I play a Evil God in Otome Game

Chapter 86: Chapter 85: Merlin and Mordred

In a dungeon overtaken by darkness, chains covered every surface. Runes glowing with incredible power were wrapped around the neck, arms, and legs of the prisoner.

The person imprisoned here must have committed an unimaginable crime. The entire dungeon was dark, with no light sources. That was until someone entered.

As the steel door of the dungeon slowly opened, light struck the prisoner's face, and the person who entered was none other than Merlin. He was no longer wearing his old academy robes but instead donned simple white and gold clothing.

Merlin's gold and white-toned attire carried an elegant wizardly aura, decorated with noble details. The main piece of the outfit was a long white tunic that reached below his knees.

The long sleeves, which expanded from the shoulders, flared slightly at the wrists. The cuffs were adorned with golden embroidery that continued down the tunic.

A slender belt secured Merlin's tunic at the waist. Beneath the tunic, he wore white linen pants and plain leather boots.

Over the tunic was a cloak that reached his knees, and on the shoulders of the cloak was the Red Dragon banner, the insignia of King Arthur, representing Merlin's identity.

As the cloak flowed with a supernatural air, the prisoner's face became visible when light hit it, revealing a sudden orb of light, which illuminated the room.

"Mordred..."

The voice coming from Merlin made Mordred furrow his brows mockingly, before he reluctantly lifted his head.

"Merlin bastard. Is it really you?" Mordred opened his eyes and, seeing Merlin's figure, sighed and squinted. "What made you come all the way from your luxurious palace to see my miserable body?"

"The Knight of Loyalty is, as always, not hesitant in his words," Merlin said calmly. Had it been anyone else, they might have thought Merlin was mocking him with the title, but it wasn't so.

Mordred's title was the Knight of Loyalty. It wasn't a title given by Arthur or anyone else. It was a title that had been bestowed upon Mordred by the Camelot citizens themselves in the past.

Mordred lowered his gaze. For a moment, sadness appeared in his eyes. Then, that sadness turned into mockery, and he said, "I stopped using that title a long time ago."

"Not even King Arthur would have thought you'd betray him. He could have entrusted his throne to you with complete confidence," Merlin said coldly but with emotion. Mordred's gaze hardened. Merlin continued, "But you betrayed his trust. You turned your back on him and—"

"I killed him," Mordred said calmly, lifting his gaze to meet Merlin's. This time, there was a cruel amusement and torment in his eyes. "I killed him and brought destruction to the entire Empire. And I have no regrets."

As Mordred tried to step forward, a sudden electric shock made him scream, while Merlin sighed and glared at him. "This is nothing to be proud of. How can being a traitor, betraying someone, be prideful?!"

Merlin almost said demandingly. Mordred grinned and laughed. The pain in his voice was more evident, though he managed to hide it.

"Stop for once! Why am I the source of all evil, huh?!" Mordred roared angrily. Merlin's eyes narrowed. Mordred laughed and continued furiously, "Lancelot had an illicit affair with the King's wife! Guinevere, that bitch, betrayed the King just to suck Lancelot's dick!"

"This is different," Merlin said firmly, denying it. Mordred laughed with amusement and shook his head, rejecting it. He looked at Merlin with a malicious smile.

"Lancelot bastard killed Gareth!" When Gareth's name was mentioned, Merlin flinched. Mordred's eyes narrowed in pain. "What did Gareth do wrong? He only became a Knight of the Round Table to help people!"

"Merlin, remember! What did Gareth tell you? What did he say when he swore loyalty to the King! Damn bastard!" Mordred nearly spat in hatred, trying to stand, but his injured foot caused him to stumble and fall painfully to the ground.

Merlin's eyes narrowed with shock and hesitation. He clearly remembered Gareth's oath. Merlin's heart ached. Gareth's oath spilled from his lips.

"I will always walk with goodness and mercy. I will use my strength to heal others' wounds, and I will be the protector of the innocent and children. I swear that my sword will only be drawn to protect the innocent."

Mordred sobbed quietly, looking down at the ground. Merlin fell silent. Mordred continued softly. This time, his voice was quieter, and his anger seemed to have faded.

"Gareth had no fault. His only crime was living, and Lancelot took him from us..." Mordred clenched his fists in anger. "The number of children Gareth helped was incalculable. He gave all his salary to orphans and the poor. Despite his suffering, he kept it to himself and always smiled at us."

For a moment, a memory flashed in Mordred's eyes. A bitter smile crossed his lips, and he directed his gaze at Merlin. His eyes were already watering...

"He always called me his favorite brother," Mordred smiled warmly. When Merlin saw the calm and warm smile on Mordred's lips, his eyes widened in disbelief.

Mordred continued. His eyes softened, and his lips curled into a smile. When he looked at Merlin, the expression on his face was something unexpected from Mordred.

"Gareth was the kindest of my brothers. Gawain usually acted like an arrogant piece of shit," Mordred grinned when Gawain's name was mentioned. It wasn't mocking; it was a voice filled with longing.

"Agravain was usually absent. That gloomy bastard was probably making poison with my mother, but I wondered what he was up to," Mordred said calmly. Merlin tried not to speak. His eyes were serious as he listened with curiosity and respect to Mordred's past.

