Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Even a Treacherous Subject Has Their Uses
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"Hmm... It seems Sir Geral has failed in his task."
"My deepest apologies, Viscount. As you know, the reason is... due to a 'wandering knight' suddenly interfering..."
"I have no interest in excuses. The only thing that matters is whether it failed or succeeded. Isn't that right?"
The man speaking was Viscount Delmain, a middle-aged man with a bulky body nearing two meters in height. He looked at the messenger, Andel, with a bored expression.
Then, glancing down at his own feet, he casually asked a question. There, two skinny men, clad in tattered rags with their hands and feet bound in chains, were prostrated on the floor, serving as chairs beneath Viscount Delmain.
"Y-yes, my lord..."
"Y-yes... that's correct, Viscount."
These were men who had defied Viscount Delmain's orders or plotted rebellion. After being captured, they had been made into chairs like this.
Sweating profusely, they tried to maintain their posture, but having been crushed under the massive frame of Viscount Delmain for several hours now, their limbs trembled uncontrollably.
"Ugh!"
But they could never break this posture.
The moment they did, their lives would be over, and their families and children would become the lord's servants or be sold as slaves to other regions.
"Of course, Sir Geral is a very valuable asset, so he won't suffer such a fate... Hehe, anyway, so you need my strength. Well, that's a wise choice. Judging that obtaining results is more important than pride or personal reputation. Truly fitting for a knight who has served our territory for so long. Kekeke."
"Th-then, does that mean...?"
"I'll send Sir Galson and Sir Encia. Both are low knights, but they should be stronger than Sir Geral. With the three of them together, a territory of some rootless, upstart noble shouldn't pose any problem."
Though called low knights, they were beings capable of gathering mana and using 'Aura,' making them vastly superior to a hundred ordinary soldiers. It was clear that a territory without any knights would become easy prey in an instant.
"Of course, it must be handled quietly. That I am the mastermind must naturally remain a secret. And this time, excuses like a wandering knight won't fly. I'm giving this second chance because of the attitude of shouldering risk for the result, not because I understand the failure."
"Yes, I will convey that, my lord!"
Andel, bowing his head, immediately returned to his territory to deliver the lord's message.
Viscount Delmain then sent someone to summon the knights he would dispatch. A few hours later, two knights wearing plate armor, swords at their waists and spears on their backs, entered his office.
"You summoned us, Viscount?"
The middle-aged knight with gray hair and a beard was Sir Galson; the female knight in her mid-twenties with short brown hair was Sir Encia.
Both were retainers of Viscount Delmain, knights capable of using Aura.
The moment they entered, they knelt before the Viscount, bowed their heads, and paid their respects.
"The goblin subjugation you ordered is nearly complete. Once we burn their main nest, it will be finished, Viscount."
"Good. You're doing very well. That's not why I called you, though. Are you aware of the Dustycloak Barony, which I've always found... displeasing?"
"Of course. A family of lowly mercenaries with no roots who became nobles by sheer luck in the war."
As Sir Galson answered, Viscount Delmain smiled with satisfaction.
These knights had also served the territory for generations, participating in wars and earning merits. Sir Galson held a small territory, while Sir Encia had no fief of her own and worked for a salary.
For a mere mercenary, hired for money, to receive a title—it was impossible for them to view it favorably.
"A good answer. Anyway, I instructed Sir Geral to deal with that rootless upstart noble, but it seems things went slightly awry. So, he's asking for my help, offering to pay the price."
"I thought Sir Geral, though not much of a knight, was clever enough to handle it."
"Sir Galson, as you said, Sir Geral's skills were sufficient, but it seems luck wasn't on his side this time. So, I want you two to help him resolve it."
"Hehehe, for such a task, entrusting it to me alone would suffice..."
"One never knows. More interference might appear this time, which is why I called Encia as well. I didn't want to use two knights for such a trivial matter either."
Sir Galson subtly checked the knight beside him, Sir Encia.
Part of it was because she was a younger knight, but he also disliked that she was a woman practicing knighthood.
"......"
Even under the same lord, jealousy, envy, and checks existed constantly due to gender, age, rank, and various other reasons.
However, Sir Encia merely listened with an expressionless face, as if such things were commonplace.
"Anyway, you two should head to Sir Geral's mansion immediately. Sir Encia, I'll instruct Captain Raukel of the guard to handle the goblin subjugation. Go to Sir Geral's mansion right now."
"Yes, understood."
"Ah, wait a moment..."
"What is it, my lord?"
As they were about to leave, Viscount Delmain suddenly called them back. The two knights stopped and turned around.
One of the men being used as a chair had exhausted his strength and collapsed face down on the floor.
No matter how strong one's will, they couldn't surpass the limits of the body.
The Viscount kicked the man lightly as if a piece of furniture had broken, and spoke to the knights.
"On your way, dispose of this broken 'chair' as well. And bring another fellow from the prison. Of course, handle the aftermath too. Ah! You can relay that to the guard captain as well."
"Yes, my lord!"
"I'll be sitting on this friend here in the meantime, but he might die before then, so make it two."
