26. Lee An-ryeong (1)
As soon as I stepped into the warp portal, my entire field of vision was dyed blue.
Eventually, the blue light turned to white, and gradually the surroundings became clearer.
My eyes were dazzled and I frowned as I waited for my sight to recover.
Hearing was restored before sight, and the surrounding noise was captured and analyzed.
‘broad space. There are a lot of people around. It must have been a strange day, so the locals flocked to it. is it a square? However, the plaza must have had a purpose for which it was originally used. It might have overturned the road to make room for a new portal.’
This is a minor but fatal flaw of the warp portal.
Immediately after transmission, the field of view is too bright to see the surroundings.
For that reason, there must be enough soldiers near each warp portal to protect it.
In time, my vision fully returned, and all my guesses turned out to be true.
Odokani Sun Warp Portal in the middle of a large plaza.
There were many soldiers around it who seemed to be the garrison of the city as well as residents.
“That person is Ian… ?”
“Isn’t that the same person as Philip?”
“Look at what it looks like. Anyone can see that he is a tyrant… .”
“Ugh. My back will bend again. I still have a hard time making a living.”
“Still, wouldn’t it be a little different if there was a warp portal?”
“You can’t judge a person just by looking at what they look like.”
First impressions to the residents are not very good.
Charles, who had followed, explained to me.
“It is the city of Arrogant, the central city of the former Crescent Territory and current Ian Territory in the southwestern part of the continent. I will give you a detailed explanation after I bring you to the castle.”
“So be it.”
“Count. Please keep your voice down.”
“ah… . I’m not used to it yet. no, um I will.”
“good.”
The Fruit Warriors and Mercy, who arrived later, admired the surroundings.
“Wow… . pretty… .”
“It’s beautiful and somehow feels nostalgic!”
“Ohh… .”
Certainly, the scenery of the city is not bad except for being wary of strangers.
A well-trodden street of gray stone.
And the roof of the house built with ivory-colored bricks was orange, which was quite colorful and cute.
There were also houses built with red bricks and wooden houses in warm colors.
High in the distance, I could see the bell tower and the steeple of the church rising into the sky.
The city was quite large, but the fortress walls surrounding the city were not visible.
Charles, who stepped forward in my stead, opened the emperor’s edict and shouted.
“In the name of Emperor Julian Apostata Humil of the Pride Empire, I declare that Count Ian has become the new owner of the Crescent Territory as of today, and the name of the territory has also been adjusted to Ian Territory… .”
Charles’ remarks were quite lengthy.
Anyway, since I became the new owner, I was told to take good care of it.
“… The above concludes the declaration. The document will be posted on each bulletin board in the territory for one month, so I hope you will treat all of them strictly, and if you damage it, you will be punished severely.”
Applause poured in.
It was polite, but not bad.
Vivian, who was standing behind me, looked at me for embarrassment and awkwardness, and Helena proudly spread her shoulders, wondering what she was so proud of.
A soldier heavily armed with plate armor approached Charles.
Taking off his helmet, he bowed his back as if to cut his back.
“My name is Bernard Bearman, Captain of the Guard. It is an honor to be able to serve the new owner.”
It was a gesture that had learned quite a bit of aristocratic etiquette.
I know that among nobles, there are nobles who work under a higher noble than him.
‘But isn’t that only for very high nobles?’
I wonder if it’s okay to have a nobleman’s subordinate like me under someone who has no roots like me.
“We have prepared a wagon that allows you to move comfortably to the castle.”
“All of my party can ride… me?”
I guess I’ll have to talk to the chief of this guard too.
It’s not easy.
“of course.”
Not bad to prepare.
“Branch. I want to see the city instead, so I’d like you to go slowly.”
“I will accept it.”
Bernard led the way, followed with Charles.
Lucia, who sneaked closer, laughed.
“Does it look good for some reason? Is it natural for you to treat me badly?”
“It will only be so on the surface. My sweet heart is suffering.”
Lucia giggled.
The wagon was really big enough to carry my entire party.
It was a large wagon with six wheels.
Instead of a roof, it was an open type with an awning covering the ceiling, so it was good to get some fresh air and to see the city.
‘It shows that he paid close attention.’
Across from me sat Charles, right next to Katie.
The carriage set off under the command of Bernard on horseback.
The road to the castle was also lined with onlookers.
While the fruit warriors and Mercy greeted them, I listened to Charles explain.
“The former lord, Pertile Crescent, was arrested and executed for participating in the Anti-Imperial Coalition.”
… oh So that’s where the land came from.
“His family members were sentenced to prison or exiled.”
“Then aren’t there not enough vassals?”
