Chapter 39 - A Song Dedicated to a Big, Beautiful Green Lump (1)

「The fortress located at the northernmost point of the kingdom」

「The kingdom's shield, blocking the southward route of the monsters inhabiting the Blade Mountains」

「A strategic stronghold where half of House Ballorhard's forces are permanently stationed」

「The garrison of the renowned Ballorhard Rangers, the kingdom's famed mountain infantry, and the headquarters of the 3rd Legion」

「An anti-monster fortress that exists solely to stop monsters」

That was Winter Castle as military experts described it,

「A front-line fortress where grappling with ferocious monsters is part of daily life」

「The worst possible post, cold, harsh, dangerous, and with a low survival rate」

「A strange place where only recruits and veterans exist」

That was Winter Castle as ordinary soldiers described it.

「The reason House Ballorhard was granted near-unlimited recruitment rights and countless other privileges」

「The reason House Ballorhard can no longer grow any larger」

「House Ballorhard's greatest weapon and, at the same time, its greatest weakness」

And that was Winter Castle as the nobles of the world gossiped about it.

Some said it was simply a cold and desolate place, while to others, it was a place where one could most easily obtain byproducts from monster carcasses.

But to men born and raised in Ballorhard, Winter Castle meant something else entirely.

It was a lifelong duty and pride their ancestors had protected with their lives, and which they, too, had to protect.

To Vincent Ballorhard, the eldest son of House Ballorhard and a promising Triple Chain knight, Winter Castle meant exactly that.

It was the sacred and noble duty the kingdom had bestowed upon his house.

And now, cold water had been poured over that pride that must never be defiled.

The infamous Scoundrel First Prince was coming to this noble land their ancestors had protected with their lives.

And not only was he coming, he was dragging all manner of filthy rumors with him.

They said he was being exiled after earning His Majesty's hatred, and they said he had committed a grave crime and was fleeing here.

To Vincent, who had regarded the defense of Winter Castle as his lifelong aspiration and pride, it felt as though he had been insulted.

This castle was a fortress for true warriors who would throw away their lives like straw for a noble conviction.

It was not a place of exile for those driven out after committing crimes.

"Why on earth?"

Vincent could not understand.

His father had already declared that he was cutting ties with his scoundrel nephew.

And the father Vincent knew was not the kind of man who would easily take back words he had spoken.

Yet that father had supposedly reversed his decision.

And not merely reversed it, but overturned it completely.

An official declaration of support for a scoundrel whom even his own father had all but cast aside.

When Vincent first heard the news, he could not believe it.

Because he knew better than anyone how his father had usually regarded that scoundrel.

So he thought it was an idle rumor, baseless nonsense.

But it was not.

The rumor was true.

His father becoming the official guardian of the Scoundrel First Prince, and that scoundrel coming here, were both true.

"The soldiers are unsettled."

"They are all worried that the royal family may perhaps think of this place as little more than a prison for criminals."

The front-line commanders came to him and voiced their concerns about the rumor.

"We think the same."

"If the royal family truly thinks of Ballorhard that way, there could be no greater insult."

"How can they look down so on the devotion and sacrifice Ballorhard has shown?"

"I worry that the royal family and nobles have forgotten the harshness of winter in the warmth of summer."

The commanders looked as though they had been insulted.

Vincent understood their concerns and anger.

He felt exactly the same way.

But now was not the time to argue over the presence of an unwelcome guest.

Winter was coming.

A season so harsh that those enjoying the sunshine of fine summer days could never even imagine it was imminent.

"Inspect the fortress and strengthen the watch."

"If necessary, you may send additional Rangers out on patrol."

"I will leave the patrol routes and schedules to you."

It was not yet time, but still, one never knew.

Monsters sometimes displayed incomprehensible behavior.

He kept his nerves taut and listened closely to the Rangers' reports.

He did not overlook even the smallest sign, and if even the slightest suspicion arose, he sent Rangers to check thoroughly.

Rumors or not, the important thing for now was to defend the fortress until his father arrived.

Fortunately, just as winter began in earnest, his father returned through the blizzard.

But his father's face was a terrible sight.

The eyes that had once brimmed with vitality were hollow, and his cheeks were gaunt and sharply sunken.

His father, who had remained steadfast even after fighting for days on end, looked terribly exhausted.

It must all be because of that scoundrel bastard.

Vincent looked at the unwelcome guest who had come to the castle.

He was quite different from what Vincent had heard.

Since he was wrapped tightly in thick furs, Vincent could not properly confirm his physique, but at the very least, he was not the obese pig the rumors described.

That, too, must be thanks to his father.

Vincent, who had been narrowing his eyes, belatedly noticed the scoundrel's companions.

Absurdly enough, the First Prince had appeared with women in tow.

"Ha, to think he would show up with women in tow."

"One's a maid, and the other his lover?"

The soldiers atop the wall stirred.

Some even sneered, asking if he had mistaken this place for a nobles' resort.

"That is the uniform of a Royal Knight."

Someone stepped forward and said the dazzlingly beautiful woman was a knight of the royal family, but not a single person took it at face value.

It was well known that idle nobles dressed their lovers in whatever clothes suited their tastes.

Obviously, that woman's attire was also the prince's preference.

Vincent frowned.

He truly was an outrageous bastard.

