CH 54

The battle ended promptly after that. Although it was a terrifying monster in the sky, the wyvern was no more than an oversized, winged lizard once it was on the ground. Of course, it would have been difficult for ordinary knights and mercenaries to hunt the wyvern due to its large size and fierce nature, but it wasn’t a problem for Eugene.

He countered the wyvern’s roar with his Vampire Fear and threw several more javelins from afar along with Galfredik to pierce the monster’s head and throat.

Eventually, the wyvern collapsed dead on the ground with its long tongue sticking out.

Boom!

“I-is it dead?”

“I’m not sure…”

The troops gazed at the wyvern with anxious eyes while murmuring among themselves. However, even high-ranking monsters could not hide their presence in front of a vampire. As such, Eugene was certain that the monster was dead, and he moved without hesitation.

After he reached the wyvern, he raised his shortsword before striking down, cutting off the head of the wyvern. The monster’s thick neck was similar in size to the torso of an adult, male human.

Spurt!

Blood erupted violently from the stump and soaked Eugene’s entire figure. As he satiated his thirst with the blood, the excited cheers of the troops resounded.

Uwaaahhh!

Eugene muttered quietly while the troops celebrated.

“Check it.”

“Yeah!”

Mirian flew forward and began looking all over the wyvern’s body. She was checking for the presence or the absence of a red mana stone.

“That was amazing!”

“You’re the best, Sir Eugene!”

The three squad leaders rushed forward with Partec in the lead. They weren’t trying to bootlick, however, they were genuinely surprised and excited. Who would have thought of hunting the wyvern by manipulating its route with arrows before forcing it down with a javelin? No one had ever thought of such a method.

“Sir, nothing. Hing,” Mirian reported after checking the corpse. 

‘Tsk.’ Eugene was forced to inwardly click his tongue and swallow his disappointment. He had not encountered red mana stones since the swamp near the village and the dungeon of the Tywin territory.

It appeared he had been rather lucky in the beginning. Red mana stones were truly quite rare.

“Master, what are you going to do with those bastards?”

Galfredik walked up before speaking. Eugene turned his head.

The wyvern was essentially the master of the Philia Ruins. As soon as it fell, the harpies had immediately disappeared back into the ruin. About ten people had been killed or seriously injured among the newcomers, and the remaining mercenaries were staring blankly in Eugene’s direction.

However, Eugene’s eyes headed towards Oleg rather than the remaining mercenaries. The burly knight’s shoulders heaved visibly, and he was without his helmet.

Oleg was evidently exhausted after the battle. As he looked around, his gaze met with Eugene’s. Oleg wiped the blood off his face before putting on his helmet. Suddenly, he started charging with a scream.

“Kuaaaah!”

“…..!?”

The surrounding mercenaries became startled and retreated. He rushed in a straight line like a frenzied boar. Oleg was quite fast, which defied his large size. Anyone could see that he was aiming for Eugene.

“Did that bastard lose his mind?”

Galfredik spoke dumbfoundedly while taking out his longsword, but Eugene stopped him before taking a step forward.

“Leave him! I will take care of it.”

Fwoosh!

Oleg arrived in front of Eugene and slashed down with his longsword. Eugene avoided the attack by leaning down and throwing himself at Oleg.

Clang!

“Arghhh!”

Oleg was knocked backward with his waist in Eugene’s grasp. His helmet fell off due to the shock, and Eugene grabbed the helmet off the ground while sitting on top of Oleg. Then he began to mercilessly strike Oleg’s face with the helmet.

Thud!

Oleg’s nose caved in with a single blow, and he fainted.

“Has he gone mad?”

Eugene muttered while standing up, and Mirian screeched with agitation. 

“Crazy bastard! He’s clearly insane! Sir! There’s no need to leave him alive!”

However, Eugene couldn’t simply kill a knight belonging to the Beogalan Barony. Moreover, It was rather suspicious that the knight had suddenly appeared and started attacking him.

“Galfredik. Those bastards…”

“I’ll fuck them up. Partec, Veron, follow me.”

“Yes, Sir!”

