Atlas asked with widened eyes as he could no longer put the pieces together. He had thought this Angel was someone after the Relic, perhaps someone who had followed him from the Guild or maybe another assassin sent to eliminate him...but what he was hearing now made no sense at all.
So, he asked again, "What did you just say? You are from the Rosaria Household?" Hearing the confusion and disbelief in Atlas’s voice, Kaelion hurriedly replied, "Y-Yes! I am a knight from the Rosaria Household! I was sent by the Patriarch!"
The very moment the word Patriarch left his mouth, Atlas’s expression changed completely. Instead of becoming more shocked, his eyes narrowed sharply, and the hand gripping Kaelion’s throat tightened once again.
"Kheu-!" Kaelion instinctively grabbed Atlas’s wrist with both hands and tried to pry it away, but it did not move in the slightest. The strength behind that grip was far beyond anything he had expected. His breathing became more labored as disbelief filled his mind. ’What in the world?...He was only an A-rank the last time we met, How did he become this strong? Even Special S-ranks don’t possess this level of physical strength.’
Even then, Kaelion forced himself to stay calm. ’No matter...even if I die, I can’t reveal that the Patriarch ordered me to bring him there by force, I have to think of something.’
His mind rapidly ran through everything that had happened since this Human named Atlas first appeared, from the day Seraphiel invited him to the Rosaria Household to the moment Atlas met Dravenson. Kaelion himself had not made an appearance that day because he had been occupied with other matters.
Seeing the cold look in Atlas’s narrowed eyes sent chills crawling down Kaelion’s spine before Atlas finally spoke again.
"Why?"
"H-Huh?" Kaelion responded instinctively, unable to understand what Atlas meant.
Atlas’s gaze became even colder as he repeated himself, this time with clear anger behind his eyes. "Why did he send you? To kill me? that contract clearly prohibits anyone from the Rosaria Household from harming me...so why would he want me dead, or even try to harm me? It would cost his daughter too, wouldn’t it?"
Atlas’s grip tightened even further as he asked again, his voice turning frighteningly cold. No matter how much he thought about it, none of it made any sense. According to Seraphiel herself, the Relic Contract prevented anyone from the Rosaria Household from harming him. If that was true, then the Patriarch sending someone after him completely contradicted that rule.
"I’ll ask you one last time." Atlas’s voice echoed quietly through the room as his grip loosened only slightly. "Why did the Patriarch of the Rosaria Household send you? From the way you searched this Inn, I could tell you came here specifically looking for me. I will loosen my grip...but if you lie, or refuse to answer...you die."
Once again, Kaelion met Atlas’s emotionless stare, and every instinct in his body screamed at him that this Human was not bluffing. It felt as though the slightest wrong word would cost him his life. Swallowing with difficulty, he hurriedly spoke.
"T-The Patriarch wanted to speak to you! About the contract exactly! I-I don’t know the details, but he ordered me to bring you to him because of that matter...a-and as you said, no one from the Rosaria Household can harm you, or Lady Seraphiel herself would be put in danger."
Atlas furrowed his brows as his grip loosened another fraction.
"What?...He wanted to speak to me about the contract?"
That answer only created even more questions. It felt as though a crucial piece of the puzzle was still missing, yet no matter how he tried to connect everything, nothing fit together. He could understand that the Patriarch wanted to discuss the contract...but what about the contract? That was the part Kaelion either did not know or was refusing to tell him.
While Atlas remained lost in thought, Kaelion was struggling with his own conscience.
’Damn it...I had to use the contract as a shield to cover the truth. I’m indirectly using Lady Seraphiel for this...but I have no choice. Once this is over, I’ll have to ask for her forgiveness.’
As that thought crossed his mind, he cautiously looked at Atlas again, only to realize that despite loosening his grip slightly, the expression on Atlas’s face had somehow become even colder than before.
Atlas remained silent for a long moment as countless thoughts passed through his mind one after another. ’I was already planning to sever the contract...does he intend to do the same?’
A moment of pause before they continued,’Hmm, the contract is still active, and I am already far stronger than any SS-rank...maybe even stronger than him.’ His thoughts paused briefly before continuing again,’In that case, it doesn’t matter if I go and see him, Seraphiel his own daughter also mentioned that she had something important to discuss with me...I might as well settle everything at once and see what they have planned.’
Only after reaching that conclusion did Atlas finally loosen his grip completely and release Kaelion’s neck.
THUD!
Kaelion’s body dropped heavily onto the floor as he instinctively grabbed his sore throat, coughing several times while trying to steady his breathing. The entire area around his neck felt numb from Atlas’s overwhelming grip, and even swallowing had become difficult. Before he could fully recover, Atlas’s cold, detached voice echoed throughout the quiet room once again.
"Although I can’t tell whether you spoke the truth or lied...it doesn’t matter to me anymore. If somehow the Patriarch of that Household tries to harm me..." Atlas paused for a brief moment before finishing in the same emotionless tone. "...then he will either die or become crippled."
Kaelion slowly looked up, only to meet Atlas’s completely expressionless face. His pupils widened in horror as chills spread throughout his body. Every word Atlas had spoken just now sounded absurd, yet the calmness in his voice made them feel like undeniable facts rather than empty threats. There wasn’t even the slightest trace of arrogance in his expression, only complete certainty.
’Is it because of that unknown energy that he is this confident?...H-How can he say something like that so casually?...Is he really...a monster like the one that appeared above the Palace?’ Kaelion could only question one thing after another in his mind. No matter how he looked at it, nothing Atlas said matched common sense, yet after everything he had witnessed inside this room, dismissing those words entirely had become impossible.
Even so, Kaelion quickly pushed those thoughts aside. ’Well...at least I somehow managed to get out of the situation and even made him to come with me. Once he stands before the Patriarch, he’ll understand the truth himself...and then he’ll realize just how ridiculous those words sounded.’ Thinking that, a tiny grin unknowingly appeared on his face as some of the tension inside him finally eased.
"I-I really did speak the truth, Mr. Atlas. If you could just come with me to meet the Patriarch waiting at the eastern side of the city, I would be grateful...and I sincerely apologize if it seemed like I came here to harm you." Kaelion spoke with an awkward laugh as he slowly stood up from the floor. His wings brushed lightly against the ground before folding neatly behind his back, and only after regaining his balance did he look toward Atlas again.
"Is that so?" Atlas replied calmly. "Well, I was already planning to meet Lady Seraphiel tomorrow since she mentioned she wanted to speak with me about something important. I’ll meet the Patriarch at the same time then. You can leave now...I’ll be there tomorrow morning."
Kaelion raised an eyebrow in surprise before silently thinking, ’He was already planning to visit tomorrow?...Then there’s nothing left for me to do here. I should inform the Patriarch immediately...and more importantly, that contract, Lady Seraphiel must not be harmed because of it...the contract has to be severed first.’
With that thought, Kaelion turned toward the open window and gave Atlas one final respectful nod, "Alright, Mr. Atlas. Once again...I apologize for disturbing your rest."
The moment he reached the window, a current of wind gathered around his body. In the next instant, both Kaelion and the rushing wind disappeared into the night together, leaving the room completely silent once more.
Atlas watched the empty window for a brief moment before turning back toward the bed. The conversation replayed through his mind one last time, but after finding nothing else worth dwelling on, he dismissed those thoughts altogether. Without another word, he lay back on the bed, closed his eyes, and finally went to sleep.
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