CH 76

The Ripple Effect

Translated by SoundOfDestiny

Edited by Zil

Raidorl and the rest of the kingdom’s army defeated the renegade Viscount Ulfert and conquered the city of Ulfin.

And for his great contribution to that victory, Sven Arbeil was officially appointed as Raidorl’s military strategist.

The eight eastern families that guard the borders of the Alsatian Empire – there are only five traitorous families left.

In order to defeat them, the young warlord Sven has a new plan.

“What am I to do?!!!!!!!!!!!”

Ectura is a town in the south of Ulfin.

In the Baron of Eladin, who rules the town, a man cried out.

The man who cowered in the corner of the room, holding his body in his hands and screaming, was the owner of the house, Baron Royle Eladin.

He is a man of many years, and his face is pale, his thin shoulders shaking violently, and his tears flowing like waterfalls.

The other day, a rumour came to the Baron’s town of Ectura.

The rumour was that Ulfin, a neighbouring town, had been overrun by the armies of Zain.

In addition, the fortified city of Ulfin had fallen in less than a day, and Viscount Ulfart had been killed without being able to resist.

As soon as he heard the report, Baron Eladin locked himself in his room and spent the rest of the day trembling.

“I never thought that Viscount Ulfert would be killed so easily!　I’ll be next!　It’s my turn to be killed!”

The baron cried out, pulling the blanket over his head.

The rumour that was tormenting the Baron was coming from Sven Arbeil.

Sven used secret agents who had been captured by Raidorl to spread information about the Eight Eastern Houses throughout the land.

“The kingdom’s army conquered Ulfin in a single day.”

“The Viscount of Ulfert, who had defied his commander, Raidorl was cruelly killed, but all the vassals and soldiers of the Viscount’s house who surrendered were forgiven.”

The kingdom’s army has absorbed the soldiers and militia of Viscount Ulfert and has grown to over 10,000 strong.

They were secret agents under the direct command of King Granard, but their commander had been killed in battle and their loyalty to the king had been broken when they saw the power of Raidorl.

The curse of Raidorl had shackled them, and they could not defy him, so they faithfully spread the exaggerated information.

As a result, the gossip that ran through the border towns caused a huge stir in the hearts of the border nobility, including Baron Eladin.

“Ugh …… why must I go through this? I shouldn’t have turned to the Empire if I had to do this…….”

Royle Eladin was a coward by nature.

His petulance is so unbecoming of a nobleman in charge of his own country’s borders that even his vassals secretly amaze him. 

In the beginning, Royle was the second son, and it was supposed to be his older brother who would inherit the Barony of Eladin.

But when his brother died suddenly of an epidemic, Royle was left unprepared to take over.

“That’s why I never wanted to be a lord!　I didn’t want to be responsible for protecting the town!　All I wanted was to live in peace and quiet, doing my bit for a living! How on earth did this happen? ……”

The baron shouted with tears in his eyes.

He was a cowardly man, with no sense of honour, and was not aware that he was a nobleman.

He was not prepared to risk his life for the sake of his domain. He was not prepared to fight.

That’s why when the Empire’s army came to the city of Ectura, he surrendered unconditionally without a fight.

“I’m going to be killed. …… The royal court will never forgive me for turning to the empire!”

Baron Eladin’s paper-white face trembles as he contemplates the future that awaits him.

The little Baron is frightened, and no longer in the right frame of mind to face Raidorl and the rest of the kingdom’s army.

Sven’s ruse is working, and if it continues, Ectura will fall without a fight in the near future.

But…

“DUN DUN DUN DUN!”

“Hiiiiiiiiiiiiii!???? W-what is that sound?!!!”

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door of the bedroom where the baron had retired.

It sounded like a blunt instrument being struck, and then the door was breached from the outside.

Someone had broken down the door and was trying to break into the room.

“Oh, it’s the Royal Army!　The kingdom’s army is coming!”

The Baron screams in panic as the door is smashed open.

He rolls around the room in a disgraceful manner and tries to hide under the bed.

But there’s not enough room under the bed to hide the Baron, who is a grown man, let alone a child.

The baron’s upper body is tucked under the bed, and he flails his legs in an attempt to hide his head but not his bottom.

“…… What on earth are you doing, Father?”

“…………?”

At last the door was completely broken down, and the intruder entered the room.

The door was finally broken down, and the intruder entered the room, but it was a familiar woman’s voice that came out of the intruder’s mouth.

The baron tries to get out from under the bed, but he is stuck in a strange position because he has twisted his body forcibly, and even if he puts his arms around himself, he cannot seem to get out.

“Oh, for God’s sake, ……, please help my father.”

“Ha!!”

The woman instructed her men.

The woman’s men grabbed the baron by both legs and dragged him out by force.

“Ow,ow,ow,ow! Uuu..What happened?” 

“I hope you’ve come to your senses, Father.”

“Oh, you’re …… Shirley?”

The Baron’s only daughter, Shirley Elladine, stood in front of him as he made his escape from under the bed.

She was dressed in a sensational dress with a deep slit, flanked by Baronial soldiers with hammers on either side and a fan of multicolored feathers covering her face.

She looked down coldly at his father, who was crawling on the floor in a hideous outfit.

“It’s a shame that a man who is supposed to be the lord of a part of the kingdom should be in such a state. How can you not be ashamed of yourself?”

“And what can I do about it? ……”

That’s all the Baron has to say in response to his daughter’s harsh criticism.

The baron is not a fool. He knew very well that he was not a man worthy of being lord.

But he was not strong enough to keep his cool when his life depended on it.

“And soon the kingdom’s army will come?　They will come to kill me and to take back the town!　How can I be calm about that?”

“How can you be calm?　If you can’t command calmly in times of emergency, you’re not fit to be a lord. Doesn’t your father have any pride in his nobility?”

“Ugh ……”

The Baron let out an inarticulate groan at his daughter’s chilling argument.

He looked up at his daughter with resentment, but was unable to speak, because she was right.

The baron was a small man, but his daughter Shirley was very strong and arrogant.

The baron is now in control of his daughter, who says things like “the pride of the nobility” and has become the first person he can’t stand.

“It can’t be helped……if father is like this, the Barony of Eladin is doomed. I must do something about it.

“What can you do?”

The Baron shined his eyes in hope to his daughter, who’s hiding her mouth with a fan.

“Of course, father. I have a winning strategy”

Shirley smiles arrogantly.

She has a confident look of victory on her face.

“All I have to do is to seduce His Highness Raidorl Zain. Once I have His Highness in my clutches, there will be no need to fear the Kingdom’s armies!”

“………..HA?!”

The daughter’s unexpected response left the Baron with a puzzled look on his face.

“That’s ridiculous…….”

“Wait for me, Your Highness Raidorl　I, your future wife, Shirley Elladin, will be with you!”

Despite his father’s muttering stunned, Shirley laughed loudly throughout the mansion, saying, “Oh ho ho ho!”