The silence was terrifying.
Everyone around looked at Ethan Hayes in utter confusion.
What did he just say?
Langris Vaude was a traitor?
The mastermind behind the invasion of the Clover Kingdom's capital?
Was this some kind of joke?
"Haha..."
"Heh..."
Laughter broke out among the crowd.
This was just too absurd.
William Vangeance had known the Wizard King since childhood. Over the decades, he'd gone from a noble to a magic knight, then to a squad captain, and eventually the leader of the Golden Dawn. Every step of his rise was well-documented and had happened right under their noses.
Not to mention, he came from a noble family in the royal capital with a clean history going back three generations. Under his leadership, the Golden Dawn had racked up countless military victories, consistently ranking as the top squad every year.
Now someone was claiming this ambitious, loyal, kingdom-serving youth was a traitor?
What a ridiculous joke!
"Ethan, stop spouting nonsense. Wizard King, I think Ethan must've suffered some head trauma during the battle. He's not making much sense..."
Yami Sukehiro stepped forward to smooth things over.
He had known William as both a friend and a rival, having grown alongside him over the years. Aside from the Wizard King himself, Yami probably knew William best.
For him, believing Ethan's claim was... a bit too much.
But at the same time, he didn't want Ethan to face punishment for saying something out of turn.
"Sigh... just as I expected..."
Seeing their reactions, Ethan let out a bitter sigh.
This was exactly why he hadn't spoken up earlier, even though he knew the truth.
Because no one would believe it.
It was like discovering the person who'd been sleeping beside you for over a decade—your spouse—was actually an assassin sent by the enemy. Who would believe that?
Even if it were true, most people would try to rationalize it away, lying to themselves just to cope with the shock. The truth was just too hard to accept.
But if he didn't speak now, he might never get another chance.
If William truly became the next Wizard King, he could easily work from within, coordinating with his allies from the outside. At that point, the downfall of the Clover Kingdom would be inevitable—it'd just be a matter of time.
Ethan didn't want to become some pitiful survivor fleeing a crumbling kingdom. He didn't want to wonder if he could escape with his life.
His only option was to strike first.
"In that case, Captain William, may I ask—where was the Golden Dawn during the invasion?"
Ethan asked loudly.
William responded calmly, his expression unwavering. "Indeed, that was my oversight. The squad was conducting a field simulation exercise at the time. However, I reported this plan to the Wizard King several days in advance..."
He looked perfectly composed on the outside, but internally, he was rattled.
No one should've known about his other identity—not even among the Eye of the Midnight Sun. Yet Ethan had identified him with absolute certainty.
That was deeply unsettling.
"You sure planned things out well," Ethan replied, his voice cutting. "But let me ask—why did every other squad fall into an ambush except for yours? And Yuno, during this so-called 'training exercise,' did you see William the entire time? Was there a period when he disappeared?"
Yuno furrowed his brow in thought. "Yes, after leading us to the training site, Captain William did step away for a while for some matter... But that doesn't prove anything!"
And indeed, it didn't.
There could be a thousand excuses—preparing training materials, checking logistics, or even just using the restroom. All perfectly plausible.
And in the absence of hard evidence or witnesses, none of it held up.
As the saying goes: to catch a thief, you need the stolen goods. To catch a traitor, you need them red-handed.
And William had the trust of nearly everyone present.
Taking him down like this? Nearly impossible.
But then—
"Bring him up!"
Ethan suddenly shouted.
Two guards appeared, dragging a battered man into view.
The battle in the capital hadn't been a complete loss. Not everyone had escaped.
Catherine and Sally had gotten away thanks to Valtas's space magic. Given time to recover, escape had been easy for them.
But not everyone had that luxury.
One person who didn't escape was the necromancer Rades Spirito. He had been severely injured in the battle and left behind—either forgotten or too difficult to rescue in time. Now, he was a prisoner.
"This man is Rades Spirito, one of the key attackers in the capital assault. He's been tight-lipped so far, but that's fine. Once his injuries heal, Marx will use his memory magic to scan his mind. When that happens, the truth will be revealed!"
As Ethan spoke, he turned to William.
William still looked utterly unbothered, as if this had nothing to do with him at all.
In fact, he even spoke up: "Excellent work, Captain Ethan. Capturing one of the enemy leaders is no small feat. Marx, make sure to be thorough during the memory scan—we must get every detail, so the truth can come to light and clear my name."
Damn it!
Looking at William's righteous, dignified expression, Ethan's eye twitched.
This guy really could act.
Play the role long enough, and you forget you were ever the villain?
Or perhaps... Rades genuinely didn't know William's true identity?
Ethan wasn't sure—after all, the original series never made that clear.
But there was one thing he was certain of: Rades's memories absolutely contained clues about their future plans.
And there were only two outcomes for Rades.
Either his memories were extracted, exposing the Eye of the Midnight Sun's future plans to the world...
Or they'd launch a rescue mission to silence him and keep their operation on track.
No evidence?
That was fine—evidence was on the way.
"Wizard King, this is Rades's testimony. Please take a look."
Ethan handed over a piece of paper.
As the Wizard King read it, his brow furrowed. Then, slowly, he lifted his gaze back to Ethan.
"Whether or not you plan to abdicate," Ethan said firmly, locking eyes with him, "this matter must be resolved. Until the truth is clear, no one will be at peace—am I right, Wizard King?"
The paper didn't contain any testimony.
It was something else entirely—a trap.
A plan to lure the snake out of its hole.
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