CH 250

“I-I lost...”

“Good match, sir.”

“It was truly an honor for me to face Your Majesty’s blade,” The knight from the Kingdom of Kabala responded politely with an emotional look. He was greatly moved that a figure as legendary as the King of Maren was treating him kindly. The knight was both excited and pressured before the match started, as he had seen just how the king demolished the knights he had faced yesterday. Those knights had their arms ripped out by a spear and their legs were crushed as well. The knight had been scared at the possibility of ending up the same as those knights, but he also had the desire to make a name for himself.

Unfortunately, he failed to exchange more than ten blows with the king before losing the battle. However, he did not suffer any serious injuries, though his helmet was blown away, and he was tossed to the ground. In addition, the King of Maren acted extremely honorable by personally helping him up from the ground and wishing him well. The knight had been roaming the world for the past few years after being born into a humble family, and he couldn’t help but be greatly moved by the King of Maren’s actions.

“Sir Telo! That was amazing!”

“I always knew how great His Majesty was, but that knight was great as well!”

“Sir Telo!”

He was eliminated in the quarterfinals, but he had still achieved a great feat, as he had defeated several opponents to get here. The crowd generously cheered on the defeated knight. Moreover, judging by the glimmer in the eyes of several nobles, it appeared that the knight would finally conclude his wandering life and become an official, proud territorial knight.

“Your Majesty.”

“Hmm?”

Princess Lilisain, Madrica, and Edmund approached Eugene when he returned after winning. The three wore curious looks.

“Have you known that knight for a long time?” they asked.

“I saw him for the first time today,” Eugene responded.

“Oh, is that so? We just couldn’t help but notice that you seemed to be taking care of him, unlike any of your previous opponents. So, we assumed you were acquainted with him.”

“Hmm. Come to think of it, Sir Balboa from before also avoided any serious injuries. He only suffered a broken arm.”

Madrica and Edmund commented while sharing a gaze, and Eugene resolved their curiosity with a grin. “Those two didn’t pick a fight with me, while the others just didn’t stop talking nonsense.”

“Ah…”

“I-I see”

To think that it was so simple… It was a rather petty reason for someone as noble and high-status as the king, but the knights immediately came to an understanding. Come to think of it, Eugene had always been like that.

“Besides, it would have been troublesome if something happened to them, as they will be coming to Maren, right?” Eugene said.

“What? That means…” Madrica and Edmund quickly turned their gazes to the knight returning to his spot. They could see that five or six nobles were approaching the knight, as he had displayed outstanding skills even though he had lost. Among the nobles was a person the two were very familiar with. It was Trevik, the conscription officer and the personnel officer of the dukedom. The knight didn’t even spare a single glance at the other nobles and greeted Trevik after seeing the emblem of Maren embroidered on the chest of Trevik’s shirt. Afterward, the two men put their arms around each other’s shoulders and headed toward the gathering place of several knights, including Balboa, with large grins. The nobles who had come to recruit him were left behind like dogs chasing after chickens.

“He will be your colleague from now on, so take good care of him, Sir Madrica,” Eugene said.

Madrica responded, “Please leave it to me. On behalf of Your Majesty, I shall make sure that your brilliance as the symbol of chivalry and the reflection of honor is maintained within Maren’s—”

Eugene interrupted him, “Come on, let’s get some lunch.”

He left Madrica immediately upon sensing the oncoming of an unnecessarily long speech, then headed into his tent. The semifinals, which could be called the main event of the competition, would start in the afternoon. As such, there was some time to have lunch and check one’s condition before then. The spectators created a ruckus as they left the stadium to the nearby pubs and restaurants to fill their stomachs.

A group of guards quickly cut through the crowd and approached Eugene’s tent.

The captain of the guards called out, “Your Majesty. Something has arrived for you.”

“Hmm?” Eugene received an object from the guard captain. It seemed that they had rushed over, judging by the slight flush on the man’s cheeks.

It was a sealed letter, and the red seal was in the form of a roaring dragon.

‘It’s Delmondo.’

