Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: The Path to the Tower
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"What in the world is all this?"
The head of the Bourbon family, Marquis Pierre, couldn't hide his shock.
He had simply gone to sleep and woken up, only to find hundreds of corpses strewn in front of the castle.
And they were all members of the Bourbon Knights, who obeyed his commands.
Someone had declared war on him.
And their identity was all too clear.
'Strange.'
Where his footsteps halted stood Duff, the captain of his direct knights.
This was clearly someone who harbored hostility toward Strange.
"M-Marquis Pierre... Through the adventurer's channel, it seems... it was the Strange side that moved."
An elderly vassal held up a blood-soaked piece of cloth with a terrified expression.
At its center was the cross emblem, the unmistakable symbol of Strange, recognizable to anyone.
"I already know that."
"You knew?"
"Yes. I just don't understand why they'd go this far."
Duff had clearly said he would only compete with Strange in the arena and nothing more.
So why would Strange need to go this far against me?
'Could they have been trying something I don't know about?'
If that were the case, he needed to figure out how to handle this mess.
"Was there anyone who witnessed where Strange clashed with them?"
"No. But the manager of the Legion auction house said this: 'Strange's youngest young master was quite angry and asked me to pass that along.'"
"Youngest... You mean that child from Strange a few years back, the one said to have unprecedented talent?"
"Yes, that's him. The little Strange kid Duff reported encountering in the arena yesterday."
Pierre could hardly believe it.
No matter that it was Strange—even for them, for a mere eight-year-old child to point a sword at him?
Even if Duff had made a mistake and given them solid justification, this wasn't something to act on lightly.
Clearly, someone was backing the boy from the shadows.
The vassal glanced at him nervously before continuing.
"What should we do?"
"...How many troops can we mobilize in Legion right now?"
"We have about five hundred knights ready to move immediately. If that's not enough, shall I summon the subordinate units?"
"No. Bringing in forces from outside the castle could turn this into a full war. Even if Strange moves, we handle it internally."
"But two hundred soldiers were wiped out in a single night..."
"It's enough. Duff and his men were mostly low-grade knights, with only a few mid-grade ones. The ones here now are mid-to-high-grade."
Pierre drew a deep breath from deep in his dantian.
Huuu—
"From now on, we must be cautious with even the smallest actions. For the time being, until we grasp the full situation, let's avoid provoking Strange."
"B-But if they come at us with full intent... we could be in real trouble."
"Don't worry about that. No matter how powerful Strange is, would they dare attack me, who carries the imperial bloodline so rashly?"
"......"
"I'll meet Roys de Strange myself. We can resolve this through talk."
"Meeting Roys in person?! That's too dangerous! You know what he's like, my lord—he's a brute who only knows violence!"
Unlike the vassal's concerns, Marquis Pierre gave a reassuring reply.
"No need to worry. The Roys I know is a proud, upright knight. He would never attack someone without enmity."
"But—"
"Enough. That's the end of it. Prepare five carriages and escort knights. We're going up to the tower's mid-layers, so only the finest."
"My lord..."
"That's an order."
"......"
"I'll arm myself quickly. Have everything ready to head to the tower by then."
With that, the conversation ended.
And at the hottest hour of the day, when the sun blazed overhead...
Pierre set off for the tower, clad in golden armor emblazoned with an eagle emblem.
Kanggradra watched Marquis Pierre depart from the castle and clapped her hands.
Clap clap clap.
"It went exactly as you predicted, young master. To cower like that over mere corpses."
Pierre was cowardly.
But not weak.
He was said to possess at least high-grade knight-level strength, thanks to inheriting one of the powerful Guardian Spirits that protected emperors for generations.
Of course, in my previous life, I'd never faced him, so I didn't know his exact capabilities.
'Back then...'
I had no reason to clash with the peace-loving Bourbons, and they were one of the families soon wiped out by the Glazers anyway.
I replied as I watched Pierre's group hastily heading to the tower.
"Monitor them until they meet Father. No—until their conversation ends."
"Understood."
"It'd be ideal if you could learn what they discuss too."
"Yes. And if Marquis Pierre acts hostile... may I kill him?"
