Chapter 108
Chapter 108
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 108
Chapter Title: There Are Too Many Corrupt Nobles 1
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Guillaume Balt immediately told his subordinates to go rescue the bridgehead outpost, but his vassal band, the Sell-Sword Guild, insisted on holding off and observing the situation first, as it might be a trap before attempting a crossing.
It was a reasonable argument at first glance. To land a large force, they needed to assess the situation first, and the Cora River wasn't so forgiving that they could just cross on a whim.
The problem was that by morning the next day, reports came in from sharp-eyed watchmen.
"The bridgehead outpost has been wiped out!"
That meant the long-cherished ambition of Count Rantaric had been crushed. The Salasuma annexation had failed, and now Count Rantaric himself was in danger, isolated deep in enemy territory.
Worse, horrific rumors were spreading among the soldiers. Whispers that the count's army had been ambushed by monsters near Salasuma, and that the count himself had gone missing, began sowing chaos in the camp.
"Knights in name only, worse than slaves. They opposed crossing at night out of fear, and because of that we watched the bridgehead fall right in front of us, yet no one takes responsibility! In the end, the commander and noble—that's me—has to shoulder it all!? You idiots who let your father die right before your eyes! I said we should cross immediately to rescue them, but those bastards trampled my opinion, and now the blame falls on me! Do they all ignore me because I'm ugly?! My own vassal band treats me like a joke!"
Guillaume Balt hacked irritably at the bushes as he pushed forward.
"Good. This spot looks crossable!"
"Pardon?"
"You and I! We'll cross the river first like this. I need to see the situation with my own eyes. Don't worry. I've trained with the holy knights, after all."
Guillaume gave up trying to convince his disobedient vassal band and instead gathered adventurers loyal to gold, planning to cross with just them to scout the Salasuma-side outpost directly.
"No, young master. Heh heh. Didn't you hear what the wise old shaman or the holy knights said last night?"
"We're against crossing too. We came here to scout, not to ford the river."
Last night, the sharp-eared shaman and holy knights had heard a horrific monster's roar.
It was the bellow Night Crawler had unleashed upon absorbing the orc necromancer Scott Macgreen, its echoes reaching even half a day's distance away.
"You too? Want to be reported for disobeying orders from the Sell-Sword Guild?"
"Ahahaha."
"That would be a problem."
"Then go prepare the crossing. There should be boats nearby. Requisition some."
Adventurers, superstitious about rumors and omens, couldn't persuade the bullheaded Guillaume and simply did as ordered, preparing the crossing.
"We've confirmed boats are here. Pay the fishermen and requisition them."
That was when Guillaume spoke.
"Huh?"
As they pushed through the brush, they encountered a group of adventurers camping. But...
"Huh? Lord Brand?!"
"Guillaume, sir?!"
There stood Brand, clad in bloodstained armor.
"No, Lord Brand?! What happened? We heard you'd vanished without a trace, but this is..."
"Who's this?"
A masked man beside Brand asked him.
"It's Count Rantaric's legitimate heir. The one I taught to read."
"I am Guillaume Balt, Count of Rantaric, Baron of Adiloph, and eldest son of Garnahair."
"Ah...."
Instead of the masked youth, a holy knight stepped forward.
"I'm Holy Knight Zevec of the King's Church."
"But..."
"Orc!"
The Sell-Sword Guild members noticed the orc among them and reacted with alarm, going on guard.
"Ah, this one's our prisoner."
As the masked man said that, Guillaume looked astonished.
"Wait. Did you lot cross the Cora River by any chance?"
"Pardon?"
"You're not from the Salasuma side, are you? What happened to Count Rantaric's army? I want to know the rumors. If you have detailed info, I'll reward you."
"Uh, well."
The situation grew awkward.
*********
'Got too caught up in camping and training.'
Azadin regretted that they'd ended up receiving unexpected visitors while encamped. Should he have set up a perimeter?
But the other side was the son of Count Rantaric. If suspicious folks suddenly stood guard in their own territory, they'd have every excuse to investigate and subdue them anytime.
Claiming they were just camping nearby instead of from Salasuma would only complicate things further. Excuses for camping by the river would run thin.
Then Brand spoke up.
"The count's army was attacked by monsters and scattered. The count himself is missing."
From Brand's perspective, Count Rantaric was an enemy he couldn't share the same sky with. Naturally, he held no fondness for the count's son, Guillaume.... Yet Brand spoke with the courteous demeanor a former retainer might show his lord.
"Pardon?"
"We saw it from afar. A massive horde of undead ambushing the army, that is. We were too scared to do anything but flee, but by morning, seeing the people across the river not moving made it clear something had gone wrong with Rantaric's forces."
"I see. Understood. Then, sir, could you hand that orc over to me for interrogation? If monsters attacked the count's army, this beast might know something."
Guillaume requested the orc necromancer, Scott Macgreen. Azadin shook his head.
"Ah, well, this one's not all there mentally."
