# Chapter 117
‘What would you have said if you had seen that sight?’
Would he still have liked Ion Verdit if he saw that murderous appearance?
The Ion before his eyes was surely harboring this killing intent because of his grudge against him, but Raziel thought it wouldn’t have been any different if Theodore had been in his place. To Ion, whether it was himself or Theodore, they were merely black fragments to be fed to Levi.
Levi had recovered his memories with Ion’s mother, Claudia, by absorbing the black fragment.
Seeing this, Ion must have been filled with anticipation. Now that he knew Emperor Raziel of the Caron Empire was also a black fragment, he would think that if he just took it, Levi could recover his memories with him as well.
‘Yes. He will recover everything.’
But that recovery of memories would come after Ion Verdit met his death at his hands.
Raziel, who had risen from his seat, looked down arrogantly at Ion approaching him.
“Regardless of being at war, coming into the imperial presence with a blood-stained sword shows you truly have no manners.”
“You speak of manners.”
Ion deliberately swung his sword for show, splattering the blood on the blade onto the floor. The droplets of blood sprayed onto the expensive red carpet that stretched to Raziel’s imperial throne.
“It seems everyone has fled and abandoned you. How unpopular.”
After sneering, Ion leaped forward in one breath. He charged at Raziel and swung his raised sword downward.
Clang-!
Raziel, who had somehow drawn his sword from its sheath, blocked Ion’s powerful attack by holding his blade horizontally.
With their swords crossed in an X formation, the two locked eyes.
Ion, who was fiercely glaring at those black eyes resembling Levi’s, bared his teeth.
“Where is Levi?”
“…You only ever care about Levi.”
“What else should I bother to know?”
Instead of answering, Raziel swung his sword, strongly pushing Ion back. Ion, who had fallen back down from the dais where the imperial throne sat, tried to charge again, but this time Raziel came down with him and struck with his sword. Once more, the strong metallic sound irritated both their eardrums.
Raziel and Ion were evenly matched in strength. Just as when Ion attacked, when Raziel struck down with his sword in the same way, neither the defender yielded nor did the attacker falter.
Raziel, who had been looking at Ion expressionlessly, gazed beyond the entrance of the hall. The commotion that had been heard outside the hall before Ion entered still continued. Nevertheless, it seemed as if there was a tall iron fence around the hall, as there was no sign of anyone rushing in.
“I see.”
As if realizing something, Raziel’s eyes changed momentarily.
“I thought Hest Wesslon only cared about Levi like you, but it seems I was too complacent.”
Judging that there was someone commanding the Immortal Army on Ion’s behalf, Raziel could easily think of Hest. It’s not something an ordinary person can do, especially leading troops in the depths of enemy territory. Knowing this well, the fact that Ion Verdit had come here alone to confront Raziel indicated that he had a skilled commander with him. And that Ion trusted him considerably.
If there was such a person by Ion’s side, it could only be Hest Wesslon. After all, it was he who had planted Hest in Ion Verdit’s army as a spy in the first place.
‘How strange.’
Raziel found it peculiar that Hest had maintained a deep trust relationship with Ion even while pretending to be helplessly manipulated by himself.
In Raziel’s memories, Hest had never gotten along with Ion even for a moment.
From Hest’s perspective, who had watched over and treasured Levi more than anyone else since he was a baby, it would certainly be unwelcoming to have Ion suddenly wedge himself between them. Despite Levi entrusting the young, homeless Ion to him, the fact that Hest didn’t want to keep him in the mansion was evidence of this.
Was it because Levi’s memories were as vivid as if they were from yesterday?
Raziel had to admit that he had judged based only on fragmented past interactions between Ion and Hest. Both were particularly wary of people, making it difficult to plant spies, which contributed to the lack of information about their relationship.
But what was even more surprising was not Hest Wesslon, who had been playing the spy all along, but Ion Verdit.
Regardless of when Ion found out, Hest had clearly followed his orders exactly as Raziel commanded. At least until he led Ion to the Black Forest, causing Levi to have a great misunderstanding, Hest clearly hadn’t revealed that he was a spy.
This meant that Ion had forgiven Hest, who was no less than the main culprit in that incident, and kept him by his side, which was completely incomprehensible. Even after seeing the order to send Levi back to the Caron Empire, he followed it? All to make it seem like Hest wasn’t betraying him, even though he knew everything?
