Invisible Threat
Park Jeong-jae had fallen in love with this territory after just a few days. The occasional sea breeze cooled his head refreshingly through the open window of his office, and the serene atmosphere let him forget the ceaseless debates and trembling fears of the capital. What had settled here was stagnation. Endless waiting—for sons one day, fathers the next—from those who had sent their loved ones off to the battlefield. Ordinary folk with average talents were taking up arms and fighting in the imperial army, which left him burdened by a single nagging question: Was it okay for someone with his great power to linger in the rear, resting?
It was the one burden he had shouldered after setting aside the countless others he'd carried since arriving in this world. The mere fact that he only had to bear this much weight on his mind filled Jeong-jae with a sense of liberation he'd never felt before in this otherworld.
Jenis's recent searches around the territory had yielded no real results, but Jeong-jae had no intention of rushing her. Bandit issues were low priority unless they caused actual damage to the territory. Since Hacker Count had mentioned it, there was probably some shadowy group lurking about—but his guess that they were draft dodgers allied with the locals fit the pieces together nicely, even if it was still just speculation at this stage. There was no reason to hound Jenis for results based on that alone.
Jenis herself seemed to see it differently.
"What I can tell you, Professor," Jenis said as she paced anxiously around the office in circles. Jeong-jae had gently warned her a couple of times at first not to wander like a headless chicken, but now he had half-given up, letting his cute apprentice treat the room like a running track.
"Go on, then."
"It's definitely consuming a lot! I mean, a lot! I checked the village's food stockpiles under various pretexts, and they're depleting faster than my calculations predicted!"
"You went around inspecting all that personally?"
Jeong-jae had expected enthusiasm, but not to this degree—he clicked his tongue in admiration. Even for a small village, the population was nearly three thousand. For the daughter of a count—and his deputy lord—to be dashing about on foot checking grain reserves... Suspicious. Anyone would think it suspicious.
"Of course! Anyway, I think your theory's spot on, Professor. There has to be surplus food being smuggled out of this village!"
"Don't make the villagers too wary. It's good you're so diligent, but... You're Jenis Hacker. Hacker. Remember, people fear you almost as much as they do me."
"You like that I'm diligent, right? Great! I'll work even harder and bring back results worthy of praise!"
"Cool your head a bit. Take a walk. The coastal path here's perfect for it. I'm really starting to like this village."
At Jeong-jae's suggestion, Jenis—who had looked ready to bolt out the door—hesitated. She shuffled awkwardly forward and asked, "Um, Baron? You mean... you and me? Just the two of us walking?"
"Who else? I did assign you the task, but don't get too obsessed. Enjoy the territory itself first. If you're going to rule the land, you have to get close to it."
Even as he said this, Jeong-jae still felt a slight reluctance to mingle with the locals. He'd managed to stop them from bowing every time they saw him since arriving, but aside from Huck, they still averted their eyes and ducked their heads subtly. Was this how a teacher felt, wanting to bond with the kids but getting subtly avoided? If he had Rose's bold personality, he could've strode right up to them, but his mild shyness held him back.
"Get close to the land? That sounds almost like..." Jenis wore a puzzled expression.
"Like someone's about to pull off some shady scheme here."
For a split second, Jeong-jae swore he saw a glint in Jenis's eyes. He wasn't seriously plotting anything nefarious here, but that fleeting blue gaze pierced him like a stab. Why?
"Ah, you know that's not what I mean, Jenis. I'm not planning any magic research here—let alone the old stuff."
It made sense for her to say that. To a mage, "getting close to the land" meant "getting close to the land's mana." In other words, scouting spots suitable for casting spells or testing research. Especially since Jenis might suspect his past research involved taboo summoning magic, which was deeply tied to soil quality—she'd be extra wary.
"Well, I know it must be harsh for a brilliant mage like you to hear 'no magic research in a place with good wind and water.' They say you ended up here because of forbidden magic, right? I just don't want you getting in trouble again."
Jenis smiled, her expression softening a touch. Jeong-jae shrugged defensively.
"That's exactly the kind of overly mage-like thinking we need to shake off. We're rulers now. You'll be governing something much bigger someday. Getting stuck in one identity is no good, right?"
"Enough with the subtle philosophy. So, we're going for a walk together? Let's head out!"
"Yeah, let's go. We'll watch the fishermen using those new nets I twisted up for them, check if there's anything we can repair or maintain ourselves... Think about work, but don't only think about work, got it?"
"Got it! Come on, hurry! Now I just want to walk with my mind blank too!"
The meaning Jeong-jae and Jenis each attached to "just taking a walk together" was probably worlds apart.
