Chapter 171
Chapter 171
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 171
Chapter Title: The Magic Armor Armis
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Eugene lifted his head as he stared at the armor, where strange miniature models and letters were meticulously embossed.
“I want to know about Armis.”
The elders of the ducal family, who had been gazing at Armis with ecstatic eyes, snapped to attention and soon wore troubled expressions.
“Well… we don’t know much ourselves.”
“You don’t know?”
“Yes. There are no records about the heirloom. Moreover, the magic armor Armis disappeared so long ago… It’s all our failing.”
Eugene inwardly clicked his tongue as he watched the elders bow their heads in shame.
No matter how they boasted of being the greatest house, the Bartla Ducal Family was no different from any other noble house in Brantia.
They had relied solely on status and prestige, running things haphazardly, and family history was passed down orally rather than documented.
‘Well, even nobles are often illiterate, so it can’t be helped.’
To them, a noble’s qualification and honor stemmed primarily from bloodline, with everything else secondary.
Other kingdoms on the continent were similar, but Brantia—poor and slow to develop—took this tendency to extremes.
“And you don’t know either?”
When Eugene turned to him, Frabow shrugged.
“Beyond what I told the Duke before, I know nothing more. Armis was originally a treasure of another house that somehow ended up in our royal family.”
Even the Elrand Elf Royal Family seemed no different.
‘I’ll have to ask Pitamoras.’
Thinking a druid versed in nearly all fields of knowledge might know something, Eugene reached out toward the armor.
He still couldn’t fathom why this heirloom of the Brantia Ducal Family bore letters and shapes identical to the tattoos on his body.
But it was surely connected to his true identity and lost memories.
“D-Duke?”
“Your Grace, it’s dangerous.”
The startled elders and Frabow tried to stop him.
Armis was a magic armor that fed on the wearer’s blood—a greater threat to vampires, whose blood was far scarcer than other races’.
“I’m just examining it for now.”
Holding the blood-red armor carefully, Eugene inspected it closely.
Armis’s exterior was exquisitely beautiful, with a hard, smooth texture.
And engraved on it were twelve shapes and letters that perfectly matched the numbers on the tattoos originally on his body.
Yet unlike the intense, extraordinary sensation when he first held Madarajika, he felt nothing special here.
Just an inexplicable ominous vibe. For a Vampire Origin like him to sense it, it would probably feel like a curse to ordinary people.
‘It’s not something I need right now. I can show it to Pitamoras first and try it on later.’
After placing Armis back in the box, Eugene turned to Frabow.
“Tell the Elf King I’m grateful for the debt.”
“It was merely the Bartla Ducal Family’s possession returning to its original owner. Our king is pleased with that alone. Ah, and about the queen candidate.”
At Frabow’s signal, an elf knight carefully unfurled paper decorated with gold leaf.
“Ooh…!”
The elders’ eyes widened.
It was a portrait drawn with such precision it seemed like a living person.
Mysterious emerald-green eyes and a straight nose gave an air of nobility and elegance, but the plump red lips beneath added a subtle allure, creating a beauty that captivated.
That’s how it struck the ducal elders, anyway. To Eugene, she was simply a ‘decent-looking elf woman.’
“Princess Elgrena. Our king’s eldest daughter and knight of the royal castle.”
“Kieet!? The princess knight we’ve only heard of?”
He had no idea what “princess knight we’ve only heard of” meant exactly, but an elf royal princess who was also a knight did feel rather rare.
“We had originally planned to send the youngest princess, but Princess Elgrena insisted strongly herself. As a knight, she holds great respect and curiosity toward Your Grace and Count Krollmarin.”
“Hmm. I see. Does Princess Elgrena know how to use mana, by any chance?”
“Indeed. As pureblood among purebloods, she wields very pure mana. She’s strong and has considerable swordsmanship. She can handle mid-tier monsters alone.”
“What?”
That was more than “considerable.”
Even Galpredic could barely manage a troll before becoming his retainer, and among human knights, Galpredic was top-tier.
‘If she’s to be my squire’s wife, she’ll respect me, right?’
The thought of potentially commanding top talent for free sparked some anticipation in Eugene.
“When is the princess coming?”
“With Your Grace’s permission, she’ll arrive within a month. She was itching to come the moment she heard Your Grace’s tales.”
“Hmm. Quite the unusual princess.”
“Well… you could say she’s very unusual.”
Frabow gave a wry smile.
It seemed there was a story behind it, but Eugene didn’t pry further.
Princess Elgrena was to be Luke’s match, after all. Whatever trials they faced, it was Luke’s problem to handle.
“Kiee… A princess knight must be super strong. Master, Squire No. 2… gonna get beat a lot!”
“That’s not my concern.”
Murmuring softly, Eugene commanded the elders.
“Summon Count Krollmarin. Have him bring Druid Gong along. Send someone to Mongard too. Tell my mage to come.”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
Orders stamped with the Bartla Ducal Family seal departed for their destinations.
Just a year ago, this would have been unimaginable, but now that order had stabilized in most of the territories Eugene had conquered, couriers could reach their goals quickly and safely.
And a fortnight later, Romari and Luke arrived in turn from Mongard and the Krollmarin County.
* * *
“Waaah! Eugeeen!”
Romari, who had somehow turned zombie-like in his absence, came running while spraying tears.
He was a little glad to see her, but not enough for a hug, so Eugene sidestepped.
“What!? Isn’t that too much? Do you know how hard I worked making mana crystals?”
“But you got to research with the money from that, right? I heard you spent a ton on materials.”
“…You haven’t changed a bit.”
He’d risen to duke—shouldn’t that change a person? Still so stingy.
