Zion aimed to awaken fear through pain and loss.
If he increased the intensity of the torture from the start, the person could go mad or die instantly.
Thus, he wanted to induce the desired answer through sustained pain and mental pressure.
"Ugh… Aaah…"
"For the last time… where are the other hideouts?"
"Wait… Aaah!"
"Stop! I'll tell you everything."
Just as Zion was about to strike, another voice shouted.
The blade stopped at the fingertip, and Zion slowly turned his head.
"Hurry up. If I find out later that you lied, I'll kill both of you."
"Will you really spare us?"
"I promise. If your information is true, both of you will live."
The young rebel, terrified, stared at Zion.
His words had another meaning: even if he spared the two of them, the rebels in the other hideouts would be killed.
In other words, he had to answer first to survive.
‘Could it be… that person…’
The young rebel finally recognized Zion.
A young man leading the knights, with silver hair and violet eyes, a cold yet striking appearance.
He had come here personally, driven by deep revenge.
"I can tell you the hideout locations. I hid something separately."
"You… traitor!"
The wounded rebel struggled to speak, reaching out his hand.
Important documents were supposed to be handed to the advance team or burned.
But this man had secretly taken the documents to ensure his own safety.
"Aaaargh!"
"…Stay still. Do you want to die?"
Zion stepped on the hand, speaking slowly.
He wanted to kill them all, but he held back for the sake of negotiation.
If they knew more than just the hideout locations, he might show some mercy.
"Are there hideouts in other areas?"
"I've heard there are, but I don't know the details."
"Did your superiors flee to those locations?"
"Probably. I don't know where they went."
Zion knew there were hideouts in other areas.
But he didn't know the exact locations and couldn't search the entire area.
If he did, he would have reported to the King to end it.
"Do you know anything else besides the hideout locations?"
"…If I tell you, will we be spared?"
"If the information is valuable, I'll see what I can do."
"I can tell you about our forces and mission plans."
Zion showed some interest, slowly lowering his sword.
He had a general idea about the rebel forces but lacked detailed information.
Mission plans were unknown, and if used well, could be beneficial.
"Are you in charge of gathering information?"
"I classify it more than gather it. Important information is handled by the leaders, and I'm just a low-level member."
"I can check the hideout locations immediately, but it will take time to verify the forces and mission plans. Are you ready for that?"
"Yes, I was left behind to clean up anyway. Either way, I’m dead."
The young rebel had predicted that he would be caught eventually and had hidden information.
He wanted to find a way to survive, no matter what.
Rumors about embezzlement and disregard for subordinates' lives by the leaders had spread, so he had prepared in secret.
"I'll ask a few questions. Did you attack Duke Adelaira's carriage when returning from Kellydos?"
The knights flinched, turning their gaze.
They could only guess about it, and no one was sure.
If it turned out to be true, both Zion and Duke Adelaira would be furious.
"Yes, we had an assassination mission."
"Who was the target?"
"Duke Adelaira's daughter, as far as I know."
"They must have known I was there… why did they do it again?"
"They aimed to delay things intentionally. They thought disrupting Marquis Laird's youngest son's command would…"
The young rebel couldn't speak anymore.
The knights were tense, not daring to breathe.
Zion, with a cold gaze, released his violet aura.
"Did they target Hanette Adelaira to use me?"
"It wasn't me, it was the leaders…"
"I understand."
Soldiers who arrived later were already intimidated by Zion.
It seemed like he was about to use his swordsmanship to destroy the place.
But Zion, calming his aura, continued.
"So, the hideout locations?"
"They're marked on a map hidden in my house."
"After verifying, I'll decide whether to spare you two. Take him and bring the map."
"Yes, sir."
The knights quickly moved, dragging the young rebel along.
They needed to hurry, as Zion was clearly very angry.
Provoking a swordmaster would only make things worse for them.
‘This is bad.’
Halfnon couldn't bring himself to speak to Zion, just watching quietly.
Marquis Frandique had sent some troops to help, as both Duke Adelaira and Marquis Laird had mobilized.
Halfnon was supposed to be there nominally but had come to assist Zion.
In the process, he had learned unexpected things and decided to remain silent.
‘Attacking Hanette alone is a problem, but also targeting her fiancé…’
Even if they cleared all the hideouts in the capital, it wouldn't be easy.
Duke Adelaira, Marquis Laird, and now Zion Laird were all involved.
