Ch.6767. Subjugation Force

# Count Chester was quicker to grasp the situation than expected.

However, such people often reveal fatal weaknesses in surprisingly trivial areas.

For example, trusting their own judgment too much and willingly walking into situations that anyone else would recognize as dangerous.

He likely concluded that it made no sense for the two highest-ranking nobles in the Empire to simultaneously serve as escorts for the Campbell Baron.

So from the very beginning, he buttoned things up completely wrong.

Bringing heavily armed troops to greet Baron Campbell wasn’t necessarily a bad response in itself.

If the visitors had truly been madmen impersonating such important figures, he could have beaten them soundly and driven them away, or even beheaded them for their crimes. And in the highly unlikely event they were genuine, bringing armed forces wouldn’t have been a major breach of etiquette.

He could have simply made excuses about unavoidable circumstances in his territory.

The problem was…

Those two individuals decided to beat him senseless simply because he dared to bring armed forces into their presence.

“…Isn’t this enough already?”

“No, it’s not.”

Amid the groans of the injured all around, Krat smirked and dismissed Darwood’s opinion.

While nominally it was Baron Armin Campbell visiting the territory, it was this young man, his son, who had come out to meet Count Chester from the beginning.

Perhaps the Count should have sensed something was amiss from that point.

“People who mistreat others need to learn that their own possessions can be trampled just as mercilessly. That’s how they learn to stop.”

“You’re just making your desire for revenge sound noble, barbarian.”

“…I try to be nice and you still act like a little shit, huh?”

Krat said this with a vein throbbing visibly on his forehead, but Gideon, who had provoked the comment, merely shrugged indifferently.

“But I do agree with the sentiment.”

Gideon walked deliberately toward Count Chester, who was prostrated on all fours on the ground.

While even the Emperor would find it difficult to humiliate someone of a Count’s rank like this, the intimidating presence of two high nobles made such things possible.

“If you’re going to torment someone, you should have dug two graves beforehand. Seeing you walk out here without any precautions makes me sigh. If you’d at least sent a proxy to buy time, I might have thought you had some self-awareness.”

Count Chester avoided Gideon’s gaze, cold sweat streaming down his face.

Until this morning, he probably hadn’t imagined being disciplined in his own reception hall, but what could he do? This was reality.

‘Why are these bastards suddenly…!’

Count Chester rolled his eyes, looking at the two men standing on either side.

Until his chamberlain had delivered the information, he’d thought it was a lie, but now he couldn’t even entertain such thoughts.

These two men were emanating an aura that could only be explained if they were the “real deal.”

The Empire is a surprisingly simple country. It prioritizes efficiency above all.

According to the strict system of rewards and punishments that maintains this structure, the two highest-ranking nobles in the Empire must possess abilities befitting their status.

As a result, these two are the most “capable individuals” in the Empire.

Monsters who could overturn an entire Count’s territory in less than 20 minutes with just the two of them.

He had heard that Viscount Goldic’s territory had also been destroyed by these two, but a Count’s territory was several times larger with superior training and numbers of private soldiers.

Yet while Viscount Goldic’s territory had reportedly held out for several hours, his own territory had collapsed in less than an hour.

“I-I had reasons for that! I’m sorry!”

Count Chester said in a voice cracked from harsh physical labor.

Of course, if his knight guards lying nearby could see him now, they would argue that his injuries were nothing compared to theirs.

No joke—there wasn’t a single person nearby who didn’t have broken limbs or wasn’t coughing blood. All the work of these two monsters before him.

“Reasons? What reasons?”

When the young man before him responded with such indifference, Count Chester’s eyes grew bloodshot.

How dare this disrespectful attitude in his presence, from a mere heir to a barony, such a lowly…!

“Guh…!”

Count Chester’s body rolled across the floor.

Someone had casually kicked him aside.

“…Ugh, urgh, urrrgh…!”

Of course, from the perspective of the one being hit, it wasn’t casual at all.

Flashes of light pulsed before his eyes. The pain was so intense that drool leaked from his mouth.

Seeing the dark red blood flowing from his mouth, it was clear that broken ribs were likely puncturing his lungs.

“…Gideon.”

Darwood sighed as he called out to the man who had done this, but the Tristan Grand Duke answered in a monotone voice, paying no heed.

“I didn’t like his expression, so I had no choice.”

“…”

“A master-disciple relationship cannot exist if one sits idly by while their master is disrespected.”

“…”

This seemed to have happened with Elnore too—like father, like daughter.

While Darwood was thinking this and rubbing his face, both the blood-spitting Count Chester and Krat simultaneously showed puzzled expressions.

Master and disciple? These two?

And why was a baron’s heir addressing a grand duke by his first name with such familiarity?

“Hey bookworm, since when did you start taking disciples? You always refused to take students, saying you needed to focus on your own training.”

Gideon’s face wrinkled.

“I don’t know why people keep misunderstanding, but the disciple is on my—”

“—Would you like to explain your situation?”

Darwood quickly cut off that sentence before unnecessary rumors could spread further, and continued speaking to Count Chester.

“You’ve always had a bit of a shady vibe, but you never went as far as outright thuggery. Don’t you have some reason?”

“…”

While his current demeanor was far more disrespectful than before, Count Chester had received a complete etiquette adjustment from Gideon’s kick.

So instead of arguing, he decided to stammer out an explanation.

“Th-there’s a m-monster living in the central mountain range of my territory.”

“A monster?”

Indeed, there was no other way to describe such a being.

No one had seen its appearance, but occasionally a “gray wave” emanating from the center of the mountain would engulf the surrounding space.

And the space affected by it…

“It’s said to be like time stopping.”

Everything slows down and eventually stops completely.

As time passes, the affected area grows wider and the effect becomes increasingly powerful.