Romari didn’t voice that complaint, instead looking around.
“But where are the other knights?”
“Sent them to conquer territories.”
After roughly explaining the situation, Eugene turned to Selena, who had come with Romari.
“Why’s she like that? She looks unwell.”
“Who knows. Ah, she got a letter from Marquis Archibald recently. She’s been gloomier since then…”
“Hmm.”
Selena was a vital link to the Archibald Marquis family in Keiler Kingdom, who were friendly toward him.
So Eugene felt a twinge of unease leaving Selena so down.
“Hey, Galpredic’s squire. Come here.”
“Yes, yes!”
Selena, who had been standing glumly, hurried over.
“A letter from your aunt? Anything special?”
“W-Well, you see…”
Selena glanced at Eugene nervously before letting out a deep sigh and continuing.
“The royalist faction finally caused an incident. The king declared their main house traitors and is mustering troops. So…”
Selena’s tale was shocking.
She was long-winded, but the gist: Keiler’s king and central church were preparing for all-out war against Kalspaygin Peninsula and several cities, including Maren and Mopern.
“They’ve lost their minds. Isn’t that a civil war?”
“Yes. Exactly. So my aunt said she might not be able to contact for a while.”
“Hmm.”
Eugene furrowed his brow.
Marquis Archibald—Essendra—maintained very good relations with him.
From managing his territories while he campaigned in Brantia to various favors, she was a woman of loyalty.
‘But she didn’t ask for my help? Though I’m not exactly in a position to right now…’
Moreover, since his proxy lord Delmundo hadn’t sent word, it probably wasn’t that dire.
If it were serious enough to require his direct involvement, Delmundo would have reported first.
‘Still, I should look into it. Time to update Count Winslon on developments too.’
Alongside Essendra, his strong backer Count Winslon wasn’t on great terms with the central church either, so he’d likely get entangled somehow.
If those two opposed the royalists and central church…
‘We fight together.’
Unlike other kingdoms’ churches, Keiler’s central church was an ‘enemy’ incompatible with Eugene.
Thus, he resolved to help Essendra and Count Winslon however they wished.
“If your aunt contacts you, let me know too. I might be able to assist.”
“Ah… Yes! Your Grace’s lofty honor and deep loyalty are always cherished by my aunt!”
Though she’d started as half-hostage, sent unwillingly as Galpredic’s squire, Selena revered Eugene.
How else could a foreign knight, in under half a year, command such vast lands and influence?
Even if Brantia was tolerant of other races, he was a vampire, not human?
Now she fully understood why her aunt Essendra insisted on maintaining ties with Eugene, even sending her as squire.
“But Sir Eugene, why did you call me?”
By convention she should call him Your Grace, but Romari—still unaccustomed—asked anyway.
Eugene didn’t mind how special ones like Romari or Galpredic addressed him, so he answered indifferently.
“You come with me first. I have something to show you.”
“Huh? Oh, sure…”
Romari tilted her head at Eugene’s oddly serious demeanor but followed.
Moments later, entering Eugene’s chambers deep in the ducal castle, Romari gasped in shock.
“Eek!? W-What’s that?”
A bluish glowing orb was flitting around a blood-red armor where her finger pointed.
“Tchut-tchut-tchut! Huh? You’re hereee?”
“Eek! A fly… No! It’s a spirit!?”
True to a mage, Romari instantly recognized Mirian and approached excitedly, unable to hide her thrill.
“The spirit you mentioned before, Sir Eugene! Ah! It’s visible to the eye now?”
“Ahem! This body has evolved, yes. Of course I can hide, but flaunting my glorious form makes the ignorant fools offer more tribute and respect to… I mean, to our master… Kieet!?”
“This little one talks too. Spirits are usually so shy they rarely show before people.”
Romari snatched Mirian and poked his cheeks with her fingers.
“Kieet! Let go! Let go, you fool!”
“Ooh! It has form and physical presence! Ah! If I used a spirit in chimera creation…”
“Kii! Kieeek!?”
A mad glint flickered in Romari’s dark-circled eyes, sunken deep.
“What I wanted to show isn’t that spirit, mage.”
“Uhuhu… Yes?”
Romari, drooling, whipped her head around.
Eugene pointed to the armor Mirian—trembling in fear—had just been spitting on and wiping.
“This armor holds magic. Take a look.”
“…!?”
Only then did Romari closely examine the magic armor Armis, having been fixated on Mirian.
“It does feel like magical mystery. The material… I don’t know.”
“More importantly, the letters and shapes on the surface—do you know what they are?”
“Oh, this? Ancient script.”
“Ancient script?”
He’d given Romari a chance before Pitamoras just in case, and sure enough, mages were mages.
“Yes, yes. Of course, I can’t read it. No, I shouldn’t.”
“Why not?”
Romari’s expression changed at Eugene’s question.
Her usual vacant look vanished, replaced by a gravely serious, truly mage-like face as she spoke.
“The reason even mages don’t use ancient script is because it contains magic and curses.”
“Magic and curses?”
“Yes. The moment you read it, the power embedded in the sentence activates. Recite it without knowing the meaning, and disaster could strike.”
“Hmm. What about this?”
“Huh? What did you just… Kyaa! Kyaa! Oh mana!”
Romari’s face flushed crimson in an instant as she flailed wildly.
“Why!? Sure, I like men’s bodies a bit… No! I’m curious, but my relationship with you, Sir Eugene, is… Huh?”
Peeking through her fingers, Romari froze.
The tattoo on Eugene’s broad back matched exactly the ancient script she’d just seen on the armor.
(To be continued in the next episode)