But what would the Demon King—gnashing his teeth in rage at that very moment in his distant northern castle—make of the situation?
The Demon King only received a detailed, accurate report five days after the Lich Lord's death. The hero's party had moved so swiftly and elusively that his demon executives, unable to even comprehend their maneuvers, had submitted conflicting interpretations. Claims like "an enemy raid by three legions totaling ten thousand" or "an aerial assault via meteor magic that destroyed our camp before the attack" were absurd fabrications from demon officers who lost their heads—literally.
Only when the Dragon Lord, chief of staff for the demon army, personally investigated did the truth emerge: the hero's party had scaled the sheer cliffs, charged boldly through the pass, and withdrawn—all in a single day.
"Dragon Lord."
The Demon King peered at the damage report from his throne and asked, "Why is the damage so light when the Lich Lord—leading five legions—lost his head? Where were our legions? What were they doing?"
"It was a sharp ambush exploiting the gap as we slowly reorganized our legion deployments. Walter H. Hellhound's handiwork has always been like this."
The Dragon Lord, polymorphed into a stern old human who looked like he'd bow to no one, couldn't fully lift his head before the furious Demon King's presence.
The Demon King paused to gather his thoughts before speaking again. "Then why were 180 of my precious shadow knights lost? We've confirmed ninety-seven goblins and eighty-two orcs dead—does it make sense that shadow knights died in numbers equal to both combined?"
"As I reported, it happened because the shadow knight reserve legion encountered powerful foes without support from the others..."
"What were your dragons doing? Even the wyverns!"
"Your Majesty, the enemy moved faster than we could respond. And even if we could, dragons aren't cheap fodder to throw at a hero without countermeasures."
"Nonsense. Was the Lich Lord's head cheap?"
"Cheap compared to mine. And even against other dragons' heads, not expensive at all."
The Demon King didn't argue. After the Gargoyle Queen's autumn offensive—mobilizing over twenty legions—failed against Walter's desperate defense, and the Nomember catastrophe incinerated entire armies, his nerves were frayed to the limit. This bizarre "assassination" of the Lich Lord had finally blown the lid off.
No one could stop him from erupting, imprisoning and executing those responsible. Trying to intervene would just make you the next victim.
"That mage didn't join this time, it seems. The one who wiped out two of my legions with a single Karmic Fire at Nomember."
"Word is he's been completely excluded from the party. No known reason."
"Investigate! I don't care why—even I want to know what he's up to! He's not some pushover content to sit idle with his whereabouts unknown!"
"I've looked into that myself. You'll see if you read this."
To deflect the Demon King's wrath, the Dragon Lord hastily offered a document. The Demon King snatched it from his hand, rising from the throne.
"Baron Harriet? Is this real?"
"It's true. We've confirmed he's already taken up residence and begun governing."
The document clearly stated it was no grand fiefdom—just a tiny barony. But the Demon King couldn't take it at face value. He traced the Harriet family crest on the report and murmured softly.
"V.R...."
"What was that?"
"I hate England."
The Dragon Lord blinked in total confusion.
"England, Ireland, India, America! I've heard nothing good from any of them. A land with nothing to boast but cannon smoke on battlefields and smog from chimneys—how dare it irk me so?"
"My apologies. I don't understand."
"Never mind. Even a wise Dragon Lord like you can't grasp everything with your knowledge. But we can't overlook this Harriet business. Don't you suspect this attack was planned to divert my attention from that sinister archmage?"
"Never crossed my mind. They pulled off this level of strike and withdrew successfully without him—maybe his role's simply obsolete now."
"Do you, as chief of staff, truly not understand the enemy commander? Walter H. Hellhound doesn't take risks without need. Do you think he calculated and predicted everything for this beheading op? No! He deliberately left behind someone he could've easily brought. Not because he's unnecessary for the mission, but because he's needed for something more important."
"Then that means..."
"Who knows? How should I? But the name Harriet torments me. Wasn't he a cunning hero? He chose that land, made it his home—and now this notoriously sly mage has hunkered down there. Can we just sit back?"
"Your orders, sire."
"Build warships. As many as possible, ready for use soon. Since the territory borders the coast, we can strike via landing."
The Dragon Lord pondered objecting to the reckless amphibious op amid troop shortages after the failed aerial push—but feared it would lead to orders deploying dragons immediately. Losing one dragon outweighed losing a legion. Resigned, he bowed to the Demon King.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Three hundred galleons within a month. Will that suffice?"
"I am satisfied with that number."
Of course, Jeong-jae—leisurely watching fishermen by the sea—had no inkling of the looming crisis.