novelraw Chapter 118: Headless Knight? Morteir of the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings! [The Oathsworn Headless]!
Chapter 118: Headless Knight? Morteir of the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings! [The Oathsworn Headless]!
Chapter 118: Headless Knight? Morteir of the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings! [The Oathsworn Headless]!
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“Headless Knight?”
“A member of Black Helm Knights!”
Lin Wei frowned, absorbing the clue Fred had just let slip.
That name surfaced in his mind at once.
Headless armored knights—a rarity even among demons. They were not an ancient race, but a force created by dark necromancy. Grim, imposing, and terrifying in battle, their every form was wrapped in heavy armor, each one decapitated, each one a walking specter. Lin Wei had dubbed them the “Black Helm Knights” for the sake of both brevity and that chilling image it conjured.
At their head stood one of the Demonfolk’s Four Heavenly Kings: the first and mightiest of all headless knights.
Once, he had been a human hero—a warrior famed for his valor. Betrayed by his comrades, abandoned by the Holy See, and branded a traitor by the Kingdom, he died in disgrace.
Yet in the demonlands, vengeance burned him back to unlife. He made an oath of loyalty to the Demon Lord—and from that day forward, wherever he rode, the earth soaked crimson with slaughter.His name: [Morteir, The Oathsworn Headless].
And Morteir had once been Lin Wei’s most steadfast subordinate.
Now, reports of his knights consorting with Imperial nobles and the Cult of the Evil God unsettled Lin Wei. Had he misread the board? Had he overlooked something obvious?
“The Morteir of the Black Helm Knights?”
The words left Lin Wei’s lips, and Fred froze.
Aside from a handful of emergency peace talks between human and demon kind two years ago—hurried, fraught, and fruitless—there had been no serious diplomacy between the two sides. Neither would have access to classified details about newly-formed military units.
So when Lin Wei referenced these names so casually, Fred—despite his pledge of cooperation—couldn’t help but eye him with an odd, uneasy suspicion.
It made sense for a Holy See cleric to be familiar with demon affairs, true. But something about Lin Wei’s knowledge was… uncanny. Fred couldn’t put his finger on why, but the feeling only grew stronger.
“So it really was Duke Ous intercepting and stealing Holy See provisions destined for the front lines,” Fred muttered, half under his breath.
But he had no time to dwell on his misgivings—Lin Wei’s voice anchored him sharply to the moment.
Lin Wei’s eyes sharpened. He fixed Fred with a measured look, voice cool and unhurried.
“One last thing. Do you know where the stolen supplies go after a raid?”
“That sort of task isn’t my specialty, but I do know a little,” Fred replied, as if afraid he might not be believed. “Usually the loot gets sold off wherever possible, then the gold deposited straight into the bank.”
He hesitated, wanting to prove his earnestness. “My work is assassination and intelligence. I don’t handle the trade—other group members manage unloading the goods.”
“Anyway, the profits are split five ways: one share to the demons, one to the Cult of the Evil God, one whole share for Duke Ous himself, and the last two split among the Imperial collaborators and hired hands. I can try to dig up more for you, if you want—seriously, I’m all in now, even if it’s risky.”
He sounded almost sincere enough to be convincing.
Lin Wei nodded, approving, though his gaze remained as cold and impassive as dead water.
“Anything else of value you can share?”
“We’re running out of time. If we stay too long, Duke Ous may grow suspicious.”
“That’s true… We’re well over the mission window,” Fred agreed anxiously. “He may have already sent someone to check. But if you need more information, I have plenty—I can write it all for the Holy See!”
With dawn inching closer and shadows thinning, Fred’s desperation to prove his usefulness increased.
“Here’s what I need: write down the name of the bank you’ve used for deposits after your last deal, along with anything else you think is relevant intelligence.”
“In the meantime, I’ll return to the Holy See and arrange a new identity for you. That way, you can escape cleanly and won't have Duke Ous’s dogs at your heels.”
