Chapter 146
Chapter 146
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 146
Chapter Title: Discipline in Mungard
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Galpredic and Edmund, along with the Partek team and four Beowulf warriors, hurried toward Mungard.
“Hey! One True God knight! Come hunting and scouting with us!”
“How many times have I told you just to call me by name?”
“Oh, sorry. Slipped my mind again. Anyway, you’re coming, right?”
“Yeah. Sir Galpredic. We’ll be off.”
“Good. Hurry back.”
With Galpredic’s permission, Edmund and two Beowulf warriors quickly broke from the ranks.
“Bring back deer!”
“I want wild boar!”
As the other two warriors waved, the Partek team chuckled.
“They used to be at each other’s throats, but it looks like they’ve gotten pretty chummy now.”
“They’re real warriors, not fakes. And kids always grow up fighting anyway. Heh.”
Edmund, the Holy Knight, hadn’t hidden his displeasure when he first met the Beowulf warriors.
It stemmed from the harsh thrashing they’d given him and his group upon arriving in Brantia.
Transformed Beowulf warriors looked just like lycanthropes, but their combat prowess was far superior.
Unlike the monster lycanthropes, Beowulf warriors fought with perfect organization.
In the end, nearly half of the dozen or so Holy Knights who had crossed into Brantia with him had fallen to the Beowulf warriors, so there was no way he could feel any fondness.
The Beowulf warriors, however, were different.
Even though they had lost no small number of brothers and sisters to the silver weapons wielded by the Holy Knights of Perseos, they didn’t seem to mind much.
For Beowulf warriors, dying in battle against a strong foe was the greatest honor.
And after traveling together for a few days, Edmund came to understand their sense of honor and pride, changing his attitude.
As Galpredic had said, they were all “true warriors.”
“Still, I hope those guys who showed up in Mungard haven’t caused any trouble.”
“They’d have to be suicidal to stir things up. Plus, there are plenty of Kalsbaegin knights around, so they’ll keep things under control. Those guys have faced the Master, after all.”
“True enough.”
Partek’s team nodded in unison as Galpredic grinned.
A significant portion of the thousand troops from Mophirn and Maren had been hired by Essendra and Eugene in the Kalsbaegin Peninsula.
And many of the Kalsbaegin knights had challenged Eugene to duels only to get utterly crushed without mercy.
Those who had crossed the sea proclaiming themselves Eugene’s army wouldn’t dare tarnish his honor.
“But why did they come at all? And not just a couple—over a thousand?”
Raban, now a seasoned mercenary with plenty of experience but still naive about their ways, tilted his head.
Glad clicked his tongue in pity.
“You idiot. Are you really a mercenary? Why? To make a quick fortune, obviously.”
“A quick fortune? There are demon realms near Kalsbaegin and Maren too. They could just hunt there instead of coming all this way…”
Partek stepped in.
“Do you know how much we earned from a single purge before joining Sir Eugene? Barely ten silvers, fifteen tops. And purges don’t happen often—maybe twice a month.”
“Was it that low?”
“Even on a lucky streak, scraping fifty silvers isn’t easy. But after following Sir Eugene, how much have we made per battle, no matter the payout?”
“Oh…”
Partek nodded as realization dawned on Raban.
“Yeah. At least double, sometimes three or four times more. And Maren and Mophirn probably recruited under Sir Eugene’s name nine times out of ten.”
“Everyone and their dog must’ve signed up.”
“Pretty much.”
Galpredic cut in then.
“Not quite. They’d screen out the dogs and filter the oxen.”
“Huh?”
“They know exactly how pissy the Master gets. Why send phonies and eat a mouthful of shit for it? Heh. And honestly, the ones from Mophirn aren’t just random recruits, I’d bet.”
“Uh…”
Even Partek, a veteran who’d seen it all, smacked his lips uncertainly, so Galpredic grinned.
“Hundreds of mercenaries launching an expedition from Kalsbaegin to Brantia all at once? Doesn’t happen without someone’s planning. And there’s only one person who could pull that off in Kalsbaegin.”
“You don’t mean… Lady Essendra?”
“Marquis Archibald now. After cleaning up Kalsbaegin, His Excellency sent these as a gift to the Master. Call it clearing out headaches.”
“Clearing headaches…? Oh!”
Partek’s furrowed brow shot open wide.
“Marquis Archibald must’ve settled the disputes in Kalsbaegin. So the mercenaries he’d hired are no longer needed?”
“Exactly. He shipped them off to the Master before some fool could snag them. Veterans who’ve racked up real experience on the peninsula. Headaches for them, but valuable assets for us.”
“Oh…”
“What a lord.”
“Hah! Right? Not just anyone becomes a marquis or border count.”
The Partek team was genuinely impressed.
They’d thought these were just opportunists flocking for a quick buck on Eugene’s fame and feats, but there was more to it.
“Ah! So Sir Eugene sending you and Sir Edmund to Mungard was…?”
Galpredic nodded at Partek, whose quick wits befitted a team leader.
“They’ve been fighting nonstop and crossed the sea. Who else could rein in the idiots who’d cause chaos in Mungard without knowing shit from shine just because of the Master’s name?”
“…”
The Partek team kept their mouths shut and nodded vigorously.
Galpredic, nastier-tempered than Eugene and famed from way back.
And Edmund, the Holy Knight whom every sword-for-hire in Keiler Kingdom bowed to.
