Chapter 271
It was as expected .
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They had made it as expected .
The strategies against the Church with the Administrator Swift Clock and the Strategist Ian Phillips in the centre had begun . The pope Beldrica quickly attempted to send holy letters to gather the Crusaders but their feet had been dragged by Estia Empire’s damping .
Edwin Voisa who had been seeking asylum had put the safety of his son, Mills Voisa who was in custody of the Amaranth Kingdom as a reason to persuade the emperor and powerful nobles of the empire .
Estia Empire against the Church .
An invisible fight between the two massive parties had begun . Adding on to this, the unlucky merchant Clyde followed Roan’s request/command to invest into all his connections to create trouble and the situation grew beyond control .
As Swift and Ian had predicted, it became impossible to gather the crusaders .
During that time, the Amaranth Kingdom began to build on their foundation a strong body . Everyone was trying their hardest at their given position .
It was the same for Roan .
“I’m planning to look around the entirety of the kingdom with Amaranth Taemusas . ”
The first time he threw those words out, there naturally were multiple disagreements . Things like it is not something a monarch of a country should do were most of those but Roan had his reasons .
‘I must gather the people that led others through the Great Warring Period . ’
The heroes that had fought for Rinse Kingdom in the previous life along with Pierce and Ian . He planned on finding those still-budding heroes to form a strong root in the kingdom .
‘Besides…’
There weren’t many things that could be done inside the palace, or rather, there was nothing much to do .
‘The most I could do is look over and see if everything is going alright . ’
But that was something that Swift, Onil and Ian were plenty capable of . Roan was in search of the things that only he could do, and there was one more reason for him making such a decision .
‘Aily’s not here either…’
Aily who should be enjoying the newly-wed days had to follow the elves’ request and rules to stay within the elves’ habitat in the Grain Mountain Range for a while . Thus, Roan had no real reason to stay inside the palace . In the end of a long persuasion, various officials also had to follow Roan’s decisions .
“Perhaps it’s not a bad idea to go for a round of incognito inspection during this time . ”
Lots of them nodded to Swift’s words . Without even considering the Church, the Amaranth Kingdom was a newly built country that had beaten the Rinse Kingdom . And on top of that, there was the enmity with the Church .
From the outside it might appear to be gradually stabling but there were in fact lots of unclear hazards present .
‘There will be some lords and ones with power who hide behind the confusion to rob the people . ’
Besides
‘There are still several areas where the security doesn’t reach . ’
Swift’s suggestion of incognito inspection was a good solution, a good supplement to the plan .
‘Catching two birds with one stone . ’
He accepted Swift’s suggestion .
Asking the Magic Tower of Leno, Roan asked for magical tools that could disguise him . There was almost zero chance for citizens outside of Castle Mediasis to recognise Roan but the nobles were different .
A solid disguise was needed to avoid their eyes .
The preparations required for Roan’s incognito round of inspection and personnel search was quickly finished .
“I’ll be back . ”
He smiled lightly and waved his hand . His masculine tough face had changed to a soft, innocent face . With his rough unkempt hair and yellowish travel clothes unlike his usual red suits, he appeared just like a wandering merchant with a large bag on his back .
“Amaranth Taemusas have all finished their disguise . ”
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Roan nodded in response to Ian’s words . This travel also had inspection as one of its purposes so the Taemusas had to properly hide their identities as well . They were guarding Roan at places that couldn’t be seen .
“Have a safe trip . ”
Several officials including Ian and Swift all bowed from the shadows . They did oppose it when they first heard him say it but in fact, they weren’t too worried .
‘Not just our kingdom…’
‘But from the entire continent…’
‘There’s no-one who could do anything to his majesty . ’
Besides, more than a thousand Taemusas were secretly guarding his surroundings . There was nothing to worry about .
“Now, let us focus hard on our tasks before us . ”
They made bitter smiles in response to Swift’s encouragement, because in the first place, the ones they were worried about the most were themselves .
1 year .
In the remaining time, they will have to move without the time to blink an eye .
Because time would wait for no-one .
“It seems we have been late again . ”
A young general, Romils Hotten shook his head with a frown . There was a scene of extreme horridness spanning before their eyes . The previously isolated and beautiful village had turned into ashes . There was smoke breaking from every direction with burnt-black corpses reflected in their eyes wherever they faced .