Eugene confirmed that it was the seal he gave Delmondo before he departed for the empire. After removing the seal, he checked its contents, and Eugene read the entire letter with a blank face before raising his head.

While observing the nobles heading to their respective accommodations or to the nearby pubs in pairs or small groups, he spoke in a low voice, “Sir Edmund, Sir Madrica. Bring the Governor and the members of the parliament.”

“As you wish, Your Majesty,” the two knights immediately answered before departing. They quickly realized the significance of the situation.

Princess Lilisain moved closer to Eugene before asking, “With all due respect, I’m curious as to what is going on.”

Eugene answered, “Things have begun in earnest.”

“Things?” Princess Lilisain asked.

“Monsters have started to mobilize in various parts of the kingdoms bordering the Roman Empire,” Eugene explained.

“Mobilized? The monsters are mobilizing?” Princess Lilisain asked. To mobilize meant to raise a military force. It was an awkward, unbefitting word used to describe the actions of monsters. But since Princess Lilisain was bright, she quickly came to a realization.

“Perhaps the entrances located in the hearts of evil lands have opened…” said Princess Lilisain.

“We should assume that’s true, though I don’t think Delmondo knew that when he wrote his report,” Eugene responded. It had been quite a while since Delmondo, a former official of the empire, was dispatched to a large city of the Roman Empire on Eugene’s orders. Delmondo had disguised himself as a wealthy noble with a tight relationship with the royal family of Brantia, and his task was to establish a base in the port city of the empire and to collect information. The highlighted information sent in his first report was regarding the ‘mobilization of monsters.’

Of course, Eugene didn’t really care whether other countries would get trampled by monsters or not. There was no need for him to care. Nevertheless, Eugene called for the governor and the parliament because of this very issue.

‘How can I turn this into an opportunity and maximize my gains?’

A mysterious smile appeared on Eugene’s lips as he watched the foreign nobles waddling away with arrogance.

***

“What? Is that really true?”

“It’s from my territory administrator. Take a look, everyone.”

Eugene held out Delmondo’s report to the governor. He had no need to keep it a secret. The governor and the members of the parliament read the report one by one, then took on expressions of disbelief.

“This is a big deal. However, the situation of the other kingdoms had nothing to do with us, right?”

“That’s right. It’s not like they don’t have their own troops.”

Most responded in ways expected of merchants. It was clearly a tragedy that the number of monsters had grown to the extent of using the word ‘mobilize.’ However, the tragedy belonged to those residing in the affected lands. It really had nothing much to do with Maren, which was located far, far away from those places. At best, Maren could dispatch some mercenaries and sell supplies, but it wasn’t very realistic, considering the distance to the affected countries and the existence of large merchant associations closer to those countries.

‘Hmm. It seems like it’s about time I revealed the truth.’

Eugene sensed that the time had come. He looked around at the governor and the parliament before speaking, “Governor, and many sirs. I’m sure all of you know that I have eradicated hundreds of roamers while I toured the dukedom, right?”

“Of course. We are always grateful for your generosity in trying to keep the peace and stability of the dukedom, and we are also sorry that we couldn’t offer much help.”

Eugene was certain they were more thankful for the increased numbers of mana stones and by-products, but he nodded anyway.

“It’s nothing. Anyway, there was something I didn’t mention at the time because it was only a gut feeling,” Eugene continued.

“What? What do you mean by that…?”

Eugene explained, “The increased number of monsters wasn’t a natural phenomenon. No matter how much I looked at it, someone had to have intervened and artificially created that phenomenon.”

“What?!” The governor and the parliament took on shocked, serious expressions.

Eugene turned to the side, “I know you won’t doubt what I say, but it’s always better to receive a second opinion. Princess Lilisain.”

“Yes, please give me your orders,” Princess Lilisain stepped forward and responded. The governor and the parliament felt slightly nervous to see Princess Lilisain, knowing that she had defeated a number of representative knights from various regions in a row.

“As you all know, the knights of Eland are veterans when it comes to hunting monsters. The words of the princess who represents the knights of Eland should be credible. Give us your testimony regarding the number of monsters we previously hunted and their actions as well,” Eugene asked.

