Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Lord of Autoton City
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While everyone was watching Hwiser's mouth and holding their breath in silence, time froze around Hwickyeong.
Hwickyeong spoke to his horn.
'Look at Father's lip movements.'
-He's saying 'Hwi'.
'What's the next character?'
-I can't see it.
'Look closer at his mouth.'
-Now I can see. After 'Hwi', ...his mouth is about to change shape. Got it. If it were going to be 'Jun', the shape wouldn't change like that. His upper lip is parting very slowly. He's trying to say 'Kyeong'.
'So I'm to be the next lord of Autoton City?'
-Yes.
Hwickyeong pondered for a moment.
The demonic spirit said,
-You don't seem pleased.
'Father's trying to run away. He talks about fairness, but he's just trying to assuage his guilt by handing over the lordship.'
-You're right.
'And rumors will spread.'
-Rumors?
'That Father tried to kill his own horned child inside Autoton City, and because of that, he gave the lordship not to another child, but to that one.'
-That'll happen.
'Then your clan will doubt my abilities. The city folk will too. They'll think I became lord through Father's guilt and collusion with outside forces.'
-And then what?
'Ruin. People won't follow me, some will leave the city. If Autoton City loses its vitality, your clan will talk about the next lord. Assassination attempts? Maybe. If the lord of Autoton City dies, someone inside becomes the new lord. Some might think risking it is better.'
-We must prevent that.
Hwickyeong said,
'Hey, horn.'
-...It's true my power comes from your horn, but I'm not the horn itself.
'You know that's not the point.'
-...Yes.
'You said you manipulate probability. That probably means possibility. Can you manipulate Father's thoughts then? There's a possibility, right?'
-No.
'What about Father's mouth?'
-I can't manipulate beings with consciousness.
'...I see?'
-I can't be your all-purpose problem-solver. I hope no misfortune befalls you, but if it's an unavoidable catastrophe, we have to accept it.
'That's not it.'
Hwickyeong's time began to flow again.
'I was just curious if borrowing your power could make things easier, if possible. I'll handle my own problems.'
-Good.
"The next lord of Autoton City after me will be Hwi..."
"Father."
Hwiser stopped speaking and looked at Hwickyeong with somewhat weary eyes.
"What is it?"
"On second thought, I should inherit the lordship."
"What are you saying?"
"Hand the lordship to me."
"...Are you threatening me?"
"Yes."
At those words, Hwijun shouted,
"Father, did you see? That child no longer qualifies as heir. Threatening you over the lordship—what an outrage."
Hwiser raised a hand to silence Hwijun.
"Fine. Let's hear it. You're here with one warrior from the Blackscale Tribe, each with a single sword. But I've brought soldiers from your clan who can defend the city—spearmen, swordsmen, cavalry, archers. In this situation, you think you can threaten me?"
"Yes."
Hwickyeong grabbed Sairan's wrist and held it up.
"This Lizardman isn't just any Blackscale Tribe warrior. He's the Chosen One."
Sairan caught on to Hwickyeong's intent and sparked electricity in his palm.
Hwiser showed no reaction, but some of the lined-up soldiers gasped.
"I don't know if this Lizardman could kill everyone here, but he can certainly kill you and get me out."
"Father, that's a lie. That Lizardman's already injured and exhausted."
Hwiser seemed to weigh Hwickyeong's words.
"And then? If you kill me? What about Autoton City's lordship? If I die without naming an heir, it goes to anyone in the city. You don't want that, do you?"
"Probably not. But this warrior has already promised me. The Blackscale Tribe will put me on the throne."
It was a lie, but Sairan had already grasped the context. And given that he was the Blackscale Tribe's Chosen One protecting him, it didn't seem like a lie at all.
"But as I said, if I die, the next lordship goes to some unknown..."
Hwiser trailed off, as if realizing something.
Hwickyeong said,
"Yes. It's not impossible. The Blackscale Tribe warriors could drive out the city folk and empty the city. Some might hold out with lordly authority, but how could they beat Blackscale Tribe warriors?"
Hwiser fell into thought, while Hwijun spat curses unfit to repeat.
Hwiser's subordinates nearby looked flustered too.
Hwickyeong's words were fabricated, but they rang true.
Until now, the Cropeare Tribe had kept the Blackscale Tribe at bay, but inside Autoton City, their influence was nearly gone.
That was thanks to Hwijun cutting ties with the Cropeare Tribe while Sairan's presence as a Blackscale Tribe member stood out.
Hwiser said,
"Then there's no choice."
Hwijun cried out that it was absurd.
But everyone there heard Hwiser clearly.
"The next lord of Autoton City is you, Hwickyeong."
The news that Autoton City's lord had changed spread instantly throughout the city.
And that the protagonist was Hwickyeong—not his other siblings, but the one known only as a wastrel.
The astonishing part was that Hwickyeong had colluded with the Blackscale Tribe and even blackmailed the terrifying Hwiser, who had ruled Autoton City from the shadows, to seize the lordship.
Some city folk claimed it was all coincidence, that Hwickyeong wasn't even the true lord but part of Hwiser's scheme.
Others whispered that Hwickyeong's previous foolhardy image was a facade, and he'd been plotting to take the lordship for years.
The very subject of all these rumors, Hwickyeong, hadn't left the inner palace for days, learning what he needed to as lord from his father Hwiser.
"...How could such nonsense happen?"
Hwijun had watched events unfold for days.
But there was no reversal.
None of the four clans opposed Hwickyeong becoming lord, and the wealthy city folk wanted to wait and see what happened under him for a while.
"You're just going to let that Lizardman-loving wench be?"
Hwijun decided to leave Autoton City.
