Chapter 69: Chapter 69

After the negotiations concluded, the two armies exchanged the prisoners they had captured from each other.

In terms of numbers, the Duke’s soldiers captured by Shan were several times more numerous, but while those on the other side were all ordinary infantry, those on this side were squires who were reserve knights, making their individual value much higher.

As a result of the agreement, it was decided that Duke of Morayen’s side would pay a prescribed ransom.

Had they been mere conscripts, he might have abandoned them, but since all of them were veterans who had followed him all the way from Libert, losing even a single man was painful, making the negotiation advantageous for Shan’s side.

“Vico!”

“Tavera!”

The two reunited boys embraced each other with tears welling in their eyes.

Originally, they had been somewhat awkward with each other due to their disparate backgrounds (one an Altoan from the capital and the other from a knight family of Palles) but this battle had forged a deep bond between them.

Comrades who had fought together risking their lives were like that.

After sharing such a brief moment of camaraderie, Tavera looked at Shan and bowed his head with a somber expression.

“I have no face to show you, Sir Shan.”

“It’s enough that you survived. I would have been sad if you had died. Your leg doesn’t look good; what condition is it in?”

“Yes. My shin was broken, but I received treatment from the priest over there for now.”

“Ask the priests on our side to look at it again. They have separately learned medicine and are skilled in setting bones. At any rate, welcome back.”

As Shan patted his shoulder and offered encouragement, Tavera could not hold back his tears.

It was because he felt overwhelmingly moved by the fact that a knight who was of similar age to him, yet already stronger and greater than anyone else in the world, was his lord, and that he cared for him.

“Until we meet again, O most beautiful knight!”

While Shan was reuniting with his squire, the Duke offered his farewell and departed to the south with his army.

From now on, starting with the small towns nearby, he would gradually expand his power toward this city of Zerkan.

All Shan’s side had to do was vacate the place before then.

Watching the Duke’s army vanish beyond the horizon stained red by the sunset, Shan raised his clenched fist high and shouted.

“The fight is over! We won!”

The soldiers atop the city wall cheered without exception.

Because the stress brought by experiencing war between humans for the first time had been so overwhelming, the joy upon realizing they could avoid it was equally immense.

By nature, humans were creatures capable of finding joy merely by escaping foreseen suffering and misfortune.

“We won, we won!”

“Damn it, I really thought I was going to die…”

“We’re finally going home!”

While everyone rejoiced, Shan conversed with Roden.

It was to interpret in detail what they had communicated through mere eye contact earlier.

“Will the princess be pleased with this negotiation?”

“At the very least, fighting there wouldn’t have brought us any good. She probably won’t dislike it.”

Roden explained to Shan various political standing considerations that he had not thought of.

Things like the burden Conrad would incur by the Duke making the northwestern region of Pendia his base of operations.

“However, we shouldn’t relax just because of that. Even if it was for the sake of war, he’s a fellow who struck from behind at Conrad, who had taken him in, without hesitation. If he feels we’ve weakened, he might target Palles right away.”

“I’ll have to tell the princess about it.”

“Well, doesn’t she probably know even if you don’t say it?”

Indeed, as she was a young lady second to none when it came to distrusting people, that seemed likely.

Considering that several months had passed since they had talked like that back then, she was still keeping the magic of controlling spiders strictly secret.

Afterward, Roden suggested to Shan that scouts be sent out.

It was on the off chance that the Duke might deceive them and launch a surprise attack in secret.

Shan accepted the suggestion and attached two knights among the scouts as well.

For a main force moving together with hundreds of men, it might be fine, but with fewer people, the risk of monsters ambushing them would increase.

After wrapping up to some extent, Shan went to see Orum, the head of the society, whose health had somewhat deteriorated due to hastily swapping out mana stones during the siege defense.

The old man was lying on a bed in a hastily requisitioned civilian house, recuperating.

“Are you feeling a bit better, Lord Court Count?”

“I… cannot sit by and watch the pinnacle of intelligence in this Pendia disappear… If only I could obtain the wisdom of immortality…”

Although he babbled nonsense with somewhat hazy eyes, seeing that words poured out of him smoothly, his condition did not seem too bad.

Ravana’s daughter, Kiri, was taking care of him.

That night, with only a portion of the shift troops remaining to guard the city wall, everyone slept like the dead in nearby civilian homes or quarters in the wall towers.

Only in the afternoon of the following day did the scouts who had pursued Duke of Morayen’s army return.

They reported that the Duke’s army had moved far enough away that they could not easily give chase.

Even after that, Shan rested in the city of Zerkan for about three more days, as the soldiers who had been severely injured during battle had not recovered enough to march.

Fortunately, thanks to the constant care of the priests, most had recovered enough to walk around passably by around the third day.

Though there were still a few whose condition remained poor, it was enough to put those people in wagons or carts.

