Chapter 54
Chapter 54
“Treat these bastards’ wounds just enough to keep them alive, and store them safely.”
After instructing how to handle Sanders and the mercenary leaders whose Achilles tendons were severed, Si-on walked over to Friel.
Looking at Friel, who was covered in dirt and blood from the battle, Si-on spoke with a hint of apology.
“Sorry, but I’ll need you to endure a bit more.”
“Just give the order.”
Knowing Si-on’s identity and witnessing his true nature were clearly different experiences.
Although Friel had always been polite, he now bowed with even more respect toward Si-on.
“We need to hunt down the ones who ran away and eliminate them. They likely won’t make it out of the forest alive, but it’s better to ensure it.”
“Understood.”
“Will you be able to finish them off and catch up to us in three days?”
“They probably haven’t fled far, so one day should be enough.”
“Then take two days. It’s rare for warriors from all three tribes to gather like this, so it’d be good to clean up any monsters drawn by the scent of blood. Leave a few guides behind and set off immediately.”
“Yes, sir.”
Confident that the local monsters would be wiped out, Friel headed toward the elf warriors.
Yonas, who had been listening to the conversation between Friel and Si-on, quietly stepped in.
“Grandfather, are you planning to act separately from the elf friends? Wouldn’t it be better to chase down the fleeing ones together?”
“You have another task.”
“A task…?”
Si-on told him to wait a moment and walked over to the mercenary leaders who were groaning from their emergency treatment.
“Hmph!”
“Ugh…”
As Si-on approached, the faces of the mercenary leaders turned pale with fear.
Being a mercenary leader meant they had survived at least five years, enduring countless battles.
They wouldn’t flinch under ordinary circumstances.
Yet even to such men, Si-on was something beyond the norm.
If one had to describe him, it was like facing a natural disaster beyond human control.
And that disaster was looking down at them indifferently.
Even in the agony of their severed Achilles tendons, they swallowed nervously.
Si-on, who was staring at them like the Grim Reaper, slowly opened his mouth.
“From now on, you will each have an interview with me. I will ask you a few questions. The questions might be the same or different.
But your answers must be identical. Because if one of you gives a different answer, he will die. If both of you give different answers, both will die. But if your answers match, you’ll both live and even have the opportunity to serve as slaves.”
“……”
There was no verbal response, but the expressions of the two mercenary leaders became similar.
If Si-on had simply said he would let them live, it could mean leaving them to die without care.
However, being kept as slaves implied they would be taken care of to some extent after being spared.
Given that their Achilles tendons were severed, their lives as mercenaries were over; living the rest of their lives as slaves under a responsible master was the best option left.
“Let’s start with you.”
Si-on took each of the mercenary leaders aside for questioning.
Torture wasn’t necessary.
Their attachment to life made the mercenary leaders respond immediately to Si-on’s questions.
Less than five minutes later, Si-on finished questioning them and issued an order to Yonas.
“Once this is all over, send these guys to Cheolsan. They can at least handle menial tasks.”
“Yes, sir.”
Relieved that their answers matched, the mercenary leaders exhaled in relief.
Yonas was curious about what Si-on had asked the mercenaries and what answers he had received, but he didn’t dare to ask.
Noticing his great-grandson’s curiosity, Si-on spoke.
“Did you think these guys just decided to march through the forest and invade the Duchy without a plan?”
“No, I didn’t think that was possible.”
Even the most reckless mercenaries wouldn’t be that thoughtless.
Especially since Sanders, a knight of the Count Pamel family, was involved—it made no sense.
“I asked how they planned to cross the forest, who they were supposed to meet, and how they would move.”
“Ah….”
“They didn’t know who they were meeting. Of course, it’s not something they would tell mercenaries. But I managed to find out the route and the destination.”
“So, they planned to meet someone and proceed from there.”
“Exactly. And that someone is likely the person your brother sent.”
“…My apologies.”
“There’s nothing for you to apologize for. You didn’t know it would turn out like this. It’s all because of Gede.”
Yonas, momentarily conflicted by Si-on’s gentle tone, then spoke firmly.
“As a bloodline of the Si-on Duchy, not Gede Si-on, I will unconditionally follow your judgment and decisions, Founder.”
“You should just call me Grandfather.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
Si-on patted Yonas’s shoulder as he continued.
“Tell the soldiers to equip themselves with the armor taken from the dead mercenaries.”
“What? Oh! Don’t tell me…”
“Yes. We’ll make the contact think we’re mercenaries. The number of soldiers is smaller, but we can just say we’re an advance team or scouts.”
Even if the contact was suspicious, they would have to come within verifying distance. And once they were within fifty meters, they could be captured without fail.
* * *
“…….”
Marcos, one of Paloma’s stewards, stared anxiously at the foggy forest, still shrouded in early morning mist.
He had been waiting here for two days.
The meeting with the Count Pamel family was scheduled here, but the exact date hadn’t been set, only a rough timeline.
After all, the Forest Without Echoes wasn’t a place one could traverse within a set period.
“I hope they arrive within three days.”
The Pamel family was confident their mercenaries would cross the forest within seven days, preserving two-thirds of their forces.
Normally, he would have dismissed it as impossible, but this time he trusted them.
The Count Pamel family, Gede Si-on’s in-laws, had not only hired mercenaries but also some wandering elves from who-knows-where.
Though the Forest Without Echoes wasn’t their domain, elven warriors, natural rangers as they were often called, could make it feasible.
Regardless, the plan was in motion.
While Marcos didn’t know the full picture, his mission was to meet the Count Pamel family’s mercenaries here and guide them.
“Hey, check the cargo once more. Make sure everything’s in order.”
