Chapter 25: Disguise

Fake Identity

Tirvaen said she would replenish her empty mana, locked the door, and fell into a deep sleep.

Karls took Thomson and went out to buy supplies as I instructed.

And I was left alone.

I stared blankly out the window, lost in the unfamiliar silence I hadn’t felt in a long time, but only for a moment.

Then, I began pacing the middle of the room, deep in thought.

“Why did he do that?”

No matter how much I think about it, I just can’t understand.

‘Why did he lie like that?’

Irgal.

I couldn’t help but think about that guy who told me such a ridiculous lie.

While we were running away after looting the black market, he definitely told me this:

‘When you reach the Cold Sun, give the owner my name. He’ll give you a room.’

His voice was so relaxed and confident that I almost mistook him for the owner’s hidden son.

But Lucard said he didn’t know anyone by the name Irgal.

‘Irgal? That’s the first time I’ve heard that name!’

He was so firm that I felt embarrassed for even asking.

I recalled that moment and thought about Irgal.

‘What was he thinking, saying such nonsense? There’s definitely something going on here.’

Of course, I could just let it go.

I could simply think he wanted to mess with me and leave it at that.

But there was something suspicious.

After Irgal slipped away and disappeared into the alley—

“……Your Highness, I believe that man is from the southern Wyler Principality.”

Karls, who had approached quietly, said this to me.

I was taken aback.

“Huh? What did you say?”

“I mean Irgal. I think he’s from the Wyler Principality. I’m not completely sure, but that’s what I think.”

……I never thought I’d be the one to say this line.

“How do you know that? Are you suffering from Prophet Syndrome too?”

But Karls answered in the most knightly way, leaving me speechless.

“That unique footwork is part of a martial art passed down only in the Wyler Principality. It’s called the ‘Dance of the Arrow’.”

“……!”

I had only vaguely recognized the footwork.

But Karls, with the keen eyes of a 6-star knight, had analyzed the technique exactly.

‘Dance of the Arrow’

That was a skill included in the A-rank Destiny Card, ‘Dawn Assassin’.

Just as Karls said, it was a skill only found in the Wyler Principality.

‘The Dawn Assassin card itself only appears as a special Quest reward from the Duke’s House of Wyler.’

So, unless Karls and I were both mistaken, Irgal was definitely from the Wyler Principality.

At the very least, he had spent quite some time in that southern region.

‘……The Wyler Principality.’

That place was one of the Vald Empire’s vassal states.

It was a small territory centered around the ducal house, but it was a wealthy nation that had accumulated riches by brokering trade with other continents through its large port.

And as a vassal state of the Vald Empire, the Wyler Principality belonged to the Empire’s side.

‘So why would someone who’d invested so much time and effort to earn the Dawn Assassin in a place like that suddenly join the Revolutionary Army?’

Definitely suspicious.

I was fundamentally suspicious of Irgal, who had taken the position of a Player Character.

So I was completely focused on digging into his background.

‘Since I’m already involved with the cooperative, should I go there and request an investigation before starting the Quest?’

But that was unnecessary.

A little while later, someone came looking for me and solved the problem.

The first-floor dining hall, long past mealtime, was very quiet.

Lucard was behind the counter, slowly washing plates.

I sat at a table far from him, facing my visitor.

The old man spoke first.

“Shian, I brought what you asked for.”

“…… ^?”

What’s he talking about?

Is something wrong? That’s your name, isn’t it?”

Is this old man senile?

Why is he acting so weird?

“Until yesterday, you called me Third Prince, but now you’re suddenly using a nickname just because we got a bit closer?”

“……Ah..”

I looked at Varmilo the Grand Priest’s face and only realized a little later.

‘This must be the Sons’ Guardian Quest progression, huh?’

‘Shian’ wasn’t a rude nickname.

It was my fake identity.

“Here you go.”

Varmilo slid the items he took from his robes across the table.

One was the ‘Eye of Walakas’ glasses I’d asked him to get.

And the other was an identification card.

‘Shian Auredro’ is hereby certified as a legitimate resident of Aurax by the Order of Eolem.

The card, stamped with the Archbishop’s seal, had a photo of ‘Shian Auredro’ and a date of birth written below.

“……I’m suddenly seventeen years old.”

“Oh right, I guess I should speak informally now?”

“Why bother with this pointless act when no one’s listening?”

“Think of it as practice.”

Are you just tired of treating me like a Prince?

The name on this fake ID is always made by taking a syllable from the Player’s name.

That’s why I became ‘Shian’.

Karls is ‘Kal’, Tirvaen is ‘En’.

Just like that, we washed our identities as the three Auredro siblings.

“But why is Kal the eldest and I’m the youngest? Even we need some sort of command structure!”

I protested fiercely, but Varmilo the Grand Priest pretended not to hear.

“But we couldn’t stop the wanted posters for the prison break from circulating, so you’ll have to avoid fighting the city guards directly or doing anything attention-grabbing.”

“And this is a tavern crawling with city guards?”

“Honestly, this is a truly surprising choice. Hiding in plain sight, using this tavern like this.”

At that, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Thanks. And this too.”

When I grabbed the glasses, they naturally changed size and shape.

They adjusted perfectly to my face.

‘Eye of Walakas’

These magical glasses, made by demons, are an artifact that assists with the trajectory of projectile weapons like bows or crossbows.

[Accessory] These round, cute glasses were, surprisingly, created by the hands of demons.

And, perhaps less surprisingly, they help you easily see the path of any projectile weapon.

When you put them on and draw a bow, you can tell exactly where and how the arrow will fly.