The head of the society had also improved considerably, so although walking was difficult, traveling by wagon was manageable.

Until Shan and his army departed the city, the walls of Zerkan City still reeked of blackened, congealed blood and rotting entrails.

*

Fortunately, the road back to Palles was quite peaceful.

The armed force numbering nearly five hundred men made monsters retreat through their sheer presence alone, and a heavy cart occasionally creaking until a wheel broke was something they could take as a cheerful commotion.

What was particularly good was that they could consistently eat fresh meat and vegetables thanks to the magic device brought from Palles.

Cooking and eating with ingredients preserved inside the magic device emitting cold air, Roden strongly argued that in the future, such devices ought to be supplied to an extent capable of storing ingredients for all soldiers to eat.

“I already knew it, but there’s really nothing as important as eating well and deliciously. In battle, the side that fills its belly well wins.”

Since the soldiers’ morale noticeably rose just from eating delicious food, his argument was that this took priority over mass-producing combat magic devices of unimpressive effect for no reason.

Shan, who liked delicious food but fought well even after eating roughly prepared meals, did not understand it very well, but Roden was probably right in this regard.

Thus passed ten days plus four.

After moving slowly for nearly twice as long as when they had set out, the army finally arrived at the Tesen River, the border of Palles.

Sir Norman, an old knight guarding the fortress, welcomed them.

“You have suffered much in foreign lands, Sir Shan! But somehow, you have returned considerably faster than the schedule I heard.”

“Yes. It just turned out that way. Has it been a little over a month?”

“It felt like you departed in the dead of winter, yet before long, it is spring.”

In fact, had they conducted siege battles against several cities according to the original plan, at least two or three months would have had to pass, and military provisions had also been packed abundantly with that in mind.

However, once they quickly brought down Zerkan, the first city, the other terrified cities opened their gates on their own one after another, allowing them to return far faster than originally scheduled.

Though they were held back briefly by Duke of Morayen along the way, that much was hardly a major setback.

Having heard a rough summary of what had happened during that time, Sir Norman gaped in astonishment.

Because everything (from scaling down a cliff to capture a lord, to several dozen men nearly capturing the enemy general in a cavalry charge) was hard to believe.

“It is truly the fact without a single bit of exaggeration.”

“That’s right. From now on, I intend to call Sir Shan the Knight of Thunder, the Wrath of the Goddess!”

Since knights who had grown up in the same domain since childhood and knew his face well said so with excited expressions, he could not disbelieve it.

The knights who had participated in the expedition were so enamored with the idea that they were inside a scene of legend that they could not stand by and let Shan’s achievements be belittled.

Because if so, they themselves who had been together with him would also become people who had accomplished nothing noteworthy.

In effect, followers had come to exist unintentionally.

While those who had set out on the expedition boasted of their battle exploits to the people in the fortress, dozens of carts and wagons acting as evidence appeared from the rear of the column.

Every single one of them was loaded with an immense amount of supplies.

“Wait, is all that…?”

“Yes. It is the harvest of this expedition.”

Starting from over a dozen mana stones to strategic materials like large quantities of iron ingots and small amounts of rare metals, all the way to gold, silver, treasures, and spices.

Although Palles was capable of self-sufficiency in virtually all resources except for mana stones, the greater the influx of external resources, the better.

Especially at a time like now when trade was stagnant and large amounts of resources had to be consumed.

Because the goods were so numerous, even after utilizing all the boats along the riverbank, it took nearly half a day for everyone to enter Palles.

Perhaps because they missed the homeland they had finally returned to, among the soldiers was even one who shed tears and kissed the ground.

“I’ve finally returned, my homeland!”

“I really never want to leave here again…”

Marching along the main avenue leading from the port to Palles City, the army encountered a welcoming crowd before long.

Whether Cheryn had pulled strings in advance, young maidens scattered flowers from all directions while many people waved their hands to welcome the incoming army.

“Thank you for all your hard work, everyone!”

“Thank you, heroes!”

“You are the pride of Palles!”

Shills shouted pre-instructed words toward the approaching soldiers.

Such a welcome erased the shadows of the battlefield remaining in their hearts and instilled pride in them.

In a way, it was a minor thing, but each of these details sometimes played a role greater than any material element.

It was an aspect only Cheryn, adept at handling human psychology, could think of.

At the end of the road followed while receiving a boisterous welcome, Shan dismounted from Arwin and knelt on one knee.

Gathered there were Cheryn, the Count of Palles, and key figures of the domain.

“Shan Barendil has returned after pacifying the rebels according to the command of Your Highness, Princess of Pendia and Duchess of Reinel.”

“I had no doubt that you would carry it out splendidly, my knight. Welcome back.”

Taking the battleaxe, the symbol of command, alongside words of encouragement, Cheryn personally raised Shan to his feet.

