The words spoken by the Confessarius did not have a trace of emotional fluctuation, as if the person he were facing was not the Patriot who once belonged to the Sarkaz ethnic group, but merely an irrelevant stranger. This was despite the fact that standing before him was the hero who had once stood side-by-side with the Demon King to protect Kazdel, a legend whose stories were still sung of to this day. But even though his attitude toward Patriot was incredibly icy, the soldiers behind him could not manage to be as calm as he was.
From the moment Patriot's tall and sturdy figure appeared, a burst of commotion rippled through the surrounding soldiers, and subsequently, the hands they used to grip their weapons tightened even further. This was a Wendigo; he possessed the ability to tear soldiers like them to pieces in an instant! As soldiers who clearly knew they might end up fighting, how could they not be nervous?
"Confessarrii, and Vampires. Truly nostalgic; I thought that ever since I left Kazdel, I would never have any relationship with you again".
Patriot's crimson eyes swept over these fellows; the words he spoke were unknown whether they were being said to himself or to the two people in front of him. At this moment, Jeanne was hiding within the forest not far from them, observing every movement over there very carefully. She did not intend to lean in too closely; the current distance was just right, allowing her to rush there to support Patriot in the shortest amount of time. If she were too close, the possibility of being discovered would be too high.
Upon hearing the other party's slightly nostalgic words, the Confessarius only gave a slight shake of his head. Although no expression could be seen because of the mask on his face, Patriot could sense the other's disdain.
"If you wish to see old friends, you only need to follow us back. When that time comes, we can even convene a Royal Court meeting for you so that you all can meet".
The Confessarius's current words were still very polite, perhaps because, if possible, they also did not wish to fight such a battle with Patriot. After all, they had some understanding of how difficult this fellow was to deal with; and taking action was never the thing the Confessarrii were best at.
Hearing the other party so eagerly wishing to take him back to Kazdel, Patriot only gave a slight shake of his head and said in a tone carrying regret:
"I know what your request for coming here is, but regarding this matter, I can only say 'no comment.' Furthermore, the Wendigos do not know many of that thing's secrets".
Patriot told them the things they wanted to know; he did, after all, still feel nostalgia for his former home, and if it were possible, he also did not wish to take action. And in the memories of the Wendigos, there were indeed not many records concerning that thing; those memories indicated that there was one ethnic group that had hidden this secret away. Thinking to this point, Patriot placed his gaze upon these fellows known as the Confessarrii, but he did not say anything.
"That is not for you to determine! How can we confirm that you are not deceiving us? If you truly know nothing, then just come back with us once".
The Confessarius was not surprised that Patriot was clear about their purpose for coming here; it was nothing more than there being an undercover agent among the nobles they cooperated with, or the Wendigos being able to perceive something. But he did not believe—or rather, could not confirm—whether the words Patriot spoke were true. And the matter of being able to distinguish the truth or falsehood of words could only be done once they reached Kazdel.
But this was impossible for Patriot to accept; he only shook his head and slowly spoke to the fellow in front of him:
"That is impossible; since I have already separated from Kazdel, I will not choose to return again. These are words I once spoke to Her Highness".
How could Patriot not know what kind of plan this fellow was hatching? If he truly returned to Kazdel, would he still be able to come back? Thinking about it was impossible. The reason they did not hesitate to cooperate with the Ursus nobles just to bring him back to Kazdel was not merely because he possessed knowledge of that secret. More importantly, they needed the power of the Wendigo to change this war, which had fallen into a stalemate because of a single mistake. It seemed that when attacking Laterano, the losses Theresis endured were even larger than he had imagined—large enough to affect the current war. Or rather, had the Princess's side taken this opportunity to make some kind of counterattack, leading to the point where Theresis's side needed to find outside help? Since he did not know that much, Patriot could only speculate this many possibilities in this short amount of time. As for how they intended to persuade him once he returned to Kazdel, Patriot was not clear, nor did he want to know what kind of means they had.
"The Sarkaz of old divided the Royal Court; the ten Royal Courts jointly swore that no matter what happened, they would absolutely not interfere with the choices of other Royal Court members".
