My Disciples Became Scoundrels - Chapter 92

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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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Silence hung in the Reception Room, mingling with the faint aroma of tea. I met the High Priest’s gaze, his expression rigid.
The courtesy smile that had graced his lips vanished. In its place, I smiled.
“High Priest. Why are you silent? Is it because I’m Silver Rank that you won’t even speak with me?”
I was glad Arkel and Gai weren’t here. This display wouldn’t be something I’d care to show them.
“You needn’t hold back. I’ve already heard everything worth hearing.”
“How old are you, exactly?”
“As you see.”
His brow furrowed deeper. He seemed unable to believe a mere twenty-year-old was speaking to him this way.
“As I said before, I’m looking for Kihano. Why won’t you give me information about him?”
“Because I don’t know who you are, or what your purpose is.”
His words were stripped of pretense but maintained courtesy. He sipped the lukewarm tea and continued.
“I don’t know why you’re seeking Kihano. It’s unclear whether you’re approaching with intent to harm or otherwise.”
“I understand your concern.”
It was actually a perfectly reasonable reaction. Besides, there was no way he could leak internal temple information so easily. Honesty seemed the better approach.
“I’m searching for Kihano because of the Power of Truth. Do you have another priest with that ability?”
If someone else had that power, there’d be no need to find Kihano. But the High Priest’s expression suggested it wouldn’t be so simple.
He reminded me of a holy knight standing at the front lines—someone who’d sworn never to send anyone else forward in his place.
“That ability is not something easily wielded.”
“Then give me Kihano’s information. Duke Morban must have told you to cooperate fully.”
The temple wasn’t a charity. They primarily sustained themselves by selling their divine powers.
Yet Justia Temple, which preached justice, would never openly conduct such business.
They received modest stipends from the nation, but mostly relied on donations for their income.
Still, it would be difficult to brush off Duke Morban. He’d likely paid them a considerable sum this time.
“Should I tell the Duke about what happened today?”
Hostility radiated clearly from the High Priest. It didn’t matter. He’d disliked me from the start.
I saw him clench both fists. His voice dropped an octave.
“Allow me to reintroduce myself. My name is Belcan. I have something I wish to ask you, Dein.”
I nodded quietly. A weighty resonance reached my ears.
“You’re seeking Kihano because of the Power of Truth?”
“Yes.”
“You have no intention of harming Kihano?”
“No. I have no such intention.”
After those questions, he fell silent. He seemed to be thinking something through carefully. I broke the silence.
“For you to use the Power of Truth on me. It would’ve been better if you’d simply helped me with that ability.”
The High Priest’s rigid posture suddenly lost its composure—not crumbling so much as sharpening, like an animal raising its fur.
A rather intense aura washed over me. My skin prickled as though touched by something scorching.
“How did you know?”
“Because I know Kihano.”
When I’d met Kihano at the Fighting Arena, he’d revealed his name to Arkel before challenging him.
“My name is Kihano. I have a question for you before we fight honorably.”
And the High Priest had given his name as well. It seemed a necessary formality before using the Power of Truth.
The pain in my skin intensified. The sensation was so sharp it felt like being torn apart.
He was indeed the High Priest. Without meaning to, I gripped the teacup’s handle tightly, fighting off the trembling.
If the cup shattered, that too would be shameful. I held it just firmly enough to avoid breaking it or shaking visibly.
Even under that piercing aura and gaze, I managed a strained smile.
“You may ask whatever you wish. I’ll answer honestly. Kihano also holds favorable feelings toward us.”
He didn’t bother asking. Instead, he merely studied me for a long time.
Then the air suddenly grew lighter. The pressure that had constricted my chest vanished. My palms were damp with cold sweat.
He withdrew his aura, but the High Priest’s expression remained displeased. Clearly, he disliked me considerably.
“I cannot use my ability on you. However, I will provide you with information about Kihano.”
“But you already used it on me.”
“I cannot explain the reason.”
It was disappointing, but Kihano’s information was the goal anyway. Since I was here, I might as well press for more.
“I understand. And I believe the temple has a Long-distance Teleportation Magic Circle installed. I’d like to use that.”
“How do you know about that?”
“As I said, I know Kihano.”
It was simple knowledge on my part. Temples typically maintained magic circles to move quickly between branches. I offered a subtle smile.
“I’ll speak well of you to the Duke.”
“When you meet Kihano, please bring him back with you.”
The High Priest rose from his seat. His gaze upon me remained cold until the very end.
Without a word, he stormed out of the Reception Room, his voice booming down the corridor.
“Stop what you’re doing and get over here! Prepare the Long-distance Teleportation Magic Circle!”
“Yes, understood!”
“Wow, that man’s completely unhinged. He was drenched in cold sweat, terrified out of his mind, and yet…….”
