My villains episode 499
interlude. Prince’s Legacy (3)
The number of knights under Prince Ulkar is twenty-four in total. Excluding those who lost their lives during the war, sixteen remain.
Considering the fact that Prince Eun is considered the greatest warlord in the kingdom, it is not a very large number. Of course, each of the knights had excellent skills, so it was rare for anyone to look down on their strength just by looking at their number.
However, even among them, there was a clear difference in skills and prestige.
Based on the seventh knight, Phoenix, the first six met Ulkar in the royal capital and in the central and northern parts of the kingdom. It was a case of recognizing the prince who was just developing his talent and swearing allegiance. ‘The Wave That Crashes’ Langboldt ‘The Giant’ Anki Le ‘Arrogant’ Liam ‘The Viper’ Ariad ‘The Painter’ Filter ‘The Birdhawk’ Gisela. All of them are high in ignorance.
Seventeen, later than Phoenix, the knights, now reduced to nine, joined Ulkar when he was staying in the southwest of the kingdom and raising his army. There were excellent knights in their own right, such as ‘Diredog’, Ojori, ‘Drunken Sword’, Hendry, and ‘Shining’ Ballsom, but compared to the previous eight, they were clearly inferior.
According to these circumstances, after Count Ines and other lords left the tent, six knights of the silver prince and the young imperial concubine sat around the table.
Ruyan, who took the place of Gisela, who remained in Direnz, did not budge even from the secretly gathering gazes.
Now that he has become the lord of the land occupied by Prince Eun, Lu Yan is also on the same boat. Ruyan and the knights were aware of this, so they didn’t say anything.
After the rest of the knights, battle mages, military priests and officers adjusted their seats, Phoenix opened his mouth.
“You haven’t said anything since before.”
His black eyes scanned Langbolt Ankyr Liam Ariad Filter one after another. His gaze softened considerably, whether it was because his emotions were settled after the lords left, or he was looking at those who could be called real comrades.
“…What can I say?”
Putting a hand on his forehead to shade his face, Langbolt opened his mouth.
“I don’t know what the wonder wants of us, but we’re—or at least I’m finished.”
“Sir Langboldt.”
“I will leave. That’s how you decided.”
“Where?”
“With an overlock. I will join the return of the Iron Fleet.”
Overlock is the capital of the Southern Shore region in the eastern part of the kingdom.
In addition, it was also the place where the Southern Shore owner, the Earl Shore family, took root.
“I decided to inherit the family.”
“…What do you mean? Sir Langboldt is the second son.”
“My older brother is dead.”
“Yes?”
“I heard the news last fall when I went to ask my father for the Iron Fleet. It is said that the ship was wrecked by a storm during the voyage and returned as a blown corpse.”
At the story he heard for the first time, Phoenix only opened his mouth.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I had no idea.”
“I told you. I only found out about it when I went to Obirok.”
“Ah…
“The reason I shook off my tearful mother and her retainers without hesitation was because there was something more valuable here than overlock.”
The red knight was silent and the blue knight continued to speak softly.
“Not anymore.”
Prince Eun first went to the battlefield at the young age of 17. He rode his horse to rescue his half-brother in trouble and shot six arrows down the seven riders.
He held out his quiver to the admiring knights and said:
‘I put all the blessings and luck given to me. Take one and follow me.’
The knights who received the arrows charged after the silver prince and broke the enemy.
The blue knight was one of them. However, he did not return with a souvenir of victory like other comrades. He returned the arrow to Prince Eun and even offered the sword.
Langboldt seemed to add something, but kept his mouth shut. It was as if I was letting go of my anger, which I didn’t know where to go.
This time, Ankir, who was sitting next to him, spoke up.
“I’m leaving too.”
“You mean Whitestone?”
“Uh”
M3 Ankir’s father is the lord of a fortress located somewhere southeast of High Castle. Like Langboldt, he also had duties as an heir.
“…Then Sir”
“If you are trying to say that you will take care of the spoils or give away the land, stop. Didn’t I enlist your Highness to get that piece of land for gold?”
Prince Eun celebrated his 19th and 20th birthday in the northern city of Linneh. Killing orcs while digging through the snow was the main daily routine for a year and a half.
He commanded an army and killed over 10,000 orcs. The giant knight helped the silver prince swing his sword and killed hundreds of orcs.
After the orcs disappeared, the two left the northern border. The engineer, who was pulling three carts, bumped into the silver prince without a penny in his hand.
‘booty? I left it with my new friends.’
The giant knight realized that the new friends he was talking about were children who had lost their parents only when they reached the royal capital. He got drunk and offered the sword to Prince Silver.
“okay. You don’t need anything like that.”
Ankir shut his mouth. Phoenix, who was about to say something to him, soon turned his head.
With the exception of two who clearly expressed their intentions, the other three remained silent. The enemy knight’s gaze turned to the two of them first.
“You won’t give up the title and land you’ve been given, right?”
Hilter, who became the baron of Zirna, crossed his arms and only shrugged. Ariad, who became Baron of Untrier, opened his mouth with his blindfolded eyes facing the air.
“Since I am nothing more than a blind old man, I want to give up my territory and title and return to my hometown.”
