Chapter 78 - The Truth Was, He Wanted Those Sour Grapes

Unfortunately, organizing an expedition to search for the old monster containment facility would have to wait. With the king restored to life, there was no telling how the political situation would change.

One thing, however, was certain: they needed to maintain their connection with the Kanzen Wetlands, Viscount Treva’s domain. Compared with traveling southeast from Pales to Shedil, then heading back northeast, a route running straight east offered enormous geographical advantages.

As a result, when Viscount Treva visited Pales Castle with the returning hunting party the following day, he received a far warmer welcome than he had expected.

“Welcome, Viscount Treva. I am Sherin Giselle Aste Hasra, Princess of Pendia and Duchess of Rainel.”

“A-a pleasure to meet you, Princess... Your Highness. I am Niron Kiyes, Viscount Treva.”

A mere country noble—and a young viscount who had only inherited his title a few weeks earlier upon his father’s death—he was flustered to have the princess personally welcome him. That feeling only grew at the banquet that followed.

“Would you look at this...”

“To think all we did was cross a single mountain range.”

The sight of the banquet hall left not only Viscount Treva but also his accompanying retainers utterly dazed.

Dozens of magical lights adorned the ceiling, the sort one might expect to find in the royal palace in Hasra. Magical heaters filled the hall with a pleasant warmth that banished the winter chill. Then there was the food: fine white bread, fresh meat and fish cooked with all manner of herbs, well-preserved vegetables, and fruit wine. All of it was spread across an enormous table, where dozens of people ate, drank, and enjoyed themselves to their hearts’ content.

For people who considered it a banquet to fill their bellies with muddy-tasting marsh fish and frogs by candlelight and hearth fires within cold stone walls, it could only be described as a culture shock.

“Truth be told, we haven’t always lived like this ourselves. We owe it all to Her Highness.”

“Indeed. From those lamps to this fresh food, there is scarcely anything she hasn’t had a hand in.”

As an elderly baron from Pales spoke with a hearty chuckle, Yurk and the other barons joined in, reciting one after another the reasons Pales had become such a wonderful place to live. Their praise was so blatant it was almost embarrassing, yet Sherin answered with an unruffled smile, her expression otherwise unchanged. Such a thick skin was another quality a good ruler needed. Besides, it was not as though they were making it all up.

After listening to their praises for some time, the viscount spoke quietly with his retainers.

“I felt it on the way here, too, but Pales truly is a paradise on earth...”

“Indeed it is, my lord.”

Staying in villages as they traveled up the Tessel River had impressed upon them just how good life was in this land. Yet none of those impressions compared with what they felt upon reaching the count’s castle in Pales. If only they could bring even a fraction of this astonishing abundance back to their impoverished wetlands...

Just as that thought crossed his mind, Sherin looked at the viscount and spoke casually.

“Come to think of it, my knight told me you wished to keep the newly discovered passage open rather than seal it.”

“Ah, yes. That is correct!”

“We are looking favorably upon the idea ourselves. There is, however, something you should know first.”

Sherin told the delighted viscount about the letter that had recently arrived: the king had regained consciousness, declared his support for Prince Elvin, and ordered all the other factions to disband.

“Ah...”

Both Viscount Treva and his retainers looked disconcerted. If what she said was true, had they been struggling to attach themselves to a rope that was about to snap?

“Naturally, we have no intention of complying. Elvin merely intimidated my father into writing that letter against his will. Which brings me to my request: I would like you to join us in this, Viscount.”

“M-me, Your Highness? That is...”

Confronted without warning with such a momentous decision, the flustered viscount glanced around with wavering eyes. Sherin gave him a sinister smile and murmured with the wickedness of a serpent.

“Think about it. If Elvin becomes the next king, what benefit will that bring your domain? You will simply go on living as you always have. Is that truly the best course?”

“Well...”

“By contrast, if you support our declaration, you stand to gain far more. Nor would it endanger your domain. Fool though Elvin is, even he would not march an army into those treacherous wetlands. After all, the warriors of the Kanzen Wetlands have a history of repelling invading forces more than twice their number...”

