Ch.49Ingnel’s Domain (2)

When Lord Ingnel regained consciousness and opened his eyes, he found himself thrown into what appeared to be a pit dug under some kind of tent.

“W-what is this?!”

His entire body, especially the joints like wrists and ankles, felt as if they were being torn apart with excruciating pain. Along with this, he sensed his body had become sluggish and slow, while his empty stomach growled loudly.

What was going on here, and how had the situation come to this?

As he questioned why he, a knight and heir of noble blood, was in such a wretched state, he slowly began to recall what had happened before he lost consciousness.

‘That’s right, I was…’

As he had done many times before, he had visited a nearby village to plunder supplies when a violent confrontation broke out. In the end, Ingnel was defeated without being able to put up much resistance.

What remained most deeply etched in his memory was none other than the beautiful yet terrifying swordsmanship of “Lord Alzar” who had attacked him.

The zweihander Lord Alzar wielded was a greatsword that seemed too large and heavy for a human to use, with a blade noticeably wider and thicker than an ordinary zweihander.

It wasn’t much different from what some might describe as a sharpened metal plate with a handle attached, pretending to be a sword. Yet Lord Alzar handled this strange weapon with remarkable skill and beauty.

Not only did he possess the inhuman strength to lift and swing a greatsword heavier than his own body as if it were a small kitchen knife, but what truly terrified Lord Ingnel was the technique displayed with that monstrous strength.

By subtly twisting the angle of the blade to smoothly deflect Ingnel’s lance attacks and throw him off balance, and even the way his sword coiled up along Ingnel’s arm like a climbing snake.

No matter how much he tried to analyze it afterward, he couldn’t predict even a fragment of those magical movements. At some point, he simply found himself being dragged along by Lord Alzar’s movements and sinking into the pit of defeat.

‘…How was that even possible?’

It was enough to make Lord Ingnel seriously wonder if he had been under some kind of magical delusion.

He distinctly remembered exchanging blows on equal footing, but suddenly finding himself overwhelmed. The realization that this was achieved through pure skill and swordsmanship alone was too great a shock for the inexperienced nobleman.

Anyway, having grasped the circumstances, he could now roughly predict his own situation.

“…Huff.”

The tendons in all his joints had been cut, making it impossible to exert any strength in his muscles. They had likely fed him some kind of poison, as his aura and magical power refused to respond to his will.

It was obvious he had been subdued, but fortunately, he could find a glimmer of hope in this situation.

The very fact that he was still alive might prove that Ingnel could be released after paying a ransom.

Perhaps because battles with hostile creatures commonly called monsters were almost always wars of annihilation aimed at the complete destruction of one side.

In this world’s wars, there were no implicit rules like “nobles should be captured alive if possible,” but even so, ransoms were still considered a way to profit from wars between humans.

And naturally, for a ransom to be paid, the prisoner must be alive at the very least.

Additionally, the wounds Ingnel had suffered could be treated given some time, even by a low-ranking priest.

Just as Ingnel was beginning to feel hopeful and trying to view his situation optimistically, he saw Lord Alzar entering the tent.

In one hand, he carried what looked like a tray with food that emitted a pleasant aroma, and in the other, a wooden cup containing what smelled like wine of questionable quality.

As Ingnel was wondering about this unusual approach to prisoner interrogation, Lord Alzar began to deliciously devour the food right in front of him…

‘I-I’m so hungry…!!’

Only then did Ingnel realize he had been starving for at least a day.

Ingnel had always been a pampered young master who had never missed a meal in his life. Moreover, he possessed an intermediate-level physique that consumed extreme amounts of calories just to maintain itself.

Therefore, the intense hunger he was now beginning to feel was comparable to what an ordinary person might experience after starving for three consecutive days—a terrible ordeal.

As Ingnel glared at the simple food that he would normally not even glance at, Lord Alzar, who had been enjoying his meal, addressed him…

“Would you trade your warhorse for this black bread?”

“…What?”

As Ingnel reflexively questioned this insane proposal to exchange a warhorse for a mere piece of cheap black bread, Lord Alzar sighed and spoke as if Ingnel didn’t understand.

“Hah, listen. Your warhorse is already in my possession. The ownership has already transferred to me. So with just one word, you could be given food. Why are you refusing?”

“…Do you think I don’t know that?!”

Considering it coldly and logically, Lord Alzar’s words were not entirely wrong.

But the real reason for Ingnel’s reaction was that Lord Alzar’s behavior made no attempt to hide his intention to undermine Ingnel’s pride as a knight.

In class-based societies, and indeed in all societies, one way the “upper class” maintains power is through the collusion of the privileged.

Such tendencies can be observed even in modern society, so how much more so in this medieval world where class is established by bloodline and military might?

The nobility isn’t such an enormous society, and among nobles who frequently interact with each other, there are countless cases of mutual consideration.

“What is the reason for this disgraceful behavior?! After all, you too are a knight!!!”

So when Ingnel, unable to contain his indignation any longer, shouted accusingly, Lord Alzar’s response was something Ingnel’s worldview simply couldn’t comprehend.

“You trampled our village’s farmland. And now you claim you did nothing wrong? That’s quite an absurd statement.”

“…For such a trivial reason? Not because I led a massacre to destroy evidence, or because I tried to kill you?”

Ingnel genuinely couldn’t understand why Lord Alzar would vent his anger on him for merely(?) damaging some peasants’ fields.

Having long since erased from his mind the image of the village elder—a mere servant—cut in half before his eyes, he couldn’t comprehend the thinking of this strange person who would treat a nobleman so harshly for such a trivial(?) reason.

“…Huh, so what do you want to do? Do you want to be buried here?”

“N-no…! I’ll pay a ransom!”

Regardless of his inner thoughts, he ultimately had no choice but to offer to pay his own ransom.

Typically, the ransom for a captured knight is about 10 gold coins. Specifically, this refers to 10 special gold coins issued by the “Continental Central Bank” overseen by the Gold Dragon Lord.

While copper coins are used for everyday transactions, silver coins are high-value currency used for expensive purchases, and gold coins hold value far beyond what we commonly imagine.

Therefore, 10 gold coins would be enough to buy an impressive house in a wealthy domain’s city, but Ingnel was no ordinary knight—he was the minor lord of Ingnel Barony.

Considering the additional ransom for the 10 servants who survived and were captured… the situation was clear.

“How much are you willing to pay? I’ll respect your decision.”

“F-fifteen! Fifteen gold coins!”

So when Lord Alzar asked about the amount, Ingnel hastily named this businesslike sum, but…

“Let’s make it forty coins.”

“W-what…?!!”

At Lord Alzar’s unexpected demand for more than double the amount, Ingnel could no longer maintain his patience.

“Forty coins?!! That’s excessive!”

Forty gold coins. Due to the many differences in prices between modern times and this era, it’s difficult to define exactly how much this is worth, but typically a manor consisting of a village and a small wooden fortress would cost between 100 and 500 gold coins.

Since manors are rarely sold, this is based on old standards, but nevertheless, 40 gold coins is certainly a substantial sum.

“Forty gold coins! No negotiation. If you don’t like it… well, it would be regrettable, but your father would be saddened.”

“…Nnngh!!”

However, what could he do about such an unmanageable sum?

Faced with Lord Alzar, who was radiating murderous intent and clearly suggesting he would snap Ingnel’s neck if the ransom wasn’t paid, he wasn’t foolish enough to resist by complaining about the excessive ransom…

“I-I’ll pay it. A letter, I’ll write a letter…”

“You’ve thought well. A wise choice.”

In the end, he chose to send a letter to his father, Baron Ingnel, informing him of his capture.