The mercenaries had been looking for a chance to run, but Galfredik rushed them on horseback along with his soldiers. The mercenaries numbered only half of Eugene’s troops, and they were greatly exhausted after fighting a fierce battle with the harpies. They were quickly overpowered without being able to put up any resistance. In the first place, they had already given up as soon as Oleg was completely smashed by Eugene.

It would be suicidal to confront a knight who had just single-handedly killed a wyvern and overpowered Oleg, who was known as the strongest knight in the region.

***

“Ugh…” Oleg opened his eyes with a grunt. He started struggling as soon as he realized that his body was tightly bound, and that was when he heard Eugene’s voice.

“Did you have a nice nap? It’s no use. I’ve tied you up with the tendons of the wyvern, so it won’t budge.”

“Urghhh!” Oleg struggled for a short while before scowling. 

Eugene spoke softly. “Why are you throwing a tantrum? You should be grateful that I allowed you to live. Don’t you think so, Sir Oleg?”

“That’s… Thank you. The lord. He will pay the ransom.”

Oleg responded obediently. Eugene was slightly surprised by the knight’s reaction.

‘It’s true.’

According to the words of two soldiers from the Beogalan Barony and the mercenary captain, Oleg was a very simple, ignorant, and naïve knight. He was a knight who knew nothing except fighting and loyalty to his lord.

As such, Eugene suspected that his sudden attack was related to Baron Beogalan. It wouldn’t make sense for a simple, stupid knight to travel all the way here to attack Eugene without his lord’s orders.

“By the way, Sir. Why did you attack me earlier?”

Oleg remained silent.

Eugene confirmed his theories based on Oleg’s reaction. He continued with a shrug. “If you don’t want to talk, you don’t have to answer me. But… Baron Beogalan will be in a lot of trouble because of this.”

“…..!?”

Oleg’s eyes filled with shock. 

Eugene continued with a regretful expression. “Think about it. I came to subjugate the ruin at the request of Lord Beogalan, but one of his knights attacked me. What do you think will happen if this became known publicly? What do you think will happen to Lord Beogalan’s honor and reputation?”

“It will be tarnished beyond recovery. All the nobles of the peninsula will hold him in contempt. Definitely.” Galfredik sneakily chimed in.

“I… I…”

Oleg’s face started to turn red.

“It doesn’t really matter to me, since I’ve already completed the subjugation. Whatever happens to the honor of you, Sir, and Lord Beogalan are of no concern to…”

“You insulted the lord first! You trampled on his honor! I was ordered to punish you!”

“I did?”

“Yes!” Oleg’s voice rang loudly, and everyone’s gaze shifted toward the three men. Eugene deliberately raised his voice as if he wanted everyone to hear his words.

“So, in other words, Sir, I insulted Lord Beogalan and he sent you here to punish me?”

“Right!”

“Are you certain? Baron Beogalan sent you, Sir, here to punish me?”

“That’s what I’m telling you!”

Eugene shrugged before turning around. His own troops, as well as the mercenaries hired by Oleg, were staring his way with shocked expressions.

“Galfredik, this should be enough witnesses, right?”

“More than enough. Now then, let’s go back, you bastards!”

***

“…..”

Baron Beogalan had a stiff, deathly pale expression as he remained silent. He could only repeatedly open and close his mouth as all kinds of emotions swirled inside his head, including shock, regret, and fear.

“Why are you so surprised? Is it because I came back alive?”

“W-w-what are you…”

“I know everything.”

“K-know everything? What are you talking about?”

Baron Beogalan stuttered a response while sweating profusely, and Eugene continued after turning his eyes to Oleg. The muscular knight was stealing glances at the two with his entire figure bound.

“You ordered Sir Oleg to attack me, right? Don’t try to play dumb. Sir Oleg testified in the presence of those men over there.”

“What do you mean by that? I never gave such an order! What would those lowly men know?!” Beogalan roared with a red face. The guilty were always the ones that expressed their anger. It was truly a typical behavior.

“Ah, is that so? Then Sir Oleg did everything on his own accord? He left the castle, recruited mercenaries, and then came to the ruin to attack me less than a day after I departed, without the orders of his lord?”

“That…”

Baron Beogalan started to stutter out another excuse, but Eugene interjected immediately.

“Then would it be fine with you if I publicized the matter through the Palin Association after I return?”