Vincent was so dumbfounded that he was at a loss for words.

"Should you not go down?"

Only after hearing his adjutant's words did he realize he had been looking down at his father from atop the wall.

He hurried down the stairs and stood before his father.

"Vincent Ballorhard!"

"As of today, I conclude my duties as Acting Commander and return to my post as Ranger Company Commander!"

With a disciplined military salute, he laid down the duties of Acting Commander that he had received from his father.

"I sincerely welcome the return of the Commander!"

"I commend you for your efforts until now."

"You did well, Company Commander."

Once the official handover ended, his father strode over and embraced Vincent.

"You did well, Vincent."

"I am glad you returned safely, Father."

As they were sharing the emotions of their reunion, an unpleasant voice rang out.

"What, maternal uncle?"

"You had a son?"

It was the scoundrel bastard.

Vincent frowned.

In private, he was the prince's maternal uncle, and in public, he was a great lord and the Commander of the 3rd Legion.

The way the prince addressed such a man without even the bare minimum of respect he ought to show was exactly what Vincent had heard of the scoundrel.

"How old do you think I am?"

"Did you think I still would not have even one child under my roof?"

Yet his father accepted the sarcasm without the slightest reaction.

"Vincent."

His father gave him a look.

Vincent reluctantly endured what he did not want to do and knelt on one knee.

"Vincent of House Ballorhard, Ranger Company Commander of Ballorhard, greets Your Highness the First Prince."

"Yeah, good to meet you."

The scoundrel bastard spoke arrogantly and blinked at him.

Seeing as he did not even tell Vincent to rise, his appearance might have changed, but his nasty temperament was exactly as the rumors said.

After Vincent had knelt on that cold floor for quite some time, the scoundrel made a fuss about being cold.

"Please go inside."

Vincent subtly rose and arranged a place for the prince and his party to rest.

"Father, what on earth is going on?"

As soon as he was alone with his father, Vincent asked.

"It is as you heard."

"I have decided to become Adrian's guardian, and Adrian will be staying in Ballorhard for the time being."

"Is he not an unwanted burden whom even Your Majesty cast aside?"

"Is he not the degenerate whom even you, Father, once harshly criticized and cast out for his worthless character?"

"People are bound to change."

Vincent was confused.

He could not tell whether those words meant his father had changed, or whether the First Prince had changed.

His father sighed and explained everything that had happened in The Capital until now.

"Ha."

After hearing the entire explanation, Vincent let out a hollow laugh.

A scoundrel who had nearly died, lost his memories, and became a new man was a hackneyed tale not even a storyteller in a cheap tavern would tell.

But since it was his proud father saying it, Vincent could not refuse to believe him.

"There is only one thing I ask of you."

His father looked out the window for a moment, then spoke.

"Watch him without prejudice."

"No, after all he has done until now, how can that be as easy as it sounds..."

Vincent beat his chest and complained of his frustration, but his father remained unchanged.

Just watch him, he said.

Wait and see what kind of person the First Prince is, he said.

He merely repeated the same words several times.

* * *

At a fortress where the winds of war were gathering, I was invited to a simple dinner instead of a welcoming ceremony.

I left Nicolo, who had collapsed without recovering from the fatigue of the journey, and headed to the dining hall with only Arwen and Adelia.

"How is the clearing of the monster settlements progressing?"

"We have steadily reduced their numbers until now, but quite a few places remain uncleared."

"Now that you have come, Father, we intend to move in earnest."

When I arrived at the dining hall, my maternal uncle was seriously discussing something with the others.

"Ah, don't bother."

"Just stay seated."

I stopped Vincent and the other commanders from rising when they saw me, then quickly planted my backside in an empty seat.

Adelia and Arwen took their seats right beside me.

The commanders' eyes widened when they saw Arwen.

Her beauty, which had once received all the love of the Iron Lions, remained intact even in Winter Castle.

"Tsk."

My maternal uncle clicked his tongue.

The startled commanders rose from their seats and introduced themselves.

I answered them halfheartedly and staved off my hunger with the food laid out on the table.

As I focused on stuffing food into my mouth like that, the voices of my maternal uncle and the commanders reached my ears.

They talked about which monsters in which settlement had to be dealt with first, and how many troops had to be dispatched.

Listening to them, it seemed they intended to launch a preemptive strike before the monsters began rampaging in earnest.

Countless familiar names, including goblins, flowed past my ears.

"Then these will be handled by the Ranger company."

There were quite a few monster settlements mentioned.

But Vincent's face as he spoke was utterly calm.

It was as if those trifling small monsters were beneath his notice.

"The problem is the Orcs."

My ears perked up at the word Orcs.

"A small Orc group of fewer than twenty has settled near the entrance to the mountains."

"They likely came down ahead of time to serve as scouts."

"If we do not deal with this side first, there may be problems with the Rangers' retreat routes later."

"With that many Orcs, it would be difficult to handle them with the Rangers' arrows alone."

"So we are currently selecting knights stationed within the castle..."

Vincent shut his mouth when he saw me suddenly approach.

"Your Highness?"

"Is there something you wish to say..."

Instead of answering, I looked over the map they had spread out.

Countless small figurines, each shaped like a different monster, were placed on top of the map.

"This one."

I picked up one of them.

"I'll take it."