“When the Empire’s parasites are dealt with, you’ll be free to return to the capital or start a new life—anywhere you wish. But remember: if you ever succumb to your old urges again, I don’t care how much you’ve helped the Holy See. I’ll hunt you down myself.”
He’s not worried I’ll just bolt the moment he’s out of sight?
Fred’s eyes flickered with true surprise. He plainly hadn’t expected this trust. Yet after a heartbeat, he collected himself and nodded briskly, already projecting the air of a reformed man devoted to the Holy See.
“I understand! You have my word.”
“Everything you need will be written down before you get back.”
“Excellent.”
Lin Wei nodded in satisfaction.
He handed Fred a sheaf of paper and a pen, then turned toward the door.
But just as his hand gripped the latch, he paused, as if remembering something, and tossed one last question over his shoulder.
“Oh… one more thing. You haven’t killed more than two hundred innocents, have you?”
“Eh?”
Seeing Fred’s stricken look, Lin Wei sighed and elaborated.
“Witnesses you had to silence during operations—the bystanders caught up so you wouldn’t blow your cover. If it’s above two hundred, I need to file a special report to the Pope when scrubbing your record. It’s a pain if someone audits things later.”
Fred faltered, at a loss for words. Who could possibly recall the precise count of innocent lives taken while on covert assignments? It was like asking someone to remember every grain of rice he’d ever eaten, every ant he’d ever stepped on.
“It’s probably under two hundred,” Fred finally offered. “When I was starting out, before I gained real power, I did silence a number of bystanders. But after I received the Inheritance… unless I was right on top of the target during a slip, I didn’t need to.”
Lin Wei, now half out the door, nodded in contemplation. Then, with a casual wave, he turned to leave, calling back over his shoulder.
“In that case, you’ll owe a bit extra in atonement. Don’t worry—nothing too severe. We’ll discuss details when I return.”
“For now, focus on your confession.”
“Yes, sir!”
To Fred’s ears, every word sounded like true absolution—a path cleared for redemption.
A smile, long suppressed, tugged at his lips. At last, even his doubts about this too-fortunate twist began to melt away.
Given this gift-wrapped second chance—the promise of a clean slate after so many sins—Fred couldn’t help but imagine his future after he left the Imperial capital behind. He busied himself scribbling out every scrap of intelligence that came to mind, filling page after page.
Half an hour later—
“This should be enough,” he muttered, stacking the papers, each one thick with notes on Duke Ous’s dealings.
Fred nodded in satisfaction, unable to suppress the flicker of a smile.
Who would have guessed a botched assassination would turn into an opportunity for total absolution? If things kept up, he might not just survive—he might truly be redeemed.
As for that Lin Wei… Fred still had no idea what office he held in the Holy See. With that devastating command of Holy Light, such overwhelming presence, he surely had standing—not just a mere bishop, perhaps even an Archbishop from the central cathedral. But could someone that young hold such rank? Ridiculous.
Still, with a backer like that, Fred felt his pardon was guaranteed.
“I wonder when he’ll be back…”
Crack—
“Hm?”
A sharp sound snapped through the cell. Before Fred could react, the world reeled—his vision lurched, vertigo crashed through him.
He tried to call out, to ask what was happening, but no sound left his lips.
The world plummeted, his field of view dropping as if from a cliff. Then—slam—his perception crashed to the stone floor.
He stared numbly as a headless body collapsed, blood arcing from its stump in scarlet jets.
The clothing and build matched his own exactly.
No—there was no mistaking it. That was his own body. What in the world—?
“The Pope has decreed: for sins such as yours, only death may serve as atonement.”
“This is your absolution. From this moment, our cooperation ends.”
Lin Wei stepped into the cell, his bearing unchanged, stopping just short of Fred’s fallen head.
He bent to pick up the freshly written confession.
But it mattered little; Fred’s consciousness had already faded into utter darkness. None of this would ever reach him again.