Chapter 69
Chapter 69
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: Dog's Death (2)
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A night shrouded in clouds that veiled the moon, making it unusually dark.
In the pitch-black depths of a forest, without even a single campfire.
Around twenty able-bodied men were resting, leaning against rocks and trees.
Their attire was uniformly brigandine armor, reinforced with iron plates over leather.
At a glance, they might seem like a band of wandering mercenaries.
But the fur cloaks draped around them like blankets bore metal emblems shaped like a crescent moon.
It was the symbol of Paula Domain, Lian's homeland.
Grrr...
The massive wolves lying obediently among Paula's knights suddenly lifted their heads and growled.
Someone was approaching.
Clink—shing—
The knights simultaneously reached for their swords, going on alert.
"It's me, my lords. William of the Solton House."
Once they identified the source of the footsteps, they relaxed and sheathed their blades.
It was the young knight who had gone out on reconnaissance a couple of days ago.
"My lord. I'm back."
"You're back."
The young knight tied his horse's reins to a tree trunk and quickly knelt before the lord.
"First, the bad news. Dalisi Citadel has ultimately fallen to the Castel forces."
"I see."
The news that their current location had overnight become the heart of enemy territory.
Yet the lord's reaction was nonchalant.
It simply wasn't the news he had been waiting for.
In contrast, the other knights around him were stunned by the young knight's report.
"What!? Is that true!? How could it fall so quickly...!"
"As expected, that mage hunter the lord is after must have joined the fray. Just like when he murdered the young master, he must have pulled some vile trick..."
Crunch...
At the mention of his dead son, the lord's fist trembled, his previously stoic demeanor cracking.
"We've also heard eyewitness accounts that seem connected to him."
"Report it at once."
His hollow, lifeless eyes reignited like embers flaring to life.
"A few days before Dalisi Citadel fell. A wealthy merchant swept up all the village supplies in a small hamlet to the northeast of the citadel. And he was reportedly a strikingly handsome young man."
"It has to be him. That bastard who killed my son—the one I'd grind to dust and still not sate my hatred—he was really there...!"
On his way back from meeting the beastkin mage through Dalisi's court sorcerer and striking a deal.
When he witnessed the raid on Rendel Fortress, he thought bad luck had struck from all sides.
Despite his men's dissuasion, he had plunged into the enemy ranks to hunt his foe, but came up empty.
He had even cursed the goddess when he ended up being chased by the enemy...
"At last, Lord Rinu has heard my prayers!"
The lord's eyes gleamed with madness.
He looked ready to charge straight to Dalisi Citadel at any moment.
"My lord. If the intelligence is accurate, he has completed the command from Valua II. He'll soon head back to the capital, Kasar."
"Indeed. We should target his carriage en route. But he'll surely have escorts, so shaking them off will be the key."
They had seen plenty what the lord was capable of when his eyes rolled in rage.
The knights hurriedly discussed plans, urging rational judgment.
The lord's vengeful, frenzied gaze gradually calmed.
"Yes. We'll bide our time carefully. I had given up repaying that grudge with my own hands. But now that opportunity has come..."
An opportunity that would never come again.
He absolutely could not squander it with hasty decisions.
"Even if we fail, it's fine. We have a backup plan. Even if I die, I'll spit a curse in his face before I go. Heh heh heh."
The lord's face twisted in an emotion that could be sorrow or joy.
"Don't say such things. We'll stake our lives to protect you."
"For failing to protect the young master, we will repay that sin."
"Yes... That's only right."
The enemy who had stolen his son's future from him.
Thus, it was only fitting to destroy everything that wretch had built.
No matter which of them died first, the vengeance would not end.
Lian stared absently into the water bowl.
The forest depths like inky blackness, with only faint moonlight from last night.
The silhouettes of Paula's mounted knights were faintly visible.
"Surprisingly close to Rondel Fortress, it seems. Wouldn't it be better to inform the general and send a pursuit force?"
"No. It'd be pointless. They can't catch them in the forest."
The pursuit forces hadn't let them slip away time and again for no reason.
Castel's cavalry was renowned for speed, but only on open plains.
In rough terrain like forests and mountains, they couldn't match Bordia's cavalry specialized in obstacle navigation.
Moreover, those silhouettes weren't something one could mistake for mere horses.
Come to think of it, there were rumors that magical beasts were mixed in with that cavalry.
"Finally done writing the report!"
While Lian and Pablo huddled to scout Paula's lord's movements.
Fyrka, who had been silently drafting the after-action report, stretched with a flourish and stood up.
"Done? What'd you write?"
"No way! I can't show this to you!"
"Why? Did you badmouth me?"
"Ah, you're right. No wonder it felt incomplete—I forgot that part."
