Episode 328
* * *
King of the Cradle, Deidamea Cradle, wiped his face.
“That’s interesting.”
All the country’s ministers were gathered in the palace of the cradle.
The reason why they gathered here.
It’s simple.
“An envoy from Teslan? And to our cradle, and not to any other kingdom? And before any other kingdom?”
Deidmia quietly rested her hand on her chin.
Then he pointed to a man and asked.
“How many people are there in total?”
“The total number of people, including the Valanti siblings, is 7,544.”
The number was more specific than I thought.
“I don’t intend to refuse you coming, but it’s really strange.”
Deidmia was wondering.
A common question that not only Deidamia but everyone here has.
“That number of people came by boat? What on earth did our Coast Guard do, and what did other countries’ intelligence agencies do?”
At those words, the two men bow their heads deeply.
The two were Duke Kapsis, who was in charge of the overall political affairs including the Cradle’s information department, and Duke Darmian Medel, the commander-in-chief who commanded the navy.
Oh, really.
“There are all sorts of stories going around, like the dragon declaring war, but it seems he knows something about it.”
Deidmia laughed.
“Who should I take care of first? What would happen if our cradle, which borders Tulkan, had different thoughts? Yes, he is certainly quite well-mannered for his young age.”
Deidmia was speaking as if she was satisfied, but the commander-in-chief, Duke Darmian, was not.
He was angry.
‘These damn guards… … .’
A soldier who loses a war can be forgiven, but a soldier who fails his vigilance cannot be forgiven.
It was one of the sayings of Prince Rommel of Teslan.
Many people were influenced by this quote, one of whom was Darmian.
What a great quote this is.
It was necessary to clearly understand the circumstances, but one thing was certain.
The coast guard of Cradle failed to keep watch.
Deidamia said to Darmian,
“I would like Duke Darmian to personally welcome the ‘Teslan Fleet’.”
Darmian, who was thinking of going to the port of Sardem and taking care of the coast guard, answered without a moment’s hesitation.
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“I will do so, Your Majesty.”
So the meeting broke down.
Deidamia, who was watching the delegates leaving the conference room, looked at Duke Kapsis, who was still in his seat.
“Isn’t it by any chance related to ‘that island’?”
The Duke wasn’t sure either.
“… … Judging from the location, it seems to have come from that direction… … but I don’t know.”
Is that all?
Recently, a strange phenomenon has occurred in which the entire sea freezes over.
Duke Kapsis thought to himself, “The world is really noisy.”
“Before we assume that it has anything to do with ‘that island,’ there is one more thing that needs to be assumed.”
“What is that?”
“Based on what has happened so far, Jack Valantier is a very vicious man.”
“Vicious?”
“Yes. It’s too cruel. We have to assume that as a premise. In addition, the mana users on that island are very closed. Do you remember that Red Master from back then?”
He was one of only two Red Masters in the Dojo, and he was the one who took the lead in slaughtering the Grand Duke’s family. He was also talking to Jack about the Master who had his limbs torn off and died.
Deidmia had seen that Master in person.
Did she just watch? Deidmia still remembers that threat.
“He was such an arrogant guy.”
“Here we have to think about, what would happen if those guys met Jack Valantier?”
Needless to say.
“We’re going to fight.”
“Yes. When fire meets fire, the bigger fire consumes the other. And now Jack Valantie is coming. He’s bringing thousands of them and his sister, Elizabeth Valantie. That’s what I mean.”
“You won?”
“Yes. Other than that, the number ‘thousands’ makes no sense.”
Deidmia and Duke Kapsis were both thinking of a man at the same time.
Former Grand Duke.
The Archduke of the Cradle.
The Cradle of Jeras.
“If it were you, you would have given me a good answer.”
Duke Kapsis did not respond to Deidamia’s words.
Honestly, I hate to say this, but the Cradle of Jeras was so annoying.
His abilities were outstanding and his political sense was outstanding.
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It was annoying to Duke Kapsis and it was also annoying to King Deidamia who was now expressing such regret.
The Archduke could express it this way:
A man with a sharp point that naturally pops out.
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A man who is so outstanding that even if he himself is not greedy, people around him will think that he is a greedy man.
King Deidmia and Duke Kapsis, who had a lot of wealth, thought about getting rid of such a cradle of Jeras, and when Grand Duke Jeras happened to find the hermits on the island of Lagomera, this thought occurred to him.
Couldn’t we use those hermits to wipe out House Jeras?
What’s amazing is that these hermits wanted to be ‘secluded’, as their name suggests.
They wanted to remain hidden from the world, and King Deidamia was annoyed by Xerath.
The will was agreed upon, and King Deidamia came to an agreement with the island’s hermits.