“I don’t understand. I thought you would have beheaded Hest Wesslon the moment you learned he was a spy.”
“Our relationship is too complicated for that.”
“The important thing is that Hest Wesslon deceived you. Isn’t it clear that his actions separated you and Levi?”
Raziel’s eyes flashed for a moment.
“A person who has betrayed once will eventually commit betrayal after betrayal.”
Betrayal.
There was nothing more painful than that in Levi’s memories.
That’s why he used Hest Wesslon. He deliberately made him a spy, despite his secret connection with Ion, intending to use him effectively at a critical moment.
The last order he sent to Hest Wesslon was “kill Ion Verdit as soon as he sets foot in the imperial palace.”
He didn’t think Hest could kill Ion.
If he followed the order as given, it was obvious that he would either be killed by Ion or captured by his subordinates.
What he hoped for was that, whether willingly or unwillingly, Ion would belatedly realize that Hest was a spy in that moment.
An unexpected shock, especially “betrayal,” was one of the cruelest acts that could cause the greatest emotional confusion in humans.
Raziel wanted Ion to feel that way.
Though it would be nothing compared to Levi, who had been betrayed and butchered countless times by humans over hundreds of years.
Just as he was recalling the unpleasant memories of the past that Levi might be recovering,
Ion glared at Raziel and retorted.
“Are you talking about yourself?”
Ion lifted one corner of his mouth in a sneer.
“It’s quite funny hearing this from someone who has betrayed Levi every single day… Enough to make me want to kill you!”
With a short battle cry, Ion violently deflected Raziel’s sword that was blocking his. This left Raziel’s front exposed, and Ion’s sword shot unhesitatingly toward his vital point.
Raziel had already anticipated that Ion would aim for his collarbone rather than his heart.
Raziel twisted his body to avoid the sword blatantly lunging for his collarbone. Then, using the momentum of his twisted body, he targeted Ion’s neck. Ion also dodged this and counterattacked.
The swords of the two clashed frantically, producing metallic sounds more than ten times in an instant.
Finally, they both forcefully deflected each other’s swords and retreated three or four steps.
During the fight, Raziel had somehow descended from the dais where the imperial throne stood.
Raziel looked down at his feet, which were now between the red carpet and the black marble floor.
If he took one wrong step now, he would have to stand in the middle of the cold stone floor, as black as an abyss, rather than on the glorious red carpet.
Raziel, looking up from the ground, faced Ion, who still had fierce eyes.
“I never betrayed Levi.”
At Raziel’s words, Ion’s hand holding the sword trembled with anger.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Using his lack of memories as an excuse, you made him have absurd misunderstandings and believe things completely different from the truth. Even now, you…!”
“Do you consider that ‘betrayal’?”
The question was so nonchalant that Ion, incensed by it, raised his sword and pointed its tip at Raziel.
“Are you saying it’s not?!”
“It’s not.”
Raziel’s answer was firm.
“For what you’re describing to constitute betrayal, it would only be established if I ultimately failed to keep my ‘promise’ to Levi.”
Suddenly, Raziel’s eyes filled with a chilling contempt. The target of that gaze was clearly Ion.
“The worst betrayers are ‘you all’.”
“What?”
To Ion, who looked as if to say “what are you talking about,” Raziel spoke as if grinding his teeth.
“Levi has always been betrayed by you all.”
On behalf of Levi, who had no memories, Raziel had remembered everything until now.
The first, the second, the third, the fourth, and even the fifth life when he stayed with the blonde human before him in the Black Forest.
“Generation after generation, you all promised to help Levi become human. But look.”
Raziel’s hand pointed toward the entrance of the hall.
Just then, a different kind of commotion was heard from outside. There seemed to be a faint sound of Hest shouting.
The presence of another person was felt at the entrance of the hall, which had been blocked to prevent anyone from entering. Raziel’s hand was pointing toward him.
“Levi still hasn’t become human. It’s you all who should rightly be called betrayers, for you only used him without any intention of keeping your promise.”
The one who walked into the hall, as if drawn by Raziel’s gesture, was Levi in a black robe, looking as if he had just emerged from water.
