Chapter 37

Chapter 37

As magic had its own properties, so too were there objects with the power of the origin from primordial times. Wizards speculated that each attribute had primordial stones, such as water, fire, wind, lightning, and ice. However, only five stones would ever be found, and even those would not appear until later.

Primordial stones were a true treasure to the wizards: they could raise the power of a 1st Circle spell, like Fire Arrow or Ice Arrow, to that of 3rd Circle spell, such as Fire Lance or Ice Spear. But did that make it only valuable to wizards? Not exactly. In Joshua's previous life, a knight achieved some truly formidable feats using the power of the primordial stone.

‘The Knight of Red Flame, Ulabis.’ Joshua muttered to himself as he recalled the man’s identity.

One swing of his sword could split the ground in two. A sea of fire erupted from the thrust of his sword and engulfed the world in relentless flames. An incarnation of battle, sweeping through his enemies like a wildfire. While he was truly powerful, he was known to be intimidating for another reason.

‘Thran, the only principality on the continent, will eventually gain independence from the Swallow Empire and become a sovereign kingdom. The person who moves mountains to make this happen was the Knight of the Red Flame, Ulabis.’

The independence of the Thran Principality would shatter the status quo between the continent's three major, seven average, and two minor powers.

No matter how outstanding an individual was, it was impossible to achieve such a tremendous feat against a major power like the Swallow Empire alone. As such, the rating of Ulabis in the people’s hearts was elevated to an unprecedented level.

‘Ulabis ascended as the first king of the Thran Kingdom, then surpassed the Twelve Superhumans and occupied the first seat of the Nine Stars.’

He was the ideal figure of the Absolute: intelligent, skillful, and utterly undefeatable. Even as a child, Ulabis's talent for swordsmanship was too great for a mere kingdom—it was extraordinary even in an empire, befitting one of the strongest of the Nine Absolutes on the continent.

He was called a "magic swordsman" and shook his head at the knights who claimed such a thing was impossible. Many wondered whether he was the first and only superhuman of his kind; but when his secret was revealed, everyone concluded that the whole "magic swordsman" story was a lie.

It turned out, Ulabis was using the red primordial stone, the primordial stone infused with the fire attribute.

"The attribute is not important," Joshua muttered and a faint smile appeared on his lips.

They were dubbed "primordial stones" because they collected the primordial power of the beginning; these artifacts had accumulated power over an incomprehensible amount of time, far from human hands. One couldn't even begin to imagine the power that those stones were hiding.

"Halt!" A roaring from the front of the expedition roused him from his thoughts.

Before him lay a small castle, obviously designed with sheer practicality in mind: the lord's castle in the Locke Territory, which bordered the Black Monster Forest.

"Salute the Duke!" At the cry of a muscular, middle-aged knight, the Locke soldiers saluted, chins raised.

"Rise!" Duke Agnus dismounted his horse and approached the knight.

"It's been a while, Roben."

"Yes, Duke," Roben answered.

Duke Agnus smiled softly.

"I always feel sorry for everyone here... especially you. Even after retirement, you're still suffering in this barren land." Duke Agnus displayed a sincere expression of regret.

The middle-aged knight, or rather, the old-looking knight, Roben had served the Duke for decades as a senior knight in the Clover Knight Order, one of the seven knight orders under the direct command of the Duke. He had only retired just earlier. The Duke particularly liked him for his dedication.

"I am honored to be able to assist Your Grace with my humble efforts," Roben said with a friendly smile compatible with his age. "Even though I am old now and my strength is slowly leaving my body, my heart is always with the glorious Duke. Moreover, all I wanted for the rest of my life was to settle with my family. I am happy, Duke."

Despite Roben’s reply, Duke Agnus's expression tightened. The Duke knew of the old knight’s wish and that he could fulfill that wish, but he also knew that life would never be smooth sailing. And that was because of the enormous middle-aged man who just appeared and suddenly pushed Roben aside.

"I greet the Duke!"

"This—" Roben made an embarrassed face.

"Roben, have you lost your tact as you grow old? If the Duke arrived, you should have called me first!" n0VelUSb.c0M

"That—" Roben was about to say something but shut his mouth. He hadn't had any time to catch his breath while preparing himself for the expedition into the Black Forest, but he couldn't offer such excuses in front of the Duke.

"... I'm sorry, my lord." Roben quietly lowered his head.

"This is why you have to step down when you get older! And to think that you mentioned wanting to take responsibility for the security in the estate with that kind of thinking..."

Roben's face flushed beet red. It was nothing more than the humiliation that he had been facing daily. However, he found it difficult to endure, especially in front of his most respected Duke.