If a swordmaster mobilized the troops of two families, what would happen?
‘If they bring in the royal army, things will escalate.’
If Duke Adelaira and Marquis Laird jointly petitioned the King, he would have to help, at least formally.
It might result in the deployment of the capital's army or the movement of scattered troops.
It was almost like a civil war, and other nobles and officials would tacitly support the two families.
‘There will be a bloodbath in Alain Kingdom.’
The capital guard raided the location Zion had provided.
The captain led the charge, with hundreds of soldiers following.
The situation was resolved within minutes, and all rebels preparing to flee were captured.
However, they couldn't obtain any confidential documents and had to return empty-handed.
"Captain! Urgent message!"
A guard rushed over, delivering the news.
The captain gestured for the knights to step back.
"Who sent the urgent message?"
"Zion Laird."
"Report."
"They have captured the enemy's base and two rebels."
"Hmm…"
Ethan Taylor, the captain of the capital guard, put down his spear and pondered.
This place could indeed be called a base.
The underground was filled with various documents and maps.
The information about Alain Kingdom and the nobles was extensive, indicating it was gathered secretly.
‘To find it so quickly…’
The location was provided by Zion Laird.
They had searched it first, and both places were indeed bases, which seemed almost too lucky.
How did Zion Laird know the location?
"And they have identified all the hidden hideouts in the capital!"
"What?"
"Would you like to check?"
Ethan quickly took the map handed to him.
It showed the terrain of the capital with red Xs marked all over.
There were about a dozen of them, and Ethan quickly understood their locations.
"Zion Laird wants all hideouts cleared by today."
"Is it verified?"
"They've already cleared two places. They were empty, so it's assumed the rebels fled."
The guard pointed to the blue circles on the map, finishing his report.
Ethan stared at the map for a while before organizing his forces in his mind.
‘I'll call the police force to push in from the outside.’
Spreading the forces thin could let the enemies escape.
It was better to concentrate the troops and push them from one side.
Using the noble family's soldiers could easily seal off the area.
‘Zion Laird… quite resolute for someone so young.’
If another noble had taken this mission, they might have handled it carelessly or left everything to the capital guard.
But Zion Laird had pinpointed the base and wanted to end it quickly.
He felt like he had found a noble he could respect for the first time in a while.
‘He must be very angry because of his fiancée. His love must be as strong as his youth.’
Zion's room in Duke Adelaira's mansion.
Zion returned to the mansion at dawn.
He had to destroy not only the rebel base but also dozens of hideouts, searching the entire capital.
He worked with the capital guard, capturing the rebels, effectively decimating the rebel presence in the capital.
He fell asleep quickly but was awakened by a familiar voice.
"Hey, what did you do yesterday?"
"Ugh…"
"What did you do that you're still asleep? You usually wake up earlier than me."
"…?"
Zion slowly opened his eyes and turned his head.
Hanette was standing with her arms crossed, looking down at him.
"Now I can't even sleep."
"Did you know you missed breakfast?"
"Is it that late already?"
"The master said not to wake you, but shouldn't you at least join for lunch?"
"Seems you slept well."
Zion sat up, smiling.
Until recently, he couldn't sleep properly and always felt gloomy.
But now he could sleep deeply, and a strange satisfaction filled him.
"You came home late last night, right? What were you doing?"
"I had work to do."
"What kind of work?"
"Sigh… I went with the capital guard to find their hideouts."
Zion spoke honestly, getting out of bed completely.
It was all over anyway, and the capital guard was likely investigating the rebels now.
It was for Hanette's sake, but he didn't want to mention that.
"Are you crazy? Why were you doing that?"
"I had to follow since they were sending soldiers."
"What if you got hurt? You should have stayed put like a noble."
"……."
Zion glanced at Hanette, lost in thought.
Hanette had never mentioned the possibility of him getting hurt.
Recently, she had said she wanted to help him and be by his side.
She must have changed her thoughts about him, but maybe it was time to ask directly.
"Sister, I need to ask… do you like me?"
"…What?"
"Don't take it too seriously…"
"Are you crazy? Why would I like you? Stop saying weird things."
Hanette quickly turned away, covering her mouth.
Her face suddenly felt hot, and she felt embarrassed for no reason.
Why was she reacting so strongly to a simple question?
‘It's not because I like him. It's just… I feel safe when he's around…’