“Lady Divine Snow Sakura, please take action. Avenge us and seize this thug who shows no respect for the Church or the law, and even defied Church orders to attack during the Demon-Slaughter Decree.”

With Divine Snow Sakura holding the scene, Norton puffed up again.

Lyn frowned. “Knight Norton, you’re just slandering me. I’m a very good person. I swear on my chastity, I never lifted a hand in that fight.”

“Bullshit!” Norton nearly jumped with rage. “You didn’t lift a hand? Then what’s on my face?”

“Footprints.”

Lyn said it with utter confidence. “Does that contradict my claim that I didn’t use my hands?”

When it came to weaseling out and playing dead, nobody beat Lyn.

Veins throbbed on Norton’s forehead. He swore he’d never met anyone so shameless. If he had a system, his status screen would be spammed with Anger +1.

“Even if you didn’t attack, what about her? Are the wounds on us fake?”

“I’m saying this to make it clear I don’t look down on the Church, and I didn’t initiate an attack on you.”

“If there were a more reasonable way to resolve this, I wouldn’t want you knights to suffer such humiliation either.” Lyn’s tone was solemn, then grew heavier. “But to protect the honor of the Belmond Family, and to defend my own dignity, I had to take slightly extreme measures.”

“After all, I was just walking down the road when Knight Norton attacked me without asking a thing. If I didn’t have a tiny bit of power to defend myself, if it were some weak commoner instead, he’d be beaten half to death by now, with no chance to argue back.”

“Tell me, is this how the Church normally investigates evil? How is that any different from chaotic evil? If this gets exposed, how many people who trust you will be chilled to the bone?”

Lyn spoke like he was heartbroken. If you didn’t know better, you’d think he was the tortured victim here. The knights over there, who should’ve been a little guilty, felt the burning pain on their bodies and didn’t know whether to feel ashamed at Lyn’s accusations.

After all, they were the real victims of that fight.

Noticing their looks, Lyn didn’t dodge at all. He met their eyes. “You all saw what happened. As knights who believe in Truth, you can tell how innocent I was, right?”

Faced with that question, the knights fell silent. Lyn had resisted fiercely, sure, but at the end of the day… Norton had gone too far.

In other situations, they might have covered for him with a few vague words. But could they bully someone from the Belmond Family? And Divine Snow Sakura was watching them. Under the gaze of Truth’s light, how could they dare lie?

“Knight Norton, can you explain what Young Master Lyn just said?”

Having watched enough of Lyn’s performance, Divine Snow Sakura’s rosy lips curved into an unreadable smile as she looked at Norton. Cold sweat ran down his back. He blurted, “Lady Divine Snow Sakura, don’t listen to his nonsense!”

“I acted fully under Church orders. During the sealed period of the Demon-Slaughter Decree, all suspicious individuals must be screened. He was skulking in a remote place. Even if he’s from the Belmonds, we had to investigate him first.”

“Is that so? So everything you did was for the Church, Knight Norton?”

“Of course—” Norton began firmly. In that instant, golden patterns flashed through Divine Snow Sakura’s eyes.

Norton noticed nothing. His voice flowed in a steady cadence. “Of course it wasn’t for the Church. I did it to take reven—”

He froze. His face changed. Mana surged off him as he cast something on himself. He spat a mouthful of blood. Pale, he stared at the indifferent Divine Snow Sakura, covering his mouth in pure fear.

“Truthspell… you…”

He trembled as he looked at her.

“Knight Norton, anything else you want to say?”

Her calm gaze slid over him. Norton’s face went ashen. He staggered back a few steps, unable to speak.

“Then the matter is settled.” Divine Snow Sakura withdrew her gaze and looked at Lyn, face unreadable. “A black sheep like this mixing into the Church means our discipline was lax. We frightened Young Master Lyn.”

“I acted before I understood the situation and even moved against you. I’m truly sorry. I caused you harm in body and mind. Please allow me to offer compensation. This is the Church’s respect and sincerity toward the Belmond Family.”

She drew out a scroll. Under Norton’s furious, despairing eyes, she tore it open. The scroll burst into golden light and drifted down onto Lyn.