Though several years older than Sherin, the viscount found himself helplessly led about like a mere novice. The intimidation of entering another power’s stronghold, his confusion at the unexpected news, and several other factors had all combined to leave him vulnerable.

In the end, the stammering viscount agreed to everything Sherin wanted. Not only would he issue a joint statement opposing Elvin, he also verbally committed to an agreement that left him practically halfway to becoming her retainer. He was, of course, promised compensation to match. Sherin intended to develop the Kanzen Wetlands, using them to make up for her shortage of people and resources while establishing a route to the Demonlands. Their subordinates would have to work out the details, but with the broad framework settled, the agreement itself would not change.

“Now, comrades have come to fight alongside us! Let us all welcome them!”

Sherin raised her goblet and called out, prompting the retainers of Pales to sling their arms around Viscount Treva’s men and clink cups with them. Most of the latter still looked rather bewildered, but harmony was always a cause for celebration.

* * *

The unexpected agreement was followed by the distribution of rewards for the hydra hunt. Naturally, the first honor went to Shan Barendil, the Lord Guardian and the man who had contributed most. With Shan standing beside her, Sherin addressed the gathering.

“Sir Shan’s armor was utterly ruined during this hunt. On my name, I promise that he shall be recompensed with armor sturdier and more powerful than any possessed by anyone in the Arman Alliance!”

“I have no doubt that day will come, my liege.”

Shan gave the formal reply, then dropped to one knee and kissed the back of her hand.

Anticipation lit the knights’ faces at Sherin’s declaration. Such words might have been empty boasting from another ruler, but this was a genius mage who personally created all manner of magical devices. Shan might have outdone them this time, but they could reasonably hope to receive something themselves if they someday rendered distinguished service.

The next to be honored was Ravana, who had severed no fewer than two of the hydra’s legs. She, too, was promised armor better than what she currently wore, though not of the same caliber as Shan’s. After several more knights had received their rewards, Sherin turned her gaze toward the priest whose hood was pulled low over her face.

“And next... yes, Priest Asha. Is that correct?”

“It is, Your Highness.”

“Hmm.”

A complicated tangle of emotions crossed Sherin’s face as she regarded the priest. Just as the brief silence began to unsettle some of those present, she smiled.

“You have my deepest gratitude. Thanks to you, my Lord Guardian and all the others were spared great suffering.”

“As a priest of the Goddess, I merely did what I should for warriors who fought monsters.”

“Even so, it would reflect poorly upon me if I failed to reward you. Tell me if there is anything you desire.”

“I...”

Asha glanced at the viscount, then bowed her head.

“I only wish for the people of my homeland to be free from hunger.”

She had hesitated because she knew her request could be taken as criticism of the viscount. Asking the ruler of another domain to feed her people was tantamount to saying their own lord could not.

“That is easily done. I shall see that you can take a hundred pigs home with you. Would that be insufficient?”

“A hundred...!”

The viscount and the others stared wide-eyed at a reward on a scale they had never dared imagine.

Considering the expense of inviting a high-ranking priest, it was hardly an extravagant payment. But for all her exceptional ability, Asha’s social standing was merely that of an ordinary priest in a rural domain.

“Th-thank you.”

Even Asha, who always seemed so detached from worldly concerns, stumbled over her words for a moment.

Contrary to the expectations of the viscount and his companions, Sherin showed no further interest in Asha after promising the reward. Having taken it for granted that she would try to recruit the priest, they felt both relieved and puzzled.

‘Why?’

Her next words answered that question.

“Ah, I nearly forgot. Priest Asha, might we call upon you should we have a gravely ill patient here in the future?”

“If the patient needs me, I will come.”

“That is a relief. Of course, I would feel safer with you at my side, but everyone has a homeland they are reluctant to leave.”

The subtle suggestion that she was showing consideration not only for Asha but for Viscount Treva as well earned her a grateful nod from him. With the discussion of the priest concluded, Sherin unexpectedly turned her gaze toward Roden, who had been attending Shan while enjoying the banquet beside him.

“Squire Roden.”

“... Yes, Your Highness.”

“You have served the Lord Guardian for a long time. You have rendered many services, including commanding troops on his behalf, and during this hunt you helped Sir Ravana sever the hydra’s legs.”