“Do we still not know who is behind all this?”
A young man passed by Romils and stood in front of the crumbled village entrance . The armoured young man looked around the village with his cold sunken eyes . It could be seen that he was trying his hardest to suppress his rage .
Romils lowered his head with a terrible expression .
“I have no words . Prince Manus . ”
Prince Manus .
The young man was surprisingly the second prince of Pershion Kingdom… no, now the only prince of the kingdom, Manus Pershion .
“I know it is not your fault . ”
He shook his head with a bitter smile . Ten days ago, he had received news that a region on the north coast of Pershion Kingdom was being attacked by an unidentified group and quickly prepared a troop .
However
‘In just 10 days, dozens of large and small villages were destroyed . ’
Most of the citizens lost their lives . More importantly, however,
‘We still don’t know who the opponent is . ’
They had no idea who the opponent they were supposed to fight and destroy were . According to the news from the survivors of the village, the number of enemies was merely 200 . They all wore black robes covering their heads and their identities were hard to tell .
A difficult situation .
Manus raised his head and looked towards the North .
‘I just wish my guesses are wrong . ’
A deep sigh left through his lips .
It was then .
“Prince Manus!”
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A horse escaped through the black smoke and quickly approached . When the horseman approached close enough he rapidly jumped down and kneeled on one knee, with a rushed expression .
“There has been contact from Teloi Island . ”
Manus quietly waited for the next words . The horseman sunk his head down and continued his words in a trembling voice .
“The guards were all killed with Sir Reitas’ appearance or corpse nowhere to be seen . It is likely that he has left the island . ”
“Hmm . ”
Manus let out a little murmur .
‘I had wished my guess to be wrong but…’
He waved his hand with a short sigh .
“Good work . ”
“Yes sir!”
The horseman got back on the horse after a salute and disappeared along with the horse . Manus grasped his fist and bit down hard .
‘Brother, is this really your doing? Really?’
He didn’t want to believe it . Although Reitas did have great ambitions, he wasn’t a cruel and unemotional person that would massacre the kingdom’s people like this .
‘What in the world happened?’
Reitas had clearly known of the cruelty of authority .
[Manus, if I’m alive, the nobles following me will look for other chances . Kill me . That is the duty of the victor and the fate of the defeated . ]
Those were the words Reitas had left when the assassination on Manus had failed . And naturally, Manus had blatantly refused . At that time Manus had said that even if the noble had been supporting Reitas, if their skills and personalities were excellent, they would be given their rightful location .
That he would gather them not into Manus faction nor Reitas faction but to the Pershion faction .
‘I said they will become one under the name of Pershion . ’
He had indeed said that .
In fact, after Reitas had been sent to Teloi Island on exile, Manus did allocate the skilled nobles that had been following Reitas into important roles and duties . Of course, there had been some discontent and disbelief at the beginning, but after some time, Manus’ honesty had been relayed and Pershion Kingdom was much stronger and tougher than the previous .
‘I thought everything was going well…’
Perhaps that was not the case .
‘If all of this was related to Brother Reitas, he wouldn’t have been the only one involved . ’
It meant that there were helpers . He bit down hard .
Romils who had been watching from the side rushed to approach and spoke in a small voice .
“Sir Prince, isn’t it better for you to return to the capital?”
There was no need for more words . If Reitas had indeed escaped the island, it was important to quickly return to Capital Altus and strengthen his side of officials . Otherwise with one mistake, Reitas’ old subordinates that had been placed at important positions might have other thoughts .
He reflected on it before slowly nodding his head .
“Romils . You stay behind and stabilise the north regions . I will return to the Capital . ”
“Yes, do not worry . ”
Romils lowered his head with a tough expression and Manus got on his horse after staring at him for a while .
Dududududu .
Soon, a portion of the cavalry headed towards Capital Altus along with the sound of horse hooves . It was as fast, no, faster, than wind .
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But unfortunately, there was someone ever so slightly faster than Manus .
“Congratulations on your return . ”
“Congratulations . ”
Dozens of nobles lowered their heads in respect . A young man stood before them with a bright smile . His eyes reflected the tall walls standing below the moonlight and nodded .
“It has truly been a long time . ”
As if embracing the castle, the youth opened his arms wide .
