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Chapter 377: I Brought a Gift. (1)

“Aiden, Aiden…”

Erlhardt showed a surprising amount of interest in Aiden, unlike his usually indifferent self.

It was understandable. Aiden’s abilities were impressive enough to rival anyone from the Duke Faction.

“So, you came to help me?”

“Yes, Your Highness. I will be of great assistance.”

“Does the situation here seem difficult enough to send someone like you?”

Erlhardt was still smiling, but there was an edge to his words. After all, there was no need for help to conquer the kingdom.

Aiden responded with a bright smile.

“Do you think we would underestimate Your Highness’s strength? We just need to handle the affairs of Ruthania a bit faster.”

“What do you mean?”

“It seems we need to advance the timing of ‘opening’ the door.”

Erlhardt raised an eyebrow with interest.

“Oh? Is that so? Why is that? Isn’t the promised day still far off?”

“How can things always go as planned? Someone pursuing us has appeared.”

“Who is it?”

“It seems the ‘Saint of War’ and the ‘Guardian of the World Tree’ have caught on. We have already fought several times in the shadows.”

“Hmmm… Despite moving carefully, we’ve been discovered earlier than expected.”

“Since humans are involved, perfection is unattainable. Our hands have reached every corner of the continent, so the chances of mistakes increase. Moreover, they’ve been wary of our existence for a long time.”

“Just as we have our mission, they too have their own mission.”

“And… we are in a hurry due to the Ruthania Kingdom.”

“Because of this place?”

Aiden lifted his head to meet Erlhardt’s gaze directly, continuing.

“Yes, because of Count Penris.”

“Count Penris?”

The name Count Penris was one Erlhardt had heard most frequently lately.

Because of him, Raoul’s plans to easily seize the kingdom had been thrown into disarray. The situation had become so dire that force would now be necessary.

However, he thought it would only be a local issue. And yet, now they had to accelerate their plans because of Count Penris?

“Explain.”

“Because of the Forest of Monsters.”

“The Forest of Monsters?”

“I heard that Count Penris has opened the Forest of Monsters. It was the last place we had been keeping an eye on. And… just recently, we confirmed that the first guardian of the barrier has died.”

Erlhardt leaned forward a bit more. There was a different intensity burning in his eyes.

“Are you sure about the Forest of Monsters?”

“Absolutely. We have checked every forbidden area in the continent except for the Forest of Monsters. When Count Penris began to open the forest, one of the sacred relic’s lights went out. We need to finish the affairs in Ruthania before he stirs the forest up even more.”

“Hahaha!”

Erlhardt burst into loud laughter.

The retainers couldn’t understand the conversation between the two, so they were bewildered by Erlhardt’s laughter.

After he laughed to the point of almost departing reality, Erlhardt suddenly spoke to Raoul with a crazed look in his eyes.

“Raoul.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Go break the neck of the puppet king right now and push into the Forest of Monsters.”

Initially, the Duke had prohibited anyone from touching the Forest of Monsters. They believed there might be something they were looking for there.

But now that it was confirmed something was hiding in the Forest of Monsters, there was no need to hold back.

Raoul bowed his head and replied.

“I am already preparing for war. To seize the kingdom with minimal damage…”

Before Raoul could finish his reply, Erlhardt spoke coldly.

“Are you going to drag this out again?”

“Your Highness, I understand your intentions, but if the Forest of Monsters is truly there… it requires a large force to conquer. If we’re not careful, the fighting force we’ll need later…”

Erlhardt looked at Raoul with a sharp gaze that was unlike his usual demeanor.

“It doesn’t matter if everyone in the kingdom dies. We will arm the citizens after seizing the kingdom and push them in. Understood?”

“…I will obey.”

“This time, we cannot afford to make mistakes.”

After coldly glancing at Raoul, Erlhardt turned back to Aiden.

“What will you help with?”

“I will remove anything that hinders Your Highness’s grand endeavor. And…”

With his usual charming smile, Aiden continued.

“I will bring you Count Penris’s head.”

*

The Crown Prince’s nobles had gathered in the royal castle and were scratching their heads for days.

Marquis Roderick was now openly moving to attack Penris.

“Marquis Roderick officially declared war on Penris! They’re preparing for departure! That duckling has ultimately hastened the civil war!”

Against Maurice’s loud outburst, Marquis Branford answered with an expressionless face.

“Whether we like it or not, a civil war was already on the horizon. Roderick just moved first.”

“That guy has ruined the strategy we set up! Now we must face the western forces before we even fight the Duke!”

The Crown Prince’s basic strategy, as always, was defense. The goal was to gather their main forces and strike the Duke while keeping the other fronts secure.

But strangely, things had tangled. They couldn’t afford to lose Penris, so they had to first deal with the western army.

Everyone knew mediation was now impossible.

“With that guy causing such chaos in the west, there’s no other choice.”

Rumors spread throughout the kingdom that Ghislaine had annihilated Roderick’s 20,000 troops and looted their resources.

It had become impossible for even the king to intervene and stop it.

Marquis Branford still couldn’t understand Ghislaine’s intentions.

“Why provoke the west?”

For the Crown Prince’s faction, it was better to gather more strength and prepare for war. There was no need to move the army and give the Duke a chance to strike first.

Marquis Branford, deep in thought, muttered.

“He’s not the type to act without thought.”

“He’s thoughtless! Because he’s just a thoughtless guy!”

Maurice pounded his chest in frustration.

In his eyes, Ghislaine was living only for the day. But he was successful purely by luck, making it appear as if he had a plan.

