Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Your Base is Under Attack
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The raid targeting Sion had clearly reached not only the royal castle but even the Clausen Margrave Territory.
By all rights, Margrave Lichten should have been worried about his son's safety and sent knights, or at least some private soldiers.
But even though Sion's group had unmistakably entered the territory under the Clausen Margrave's jurisdiction, not a single person from the domain had come out to greet them.
“That's strange.”
Even Rishikida, who hailed from Nudia, voiced his doubts about it.
Sion had met with the king in the royal castle and received confirmation that there would be no issues inheriting the name of Clausen.
In other words, as long as he didn't cause any major problems, Sion was now the official heir to the Clausen baronial family.
Yet, despite this promising heir having accomplished numerous feats and returned after braving the great peril of an assassination attempt, there was no reaction whatsoever. Everyone sensed something off.
“Young Lord.”
“Let's head to the castle first.
That way, we'll find out what's going on, right?”
They had only just entered the territory, not yet reached the central city and castle that formed the heart of the Clausen Margrave Territory.
So the group pressed on, unable to shake the uneasy feeling even after returning home.
And soon after, something so blatantly abnormal that even Sion noticed it at a glance came into view.
Rishikida approached the carriage Sion was riding in, his face slightly tense after closely examining the “traces.”
“Master.
No matter how I look at it, those are signs of battle.”
“I can tell it was a fierce fight just by looking.”
They had no idea what was happening.
Everyone knew that the Clausen Margrave Territory clashed in what could hardly be called wars with Nudia every year.
But those conflicts happened beyond the border, not like this—inside the kingdom's own territory.
If Nudia's forces had pushed this far in, it would mean Clausen had been breached.
‘Besides, Nudia was the one who proposed peace first—they wouldn't stab us in the back now.
Word is their delegation only just left the capital, so to avoid international disgrace, they'd at least wait until they returned before starting anything.’
On top of that, Count Basura had a firm grip on Clausen's weaknesses.
Whether they liked it or not, if Nudia showed any signs of attacking Clausen again, he was obligated to inform the Clausen side immediately.
If he ignored that promise and acted on his own?
Sion could gift him “the end where no功劳 matters—you get discarded like dirt in the end.”
“Young Lord.
That's the lord's castle of Clausen.”
Thankfully, the “what ifs” remained just that.
The castle stood firm as ever, and the city around it bustled with life, though its people looked a bit hardened.
“But...”
From the city gates all the way to the road leading to the lord's castle, the terrified eyes of the domain's residents and the rigidly tense faces of the soldiers etched themselves vividly into Sion's mind.
These were people who didn't tense up like this even during wars with Nudia.
To them, fighting Nudia was like battling locust swarms every harvest season—nothing more.
But now was different.
Utterly different.
It was as if they'd encountered an unexpected enemy at the worst possible time—everyone's faces were stiff with apprehension.
“Master.
We'll head straight for the castle.”
“Yeah.
I need to hear the full story from Father about what's going on.”
Returning home only to face this unforeseen situation left Sion faintly worried.
Had he overlooked something?
Or had his actions led to some unintended consequence?
Every possible thought raced through his mind.
The moment they arrived at the lord's castle, Sion hurried to the grand conference hall where Margrave Lichten awaited.
Lillit, Rishikida, Lucia, and Kim Yu-hyun followed behind.
Of course, Winnie dashed after him with a “Uda da!” too.
“Father?”
“...And so, ah.
Sion!
You've finally arrived!”
Margrave Lichten, who had been deep in a meeting with his vassals and knights, shot up from his seat.
He strode forward without hesitation and pulled his safely returned son into a tight embrace.
“I heard the news.
So much has happened that words can't even describe it.”
“Yeah.
There were indeed so many events.
I thought Clausen would be peaceful, but it seems even noisier here?”
At Sion's response, Margrave Lichten let out a heavy “Hoo” of a sigh.
Sion didn't miss the frustration and exhaustion laced into that breath.
Come to think of it, the knights seated around also wore faces marked by the tension of battle and bone-deep fatigue. Whatever was happening in Clausen was clearly no small matter.
“I need a proper explanation.”
“Very well.
The rest of you, step out for now.
We'll resume the meeting later.”
At his words, all the vassals and knights rose from their seats.
They offered Sion words of “Well done” and “Welcome back” as they filed out of the conference hall—loyal retainers of the Clausen family.
“Sit.
I knew some of what happened while you were at the capital, and the events after, through reports. But nothing beats hearing it straight from you.”
“True enough.”
Those settling around Sion one by one were all familiar faces to Margrave Lichten as well.
Starting with Lillit, then Rishikida; on the opposite side, Lucia and Kim Yu-hyun.
And...
“Nyaong.”
...What was this cat?
Margrave Lichten stared wide-eyed at Winnie, who was plastered right next to Sion.
At the reaction, Sion let out an “Ah” of realization.
Since Winnie had joined just before reaching Clausen, he'd omitted mentioning her, planning to introduce her in person.
“You know about the slave market I discovered in the Conean Viscounty and how I wiped out the ringleaders, right?”
“How could I not?
The kingdom was in an uproar again because of it.”
“She's a cat beastkin woman I rescued from that slave market.
Winnie Portable—no, just call her Winnie.”
“...Yaoong.”