“That was...”

“You are no longer so young that you should remain a squire, and your accomplishments are outstanding. Thus, I wish to place a weighty honor upon your house, here and now, with my own hands.”

Roden looked flustered at her declaration that she would knight him. It was a moment he had once wished for with all his heart, over and over again. But he knew better than anyone that he was unworthy of it.

“Your Highness, I—”

“I know why you hesitate to answer. I assure you, anyone who denies your knighthood for the reason you have in mind will be deemed to have slighted my honor. Your courage and loyalty leave nothing wanting in a knight of Pendia.”

Roden’s eyes widened at her allusion to his fatal flaw: his phobia of blades. Instinctively, he looked at Shan, only to see his old friend give a slight shake of his head.

‘Shan didn’t tell her, but she knew? How?’

While he was still reeling in confusion, Shan rose to his feet.

“I swear before you all, here and now: anyone who considers my squire Roden unfit to be a knight must prove it in a duel to the death against me!”

It was effectively a declaration that Pendia’s strongest knight would personally take the life of anyone who challenged Roden’s qualifications in the future.

Everyone present welcomed Roden’s elevation to knighthood. All the retainers of Pales knew of his considerable fighting ability, outstanding leadership, and attention to detail. Indeed, some seemed unable to understand why something so natural required quite so much forceful encouragement.

“Surely there’s nothing to fault in young Roden, whether in skill or character?”

“Indeed. One blow from that war flail of his would crush a mere troll to death.”

“It was stranger that he was still a squire. I accepted it because the man he served was Shan Barendil, of all people.”

With the mood so firmly in his favor, Roden could no longer use his flaw as grounds to refuse. Doing so would disgrace both Sherin and Shan. He was about to rise, telling himself that he truly did not want this but had no choice except to accept, when he realized he had been lying to himself all along.

He did not want to settle for being a mere squire.

He wanted to become a knight.

Otherwise, why had he trained relentlessly instead of contenting himself with serving as Shan’s lieutenant? He had simply been afraid of making a disgraceful spectacle of himself on the battlefield as a knight and earning everyone’s scorn.

As that realization dawned on him, Shan slipped an arm around his shoulders and whispered.

“It’s all right.”

“Is it really? What if I...”

“Sometimes you have to back yourself into a corner with no way out before you can make something happen. Maybe that’s what you need, too.”

Shan spoke from experience. It was only when the sword of a mercenary disguised as a bandit had come right up to his face that he had finally resolved to fight someone. After hearing his whisper, Roden knelt on one knee before Sherin.

“I, Roden Wievers, humbly accept Your Highness’s will.”

Everyone in the banquet hall applauded, celebrating the success of a young man who had once abandoned his dream.

* * *

The day after the banquet, Shan and Roden visited the smithy in the count’s castle together. Shan had come to discard Kamad’s armor, which was now beyond use, and have his measurements taken for a new suit. Roden, too, was there to commission the plate armor he would wear as a knight. Sitting on chairs in the sweltering heat of the smithy, the two chatted quietly.

“Damn it, how long have you been planning that?”

“Since yesterday. After all you’ve accomplished, it’d be ridiculous for you not to be a knight.”

The most convenient thing about Squire Roden becoming Sir Roden was that they could now speak informally even in front of others. As the princess’s Lord Guardian, Shan held an ambiguous rank about half a step above a knight and half a step below a titled noble. At that level, no one would criticize him for speaking casually with a knight his own age who was also a close friend.

“You got me good. I still don’t know if this is really right...”

“I told you, it’s fine. You can do it. I know you can.”

Shan slapped his worried friend on the back and chuckled. Faced with a friend who had more faith in him than he had in himself, Roden let out a sigh, then laughed as well.

What else could he do now that it had come to this? He would just have to overcome that paltry problem somehow and stand tall as a worthy knight in his own right.

What gave Roden strength was the memory of Kalion weeping as he watched his son being knighted. He could swear it was the first time in his life he had ever seen his father cry. It was neither the stern face he showed his children and subordinates nor the servile one he presented to knights and nobles. Those were simply the tears of a father rejoicing in his child’s success... What could possibly give a child more strength and courage than that?