Patriot did not continue to pay attention to this Confessarius; he was very clear that this fellow was impossible to communicate with, and currently only thought about taking him back. He turned his head and asked the Sanguinarch beside him in a tone that was nearly one of questioning: "Could it be that the Sarkaz Royal Court, having been passed down to this day, finally intends to lay hands upon a member of the Royal Court as well?"
The various Sarkaz Royal Courts of the past had established an unbreakable oath, and the inheritance of this oath also flowed within the bloodlines of the various Sarkaz Royal Courts. Even though Patriot had already separated from Kazdel, just like the Cyclopes who settled in Sami, he still belonged to one of the various Sarkaz Kings. And now, another King was actually cooperating with the Confessarrii to capture him; this was already equivalent to tearing up the Sarkaz covenant. Patriot was also very clear that this Vampire was the fellow who most admired these ancient covenants. Perhaps he could use this covenant to make him withdraw. Otherwise, fighting so many fellows would be quite strenuous. As for Jeanne? Patriot hoped she would not take action if she could avoid it.
At this moment, Jeanne, who was hiding in the dark, had also not expected this old man to be so well-spoken! He actually spoke to the point where these two fellows were left speechless. Although she knew Patriot's eloquence was very good, this old gentleman usually gave people the feeling of being a reticent and taciturn general. Looking at the situation today, even if this old gentleman hadn't joined the army back then, being a debater would have been more than sufficient. Of course, his previous lack of speaking might have been because the Originium growing on his throat was uncomfortable, so he spoke as little as possible. Now that his condition had improved, he had already become accustomed to it.
"I didn't expect that the once-taciturn fellow would actually become so well-spoken. My coming this time is merely to take you back at the moment of your defeat".
Upon hearing Patriot's questioning, the Sanguinarch only gave a slight smile; he merely lamented that this fellow, who was once so incredibly young, had actually turned into this state. The Sarkaz around them, who thought the Great Lord would take action, were also a bit strange in their hearts upon seeing this scene. This was a master who would kill a person just because someone spoke a bit loudly to him. How was it that today, under such questioning from this Wendigo, there wasn't even the slightest bit of annoyance? Or was it just that they weren't qualified enough?
"However, since you feel such a strong aversion to my presence, I shall disappear first. In any case, I will come over when you are defeated".
As those words fell, the Sanguinarch before them turned into a cloud of thick smoke and disappeared from the spot, leaving behind only the Confessarius who was constantly prepared to take action. While Patriot was still wondering why this old fellow was so easy to talk to today, the Confessarius over there was also looking at the place where the Sanguinarch had disappeared, staring blankly for a long time. He now even suspected that this big bat had come here just to mess with his state of mind! Had he known this would happen, he would have brought a different helper here to assist him no matter what. And now, it was absolutely impossible for the Wendigo before his eyes to honestly return with him; since that was the case, he had no choice but to take action.
"Then, excuse me, Clan Leader of the Wendigo Royal Court!"
Having said that, he then gave orders to the surrounding Sarkaz, preparing to fight with Patriot.
"Then, let me see if the swordsmanship you have inherited is as powerful as the legends say!"
Patriot also did not waste words; a black-and-red airflow coiled around his body, and holding his great halberd and shield, he charged toward the Confessarius.
At the same time, Jeanne, who was preparing to support Patriot from the shadows, felt a burst of chilling air that made one turn cold, and this chilling air was currently gradually approaching her. Seeing this, Jeanne hurriedly gripped her flagpole; the black dragon flag upon it was fluttering because of this chilling air. It seemed that someone had discovered her. Thinking of this, Jeanne hurriedly took out a bottle of holy water she had prepared long ago from behind her; no matter what kind of monster or demon came over next, if this bottle went down, he would certainly have a hard time of it.
"Your blood seems to have a peculiar fragrance... I have preyed upon all the races on this land, and a scent like this has never appeared. You, of what race are you?"
In the forest, the voice of the Sanguinarch began to echo in Jeanne's ear. And the tone in which he spoke was exactly as if he were saying he planned to start his meal.