The Escort Knight Who Is Obsessed by the Villainess Wants to Escape - Chapter 142

Eliza originally had a large scar on his face.

A massive scar that ran diagonally from his chin to his eyebrow.

It didn’t look like something caused by deliberately scratching her face but rather the mark of a failed attempt to stab her throat.

But now, Eliza had no such scar.

Her skin was smooth and white.

I was curious why it was gone, but I had no way of knowing.

I simply assumed something had changed because of me and let it go.

I had also completely forgotten about the items in my pocket right after possessing this body.

A shard of glass and a piece of paper.

I was curious about my origins too, but I didn’t dig too deeply.

I assumed I wasn’t that important of a figure.

The Moon Church. Anggra.

I let my ignorance be.

Learning about it would take too much effort, and to me, Eliza beside me was more important.

And in the end—

At a moment I least desired, I learned the truth about myself.

‘An assassin of the Moon Church, raised to kill Eliza…’

Unbelievable.

No—I didn’t want to believe it.

Yet reality was cruel.

If I was an assassin, then all my questions had an answer.

The reason Eliza no longer had that scar.

Because I hadn’t done it.

The reason the original Eliza despised her Escort Knight so much.

Because I—Judas—had committed such an atrocity and then disappeared.

The reason I possessed techniques specialized in assassination.

Because I had been raised as an assassin.

When I saw Anggra.

When I recalled memories in Judeca.

When I visited the assassin’s guild.

All the strange inconsistencies scattered throughout my life suddenly made sense.

I opened my dry lips but only managed to speak after a long pause.

“Why…?”

The reason.

Why was I Eliza’s assassin?

Was I truly curious about the background?

Or was I simply asking because I refused to believe this reality?

Even I didn’t know.

Eurydice sighed heavily before explaining.

“As far as we’ve uncovered, it’s because you’re the Child of Revelation.”

“…The Child of Revelation?”

“Yes. Or rather, someone qualified to be one. Those golden eyes of yours.”

I silently listened.

“The scriptures of the Moon Church describe it like this: The primordial being that shines in gold. The human who carries its will is also sculpted in gold and is called the Child of Revelation. And that Child of Revelation is the savior destined to slay the Sun Beast foretold in the Apocalypse.”

It was similar yet different from the original scriptures.

That was inevitable.

Each religion had interpreted the original scriptures independently, compiling new scriptures to form their own doctrines.

The Moon Church was no exception.

“And Anggra, the bishop. He believed you to be the Child of Revelation and took you in.”

“What does that have to do with me having to kill the lady?”

“Anggra—that is, the Moon Church’s leadership—seems to have considered Eliza the Beast of the Apocalypse.”

A mad flame. A distorted sun.

Depending on the interpretation, she could indeed be seen as the Sun Beast that the Moon Church opposed.

The Moon Church, which hated the Sun Church, had designated the sun as its enemy.

That much I could understand.

However—

“You said the Moon Church and the Empire were on the same side. Then why would the Empire…?”

The Empire followed the Sun Church.

Then why did they join hands with the Moon Church to kill Eliza?

Before answering, Eurydice let out a hollow laugh.

“It was about monopoly.”

“Monopoly….”

“The emperor wanted to claim this continent for himself. But two great obstacles stood in his way—Barak and Eliza. So, rather than dealing with the older Barak, they decided to take care of the younger Eliza first.”

“…Wait, hold on.”

Judas spoke.

The Empire, Barak, and the Moon Church had conspired to kill her.

The reason? To eliminate a potential threat to power early.

But if what Eurydice just said was true, then Barak couldn’t possibly be on the Empire’s side.

Eurydice explained, as if she had noticed my suspicion.

“I also find that part strange. Recently, we infiltrated the Bevel main house and tried to extract information, but there’s no evidence that Barak and the Empire were working together. It seems like they had quite a bit of communication with the Moon God Church, but that was a long time ago, and their relationship wasn’t exactly good. In fact, Barak had been preparing to bring down the Empire for quite some time.”

“…….”

“But suddenly, Narcissa and two of his direct children were killed, and war broke out—before Barak could even make a move.”

Eliza had misunderstood.

