Chapter 382
Louise rdin, Heed the Calling (1)
After a successful fire show which Evan supported and Serena directed, Gnar perford enthusiastically in the sky of Sherden. Evan jumped off from Gnar’s back and landed lightly at the front door of the Marquis Residence.
“I’ll head in first.”
“We will follow after you.”
“Just Lua. The rest will take so rest in the HQ.”
After giving an appropriate order to his mbers and ignoring the fierce glare from the Ironwall Knights, he entered the residence of the Marquis proudly. As he entered the reception hall, he saw the Beifeka Kingdom’s envoy frozen from fear, and his brother Eric gave him a dumbfounded look.
“This, this man…”
“Yes. I’m Evan D. Sherden, the Knight-Commander of Astray.”
While staying in Sherden, people kept calling him Master, so he forgot that he had a title. But that title was one of the biggest leverages which Evan could use in areas like official diplomatic relations. Evan used up all the titles he had for this mont and greeted the visitor humbly while appealing his title.
“I’m Vi-Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Beifeka Kingdom, Count Woord Millan.”
“Count Millan. Pleased to et you.”
“So, so am I. Count Sherden…”
Evan winked at his brother and sat across the vice minister. The Marquis wasn’t present in the area. Eric briefly spoke as Evan was looking for him.
“He left this matter to you and .”
“So, he dodged the troubleso work.”
“It’s because you were the one that made this happen.”
Belois, who quietly entered the room a bit later than Evan, wore a neat maid uniform and offered Evan a cup of steaming hot tea, then stood behind him. The vice-minister flinched again, but Evan didn’t mind it and started to talk.
“You can refer to as Count Evan. Then, shall we get down to business? I heard that you were looking for one of my knights.”
“Ahem, Count Evan. Don’t you think you need to make your maid leave?”
Even after the dragon’s fire show, he still dared to pick on Evan. Evan took a sip from the tea and spoke while smiling gently.
“She is my guardian knight. You don’t need to worry about any information leaks since she won’t do such things.”
“Guardian knight? A maid?”
“Precisely, she is a mber of Astray. She was my forr maid, so even after she beca a knight, she’s been protecting by my side.”
‘You lack information gathering.’
Evan spoke as if it wasn’t a big deal, and the vice-minister shrank noticeably.
“I don’t know what you’ve been told, but I’m concerned whether your information is trustworthy.”
“Ahem! No way, I’ve co here for a clear reason! Since things turned out like this, I’ll get straight to the point. I’ve co here since I heard that the heir of rdin is in this place!”
“If you’re referring to Louise, the daughter of Marquis rdin, she entrusted herself to the Astray…”
Evan grinned and asked him a question.
“rdin’s heir. Isn’t Silan rdin the heir of rdin?”
“Let’s stop with the silly jokes now.”
The vice-minister knocked on the table. He looked into Evan’s eyes with a firm will that he wouldn’t be fooled.
“With rdin turning out like that, we can’t be sure of who survived within it. Then, isn’t it obvious that the sole surviving mber, Luden, no, Louise rdin will beco the heir of rdin?”
“I don’t think Louise will be thrilled to know that she beca the heir of a land she can’t enter due to the seal cast on it.”
Of course, this was a lie. Wasn’t Louise’s life goal recapturing rdin? Such provocation was like fuel to the fire in order to make this conversation flow smoothly.
“Well, the person involved won’t think that way. Allow to et Louise rdin. I’ve brought a magical item that can prove that she is the descendant of rdin Household! So, after doing that, let’s talk about the rest.”
Excluding Evan in his conversation with Louise? Considering Louise’s personality, that wouldn’t be a problem, but that would be allowing Beifeka to have its way. Evan wriggled his eyebrows and tackled him.
“I think you are mistaken. She is a mber of my Knighthood.”
“That I’m certain of.”
“Then I hope you’ll duly note that whatever you are going to speak with Louise, my decision is what matters the most.”
This ti, the vice minister’s eyebrows wriggled. An old eagle was better than a young crow; the atmosphere that the vice minister of the rchant Kingdom Beifeka’s Foreign Affair gave off was also quite strong since he was a veteran in foreign affairs, after all.
“Are you trying to oppress the nobles of our country?”
“Who are you glaring at?”
“Ah, I didn’t an it that way.”
