CH 67

“Alone? He wants to subjugate the evil land by himself?”

“Yes. Sir Geko, the knight of Lord Essandra, confirmed it. Lord Essandra has given her permission for the knight to enter the dungeon by himself.”

“Huh! That knight, was it Eugene? He’s from Maren? Is such a method of committing suicide gaining popularity in Maren nowadays?”

“Hahaha…”

The territorial lords and knight chuckled after hearing Edrique’s joke. Although Edrique could not succeed his father, he was quite popular because he was pleasant, humorous, and took good care of his subordinates.

Even though he was a little credulous, he was always attentive to the opinions of his subordinates. Moreover, he was quite good at maintaining a neutral position between Essandra and Gabriel. In the end, it was obvious that he would stand to benefit regardless of who succeeded the title of marquis.

“Sister Essandra would not do something like this without a reason. Anyways, I don’t have a choice but to allow it…”

He had no justification to refuse, but something felt off about the matter. He knew his older sister to be a little whimsical and impulsive at times, but she would never play a joke like this.

“My lord, I might have an explanation.”

“An explanation?”

One of the nobles spoke up.

“That knight, Jan Eugene. Maybe he is truly a madman.”

“…?”

Everyone looked rather confused. 

The nobleman hurriedly continued. “Take a look at all of his achievements. How could you possibly believe that a single man is capable of achieving all those things in such a short period of time? I do not think it’s possible. Would you not agree?”

“Hmm. That is true.”

“It didn’t make sense to me either.”

“So you all agree, right? But on the contrary, it would be rather comical even if all of his achievements are true. Could a sane person try to do such things?”

“…!”

The surrounding nobles and knights seemed to be surprised after hearing a plausible theory. The nobleman became excited and continued laying down his hypothesis. “But Lord Essandra is famous for having a good eye for people, right? She must have seen through the essence of the knight.”

“T-the essence?”

“Ah! Regardless of whether his achievements are true or not, it’s clear that very soon, this knight will drive himself to death. That is why Lord Essandra sent him to our territory under the pretext of a dungeon subjugation.”

“Don’t tell me…!?”

“Yes. If that knight gets himself killed while attempting to complete another impossible feat, wouldn’t Lord Essandra use it as an excuse to pressure us? Maybe the knight has been acting recklessly so far because he’s riddled with an incurable disease. Since he is going to die anyway, why not go out with a bang?”

“…!”

The eyes of the gathered nobles and knights widened with wonder as they turned to Edrique. Edrique remained silent for a moment with a serious expression before finally opening his lips.

“You… have a point!”

***

“Wow! This place feels so different from all the other places we’ve been to. The humans here seem to be much more relaxed and freer. It must be because the land is ruled by higher-ranking nobles.”

“Kiek!? Sir, sir! Do you see the fortress on that mountain over there!? We could probably keep an eye on everything if we stationed some familiars in it. We have to build something like that! Right? Right? Hmm?”

“But that racy lady, hmm? No matter how much I think about it, it seemed like she had feelings for you, sir. Ha!? H-have you already fallen for her? Is that it? Really? I-is that the truth!? No! No! Kieeeekkk!”

Mirian circled around Eugene while chatting restlessly. It seemed she was quite excited to be alone with Eugene after a long time. She was like a fish in water.

‘Well, I guess she is the spirit of water.’

“You’re giving me a headache, so shut up.”

“Hmph! You changed, sir. Remember? In the past, when it was just the two of us. Hmm! You would tell me all about how lonely you were, and how we would rely on each other for thousands of years, and, and entice me with sweet, sugary words. Hmm? And now, you... Kiek!”

The spirit tried her best at manipulation and fabrication, but Eugene simply snatched her out of the air before tightly tying her to Silion’s neck with the horse’s mane. However, as the spirit of water, she simply turned herself into liquid to free herself before climbing onto Eugene’s shoulder.

“Don’t make things up and stay still. There’s a person coming this way.”

“Yeap.”

Three horses were approaching Eugene at the end of the small trail. It was evident at first glance that the three figures were nobles or knights serving Edrique. As such, Eugene pulled on Silion’s rein.

