Episode 65
“You too will fall miserably! Macline!”
Soto Sylvan’s wives and daughters, who were cursing in evil voices, gave him a small amount of property and kicked him out of the estate.
How noble women, who had lived their entire lives without a drop of water on their hands, would live in the future after losing their husbands and fathers was not a consideration.
All they did was inform the residents of Sylvan Castle, newly incorporated into the territory, of the appearance of a new ruler, calm the public sentiment, and prepare for the war that would follow.
However, just a week after taking over Sylvan, a magical communication came from a completely different side than what Logan had expected.
“Count Bipros?”
It was a communication from an unexpected place, and its contents were effectively a warning.
Of course, it was too late.
[Silvan and Ferretta McLane stop fighting. As the lord of the southwest, I will mediate the war.]
“How dare you tell me, since when did they say they were the lords of the southwest?”
Padrick blushed and was angry, but reality was reality.
McLane’s vassals responded to the count’s communication, appeasing the angry head of the family.
[Silvan has already fallen into McLane’s hands and Viscount Soto Sylvan has died. It was a justifiable counterattack against intimidation, and McLane has no intention of escalating the war any further than this.]
Is it because they did not anticipate the outcome of the war between McLane and Sylvan, which ended in an instant?
The count’s reply came a few days later.
[The Count’s envoy will visit McLane and Ferretta and receive a response that there will be no further escalation of war. And I will tell you the will of the Count Bypros.]
“The will of the Count?”
“It’s a little uncomfortable, but seeing as they didn’t mention Sylvan, wouldn’t it be an acknowledgment of our right to occupy it?”
“Well, it’s a little different than I expected, but it seems like it worked out the way you wanted in the end, Logan.”
“Except Ferretta is still quiet.”
“Is there anything special about the current situation?”
“Perhaps in Tethron Castle….”
“Because Clayton is here, even if something happens, we will be able to endure.”
“That’s right. We can endure it…”
The war with Sylvan ended easily, but that was because McLane did not look back and mobilized his maximum strength.
I hid a card in Tesron that I didn’t want to show to the outside world yet.
However, managing and supervising the three castles was as difficult as before.
When managing the previous two castles, McLane and Tethron, all you had to do was place most of your troops in Tethron and use Macraine’s castle as a symbol.
However, this could not be done because by occupying Sylvan, let alone Pereta, who was now considered a de facto enemy, they also came into contact with Bipros.
“The center of the territory must be moved to the town, not the main town of McLane. We have already prepared a mansion next to the Magic Tower for the lord’s family to live in.”
“Now summer is approaching and the monster forest has been completely cut down. Even if we leave only the minimum number of troops in McLane, no big trouble will happen.”
“All you have to do is station the knights around Macline Town and be prepared to dispatch them with Tethron and Sylvan at any time. I recommend splitting the soldiers into half and stationing them there.”
“Yeah. That’s a good idea.”
Because change was inevitable and positive, decisions were made quickly.
Moreover, land was not the only thing gained in this war.
“Did you say there were 75 captured knights?”
“Yes. Except for the 42 people who died and the three who escaped, all of them were imprisoned in Sylvan’s prison. There are also eight intermediate knights.”
“Huh. They outnumber our knights. It looks like we’ve definitely gotten stronger.”
“of course.”
To be more precise, it was largely because Soto Sylvan was caught early because he was careless, but no one questioned it.
I just smile along with my master’s smile.
“We can convince everyone to convert, right?”
“Is there anyone who has a special loyalty to Soto Sylvan? Probably everyone.”
I don’t know if there would ever be a knight who truly served the tyrant, but even if there were, there was no need for him.
Moreover, unlike in the past, it was now possible to pay above-average wages, and since they belonged to the same country and the same king, there was sufficient justification.
Is there any knight who wouldn’t like the idea of going under the wing of a stronger lord while maintaining his cause, status, and even money?
Logan was confident that no one would refuse this.
Perhaps the surest way to increase the number of articles is not through selection of talented people, but through territory warfare.
