Roland suddenly lowered his voice. "Things are different now. The Holy Knight Order is here. You can regain your freedom." He lowered the tip of his sword slightly. "Lay down your weapons. I swear on my na as the Holy Knight Leader to guarantee your safety."
The Bear-man bodyguard suddenly let out a pained whimper, his massive body swaying. "I... I’ve had enough..." With trembling hands, he removed his helt, revealing a face covered in scars. "Last month... she sent my brother into the laboratory..."
The Tiger Man bodyguard finally retracted his sharp claws. He stepped to the side, clearing a path. "Turn right at the end of the east corridor... She’s fleeing toward the secret laboratory..."
The Holy Knights swept through the cleared passage like a silver whirlwind. As Roland passed, he clapped the Bear-man bodyguard on the shoulder. "Go help with the rescue in the basent. Your loved ones might still be there."
In the dim corridor, Doris’s red dress was a streak of blood. Her high heels beat a frantic rhythm on the stone floor as her trembling fingers brushed over buttons on the wall, activating a series of defensive traps. Behind her, heavy gates slamd shut one after another, spewing lethal poison mist into the passage.
"Stop them! At any cost!" she shrieked into her communication crystal, her voice echoing down the empty hall. She still seed to think her bodyguards would lay down their lives for her.
Roland ca to a sudden halt before the first gate. He raised his Holy Crystal Longsword. "Stand back!" he warned the Holy Knights behind him. With a clear ring of steel, a tide of Divine Energy surged forth, splitting the heavy tal gate in two.
"Split up!" Roland ordered. "Team One, clear the traps! Team Two, with !"
Doris glanced back, her heart seizing as she saw silver Armor looming in the poison mist. She bit through her lip in terror. Blood trickled down her delicate chin, but she didn’t even notice. She rounded the final corner, and the laboratory door was just ahead—
A silver glint suddenly streaked past her ear, THWACKING into the doorfra ahead. Doris froze, and a lock of her golden hair drifted slowly to the ground.
"Take one more step, and the next arrow goes through your knee." Roland’s voice, terrifyingly calm, ca from behind her.
Doris slowly turned to see Roland at the end of the hall, his longbow still raised. Cezel and three other Holy Knights were closing in from the sides, sealing off any path of retreat.
"You think this is over?" Doris suddenly broke into a malevolent grin, her fingers secretly moving toward a detonator at her waist. "I’d rather destroy it all than—"
A soft PING, and a Holy Light Bomb the size of a silver coin struck her wrist.
The detonator dropped from her hand, and Cezel lunged forward to catch it. High above, in a ventilation duct, a young Holy Knight lowered a small crossbow.
Roland’s voice was cold. "Take us to the laboratory. Now."
Forcing Doris to lead, Roland followed her through a narrow tunnel and into a spacious underground chamber. Dozens of transparent incubation pods were arranged here, each containing a bizarre, floating creature—amalgamations of different Beastman parts, and so that were simply indescribable hybrids.
"Genetic fusion experints..." Roland’s voice trembled with fury. "How dare you desecrate life to this degree!"
Doris suddenly burst into maniacal laughter. "You think this is the end of it? Look at those files! Half the nobility of the Empire is involved! We could have created the most powerful legion of warriors!"
Cezel picked up a list from a workbench. It prominently displayed the nas of many of the Empire’s most powerful officials and the sums they had invested. He exchanged a solemn look with Roland—this conspiracy was far larger than they had ever imagined.
"Take it all. Don’t leave a single docunt behind," Roland commanded. "As for her..." He glanced at Doris, who lay limp on the floor. "She will be judged by the highest court in the Empire."
As the setting sun stretched the fortress’s shadow across the land, the last of the victims was carried onto a dical carriage. Roland stood atop the fortress’s highest point, gazing toward the distant Imperial Capital. He knew this wasn’t just a simple rescue mission; it was the beginning of a storm that would shake the Empire to its foundations.
"Commander," Cezel said, walking up beside him. "We found sothing else deep within the laboratory... You should see it for yourself."
Roland nodded. As he turned, his cape snapped in the wind, and the last ray of sunlight reflecting off his silver Armor was like a fla of hope that would never be extinguished in the darkness.
Roland followed Cezel through the laboratory’s main section. The deeper they went, the more frigid the air beca. The lights on the walls flickered, casting long, distorted shadows. Finally, they stopped before an iron door secured with multiple seals.
"We’ve tried everything, but we can’t open it," Cezel said in a low voice.
Roland turned to the captive Doris. "Open it."
A strange smile curled Doris’s lips. "Are you sure you want to see what’s inside? So truths... have a way of driving people mad."
"No more gas!" Cezel barked.
Doris shrugged and, with so difficulty, made a few gestures with her cuffed hands. The runes on the iron door lit up one by one, and with a grating screech of tal that set teeth on edge, it slowly swung open.
An acrid sll of preservatives hit them. Roland raised his Holy Crystal Sword, its light flooding the room—
Dozens of transparent incubation pods stood in neat rows. A "clone" floated inside each one. What was even more horrifying was that these clones all bore the faces of the Empire’s most powerful figures: the Minister of Finance, a Cardinal, and even... His Majesty himself.
"By the Beast God..." Cezel’s voice trembled.
"Surprised?" Doris laughed, full of smug satisfaction. "Did you think we were only studying Beastn? No. We’re creating perfect replacents. Soon, the entire Empire will be in our hands."
The tip of Roland’s sword was at Doris’s throat. "You dare blasphe against the throne!"
"Blasphe?" Doris scoffed. "We’re *saving* the Empire! Those decrepit old fools have no idea what real power is!"
Just then, a BEEPING alarm sounded from a pod in the far back of the room. The fluid inside began to drain rapidly, and a man who looked identical to Roland slowly opened his eyes.
’No... this is impossible...’ Roland took a step back.
...
Inside the Imperial Palace’s council hall, crystal chandeliers illuminated the resplendent room as bright as day. Augustine V sat upon the throne, the parchnt list in his hand wrinkled by his tight grip. The candlelight danced in his deep-set eyes, reflecting a shock and fury he could not conceal.
"Your Majesty," Roland said, kneeling on one knee. His silver Armor still bore the marks of the battle. "Every person on this list is directly connected to Doris’s laboratory."
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