“Not really. A few weeks ago, I diligently summoned talented people under the imperial command, and it was enough to not cause inconvenience to the Count.”
A few weeks ago, when I asked for some land in court.
“The land is not large, but the soil is fertile, so the quality of crops is always excellent. However, it is isolated from other regions due to its basin topography, and it is very difficult to trade with the outside because there are few passages to cross the mountain.”
“Hmm. Then there must be quite a few neglected dungeons in the territory. Because of that, it must have been difficult to properly utilize the entire territory.”
“how… .”
Charles opened his eyes wide in surprise.
It seems to be the correct answer.
“It’s not that great. I’ve been through a lot of things similar to this, so from my point of view, the correct answer has no choice but to be limited to that.”
Quite often, isolated cities or villages suffered from military support due to geography.
‘Actually, I just remembered what I heard about the Crescent Spirit in the second playthrough.’
I couldn’t tell you that, so I gave a plausible reason.
“… Once again, I realize that my choice was not wrong.”
Charles, who did not know the inside story, smiled contentedly.
“Fortunately, because of the terrain, the monsters that came out of the dungeon couldn’t attack the center of the territory very often.”
That would mean that there are no flying monsters.
that’s really fortunate
By the way, if you clean up all the dungeons, it’s pretty yolk land.
The emperor has chosen exactly the right territory for me.
‘I can use it as a sacrifice for our fruit warriors to grow.’
“I have a question. Aren’t you the royal family of Jeriha?”
“you’re right. Although it was a distant collateral.”
“I don’t know if it’s because I don’t know politics well, but I’m curious about why you bother to serve me.”
Charles shrugged off his glasses and added lightly.
“If it wasn’t for Ian-nim’s instructions at that time, my hometown would have been reduced to ashes.”
“Hmm.”
“Despite forewarned warnings, some royals overconfident in their own strength and did not flee. me too… He was one of those stupid people. Then Ian… sorry. I was miraculously rescued by the Count’s former warriors, and I learned what kind of person the Count is.”
Does that mean you want to repay what you owed with your life then?
For me, it is welcome if my acting authority is such a person.
It’s because loyalty is formed from nothing else but life.
“If this kind of loyalty is difficult to understand, how about thinking like this? An old collateral who didn’t even get much attention was holding onto a line that guaranteed success.”
“You are good at jokes. Do you like it.”
Charles laughed softly.
“Not only me, but among the vassals there are some who have been favored by the Count. But there are also those who don’t. Bringing together talented people who were completely apart would be unstable.”
They are not those who have been loyal to the noble family for a long time.
Since they were all cut off and newly selected for me, it means that I, the center, should do well.
It will be Charles who manages it directly, but I am the real owner of the land anyway.
“I must make a good first impression.”
In the meantime, the carriage arrived at the castle.
Around the castle gate that was opened, a castle that was not flashy but had a solid feel was visible.
The time has come to create a new order.
***
The great conference room of Arrogant Castle.
All the main figures of the territory gathered to welcome the new owner of this land.
Magistrates, scribes, judges, bishops, ministers of food and agriculture, envoys of diplomats, and chiefs of the guard.
Other attendants, including the maid, were standing on the wall of the meeting room.
In the conference room, behind the seats of honor stood the warriors who were said to be gaining popularity recently.
Freckles on the face and red hair.
Wizard Vivian watches over the conference hall with gentle green eyes.
Orange hair, orange eyes.
Helena, a priest who was tense like a soldier with a military standard.
Dark purple hair and brighter purple eyes.
The knight Lucia stood there with a slight smile on her face as if she was relaxed.
A maid and an elf wearing an unknown eyepatch.
And, as if from the distant East, a woman and her husband covered their heads with a high turban and wrapped a cloth tightly to cover their faces and bodies.
It is reported that the two recently got together.
The identities are Galatea and Malion, but Ian has not yet been able to reveal Galatea to the public.
And in front of them, Count Ian, who sat at the head of the conference room.
As rumored, it was a dirty impression.
Some of the participants already had goodwill and loyalty to him.
those who have been helped in the past.
But there were also people who weren’t.
Rather than the names of Philip and Ian, those who aspired to the 1st warrior party itself were mainly like that.
Or, there were those who ignored Ian’s origin and background, who had lived completely away from politics.
“nice to meet. My name is Ian.”
Ian finally opened his mouth.
“I don’t need to talk too long. Although I was given the title of count, as you think, I am a commoner with no roots.”
A few people were stunned by those words.
Ian smiled and said as if it was a joke.
“I don’t know if anyone has just been stabbed. well, anyway. I may be the actual owner, but there’s no way it’ll get any better if I touch it. So, most of the work will be done by Charles, the butler.”