“Yes. First of all, the number of monsters that His Majesty and the knights of Eland killed—”

The expressions of the governor and the members of the parliament gradually stiffened as Princess Lilisain continued with her testimony. There was a significant difference between roughly knowing a story and hearing the realistic testimony of someone who directly hunted the monsters.

“…So, it’s sufficient to conclude that the movements and behaviors of the monsters were abnormal. Moreover, the residents of each village testified that the number of monsters appeared to have increased by at least twofold, up to four times compared to the previous years,” Princess Lilisain concluded.

“A-all of them?”

Eugene answered, “That’s right. All the territories and villages we passed by. All of them.”

“…” The expression of the governor and the members of parliament became completely stiff after hearing Eugene’s answer. Silence descended upon the meeting.

Eugene looked around before continuing, “Now, do you understand? The same situation that riddled the territories of our dukedom not long ago is being reproduced in the kingdoms located near the empire. Moreover, they are facing an even bigger problem, as monsters that have never seen before have begun to appear as well.”

Indeed, Delmondo’s report contained a statement explaining that unknown breeds of monsters had begun to appear as well—monsters unknown to Delmondo, the people in the afflicted area, and the governor and the members of the parliament.

However, Eugene had a rough idea of their identities.

‘They must be from the Demon World.’

Demonic creatures and demons—Eugene was certain that a portion of them had broken through the passage connecting the hearts of the evil lands to the Demon World.

“Your Majesty, with all due respect…” After contemplating for a while, the governor hesitantly said, “I understand that the report sent by Your Majesty’s administrator is true and that someone has been artificially evolving and releasing monsters. Judging from your words, I think you are suggesting that Your Majesty and Maren can benefit from this situation. Am I correct?”

The governor was quick-witted. It was exactly what Eugene had expected from the man who had taken the leap of faith to gift him expensive plate armor back then when he was still a knight with no fame and name.

Eugene nodded. “It is just as you say, Governor. I see this as a huge opportunity. In fact, it’s an even bigger opportunity than my victory in the competition.”

“…!!!”

A light glimmered in the eyes of the governor and the members of the parliament. The founding ceremony wasn’t the end by any means. Although everyone pretended to congratulate and celebrate Maren’s founding, international relations were complicated. A brother today could well become tomorrow’s enemy. Moreover, many forces and countries were targeting Maren, as they were known for their extreme wealth. As such, there was a need to continuously display an overwhelming presence to suppress and subdue such forces. Such was the reason why Maren’s leaders greatly encouraged Eugene’s participation in the knight competition since there was no greater demonstration of force than for Maren’s King to defeat the strong warriors of each country in a competition held by Maren.

But now, the king was guaranteeing an even greater opportunity.

“I think that the kingdoms will never be able to take care of this matter, no matter how many excellent knights and experienced mercenaries they have,” Eugene said.

“With all due respect, I would like to know the reason, Your Majesty.”

Eugene explained, “It’s because the areas where the monsters are popping up should be near a body of water responsible for supplying water to a large area.”

“…?!”

Everyone seemed puzzled and surprised by Eugene’s statement.

“We should be getting more information soon, but I can assure you. The water source located in some of the areas mentioned in the report should already be contaminated or destroyed. What do you think will happen then?” Eugene asked.

“T-that’s…!”

The governor and the others finally realized what Eugene was trying to say. Their eyes quivered with shock. The issue wasn’t just limited to the increased number of roamers and the appearance of new, dangerous monsters. The destruction of a water source meant that the surrounding areas would no longer be hospitable to life.

It was a true catastrophe.

What could they possibly do even if they hired knights and mercenaries?

“By the way, sirs, the brave knights of Eland and I had experienced this crisis before, and we fought all the way to overcome it. I believe everyone knows what this means,” Eugene added.

“Ah!”

Indeed…

According to the report, many kingdoms and territories were currently facing a great threat they found difficult to handle. However, Maren had already escaped the crisis before it even began, thanks to Eugene’s efforts. And Eugene was the only person who knew how to overcome it.

“I will call the delegations of the countries right away!”