Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 295 (Part 1):
Shortly before that event that shook the temple was reported, Two people, declared public enemies by the temple, stood together.
It was a pair that didn’t quite fit the description of ‘two people’.
One was a radiant beauty with silver hair, and the other was an old man with a bushy beard.
Archmages Antiol and Heike.
It was a rare sight to see these two archmages, both declared enemies of the temple, standing in the same place.
Heike, the woman, was the first to speak.
“It seems things have gone smoothly. With such a change in the barrier, there’s no way the temple hasn’t realized by now.”
“They’ve succeeded in activating Adamantium in at least three barrier locations. It seems they found him faster than expected.”
Heike shrugged her shoulders.
“I suppose so. After all, whose granddaughter is she?”
Antiol clicked his tongue in mild annoyance.
“Pure luck. Do you think the Forest of Roots is so easy to navigate? How long has it been since they entered?”
“Indeed, they were quick. Perhaps they’ve found good allies. Anyway, it’s time for us to move too. We must ensure the temple cannot restore the barrier.”
As Heike took a step closer to Antiol, he retreated just as much.
It was a blatant avoidance.
“I’ve told you to keep your distance. And don’t act like we’re some sort of team.”
Antiol’s gaze was sharp, unlike his usual laid-back demeanor. There was even a hint of hostility in his eyes.
Heike snorted in disbelief.
“Please, don’t flatter yourself. I have my own preferences, and old men like you aren’t one of them, Antiol. It’s ridiculous and unpleasant to see you acting this way with that appearance.”
Antiol’s brow twitched at Heike’s sharp words.
Antiol, who didn’t care about appearances, looked like her father when they stood side by side, if one were being generous.
Although Antiol was over a decade older than her, age differences become less significant with age.
Their positions were fundamentally equal. They were both archmages who had established strong footholds in different fields.
However, there was a reason for Antiol’s attitude towards Heike.
“Do you even have standards? After all, it was your reckless behavior with the temple that cost your own child their life!”
Antiol shouted, almost bellowing. His expression revealed outright condemnation.
While Antiol was known as an eccentric magician, he also had a stubbornly upright and strict side.
He thought Heike had tarnished the honor of archmages. That honor was Antiol’s pride in pursuing his own path and magic while going against the temple.
Though both were archmages declared enemies of the temple, their reasons for that status were entirely different.
Heike’s gaze momentarily sharpened. Antiol had maintained this attitude throughout their current encounter.
The reason Heike had been avoiding conflict with Antiol until now was only because he had been useful to Alea, not because she feared him.
But now, there was no reason to tolerate his attitude any longer.
“I regret it too. I paid the price, so you, who hasn’t lost anything, have no right to lecture me.”
“I’m glad you’re feeling regret. At least you won’t repeat the same mistake.”
Antiol’s tone softened.
Heike’s eyes twisted as if in pain. A shadow of the past, which she thought had dulled, flashed through her mind.
“You’re misunderstanding…”
Heike opened her mouth. The truth about the past slipped out from her lips for the first time.
It was about twenty-some years ago. Heike, who was tempted by a sacred artifact of the temple that possessed special magical abilities, made a dangerous attempt to steal it.
At that time, she had become an archmage at a relatively young age and had never experienced a real failure, so she was arrogant and didn’t even fear going against the temple.
She was certain that if she failed, she could simply slip away unscathed. After all, the temple would struggle to track down an archmage like her.
As an archmage, she could hide her identity from most temple people without much difficulty.
She easily seduced a knight who was called a candidate for the position of Holy Knights’ Commander, and when he didn’t readily give up information about the sacred artifact, she immediately seduced another knight. It was a familiar act for her.
And when the knight Heike had first seduced found out about this, he fell into a rage, thinking she had been stolen from him.
The two candidates for Holy Knights’ Commander fought a duel over her, resulting in a tragic outcome.
The two knights, who were evenly matched in skill, met their deaths at the end of the duel. It was truly an unexpected accident.
Startled, Heike suddenly erased her traces and disappeared.
Both knights were favorites of the Holy Knights’ Commander of the time. The Commander immediately found out that there was a woman involved in their deaths and investigated her identity.
And he finally discovered it. Archmage Heike, this wicked witch, had driven two knights to their deaths.
Whether it was true or not didn’t matter. There was no way to confirm the details, since Heike had disappeared.
No one but Heike herself knew that she had only coveted the sacred artifact and hadn’t wished for the two knights to die fighting.
Driven by revenge, the Holy Knights’ Commander used all of the temple’s information network to find out where her son lived.
Heike’s son, a mage, had barely been in contact with Heike since coming of age, tired of her dissolute ways.
He had married a fellow mage from the academy and had been living peacefully with one daughter named Alea.
It was like a bolt from the blue when he became the temple’s target. The Holy Knights’ Commander rushed in with the temple’s forces to where he lived.
There was no time to escape in the tightly woven encirclement.