“Whoa! Would you be Sir Jan Eugene?”

“That’s right. And who might you sirs be?”

“I am Megber, a knight serving under Lord Edrique. These are…”

“Theodora of Vangel. Nice to meet you, Sir Eugene.”

“Farminon Joice. A loyal vassal of Lord Edrique. It is an honor to meet a knight with such a brilliant reputation on the peninsula.”

The nobles of Edrique greeted Eugene with utmost politeness.

‘Why are they so courteous?’

It was a fait accompli that Eugene would meet with Edrique’s people. However, he was planning to visit them in person. He had not expected them to find him first and greet him with such respect since he would be no different from an uninvited guest from Edrique’s perspective.

‘Anyways, this is rather good.’

He needed manpower to dismantle the corpses of the monsters and transport the gained materials. Eugene had been planning on asking for support from Edrique.

Since Essandra would pay for the labor costs, Edrique would have no reason to refuse. Of course, Eugene had prepared a plan in case of a refusal as well.

“It is good to meet all of you sirs. I never expected to receive such a warm welcome. I am overjoyed and honored. Could I ask what brought all of you sirs here?”

Eugene’s philosophy was to return as much as he received. As such, he spoke generously and even gave a rare smile. But since his smiles were quite scarce, he looked quite awkward. Although his lips were pointing upwards, his eyes were like those belonging to a killer before a slaughter.

The smile was sufficient to affirm the conviction of the three knights. They had been ordered to watch and report Eugene’s every move.

‘Such a frightening smile. Is he warning us that he would go berserk if we came here without a proper reason?’

‘He is even more merciless and terrifying than I initially imagined.’

“Ah. Hahaha. Well, Lord Edrique wanted to express his desire to invite you, sir.”

“The lord admires all of your wonderful achievements, Sir Eugene. Lord Edrique will be very disappointed if you go your way without visiting, so I would really appreciate it if you could spare the time, Sir Eugene.”

The three nobles were desperate not to offend this madman. If he became offended and suddenly started a rampage, they would have no choice but to beat, kill, or detain him.

Regardless of the outcome, it would give Essandra the opportunity to intervene. It didn’t matter to them whether he got himself killed in a dungeon, but they could not allow him to cause any accidents in the Edrique territory.

‘We must not offend him!’

“Haha… What do you think, Sir Eugene?”

Although Eugene felt like something was strange about the way they laughed, he attempted to smile even brighter since he wanted something from Edrique as well.

“It would be an honor. Haha. Then I will have to go pay my respects. Hahaha.”

“Thank you, sir. Hahaha…”

“I should be the one to show my gratitude. Haha.”

“Haha…”

‘Are these men in their right minds?’

‘Unbelievable! He’s trying not to lose even at things like this.’

‘He’s the real deal! This knight is truly a madman!’

The three knights and Eugene fell deeper into their delusions while they continued to laugh as if they were competing with each other.

Mirian muttered while observing the rather tense, comical scene play out with an expression of contempt. “Have they all gone insane? What the hell are they laughing about?”

***

The three men accompanied Eugene to their castle before rushing to Edrique.

“Oh, welcome back. So, what kind of a person is he?”

“This is bad, my lord! He’s even crazier than we thought.”

“What?”

Edrique expressed his shock, and Megber continued with his report.

“All of the areas he declared as his territory were quite chaotic, right? I asked him how he managed to clear and occupy the areas, and he told me that he killed everyone that stood in his way. He said that without blinking an eye.”

“A-and?”

“I asked him what kinds of tactics he employed, and how he suppressed the fierce resistance since he was mostly fighting against criminals and mercenaries.”

“His response?”

“Apparently, he just charged alongside a knight named Galfredik. Moreover, they recaptured the silver mine with only the two of them. They climbed a mountain on a stormy night.”

“Hmm!”

“My lord! Such insanity could not be called courageous acts of a knight. He is simply out of his mind. That man is eagerly chasing after his own death.”

“Perhaps he was bluffing?” Edrique asked with disbelief. 