"Cut the nonsense and tidy up."
As Lian wagged a finger lightly, an apple from the fruit basket flew and bonked Fyrka on the head.
"Ow! You—you—you! Lately, you keep hitting me without a care?"
Fyrka rubbed his head and glared at Lian.
But Lian just snorted lightly, emptied the water bowl out the window, and returned.
"Alright, time to head out."
"Huh? Without dealing with that lunatic lord after you?"
"Gotta get home. Still newlyweds—if I keep staying out like this, she'd have every right to divorce me."
Lian shouldered his pre-packed bag and left the room.
Pablo and Fyrka hurriedly followed.
Lian headed first to Tullio the general, to say his goodbyes.
The general was just then gathering knights near the carriage Lian's group would take, issuing orders.
"Ah, Sir Lian. Leaving now?"
"Yes. Thank you for everything, General."
"Ha ha. If anything, I owe you more."
"But why are all these knights here?"
Lian glanced at the knights, poised as if ready to march out immediately.
A familiar face was among them.
Martin deliberately avoided Lian's eyes, which only made him stand out more.
"About that cavalry I mentioned before. Since we haven't dealt with them yet, I was thinking of assigning you an escort."
"No need. Don't waste troops on me. Better to reinforce the citadel's defenses."
"Hmm. You sure? If something happens to you, it would reflect poorly on me."
"I've already made preparations."
"I see. Then I was just being nosy."
Tullio didn't pry into what preparations Lian had made.
He had faith that Lian would handle it well.
"Here's a letter for His Highness. Take care."
"Oh, right—don't we have another delivery to the capital?"
"Ah, that one's visiting his son right now."
Tullio gave a meaningful smile as he spoke.
The son of the captured old mage was a scribe who had worked under Lord Gregory.
Apparently, when Castel troops stormed the citadel, he had eagerly surrendered all records to show his quick conversion.
"Father! Don't be stubborn—just grovel unconditionally! Got it?"
Heading toward the transport carriage holding the old mage, a middle-aged man's pleading voice rang out.
"Ugh! Even after holding a position under the lord, to lack such backbone!"
"No, in the end, we're just trying to survive. What's the point of patriotism if you're dead? We ink-stained scholars never truly served Rinu anyway!"
"You brat! A man needs spirit! Aren't you ashamed before your own son?"
"Yes! I'll teach my son he's a Castel citizen now and instill that pride!"
The old mage and his son were in the midst of a heated argument.
Lian deliberately slowed his steps, sauntering toward them.
The two hadn't noticed him approaching yet.
"Spilling everything under a single threat, yet talking about spirit. I went out of my way to let him see family, and they're just fighting."
As Lian finally made his presence known, the mage's son rushed over and bowed deeply.
"Ah! Governor Lian!"
"Eh, enough. I'm not officially governor yet. And definitely not of here, so no need for that title."
"Come on. It's as good as done, and even if you're away, you're still the governor. Of course we should address you as such!"
The old mage sighed repeatedly at his groveling son, shaking his head.
No matter how you looked at it, that sycophantic streak came from the father.
The man lacked a bit of self-awareness.
"If you've said all you need to your family, let's go, old man."
"Wh-what!? Where are you taking me...!"
"To the capital, obviously. I'll give you a ride in our carriage. Or do you prefer the transport one?"
"N-no! Open it up quick!"
At Lian's glance, a soldier by the carriage promptly unlocked the cage.
The old mage scrambled out and thrust forward his bound hands.
"No. We're not untying those."
"Ahem..."
"Let's go then."
Lian turned back toward his carriage.
Two soldiers immediately flanked the old mage, following Lian.
"Governor Lian! Please take good care of my father! He can be stubborn, but he'll do anything you ask!"
A single word from Lian could change the old mage's treatment.
The son now prostrated flat on the ground, begging for his father's safety.
Hoping this wouldn't be the last sight of his father.
"Old man, at least you've got a dutiful son."
"Hmph! Dutiful my foot. Who does he take after to be so spineless!"
"Huh? Clearly you, old man. They bicker, but they seem close."
For a moment, the old mage's shoulders twitched.
"What's wrong with your eyes? Where do you see closeness!?"
"From one to ten. I know better than anyone what real bad blood looks like."
The cunning mage had probably tried to show deliberate discord with his son, but his opponent was the wrong one.
"I don't really want to hold your daughter-in-law hostage either, so behave?"
"You heartless demon...!"
"No, it's not a threat—I'm worried. Unlike me, Tullio's truly ruthless."
Tullio's meaningful smile when the mage's son was mentioned.
In truth, the one who might need worry wasn't the old mage, but perhaps his son.