I’m a Holy Knight, but I Contracted with an Evil God - Chapter 28

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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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Episode 28.
“Since you’ve all exchanged introductions already, I’ll skip the formalities. Everyone, take a seat.”

Aila settled into the chair at the head of the table and laid down a thick sheaf of papers.
A shadow fell across documents stamped with the seal .
In that same instant, the air in the conference room grew thin, as though all oxygen had been sucked from it.

“Have results come in?”
“Yes. Not everything, but we’ve got the broad outline now.”
As Aila turned the first page of the report, the parchment folded beneath it unrolled.
It was no ordinary map.
It was a list crowded with names of the missing.
“From the scene in Silvaren Forest, we’ve identified two key things: the materials used in the sorcery, and its purpose.”

No one asked questions.
Leon, who had witnessed it firsthand, as well as the other Elite Knights had all read the report of the scene and understood its circumstances.
Aila continued, her voice charged with intensity.

“These unknown bastards appear to have been attempting to artificially create Contaminated Beings using humans as material. We’ve confirmed that a considerable number of humans were sacrificed in the process.”
“…What exactly are you saying?”

Bregarr asked carefully.
Yet his face already betrayed that he had guessed the answer.
Leon, too, felt he knew what was coming.

“The number of corpses found at the scene was substantial.”
“How many?”
“Confirmed count is in the dozens. We’re working on estimates that it may exceed a hundred.”
“…Over a hundred…”
“What kind of madness—”

Everyone exhaled groans and sighs, but Leon felt no shock.
The scattered corpses, blood, and fragments of flesh at the scene had already suggested that the number of victims was far from small.
“Then surely this is the work of Evil Deity Worshippers?”
“Obviously. Those lunatics doing their insane work is hardly surprising anymore!”
“Right. Those bastards haven’t been in their right minds for days on end.”

Alarik, Tristan, and Corbin spoke in turn, but Aila neither affirmed nor denied, remaining silent.
Rather than add his voice to theirs, Leon directed a question toward Ecrize.

‘There were no traces of Holy Power at the scene, were there?’
【There weren’t. Even if there had been, the traces would’ve been erased thanks to the power you exerted.】

If the Church found no direct traces of Holy Power like those Leon himself had witnessed, they would struggle to identify any plausible culprit besides Evil Deity Worshippers.
If such levels of Holy Power had been wielded, the wielder must surely be one of the Three Main Deities’ followers—which would suggest a rat within the Church itself.
It was a possibility no one could even conceive of without witnessing clear evidence, as Leon had.

‘The investigation will head down the wrong path. I have to account for that.’
【Because we can’t know who the rat is?】
‘Exactly.’

Leon waited for Aila’s next words, his expression grown grave.
Aila had let the other four vent their fury sufficiently before opening her mouth again.

“The numbers don’t add up with just the missing reported from the immediate area. So the Church intends to expand its investigation across the entire continent.”
“You believe the victims were sourced from other regions?”
“Precisely. Look at this.”

So saying, Aila pointed to the dense text written across the map.
The alternating region names and numbers filled the viewer with a grotesque, creeping dread.
Alarik opened his mouth, his expression growing grave.
“Surely this isn’t the entire list of the missing?”
“It is. Too much to be coincidence, wouldn’t you say?”
“I don’t understand. So many people vanished, yet nobody noticed?”
“Most of the missing aren’t nobility.”

Leon cut in quietly at Alarik’s bewildered murmur.
Alarik’s face stiffened, but Leon pressed on without pause.

“Which means the disappearances themselves weren’t treated as significant.”
“Still, surely they filed reports? At least the families would have—”
“What could they do? They likely didn’t have the means to hire anyone to search. Looking at the details, these are people who barely scrape by from day to day.”

Corbin supported Leon’s words with a grimace on his face.
When their eyes met, he scrunched his nose playfully before turning to Aila with a question.
“Then has Iseran Youngsik been found? Wasn’t his disappearance the starting point of this entire investigation?”
“No. That’s the most troubling part. No body, not even a trace.”
“Missing, then?”
“Count Iseran wants to believe it’s a disappearance, since there’s no corpse to identify—but given that almost no bodies were left intact, it’s my personal view that Iseran Youngsik is likely among those remains.”
It wasn’t an unfounded guess.
In truth, countless corpses had been mutilated beyond recognition, and it would be far from strange if Iseran Youngsik was among them.
The very assumption that he alone survived that hell and went missing bordered on hollow wishful thinking.
But a parent’s heart follows its own logic.
“True enough—when Elite Knights have fallen, there’s no reason to believe the boy emerged unscathed.”
“Nobility or not, it doesn’t seem to matter much to them.”
As Corbin shrugged, a heavy silence descended over the group once more.
Everyone held a dim view of Youngsik’s chances of survival.
Leon was no exception.
What they wanted had nothing to do with a noble’s ransom.