Megber responded with a sigh. “Phew! It’s still problematic even if he was bluffing. Why else would he have told us such lies then? It’s obviously because he wanted to convey his intentions – that he could cause utter chaos if he feels offended, or even whenever he wants.”

“Keugh! What an arrogant man!”

Although it was impossible for Edrique to succeed his father, how could a knight dare to make such threats to a direct descendant of a marquis?

Edrique’s shoulders trembled. His pride was hurt.

“My lord, you must not become aggravated. If that arrogant, insane knight causes trouble in the castle, you will fully bear the responsibility.”

“That is correct. That must be why Lord Essandra sent him our way.”

Edrique’s expression hardened after hearing the advice of the two nobles.

“Ugh!”

He had been done in by his sister Essandra.

The knight wasn’t simply crazy. He was a real madman who wasn’t afraid of death. Moreover, arrogance seeped right from his very bones and soul.

However, he was a madman that Edrique could not touch. Essandra had sent a ticking bomb to him.

“Then what should we do? Would it not be better to immediately send him to the dungeon?”

“Since we have already invited him, you must see him, even if it is for a little while. We must hold a banquet and treat him well.”

“But no alcohol. You never know what he might do under the influence.”

“Hmm…”

Edrique fell into thought with a frown, then soon raised his head with determination.

“We will hold a banquet, but exclude all the sirs with short tempers. And we will try to agree to whatever he wants, as much as possible. Prepare some silver and only one or two glasses of alcohol. Avoid any stimulating food as well. Make sure the servants and maids at the banquet are soft-spoken and pleasant.”

“Yes, my lord!”

***

‘There’s something wrong…’

Eugene was rather puzzled.

Everyone he encountered in the castle, regardless of age, gender, and status, was clearly shocked to see him. Moreover, they smiled awkwardly at him. Although the people didn’t seem to have bad intentions, it was as if they were sinners trying to read the atmosphere.

‘Is it because Lord Essandra sent me?’

They would surely know that Essandra was a powerful contender for the marquisate. As such, Eugene assumed that their awkwardness and careful attitude stemmed from the fact that he was hired by Essandra.

“His Excellency, Lord Edrique.”

Edrique entered the room along with a few nobles. Eugene took off his helmet and placed it by his side before bowing. “I am Jan of the Eugene family. It is an honor to finally meet a direct descendant of the Archivold Marquisate, Lord Edrique.”

“…!”

Edrique’s eyes widened with surprise after seeing Eugene. He naturally thought that the knight would look like a real maniac, but on the contrary, Eugene was neat and even handsome.

‘Moreover… he is much too young! A knight like this achieved such impossible feats in only a month or two?’

Edrique’s doubts and concerns only grew, and he reaffirmed his determination. No matter what, he would not aggravate the knight!

“Ehem! Nice to meet you, Sir Eugene. Welcome to my castle! Hahaha!”

“…!?”

Edrique spoke before approaching Eugene without hesitation. He even gave Eugene a light embrace, as if he were greeting his own brother. Eugene was slightly taken aback by Edrique’s attitude.

“I have heard endlessly about your outstanding skills and amazing achievements on the peninsula, sir. I heard you even killed a wyvern at the ruin belonging to Baron Beogalan, right? Truly amazing!”

“I was quite lucky. Lord Beogalan’s support was of great help as well.”

To tell the truth, Beogalan had dispatched a knight and mercenaries to harm him, but they had ultimately contributed to the killing of the wyvern. None of Eugene’s troops had been sacrificed because they had acted as meatshields by rushing in. As such, Eugene purposely credited Baron Beogalan with the achievement as well.

If a direct descendant of the marquisate gave a good evaluation of the baron, and if the baron found out that it was due to Eugene’s words, it would solidify Eugene’s relationship with Baron Beogalan. Since the two of them were neighbors, it was better to maintain a harmonious relationship.

However, Edrique understood Eugene’s words in a completely different manner.

‘This man dares!? Is he threatening to create trouble if I don’t support him like Baron Beogalan did?’

How could such a beautiful, elegant-looking man make such a dishonest and devious threat!?