I had such an overwhelming criminal record that I started to think this was nonsense.
‘If Soto Sylvan had moved a little more carefully, there would have been quite a few casualties. There wouldn’t have been many captured knights, and all the enemy soldiers would have died.’
The regular soldiers were volunteers who might become knights in the future, as well as the family, friends, and lovers of the existing territory residents.
Although it is overlooked because more than half of the knights were captured, it was also encouraging that more than a thousand soldiers surrendered alive.
Everything was an achievement that exceeded expectations.
‘It will be difficult to be like this in the future.’
It was normal for war to consume available resources, whether it was people or materials.
Moreover, those who deal with McLane in the future will not respond as easily and simply as Soto Sylvan.
You may consider it luck that you got Tethron once, but you will not see it as luck that you even took over the Viscounty of Sylvan.
In response, Logan consoled himself not to get too drunk on victory.
He also made his father and other vassals around him aware of this fact.
Of course, even so, the smile did not leave the faces of McLane’s leadership for a while.
It was a time when McLane’s leadership continued to stay in Sylvan to manage the captured knights and soldiers in a good atmosphere.
An envoy from Biphros came to Sylvan, not to McLane Castle.
* * *
“The Earl expresses his deepest regret for the annual war at McLane.”
“I feel sorry too. People around me keep messing with McLane, who is still still.”
“…The Count knows very well that there can be misunderstandings between each other. And he tries to mediate before the misunderstandings deepen.”
“Arbitration? The war is over and MacLaine doesn’t want to argue with anyone anymore. There is no need for MacLaine to provoke unless Ferretta starts an argument first.”
“Arbitration was Sylvan’s request. This is how it happened, but…”
“Soto Sylvan must have been quite embarrassed to hear that they were arguing and that they would arbitrate.”
At Padric’s words, everyone in Daejeon, except the envoy, nodded.
However, the envoy’s next words changed the atmosphere of Daejeon in an instant.
“The Count is lamenting that the reason for these frequent quarrels and wars is because he has neglected his duties as a Lord in Bypros and has not promoted the banner of regional integration.”
When suddenly a question arises in everyone’s eyes as to whether this is something that doesn’t even seem to be saying anything.
“So, in celebration of Count Roger Bypros’ fiftieth birthday next month, the Count, as Lord of the Southwestern region, wishes to see the successors of each family. At that event, the future of the Southwestern region will be discussed…”
Boom!
“Bullshit! Send a successor? Discuss the future? Do you think McLane is under Vipros!”
With the fierce attack, the gorgeous armrest that Soto Sylvan had put so much effort into was shattered in an instant, unleashing a massive killing blow.
However, even though the envoy stumbled in a cold sweat, he did not avoid Padric’s eyes.
“Count Bae said that if you don’t want to participate, you don’t have to come. But…”
Gulp.
The envoy swallowed his saliva once, probably because he was nervous, then gritted his teeth and continued speaking.
“You said that Bipros will only help families that recognize Bipros as the Lord of the Southwest, and that anyone who disagrees with that will not be able to discuss the future together.”
“Hmph. The threat is very noble. But it is not possible. McLane gives in to the threat…”
The moment when a huge force was pressing on the envoy, as if reflecting Padric’s anger.
Logan smiled and stepped forward.
“I think it would be fun to go sometime, Dad.”
“…what doesn’t it?”
* * *
“Out of respect for your wishes, I did accept the envoy for now. But…”
Padric blushed as he recalled his last memory from Daejeon.
– Confucius is really smart.
How can you not know that this is a mockery of someone who cannot grasp reality by looking at himself?
“No matter what excuse we make, we can’t enter Bipros with our heads bowed! Even if it means dying, we can’t do that!”
Ugh.
It may not have been intentional, but the powerful surge of force weighed heavily on the air in the office.
“I can’t allow dirt to get in my eyes!”
However, the opponent was Logan.
“Do you want me to spray it now?”
“Huh…”
Padric, who was furious at the sight of Logan talking while grabbing a handful of soil from a flower pot by the window, could only look at his son with a bewildered expression.
