I Became the Main Character’s Demon Sword

28

The man’s hand touched Rohan’s head, and for a moment, a dark light seemed to cling to his fingertips before the temperature rapidly dropped.

Arpel’s expression was peculiar as he fiddled with the child’s clothes. Even the man who turned his gaze to Arpel after withdrawing his hand could clearly read the underlying meaning. His gaze briefly returned to the child.

“Since you have magical power, you should be able to learn consecration quite well.”

Arpel nodded slowly.

Holy power or magical power was either innate or manifested later in life. However, while the power itself would settle in, the methods of using and controlling it had to be learned gradually.

It was similar for Arpel. While the shadow was a power granted by the Demon Sword and thus he understood how to use it from the beginning, when it came to using general magic, he could only manage to make it float above his hand. Despite having a vast amount of magical power befitting a Demon Sword, he was ignorant of how to use it.

A hint of guilt appeared on his expressionless face. If he had known, they wouldn’t have had to just watch anxiously, giving medicine to the child who had been struggling with fever until now, and Rohan wouldn’t have had to suffer.

Should I have brought him to the temple sooner?

He kept thinking that he had selfishly taken away the child’s opportunity to learn and acted on his own. Whenever Rohan suffered silently like today, such regrets would settle thickly in his mind like fog.

“…I’ll guide you to where Dionel is.”

His feet moved mechanically, following the man who went ahead. As they retraced their steps, an open hall came into view.

The man confidently entered one of the countless branching paths and opened a door in a secluded corner. Waiting for him inside was Dionel.

“…Lord Rohan is sleeping.”

“Is there a place where we can lay him down?”

“The room in front should be fine. The side room… is noisy because I’ve brought in all the elders and high priests I could gather right now.”

Until they reached the room he mentioned and were about to lay Rohan down, Dionel spoke in detail about who he suspected to be the spy.

He seemed to want verification of his suspicions, but unfortunately, Arpel only had a method to expose the spy, not knowledge of their identity. He had no intention of explaining this, so he just nodded mechanically. Dionel seemed relieved even with just that.

He worried that the child might wake up, but whether due to fatigue or the consecration he received, Rohan continued to sleep soundly, oblivious to the world.

Only after gently stroking his head one last time did Arpel turn his back on Rohan.

It was time to go catch the rat in the temple.

***

As soon as Arpel entered with Dionel, he felt several hostile gazes upon him. Of course, he paid no attention to them. If anything, there seemed to be some who became even more agitated by his indifferent attitude.

“High Priest. I still cannot agree.”

As the two sat down and the bustling atmosphere inside seemed to calm a bit, one of the elders sitting in the high seat spoke up after gaining the right to speak.

His half-shouting voice was filled with considerable anger. Understanding his feelings, Dionel nodded and let the elder’s assertion pass for now.

“Of course, that matter is important, but… today I’d like to discuss something else.”

“What? What other matter?”

Although their revered and respected god had brought Arpel into the temple, apart from Dionel who had seen with his own eyes that Arpel was the Demon Sword, many still looked at him with contempt.

When they heard that Dionel had called together the elders and high priests, those who readily attended thought the topic of this meeting would be Arpel. But now he was talking about something else? As many frowned at this incomprehensible flow of conversation, Dionel spoke again.

“Do you remember the incident from 20 years ago?”

“20 years ago… You mean the lost Demon Sword?”

One of the older elders sitting in front nodded. Although they had been erasing the records, treating the incident as a disgrace to the temple, all priests belonging to the central temple knew about it. They just kept it hushed up, trying not to draw attention to it.

“Elder!”

“Everyone was talking about it anyway, why are you being so sensitive?”

The elder who brought up the Demon Sword clicked his tongue at another old man who shouted with a red face. As a result, the atmosphere inside completely settled down.

“Ahem. Hm… High Priest. Why are you suddenly bringing this up?”

“At that time, the Demon Sword was lost without leaving any trace. Moreover, recently, information about a child blessed by the Demon God leaked outside. I’m sure you’ve all heard about the incident that occurred in the child’s village.”

