Hiding the Fact That We Are Dating From the Amnesiac Villain - Chapter 40

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 40
* * *
Dinner arrived as a meager spread of vegetarian fare.
“This is an insult to us!”
Crash!
A high-ranking Purifier of noble birth slammed the table violently.
Those accustomed to lavish meals at the Grand Duke’s Residence seemed convinced the Priests had deliberately served this pathetic food out of spite, a calculated humiliation.
‘The Temple only serves grass, you hothouse flowers….’
No, wait. Reconsidering their ostentatious attire, perhaps they actually indulged in luxurious meat feasts among themselves….
Freena chewed her greens with an expressionless face.
“Oh my. Is it because you’re of commoner stock? It seems you’re quite accustomed to eating fodder like this.”
Some among them were deliberately provoking her.
Most of the Purifiers employed by Caesar were arrogant nobles.
‘You truly have nothing better to do….’
Outside, Caesar’s own Knights were dying, coughing blood.
Moreover, unlike Freena who had only recently arrived, they had likely been entrenched at the Grand Duke’s Residence for quite some time.
Shouldn’t they be far more concerned about the Knights’ safety than anyone?
Freena sighed deeply and turned her gaze toward the window.
A murky sky enveloped the surroundings.
Beyond lay the Forbidden Zone.
‘A Purifier could endure until their sacred power depleted….’
But those trapped there were Knights with barely a shred of sacred power.
Four days?
‘That’s already lasting quite long.’
An ordinary person would go mad and perish within a day of inhaling that dense demonic energy.
Even Caesar’s Elite Knights, through extreme training, would slow their breathing and regulate their vital energy, desperately expelling the demonic essence seeping into their bodies just to survive.
So how did such warriors end up secretly entering the Forbidden Zone?
“Did you know? The Knights trapped there aren’t just ordinary elite. They say they’re his closest companions who’ve fought back-to-back with him since his first campaign.”
“So that’s why he’s making such an effort to rescue them.”
That couldn’t be right.
Decklin wouldn’t have come this far to save them out of mere compassion.
‘Though perhaps…’
Doubt suddenly bloomed in a corner of my mind.
Hadn’t he come all this way to rescue the Knights despite enduring humiliation?
If Decklin couldn’t bear the Archbishop’s degradation and chose to retreat, abandoning the Knights….
A fatal blemish would be carved into Caesar’s honor and the Grand Duke’s reputation.
Not only had they arrogantly violated the Forbidden Zone.
A vicious stigma would follow—that he had spurned even the Archbishop’s mercy, driving the Knights to their doom.
That was precisely what the Archbishop desired.
* * *
Midnight.
Freena slept in her assigned chamber.
‘Mmm…’
Knock, knock, knock.
A low, rhythmic knocking pierced through the darkness.
‘What is that sound?’
Unable to fall into deep sleep, I had been tossing restlessly—the intermittent noise immediately seized my attention.
Had I imagined it?
Knock, knock, knock.
But the sound of knuckles against the door rang out again, far more distinct this time.
“Miss Freena, it’s me.”
The cool voice drifting through the door was unmistakable.
The drowsy haze that had enveloped me evaporated as if ice water had been poured over my head.
‘…Decklin?’
Why on earth would he seek out her chamber at such an ungodly hour?
And so secretively, no less.
…I suppose I should open the door first.
Freena hurriedly rose and carefully opened the door.
“Thank you, Miss Freena.”
“Oh, no, Your Excellency…”
Upon seeing Decklin standing before the door, I nearly gasped.
He was not dressed in his usual formal uniform, buttoned to the collar with its sharp, suffocating lines.
Instead, he wore light, unadorned combat attire.
“…But what brings you here at this hour?”
His typically immaculate jet-black hair was disheveled across his forehead, as though he had come in haste.
The sight struck me as peculiar.
Decklin Caesar, appearing so unkempt as he sought her out.
Freena could not conceal her bewilderment, her eyes widening.
Decklin gazed down at her from the darkness, his crimson eyes luminous.
“Miss Freena.”
“…”
“Will you venture with me to the Forbidden Zone now?”
What madness was this?
Freena stood speechless, her eyes blinking rapidly in utter astonishment.
‘Where does he want to go?’
