Chapter 227
Chapter 227
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 227
Chapter Title: Reclaiming Bezos (1)
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Yuri bolted straight to the throne room the moment he returned to Brioll's royal palace, urging Joshua on.
"We're hitting Bezos—get ready!"
"Huh?"
"That's exactly the reaction."
"Huuuh?"
"If even you're going 'Huh?' in surprise, Big Bro, imagine how the Empire will freak out."
"Wait, hold on..."
"Watch my back!"
Yuri pointed toward the entrance, and the companions from his journey were just now filing into the throne room.
Joshua's eyes widened as he took in each of their faces.
"Th-those people...!"
"Yeah."
"Who are they?"
Joshua, who had no experience wandering the world like Yuri, didn't recognize Francesco, Marie Rose, or Inariel.
"The haggard old guy, the pretty lady, and the cute little kid. That kid's hair looks just like the salmon I ate this morning, man. Hey, new friends you picked up?"
Joshua chuckled as he said it.
But Yuri didn't laugh.
"No way those three are family, right? Heh heh..."
"......"
"What? Did I say something wrong?"
Yuri quietly took a step back and politely gestured toward Francesco with both hands.
"Holy Knight of the Holy Kingdom, Francesco."
Joshua, who had been lounging against the throne, blinked and slowly straightened his posture.
Francesco gave a curt nod in greeting.
"A pleasure to meet you. Your... Majesty."
"Y-yeah..."
Next, Yuri shifted his hand to introduce Marie Rose.
"Duke of Balshard, Archmage Marie Rose Antre."
Joshua, who had sat up straight, now gaped and half-rose from his seat before awkwardly plopping back onto the throne.
Marie Rose smiled sweetly.
"Nice to meet you. You two brothers don't look alike at all."
"Sorry about that. Haha..."
Yuri turned his body, his fingertip finally landing on Inariel.
"The continent's last elf, Grand Archmage Inariel. Oh, and he's really old, by the way."
Joshua, who had been fidgeting, finally stood from the throne, bowing diagonally with an awkward grin.
"Oh dear, such esteemed guests. I apologize for my rudeness."
Inariel just nodded once without a word, as if it wasn't worth opening his mouth for. Unbound by human hierarchies, he showed no deference even before a king.
Joshua clapped his hands to quickly lighten the mood.
"My little brother's brought some incredible people. Let's forget the awkward first impressions and talk. You're hitting Bezos?"
"Yeah."
"Going up against the Empire, huh?"
"Of course."
"And these folks..."
"They'll help."
The news that Francesco, Marie Rose, and Inariel were joining lifted spirits across Brioll.
In particular, Inariel's magic, unaffected by Dispel, would be a huge advantage.
Francesco had also regained much of his former strength—not fully, but enough to match a typical knight order commander.
And a mage like Marie Rose was useful in any situation.
"Two of the Ten Strongest for reclaiming Bezos..."
"Not two."
Yuri patted Guilty as he spoke.
"With Dad missing, one spot in the Ten Strongest is vacant, right?"
Yuri flashed his usual confident grin.
"Everyone's buzzing about who's next, so I'll take Dad's place. Once this battle's over, everyone will know who the new Tenth Strongest is."
"You're serious?"
"Yeah."
Joshua glanced around, but the others—who knew Yuri's power—showed no surprise.
Yuri wasn't just Ten Strongest material anymore; he was top-tier among them.
Joshua asked again.
"You're already at that level?"
"Yeah."
"I see..."
Joshua let out a short laugh. He wasn't shocked enough to freak out. Yuri Brioll had always defied common sense.
"Alright. Got it. I'll leave it all to you. You have full authority—do what you need."
Joshua said. He trusted his brother completely. If Yuri wanted it, he'd even hand over the throne without hesitation.
"Thanks."
"But make sure you bring Bezos back."
And Joshua was Fiore's son, after all.
Letting the Empire not only invade their territory but lounge in their castle didn't sit right with him.
He didn't care if this battle escalated into full war with the Empire.
Brioll and the Empire could no longer share the same sky.
"For Brioll."
The moment Yuri announced he was gathering forces to reclaim Bezos, the lords responded immediately. Brioll's nobles were already primed for war.
Troops began assembling in no time.
But wars couldn't start on a whim.
While the main army prepared, Yuri headed to Bezos first, hiding and observing the enemy's defenses.
"What do you think, Lady Inariel?"
Yuri peered through his spyglass at the walls and asked.
Inariel, crouched beside him, replied.
"I can feel it. Thick with dark magic. They've already laid some kind of trap."
"Probably..."
Yuri recalled events from his previous life.
The Empire's forces had changed overnight. Fearless as if castrated, relentless as if numb to pain, and far stronger.
Looking back now, it was all dark magic.
By the timeline, it was happening right about now.
"They've modified their troops with dark magic. Lucky for us."
Yuri was actually glad about it.
Enemies tainted by dark magic meant Inariel could use his spells.
"If you hit them with a big one, Lady Inariel, this'll go smoothly."
"Hm..."
"Think you can take that down?"
Inariel stared at the distant walls, observing something invisible to Yuri's eyes.
Soon, he twirled his staff and said.
"One wall? Sure."
"As expected..."
In a siege, the walls were the biggest obstacle. Destroying one outright was a massive edge.
"Can't you just drop a fireball and wipe them all out?"
"That's a stretch."
"Got it. I'll handle the rest."
Yuri stowed his spyglass and muttered.
"Still, sitting here feels like a waste..."