“However, isn’t it true that you can’t give someone else what your lord has bestowed on you?”
When Ulkar bestowed titles and domains on the knights, he exercised the rights of Luyan instead. So officially, Lu Yan, the imperial consort, was in a situation where he had two princes and two barons.
Thanks to this, when Ariad retires, the castle Untrier and its manor and villages all go back to the ambitious Ruyan.
However, if I transferred it to someone else, it was obvious that it would become a seed of discord for a long time.
In addition, giving up the right within a month of receiving the title could easily be seen as an insult to Ulkar, who gave the title, and King Ruilix II, who notarized it.
“So, I intend to spend the rest of my life protecting the territory and its people.” Filter, who was sitting across from Ariad’s words, thought deeply. Liam suddenly opened his mouth on behalf of him who was troubled.
“I have no duties, no home to return to. I’m just dedicated to helping my lord, so I don’t have any other plans in mind.”
Liam, a middle-aged man with a stubborn look, continued with a calm tone.
“One thing is certain, however, that we have a responsibility to take care of the soldiers who followed him.”
“It is as Sir Liam said.”
An officer responded and rose from his seat. It was Harold, the ‘commander of the prince’, the officer Ulkar trusted the most.
“The knights can find their own way to live, but the circumstances of the soldiers are different.”
The commander, whose hair was slightly grayish, kept his face stiff as if he was trying to hide his exhaustion.
“Not only the soldiers who have been conscripted in the last few months, but also the skilled soldiers and friendly soldiers are confused. Until now, I have been waiting for the knights to come to a conclusion, but it will soon collapse.”
“…What about collapsing?”
“It’s dissolution. The army that the prince trained with blood and sweat will disappear… Of course, even if you conclude that everyone is scattered, the result will be the same.”
At the word ‘the silver prince’s dissolution’, the atmosphere in the military camp cooled down. Uneasy whispers spread among the soldiers who were watching the meeting because the cloth was pulled up all over the place.
“The mercenaries?”
“What are we?”
‘Shield maiden’ Grania, who received the red knight’s gaze, shook her head as if there was no problem.
“I should be anxious because the prince isn’t around, but… what kind of dissatisfaction do you have when it comes to receiving money all the time?”
“The military funding will end next week.”
Next was Gilbert, who played a similar role as Ulkar’s lieutenant.
“I’m about to have to get my hands on the property left by the prince-”
“Who cares about bullshit?”
Ankir growled with a stern face, but the man who devoted more than half of his life to the battlefield only responded with a plaintive expression.
“That’s what I mean. Who should I ask and who should I get permission from?”
“what?”
“The prince isn’t there, so who’s in charge?”
Silence fell among the knights, and Gilbert muttered, scratching his head with his hand under his hood.
“All of the officers and noncommissioned officers have deputies, but the captain didn’t have anything like that.”
Lang Bolt, who was slumping on his back as if answering the grunt, offered his opinion.
“Is there anything special? The soldiers will disperse after distributing the remaining military funds and loot, and the prince’s property will be sent to the royal capital.”
“Sir Langboldt.”
“What are you talking about, Harold?”
When the old officer called out his name as if moaning, the blue knight narrowed his brows and pressed his temples.
“Do you want someone to take your place?”
“Shouldn’t we inherit his will?”
“Who dares to say that? Me who has no sense of responsibility? Or the indecisive Ankyr?”
“Indecisive? Are you done talking now?”
“no! You haven’t even started yet!”
Standing up from his seat, Langboldt looked back at his colleagues one by one with a sharp gaze, as if telling them not to dream.
“Blind Rebel Sioux? An illegitimate child living for my taste? A kinslayer?”
He unleashed the ferocity of the first knight of the Silver Prince. However, neither Ankir nor Lyam Hilter were far from the perpetrators.
“So are you done now?”
“Both be respectful! What ugliness is this!”
“Ha, there are still people who believe that nonsense.”
As if not paying attention to the three knights, Langboldt quickly turned his head.
“How on earth can these kind of people take the place of Your Highness!”
The last thing his gaze reached was Phoenix.
“I bet you
don’t think you can!”
“…Uh well.”
At that lukewarm response, Langbolt’s face twisted viciously.
“A murderer who enjoys blood, and a shady author who hides more than a dozen secrets in a slut!”
Langbolt ended his shouting with a murmur mixed with laughter.
“Are you replacing him? Don’t joke.”
Phoenix opened his mouth with a confused face.
“…I didn’t know Sir Langboldt, but I have a good eye for it. It looks like the epigastrium has become concave.”
“pit of the stomach?”
“yes. pit of the stomach.”
As if to prove his point, he gently touched his stomach.
“And judging from how everyone is doing, it would be better for me to take charge of Prince Eun.”
“…You must be full of energy. I really can
replace Your Highness.”
“what?”
Phoenix looked up at Langvolt, who narrowed his forehead, with a calm face.
“Stop whining and sit down and listen.”
The gazes of the two knights intertwined in midair. For a while, Langboldt’s eyes slowly sank as if they resembled his opponent’s.
“Whoa.”
He sighed deeply and sat down on the road.
