episode_0006

“Sir Franz Mayer, tell me. Why did you use the clear field tactic?”

Why did you use the clear-night tactic?

The reason is actually simple. Because that was my first battle.

“I have not yet accumulated anything as a noble.”

“I know. This was my first outing. But what does that have to do with anything?”

“I thought that just as first impressions are important to people, the first battle is also important to nobles. That’s why I didn’t want to give people the impression that I was incompetent.”

It was my honest feeling and I didn’t want to hide it.

That’s because the man in front of me was the same as me.

“Hehe, hahaha!”

Andeln, the next lord of the Setia family, laughed.

“Interesting! It’s quite fun! To destroy the property of one’s own family for the sake of one’s own success! You are quite an ambitious person!”

also. I thought this person would pay more attention to the destruction of property than the massacre of civilians. No, ‘human beings’ may also be included in the ‘property’ this person is talking about. In this person’s mind, serfs are just property, not people. This person is that kind of person.

But Andeln was right. I have ambitions. The ambition to conquer the world. And I was selfish enough to commit massacre for the sake of my ambition. Andeln was trash, and I was his kind.

“I liked it. I will keep an eye on you from now on.”

In the end, this was probably the main point. Andeln wanted to get me on the same side. But it’s still too early to scout. It seemed like that was the decision.

“And, Lucille Meyer.”

Lucille quietly lowered her head.

“I heard you’re quite a genius?”

“It’s just a false pretense.”

“What… That’s something we’ll have to wait and see in the future. I will keep an eye on you too.”

Fortunately, Lucille didn’t seem to be that interested.

Lucille was the strongest tactician with 100 intelligence. On the other hand, Andeln is just an ordinary monarch. A cunning man with 100 intelligence could not be given to an ordinary monarch. Of course, Lucille would have taken care of it without my involvement.

In any case, the first meeting with Andeln ended smoothly.

—–

Lunch the next day.

“Franz Mayer, the eldest son of the Mayer family!”

The servants opened the door accompanied by noble music. I entered the venue through the open door.

Dozens of nobles were present at the venue. There were faces I knew from seeing them in the game, and there were faces I didn’t know. The unknown face was probably an extra or a person who would die before the start of the game.

One of them raised his hand towards me. I knew the person’s name well. Andeln von Setia. He was the next successor to the Setia duchy and the person I met yesterday.

I said a small hello to Andeln and headed to the empty seat. My seat was right in front of the head of the table. I don’t normally sit in this position, but I think it was because I was the star of the day.

And the long-awaited head table. At that place…

‘What kind of eyes… ‘

An elderly man with a clean-shaven bald head and a beard who looks like a monk. But those eyes were cruel and sharp. I knew this man’s name well.

‘Henrik von Setia. A man who changed owners three times.’

An icon of betrayal who started out as a merchant and rose from his rank to that of a duke, possessed tremendous talent, and experienced numerous betrayals. A person who symbolized difficult times was sitting in front of me.

“Meeting His Highness the Duke.”

I was nervous, but I did what I had to do, so I greeted him as expected. Then he answered lowly.

“Sit down.”

Henrik’s voice spread throughout the venue. It was a small but overwhelming voice. I don’t know if it’s because it’s a fantasy world, but in this world, there really was life and mana contained in voices. Depending on a person’s personality, the impact of the voice is completely different. And Henrik’s voice was blood-red. I got a little goosebumps, but I didn’t show it and sat in the seat in front of Henrik.

“He made a major.”

“I just did what I had to do, even if it was shabby.”

“Killing your own territory wouldn’t have been an easy choice.”

“It wasn’t easy, but if I had protected Yeongjimin, I wouldn’t have been able to protect my lord.”

“It was something that had to be done.”

“Yes.”

A smile spread across his face. No, is this a smiling face? It is meaningless for humans to look at the facial expressions of wild animals. Unless you are someone who has studied wild animals professionally. So I wasn’t sure if he was really smiling.

“Why didn’t you betray me?”

A question suddenly thrown. But instinctively I knew. The question before was fake. Rather, this is the real question. What he really wants to ask is not ‘Why did you use the blue field tactic?’ but ‘Why didn’t you betray him?’ That’s because the person asking the question was a man whose life was filled with betrayal.