Word of the troop muster might have reached the Empire, but they wouldn't know he was already near Bezos.
"How about a quick jab?"
"I thought this was just recon."
"Time's too precious to waste."
"What can we do with this group?"
"Well..."
Excluding Inariel, the recon team was just Jared, Simon, Guinness, and Francesco. He'd meant to bring the Revenge Knights too, but left them at the palace to avoid detection.
"No ideas?"
"Just wait."
"Ugh..."
As Yuri groaned, Jared approached from the rear.
"Your Highness, Your Highness."
"Yeah?"
"Something ridiculous happened."
"What?"
"Well..."
Jared looked incredulous.
"Those guys showed up here."
"Who?"
"The Easterners."
"Huh?"
"Don't know what they misunderstood, but they came straight to Bezos. I saw a bunch of ragged wanderers coming and checked—just them."
"The ronin?"
"Yes."
As the hiring prince, Yuri had employed them, so heading to the palace first made sense. Yet here they were, straight to Bezos.
Good thing recon spotted them early.
"Jeez..."
Yuri scratched his head.
"Really?"
It sounded absurd at first, but on second thought, it wasn't bad.
Actually, perfect.
"Great timing."
"Why?"
"I wanted to do something, but it felt iffy just us. Now with the ronin, we can work together, test their skills, and move as one."
"You said recon only."
"Time's wasting."
"But..."
"Let's go see the ronin."
Jared glanced at Inariel as if pleading for backup, but Inariel just shrugged.
"Lady Inariel, do something..."
"No spell stops this guy."
"Sigh..."
Yuri ignored Jared's protests.
"Hurry up!"
Yuri headed straight to the temporary camp the group had set up. Simon and Guinness were lining up the ronin in front of a small tent.
The ronin snapped into fist salutes as Yuri arrived.
Yuri chuckled dryly.
"Wow, you all really came."
Simon and Guinness looked equally baffled.
"Your Highness, what now?"
"What do you mean? We roll with it."
Yuri scanned the ronin.
"Anyone like Iris for translation?"
"No translators. But this one's pretty good with the common tongue."
Simon pointed to the ronin at the front—a man in early middle age, shabby but sharp-eyed.
The ronin bowed to Yuri.
"Name Cheongun. Nice... meet."
Broken sentences, odd accent, but clear pronunciation.
Yuri was impressed.
"Already learned this much? Impressive."
Cheongun seemed to understand, bowing again in thanks.
"Me, young... prodigy. But status... low. Sword for... food."
"Ah, tough backstory..."
The East had rigid class barriers too, it seemed.
"Impressive. You understand well, and your pronunciation..."
Yuri paused.
Cheongun's accent was off, but not his sounds.
Different from someone else.
"Hey, pronunciation tough?"
"Common tongue... hard. Sounds... fine."
"Yeah? Everyone?"
"My comrades... similar. Sentences... mix up. Speaking... okay."
Yuri solidified his suspicions about Moyong Chan. He'd suspected, but yeah—this was deliberate slurring to mess with him.
Next meeting, he'd call it out. For now, Yuri extended a hand to Cheongun.
"I'm Yuri Brioll."
Cheongun hesitated, then bowed politely and shook it. Yuri grinned and clapped his shoulder.
"Relax, Cheongun."
"Thank you."
"Didn't expect you so soon, but since you're here, let's do a job together right away. Cool?"
"Ready!"
"You martial artists have pride—no flopping out weakly, right?"
"Destroy... all."
"I like it."
Yuri glanced toward Bezos Castle.
"Our job is..."
The Empire held the castle, but it was isolated on foreign soil's edge. Supply trains came regularly.
Yuri planned to hit one.
"We're raiding a supply train."
Jared sighed.
"Knew it..."
"Gotta wear them down."
"Or just bored?"
"Strategic call."
"Liar..."
Yuri ignored Jared and turned to the ronin.
"Perfect timing with these guys."
The ronin looked rough—starved and filthy from the trek to Bezos.
Anyone spotting them would think refugees or beggars, not an early combat unit.
Cheongun clenched his fist.
"Fight... hard."
Grrrowl.
His stomach rumbled right after.
"Starving the whole way?"
"Well..."
"Can't have that. Body's your asset."
Yuri emptied their rations to feed the Easterners. They were moved by his generosity.
"Cheongun, tell your comrades to eat slow."
"Truly grateful."
"Listen up. What we're doing next is..."
"Yes."
Cheongun listened, then said calmly.
"Better way... exists."
"Huh?"
"Did that... every day in East. Easy."
Yuri circled behind Bezos Castle with the ronin.
After a day's wait, luck struck—a supply train appeared right on schedule.
"That really works?"
"Works."
Yuri eyed confident Cheongun suspiciously from the bushes.
Not doubting the plan.
Doubting his origins.
"Wait, ronin bandits in the East?"
"No."
"Good..."
"Similar."
"......"
"Bandit, then mercenary. Sometimes thief."
"Yeah..."
"Worked... greenwood too."
"No explanation needed—I get it."
As they chatted, the supply train neared.
Yuri lowered his voice.
"Here they come."
The Empire troops advanced cautiously along the road, wagons in the center, guards fore and aft.
Ronin lay in wait on both sides.
"Ugh..."
Yuri groaned.
They weren't ambushing. Sprawled openly by the roadside, like an invitation.
The Empire vanguard slowed upon spotting them.
As distance closed, the ronin rose as one.
The panicked Empire troops reached for weapons—
"Food please. Yesss."
"Food please."
"One coin, sir."
The ronin began begging in broken common tongue.