38. You Die if You Pull it Out
Count Sanderson had a haggard face.
He hadn’t slept properly for days, and he didn’t even have time to wash, so he didn’t look good.
He gritted his teeth as he looked at the castle wall.
‘To make Count Sanderson camp outside.’
The line to enter the dukedom was too long.
He couldn’t even complain to anyone.
The nobles who were queuing in front of him were all great.
All of them were dukes or of similar rank.
No matter how great he was, he couldn’t push his way through the envoys representing each country.
Besides, there was no point in causing unnecessary conflict.
It could hinder his plan to take over the dukedom in the future.
However, he had one thing he could rely on.
It was the sickly boy next to him who kept coughing.
“Cough… cough…”
“Are you okay, young master?”
“I’m… I’m okay.”
It was the third son of the Edmer family.
He was a sickly child who should have been in a sanatorium.
It took too long to bring him from a distant land.
But he didn’t regret it.
‘The Duke will soon make the third son his successor.’
He planned to use this guy as an excuse to push his way in.
However, the Duke didn’t move even after hearing that the third son had arrived.
Usually, he would have run out at once.
He called someone just in case.
“Has the servant I sent to the Duke returned?”
“He hasn’t returned yet.”
“That’s strange. It’s been a long time since he should have been back.”
The servant didn’t return even after he sent someone.
When he asked the guards, they just said that they were busy because of the banquet.
‘Is he hiding behind Aiden’s assassination attempt?’
That was why the Count couldn’t contact the information organization or the traitors of the Duke’s family.
If he reached out for nothing and was suspected of being behind the assassination, it would be problematic.
But several days had already passed.
‘No matter what, this is too much. He can’t just leave the successor out in the open like this.’
The third son of the Edmer family was feeling extreme fatigue from the long camping.
If he were to die in vain, only the Count would be troubled.
So he couldn’t endure it any longer.
Count Sanderson pushed through the wall of nobles blocking his way.
“I will pass.”
“No! What is this man doing right now…….”
“Can’t you see that the Duke is right here!”
At first, the nobles were angry.
But they soon had no choice but to swallow their anger.
“Your Highness! This way!”
“I…… I can’t believe that’s the Third Prince!?”
Count Sanderson had put Edmer’s third son, Allison, in front.
No matter how high-ranking the nobles were, they couldn’t block the direct line of the Edmer Dukedom from entering first.
Until now, the Count had endured, watching the nobles’ reactions, but the legitimacy was on their side to begin with.
Then the knights guarding the door blocked the two.
“Wait in line.”
“Can’t you see who this is?”
Count Sanderson pointed to Allison, who was next to him.
Then Allison revealed his sickly face.
“It’s been a long time, Sir Jonathan.”
“Prince Allison? You’re supposed to be at the vacation home, so how did you get here…….”
The knights looked bewildered.
It was no wonder since they had blocked the path of the direct successor.
Count Sanderson forced the knights aside with a faint smile.
“Why is there a reason needed for the Third Prince to return home? Get out of the way.”
“…….”
“Are you going to move?”
The Count tried to push the knights and go inside.
However, their rock-solid shoulders didn’t let him pass.
“The Edmer family doesn’t resort to such petty thievery.”
“What?”
“It’s the same even if it’s the Third Prince. The others are waiting, so please wait your turn.”
“Wh…… What is this!”
Count Sanderson shouted before he realized it.
Aiden was dead, and the third son was the closest to the position of Duke.
How dare they treat such a successor so lightly.
Their eyes seemed to ask if he was in his right mind.
“Do you think His Majesty would forgive you if he knew of this! He is the prince he cherishes the most!”
“Even so, it cannot be helped.”
“……!”
Have these people gone mad?
However, the knight’s attitude did not change.
Instead, it became even more resolute.
“The late Grand Duke had ordered that no one should be exempt.”
“……!”
“The times call for it, and the prince will understand.”
It was an order from none other than the Knight King.
Count Sanderson genuinely could not understand this situation.
However, the reactions of those around him were different.
They were people who had always harbored ill feelings toward Sanderson, who had always ignored the other nobles.
“My, as expected of the Edmer family. They are strict, even with their children.”
“But who on earth is that man, trying to play the hero? Tsk, tsk.”
This is… damn it.
The atmosphere was not good.
At this rate, Count Sanderson’s name could be openly discussed.