The stance of Woord Millan completely vanished! His total defeat was thinking that he could talk with Evan on an equal footing just because he was sitting at the sa table as him! Evan bluntly clicked his tongue and asked Belois for another cup of tea.
“I didn’t oppress anyone. Didn’t I just ntion that she willingly entrusted herself to Astray? Why would you take my word in such a way?”
“That…I’m not sure. How did she voluntarily apply to beco a knight?”
Evan smacked his lips and chose his words carefully. Hmm, nobody would understand how Louise felt as she escaped barefoot from rdin, which was turning into a living hell, and struggled to survive…but what mattered now wasn’t the truth.
“I believe she wanted to protect herself. The strength and authority that can protect her from any dangers and not just an illusion like the title of a noble!”
And, of course, Astray was the most reliable organization in this world. The vice-minister groaned as if he agreed with what Evan said.
“So, to protect her, I have the right to stand up for her as her guardian in any matter concerning her. I’m protecting her on behalf of her country that failed to do so. So, let say this one more ti. If you have anything to tell her, you can tell instead.”
“Failed…failed to protect her is a misleading word. We simply weren’t able to recognize the existence of Louise rdin…”
“That’s even harsher. It’s like bragging about your incompetence since you weren’t able to find her until she ca to Sherden.”
Evan, who was able to silence the vice minister, let out a deep sigh and undid one of his shirt buttons. It was a gesture to lift the atmosphere into a friendlier one.
“So now, let’s be more open to each other. So, you are already aware that Louise is the child of rdin Household, right? No…rather, it doesn’t matter whether Louise is the actual descendant of rdin or not, isn’t it?”
“How dare you!”
“You’re making deaf.”
“Argh.”
Evan’s eyes beca narrow as he stared at the vice-minister.
“Why have you co for Louise? What do you want from her? Such things are too obvious to , so I’m starting to deduct other possibilities.”
“…”
Evan knew the rchant Kingdom Beifeka very well. Although their achievents weren’t that great throughout the Yo-Ma Great War series, Beifeka was involved in most incidents. A kingdom that has well-developed comrce to the point it was known as the rchant Kingdom. A country known for its information and lively activities. But instead…aside from rdin that contained the undead dungeon, the country’s strength wasn’t that high. So, Beifeka was also called the rcenary Kingdom. It wasn’t because it raised fine rcenaries, but it consistently hired rcenaries whenever sothing ca up.
“To get down to the bottom, you’ve co here to talk to in the first place. Haven’t you? You are in need of an army that can reclaim rdin, isn’t it true? You are trying to take advantage of by using Louise’s existence. Am I wrong? Trying to manipulate ?”
“That’s not…!”
“Or, perhaps, you didn’t think of attacking rdin with just Louise and an army of rcenaries that was ford in haste, did you? They won’t suffice in even scratching the barrier.”
“…”
The vice-minister shut his mouth as he was trying to say sothing. This might infer that there was soone who tried to exclude outsiders aside from Louise. If that was the case…it ant that they weren’t aware of the situation in rdin.
“Hmm, aren’t you ready to talk? I guess the authority given to you as the Count isn’t that great.”
“I’ve been given all the authority from the king himself.”
As Evan tried to get up, the vice minister spoke in haste.
“I wasn’t trying to fool you. Please do understand, as what I’m dealing with is difficult to explain. It was true that I had to speak with the person that holds the succession right to rdin in person…but if you felt offended, I’ll apologize. Let’s talk again.”
Evan looked at him from above then sat down once again. Belois offered him another serving of tea.
“Then, can I take it that you are ready to make an official request to ?”
“I’d like to confirm the identity of Louise rdin before that…”
“I’m sure of it. If our talk ends well, I can even go to the Beifeka Kingdom and have her prove herself.”
“I have no problem with that.”
The vice-minister paused and rephrased his words.
“Since Count Evan saw through everything, I don’t need to beat around the bush…yes, we want to recapture rdin that has been sealed within using Louise as our reason. For the past four years since rdin was sealed, the damages Beifeka suffered were unspeakable. However, all our attempts to lift the seal were aningless, and even if we succeeded in lifting it…”
“Yeah, well, that’s true.”