"Gaheris was like a gentler Gawain. He was my stepfather Lot's favorite child. Unlike me." When Lot's name was mentioned, Mordred's eyes narrowed briefly with hatred. But he didn't dwell on it and continued. "Gareth always brought me my favorite food. Since my mother wouldn't let anyone speak to me, I couldn't tell the servants I was hungry."

Mordred's eyes narrowed with sadness. "Even though my mother would beat Gareth for bringing me food, he would tell me it was no problem. He'd bring me toys, food, even gold."

Mordred smiled brightly. He sighed, but his smile faltered, and anger spread across his face once more.

"While Guinevere should have been punished, Lancelot kidnapped her, and in the end, they only got exiled!" Mordred's eyes widened and reddened. His eyes filled with tears as he looked at Merlin in silence.

"Then why was Gareth's death overlooked! Why?! He died just for trying to stop Lancelot! Do you know how much my heart aches?! Do you know, Merlin! Heartless monster!"

Merlin recoiled, startled. For the first time in centuries, Merlin's eyes twitched, and he felt the need to look away.

Mordred gritted his teeth and spat on the ground. Then, in anger, he continued, "So what about that wimp Tristan?"

"What about Tristan? Tristan had a secret affair with another king's wife," Mordred sighed, leaning against the wall. He looked at Merlin with mockery and disgust. "Despite that, history books always wrote about them in a holy light!"

"My only crime was being loyal to my father! I dedicated my whole life to that!" Mordred's eyes widened. He tried to stand up, but his leg broke three times again, yet he ignored the pain.

"Ha!!" Standing up, Mordred grabbed Merlin by the collar, who still appeared silent and hesitant, and pulled him harshly.

"I dedicated my life to Camelot! I didn't eat! I didn't drink! I didn't chase after women like the others! I didn't harm the innocent! I completed every mission successfully!"

Mordred's mana went wild, sending electric shocks through the chains around his body. Mordred screamed in pain, his face contorting, but he ignored it, glaring at Merlin with fury.

"I only—" Mordred's voice trembled, and just as he was about to collapse, Merlin grabbed him by the shoulder and arm. Merlin gently lowered Mordred to the ground and pulled back.

Mordred's face hit the floor. His expression was worse than ever before. Placing his hand on his heart, Mordred tried not to cry.

"I lived my whole life in one room. My mother ignored me. None of my siblings spoke to me, except Gareth.

I had no friends like the other children. I didn't have a family who supported me endlessly or a lover. Even though no one in Camelot loved me, I—I gave myself up without hesitation…"

Mordred's eyes narrowed. As tears finally ran down his cheeks, Merlin's body trembled. Mordred spoke with all his remaining strength. "Even though they insulted me, belittled me, and treated me like a simple bastard, I still smiled at them."

Mordred's face turned into a pitiful smile. "What did they do? They spat in my face. They ignored my accomplishments. They told me that I was just a bastard, and my successes were nothing more than simple tasks!"

Mordred looked at Merlin again. His expression was so pitiful that even Merlin's heart was shaken. Mordred swallowed and continued. "Wasn't King Arthur a bastard too? But everyone loved him and respected him. Like a fool, I thought everyone would respect me like that."

"But I was wrong. Despite working like a fool, in the end, I ended up in a pitiful situation…"

Mordred sighed. He placed his hand on his heart and clenched it. "I'm tired of caring about what people think. Merlin? Will you tell me? Please, just once—"

Mordred paused for a second, nearly begging Merlin with tears in his eyes. "Please, just once, can you tell me I was a good Knight? That I had accomplishments, that I was equal to everyone else…"

Merlin paused for a moment. His gaze trembled. He wanted to suppress and destroy the feelings inside him, but he couldn't. Finally, words slipped from his trembling lips.

"You are a good Knight, Mordred…"

A slight smile appeared on Mordred's lips. He lowered his hands. At that moment, Merlin looked at Mordred. The feeling of pity inside him was something he had never felt before.

Even Merlin, hailed as the greatest wizard, couldn't escape this pitiful emotion. Not like ordinary people, Merlin stopped his trembling body.

He looked at Mordred harshly. Talking to Mordred from the beginning had been a mistake. He had taken Mordred lightly, but now he had to deal with these pitiful emotions.

For the first time, the great Merlin was trapped in a pitiful way. His eyes trembled and narrowed. He looked at Mordred, who had his eyes closed and was still looking at the ground with emotion, for a while. Without stopping any longer, he left the dungeon.

But this time, instead of letting the darkness take over, he left a torch in the dungeon.

As the dungeon door closed, Mordred was left alone with his thoughts. After Merlin left, his hand gently lifted and stabbed hard into his chest.

"Tch…"

Mordred moaned in pain but tried to ignore it. His hand lightly pierced his heart and firmly pulled out a piece of paper that had been placed inside.

Mordred didn't care as blood spurted from his chest. As the wound healed quickly, Mordred tremblingly opened an old piece of paper.

On the paper, there was a smiley emoji and a sentence. Gareth's name was written at the bottom left corner, and the sentence read:

"Today, because Mom caught me, I couldn't bring you the food you wanted, but don't worry, I'll bring you a whole cupboard full of food tomorrow!"

Mordred, trembling as he read the letter, felt his heart tighten. As the tears ran down his cheeks, he pressed the paper against his chest. Hiccups echoed in the dungeon, and in the end, unable to bear it any longer, Mordred succumbed to sadness and began to cry uncontrollably. Stay connected with M-V-L