Episode 163
The next morning.
Elizabeth headed to the fountain in the Marquis’ Square.
Elizabeth wearing a dress that exposed her shoulders.
Her appearance was almost like the second coming of an angel, and there was a strange elegance to the way she walked.
Like a princess.
No, beyond a princess, a king, a higher being.
It wasn’t just because of looks.
atmosphere.
The way you walk and the light gestures you make.
Long black hair that sways slightly in the blowing wind.
If Jack’s demeanor was vicious, dark and murderous, Elizabeth’s was the complete opposite.
All-embracing.
A gentle breeze that accepts anything.
That was the mood at Elizabeth Valantier.
Behind her, Ron, who no longer had any intention of hiding his momentum, was walking with the momentum of a 9th circle mana user, and next to him, Gonzales, who had become the leader of the Iron Blood Knights, was leading the surrounding knights.
The sight of them gathered together and walking toward one place was like a painting carved by nature under the sun.
Today is the day when a new marquis is born in the Marquisate of Valanti.
It could be said that it was a very meaningful day.
Something felt empty.
Walking with them was a large, built man who looked to be about 17 years old, and a little boy with blond hair.
The two children felt really empty.
Charlotte asked beside Ron, who was walking with a heavy load on his back.
“Excuse me, Uncle Ron?”
Ron’s expression fell for a moment, as if he was unfamiliar with holding weight.
The way he smiled brightly was just like the look of a doting father looking at his cute daughter.
“Why is that?”
“… … I don’t see the boss. Where did he go?”
really.
Jack was not there.
It’s strange that Jack isn’t here when all the key figures of the Marquisate are gathered here.
It was natural to feel empty.
Is that all?
“I don’t see Uncle Aveiro or Seldo. Where did they all go?”
Ron’s expression, which had been grinning broadly, changed again.
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Ron, who was appointed as Elizabeth’s bodyguard and the guardian of the Marquis, began to show the weight appropriate for the position again, and answered Charlotte’s question while glancing at Elizabeth.
“He said he was going to find a gift to give to the Marquis.”
“Is it a gift?”
Probably few people know what is happening now.
That makes sense.
Faster than you think.
Because I heard news that Count Mantis’s forces had been dispatched.
Ron bent down slightly and whispered in Charlotte’s ear.
“He asked if I could give the first female marquis of the continent a fief with a few gold mines attached to it.”
That was enough.
Charlotte nods with a slightly bitter expression.
Where did Jack go?
What did you go to do?
Because I understood it clearly.
Charlotte understood that even though the Marquis’s work was over, Jack’s work was not.
So it was bitter.
I want to stand next to Jack, but I feel like I can’t.
Is it simply because of age?
Thanos, who was next to Charlotte, seemed to have read her feelings and patted her head.
The two of them looked exactly like brother and sister.
The first coronation ceremony, which did not involve a single noble of the kingdom and did not even require a formal official document to be sent to the royal palace, began in the Valanti domain.
* * *
“Really, is it okay if I don’t go?”
At Aveiro’s question, he turned his head.
Likewise, Cell, who was standing next to me, also turns his head.
“Why? Are you worried?”
“To be honest, yes, I am worried.”
Aveiro’s worries.
It definitely reached me.
Even at this moment, ‘Nameless’ could control all public opinion and organizations in the Marquisate, but it was different.
That means the family won’t be attending the Marquis’ coronation ceremony.
I don’t know about other people, but from my older sister’s perspective, it would be quite upsetting.
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Furthermore, there will be people who will start to doubt the relationship between me and my older sister.
but.
“It’s a little disappointing, but actually, I’d rather not go.”
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“Why, may I ask?”
hmm…….
“Have you ever seen the sun and the moon together?”
“……yes?”
It’s an expression that makes you want to suddenly say, “What are you talking about?”
I ended up laughing faintly at that rather realistic expression.
“Just kidding, why are you taking it so seriously? The coronation of the Marquis, my presence or absence, does that really matter?”
“hmm…….”
“And what does it mean if other people see it?”
“… … .”
“If I saw you as a Marquis, acknowledged you, and decided to help you, then that’s it. That’s how you and I came together, and the coronation ceremony we’re doing now is for the stability of the people of Yeongji, so a psychopath like me shouldn’t be there. You know how much shit is on my hands.”
“… … My lord… … .”
To put it simply, that’s it.
“I’m like a dark knight, that kind of being.”
“okay.”
Aveiro’s expression right now was quite something to behold.
As expected, I wasn’t wrong about the person.
My choice was not wrong.
That’s the look on his face.
He patted Aveiro’s shoulder with his hand.
“And as I said before, I don’t like things that are pretentious. This is no exception.”
“What about the current situation?”
“How many gold mines does Count Mantis have in total?”
Although the topic was different, Aveiro answered as if he had been waiting for the question.
“There are five in total. By the way, this is the most among the five kingdoms excluding the Tulcan Empire.”
5.
There’s more than I thought.
I sat down with my buttocks resting on a nearby rock.
“I would like to give you a fief with five gold mines as a gift for your coronation. Do you think this will be enough as a gift?”
“It will be more than enough, it will overflow.”
I burst out laughing.
however.
indeed.
“Would your sister like that gift or not?”
Aveiro smiles awkwardly.
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“I don’t think you’ll like it, though. You probably know how I got it.”
He just nodded without saying anything.
But, what does that matter?