Barak, the Moon God Church, and the Empire.

The three were not one.

Barak intended to strike the Empire, while the Empire sought to eliminate both Barak and the Bevel family.

Both sides considered the Moon God Church as a bridge between them.

The Moon God Church observed from the middle and eventually sided with the Empire, betraying Barak.

From the beginning, the Moon God Church and Anggra had never truly been on Barak’s side.

They only pretended to be.

Unaware of this, Eliza had spread the truth about the factions’ supposed cooperation and the reality behind the war.

By then, the embers of war had already been scattered across the world.

And before Barak could act, the Emperor struck first.

He killed Narcissa, Archan, and Sara.

The embers ignited into flames.

A war between the Imperial Army and the Allied Forces.

At its core, it was an internal conflict within the Bevel family.

Eliza and the rest.

“We still haven’t uncovered everything. But based on what we do know, this is the situation.”

Even after hearing the tangled web of events, nothing changed.

I was an assassin raised to kill Eliza at an early stage.

“We’re still trying to figure out why you were raised that way. Was it simply because you caught Anggra’s attention, or is there something more behind it…?”

“Who would know information about me?”

“Apart from us, the leadership of the Moon God Church. And perhaps the Emperor, since he has been in contact with them.”

Eliza had gone to meet the Emperor.

The Emperor wanted Eliza gone.

And I was an assassin meant to kill Eliza.

In that case, what are the chances that the Emperor would mention me?

‘…Very low.’

He wouldn’t reveal that an assassin was nearby.

As I thought about it, another question unraveled.

A dark mage had once attempted to cast magic on me.

On the day of my coming-of-age and knighthood ceremony.

‘If I was raised as an assassin for their purposes…’

There was a high chance that I had been subjected to hypnosis or brainwashing.

That dark mage had likely come to reinforce or awaken that conditioning.

But because I had possessed this body, the previous hypnosis must have weakened or disappeared.

‘Ultimately, I am an assassin meant to kill Eliza….’

I sorted my thoughts and accepted it.

Surprisingly, a deep sense of calm settled over me.

I even felt a strange, exhilarating intellectual clarity, as if I had just grasped the truth of the world.

Ah. I have no idea what this feeling is.

But in this moment, the answer I reached was crystal clear.

“Does the lady know about this yet?”

“I assume not. If she knew everything, she wouldn’t have kept you by her side.”

“Then that’s enough.”

“Uh, huh?”

Eurydice was flustered by my sudden composure.

Orpheus looked at me with a worried expression.

He seemed to be wondering if I had lost my mind from the shock.

No. That wasn’t it.

I was completely rational and logical at this moment.

“Ultimately, I have done nothing to Eliza.”

When confused, I should think like Eliza.

Her way of thinking often proved useful.

Break down the elements of the situation into what can be proven and what cannot.

What can be proven:

The Empire and the Moon God Church wanted Eliza dead.

I was the assassin assigned to carry out that task.

However.

There is no proof that I truly intended to kill Eliza.

I had never acted on it.

I had never caused her any harm.

Even the piece of paper I had discarded—no one knew about it.

So, as long as Eliza remains unaware, it doesn’t matter.

I can’t suddenly go up to her and say,

‘Actually, I was supposed to assassinate you, but I decided not to.’

More fundamentally, this is the world of a game, and I am someone who possessed the character Judas—a person who once lived in South Korea on Earth.

Claiming ignorance of Judas’s past as an excuse wouldn’t be a valid argument.

Eliza wouldn’t believe it.

Is there such a perfect answer?

Maybe that’s why I kept laughing.

Isn’t that actually the case?

I am not Judas.

Who Judas was in the past, what kind of person he was, what thoughts he lived with—all of it has nothing to do with me.

It’s none of my concern.

“Of course, it’s a rather shocking fact, but… it’s an old matter that we don’t need to worry about anymore, isn’t it?”

“Judas, you…”

“I’m fine. As long as the lady doesn’t find out…”

“Lord Judas.”

Hermes suddenly grabbed my wrist.

“Calm yourself.”

“……”

I cautiously looked down at my hand.

It was trembling.

Excessively, like that of a patient suffering from alcohol withdrawal.

