CH 78

“No! No, you can’t!” Romari screamed.

“Wizard, are you out of your mind? We must burn the cursed undead right away!” 

“Research…I need to research it. Ten days, no, just three days. Please!” She was in a heated debate against the knights.

“Impossible! Even if you are a wizard hired by Sir Eugene, we cannot allow such a thing. Such an evil monster that threatened the marquisate must be burned to ashes immediately.”

“That’s right. Since you are a wizard, you must know that the church banned the resurrection of dead monsters, right?”

“Are you in cahoots with those cursed wizards?”

The atmosphere of the knights started to become quite harsh as the conversation continued.

“Sirs, did you just call Master Romari a black wizard?”

“Sir Galfredik.”

“No, that’s not the case…”

The knights faltered as Galfredik stepped out. Galfredik was Eugene’s right-hand man, and he was incredibly skilled as well. All of the knights found him quite difficult to deal with.

“A black wizard? Me? I swear on my master’s name and on magic that I do not serve the evil mana!” Romari shouted.

“Just as she says. I can guarantee that Master Romari possesses no blemish as a wizard, even though her body is quite lacking,” Galfredik chimed in.

“Right! I have no problems except my body…Wait, no!” Romari started to shout her response, then stopped herself after realizing what Galfredik had said.

“Romari,” Eugene called out. As soon as Romari saw Eugene, she ran forward like a puppy while wiping away her tears. “Sir Eugene, Sir Eugene! Could you please stop those knights?” she asked.

“Because of the undead?” Eugene responded.

“Yes, yes. It has extraordinary value for research. I can’t believe they are planning to burn such a precious thing! Please, if you give it to me, I swear on the name of magic, I will devote my body and my mind fully to…” Romari pleaded.

“If you swear a few more times, it will be the hundredth time,” Eugene interrupted.

“I-I swear! I’m completely serious this time,” Romari brought her staff close to her chest and pleaded with teary eyes.

“Then you were lying before?” Eugene asked.

“No, that’s not what I’m saying…whimper,” Teardrops began to fall from her eyes.

“I feel bad for the raccoon,” Mirian said. It was true. Romari’s clothes and face were caked with dirt from rushing over, and her tears were slowly dripping across her face. However, it wasn’t nearly enough to move Eugene.

After making a few calculations in his head, Eugene spoke. “Hmm. Well, I have the right to dispose of the monster, so I will think about it.” 

“Uwaaah! Thank you! You’ll be blessed, Sir Eugene!” Romari spoke with a smile after wiping away her tears and snot. Eugene turned his gaze away from the wizard and approached the group of knights. They were gazing at him with disapproving expressions.

“Sirs. I will take care of that undead,” Eugene said.

“Ehem! Sir, we do not have the right to prevent you from exercising your rights. However, according to the laws of the church and the kingdom, any undead monsters are to be burnt…” One of the knights started to speak.

“Sir, do you serve Lord Gabriel by chance?” Eugene asked.

“…That’s right.” The knight responded, curious as to why Eugene was asking an unrelated question.

“As I expected. It makes sense since you seem to greatly like the kingdom’s law.” Eugene said.

“...!”

Several knights flinched after hearing Eugene’s words. They were all Gabriel’s knights. It was an open secret that Gabriel had been planning to receive a title from the royal family. But he ended up surrendering unconditionally to Essandra. As such, if the truth of the matter was revealed to the public, Gabriel’s reputation would be damaged even further.

“B-but the church…” One of the knights muttered.

“Who was responsible for the dismissal of the previous marquis? And where is the bishop, who should have taken responsibility?” Eugene retorted.

“…”

The knights promptly closed their mouths. They realized that it was better to not mention the church or the royal family since Essandra had already taken control of the marquisate.

At that time, Essandra and several nobles made their appearance.

“What’s going on?” Essandra asked.

“My lord! You are here just in time. That wizard…” The knights rushed over to Essandra and began to hurriedly tell their stories. The sight was reminiscent of ducklings rushing to their mother.

“Those cowardly bastards,” Galfredik muttered.

“Wait,” Eugene dissuaded Galfredik. 

Essandra frowned after hearing about the current situation from the knights.

“Hmm.”

“My lord. We are justified in our view. Regardless of the circumstance, should we not immediately burn down the remnants of that evil creature?”

“I agree with Sir Daniel’s opinion. Even if we disregard the law of the church and the kingdom, the people of the marquisate will become anxious if we leave it be.”

“What would the other territories and cities of the peninsula say if they knew about this? We must get rid of it as soon as possible.”

The nobles immediately saw the opening and pushed forward while sticking to Essandra’s side. All of them had been quite wary of Eugene recently with his imminent rise to power as Essandra’s closest aide.