"Not all there?"
"Yes. He keeps babbling about the age of Jupiter and such."
Azadin said that and snapped off a reed leaf, flicking it with his finger. The reed shot forward with vicious force, slapping Scott across the face.
"The end times are upon us! When Jupiter's gravity reaches Hubris, the old kings of the Nether shall return!"
"Seems like he went mad from using black magic."
"...Then why keep him prisoner? Just kill him here. Orcs eat a ton."
As Guillaume said that and drew his sword, Scott flinched. He could feel the killing intent.
'No way this guy's so distracted by his act he'll get himself killed?'
Azadin stepped forward to shield Scott's body and said,
"I know a shaman who's good at mental resonance. We'll extract his knowledge through her."
"Where does she live? Who is she?"
"Well... you know how shamans are, right?"
As Azadin made excuses, Guillaume eyed him suspiciously.
"But why are you wearing a mask...?"
"It's, uh, I have scars on my face."
"Hmm? Just to be sure, why don't you take it off?"
As Guillaume shot him a suspicious glance, Azadin grew flustered.
"Please understand. With your father's communications suddenly cut off and monsters appearing nearby.... We ask for your cooperation."
Guillaume's eyes remained suspicious, though his words were polite. His actions, however, were not. The Sell-Sword Guild members beside him exchanged glances, then drew their weapons in unison.
"Hm?"
Were they about to attack? As Azadin tensed, he sensed something off. The killing intent was directed elsewhere.
Sure enough. One of the Sell-Sword Guild members suddenly smashed the back of Guillaume's head.
But Brand, who had been watching, thrust out his spear to deflect the guild member's weapon. Well-versed in the Rantaric county's affairs, Brand had anticipated this very scenario.
"Watch out!"
"Urk?!"
Guillaume panicked at the sight of his own men attacking him.
"Traitors! Traitors!"
"......"
The Sell-Sword Guild members drew their weapons without a word and surrounded Guillaume.
"You lot can go."
"Our goal is just Guillaume."
The Sell-Sword Guild members sneered, magnanimously dismissing Azadin's group.
"Y-you bastards! Why? I paid your salaries on time!"
Guillaume glared at the Sell-Sword Guild members in confusion.
"Because Count Rantaric's true heir is Young Master Adler."
Brand, who had been watching, said that.
"Adler?!"
"Yes. Young Master Adler shares the count's darkness, while you, Lord Guillaume, know nothing and see only the surface, don't you?"
"What are you talking about? Adler's just my little brother! Sure, he went in and out of Father's study a lot, but!"
The Sell-Sword Guild members snickered at his words.
"As expected of a former scribe—you know your stuff."
"So what? Gonna run?"
"With so few of you?"
The Sell-Sword Guild had over twenty well-armed men. Azadin's group, by contrast, looked weak on the surface.
Holy Knight Zevec in heavy plate looked formidable, sure, but Azadin wore light armor, Midiam and Ismail were still young boy and girl, Shati and Scott wore robes instead of armor, and Brand sported a ridiculous patchwork breastplate. The veteran mercenaries were confident of victory.
"Run. This isn't your fight, is it? Saving Guillaume won't earn you any thanks anyway. Rantaric is already Lord Adler's."
"But if we leave now, won't you frame us for murdering Young Master Guillaume?"
As Azadin said that, the Sell-Sword Guild members chuckled.
"Not dumb, huh. But running is still better than dying here, right?"
"Damn it. Why'd we get dragged into someone else's family feud? Brand, you know this place best, right? You decide. Save Guillaume? Or ignore him and leave?"
Azadin, knowing nothing of Rantaric County, left the judgment to Brand, who knew it well.
"Let's save Young Master Guillaume."
"Then that's that."
As Azadin nodded, the Sell-Sword Guild members began to laugh.
"Kek. These guys lost it?"
"Got a holy knight and think they're hot stuff."
"In a riverside reed bed like this, even horses can't maneuver. In mud like this, veterans win."
"Yeah. Can't argue there."
Azadin charged into the reeds. Not just him—Midiam and Ismail dashed into the reeds too, their presences vanishing in an instant.
"What?"
-Swoosh!
An arrow flew in response.
Incredibly, the arrow came from the side of where Azadin had leaped, not directly from his position. Azadin had swung it around to make it seem like it came from elsewhere.
-Thunk!
A Sell-Sword Guild member collapsed from the arrow out of nowhere.
"Urk?!"
"What the! He went that way!"
"Ambush!"
The Sell-Sword Guild members panicked. They couldn't even imagine that the arrow had been shot by Azadin, who had just leaped into the reeds moments ago.
Then arrows flew again. Far too many for just the three who had hidden, raining from all directions.
"Argh!"
"I-it's a trap!"
The Sell-Sword Guild members misjudged the number of archers as arrows came fast and furious.
They never dreamed the three who had just hidden in the reeds were all there was; they assumed a large group of archers had been lying in wait nearby from the start.