He openly admitted that he was no better than a scarecrow.
Charles, standing right next to him, humbly bowed his head.
“So, even if you embezzle bag after bag of wheat behind my back, the good news is that I might never know. Aren’t you a very nice owner? Well, things like that are rampant everywhere I go, so I know it won’t go away just by saying don’t do it.”
It was a very arrogant and irresponsible statement.
Those who distrusted him gradually came to think of seeing him.
“However. Before I came here, you would have had enough time to research and learn who I am and who I am.”
“So, you will know who I am. To put it bluntly, I’m sure everyone clearly remembers the kind of retaliation they’ve done under the name ‘Ian’.”
Everyone just stiffened at that remark.
Those who looked at him with ease even swallowed dry saliva.
The people who gossiped about the 1st Hero’s party, how they were treated by ‘Ian’, who was the manager in front.
If you did your research, you would never know.
“Do not betray, do not embezzle, be honest. I won’t talk about dreams like this. just.”
Ian leaned over the round table and warned.
“Don’t get caught by me.”
“… !”
“It is true that I am not very interested in politics, but I have no desire to remain in history as a tyrant wielding this small estate.”
“… … .”
“And, I bet it would be good for you to always remember that I have so many eyes and ears.”
Everyone had to keep their mouths shut.
Those who had believed in Lee An were in awe.
Ian’s calm, deep eyes scanned the crowd.
It was like a lake that reflected the truth, and it seemed that if there was a dark heart inside, it would be exposed.
Therefore, those who distrusted him had to hasten to trample on petty exploits and ambitions.
Charles was genuinely impressed with Ian’s skill.
‘I’m not interested in politics… . He has a knack for eloquence that dominates the crowd.’
Acknowledge and proudly disclose your origin and the distrust and shortcomings that arise from it.
Instead, he compensated for it with his own merits.
Charles was certain that some of them would cause trouble, and he was thinking of how to deal with it.
However, I just saw the unspeakable power of the new owner of this land.
Thanks to that, all the plans I had been contemplating so far became pieces of paper, but I was very happy.
Lucia, who was silently behind, admired inwardly.
‘Wow… . He looks more noble than anyone else.’
It was a strange feeling.
His words and actions were harsh, clearly far from noble, but he felt more like a noble than any noble he had ever seen.
‘Isn’t that a bit cool?’
I knew it, but it was new to me.
Helena was thrilled beyond admiration, and Vivian blushed for some reason and glanced at Ian.
Mercy smiled happily, and Kati was alone with other delusions.
Of course, all of this reaction was happening behind Ian’s back, so he didn’t know.
“Well, even if you look at it like this, your body has a direct relationship to the imperial family, so wouldn’t it be better to look good than to look bad at me?”
Ian ended his greeting with a joke that didn’t sound like a joke.
“I want you to act wisely. My greetings end here.”
Ian bit the party waiting behind him.
There is only one reason why he brought the party here.
These are his close aides, implying that he should treat them with care.
Although not mentioned directly, everyone present understood.
Dozens of maids attached and took the party away.
But Ian’s work isn’t over yet.
“There’s something I need to know, so I’ll hear it right here.”
Ian carefully checked the contents of Yeongji.
Castle and church in the center.
Farmland and pastures outside the walls.
Due to the many neglected dungeons, the walls were extended, and most of the residents live inside the walls, only going outside to work.
I was listening to the information I needed.
A butler who was outside hurriedly entered the conference room.
“Excuse me, but a guest has come to visit.”
“Guest?”
Usually, they leave it in the drawing room and wait for it, but if the butler comes in during the meeting, it means that it is an honored guest.
“Yes. This is Arya.”
“… What?”
Ian let out a dumbfounded sound.
Why is that name here?
“And, Kylie-sama also came to visit us.”
“… … .”
The intestines froze in an instant.
There were still people who still envy the 1st party here.
The value of Ian in their minds was being raised again.
“He said he had a very, very urgent request to the Count.”
Although convicted, their executions were suspended due to a judicial transaction.
So I couldn’t despise him like a criminal.
Ian understood the butler’s feelings.
“Is there anything else you need to hear?”
“There is nothing you need to know right now.”
Ian got up from his seat and followed the butler’s guidance to the drawing room.
Aria and Kylie, who had been waiting in their chairs, jumped up.
“Ian… !”
“Ian!”
Before Ian could say anything, the two of them knelt on the floor.
“Please take me back as Ian’s hero!”
“I ask you to give me another chance!”
“… … .”
Ian rubbed his temples.
Two troublesome things come and do troublesome things.