…The Forbidden Zone?
In the middle of the night, no less?
“The Temple’s interior defenses are sparse at the moment. Now is our opportunity, Miss Freena.”
Yet Decklin’s expression remained utterly grave, devoid of any jest.
He truly intended to breach the Forbidden Zone.
‘Have I lost my mind? If I’m discovered…’
But at the same time, I understood the situation.
If I knelt before the Archbishop, Caesar’s authority would crumble.
Yet if I abandoned the Knights and retreated, that too would leave a fatal stain on my honor.
For Decklin right now, this was the best option available.
“Understood, sir. I’ll prepare immediately.”
“Good.”
Decklin smiled faintly.
“Freena and I will go together.”
“That is…”
What?
“What I need is Freena. Prepare yourself and come out quickly.”
The door closed with a soft click.
Freena stared blankly at the closed door.
…What did he just say?
* * *
‘Just the two of us?’
I was bewildered by this situation.
‘What about all those high-ranking Purifiers?’
The corridor of the Annex Building that the Temple had provided to Decklin’s party was silent as a tomb.
I followed Decklin with bated breath.
As we left the Annex Building, the dark sky came into view.
“Sir.”
Ronan approached silently from beneath a tree.
He handed Decklin a large bundle.
“As you commanded, I’ve loaded the finest purification stones and provisions onto the carriage. I’ll draw attention here. You need only board the carriage and proceed to the Forbidden Zone.”
“Thank you for your efforts.”
They had indeed prepared everything in the dead of night for a covert entry.
‘…If we’re discovered like this, it will be a catastrophe.’
Cold as it may sound, sacrificing an Elite Knight was a rational choice for Decklin.
“…Excuse me, you’re really not taking any other Purifiers with you?”
Silence fell at my question.
“…Sir, you haven’t explained anything to Freena?”
Ronan, who had been calmly finishing his preparations, seemed slightly taken aback.
“Freena.”
Then Decklin stepped closer to me.
“How many can you purify at once?”
“…I can purify up to twenty. With more effort, twenty-five.”
Typically, a 6th-rank Purifier’s maximum capacity was twenty.
I was 7th-rank, but nearly at that threshold.
“That’s sufficient.”
“But another Purifier might be better than me….”
“It has to be Freena.”
Decklin Caesar’s voice drove the point home with finality.
“Freena, His Excellency is currently considering the worst-case scenario: that all of the isolated Elite Knights have had their minds corrupted by demonic energy.”
…What?
“In that case, bringing you—whose purity is overwhelmingly superior to other Purifiers—is the best course of action. Especially for an operation that requires crossing the barrier covertly without drawing anyone’s attention.”
‘If their minds are corrupted by demonic energy….’
Escape from within would be impossible.
Reason would be consumed by the demonic energy, leaving them incapable of even conceiving the thought of escape.
“Your Excellency, please return safely. I will buy us time here.”
* * *
“You must be tired from waking up at night. Try to get some rest, Freena.”
That was what Decklin said as he helped me into the carriage.
Yet I couldn’t sleep a wink.
‘…Will I really be alright?’
If I hadn’t seen the future, I wouldn’t be this anxious. But then I would be rushing headlong toward a terrible fate, knowing nothing.
I fidgeted with the crystal fragment resting on my lap.
I was keeping it safe so its power wouldn’t drain away.
The moment I sensed the worst-case scenario approaching, I would use it.
Clatter, clatter.
The carriage raced toward the blackened earth.
‘Decklin can even drive horses himself. This is truly unexpected.’
Under normal circumstances, he would never sit in the driver’s seat. But given that we couldn’t afford to involve any outsiders, he was driving personally.
…Did he really treasure his knights so much?
It would have been more in line with Decklin’s usual calculations to simply discard the seven Elite Knights and recruit new ones. The fact that he wasn’t doing so made it clear he didn’t view them as expendable.
Yet I was troubled because I knew of a future where Decklin himself would turn his knights into a zombie army.
‘Sigh. I really can’t make sense of this.’
Beyond the window stretched desolate land where not a single blade of grass grew.
The sudden realization that only she and Decklin existed in this place sent a chill down my spine.
In that moment, the carriage came to a halt.
‘We haven’t even reached the Forbidden Zone yet?’

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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