“Argh. Tsk tsk.” The middle-aged man clicked his tongue, waiting for the others to back him up. He did not care if the venerable knight felt humiliated or not. After a few seconds of silence, the latter ducked his head and turned away.

"Ahem... It's been a while since I last saw you, my Duke. I apologize for this rather unfortunate greeting, I was too busy preparing for dinner. It pains me, but it's my fault for managing the staff poorly. Please punish me, Your Grace."

"No need," said Duke Agnus, straight-faced. "...Although I must say, you seem to have gained weight since we last met, Vig."

As the Duke had noted, Vig’s flesh swayed with each movement, and buckets of sweat poured down his body like broth—a distinctly uncomfortable sight for the knights. The more perceptive vassals noticed the discomfort in Duke Agnus's words, yet the man named Vig burst out laughing like a pig. It seemed as if he didn't notice their judgmental gazes at all.

“Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! I'm sorry—but isn't this all thanks to the Duke's special attention?" Vig rubbed his hands together as he spoke. "I was deeply moved when I heard Your Grace would be coming to solve the problems of this humble estate within a month."

Roben, the only man with equal authority to Vig, simply remained silent. This ponderous, bloated, piggy man was the lord of the Locke estate, Viscount Vig Beck Stek. Viscount Vig was related to Vanessa, the current lady of the Agnus family; when Vanessa had gotten married to the Duke of Agnus, Viscount Vig had come here with her. To put it bluntly, he was a low-ranked noble riding on the Imperial bloodline.

Duke Agnus opened his mouth to say something but instead sighed and turned to a girl standing next to Viscount Vig.

"—Anna, how are you?"

"I greet the Duke." The girl in question had brown hair and light freckles, a common appearance she shared with her father. She couldn't be compared to Charles or Iceline, but her beauty stood out in its own way—pure white skin, a pretty face, and fine features. This was Anna, the only daughter of Viscount Vig.

Just as the Duke’s attention was on Anna, Viscount Vig was looking around and a young man caught his eyes.

"Huh? Is that... Young Master Babel is also here!" The Viscount approached Babel with an ever-so-welcoming expression.

"It has been a while, Uncle."

"You have grown taller, Young Master Babel! This makes me so happy and emotional. Hahahahaha."

Watching Viscount Vig’s reaction, Babel smiled faintly.

Perhaps others would have pointed at Viscount Vig and criticized him for being a lazy lord with full pockets, and someone only preoccupied with fulfilling his own desires, but to Babel, he was at least a kind relative.

"You've become so powerful that even I, who knows little of swords, can feel it!" Viscount Vig quivered. "I wonder if another Master will be born in the Empire soon... Hahahahaha."

Viscount Vig then tilted his head.

"And who might this be...?" Only then did he notice Joshua standing with a blank expression beside his father. The presence of this young child stood out among the hundred knights and high-class mages.

"This is Young Master Joshua, Viscount Vig." Chiffon stepped forward to answer.

"Ah! Long time no see, Sir Chiff—uh... Young Master Joshua...?"

"The Duke's second son."

Naturally, Viscount Vig's expression was incredulous. Rumors abounded of Joshua's unheard-of talent, but it had only been a short time since he had gained influence—he'd changed so much, one might think he was someone else entirely. The remote Locke estate received information at a slow trickle.

"I see, I see! I must have had my eyes and ears shut for a long time, haha. When did Sister Vanessa give birth to a son again?"

"He's not a son of Lady Vanessa." Chiffon shook his head.

Viscount Vig felt like a bucket of ice water was dumped on his head.

"Did the Duke take a concubine?"

The Duke showed no intention of answering his question, and neither did anyone else. Even with his thick skull, Viscount Vig could notice that he had broached a sensitive topic.

"Oh, I hope you can forgive me... I was just surprised by the sudden revelation. I never knew the Duke would take a concubine, but I don't mean it as a bad thing! It's only natural for a hero to take in a second or third wife."

Viscount Vig shot glances at Chiffon, but the knight refused to meet his eyes.

"Well then, which prestige family lineage does the Young Master come from?"

"Unfortunately, it's not a noble family."

"What do you mean?"

This time, Chiffon kept his mouth shut. "Commoner, and a lowly maid," rose in his throat, but he would rather not offend his master. He had already answered enough and Viscount Vig ought to be able to understand it on his own.

Just as he predicted, contempt stained the Viscount's demeanor.

"Dirty bastard," Viscount Vig muttered, studiously adverting his eyes as though he had seen something disgusting.

But the knights' sharp senses could hear him clearly.