He had no intention of becoming a wanderer.
Rumors said there were major human powers inland, not as big as the Blackscale or Cropeare Tribes, but significant.
'I'll go there, build strength. The info I've gathered here will be valuable. And I'll return. Father, you'll regret this.'
Hwijun finished preparations and headed to the stable where his horse was tied.
He spotted someone inside and gripped the dagger in his bosom.
'The stablehand, probably. Sorry, but no one can find me until morning.'
Hwijun cautiously called to the shadow.
"Hey."
The shadow looked up at the call and approached slowly.
Hwijun realized it wasn't the stablehand he'd expected.
Sairan stepped into the torchlight.
"Hwijun, did you know it was me?"
"Damn Lizardman."
"Guess not."
"Get out of my way. I'm here to check my horse."
"With all that luggage?"
Sairan pointed at Hwijun's bags, who scowled.
"What business is it of yours where I go?"
Hwijun brushed past Sairan.
Close as they were, Hwijun lacked confidence to kill him.
He just hoped Sairan wouldn't block him—and perhaps as recompense for the past three frustrating weeks, Sairan merely watched silently as Hwijun loaded his horse and mounted.
"Not stopping me?"
"I have no intention of stopping you, Hwijun. In my view, whether you stay in Autoton City or leave, you won't achieve anything worthwhile."
"What a worthless curse."
Hwijun almost said more but decided not to provoke Sairan needlessly.
He rode off without farewell.
Behind him, Sairan muttered as he watched.
"But plenty of others think differently. They say even a worthless troublemaker like you can't be left near Hwickyeong. Hm, now that I hear it, that's not wrong."
Sairan picked up the stable's torch and waved it.
A distant fishmonger saw it and waved a blue flag from his roof.
A miner from the mine nodded and knocked on the innermost door in his alley.
A goblin inside dashed out and climbed to the city walls.
The goblin approached his boss perched on the wall.
Using sign language, the goblin told his boss,
'Boss, he's coming.'
'Got it.'
The boss hooded his face in black, stood on the ramparts, and drew his sword.
The gate Hwijun had bribed the guard to open was wide enough for one horse.
Hwijun passed through, unaware of the threat.
The boss leaped down, swinging his sword.
The horse startled at the black shape in its vision but calmed when it patted him. It barely reacted to the thud of something rolling off its back onto the ground.
The goblin boss picked up Hwijun's severed head, mounted the horse, and rode off with the body.
He wanted to repay Hwickyeong and Sairan, who had spared and shown kindness to a wandering goblin like him. This was just a small part of that debt.
But if word spread that Hwijun was dead, bad rumors would harm Hwickyeong.
So the boss had waited for Hwijun to flee on his own.
'Lucky it didn't take long.'
Hwijun was set to vanish without a trace.
The boss glanced back at Autoton City once, then galloped away with the corpse.
Hegemonia crossed her arms on the other side of the video chat window.
Her eyes gleamed fiercely from within her helmet.
"Fine. I lost."
"You don't look like a loser. You're awfully confident."
"Those who don't admit defeat can't improve."
"Why'd you suddenly turn into a quote machine?"
"If you thought I'd rage, yell, and demand a rematch, you were wrong."
"...Yeah. Sorry. I misunderstood."
Seongun was relieved by Hegemonia's sharp attitude, having actually worried a bit.
"I'm a little annoyed, though..."
"......"
Seongun figured it was inevitable for a person.
Seongun said,
"How's the penalty?"
"Manageable. A sudden event brought a cold snap after the rainy season to my Cropeare Tribe, but no big issue. The real hit is my Divinity level dropping... Ah, no, pretend you didn't hear that."
On the flip side, Seongun's Divinity level EXP soared, as did Hwickyeong and Sairan's stats dramatically.
Positive events were foreshadowed too, since the prophecy hadn't come true yet,
'Divinity level dropped?'
Seongun considered the Cropeare Tribe's battle path—Hegemonia's main force—but gave up. The gap was now too wide to catch realistically.
Besides, Hegemonia's next moves might even help him.
"What now? You can't stay there forever."
"...Right. So I'm heading west."
"Inland."
"Yeah."
It was a tough path without confidence in one's strength.
The continent was mostly settled tribes now; even if they fought among themselves, nomads would face clear hostility.
But Hegemonia continued nonchalantly,
"Straight across... to the other side."
"West coast of the continent?"
"Yep. You won't see me for a while."
Seongun figured Hegemonia had a plan.
'Crossing the continent, learning tech from other races, then developing coastal civilization? Maritime tech or skills.'
Either way, it benefited Seongun.
Hegemonia's Cropeare Tribe was a massive force now. As it influenced tribes across the continent, she'd pay less attention to the east.
'With Autoton City secured, I can relax on continental matters too. I'll reap benefits in the meantime. North coast and the rest of the peninsula left.'
Seongun looked down.
The 'benefits' were already starting.
Autoton City's market.
The merchants had forgotten recent turmoil and haggled over goods.
"I've never seen silk like this."
"Not quite. Our tribe sold small amounts."
"No, really. First time for me. Impressive craft."
"Where from again?"
"From the west."
"West?"
"Where the sun sets."
"Ah."
The Blackscale Tribe Lizardman merchant nodded to the troll merchant before him.
It was his first time seeing a troll.
Meeting a new race wasn't shocking, but coming from the west made it believable.
The troll merchant said,
"We were seeking a path east, but Cropeare Tribe raiders blocked it. Our caravan couldn't trade for ages until recently."
The Lizardman realized 'east' meant the sun's rise, opposite west.
But learning new words from strangers wasn't crucial.
The Lizardman merchant said,
"So, how much for this silk?"