“All right. Let’s give it a try.”

Roden spoke softly as he watched the hammer strike the anvil with a clang, sending sparks flying.

Despite that resolve, he had no immediate opportunity to accomplish anything remarkable as a knight. What Pales needed now was not military force, but intelligence and domestic administration. The most important task on the domestic front was putting the hydra’s remains to use.

For a start, its magic stone was incomparably larger than those of other monsters of the same caliber. That did not, however, make it superior to an ogre’s magic stone. Size alone did not determine a stone’s quality. One might say that the species it came from determined its output, while size determined how long it could sustain that output.

Sherin therefore decided to divide the hydra’s magic stone and use the pieces to replace the stones previously installed in the other knights’ equipment. The stones freed up in this way would go toward making smaller magical devices. A considerable number were also used in armor made from the hydra’s scaled hide.

Tanned through a special magical process, the hydra-hide armor was not only extraordinarily tough but also highly resistant to poison. The hydra had been so enormous that there was enough hide to make armor for every knight to wear beneath their plate, with enough left over to equip soldiers as well.

“Everyone will be stunned when they hear of an army wearing magical armor made from hydra hide.”

Sherin laughed as she said it, as though the mere thought delighted her.

Meanwhile, Pales began trading in earnest with neighboring Treva. True to its reputation as the breadbasket that fed all of Pendia, it exported vast quantities of grain, filling the bellies of the wetland people. In return, they worked on the mountain cave connecting the two domains: sealing side passages that monsters might use, smoothing the rough ground, and installing magical lamps.

Since the cave had always been large enough for the hydra to come and go, that work alone made it a spacious, convenient passage for human travelers. As an added precaution, they built a wooden fort at the exit to keep monsters from crossing into Pales.

While Pales prepared to take another great step forward, momentous changes were also unfolding in the heartland of Pendia.

“His Majesty the King has awakened?”

“They say he has declared his support for Prince Elvin.”

“Hmm...”

Unlike Pales, which weathered the news relatively smoothly, Prince Conrad’s faction suffered a severe blow from the king’s dissolution order. The lords of western and central Pendia had lived under the king’s authority for many years, and his influence over them remained strong. Duke Ranpel and Marquis Abel, the two pillars of Conrad’s faction, continued to support him steadfastly, preventing its immediate collapse. Even so, its unity had weakened noticeably.

“The king of Pendia has recovered? How fortunate. Had the old man awakened just a little earlier, we’d never have had our chance.”

“Quite so, Your Highness.”

By contrast, Duke Morayen in the northwest was naturally unaffected. He had already expelled many of the established power holders from the territory he occupied and was expanding his forces through plunder. His army, which had originally numbered around a thousand before suffering losses against Pales, had now swollen to nearly two thousand.

Naturally, not all of them were properly equipped troops. He had largely inflated his numbers by conscripting young men and putting weapons in their hands. It was something no ruler concerned with the long-term prosperity of his domain should dare do, but he had no need to care about that. This was not Morayen, the land he was responsible for protecting. It was the foreign country of Pendia.

During the recent civil war in Libert, his veterans had become adept at drilling forcibly conscripted men and absorbing them into their ranks. They drove the new recruits mercilessly, hammering combat skills and discipline into them.

Even while secluded in Pales far to the north, Sherin received detailed reports of all this, thanks to the influence of the Altoan Brotherhood. Its members had once been driven out of Hasra and most other Old Faith cities, but some whose features resembled those of westerners had secretly slipped back in. Using the identity of a Brotherhood officer he had assumed in the past, Roden regularly sent some of the Altoan mercenaries under his command on trading journeys, maintaining contact with those members, gathering intelligence, and passing it on to Sherin.

The uneasy coexistence that followed the king’s dissolution order finally broke some three months later, when winter ended and the first green shoots of spring began to emerge.

“We shall defeat the traitor Conrad and restore Pendia to the rule of its rightful king! Advance!”

At Elvin’s cry, a combined force of troops from southern Pendia and the Kingdom of Luman began its march.

The elephant corps, brought from the southern continent by way of the Kingdom of Luman, shook the earth on four pillar-thick legs as the beasts let out thunderous trumpets.