If the Grand Duke’s family is completely exterminated, the King will never send ships to a certain sea area with his power.
It wasn’t the end.
Rather, he swore on his ‘neck’ that he would completely block the very fact that the island existed.
Considering that the island was located very close to the cradle, the hermits seemed to have taken that advice to heart.
Deidmia just thought about it that far.
“Your Majesty, he is already a dead man. Don’t worry about him.”
“Yes, that’s right. To be honest, I’m saying this now, but his death was God’s will. In the first place, how can a family called the Grand Duke exist in a small piece of land? It’s not even Tulkan.”
“Your Majesty, everything you say is correct. Grand Duke Xerath has simply brought this upon himself.”
Deidamia exchanged heated glances with Duke Kapsis.
“First, I need to prepare for the banquet.”
“How about we have a conversation first?”
“conversation?”
“Yes. The number in the thousands is a number I received through the telecommunications system. I didn’t see it myself. I think I need to hear the whole story.”
“Hmm.”
“First, let’s have a private meeting with Jack Valantier and see what luck we can get.”
Deidmia tapped the table with her finger.
“You said it would take two to three days, so let’s think about this slowly.”
So the Duke of Kapsis left the palace.
Deidmia, left alone, let out a deep sigh.
Why on earth are they coming from that direction?
That mere fact alone brought back memories that Deidara had wanted to forget.
People usually make judgments based on first impressions when they meet someone.
Deidamia had not even seen the delegation in person, but had already made up her mind based on her first impression.
Vertical drop.
I was just annoyed.
Tch.
* * *
Two days later, December 7th.
Sardem Port, the cradle kingdom’s dock and the continent’s first port. There were many people lined up there.
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Knights, wizards.
And even the nobles.
Their numbers were close to ten thousand.
Great hospitality.
Duke Darmian, who commanded them all, was looking out over the coast.
His gaze twitches.
‘You’re here.’
There are over 20 ships visible from afar.
I heard there are about 7,000 people on that ship.
Slowly, Darmian’s brow furrowed.
Wait a minute, what is this?
His feelings were expressed by others.
“Wow, what is that?”
“Wait a minute, is this… … correct?”
“… … Did I see something wrong?”
First of all, the number of ships exceeds 20.
That was exactly what had been reported.
The problem is.
It was a number.
What are these thousands of people floating in the sky and those who are packed tightly into the ship?
That’s not thousands, it’s tens of thousands.
It was clear that the ‘troop force’ was at least 50,000 strong.
The dock started to get noisy.
Darmian had to make a decision.
The decision was nothing special.
First of all, it is different from what was reported.
That’s literally a force, I’m not kidding, if that ship starts a war, this dock will be in ruins in an instant.
The thought was short.
Just one second.
“All battle… … !!”
Just as Darmian was about to shout ‘Prepare for war’.
Thump- Thump-!!
About eight men came down in front of me.
Darmian stopped talking, and everyone around him stopped talking.
Those 8 people.
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Because prayer was at least a master.
As the gulping and swallowing sounds were heard, the ‘one little boy’ in the middle spoke.
“Nice to meet you.”
Darmian’s brow furrows.
That look.
Double eyelids, dark pupils, sharp nose bridge, and eyebrows of moderate color.
Oval face.
That overly handsome impression was definitely that of that man.
“My name is Jack Valantier. Are you the Duke of Darmian?”
What’s surprising is that the tone of voice was very different from what I had heard rumors about.
It’s not a frivolous tone, but rather a tone that surprisingly feels weighty.
Darmian, who had come to his senses in a hurry, said.
“Yes. I am Duke Darmian. I think you should explain yourself first.”
“If you call it an explanation?”
“What about those troops? They are so different from what I was told.”
Darmian swallowed hard after finishing speaking.
I tried my best not to show it.
If this man is really Jack Valantier, the kind of dog that can kill people with just a few words.
Who wouldn’t be nervous?
At those words, Jack Balantier smiled and approached Darmian.
“There seems to be a misunderstanding. As you have been informed, we are indeed a delegation.”
“… … .”
“Exactly 7,544 people will disembark on this island, and the rest will take a boat to Teslan.”
Hmm.
“I see. Why didn’t you tell me about that in advance?”
Jack Valantier chuckles.
“I’m sorry about this. Let me introduce myself again. I’m Jack Valantier, the head of the delegation.”
Jack held out his hand.
“I am Duke Darmian, the commander-in-chief of the Cradle Kingdom and in charge of the coast.”
Darmian took her hand.
At the same time, applause erupted from all around.
If the first meeting is like this, it’s not bad… … That kind of applause.
Darmian had this thought rather randomly.
Jack Valantier.
He’s not as much of a dog as I thought.
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Said.
