an felt as though he could fly.

Ding!

[Luise has escaped the status ailment “Self-Reproach.”]

Ding!

[Luise has escaped the status ailment “Despair.”]

Ding!

[Luise has escaped the status ailment “Severe Anxiety.”]

With a single event, every one of Luise’s status ailments vanished.

Then came a notification so significant it overshadowed even that joy.

Ding!

[The scholar Nameita has joined the dungeon.]

[Dungeon level has increased.]

[Dungeon]

LV. 27 ▶ LV. 28

[Confirm]

“We got a tank!”

Ian trembled with excitement. Considering he’d only accepted the quest to recruit Genea, the returns were absurdly profitable.

But as the hidden truth surrounding Luise’s parents came to light, Keith—silent until now—suddenly spoke in a grave tone.

A bad feeling crept over Ian.

‘Don’t tell me he’s going to interfere with the quest again.’

Still, Nameita’s quest had to be completed. Even if uniting the other races wouldn’t trigger some miraculous event like “By the grace of God, the demons retreat on their own,” as Nameita hoped, recruiting him alone was already worth the trouble.

Besides, Ian already knew there wasn’t even an achievement tied to uniting the races.

Naturally, he had tested it himself countless times.

Would someone who spent his time digging through the tutorial for hidden Easter eggs ignore something that sounded this much like prophecy-flavored foreshadowing?

“What is it?” Ian asked cautiously.

Seeing the guarded look on Ian’s face, Keith felt a stab of guilt.

There had once been a time when Ian trusted him without reservation. Now, however, Ian watched him warily—likely because of the arrogance Keith had developed after receiving special treatment.

‘I need to clear up this misunderstanding first.’

Keith made up his mind.

It was true that he held strong opinions about the other races. Ian himself wasn’t prejudiced against them, but Keith knew he could sometimes sound narrow-minded. It was only natural that Ian might assume he would oppose such an ambitious plan.

But Keith had no intention of doing so.

Yes, he believed the other races were unreliable and cowardly. Not because of prejudice, but because experience had proven it.

“Wait. Luise, stay with Nameita for a while. He was your father’s friend, so I’m sure you two have a lot to talk about.”

“...Excuse me?”

Luise and Nameita exchanged bewildered looks.

Keith silently admired Ian’s thoughtfulness, though he couldn’t help sighing at the same time.

This man was far too soft when it came to the weak.

“Let’s go.”

Following Ian, Keith entered a small room nearby.

Once the door shut behind them, the elderly dwarf’s awkward attempts at conversation—“How have you been?” “Are they treating you well?”—faded from earshot.

“Lord Ian, did you know from the beginning that the boy from the ‘Traitor Clan’ was the child of the one who opened the Demon Gate?”

“They’re not the Traitor Clan. Call them the ‘Wandering Clan,’” Ian corrected immediately.

Keith let out a quiet sigh. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Ian was sharp and cautious when necessary, but the moment he encountered the suffering of the oppressed, all his defenses crumbled.

“Do you truly trust the dwarf’s words?” Keith asked carefully. “Nothing he said has been verified.”

“I trust you.”

The reply came so easily that Keith fell silent.

Ian looked directly into his eyes as he continued.

“You said yourself that Nameita was telling the truth.”

For some reason, Keith’s throat suddenly felt dry.

“...The dwarf may have believed he was telling the truth. That doesn’t mean the human traitor told him the truth in the first place.”

“It’s true,” Ian said firmly.

Keith already knew what answer was coming next, yet he still asked anyway.

“How can you be so certain?”

“What were you listening to all this time?” Ian replied, crossing his arms. “Nameita said it himself. All races have to unite against the demons. And I’m the only one who can make that happen. Do you really think a dwarf capable of seeing that far ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) ahead would befriend someone insignificant?”

Ian lifted his chin confidently.

Watching him stand there with such shameless self-assurance, Keith suddenly burst out laughing.

Even when Ian casually brushed things off with nonsense like “God told me,” Keith had simply assumed he had his reasons for staying secretive. But when Ian acted this absurdly confident, it became impossible not to laugh.

And honestly... the dwarf’s judgment wasn’t wrong.

Who other than Ian could possibly fulfill a prophecy of that scale?

Keith exhaled quietly.

“...I apologize.”

“For what?”

“For understanding the prophecy less clearly than even a dwarf, despite calling myself a servant of God.”

Keith lowered his gaze.

“I knew the words of the prophecy, yet dismissed them as relics of the past. I worried over your refusal to study scripture, all while failing to realize that your actions themselves embody God’s will. I heard, but did not understand. I saw, but did not perceive.”

“Well... you don’t need to be so hard on yourself.”

“You wanted me to realize it on my own, didn’t you? By bringing me to different places and allowing me to meet other races, you were trying to broaden my narrow perspective. I understand that now.”

Ian tried to brush it off lightly, but Keith could only feel bitterness.

How much kindness had been shown to me without my ever noticing?

Blinded by his own desires, he had mistaken Ian’s consideration for something natural.

He had arrogantly assumed it was only right for Ian—a servant of God—to keep him close.

But it had never been obligation.

It had always been kindness.

Back when Keith lost his family and companions and swore, amidst the ruins of his village, to dedicate himself as God’s servant—

What was the duty of a servant?

To follow.

And yet, inside the dwarven prison, Keith had abandoned that duty.

Consumed by fury at the words “demon worshiper,” he had placed his own judgment above Ian’s command.

Ian, being the remarkable man he was, had rebuked him immediately.

Keith had reflected deeply on his actions afterward, yet resentment toward Ian still lingered somewhere in his heart.

Doubt.

One of the countless flaws that plagued him.

Just as he had once doubted God’s existence, he had doubted Ian as well.

‘That child from the Betrayer Clan is undoubtedly connected to a greater evil. Why is Ian trying to stop his confession? Doesn’t he understand that evil must be eradicated at the root before it spreads further? ...Lord Ian is too compassionate. Perhaps it is my duty to strike first, even if he comes to hate me for it. But what kind of servant acts without his master’s command?’

Keith’s heart churned endlessly.

He didn’t want Ian to hate him.

Caught between conviction and weakness, he wavered.

What should he do?

Lost in thought, even the time he spent imprisoned had passed quickly.

After defeating the demon worshipers and rescuing the captives, Ian had approached him first—like a shepherd guiding back a sheep that had strayed from the flock.

This man was too kind.

Even to a sinful servant, Ian offered concern rather than punishment.

No wonder people like Keith became spoiled in his presence.

Even now, Keith found himself hoping for things he shouldn’t.

I want him to keep me close.

I want him to comfort my weakness.

I want him to accept my foolishness.

To forgive every mistake I make and guide me despite it all.

To pity someone as pathetic as me.

“I can’t allow that.”

Keith crushed those budding desires before they could grow into something even uglier.

Are these feelings truly mine?

Or are they the cursed seeds planted by that demon finally beginning to sprout?

But perhaps blaming the demon was nothing more than another excuse for his own weakness.

So instead of surrendering to those selfish desires, Keith offered Ian sincere advice.

“Please... don’t pity me too much.”

Whether he truly meant those words, even he did not know.

And yet, despite himself, he still found his lips moving—confessing the darkest moment of his life to the very person whose sympathy he feared most.

“Lord Ian... my village was annihilated by mamool. Later, after joining the Holy Knights, I learned the massacre had been orchestrated by demon worshipers.”