I picked up the teacup again. After letting out a sigh, I finished the remaining tea. The Duke’s backing certainly had its uses.
* * *
“We’ve been climbing for five hours now. Is this the right way?”
Stone steps built into the mountainside stretched on without end. Gai, who walked ahead of us, let out a groan.
We were headed toward a Rural Village nestled deep in the mountains—the last place where Kihano had been spotted.
I’d heard it was quite remote. Though I hadn’t expected the ascent to take this long.
Arkel, walking in front, turned back. His gaze settled on me.
“Master, are you holding up? Shall I carry you?”
“I’m fine. You’re asking for the sixth time now.”
After learning of my condition, Arkel had taken to treating me like an elderly parent.
I understood his concern, though it did wound my pride. Gai struggled up the stairs, leaning heavily on his own thigh.
“How about you carry me instead, brother? Let’s stop with all the coddling.”
“Perhaps I shall.”
“What’s this?”
“If I’m holding you, you won’t be able to run.”
Arkel eyed Gai with obvious intent. Wherever his gaze fell, it was fixed on the vital points.
“Aren’t you afraid of Kihano? This cooperation of yours is suspiciously convenient.”
I shared the same suspicion. Gai showed no sign of intimidation whatsoever. Even though the truth would come to light once he faced Kihano.
All that showed on his face now was exhaustion. He collapsed onto the steps, rubbing his legs, and spoke with casual insolence.
“I’m honest, like I said. You don’t even need to find that priest. I’ll answer everything for you. Ask me anything.”
His voice sounded sincere enough. Yet even now, those violet eyes showed no sign of weakness.
Whatever I asked, he’d likely lie again. But this was an opportunity nonetheless. Ask anything……. I paused to think, then opened my mouth.
“Do you have parents?”
“Is that an insult?”
He seemed amused rather than offended. He focused intently on stretching out his legs.
“I do have parents.”
“When did you last contact them?”
Gai, who had been pressing his legs firmly, lifted his head. Confusion crossed his expression.
“I thought you’d ask about Hayden?”
“I don’t know anything about you.”
There was no point asking about Hayden anyway—he wouldn’t answer.
I realized I knew nothing of Gai. His background, his age, his face. So I decided to ask about him instead.
“What were your parents like? What was their temperament?”
“……You’re asking about that too?”
“You said I could ask you anything.”
Gai’s eyes narrowed. He wore a smile tinged with malice. Like a child, almost.
A child who deliberately showed something grotesque and hoped the other person would scream.
“My parents were my first victims.”
Victims. That word carried multiple meanings. Arkel’s brows drew together with subtle tension.
“What do you mean ‘victims’? Did you kill them?”
Gai laughed in the shadows. He looked satisfied.
“What do you think, Master? Which would you say it is?”
“I don’t care.”
Shadows fell across Gai’s face, yet his expression remained perfectly visible. The look of a child whose prank had failed.
“I asked you about your parents’ character.”
Gai was like a child pressing a dead insect into someone’s hand and delighting in their shock. A troublemaker.
But I was forty years old. I was well past the age of playing along with childish pranks.
“What kind of people did your parents seem to you?”
Gai’s expression stiffened noticeably. Like a child who’d had the insect taken back.
“Why parents, of all things?”
“You said you’d answer anything. Did you change your mind?”
People always have lies prepared about themselves. But few prepare for questions about those around them.
Friends, family, lovers……. Rather, people tend to show their true selves in the face of such questions. Just as Gai was doing now.
The shadows deepened, whether from the clouds or something else. Gai’s voice emerged from the darkness.
“……They were good people. Foolish, really. And that’s what happened to them because of me.”
His tone was mocking. His gaze still fixed on some distant point, though he turned to face me.
“It’s boring that only I’m answering. Master, what do you mean you killed Hayden’s parents…?”
“Wait.”
I raised my hand and Gai fell silent. The space around us stilled. Then the presence I’d felt before became far more distinct.
Understanding the situation, Gai drew a dagger from his sleeve.
“Truly, there is no rest to be had.”
—Shrieeek!
Seconds passed, and the signs grew sharper. Something surged down from the high stairs like a mudslide.
Armed Goblins. Their shrieks shook the mountain.
Twenty of them? No—more than that. Arkel strode up the stairs.
“Master, I swear not a drop of your blood shall stain your hands. Please, rest.”
I laughed silently. I’d raised my disciple well. Yet I gripped the sword’s hilt.
“Arkel. I am your master, but I am also a swordsman.”
The Goblins wielded swords with all their teeth missing—small fry, magical beasts, blades like rubbish.
“It is shameful for a swordsman to keep his hands clean.”
Still, my heart quickened at the prospect of battle. I felt the Blood Qi stir within me as I drew my sword.
“So do not rob me of my filth.”

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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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