“Hmm. All of you certainly have a point,” Essandra said. She stared at Eugene with a difficult expression. It was obvious that the public sentiment would sour if the corpse of an evil, undead, twin-headed ogre was left untouched. If the other territories and cities of the peninsula used the opportunity to their advantage, it would prove quite troublesome for Essandra.

‘What should I do? Ah!’

Eugene slowly opened his lips after thinking of an idea.

“I also agree that it could be quite uneasy to leave the corpse of such a monster alone. However, would you not agree that the purpose of a cow is to taste good, regardless of whether it is black or white?”

“Huh…?” Everyone became puzzled at Eugene’s words.

“Even though it was transformed into an undead by evil magic, wouldn’t things change depending on how it is used?” Eugene continued.

“Sir, what does that mean?” Essandra asked with a frown.

Eugene struggled with internal conflict for a brief moment, then made up his mind before raising his right hand to his chest. “Let me tell you the honest truth. It’s commonly known that only holy knights are able to deal with undead monsters. What do you think is the reason I was able to defeat that undead?” Eugene asked.

“…?” Everyone, including Essandra, tilted their heads with confusion. Eugene took on a reverent posture and slowly spoke while drawing the holy symbol with his hand.

“There is only one explanation…It is because of God’s grace and care.” 

“…!” Everyone fell silent at the sudden confession of faith.

“As such, why don’t we adorn the evil creature in a priest’s uniform? It will be a living testament of the protection and miracles of God.” Eugene continued.

“Ha…” 

Essandra started to react with absurdity, but Eugene quickly drove into the stake even further. “I think it would act as an excellent shield if the bishop ever returned to the peninsula. A miracle took place when the bishop was absent. The church would have nothing to say, right?”

“Ah!”

“Ah…”

Essandra and the nobles flinched, then slowly opened their lips with wonder.

“Wow, how brazen. Sir, even your shamelessness is on the level of the demon king.”

‘T-this is crazy. I heard even our founder never dared to sell out God!’

The wizard and the spirit became at a loss for words after witnessing an Origin Vampire drawing the holy symbol with an amicable smile.

***

“Oh, my. I never thought I would see an undead wearing a surcoat,” Essandra muttered.

“It looks quite decent, does it not?”

“I don’t want to admit it, but it definitely suits it. I’m speechless.” Essandra felt conflicted. The ogre, which possessed two heads and four arms, was adorned in a surcoat with the symbol of the church, similar to a paladin or a holy knight. Moreover, the armor wasn’t half-baked or created in a hurry. Rather, it was a top-notch product that was carefully smelted and put together by the craftsmen of the castle overnight. Essandra’s confusion only deepened because of how well the armor suited the monster.

“It’s not going to start moving, is it?” Essandra asked.

“It won't. The magical tool was destroyed, so it won’t be able to move again. It will only serve as a piece of decoration,” Eugene responded.

“I see. The effect will be great even if it’s only a piece of decor,” Essandra said.

It would become a great sight for anyone to see. Those who were susceptible to religion and superstition would worship the miracle of God with tears, and others would praise the Archivold family for achieving such a ridiculous feat.

‘The noisy church will have nothing to say about it either. Sigh.’

Essandra looked at Eugene with wonder.

“Sir. Of course, you must have never heard this before, but I think you are truly out of your mind,” she said.

“I will take it as a compliment,” Eugene responded.

“Haha. Right, right. But are you really not going with me?” Essandra asked.

“Yes. It is time for me to return to my territory. I must take care of internal matters and get the silver mine running. It will be beneficial for both of us.” Eugene said. Although the silver mine of Mount Nadir belonged to Eugene, thirty percent of the profits would go to the real owner of the land, the Archivold family. It was a natural relationship between lords who were given and recognized by a great noble.

“That’s true. But you will be taking care of the internal politics personally? I find that a little hard to believe,” Essandra asked skeptically. Eugene felt a little sheepish, but he maintained a calm expression as he responded.

“One of my younger cousins is an administrator, and he is quite competent.” 

“Hmm. So you are planning to leave the management of the land to that person? Is he reliable?” Essandra asked.

“Yes. He is trustworthy.”

‘I’ll kill him if he isn’t.’

Eugene looked around at the knights and vassals of the marquisate before continuing. He had already finished preparations for departure.

“And as I told you already, people will be quite discontent if I go with you. They will finally have a chance to show off their loyalty and skills to their lord, so wouldn’t they be disappointed if I joined in as well?” Eugene said.

“Hooh? You’re even being considerate of others? This is quite suspicious. This makes me want to take you with me even more,” Essandra responded.

“It’s a simple misunderstanding,” Eugene said.

“Hahaha. Well, there’s no helping it. Just as you said, sir, the others will become anxious if you earn yourself even more merit. They are all so narrow-minded. Ah, right.” Essandra smacked her lips before looking around. Then, she raised her voice. “Selena! Where is Selena!?”