There was only one other way.
“Then at least tell the Grand Duke that we are here…”
“He is busy.”
“Look here. I am Count Sanderson. I have dined with the Grand Duke and even shared a bath…”
“Those are the orders of the late Grand Duke, the Grand Duke’s father. Fall in line, or turn around.”
“……!”
Count Sanderson turned around with a grumbling face.
He was bewildered, but he did not waver.
‘What on earth makes you so arrogant? Just you wait and see.’
However, a problem arose.
From Noble mtl dot com
He could not get through to the Grand Duke, whom he had trusted.
He had also lost contact with the spies he had planted.
‘Even the servants who have been taking my money are nowhere to be seen.’
Count Sanderson felt a sense of unease and foreboding.
It was as if someone was targeting him.
‘Nothing is going my way.’
In the first place, why did the [Knight King] suddenly appear and start pushing me around?
And who could not guess that the reason he was making me wait like this was to hide the internal affairs that had been shattered because of the Demonkin?
Irritation filled him to the brim.
‘Once I get inside, it will all be over.’
Days passed in such anger.
Somehow, I was able to pass through the gates of the dukedom and arrive at the ducal castle.
However, it wasn’t the duke who awaited him.
“The former duke has entered! Show respect, everyone!”
“……!”
On the second-floor staircase, where everyone was looking, the knight king appeared.
The count was surprised by the unexpectedly intact interior. No, rather than intact, it was magnificent.
The nobles who were planning to wipe out the Edmer family due to the demon invasion were all surprised.
Duke Edmer was nowhere to be seen.
But that wasn’t the strangest thing.
‘Who is that guy……?’
The problem was the man in luxurious clothing next to the knight king.
People were also buzzing.
“He doesn’t seem to be from the Edmer family…….”
“What is he doing, a non-grandson of the duke acting like a successor by his side?”
“Is he a noble?”
“A hidden child?”
However, Count Sanderson narrowed his brow.
A noble? No.
I’m seeing him for the first time, but his face looks familiar somehow…….
Then it hit me.
‘That guy is…!’
The slave from the labor camp who had insulted the count through the magic crystal!
I don’t know what tricks he used, but how is a mere slave next to the knight king?
At that moment, the count’s face, which had been flustered, brightened.
Wasn’t he the one who had been looking for the slave who had made him lose his temper?
‘This is a chance. A chance to get my hands on the former duke, not the duke!’
Surely the former duke doesn’t know that guy’s true identity and brought him with him.
The corners of Count Sanderson’s lips rose.
* * *
As the banquet began, everyone’s gazes turned to the main character.
“Who exactly is that person?”
“Is he perhaps the knight king’s hidden child?”
“Or maybe his disciple?”
They watched each other’s expressions, eager to speak first.
If only the knight king wasn’t there, they would have already rushed forward.
That guy over there is the same.
‘We finally meet, Count Sanderson.’
His gaze had noticed my identity a long time ago.
He was watching for a chance to attack at any moment.
His gaze turned as cold as ice as he looked at the count.
‘The time has come for me to avenge my personal grudge.’
He had harbored hope for the third prince standing beside him, but it was useless to bring him along.
The duke who would support the third prince had been imprisoned for a long time, and even Aiden, whom he thought was dead, had survived.
Moreover, the Saintess was with the protagonist.
Whispers were already circulating in the banquet hall.
“Weren’t there rumors that the Demon King’s curse was about to take effect?”
“Unlike the rumors, he seems to be perfectly fine. I would have been in great trouble if I hadn’t checked for myself.”
“Well, there’s no way the greatest warrior on the continent would lose to that demon.”
“He’s not called the strongest shield for nothing. He’s like the guardian deity of the north.”
News of the Saintess’s well-being spread quickly.
They had managed to control the rumors about Duke Edmer as much as possible.
It was only a matter of time before the dukedom’s reputation would spread again.
‘You may have thought of devouring the dukedom, but things didn’t go your way.’
As proof of this, the reactions of the high-ranking nobles were unusual.
“Is that the hero?”
“Our country told us to contact him by any means necessary.”
“It’s the same for us. We were ordered to befriend him no matter what.”
Such attention from the very beginning.
Originally, something like this would only be possible for the Balentino Saga in the latter half, after they had built up their reputation.
This change was also possible because this was reality.
‘Well, it was different from the start.’