“So our task is to investigate these disappearance cases?”
“Precisely, Corbin. The Church is proceeding under the assumption that the disappearances across the continent are connected to them, and plans a full-scale reinvestigation.”
“The entire continent? Our numbers alone won’t suffice for that.”
“That’s why we’re formally requesting the cooperation of the Vaniser Church in the North and the Elionel Church in the South.”
“A joint operation, then.”
“What’s our assignment?”

As questions poured in, Aila retrieved another parchment she’d set aside and unrolled it.
A diagram was drawn on this parchment, and the moment Leon recognized what it depicted, his face went rigid.
It was a pattern he knew all too well—a mark, rather.
And it seemed one other person in this room recognized it.
For Tristan, standing beside Leon, cried out in a sharp voice.

“That’s the sacrificial mark used in the Eastern Region. Where did that come from?”
“This mark was carved into the corpses of Sepian and Ilbar.”
“What… did you just say?”

His fierce expression went blank as if he’d been struck from behind.

“Is that the truth?”
“It is.”

Leon answered in his stead, and Tristan’s gaze shifted toward him.
At the same time, heat began to rise slowly across Tristan’s frozen features.
Just as Tristan was about to shout something, Aila spoke again.

“So it really is the mark used in the Eastern Region.”
“You’ve already confirmed this?”
“We have a trainee from the Eastern Region. He’s from the outer settlements, so he wasn’t certain—but judging by your reaction, my suspicion seems to have been correct.”

The candidate from the Eastern Region whom Aila mentioned was likely Syrent.
And judging by the exchange between Aila and Tristan, it seemed Tristan himself hailed from a region closer to wherever that emblem was used than Syrent did.

“The Church will deploy available personnel to investigate the disappearance. However, given the gravity of the matter, narrowing the scope quickly is equally important. Dorcanel, you’ll go to Central and request cooperation from both the Vaniser Church and the Elionel Church. Mordian and Corbin will help sift through the information as it comes in. As for you, Tristan……”

Aila’s gaze turned toward Tristan and Leon standing beside him.
She smiled faintly, as if uncertain, before speaking.

“Investigate whether anything suspicious has occurred related to this emblem.”
“Of course. Given my origins, I’m well suited for it.”
“Leon comes with you.”

At Aila’s words, Tristan’s face crumpled immediately.

“You’re asking me to babysit in a situation like this?”
“Babysit? Leon is a proper Elite Knight.”
“He’s nothing but a lucky brat!”

His voice rose, and Aila’s expression froze cold.
As the room fell silent as if doused with ice water, she opened her mouth in a voice like winter.

“Know the difference between public and private, Tristan. No matter how close you and Sepian were, there are lines that must be observed. Leon went through proper procedures and earned the recognition to be selected as one of our Elite Knights. He may lack experience, but he is not unqualified.”

Tristan fell silent.
He seemed unable to acknowledge Aila’s point, yet appeared equally unwilling to argue against it.
Watching Tristan clench his teeth, Aila continued.

“I’m not telling you to drag him along recklessly. As you well know, the Eastern Region is dominated by unidentified sorcery and unique customs. That’s precisely why Leon will be more useful than anyone.”
“Useful how? What use is an inexperienced newcomer in the Eastern Region? Am I supposed to use him as a shield?”
“Leon’s unique ability is Purification. You know he’s a Saint Mark Bearer, don’t you?”

Saint Mark Bearer.
At those words, the gazes of three Elite Knights—Tristan included—snapped toward Leon.
And all three simultaneously recalled the Proof Ceremony incident that had stirred the entire Church a year ago.
That day when the Golden Glory, one of the Holy Artifacts of Arseliel used in the admission ceremony, had scattered golden petals upon Leon.
The fact that the Church had been abuzz because of that incident for some time afterward.

“Regardless, this is a separate matter. We’re talking about the Eastern Region, not somewhere else! I can’t take along a brat who can’t even look after himself, no matter how special one ability might be!”

Yet Tristan still refused.
He dismissed the Saint Mark’s power as merely a specialty, continuing to treat Leon as an unqualified child.
Finally, Aila’s patience snapped.
“Enough.”

A sharp rebuke filled the conference chamber.
Aila glared at Tristan with a stern face.

“In my judgment, you need time to cool your head, but I’m sending you because the nature of the mission requires it. Go with the ‘brat’ and learn to control your emotions.”
“……I will keep that in mind.”

With that sharp edge, Aila had subdued Tristan at last. She swept her gaze across the room, examining each of the five faces one by one.
Then, after a moment, she spoke in a voice hardened with resolve.

“Leon, I hope you will learn much working alongside Tristan. Elite Knights typically undertake solo assignments, so an opportunity like this will not come often. With that, this meeting is adjourned. Dorcanel, Tristan, and Leon—depart as soon as preparations are complete.”
Continued in next episode ▶
A Holy Knight with a Contract to an Evil Deity
Author
Lam Dat
Publisher
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Published by
Grae Publishing
For inquiries
[email protected]
Publication date
March 27, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260227066
※ This e-book is protected under copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and distribution are prohibited. Violation of these terms may result in criminal and civil liability.
※ Pentagram welcomes submissions from writers.

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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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