Shortly thereafter, her eyes widened upon seeing her knight who had stood up.

‘Why did he grow so fast…?’

Clearly, when he left, he was about similar in height to Cheryn or slightly taller, but in the span of a little over a month, he had grown so rapidly that now she even had to look up at him slightly.

His body had also turned solidly sturdy, to the point that even among the ordinary male soldiers around, his physique did not feel small at all.

Surprise at that fact lasted only a moment before Cheryn quickly corrected her expression, smiled, and commended those behind him.

“I have heard that you achieved outstanding battle merits. I shall properly single you out and grant rewards for your efforts without lacking. In the name of my father, His Majesty the King.”

Her voice, not particularly loud, was amplified by a magical device and delivered to over several hundred soldiers.

Since ancient times, no one disliked being given money, so everyone sang praises of the benevolent princess and let out cheers.

*

While the soldiers merrily ate and drank the prepared food and liquor, the high and mighty also held a welcome banquet among themselves.

Naturally, the location was the banquet hall of the Count’s castle.

There, Cheryn first welcomed her master and the head of the Magic Society, Court Count Tenon, Orum.

“Though it took a long time, I am glad you arrived safely, Master.”

“I too was looking forward to the day we met again, Princess. Seeing how things stand, it seems that instead of pointlessly wilting as a flower of the palace, you decided to burn the world. It is truly just as I expected.”

As usual, Orum uttered words that were ambiguous as to whether they were compliments or not, chuckled, and drank a glass of liquor.

“Be that as it may, I have heard about it, but things certainly do not seem to be going well considering what you started.”

“You will have to help me a lot from now on, Master.”

“Must you abuse this old body so much? It cannot be helped. However, as per our contract, you must also help me with my research later, Princess.”

“If I find the time, that is.”

“Didn’t you say that last time as well before running away? It will be troublesome if you keep making excuses.”

Orum merely used honorific terms, acting as though Cheryn were his disciple or business partner rather than a princess he should respect.

And Cheryn, too, did not find this odd, lightheartedly replying in turn.

Indeed, considering that the title of Court Count of Tenon originally belonged to the advisor of the Pendian King, it was understandable.

“So, what on earth happened that prevented you from coming sooner?”

“A great many things happened.”

At Cheryn’s questioning, Orum let out a small sigh and explained.

At the time Conrad seized the capital, Orum had issued strict orders forbidding anyone from entering his lab located on the top floor on the grounds that he was conducting important research.

The problem was that amid the chaos, no one had reported the escape to the head of the society.

To be precise, as the relevant system was lacking, they passed the buck to one another, so the locus of responsibility evaporated in a muddle.

As a result, when a few days passed and he went downstairs to get a bite to eat because he was gradually feeling hungry and thirsty, the empty Magic Society was awaiting him before he knew it.

“With the money remaining in the lab, it was difficult to hire mercenaries to escort me to Palles, and even if I did hire them, they weren’t trustworthy either. So as an emergency measure, I tagged along in peddlers’ wagons and fled. Though unluckily, it was heading west.”

Thus, Orum arrived in Obilos, a small city located west of the capital Hasra.

To the very city where Shan had hunted the man-eating troll in the past.

While concealing his identity there and earning a modest living through magic while looking for an opportunity, he met Ravana’s group returning from the civil war in Libert, and while heading to Palles, he ended up in that state.

Hearing the story, Cheryn’s gaze turned toward Ravana, who wore a tensely frozen expression.

Perhaps because she was facing a crowd of high-ranking figures whom she had thought she would never see in her entire life, her nervousness was evident just from her stiffly standing rabbit ears.

Indeed, before coming to the banquet hall, Ravana had persistently asked Shan several times what kind of person Cheryn was, and what she liked and disliked.

Saying she did not want to be found fault with in the slightest by the person she would serve from now on.

Even though Shan told her she was not such a particularly difficult person, she showed no sign of believing it.

“Yes, Ravana… I have heard much of your reputation. In the past, I had also tried to invite you once, but the timing did not align, which was a pity.”

“P-Pardon me, Princess.”

“There is nothing to apologize for. I heard through my knight’s report that you accomplished great deeds this time. That you were of great help in bringing my master, and that you played an active role in the defense of the city as well?”

In truth, the contents of the report were almost entirely written by Roden rather than Shan, but she did not bother to mention that.

As Ravana’s face brightened upon realizing that her achievements had not been omitted, Cheryn smiled and spoke.

“Very well. Since the rewarding of merits was something to be done anyway, let us begin now. Sir Shan, do you think the achievements of this woman here were great?”

“Yes, Princess. It is exactly as reported.”

Shan explained to Cheryn in clear, articulate words.

In what manner he had met Ravana, how they had opposed each other, how they had become comrades, and how she had performed.