Hadn’t he deliberately changed the situation to his advantage?
From now on, the protagonist’s task was simple.
‘Heighten their警戒心 against the demons and make them promise their full support for me.’
That would truly shake the political landscape of the continent.
As a result, he would be able to obtain things that he would never have been able to obtain otherwise.
So the protagonist smiled at everyone.
“Yes, I am [that] person.”
He made a graceful hand gesture as well.
It seemed like a simple greeting, but it was a greeting that strictly followed noble etiquette.
It wasn’t a skill he had.
‘With all the years I’ve spent playing games, can’t I even imitate this?’
Honestly, he didn’t even need special training.
After finishing his training with the Saintess, his potential had increased enough.
This world seemed to recognize that as well.
＜[Noble Etiquette] has been acquired＞
＜[Dignity] has been acquired＞
He had acquired new abilities.
It wasn’t difficult for the current protagonist to obtain these abilities.
And thanks to the slightly more graceful movements he showed, the eyes of the nobles around him also changed.
“This hero is different from birth.”
“Indeed, every action overflows with grace. It’s no wonder the former Duke brought him here.”
Everyone looked surprised.
Heroes have always come from among the lowly commoners.
Unlike the heroes of humble origins, Joo-Youn was too natural.
At that moment, several nobles who did not miss the opportunity approached Joo-Youn cautiously.
“I would like to talk to you for a moment.”
“I have a message from my country that I must deliver to the hero.”
They secretly handed him letters.
There were also those who handed over what appeared to be bribes.
Joo-Youn accepted what they gave him, chuckling.
‘There’s no harm in receiving it. This level of bribe is like a greeting to them.’
Joo-Youn never hurried.
He met the envoys of each faction one by one.
From the soldiers of the desert to the immigrants of the sea.
From the magicians of the Magic Tower to the priests of the temple.
But something was strange.
‘The elves of the Sky Island have not come?’
One of the former hero’s companions.
Only the Sky Island, where the Elf Grand Duke belongs, did not send an envoy.
It was strange, but he just let it go.
‘Originally, the early stages have never been this smooth. It’s not the elves that are important now.’
The knights next to Joo-Youn were the problem.
“Do not approach.”
“Keep your place.”
They were repelling the envoys who were approaching Joo-Youn under the pretense of maintaining order.
They were so thorough as if they would not let him be taken away.
It was as if they were advertising that Joo-Youn belonged to the Edmer family.
Well, it didn’t matter.
‘I’ve met everyone I need to meet.’
He had made separate appointments with the important envoys of each faction.
Wasn’t there a bigger reason why he created this place in the first place?
‘Count Sanderson. It’s your turn.’
Joo-Youn took a step toward Count Sanderson.
Then, as if he had been waiting, the guy headed toward Joo-Youn.
Eyes as if he knew his true identity.
‘A cheeky slave. I don’t know what tricks you played on the former Duke, but I’ll reveal your true identity.’
That gaze was felt clearly.
However, Joo-Youn did not stop in front of him.
“Are you the third son of the Edmer family?”
Erissen, who was next to the Count, was taken aback.
He looked at Joo-in with caution.
He couldn’t help it. He had just returned home after a long time, and there was a guy he didn’t know next to his grandfather.
“I’m Erissen, but who are you….”
“You’ve got the wrong line. That line is a rotten rope.”
“Ye… Yes?”
“Are you just plain stupid, or is your greed so great that it’s beyond imagination?”
Erissen was so bewildered that he missed the timing to respond.
Of course, as a blood relative of Duke Edmer, he would never have received such treatment.
But no one present failed to understand Joo-in’s words.
Especially Count Sanderson.
“What did this slave just say? A rotten rope?”
Not only had he ignored him, but he had also publicly insulted Erissen, his benefactor, right in front of him.
“A low-born man eventually shows his true colors.”
Count Sanderson shouted at the escort knight behind him.
“What are you doing! Are you just going to stand there while your master is being insulted!”
“I apologize, my lord.”
The count’s escort knight quickly drew his sword.
Clang!
And he tried to point the sword at Joo-in.
But he couldn’t extend his sword.
“You’ll die if you draw that sword.”
Joo-in said with a smile, and as soon as he spoke.
Clang, clang, clang!
In an instant, swords were pointed at the necks of not only the escort knight but also Count Sanderson.
Sanderson’s face turned pale.