The strong have everything from the weak.
It is an absolute and immutable truth that everyone outwardly denies but inwardly acknowledges, and it is a truth of the world that penetrates the past and the future.
The strong have it all.
Because I’m strong.
That’s why everyone wants to become strong.
I’m just standing at the top among them, there’s no other reason.
That’s enough.
As I put my hand on the head of our little dragon next to me, he asks as if he has been waiting for it.
-But why did you bring me here?
Our cells are curious.
Why did you bring me… … .
This is also simple.
“Count Mantis is on the committee.”
-yes.
“Then what should I do?”
-yes?
I stroked the guy’s head with my hand.
“I must get revenge.”
Cell’s body trembles.
“Count Mantis has the most money in this kingdom. He has quite a few connections, as he spends money regardless of whether he is pro-royal or pro-noble. But.”
-… … .
“That guy is bringing money to the Tulcan Empire. Where do you think all that money went?”
-… … .
“I can bet my entire fortune that at least 20% of the total cost of experimenting on you, the cost of the weapons, the cost of the armor, the cost of the medicine, etc., came from Count Mantis.”
Cell slowly raised his head and looked at me, and Aveiro took a quiet step back in the strange atmosphere.
-To be honest, I felt the presence of many people when I was being experimented on.
I just listened in silence.
– But I never saw ‘their’ faces even once, whether it was because of the magic or not. I really didn’t see anyone except Beckerman, the director of the lab, the human named Merengues, and the human called ‘His Majesty’. But.
“but?”
-voice.
The corners of his mouth twitched.
-I know the voice. The voice that asked me the question. There are exactly 86 types. I can recognize it when I hear that voice.
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The cell looks straight into my eyes.
-Should I just watch like I did when I was a writer? Or… … .
I tapped the guy’s head with the hand that was stroking his head.
“You do it.”
Our cell’s eyes opened wide, as if they had not expected it.
You already have big eyes, so they might fall out if you keep doing that.
“Count Mantis, I’ll give the old man to you. Live or die, it’s up to you.”
The guy smiled brightly and nodded.
That was enough.
Our cell.
Although he is very kind by my standards, he is not incapable of distinguishing between those who should be killed and those who should be spared.
A moment of invisible silence for Count Mantis.
Again, I waited in that spot.
Rumor has it that they’ve hired all sorts of mercenary groups from the Tulcan Empire, the Kingdom of Ishmael, etc., which makes me a little curious.
Indeed, how much will it cost?
* * *
The distance between Count Mantis and Marquis Valantier is close.
If you just consider the distance, it’s about 13km.
Even if they were called ‘neighboring territories’, there would be no sense of incongruity, and in fact, the two territories were neighboring territories.
From Count Mantis’s perspective, it’s not for nothing that he calls it a great restaurant.
The neighboring fief is a higher marquis than one’s own.
If you look closely, it is surrounded by mountains, and from the mountains to the Marquis’ territory there is a lot of wasteland.
The story is that the land is simply very large, but what’s even more interesting is that the owner of the land is incredibly stupid.
Well then, this is no different from just asking me to please eat you.
So I prepared to eat it.
But then his daughter died, and all the soldiers that Count Mantis had planted in the Marquis’ house died.
Count Mantis was furious and poured out all the money and connections he had.
So that’s how it is.
The number of people who have now decided to join Count Mantis’ ‘will’ is a whopping 15,000.
This was almost a national level force.
Using the ‘magic communication device’ worth at least several million gold, he gathered all the mercenary groups he could gather from all the kingdoms, including the Tulcan Empire, and bought several teleportation scrolls that were disposable but cost 9 million gold each.
The mercenary group recruited in this way.
The list was quite spectacular.
The French Guild is the 3rd largest mercenary group on the continent, operating in the Tulcan Empire and possessing two ‘Masters’.
Also, the ‘Ark Guild’ is the 6th largest mercenary group on the continent and is in partnership with the French Guild.
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The ‘Sandal Mercenary Corps’ is ranked 12th on the continent and 2nd within the Kingdom of Ishmael.
And among the mercenary groups existing in the Teslan Kingdom, we recruited all the mercenary groups located near the Mantis County.
I just pulled everything together.
The number 15 thousand.
It wasn’t an unrealistic number.
Also, out of those 15,000 people, 8,000 are Mana users.
There are a whopping 124 high circle mana users from Circle 7 to Circle 9.
Is that all?
Among them, there are as many as 4 ‘masters’.
Simply put, Count Mantis has gathered all the power he has and gathered the power of the Teslan Kingdom.
This was a really big deal.
It was also crazy.
Magyar Teslan remained silent about this absurd matter, and the kings of the confederation of kingdoms remained silent.
It’s not because I was afraid.
just.
I was curious.
Why on earth do they do that?
Marquis Valantier.
What on earth is there?
Even if the rumor that a mere 14-year-old kid had subdued the Magic Tower and cleared out the Academy were true, Count Mantis’s response was too extreme.
In fact, Count Mantis poured everything he had into it, which could almost be described as ‘his entire fortune’.
To be exact, there was no shortage at all.
The greatest power that money can gather.
That’s why I was silent.
That means, on the other hand, the eyes of all the powerful, nobles, and royalty on this continent are on you.
It means it’s concentrated.
So it’s been four days since Jack arrived at the Marquis’ house.
In exactly four days, a national force was deployed against the Marquisate of Valanti.
