” the lead knight reported, bowing, a serious expression on his face. “It seems to be a dungeon for holding prisoners; we found many women and girls inside, along with… corpses.”
“Why was there an explosion?”
“A few mice, acting on someone’s orders to guard the cellar, attempted to k*ll everyone inside when discovered. They’ve all been subdued now.”
“Take me to see.”
As Isaac said this and was about to step into the inner castle gates, the leading knight hesitated, “Lord Isaac, you… you’d better let the nun in charge of medical care go first.”