Count Chester’s position was that he was using forceful measures to save his territory’s residents living nearby, trying to salvage the land by any means necessary.

“Kuhak-!”

After giving this explanation, Count Chester’s body flew through the air again.

This time, it was Krat who had struck him.

“…”

“…”

With Count Chester lying unconscious with foam at his mouth, everyone’s gaze turned to Krat.

Their eyes questioned whether this was appropriate behavior right now, and he met each gaze individually as he answered.

“What.”

“…”

“I hit him because it pissed me off how he was torturing others while justifying himself as righteous. Any complaints?”

“…”

Of course there weren’t any.

Seeing everyone except Gideon averting their gaze, Darwood silently sighed.

His mind was busy organizing his thoughts.

Based on what he had just heard, this was an event he knew well.

‘A fragment of the Demon.’

Specifically, a fragment of the Gray Demon.

The “fragment absorption” event that comes as a variable to all Demonic Vessels.

And the one related to Elnore was about to begin right here.

#

The “expedition party” was assembled more quickly than expected.

Count Chester had been firmly told that they would solve the problem for him, so he should stop bullying the surrounding territories.

[…You call demanding the Count’s family heirloom in exchange for help “firmly telling him”?]

“Of course.”

[…]

When Calivan questioned me through the Linker, I answered firmly, receiving disapproving silence in return.

If he were in corporeal form, he’d probably be glaring at me in disbelief.

“I’ll need it later.”

If I combine the mid-tier artifact offered as a reward for this quest with the “heirloom” I’m extorting from Count Chester, I can achieve quite a good effect.

‘…I need to raise my stats too.’

My stats remain stagnant except for “Authority,” which finally escaped F-rank after I received my territory recently.

Combining those two items should yield something quite helpful in that department.

The Chapter 3 boss, [Apostle of the Inverted Tide], well, how should I put it…

While the battle itself isn’t particularly difficult, the boss ranks among the most insidious of all bosses.

Not only clearing the fight, but my “survival difficulty” is likely to skyrocket.

Even during chapter progression, it will constantly try to kill me by any means necessary, at any time.

[This is truly an unbalanced combination…]

As I was mulling over these thoughts, Calivan sighed at the group of people I had assembled to hunt the creature.

The members include the Kendrid Margrave’s father and daughter, the Tristan Ducal father and daughter, and myself.

Elnore and Elia are one thing, but even Gideon and Krat are following without complaint, apparently because I told them I had “tasks” for them.

[Can you really control all of them?]

It’s definitely a monstrous combination if Calivan is worried enough to ask that.

It’ll be fortunate if they don’t fight among themselves on the way.

But…

“The Homunculus sisters will be joining us too.”

[…]

“I know it’ll be difficult.”

I’ve already sent a message via carrier pigeon to the Saint, who was reported to be entering my territory, asking her to meet us at the mountain range Count Chester mentioned.

With so many people gathered, trouble is inevitable.

But from my perspective, this event is important enough to gather everyone despite the risk.

The following conversation demonstrates why.

[But even with this caliber of people gathered, I’m surprised you’re thinking of hunting that thing.]

“Pardon?”

[You seem to know roughly what we’re dealing with—it’s a vessel with a fragment. No matter how impressive the people around you are, it’s not an enemy you’d easily decide to subjugate.]

That’s true.

However…

“It’s not a human-type vessel, though.”

[Hmm?]

“From the description of the phenomenon, it sounds like some beast accidentally came into contact with a hidden fragment, which then took root. With an opponent like that, this level of members should have a high chance of successful subjugation.”

[…You seem quite knowledgeable about vessels?]

“At least I know it’s fortunate that it’s not a rampaging human-type vessel.”

I say with a bitter smile.

“…I’m sorry about what happened to the Guardians, Calivan.”

The holy knight inside the amulet fell silent.

As the very person who suppressed the incident when a human-type vessel went berserk, Calivan clearly understands the difference I’m referring to.

A human-type vessel is a crisis that Calivan—who could be ranked alongside monsters like Gideon and Krat—barely managed to suppress while sacrificing his life alongside comrades of similar caliber.

“So to prevent such an incident from happening again, we need to eliminate this one now.”

In that sense, the vessel fragment absorption event is one I must intervene in to steer toward a “good outcome.”

Even with the same absorption event, the vessel’s condition can vary dramatically depending on how the “conditions” are met.

After this event, Elnore’s personality will inevitably change, for better or worse.

My job is to control it so it develops in a direction as far from “berserk” as possible.

“…”

With these thoughts in mind, I watch Elnore and Gideon preparing their equipment for the carriage.

They’re ignoring each other.

Not just ignoring—they’re doing it so thoroughly that one might wonder if they truly can’t see each other.

‘…It can’t be helped.’

The emotional rift between these two has been building for nearly two decades.

Their reaction is actually quite natural given the circumstances.

But…

Perhaps after this event, they might show a slightly different…

[…Hey.]

While I was thinking this, Calivan spoke up as if something had just occurred to him.

“Yes?”

[Didn’t you just say your goal was to prevent that young lady from going berserk?]

“What about it?”

[…]

Calivan fell silent for a moment.

He seemed to be pondering something deeply.

[Who exactly is gathering this time? Just tell me the women.]

“…? The hero candidate, the Tristan princess, the Saint sisters… that’s about it. Why?”

Calivan was silent for a moment before chuckling.

It was a laugh that gave me an odd feeling.

“…Why are you laughing like that?”

[Nothing, it just seems like it’s going to be really interesting.]

“What is?”

[Isn’t this the first time all of them will be meeting face to face?]

“…That’s true, but why does that matter?”

[You’re dead, kid.]

“…”

Sir.

Please explain.

#