Cheryn, who sat quietly listening to the story, asked a few more questions of those around her and received their answers.

After doing so, she spoke toward Ravana, who was stiff like a new recruit.

“Are you willing to be knighted by me and swear loyalty? If so, I shall heavily employ your subordinates alongside you. I hear they are all seasoned warriors who grew experienced in the civil war of Libert.”

“Yes, that is correct! They are all individuals loyal to Pendia and Your Highness!”

“Good, then there is nothing holding us back.”

Although it was a mere verbal promise, upon receiving the promise of knighthood, an ecstatic expression appeared on Ravana’s face.

As if unable to distinguish whether this was a dream or reality, she slapped her own cheek right in front of Cheryn, then startled herself and apologized, saying she had been impolite.

In fact, that was closer to a natural reaction for an Altoan receiving knighthood.

Because something she had been unable to grasp despite taking to the battlefield for the first time at fifteen and wandering for nearly twenty years had come into her hands in an instant.

Compared to that, Shan had a sense of having obtained knighthood somewhat too easily relative to his effort, making his emotional reaction lesser.

Of course, hunting the Cockatrice was an achievement more than enough to receive knighthood and to spare.

“Ahem.”

At Ravana’s knighting, several nobles wore somewhat uncomfortable expressions, but could say nothing.

Because with a precedent already set, the unwritten rule was broken, and it was a fact that she had accomplished achievements of that caliber.

Above all, with Shan right beside them, they could not nitpick simply because she was an Altoan.

“The knighting ceremony and oath of allegiance can be done all at once on an auspicious day. Now then… next is the turn of Sir Shan, the greatest contributor to this expedition.”

Cheryn looked at Shan and smiled playfully.

“Your performance against Duke of Morayen’s army was truly beyond what I expected. The negotiations following it were also splendid. However… for a mere knight to permit foreign personnel temporary access to the land of Pendia, even temporarily, is clearly an abuse of authority. It will be troublesome if such an act remains as a precedent.”

As the end of her words, which had begun with praise, turned chilly, those present in the banquet hall looked at each other with flustered expressions.

Why was she acting like this all of a sudden when the atmosphere had been good until a moment ago?

Even though everyone present on the scene had agreed that they could not fight each other to the death until the end in that situation.

Cheryn, who had brought silence over the banquet hall in an instant, continued speaking.

Only then did they realize that her prior rebuke had been a stepping stone to support the content that followed.

“Therefore, in order for the same thing not to happen in the future, it seems he will need greater authority, but as it happens, I do not have a baron title suitable to reward the merit he achieved this time.”

By rights, titled nobility went hand in hand with a domain the party could govern.

However, right now Cheryn possessed no fief or title she could bestow upon anyone.

Because even within the domain of her maternal uncle, the Count of Palles, every barony already had a lawful master.

Nor could she strip the title from an innocent baron household that had done nothing wrong to give it to him.

Promise of a domain she could not actually control was also nothing more than a hollow tale.

“Therefore, in lieu of a title, I intend to appoint Sir Shan as my Guardian Lord so that he may make his own judgment in such situations hereafter.”

At Cheryn’s declaration, those around her opened their eyes wide.

A Guardian Lord was a position that stepped one pace further than the chief knight lords usually maintained.

He held the authority to arbitrarily alter the domain’s military policies or command directly when the lord was absent or unable to give orders for other reasons, and even possessed the authority to summarily execute anyone rebelling against the lord.

Because it was an excessively great authority, most lords left the position of Guardian Lord vacant, and when expanded to a national scale, it was none other than the famous position of Lord Protector held by Marquis Abel.

Considering that he had granted Conrad, his brother-in-law (that is, his younger sister’s husband) the authority to command the royal knights to lead the civil war advantageously, it was effectively granting authority greater than most baron titles.

The external authority that prevented even titled nobles from daring to look down on him was a bonus.

“Princess, even so, that is a bit…”

“It is more than enough, indeed!”

“That’s right! Sir Shan is the very talent best suited for the qualifications of Guardian Lord. I swear on my name!”

Several domain nobles who had remained in Palles attempted to object with reluctant expressions, but they were drowned out by the fierce enthusiasm of Shan’s followers who had participated in the expedition.

This was the difference between those who had witnessed with their own eyes how monstrously active Shan had been during the last expedition and those who had only heard of it through reports.

After witnessing that spectacle that bordered on transcendent with their own eyes, they could not dare to say that the position of Guardian Lord was undeserved.

A moment later, Cheryn, who raised her hand to calm the people down, looked at Shan and smiled bewitchingly.

“Good, since the consensus within the domain is sufficient, there is nothing holding us back. Congratulations, Shan Barendil. My Guardian Lord.”

Thus, Shan Barendil, the first Altoan knight, proceeded forward into the new realm of becoming the first Guardian Lord.