In short, he was a guy born under a lucky star.

While they were gathered together, deep in thought and reconfiguring their strategies, a royal knight came in to report.

“Marquis, Count Penris has arrived.”

At that one sentence, all the Crown Prince’s nobles’ eyes lit up. It was a chance to grab him and ask what he was thinking and what he was going to do next.

“Let him in.”

As Marquis Branford spoke, the knight gave a troubled expression.

“Um…”

“What’s the matter?”

“Please come out…”

“…That guy?”

“Yes.”

A momentary silence fell in the meeting room due to that audacious request. The first to regain composure was Maurice, who shouted.

“Has that guy gone insane? Just because he’s a master, does he think he can call us around?”

It is correct that he is a master, but the Crown Prince’s nobles thought they helped raise and support Ghislaine. While that thought wasn’t entirely incorrect…

And when it came to status, power, or age, they were all surely above him.

“Just because he’s grown a little bigger, he’s acting so arrogant? Hey! Call all the knights! If he’s acting so cocky in the capital, he’s asking for death!”

Maurice, shaking his bushy beard, stood up quickly. As one of the kingdom’s top powers, he could no longer tolerate Ghislaine’s arrogance.

He had never liked him from the start.

Then the knight spoke defensively.

“Um, it’s not that… Count Penris brought a gift and insists you see it in person…”

“This little punk! Is that what you call an excuse? If you bring a gift, you should kindly carry it all the way here!”

“Well, it’s quite heavy to bring here…”

“Shut up! I’ll go fix that little brat’s manners right now!”

With an imposing expression, Maurice called the knights to move. The Crown Prince’s nobles followed suit.

When they gathered with knights from other nobles, their numbers became quite impressive. They were indeed the true powers of the kingdom.

Marquis Branford shook his head and reluctantly stepped outside.

As soon as Maurice got outside, he shouted.

“What! Where is that punk?”

He had thought they were waiting outside, but no one was there. As he glanced around, the knight who had delivered the news rushed back and reported.

“Outside the castle.”

“What? How dare he summon us outside the castle?”

“No, it’s just that…”

“Hey! Bring my wagon… No, my horse! Call the soldiers too! We’re not just leaving like this!”

Impatient Maurice rushed off without hearing the knight’s words properly. He intended to flatten Ghislaine and fix his manners during this opportunity.

<Dududududu!>

The highest nobles led their knights and soldiers, moving in a rush, startling everyone in the capital.

People quickly vacated the area, wearing worried expressions. It felt like a war was about to break out.

What entered their eyes outside the castle were numerous carts and soldiers flying the colors of Penris.

Just the soldiers seemed to be around a thousand.

Maurice shouted in disbelief while approaching.

“Look! That crazy bastard brought troops up to the vicinity of the capital!”

Marquis Branford and the other nobles frowned. There were way too many soldiers to be a cosmetics merchant.

For this many soldiers to come to the capital, they would have to overcome numerous obstacles. It was strange that nobody had intervened.

As Maurice approached with the knights, Ghislaine slightly bowed his head.

“Marquis Macquarie, it’s been a while.”

“That duckling! What in the world are you doing! How dare you bring such a large force up to the vicinity of the capital! Is this treason?”

Immediately confronting him, Ghislaine answered with an annoyed expression.

“It’s not that many, you see? I just brought them as my escort.”

While it was a lot for merchant forces, it was exceedingly small for conquering the capital. Even for Ghislaine, it was impossible.

As Maurice readied to explode again, Marquis Branford intervened and asked.

“Alright, what’s the reason for calling us all the way out here?”

“Marquis, how have you been?”

“Enough with the pleasantries. Just tell me what you want.”

Seeing Marquis Branford’s cold demeanor, Ghislaine clicked his tongue and replied.

“I brought a gift.”

“What kind of gift is causing such a commotion?”

Instead of answering the Marquis, Ghislaine gestured to the soldiers. When the soldiers stepped aside, the carts behind them became more visible.

The sight of hundreds of carts lined up was spectacular in itself.

All the nobles gasped, their mouths agape at the sight.

At a glance, the carts were filled with food and military supplies. Even for the most powerful families in the kingdom, they had never seen such quantities at once in their lives.

Seeing their astonished expressions, Ghislaine grinned.

“This is food, weapons, and various military supplies including herbs. A gift to the Crown Prince’s faction. It will be of great help during the civil war.”

Even Marquis Branford, who usually maintained a stoic expression, couldn’t help but widen his eyes this time.

Although the drought’s impact was slowly recovering, it wasn’t back to its previous abundance. Everyone was conserving resources, regardless of their status.

Yet bringing such a large quantity of military supplies as a gift was simply unbelievable.

“Are you serious? You’re giving that to us?”

“Marquis, I see you’re somewhat of a stutterer too.”

“…I was asking if it is truly genuine.”

“Yes, it is. Seems like you’ve become quite the suspicious one.”

Coming from a notoriously stingy person who always took something on his visits, for him to give such a gift made it only natural for everyone to be filled with anticipation.

Everyone turned their eyes to Maurice, the one who had brought such a gift, and shouted accusations of treason right away.

“T-this punk…”

Maurice, flustered, dismounted his horse. He then strode up to Ghislaine.

“What’s wrong?”

As Ghislaine continued to respond indifferently, Maurice hesitated for a moment before shouting again.

“You punk!”

He embraced Ghislaine tightly, as if reuniting with a long-lost family member.

 

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