Beifeka royals must be aware of what happened to rdin that day four years ago. The sa thing happened in both Sherden and Pellati. If rdin had already fallen, and monster forces led by the Demon tribe still existed within the sealed rdin, it was guaranteed that Beifeka couldn’t do anything with their strength. And that was why it was just observing the situation.
“To go straight to the point, we have the ability to recapture rdin. You’ve seen us controlling a dragon a while ago, right? That’s part of our abilities.”
“Ohhhhh!”
“I’ll propose a condition which must be followed absolutely. In ‘rdin Recapture Operation’, Beifeka must not claim its share.”
“What…?”
The vice-minister was dumbfounded. Evan shrugged as he spoke.
“There’s nothing you can do, right? An army that only fills the head quota is just botherso and aningless, so I’m telling you not to dispatch them.”
“But that…!”
“I’m not trying to make rdin independent. The person who will lead the army as a matter of form will be Louise, and once rdin is recaptured, she will swear her loyalty to Beifeka as the new Marquis of rdin. But that’s it. I’m sure you understand where I’m heading.”
“Ahem…”
rdin was economically and politically quite free from Beifeka, just like the other dungeon cities. Of course, Beifeka was prioritized in trading with rdin just because rdin was near it, but the royal family wasn’t satisfied with it. They beca greedier. But rdin was sealed. If the Beifeka royal family succeeded in manipulating Louise, who was the descendant of rdin, and reclaid rdin, what would happen? They would be able to exercise more rights. And Evan was trying to cut off any such attempts.
“I request that Beifeka will not ask too much from Louise and rdin. She is my student, after all. She’s been through tough tis, and I don’t want her to be leveraged by others.”
Soone would think that Louise and Evan had a huge age gap with the way he spoke. The vice-minister beca mute as his intentions were fully seen through, and Evan continued calmly.
“This is what I think. After preparing for the recapture of rdin, I’ll have Louise as the commander and pay a visit to the Beifeka royal family. And they just need to recognize Louise’s legitimacy. Only then will she reclaim rdin with ease and beca the new Marquis. With that, everything will be solved.”
“That’s an act of letting the Sherden army enter the territory of Beifeka. It’s not sothing to be spoken of so lightly.”
“An army, that’s an exaggeration. We won’t be a lot in numbers. It will be about 20 people, more or less.”
“With just 20 people, what are you…!”
“Didn’t you see the dragon?”
The vice-minister shut his mouth once more. Ah, making soone silent with power was the most delightful pleasure.
“I can sign the non-aggression treaty with Beifeka anyti. I don’t intend to harm your country. And neither do I want to make rdin mine. I just want things to go with the flow. I want to reclaim the ho of my beloved student. Do you understand?”
“Is…that really all you ask for?”
“Of course.”
Surely, that wasn’t all. When Louise completely took over rdin, would she let Evan go empty-handed? Nah, she would give him a lot of things. rdin and Sherden would be very favorable as long as Louise lived. And it was better that way without having Beifeka butt in.
“By excluding Beifeka, are you trying to exclude us in the trades after recapturing rdin…?”
“How could we do such a thing? I’ll leave that part to Louise. As I’ve said earlier, once she becos the Marquis of rdin, I have no intention whatsoever of undermining her authority.”
“I see.”
The vice-minister nodded. His expressions seed to brighten up gradually. He must have practiced his poker face as he had traveled a lot for the sake of diplomacy, but he couldn’t fool Evan, who was a seasoned warrior.
‘Louise is a girl, so we can hook her with marriage…’
Evan intentionally gave him a hint to truly think that they were doing a favor for Louise. But the question lay in whether Louise would play by their script, and that would never happen. The darkness inside her was sothing even Evan couldn’t approach.
“Fortunately, our opinions match well. Shall we et in the Kingdom next ti?”
“We will wait.”
The vice-minister stood up. Eric, who was sitting down quietly until now, stared at Evan with a thought of ‘Why on earth am I here?’ but that wasn’t true. The conversation between those two beca official since the person who represented the Marquis’ household was present.
“Your word on being able to recapture rdin, there should be no lies in it.”
“You will be surprised. Wait for us for two months at most.”
Two months. Foreign Affairs Vice Minister Woord Millan repeated the word “Two months” silently and stood up while nodding. He didn’t have the slightest idea about the value of two months for the dungeon explorers.
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