“What?”

“And I will ensure this matter becomes known to the nobles I am acquainted with.”

“N-nobles you are acquainted with?”

“Lord Fairchild, the Viscount of Fairchild. He wanted to have me sworn in. Ah, and there’s someone else as well.”

Eugene took out the letter of recommendation from his pocket and waved it while continuing. “I will soon be meeting with Lord Fairchild’s father-in-law, Lord Winslon. I will make sure to inform him of this matter as well.”

Baron Beogalan’s face turned deathly pale from a shade of red. Lords like him were most conscious and afraid of the reputation he had among nobles with ‘titles.’ He could endure a bad reputation with the Palin Association, but it was different with Count Winslon, who was one of the most prestigious nobles in the kingdom. What would happen if Count Winslon were to create an issue for him from the incident?

‘Then it’s all over!’

Baron Beogalan felt dizzy, and Eugene’s cold voice once again pierced his ears. “Will you still claim that Sir Oleg acted on his own accord because I insulted you and tarnished your honor, Lord Beogalan?”

There was nothing Baron Beogalan could say. However, he couldn’t resolve the issue by force either. Aside from completely dominating Oleg, who was the strongest knight in the territory, Eugene was the first knight who succeeded in hunting a wyvern.

Moreover, how could he possibly deal with the other mean-looking knight and the nearly forty elite troops beside him?

“I will ask you once more. Why did you do something like this? If you tell me the truth, I am willing to take that into consideration.”

“To tell you the truth…”

Baron Beogalan was left with no other choice. He began to explain the contents of the letter he received while constantly wiping away his sweat.

“…and I apologize. I was blinded by gold coins and almost committed a crime against a brave, honorable knight like yourself. However! Please know that I never would have done such a thing if I had not received their proposal, Sir Eugene.”

The best way to cover one’s mistakes was to pass the blame on to others. In that sense, Baron Beogalan’s attempt was partially successful.

‘Jevin Evergrove? Well, I will have to deal with him later.’

Eugene frowned after hearing Baron Beogalan’s story. He raised his head. “Even so, the fact that you attempted to kill me in a dishonorable way remains unchanged, Lord Beogalan.”

“…..”

“So I would like to offer you a proposal. If you agree, I will forget about the matter.”

“A-and what would that be?” Baron Beogalan quickly changed his expression and asked, having forgotten his dignity as a lord.

“By chance, I came to occupy a couple of villages outside the Beogalan Barony. I only exercised chivalry as a knight, but the residents of the villages wanted me to take me as their master, perhaps due to the situation in the nearby areas. I could not help but accept their request.”

“…..!”

“So, please draft a document recognizing me as the lord of the villages. While you are at it, I would appreciate it even more if you could have the nearby nobles sign the certificate as well.”

“Of course! I will do that!”

Baron Beogalan agreed without hesitation. It wasn’t his territory anyway, and he also couldn’t occupy the villages. If today’s incident could be forgotten by recognizing Eugene as the lord of those villages, there was nothing for him to lose.

“I will write you a certificate right away. I will have the nearby nobles recognize and sign it as well. I am certain all of my close associates will be more than happy to join in. But you must keep your promise.”

“Don’t worry about that.”

Eugene was quite satisfied. He had planned ahead after hearing the truth from Oleg, and he had succeeded. The disappointment he felt from failing to obtain a red mana stone was reduced to an extent.

He failed to abide by his philosophy of not forgiving those who attempted to hurt him, but it wasn’t as if he could simply punish a lord with a title. Instead, his path to becoming a lord was solidified through the incident, so it could be considered a win.

‘Wait.’

A thought came to Eugene’s head, and he continued. “And one more thing.”

“Hmm? Is there something else?”

“We suffered quite a lot of damage when Sir Oleg and the mercenaries suddenly attacked us. Don’t you think it’s only fair to provide us with ransom and compensation for the damage?”

No one had even suffered a minor injury from the attack, let alone any damage, but Eugene shamelessly declared it otherwise. Naturally, he didn’t forget to glare at Oleg’s hired mercenaries while speaking his demand.

“Well… how much?”

“Instead of half, please give me eighty percent of the materials and mana stones obtained from the subjugation.”

“….”