Yes. I could betray my master at any time. Our territory was on the road where Kruzenstein’s detachment entered, and if we had decided to take Kruzenstein’s side, we would have inflicted crushing damage on the main army just by providing them with food, and we would have given the enemy a credit for winning the war. He would be able to win a big prize.

Still, I did not betray. Henrik asks about it. ‘It would have been a golden opportunity for you to get ahead, so why did you throw away the chance to get ahead and keep your faith?’

Here I am presented with two options. one. They talk about things that are nice to hear, mentioning loyalty, chivalry, and other virtues. two. speak the truth

‘Which is the correct answer?’

I closed my mouth for a moment and thought about it. It was not a good thing to keep the master waiting, but it was even worse to speak hastily. Therefore, I closed my mouth for a moment to avoid making a hasty comment. And, a conclusion was drawn.

“I didn’t think it was the right time.”

To be honest. It was not yet time for betrayal. It was my first outing. As a noble, I had not yet accumulated anything. In such a situation, if he suddenly betrayed himself, it would have been easy to point the finger at him and say, ‘That guy was born to betray from the beginning.’

If the time came for me to betray, it would be after I had built up a sufficient image and career. That way, the damage to your image due to betrayal will be relatively small. That was my true intention.

And because of my answer, the hall became quiet as if a cold wind had blown. That’s because it was such a bold and honest answer.

-Sigh

Henrik stood up. I saw a few people flinch. He must have thought that Henrik might kill me. After all, isn’t the saying ‘It’s not the time to betray’ consistent with the meaning of ‘When the time comes to betray, you betray’? It wouldn’t have been strange if he had cut off his head right now, saying he was someone who would betray him someday.

But Henrik didn’t find the sword. He didn’t even try to cut my head off. He just quietly got up and went out of the banquet room with his attendants. Then, as he passed by me, he said this in a low voice.

“If it were me, I wouldn’t have considered the timing.”

To be honest, I was amazed by those words. The story was that Henrik would have considered practicality first, regardless of his image. From these words, I was able to learn about the life of a person named Henrik von Setia.

He was a wild beast. A beast that never misses an opportunity. He was a fundamentally different kind of person from me, the criminal.

—–

‘Was what I said honestly the right answer?’

Henrik was a commoner. He is a person who hates pretense and pretense. He is also a person who openly says that evil is better than hypocrisy.

So I decided to be honest, and it seems I was right. Judging by the fact that he didn’t say a word or kill me.

After Henrik left the banquet hall. The banquet was led by Henryk’s son, Andeln. In fact, there was a reason why Henrik left the banquet hall early. By having his successor, Andeln, lead the banquet, his intention was to naturally shift the power structure from himself to his son.

Andeln introduced his subordinates and me individually. Endia, Ost, Giselle, Plea. He was the successor to the fourth generation of the family that ruled the Torgenberg duchy.

My family, Mayer, is also a powerful family, but it is not one of the four major families. That’s because the four major families meant the mainstream faction, and although the Mayer family’s power and prestige were no less than those of the family, it drew a line from the mainstream faction and lived a noble life.

Therefore, the Mayer family has not been included in the [Four Great Families of Torgenberg] until now, and it is believed that this will continue to be the case in the future.

But soon the head of the family changes. The head of the Meyer family, Georg von Meyer, was in poor health, and his successor showed off his ability by winning the first battle.

In such a situation, it was not unreasonable for the next Duke, Andeln, to try to attract me to his side.

“Franz Mayer. Get a drink. This is the award from me for this battle.”

Andeln poured me a drink. I politely accepted the glass and received it from Andeln. And the moment I drank alcohol.

‘It’s bitter.’

In the original world, I didn’t like alcohol. No, beyond not liking it, I hated it. Since I was born, all the times I’ve tried alcohol I’ve been influenced by the atmosphere, and I’ve never tried it of my own volition.

‘What does this taste like?’

And when I finished my drink and frowned, someone spoke.

“Can’t you even enjoy drinking alcohol? It’s still boring. Franz Mayer.”

The fact that you start a fight by calling me a slob… who… It was. Was he the successor to the Endia family? Anyway, he was one of the nobles.