The King's Mandate: Anomalous System

Chapter 362: The Crown's Obsession

"This is just a possibility, but the attack on the palace might be done by them"

I knew it was done by some organization, but I didn't know about these cults.

If what he is saying is true, and it also makes sense. I don't see any other reason for them to kill us.

But.. Why are they killing system users?

What's their purpose behind killing the system users?

Judging by everything I know so far, Zero was also killed. I don't know why he was killed. But he had a system.

Were they the ones who killed Zero too?

Zero said he doesn't care about that, but I don't know what he is thinking.

And he kind of gives me weird vibes. 

He feels so lifeless.

Like a monster sleeping inside him, and it shouldn't be awakened.

When I talked with him, it looked like he was just wearing a skin of kindness. He acted all cool and friendly, but he isn't friendly.

I didn't realize it at that time, but he scares me more than Augustus.

Leaving aside Zero, if the cults are behind the murders then I should start tracking them down.

They killed Daulla, they killed grandpa, my rage still hasn't calmed down.

It's hard to control myself.

I am slowly reverting back to my old self.

I promised myself I would never fall on that side again after I met Elena. But it looks like I will be breaking one more promise.

I gulped down and said, "What else do you know about them?"

"What about you? How much do you know about them?"

"They have a tattoo on their hands"

"Bingo!", he clapped his hand on the table and said, "You are very observant"

"Answer my question now"

"That tattoo, for as long as the technologies and our database go, they always existed"

"Tell me something new"

If there are some cults like that, then it's obvious that they are following their predecessors.

"The VR tragedy of thirty years ago. There wasn't only one worshiper. Or should I say, after that culprit was caught, many more cult members were caught"

"Oh?"

"Not only that, a good deal of information was revealed during their interrogation"

"But just a while ago you said--"

"It was just for the main culprit. And many say that he was just a tool, he was used"

"I don't know about that"

"After he was executed, the other cult members started revealing information, hoping they would be spared. But all of them were killed"

"What else do you expect? Letting the criminals live? Never"

She chuckled and said, "You just sounded like the previous King"

"Is that so?"

"Yeah," he looked down as he forced a smile and said, "He hated criminals"

"He was just reckless", added mother.

"My Queen, we all know you are just putting up and act"

"You are mistaken", she averted her face and said, "I am not putting up anything"

It was only one time, but I remember you saying, 'I wanted to be a tyrant Queen' when I met you for the first time"

"Argh! Forget that already. I was just testing you"

"Come to think of it, you never told me my results"

"You have been serving me for eight years now, you should know your results already"

"But I would like to hear them from your mouth"

Mother took a deep breath and said, "I didn't want a bodyguard at that time. I had lost two closest people to me ten years ago. I was afraid to lose someone else again"

"You said, "You are a kid, go study and live a long life', when I asked to be your bodyguard"

"I have lost many of my bodyguards", she took a deep sigh as she looked up and said, "Many of my bodyguards died protecting me"

"It would be an honor to die protecting you, my Queen"

"You have a wife, and your kid will be born soon. Don't talk about dying"

"My wife clearly knows how risky my job is"

"You kept rejecting her because you wanted to be my bodyguard, right?"

He slammed his hands on the table and stood up saying, "How do you know that?!"

"She came to me and cursed me"

"W-w-what?! S-she cursed y-you?!"

Wow. He is trembling, just like how G'San was trembling when he saw Daisy.

"He bowed down with all his force, and his forehead slammed in the table, causing a loud 'Bang' in the room.

He didn't move his head from there.

"Calm down. It was eight years ago. And we are friends now, so it doesn't matter"

"Please forgive her!"

"I just said it's fine"

"..."

"Raise your head, Tingen"

He raised his head and said, "I didn't know that"

His forehead was red and swollen.

"It was understandable for her to curse me since her love interest was rejecting her because of me. I would do the same"

'You can do worse', as that thought crossed my mind, Daisy glanced at me.

She is thinking of the same thing, right?

"If you both are done, can we go back to the main topic?"

Tingen fixed his chair and slowly sat down saying, "There is not much to talk now"

"I want to ask you some questions"

"Go ahead"

I leaned back to the chair and said, "How much do you know about the cult members?"

"I told you as much as I knew"

"What about the 'information', the other cult members revealed?"

"It wasn't much, and I seriously have no idea about it"

"What do you mean?"

"That was thirty years ago, five years before I was born"

"..."

"I can't possibly know it, right?"

"Do you take me as a fool?"

"I would never"

I sighed and said, "I am sure everything is in the database"

"After the religion ban, everything was destroyed"

"What the--!" I stood up in shock and said, "Are you guys idiots?!"

"Listen to me first", he rubbed his forehead and said, "The other religions wanted to know about those cult members, so they were forced to destroy everything"

"I don't see any reason for them to destroy them"

"You don't know how bad religions can go"

"I don't"

"How do you think religions are created?"

"By belief and faith?"

"Yes," he filled the glass with water and said, "And where do their faiths and beliefs come from?"

"..."

"No answer?"

"I don't want to waste my energy thinking about it"

He smirked and said, "Someone, like a leader. Or someone with a great following spouts some bullshit, and religion is created"

"That shouldn't be the case with all religions though, right?"

"Hmm", he drank a sip from the glass and said, "Listen, I don't know anything about the religions. And mentioning the word 'religion' itself is a crime. I don't even know how do you know about them"

"How do 'you' know about it?"

"It was in my training"

"You can say it was the same with me"

"What do you mean?"

"Government may destroy all the evidence of their doings, but there is always a loose end"

That is certainly true"

"I know about everything by that loose end"

"Oh?"

I glanced at mother and said, "Since there are many things which are being kept secret from me, even now", 

I glanced at Daisy and said, "And it looks like I need to dig them up all by myself"

"Some things are better left unknown", said mother.

"I remember grandpa saying that"

"We are not trying to hide anything from you"

"But you are"

"We are not doing it because we want to. I think you understand what I mean"

"..."

"You have your own secrets that you are hiding from me," she glanced at Daisy and said, "And others"

"Fine. But I will know everything one day"

"If the time is right, then I will tell you everything by myself"

"Alright," Tingen put the glass back on the table and said, "What about the flag?"

"Huh?"

"The flag," he pointed his finger at the window; from where the tower could be easily seen, and the flag upon it.

"Where did that flag come from?"

"I did that"

"You know that you aren't allowed to do that, right?"

"Well now, I am"

"It will be a breach to the contract"

"It's not"

"The King can rule everything under his palace, that was written on the contract", I stated.

"It is, but a flag that belongs to a different entity. is against the rules"

"The country flag, it belongs to the country. I have no obligation to that"

He furrowed his eyebrows and said, "But the palace is part of the country"

"It's not"

"Come on," he shrugged his hands and said, "Are we seriously debating about it?"

"The palace is the King's property, this is also written on the contract"

"It certainly is, but--"

"The King can do whatever he wants in his territory"

"..."

"What now? You are not sure anymore?"

"I don't know", he scratched his cheek and said, "The contract is twelve hundred and eighty-one pages long"

"It looks like you don't remember it well"

"Are you saying that you remember the entire contract?"

"I do"

"Impossible"

"Believing in your king, would you?"

"I do believe in you. To be honest, my thoughts on you have drastically changed"

"In a bad way?"

"No. In a good way"

"Wow. All I did was say my honest thoughts, and you started liking me?"

"That's because you are a lot similar to the previous King"

"I will take that as a compliment"

"It was a compliment"