Winnie stayed glued to Sion's side, warily eyeing Margrave Lichten.
At least she wasn't baring claws or fangs—that much was her attempt at propriety.
“Hey, Winnie.
Ease up.
It's my father.”
“Nyaang?
Oh, really?
You should've said so sooner!”
Grumbling like that, Winnie dropped her guard, glanced at Margrave Lichten, dipped her head slightly, and spoke in the most polite tone she could muster.
“Winnie Portable.
I followed Sion to repay the debt I owe him.
Please take care of me.”
“...From demons to Nudia knights, and now beastkin.”
Margrave Lichten seemed thoroughly flustered by the lineup gathered around Sion.
Beastkin—especially cat beastkin—were notorious for distrusting and rarely following humans.
Wolf beastkin at least mingled somewhat with humans, but the other two types went out of their way to avoid them.
“We can get into the details later.
More importantly, I'd like to hear about what's happening in Clausen.”
“Of course.
You wouldn't know the situation here yet.”
Margrave Lichten let out another deep sigh.
Seeing this sturdy shield of Hispania react so gravely made Sion tense up despite himself.
“In the past few days, monster attacks have spiked dramatically.”
“Pardon?
Monster attacks?”
“Yes.
They used to be so rare—fewer than five times a year.
But a few years back, they doubled, so Lord Raido stayed nearby to investigate the cause.”
“...So that's why you grew suspicious of that temple and investigated it?”
Lucia nodded as if it all made sense now, but Lillit, sitting beside her, shot her a look like that was absurd.
“Huh?
The temple where I was trapped?
What does that have to do with monsters?”
“We only suspected a possible link.
Unusual mana emanated from the temple.
But after you left, Lillit, all those signs vanished, so we concluded it wasn't the cause of the increased attacks.”
Following Lucia's explanation, Kim Yu-hyun, who had been listening quietly with arms crossed, spoke up.
“On top of that, Master's mana barrier was blocking the monsters' movements as much as possible.
Since not that many were approaching the territory anyway, it was manageable.
But if the attack frequency has risen to this noticeable level, it means one thing.”
“...The number of monsters has grown far beyond before.”
“Extremely unnatural.”
Just as Margrave Lichten said.
A sudden surge in monster numbers was never natural.
Monsters were living creatures too, part of nature, governed by invisible laws that kept their populations balanced in an intricate web.
Most avoided overlapping with human habitats, claiming mountains as territories with clear boundaries and a solid food chain.
They prized non-aggression above all, rarely straying from their domains—that was monster instinct.
“At first, we thought a few losers from territorial disputes had wandered down from the mountains.
But lately, their numbers have exploded—truly exploded.
All sorts too: goblins that shun humans, trolls that don't, even herbivores mixed in at times.”
“...Yeah, even to me, that sounds off.
Monsters are either super vicious or they avoid humans like the plague.
No point clashing and risking a full army wiping their homes to rubble.
Nyaang.”
Even Winnie, who rarely spoke up, chimed in.
In short, the surge in numbers and their indiscriminate assaults on the territory were proof something seriously wrong was happening somewhere.
“Of course, it's not a hopeless situation.
Sion.
Thanks to you, the war with Nudia is over, and above all, Count Basura's territory knows we're in turmoil yet shows no movement.
It's a relief those wolves that would normally pounce on a chaotic domain are staying put.”
Sion nodded at Margrave Lichten's words.
But inwardly, he was cursing nonstop: ‘Damn it.’
‘Shit!
I messed up.
Sure, I know most events from the novel, but what I remember is from Kim Yu-hyun's perspective—stories seen and heard following his footsteps.
Places he wasn't naturally fall outside the novel's flow!’
At this point in the story, Kim Yu-hyun stays in the capital before heading north to quash a rebellion.
Then he spends months there dealing with barbarians.
What did that mean?
While the novel focused on Kim Yu-hyun up north, the Clausen Margrave Territory faded from the narrative.
Events and time flows unmentioned in the main story were unfolding in full here in this world.
‘When Kim Yu-hyun finished in the north and returned to the capital, news came that Margrave Lichten had died.
The king sent a letter appointing Sion Clausen as the next Margrave and ordering him to fortify the border.
But just two weeks later, word arrived that Clausen had fallen.
The border was devastated, though Nudia and the monsters clashed, preventing Nudia's bloodless occupation and ravaging of kingdom lands.’
What Sion knew precisely was that Margrave Lichten hadn't died in battle—he was killed by his own son, Sion Clausen.
And Sion Clausen failed utterly in his duty to defend the border, letting the shield of Hispania crumble absurdly.
‘I thought it was just failing to hold off Nudia, but there were these massive monster attacks too.
Damn, damn!
Why didn't I think of this?
The novel follows Kim Yu-hyun, so of course I can't know when or how other events unfold!’
He'd screwed up.
Gotten too complacent.
Knowing the novel let him handle everything so far perfectly.
He'd thought he could prepare for and thwart anything.
But that was only riding the original plot.
If he was where Kim Yu-hyun never went, and unforeseen events hit?
He could see it clearly: no preparation, barely able to cope.
‘Life, fuck...
Nothing's ever easy.’
Sighing inwardly, Sion pulled his slightly relaxed mind back to full alert.
As expected, he—this body—
Boasted hellish difficulty, plummeting to ruin at the slightest lapse.