"No. Absolutely not. Turning him into an enemy would blow this up too big. The imperial forces in Legion won't sit idle either."
"You could use the Strange name and it'd be no issue. They couldn't stand against us even if they all charged."
"We could win now, sure. But the imperial army wouldn't stay quiet. Killing him without a formal war declaration would be tantamount to rebellion against the throne."
Wars recognized by the emperor in this era followed strict procedures.
It wasn't like the barbaric days where you could ambush, kill a lord, and seize a castle for victory.
A nation seeking war reported the reasons to the imperial court. If the emperor acknowledged the justification, they could declare war through the imperial army and commence battle.
Skipping these steps meant no recognition as a nation, even in victory. Who would wage war at great cost for nothing?
Not even Strange.
"Understood."
"Even if the Bourbons turn hostile, Father will handle it. No need to worry."
"The Family Head himself?"
"Yes. Father and Marquis Pierre have climbed the tower together before. As a party, even."
"Oh... So Marquis Pierre is that skilled?"
"I don't know how you see him, Lady Kanggradra, but no one bearing the Bourbon name is weak."
Especially someone like Pierre, who inherited an imperial Guardian Spirit—far beyond what ordinary knights could match.
"Then we'll just monitor their movements as ordered."
"Withdraw immediately if things get dangerous during the operation."
"Yes, young... no, Master."
"Master?"
"To me, Lord Berddin is not merely one who bears the Strange blood. You're the one who will lead us forward together. It feels right to address you so."
For a moment, memories of comrades from my previous life who called me Master flashed by.
They'd said much the same as Kanggradra. Hearing it from someone else felt strangely nostalgic.
'Not a bad sound.'
It meant she wouldn't dismiss me as a child.
"Call me whatever's comfortable. Just not 'Master' where others might hear. Rumors of me forming an organization outside the Strange knights could draw checks from major guilds."
"...Understood, Master."
The tower's mid-layers.
Roys de Strange, lord of the Strange family, met Pierre, lord of the Bourbon family.
Amid a battlefield teeming with massive monsters, they sat at a round table for their discussion. Opinions clashed, and Pierre's face flushed red.
"Sir Roys! With things this dire, you're telling us to just sit back?! Two hundred! Two hundred knights, slaughtered in one night. By your son!"
Unlike the agitated Pierre, Roys responded calmly.
"Are you saying Berddin did this without any reason?"
A single sentence, and Pierre bowed his head under the pressure of his aura.
"No... I already told you. One of our knights wanted to test him in the arena, and there was a misunderstanding—"
"Misunderstanding? I heard your knight intruded into the Strange residence in Legion first."
"Th-That's true, but... We just doubted if he was really Strange family..."
"If you were curious, why not visit formally and ask Butler Debary? Why sneak into the residence?"
"L-Later, they said they wanted to handle it quietly. I only learned of it after they were caught."
Before he could finish, Roys slammed his fist on the table.
Bam!
With a cracking sound, the table leg snapped, and it collapsed.
Crash!
"Marquis Pierre, did you come all this way to toy with me?"
Pierre shook his head in fear.
"No, that's not—"
"Speak clearly. Did you order the intrusion into the Strange residence? Yes or no?"
Pierre fell into deep thought.
Denying it exposed his incompetence, as Roys had pointed out.
Admitting it was a declaration of war on Strange.
The latter made Berddin's retaliation justified. How should he answer?
"Sir Pierre."
"Yes."
"Let's end this simply."
"Simply?"
"Your Bourbon knights intruded into our residence—that's fact. Berddin wiped out your knights—that's also fact. We call it even, as if it never happened."
Roys rose from his chair, looking down at Pierre.
"Refuse, and we'll consider it war."
"......"
"This is the last consideration I can offer a former comrade."
"...Understood, Sir Roys."
With that, Pierre quietly left the tower.
But his pride, after that conversation with Roys, lay in ruins.
For a faint imperial blood like his to be so thoroughly disdained—this was not something he could let slide.
"...Baron Griffin."
A knight in eagle-emblazoned armor, with a hyena-like sharp impression, responded.
"Yes, Marquis Pierre."
"Prepare for war."
"W-War?!"
"Yes, war. The moment we exit the tower. We're going to kill that little brat."