Even after Hermes let go of my wrist, my hand continued to shake.

It wouldn’t stop.

No matter how much I willed it to, no matter how tightly I gripped it with my other hand, the trembling persisted.

I could feel changes in my body that I hadn’t even noticed.

From head to toe, my body felt cold, as if blood wasn’t circulating, and a tingling numbness spread through me.

Like someone freezing, my jaw trembled.

“Haa…”

I exhaled deeply, covering my face with both hands.

I stayed like that for a moment.

I wanted to curse.

Just say anything.

The situation itself was infuriating.

It was Judas who had tried to kill Eliza, not me.

But that was only my perspective.

Could Eliza think the same way I did?

Ah, I see. It was someone else, so it doesn’t matter. Would she accept it that way?

‘No way.’

Would it have been better if we had never formed this relationship?

No, at the very least, if I had known before things turned out like this.

The thought that my past—one that had nothing to do with me—could ruin my relationship with Eliza made my chest feel tight.

“Huu…”

I slowly regulated my breathing, trying to calm myself.

It was a method I used frequently before an important match in the past.

With each exhale, I imagined unnecessary tension and worries leaving my body.

“Huu…”

I deliberately slowed my breathing, loosening my stiffened body.

I assessed my condition objectively.

‘…I wasn’t in my right mind.’

Even if only for a moment, I had lost it just now.

My so-called mental state had shattered.

Eliza. Me.

I was someone prepared to kill Eliza.

But now, I had become someone who liked her far too much.

And Eliza, she felt the same way.

How could I possibly resolve this situation?

Would confessing everything to Eliza be enough?

As I lowered my hands, three worried faces came into view.

I barely managed to compose myself.

“…I apologize for showing such a disgraceful sight.”

“No, it’s okay. I completely understand.”

“Thank you…”

“But… I’m really sorry to say this, but this isn’t the end.”

“…What?”

Eurydice’s expression darkened.

Had she been revealing the truth to me little by little for my sake?

To lessen the shock?

What could possibly be more shocking than this?

“Judas, you’ve already killed someone once. In the Assassin’s Guild.”

That much, I had vaguely known.

“Your first target was a person named Maria.”

Maria.

It was a name I had glimpsed before while searching through my records in the Assassin’s Guild.

Back then, and even now, my reaction remained the same.

“I see….”

“…Judas? You don’t know who Maria is?”

Not a reaction of ‘You don’t even know the person you killed?’

But rather, ‘How could you not know that name?’

“That… Yes. As I mentioned, my memories are incomplete, so I don’t know who she is.”

A pathetic excuse, but it was the only one I could give.

“Haah… Seriously, what kind of situation is this…?”

Eurydice let out a deep sigh.

“Take a look at this.”

The moment she handed over some documents—

A flash.

Light emitted from the necklace.

It was Eliza calling me.

‘Of all times…!’

It seemed the private meeting with the emperor had ended.

I couldn’t afford to be caught here.

If I hesitated even a little, Eliza wouldn’t wait and would come straight to me.

“My lady is calling for you. If you don’t respond immediately, she will come here.”

“…!”

“Next time… or to Sir Hermes—anyway, I, I have to go. Thank you for letting me know.”

“Wait…!”

Hurriedly, I spoke and answered the summons.

She seemed to want to hold me back, but delaying any further would be troublesome.

For me, for them, and for Eliza.

In the end, I left without hearing the last piece of information and was transported to Eliza.

***

The summoned location was the mansion’s garden.

The Anemone Garden.

At some point, red flowers had bloomed in full.

As soon as I arrived, Eliza threw herself into my arms.

I carefully wrapped my arms around her shoulders.

‘…Stay calm.’

What should I do?

Should I tell the truth?

For now, I needed more time to think.

I forced a smile and spoke.

It was a relief that she was leaning against my chest and couldn’t see my face.

“Did the negotiations go well?”

“…Judas.”

Instead of answering, she called my name.

Her voice was chillingly cold and low.

‘No way…’

My body stiffened in an instant.

She slowly lifted her head.

A blank expression.

A cold face she had rarely shown in front of me lately.

Tense, I waited as her lips finally parted.