An odd pair—a vampire and a Holy Knight—but perfect for controlling the knights and mercenaries rampaging abroad without a clue.
Of course, true to his nature, Galpredic would lead with “physical persuasion” over honor or rank.
“Heh! My Master’s sly and generous. He even knows what I’m good at and enjoy. Heh heh heh!”
Crack!
Galpredic cracked his thick neck side to side with a sinister laugh.
‘Blood winds are gonna blow in Mungard.’
‘Oof, wonder how bad they’ll get shredded?’
‘Poor bastards. Should’ve just stayed put and earned their keep.’
The Partek team swallowed dryly.
* * *
“Sir Galpredic has arrived!”
“An honor to see you!”
The Mungard guards snapped to attention, tense as soon as they saw the certificate stamped with Eugene’s seal.
Evidently tipped off by the city’s higher-ups, the group was escorted straight to the Seamen’s Guild headquarters, the largest building at the port.
Half an hour later, the Mungard mayor, several guildmasters, and Lord Marcus rushed in panting.
“S-Sir Galpredic. Long time no see.”
Galpredic’s face had improved since becoming Eugene’s retainer, but it was still ugly as sin.
Knowing he was Eugene’s right-hand man, the mayor couldn’t hide his unease and bowed politely.
But Marcus, who had witnessed Galpredic wipe out a vampire faction firsthand, dropped to one knee like greeting a divine apostle and cried out.
“The blood of the great one! Cold and noble…”
“Save it. Report the situation.”
“Yes, sir.”
Cut off mid-gush, Marcus bowed his head.
“Ten days ago, people with certificates from the Maren and Mophirn mayors and Marquis Archibald’s house…”
“Not that. What about the boat arrivals?”
“Yes, sir. They tried landing all at once at first, but Lady Romari convinced them to rotate in groups of two hundred. No issues for the first few days, but as time dragged on…”
According to Marcus, the mercenaries—who’d spent the early days boozing and gawking at the foreign port—grew bored and started showing their true colors.
Basic brawls since they couldn’t communicate, plus fools ignorant of Brantia’s tolerance for other races who even drew weapons.
Of course, Eugene’s mage Romari had kept the knights apologizing and compensating so far.
But with no end in sight, even the knights’ patience wore thin, and they’d been causing incidents lately too.
Relations between Mungard locals and the self-proclaimed “Sir Eugene’s loyal army” had turned into a tightrope walk.
“Real suicidal maniacs after all. Did these fuckers eat demon crystals and go batshit as a group?”
Galpredic bared his fangs, red eyes blazing murderously.
“Summon every last knight. Now.”
“E-Every one?”
“Yeah.”
“Th-There’s quite a few…”
“How many?”
“A little over fifty.”
“Hoo?”
Galpredic was mildly surprised.
For prideful knights to cross the sea in such numbers meant Eugene’s fame in Keiler Kingdom had soared even higher.
“Um, maybe just pick five or six representatives?”
Marcus’s cautious suggestion.
But Galpredic shook his head with a grin.
“Nah. Bring ’em all. The phonies. The show-offs. The assholes. Gotta sort ’em out at once.”
His low, raspy voice carried a menace as he gripped his hideous custom mace in both hands.
* * *
Less than an hour later, boats arrived one after another from the large galleys anchored far out in the harbor.
A group of knights in chain mail and plate mail clambered onto the docks and swarmed toward the waiting Galpredic.
“Oh! Sir Galpredic!”
“Hahaha! Long time no see! How’ve you been?”
“To meet you again in this distant foreign land!”
Some greeted him warmly. All were knights he’d fought with in Kalsbaegin or knew from his exploits near Maren.
“I’ve been fine. But they say you lot haven’t.”
“…”
The knights’ faces fell sheepishly as Galpredic nodded toward the Mungard leaders.
Sharp as they were, they caught his drift immediately.
“So.”
Galpredic rested his mace across both shoulders, smirking arrogantly.
“You dare fly Sir Eugene’s banner, call yourselves his army, and wreak havoc here?”
“…!”
Knights who knew Galpredic well blanched instantly.
Unfortunately, most of the fifty-odd didn’t know him from Adam.
“Sir! That’s a bit much! Minor clashes are inevitable when upholding true knighthood in this heathen land, no?”
“Sorry, but I’m not officially in Sir Eugene’s army. I came for the opportunities in Brantia.”
“Same here. Brothers! We’ve been patient enough—time to shake off the idleness, eh?”
“Yeah!”
“Right on!”
Over twenty knights clustered together. Their coordination screamed premeditation.
The rest, unfamiliar with Galpredic, hung back to watch.
“Hah! See that? Never planned to serve the Master from the start.”
“Hmph! If Sir Eugene came to greet us personally, maybe. But bow to a knight like you, farting around on his coattails with your piddly fame? No thanks.”
“Oh! You speak for me! Hey, where’s Sir Eugene?”
“I want to speak with Sir Eugene myself!”
The knights puffed up with bravado.
Galpredic was certain now.
These weren’t devotees of Eugene’s honor and fame—they were here to leech off it.
Swoosh.
The mace slid slowly from his shoulders.
“The Master’s busy. Dealing with the Frasil Ducal House, heading to Duke Bartla. No time to play with phonies like you.”
“What!?”
Clank!
Galpredic dropped his visor, his massive frame launching like a spring amid his dripping killing intent.
“So talk to me instead! A conversation of steel! Kra ha ha ha!”
(To be continued in the next episode)