‘A must-have item for any Player Character who uses projectile weapons.’

And for some reason, I feel like my vision is a bit better too?

Is that just my imagination?

“……Remember, I’m only lending it to you. Keep that in mind.”

I had to stifle a laugh at Varmilo’s words, as if he was struggling to contain his irritation.

Originally, these glasses belonged to none other than the Chief of the Revolutionary Army.

But fortunately, the Chief is absent right now.

So I made old Varmilo steal them from the Chief’s study for me.

There was a promise made in the name of God.

If the priestly order escaped the Empire safely, I could ask for any one item.

This is how I used that promise.

“Fine, I’ll just borrow it. Though I don’t know how long I’ll need it.”

“……Ha. How did I end up like this.”

The Grand Priest sighed, but didn’t forget his duty.

“The Rite will begin at Dark Cliff, in the forest northeast of Aurax.”

The rite Varmilo mentioned was the Rite of the Crimson Wind.

‘It’s the ceremony Revolutionary Army children undergo to be recognized as adults.’

It’s also the main stage of the Quest ‘Sons’ Guardian’ that I have to complete.

“Our church has done everything we can. We’ve given you new identities and put your names on the list. You’re all set to participate in the Rite of the Crimson Wind.”

Varmilo tapped the table and looked at me.

“What will you do now? How will you prevent the boys from being excommunicated?”

For him, that was the most important question.

‘Excommunication’

That word was accurate.

Unless something changes, almost all the boys participating in this rite will die in an accident.

A massive Monster Wave will break out, destroying part of the forest, and the boys will be wiped out.

‘Even for a game scenario, that was pretty brutal.’

This tragedy happens within the Revolutionary Army itself.

It’s an internal crime planned and carried out by a priest from the rival Order of Kishiris.

‘It’s not exactly betrayal.

It’s more like a team kill to expand their own order’s power and influence.

The Order of Kishiris doesn’t allow men to become priests.

So most of their clergy are women…….

To them, the boys are just the future resources of another faction.

So they want to get rid of the boys and leave only the girls.’

‘Now that it’s real, it’s a truly horrific idea.’

So, how do I stop this incident?

‘The real question is, how do I complete the Quest?’

is a game that emphasizes free play above all else, so there are many ways to resolve this Quest.

First, the most direct method.

“Strike first and win. We could just blow up the Order of Kishiris before anything happens. What if we send explosives to the cathedral?”

“W-What?”

Varmilo the Grand Priest went pale.

“Third Prince, that’s a joke, right? Please tell me it is.”

He was so shocked, he even dropped the creepy nickname.

I chuckled.

“Of course it’s a joke. If the cathedral exploded in the middle of the city, it’d be just as serious as the kids dying. Would the Chief just sit and watch?”

“……If the Chief would just sit and watch, it almost sounds like a method worth trying.”

“Hahaha, how did you guess?”

And the second method.

“We could assassinate the mastermind before the tragedy happens.”

“Hmm? How would you identify the culprit? Is there a way?”

“Come on, there’s bound to be a priestess sent to oversee the ceremony. Obviously, she’s the culprit.”

But Varmilo shook his head.

“The Order of Kishiris is sending more than one priestess to this rite. There’s no way they’re all involved.”

That was true.

‘Actually, it’s just a scheme by two or three people.’

Varmilo crossed his arms and sighed.

“If you can’t pick out the culprit from among the five, you’d have to kill them all. That’s not acceptable, is it?”

“I suppose…….”

“Please, tell me that’s a joke too, Shian.”

“It’s a joke. Hahaha.”

Of course, I know exactly which of the five priestesses is the real culprit.

So I could single her out and take care of it.

But I won’t do that.

That way would just cause a backlash within the Revolutionary Army and make things troublesome…….

‘And the reward isn’t that great, either.’

If nothing happens and only one priestess dies, the event’s seriousness drops and my actions won’t be properly recognized.

‘You only realize how precious something is after you’ve lost it.’

So I won’t use the preemptive method to prevent the incident.

“This is what I’ll do.”

As I leaned forward to speak, I could feel the Grand Priest tense up.

“I’ll let the incident happen. I won’t interfere.”

” ?”

“Don’t

None of the boys will die. Even the priestesses who planned this will survive.”

ײן

The real, best route for this Quest is non-lethal.

“How on earth?”

Watching Varmilo’s trembling eyes, I smiled.

“It’s hard to explain everything, but just pretend you don’t know anything, even at the Order of Eolem. Don’t draw attention to yourself.”

“Then what will happen to the culprit?”

“They’ll be judged by the Revolutionary Army itself. The whole truth will be revealed.”

Varmilo nodded.

“Alright. If the Archbishop trusts you, I’ll trust you too.”

How nice of you.

“Anyway, that aside—”

I glanced over at the counter.

Lucard was now polishing spoons one by one.

‘He definitely said he didn’t know Irgal, right?’

That question had been swirling in my mind.

Just who is that guy, really?

I decided to probe Varmilo the Grand Priest about it.

“Priest, Irgal told me to give his name here, but the owner says he doesn’t know him?”

Varmilo the Grand Priest’s eyes widened slightly.

“He really said that?”

“Yes, and it just made me feel awkward.”

“Hmmmm.”

After thinking for a moment, the Grand Priest nodded.

“Alright, then it means he’s okay with me telling you.”

“
“……?”

“The truth is, Irgal isn’t his real name. It’s an alias.”

I frowned.

‘Irgal’ was actually an alias?

He’d gone so far to hide his face—just how secretive and noble was this person?

“Then what’s his real name?”

“Well, that is…….”