“Yes, sir.”
The soldiers who accompanied Marcos examined the wagons covered with straw and cloth, though it was obvious they were just going through the motions.
“No issues, Steward.”
“Tsk. Alright.”
Marcos clicked his tongue, wanting to scold them but refrained.
The ten or so soldiers were from Paloma, but they were inexperienced guards who had never seen real combat.
The elite forces were elsewhere.
‘No issues on the Viscount’s side. By now, Cheolsan should be wrapping up, too.’
Gede was the Governor of Paloma and a Viscount of the Duchy.
As a top-ranking noble of the Kingdom of Obla, those above the rank of count could bestow titles directly, and the semi-independent Si-on Duchy was no exception.
Moreover, Gede, a direct great-grandson of Founder Si-on, ruled the city of Paloma, commanding a force of over a hundred men.
All of these forces, except about a hundred guards left for Paloma’s security, had been dispatched to Twin-headed Eagle Castle and Cheolsan.
“Ten days, no more. In ten days, the Viscount, no, His Grace the Duke, will be the master of this land.”
Having Gede, the strong and ambitious uncle, take control of the Duchy was far better for everyone than having the weak nephew in charge.
Justification and legitimacy?
Once the position was secured, justification would follow, and as for legitimacy, Gede was also a direct descendant of the Founder.
There was nothing lacking, and if you compared abilities, Gede was far superior.
“So it’s fine. I’m doing the right thing.”
Marcos mumbled to himself as if reassuring his conscience.
Only a few knew about the secret support from the Count Pamel family, which, despite being Gede’s in-laws, was still an outside force.
The soldiers guarding Marcos and the wagons also believed they were waiting for mercenaries hired directly by Gede.
Once the mercenaries arrived and took over the cargo, the soldiers were to return to Paloma.
At least, that was what the soldiers understood to be their mission.
But that wasn’t the case.
Those young, naive guards, yawning out of boredom, were all marked for death after the mercenaries arrived.
“It’s a noble sacrifice for the greater good. It’s an honor for you.”
As Marcos glanced at the soldiers from afar, one of them suddenly shouted.
“Hey! Over there! Over there!”
Marcos quickly turned his head.
Someone emerged from the edge of the forest, where the thinning mist still lingered.
Noticing this side, the figure started rummaging for something before lifting it high and waving.
Though there was some distance, Marcos could see it was the Paloma insignia.
“They’re here! Quick, over here!”
Marcos, now with a relieved look, urged the soldiers, and one of them waved a flag bearing Paloma’s crest in response.
“This way! Over here!”
Marcos shouted, and the man waving the flag at the forest’s edge slowly walked over.
He was a tall, well-built man.
With a dark helmet on his head and sturdy chain mail worn over high-quality linen armor, his appearance unmistakably resembled that of a mercenary leader.
Finally reassured, Marcos stepped forward with a friendly smile.
“You’ve arrived early. I am the overseer and guide for this mission, sent by the Viscount.”
“…The supplies?”
The man briefly scrutinized Marcos and, without even offering a greeting, spoke in a low voice, getting straight to the point.
‘How dare a lowly mercenary speak like that.’
Marcos felt a surge of anger, but he suppressed it, pointing to the side with a forced smile.
“Everything is ready over there. We have loaded 300 uniforms and helmets bearing the Paloma crest. We also prepared a hundred wooden shields just in case.”
The cargo in the wagons was basic equipment meant to disguise the mercenaries as Paloma troops.
Mercenaries were typically equipped in a hodgepodge of armor.
Allowing the mercenaries sent by the Count Pamel family to move in their usual gear could cause complications.
However, if they wore blue uniforms with the Paloma crest over their leather or chain armor and unified their helmets, they would appear to be regular Paloma soldiers.
It was a minor but crucial detail.
“But where are the others…?”
Marcos cautiously asked the man as he rummaged through the wagons.
The man briefly glanced away and then placed a whistle to his lips.
Piiik! Piiik! Piiik!
At the man’s whistle signal, mercenaries armed in various ways emerged from different points around the forest’s edge.
The guards who had accompanied Marcos looked at the bloodstained armor and shields of the approaching mercenaries with dread.
Yet, they didn’t retreat.
Though they were just guards, they were still soldiers of the Si-on Duchy.
The soldiers, who had been acting lazy and indifferent until now, quickly straightened their postures, gripped their spears, and formed a sharp formation.
“Not bad. They’ve got discipline.”
The man observed, seemingly impressed, and Marcos quickly moved closer to his side, whispering.
“They’re just guards. As planned, they must all be dealt with here.”
“…….”
The man’s eyes grew cold at Marcos’s words, but the steward, preoccupied with watching the soldiers, didn’t notice.
The man—Si-on, dressed in the clothes and armor of one of the mercenary leaders killed days ago—glared icily at Marcos, who had a face like a cunning rat, and spoke.
“Dead men tell no tales. You mean to erase all evidence?”
“Why do you act like you don’t know? Now’s the perfect chance with everyone gathered here. Hurry up and—ugh!”
Marcos didn’t get to finish his sentence.
Si-on grabbed Marcos by his frail neck and lifted him into the air.
“Guh! Gah!”
The pale, rat-like face turned bright red.
“What are you doing?!”
“You scum!”
At this, the soldiers Marcos had dismissed as mere guards pointed their spears at Si-on without hesitation.
Even though they faced mercenaries three times their number, the soldiers didn’t waver.
Si-on, lifting Marcos by the throat and surveying the soldiers, turned his gaze back to Marcos.
“The soldiers you ordered to kill are trying to save you. Watch closely, you rat-like bastard. These men… they are the true Si-on.”