“Isn’t that despicable force-wielding bastard pretending innocence after causing trouble? Otherwise, there’s no way Lord Rohan would follow him…!”

“Do you think words make sense just because you spout them from your open mouth?”

Arpel, who had been sitting quietly with an expressionless face like a doll, showed his first reaction when Rohan’s name was mentioned. As he frowned, openly displaying his displeasure and killing intent, the elder who had been speaking rudely turned pale and shut his mouth tightly.

“…What I want to say is, judging from this series of events, it seems that someone within the temple is acting as a spy.”

Following Dionel’s words, which came after a glance at Arpel’s expression, the atmosphere inside, which already seemed to have had cold water thrown on it, completely cooled down.

The intense reactions erupted a moment later.

“Th-that’s impossible! A spy?!”

“There’s no way such a scoundrel could exist in our sacred temple…!”

“Then do you have a way to explain all these events?”

Naturally, silence fell.

Everyone knew. They knew it didn’t make sense. Even those who had responded that it was impossible felt the same. It was a truth they didn’t want to believe, so they had just reflexively and vehemently denied it.

“Then, High Priest, who do you suspect? Gathering us all in one place must mean you’ve already deduced the identity of this person to some extent.”

It was the female elder who had first brought up the Demon Sword earlier. Although she asked calmly while pushing up her glasses with her fingertip, confusion was clearly visible on her face as well.

“Elder Gilbert.”

“……”

“Elder, you were in charge of investigating the Demon Sword’s disappearance 20 years ago. Isn’t that right?”

“…Are you suspecting me now?”

One of the elders who had been silent all along responded to Arpel’s call. His eyes were slightly narrowed, as if finding it quite absurd.

“High Priest. Elder Gilbert would never do such a thing!”

“That’s right. The person who has always led us faithfully…”

Various comments burst out from the high priests sitting at the back. Dionel had not been unaware that such reactions would occur.

He had not failed to notice their quietly growing influence, but had chosen to overlook it. He didn’t want to create conflicts within the temple by engaging in power struggles when there was barely enough time to strengthen their faith in their god.

Perhaps this complacent attitude had led to the current situation. A small sigh escaped Dionel, his face tinged with guilt.

“High Priest. I, too, am truly regretful. It was indeed my fault. After all, I failed to find the Demon Sword. But to suspect me based on that alone?”

“Why were all the records from that time erased?”

“…That was agreed upon by all the elders.”

The time when the records were erased was when Dionel was still just a child, and it was also a period of various conflicts among the elders as a High Priest had not yet been chosen. Nevertheless, there was one opinion that passed unanimously: to erase the records of the incident where the Demon Sword was lost.

“Surely all the elders present here will remember who first proposed erasing the records of the incident.”

A silence so thick it seemed they couldn’t even breathe flowed between them. Gilbert, who had been at a loss for words for a moment, shouted.

“This is all conjecture! If you continue to corner me without further evidence, I see no reason for me to remain here.”

“I believe that the incident where the Demon Sword was lost back then and the recent incident involving Lord Rohan were caused by the same person.”

“High Priest!”

“Lower your voice, Elder.”

The man who had been standing silently beside Arpel after guiding him to Dionel spoke for the first time. At his low-voiced warning, Gilbert, who had shouted, closed his mouth tightly and sat down.

“I fully sympathize with Elder Gilbert’s claim that this is far-fetched. Because there is no evidence.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying. I feel wronged, High Priest.”

“If there is evidence, will you admit to your crimes?”

“…Yes. If there is clear evidence pointing to me, it must be due to my lack of faith. I will accept everything.”

“Elder! You mustn’t!”

As Gilbert made a sorrowful expression, lowering both eyebrows, the high priests who had been holding their breath rose up. Voices saying that the Elder would never do such a thing came from here and there.

The person in question couldn’t have been unaware of this atmosphere. Although he wore a resigned expression as if ready to admit to everything, Dionel knew very well that all of this was mere pretense. He also knew very well that Gilbert was acting so confidently because he had destroyed all the evidence with his own hands.