"Of course. Hahaha."
As if this were routine, Sir Galson laughed and dragged the exhausted prisoner out of the Viscount's office.
The other prisoner, who had tasted a brief moment of respite, now had to support the massive Viscount Delmain alone.
He glanced weakly at the one being dragged away, hoping only that another prisoner would come quickly to share this weight with him.
A few days later, Dustycloak Barony territory.
Beonald's daily routine hadn't changed much.
Being exceptionally bright, he kept up well with his mother's lessons, and dedicating himself to swordsmanship training was his main focus.
At his father's suggestion, he had recently started horseback riding training, but since he already had experience, he showed such adeptness at handling horses that the checks became occasional.
However, there was one thing he couldn't skip: patrolling the territory.
The truly uneventful rural farmlands, and the scenery of a few houses—likely belonging to hunters—drying or dismantling animal hides was a common sight.
While touring this small territory where hunting and farming were combined, Baron Leon taught Beonald various things.
"Is it not tiring? Even though you've learned to handle a horse, riding for long periods can be exhausting..."
"I'm fine, Father."
"Oh... That's a relief. But tell me anytime if you get tired, Beonald."
"Yes, Father."
"Of course, it's not a large enough land to be tiring... But even if small, it's the precious land of our family. And as the family head, you have the duty to protect this land and its people..."
'Of course, I know he's giving proper education to his son, but hearing this feels quite strange. Anyway, while I'm here, I should observe various things and then remake the map. What on earth were they thinking, making it like that? Really, my~'
While Baron Leon's words weren't incorrect, from Beonald's standards, they were too unrealistic and idealistic, making them somewhat painful to hear.
However, since arguing wouldn't lead to a good conversation, he simply thought he should remake the map from his mother's office and memorized the surrounding scenery and distances in his mind.
"M-my lord! My lord!"
"What is it? What's the sudden matter?"
While touring the territory, they saw a servant working at the mansion rushing towards where Beonald and Baron Leon were.
Baron Leon and Beonald stopped and waited for him. The servant, panting heavily, delivered his message.
"I-it's, 'Sir Geral' has come to the mansion."
"Sir Geral? What for?"
"I-I don't know well. But seeing that... he brought people who look like a band of thieves, it's probably about that matter."
"Understood. I'll head there now. Beonald, we have a guest, so let's return."
At the word 'guest,' Baron Leon and Beonald immediately turned their horses and headed back to the mansion.
Baron Leon muttered to himself, 'What could his business be?' with a peaceful, pondering face, but Beonald felt something was amiss.
'Sir Geral... I heard about him during Mother's lessons. The lord of the neighboring territory to the south, slightly larger than ours. And a low knight who has long served under the Callermain Earldom, a human of the Viscount Delmain faction under the Count. So, he's someone who could never like this Dustycloak family. He came first, bringing the thieves? This is interesting~'
Without needing confirmation, he predicted that this Sir Geral was undoubtedly the mastermind behind the thieves.
There was a possibility he wasn't, but until evidence to the contrary was found, it was almost certain.
'The only exception would be if he came for a truly unavoidable reason... That doesn't seem to be the case.'
For a mere bandit problem, personally visiting the territory of a noble he disliked could only be interpreted as either having no self-respect or harboring some hidden scheme. The only thing Sir Geral could covet in this backwater territory was the 'Baron' title itself.
'Thinking again, Paul and Shante, the lord's retainers, lacked sufficient grounds to collude with mere bandits and betray... Since those bandits could simply take the hostages and money and run. But if Sir Geral guaranteed it from behind, the story changes. Anyway, for now, I'll observe while staying on guard.'
"We're here. Beonald, slow down."
"Yes, Father."
While lost in thought, the two soon reached the mansion. Baron Leon handed his horse to a servant and headed inside to greet the guest.
Meanwhile, Beonald said he would put away the horses, took both to the stable, and then subtly observed the situation outside first.
'First, five soldiers came as attendants. Those two are the bandits who escaped when I dealt with them... Since their attention was on Father who entered first, they didn't recognize me? Well, it was night back then, so they might not... Or perhaps they couldn't even imagine the son of a rootless mercenary lineage being a knight. Hmm... Let's see, did they bring anything else hidden around?'
The soldiers they directly brought showed no abnormalities.
If they intended some trick, they would surely have brought more troops. So, Beonald carefully scanned the surroundings, looking for anything, but with his view limited to just around the mansion, it was difficult to find anything.
'It seems faster to go out and look...'
"Y-young master, you shouldn't be doing this here. A guest has arrived, so you must go up and greet them. Even though you're not yet an adult... A-anyway, please go up quickly."
'No choice. As a noble, receiving guests is unavoidable.'
Due to the servant's arrival, Beonald could no longer search the surroundings. Regretfully, he returned to the mansion.
However, thinking he still needed to prepare, he made an excuse to the servant about changing clothes and headed to his training room.
There, weapons and various tools he had collected from raiding the bandits' hideout and the homes of Shante and Paul were hidden.