The servants ran around busily at Essandra’s shouts. Soon, a young knight with short, bobbed hair and average height shuffled towards the group.

“You called for me, my lord?” The newcomer spoke.

“Aunt,” Essandra responded.

“…Yes, aunt.” The knight corrected herself rather unwillingly. A light glimmered in Eugene’s eyes when he saw the girl.

‘So this is…’

Selena was quite good-looking, and her emerald eyes left a big impression. Even though she was only fifteen, she looked quite mature for her age.

“Give your greetings to Sir Eugene,” Essandra said. 

Selena glanced at Eugene before speaking. “Nice to meet you. I am Selena Perin Archivold.” Her tone was very dry. Mirian, who was plopped on Eugene’s shoulder, shouted with flames in her eyes.

“Kieeeek!? What is this? This little wench! She dares to glare at Sir Eugene when she’s nothing more than a large rat dropping? What an ugly, rude little girl!”

‘She’s not that ugly.’

Eugene was becoming well-versed in the human standards of beauty, and he thought that Selena possessed a decent appearance among humans. But that wasn’t important to him at all.

“Jan Eugene,” Eugene said.

“…!” Selena’s eyes turned even sharper when Eugene gave a short, blunt response.

“As expected, she’s a little lacking to become my aide,” Eugene continued.

“W-what did you say?” She responded.

“Galfredik!” But Eugene ignored her and called out after turning his head.

“Did you call for me?”

Galfredik trudged towards Eugene. He had been hanging out with Partec’s group. 

Eugene spoke while pointing to Selena. “From today, she will be your aide.”

“Huh? My aide? So suddenly?” Galfredik responded with wide eyes.

“She is Lord Gabriel’s daughter. I think you will need to take care of her properly,” Eugene explained.

“Please take good care of my niece, Sir Galfredik.” Essandra chimed in with a smile. 

Galfredik scratched his head with an awkward expression. “Well, I don’t really need an aide, but since both of you are insistent… I guess there’s no other choice.”

Selena was at a loss for words. In an instant, she had gone from a direct descendant of a great noble family to a simple, unwanted piece of baggage. But she was an intelligent girl, and she instantly realized why she was being sold to these insidious knights.

‘If it’s for my father…’

From today, she would have to endure any humiliation as a hostage. She had to do this if she wanted her father, Gabriel, to live.

‘However!’

Selena secretly clenched her teeth and raised her head.

“My name is Selena Perin Archivold. Sir Galfredik, right? With all due respect, I would like to experience the skills of the person who will become my master from today. Would you give me your permission?”

Her appearance was rather gender-neutral and she had deliberately lowered her tone, but Galfredik immediately noticed that she was a woman. 

He responded while grinning. “Are you asking for a bout with me?”

“It’s a relief that the one I will serve as my master is quick-witted,” she said.

“Bring it on. I will count to three. Three, two…” Galfredik responded before immediately counting down. Selena was born with great talent and had been trained ever since she was young by the knights of the castle. Despite the sudden turn of events, she quickly unsheathed her longsword and took a posture.

“…one.”

Whoosh! Clang! Thuck! 

“Keugh!” Selena’s throat rested in Galfredik’s right hand even before her blade, which had been knocked aside by his gauntlet, hit the ground. The battle was over in less than a second.

“Keugh! Kuwagh!”

Selena struggled with all her might as she gasped for air. But Galfredik stood immobile like a stone statue and slowly raised her into the air. Their gazes met.

“Do you know how my master often punished me when I was still an aide?” Galfredik asked.

“Keugh! Kuagh!”

“It was to strip me naked and to have me train with a wooden sword. If you are a knight, you should already know, right? Blades do not discriminate based on gender or age. Rather, it is even crueler to the weak,” Galfredik stated.

“…!”

“If you look at me or Sir Eugene with those eyes one more time, I will strip you naked for an entire month. I swear it on my honor,” he continued.

Selena fainted. But it was because she failed to overcome the frightening fear contained in Galfredik’s reddish eyes, rather than the lack of oxygen.

“H-hey, Sir Galfredik. You aren’t really going to strip her naked, are you?” Essandra asked anxiously. As long as Selena was Galfredik’s aide, he would have full control over the young girl’s disposition.

“My lord. With all due respect, what kind of a man do you take me to be…?” Galfredik said.

“Right? Phew, you had me worried,” Essandra responded.

“I am Rowan of Galfredik. I am a man of my word, and I definitely keep my promises,” he continued.

“…”

Essandra became convinced that Galfredik was a man of his word as she watched him place her niece over his broad shoulder with a smile. It wasn’t only Eugene who was insane, but also his most-trusted knight as well.