“Capital City of Altus . I have returned . ”
A small yet powerful voice .
“I, Reitas Pershion have returned . ”
The youth .
His name was Reitas .
“Fu, what a great weather . ”
The innocent-looking young man hung a large luggage on his back and slowly carried his feet across . The narrow roads were well-maintained so it wasn’t really difficult walking .
‘But there will be a need to widen the roads for large scale military movements . ’
The youth with strange thoughts was Roan Lancephil who had departed on his incognito inspection . He left Castle Mediasis and walked on and on diligently until finally reaching the western end of Lancephil area .
‘Indeed, areas that are one district away from Capital Castle have become stable without an issue . ’
The officials both military and government as well as the nobles dared not to persecute or rob the citizens and focused on their own tasks .
‘It would be nice if other areas were the same…’
With some excitement and expectation, Roan had crossed the borders of the Lancephil area and faced further west . The sun that had been above his head was now almost covered by the faraway hills .
‘I guess I need to stay at a nearby village for the day . ’
Fortunately, the place where the first person he was looking for was in was not too far away from here . After walking for who knows how long, a village appeared on the end of the road . It was quite a large village with fences and a little watchtower .
Roan quickened his feet with a happy heart .
But when he arrived at the front of the entrance, he was stiffened like a statue . It was because the sun had yet to fall but the village entrance had been closed tight .
“Hello . ”
Roan stood in front of the entrance and used his politest voice to seek for a person . Soon, a presence could be felt from within .
“Who is it?”
A voice filled with caution . Roan smiled widely and scratched the back of his head .
“I’m a wandering merchant . The sun was about to fall so I wanted to stay…”
When his words reached around that point .
“Walk a little bit more South West and there will be a village called Burk . Eat and rest there . ”
“Sorry?”
Roan was baffled . He had received cold treatment countless times, but not even being allowed into the village and being chased away was a new experience even with his previous life in the equation…
“Did you not hear? Our village is not a place for accommodation so leave immediately . ”
He was trying to chase him away but there was worry evident in his voice .
‘There’s something here . ’
Roan’s two eyes shone brightly with light . He began to act in a crying voice .
“Aigo . I couldn’t even rest today and continued walking all day . The legs are sore and my feet hurt as if they’re being stabbed . I won’t make trouble and will leave after one night so please take me in . ”
It was a natural act enough to make others believe that he was truly in pain . A loud commotion could be heard from the inside . They were definitely thinking about something, but .
“Even so, what’s impossible is impossible . Burk village isn’t far from here so walk diligently and you should arrive before the sun sets . So leave quickly, now!”
Towards the end he even shouted, but it was a made-up shout and Roan’s doubts deepened .
“Aigo, how cruel…”
He made a crying sound and stepped back . Glancing at the watchtowers, he found two men with worries on their face .
‘They’re definitely not bad people . ’
Albeit being confused on the inside, Roan collapsed down on the side of the road . He then took out a dirty rag from his bag .
“Aigo, whatever . ”
He made a loud noise on purpose and lied down . The cloth covering up to his neck showed that he was about to sleep outside in that manner . When he did, an urgent voice escaped from the watchtowers .
“Hey, there . What are you doing!”
“Quickly go to Burk Village! Quick!”
But Roan wore an expression of laziness and waved his hand before turning his body around .
“Aiya . ”
“This…”
Lost voices could be heard from the towers until finally .
Screak .
Along with the creaking noise of wood, the village entrance that was shut tight was opened slightly with utmost care . From within, a middle-aged man pointed his head out .
“Hey, there! Wandering merchant! Quickly come in! Quick!”
A loud voice and a waving hand . Roan slightly raised his head to look at that before quickly packing up his luggage and rushing over .
“Aigo, thank you . Thank you . ”
He nodded his head several times and squeezed his body through the small gap between the gates . Finally the inside of the village that couldn’t be seen even with Kalian’s Tears was laid bare .
“Mhmm . ”
Suddenly, a low murmur escaped through his lips, and his face turned rigid .
“That’s why we told you to go to Burk village . ”
The people let out sighs before shaking their heads . Roan couldn’t reply and silently stared at the village .
‘Don’t tell me they’re…’
His eyelids trembled slightly .
‘In the middle of a battle?’
Translator: Lunargrasp
Proofreader: Deathwing