Chapter 294: ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????? (2)

Chapter 294: Strange Feast (2)

Johan, followed by an entourage of guards, strode confidently through the castle as if he were the lord of the realm.

The servants in the castle corridors avoided eye contact, turning their heads away.

“What is happening here?”

The bewildered King Ineressa looked around in confusion. The knights, who would usually have loudly announced his arrival, appeared to have been cowed by the duke’s presence.

Entering the hall, Johan slowly surveyed the scene. Despite his arrogant demeanor, there was an air of innate authority about him.

He stood as if declaring who held the reins of power in this place.

“Your Majesty. It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Duke Yeats.”

“M-Meet you too.”

The aged king, who would normally have protested the lack of respect, held his tongue under the weight of Johan’s aura. Johan and his men took their seats at the prepared table.

Johan commanded the steward beside him.

“Begin the feast,”

“. . .Yes!”

In the tense atmosphere, flagons of wine were brought in and musicians began to play.

The musicians focused intently on their performance, knowing that any mistake in this tense atmosphere could be fatal.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

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While Johan and other western lords had most of it figured out, there was one crucial misconception they held.

The recent pagan marriage alliance had not been initiated by the king himself, but by his children.

And the young couple, instead of leaving for their own fiefdom after the wedding in the inner castle, had stayed within the castle walls.

“What nonsense is this. . . Out of my way!”

The king’s son shoved the servant aside in disgust. The servant had come to warn him of the commotion outside and advised him to stay in his chambers for safety.

Preposterous! Did he think the outer and inner walls and the garrison of soldiers guarding the castle were for show?

“■■■■ ■■■■?”

“What are you blabbering about?”

The king’s son grew agitated by the eastern language spoken by his newly acquired brother-in-law. Though they had married for power and alliance, he harbored no affection for the pagan.

Normally he would have been more cautious, but the sudden news had stripped him of his composure.

“What’s going on?”

“Can’t you see? Some rogue bandits are causing a ruckus outside. Call your guards! We must respond.”

“■■■■ ■■■■?”

“How many are they?”

Impatient with the man’s questioning at such a critical moment, the king’s son lost his patience.

“Bring your guards here at once! If they don’t come, I’ll go myself.”

“■■■.”

Sensing the atmosphere, the man acquiesced without further argument. The king’s son hastily donned his armor and headed downstairs with the knights in his retinue.

‘How dare these insolent fools. . .’

The families who had put down roots in this land held a subtle inferiority and jealousy towards the westerners. Those who had come from afar to establish themselves in these lands were often of lower noble origins.

These resentments had been building up, and now this outrage. Unforgivable.

“What is this?”

The guards posted outside the banquet hall stiffened as they saw a group approaching from afar.

“Who do you think you are to trespass on these castle grounds. . . Retreat, or face our blades!!”

Despite the king’s son’s threat, the guards did not flinch.

“These are His Majesty’s castle grounds. We guard these premises by His Majesty’s orders. We see no reason to obey commands from someone else.”

“. . . . .”

The king’s son glared at them, his eyes blazing, and reached for his sword.

At that moment, the guards hidden in the vicinity revealed themselves. Crossbows, already loaded, creaked ominously. They were ready to fire at the first sign of movement.

No matter how valiant a knight, it was impossible to act recklessly when surrounded by crossbows, especially at such close range.

“Y-You. . .”

To be treated like this by mere mercenaries within his own rightful fiefdom.

The king’s son turned crimson with fury, ready to explode any moment.

BANG!

It was Sir Biorarn and his men.

‘What is this?’

Johan was puzzled. Why were they here?

The old king, seemingly equally confused, asked,

“What business do these knights have here?”

The knights looked at Biorarn as if to ask him to explain. However, Biorarn lacked the finesse to navigate such a delicate situation.

He had assumed that blackmail or threats were being exchanged inside, but the atmosphere in the banquet hall was far more convivial than he had expected.

Even Biorarn couldn’t blurt out, ’We’re here to rescue the duke!’ in this situation.

“We were. . . invited. . .”

“Invited? When did I ever invite you? And why. . .”

The old king’s logically sound words made Biorarn’s voice trail off. It was Johan who came to Biorarn’s aid as he found himself cornered.

“I invited them to join us. It seems they were late because the message reached them tardily.”

“!”

Biorarn looked at Johan with gratitude in his eyes. So did the knights following him. Honestly, they hadn’t expected the duke to help Biorarn, who was under suspicion of assassination.

Furthermore, even putting that aside, there must have been deep resentment due to the civil war with the emperor. . .

‘Thank you!’

The knights conveyed their gratitude with their eyes. With Johan’s words, the king no longer questioned the matter.

“Take your seats over there.”

Biorarn and his knights unexpectedly found themselves being treated to a feast. They sat at the neighboring table, receiving the dishes being served, and stole glances around.

They were still trying to grasp the situation.

As the feast was reaching its peak, the one who broke the convivial atmosphere was the old king’s son, Valeon. He was the only one at the table who seemed to be seething with anger.

“I’ve heard of His Highness the Duke’s great reputation!”

“Insolent cur! How dare you interrupt? Can’t you see your father is here?”

The old king was the first to react, expressing his displeasure. How dare Valeon speak out of turn without permission?

Of course, for Valeon, it was even more absurd. His father was drunk and oblivious to the blatant disrespect he was being shown by an enemy.

“Let him be. It’s a day of celebration.”

“How noble of you.”

One of the knights beside Biorarn commented in an impressed tone. Johan waved his hand modestly. Valeon’s anger flared even more at these galling displays.

“As someone who has heard of Your Highness’s great reputation, I would like to test my skills against yours. If you don’t mind, could you teach me a thing or two?”

“. . . .!”

Not only Johan but also the other attendants turned to look at Valeon in surprise. Valeon thought he had caught them off guard with his challenge.

“It would be best to stop.”

Johan spoke earnestly. He didn’t want to cripple the king’s son, especially since things were going well with the old king.

Johan’s current concern was controlling his strength.

“No! I insist on learning!”

“Such insolence. . .”

“Bear with it. He will pay the price soon enough.”

There were some hot-blooded mercenaries, but they managed to restrain themselves. This was because they could guess what would happen next.

“I don’t want to see swords wielded in this hall!”

“Then let’s do this bare-handed!”

As knights, they were required to be proficient not only in swordsmanship, spearmanship, archery, and horsemanship but also in unarmed combat and wrestling. Valeon, as a knight, was confident in this area.

“Perhaps it would be better to use dulled swords.”

“His Majesty said that no swords may be drawn in this banquet hall. Let’s just do it bare-handed!”

“Very well. If that is what you wish. After this encounter, would it be ungracious of me to deny your request?”

Johan set down his wine glass and rose from his seat. As Johan stood up and stretched, Valeon felt an ominous chill run down his spine.

‘. . .What is it?’

Normally, the highlight of a banquet was not the food, drinks, or music, but such drunken brawls. The musicians held their breaths and watched the scene with keen interest.

It was common knowledge that Valeon was a highly skilled knight. After all, the people of this castle had no choice but to favor Valeon.

However, the moment the word “begin” was uttered, Valeon was sent flying into the air.