“Let’s hear the story. What are you thinking?”
Logan’s answer followed with a light sigh.
“No matter what we do now, we can’t beat Bipros.”
A total of over 300 knights in two knights of the highest rank, fifteen and two knights of the highest rank.
That was just a portion of the announced power of the count family, which had five castles and the vast Plain of Bypros.
That alone was a power difference that could never be won at the moment.
“Furthermore, although the current situation seems to be going well at first glance, it is also precarious in some ways.”
It is completely different from the old McLane, where the distance was far from the center of the kingdom and there was nothing to gain.
The current McLane, which has swallowed up Tethron and Sylvan one after another, will certainly be paying attention to Bipros as well.
If you tried to build up your pride in a yard adjacent to the territory, you could really get trampled.
‘I need time.’
Time to reorganize forces after merging the Knights of Sylvan and overwhelmingly subjugating Peretta in the future.
And it is time for the knights to properly learn the three secret forms of the new sword appropriate to their level of growth and to grow as well.
My father probably didn’t know that either.
but.
“The situation is different from the margraves of other regions. If Bipros tries to take advantage of his status as a lord, all the other fiefdoms will rebel.”
When McLane’s ancestor committed evil four generations ago, the situation in the southwest was very complicated.
Even though Bipros successfully rebelled, it was unable to get rid of its old lord’s bloodline, and the royal family preserved the name by embracing the guilty McLane.
Even after that, unlike the margrave lords of other regions, Bipros was unable to force submission to the nobles of the southwestern region.
How did that happen? No one knew the complex circumstances of the time, but reality was reality.
So, what my father said didn’t make sense.
However, the situation had changed a little without Padric knowing.
“Percival and Lufman, north of Byprus, have long since submitted to Byprus. This is a fact I confirmed when I went to the capital.”
Of course, it was something I had seen in my past life, not the capital, but it was enough to change my father’s thoughts.
“…what?!”
“If we rebel, it will be at the level of Ferretta, but as you know, our situation right now is…”
“Huh, how could you…”
“If we rebel here, we could be trampled on as an example.”
“When did things get that bad… I’m so pathetic. The enemy was secretly strangling him, but he wasn’t even paying attention.”
Seeing him slump down, he seemed to have lost all his strength for an instant, so Logan comforted his father in a calm tone.
“There’s no need to blame yourself. This is something I also overheard in the capital.”
“…You are suffering humiliation because your family is powerless. I’m sorry, son.”
These words were tantamount to granting Logan’s wishes.
“Don’t you know my skills? Nothing will happen. “It’s like coming to see how the land where our ancestors lived has changed.”
‘There were some things I had to check anyway.’
Seeing my father’s expression so bitter, I just swallowed the last words that came to my throat.
* * *
“Master! Is it true that you are being sold to an enemy territory?!” As
expected, what happened in Sylvan’s battle seemed to have been spread in a slightly distorted way.
Not long after returning to McLane Town, Hamar’s face was full of sweat, as if he had suddenly rushed in while working. It was filled with just as much desperation.
“What kind of nonsense is being spread…”
“If the owner dies! What about your promise? My freedom?!”
“I won’t die! And it’s not being sold. Just filter out the nonsense and listen to it!”
“Most of the absurd rumors about the owner were true!”
“…”
It wasn’t so wrong, so Logan couldn’t find anything to say in response.
“Anyway, wherever you go. Take this with you.”
“What?”
“I was in a hurry, so I didn’t finish decorating the scabbard properly, but it’s mine. I bet it will be useful.”
Hamar turned around, leaving behind the sword he held out.
“What is this….”
“Be sure to come back alive!”
Boom!
Hamar didn’t even listen properly and sped up in an instant. He kicked out the door and disappeared.
“Oh no. I’m not saying I’m going to die…”
Even though I was laughing out loud at the absurdity, I couldn’t help but naturally turn my gaze to the sword that the dwarf craftsman had left behind.
