Novels online

Chapter 524

My Villains Episode 524

67. Lord of Icebovald(17)

Hayla carefully completed her plan. While I corresponded with the Marquis of Eavon, I also made preparations for what was sure to be a long journey..

The first was Inseon. Now that you have decided on a rough route with Heyla, it is time to choose who will accompany you..

First of all, Ellen is included..

Since one of the main purposes of my trip was to investigate the Council of Dawn and track down the Dark Knight, it was natural for me to act together with Ellen and La-Palais Palace..

After hearing the intention, the palace's grandmaster, Aktufir, expressed opposition..

This old demon warrior had been staying in Eisbovald ever since the Blade's Edge War, observing the situation. In his opinion, it was a foolish choice to accompany me, who had been excommunicated by the Church of El Ganor..

Rumors had already spread that the palace and I were involved, and activities within Milano were restricted, so Aktufir's concerns were reasonable..

Of course, that didn't make any sense to Ellen..

“That's bullshit. This time too.”

“This time too?”

“huh. That old man always nags, right? I'm a human being who lives with unnecessary worries..”

Anyway, that's bullshit for someone who's three times older than you. Isn't it too harsh??”

“huh.”

“What is it? It's not that bad?”

“ O ”

flaw-

No matter what the situation in the palace is or the situation in the kingdom, it seems that he doesn't have the option of leaving me..

If I had decided to stay in Eisbowald, we would have had no choice but to part ways. No matter how self-indulgent and cruel Ellen is, she cannot completely abandon her duties as the High Master of the palace..

In fact, just sticking by my side for the past two years was enough of a dereliction of duty, so I was forced to step forward in this matter..

But I too have decided to head to the royal capital. The concerns Aktufir raised were not enough to keep him away from me..

As Ellen is with her, Master Hagni, 'One-Eyed' Simos, and 'Spell Thief' Saitz are also added as appendices..

Master Hagni was a wizard who was recognized as one of the palace's greatest geniuses, even if he was not as good as Ellen..

He is skilled in fire magic and earth magic, and he was the one who hired the 'Black Wolves', a gang of bounty hunters, to attack our group in Modos to track down Ellen..

After being taken prisoner, Ellen accompanied him on his way back to the palace, and happened to be with him when he attacked the mausoleum of Archmage Radhakaline. Meanwhile, Ellen changed a few spells, saved his life, and became something of a disciple to him..

One-eyed Simos was a criminal with a history of witchcraft under the nickname 'Blue-Haired Moses' and a swordsman with a talent for magic..

After making a 'contract written in blood' (no effect) with me, I served as Ellen's guard, learned a few spells from him, and became his official disciple..

As a result of concentrating solely on magical training, his swordsmanship is still at the level of a soldier, but he can handle four lightning-type spells and two cold-type spells. Would you say he has transformed into a full-fledged battle wizard?.

The spell thief Seitz is the one who killed Ellen's teacher, Grandmaster Zemar, and stole the palace's forbidden books. Moreover, he was the culprit of all sorts of problems, as he tried to summon the world of Ghistoll to the region of Githol by offering the banned book to the Dark Knight..

He was tricked by Ellen into drinking the 'Elixir of Memory', which became a tool to prove his innocence..

Afterwards, thanks to the mercy of El Ren, who became the High Master of the palace, he drank the 'Elixir of Time' and regained his former self. Although he has now been reduced to Ellen's errand boy or slave, he is thankful that he has regained his youth and healthy limbs..

Aktufir plans to move separately, taking with him the palace disciples dispatched to Eisbovald. The first reason was that the size of the party should not increase too much, and the second reason was that they had to join other Grandmasters who would come out of the palace..

Also, if we were to find a third reason, it would also include Ellen's dislike of Aktufir's nagging..

Of course the bundle also goes together..

First of all, it's because of the bank. If you want to travel the royal capital secretly, you need the bank’s active help..

‘The Bank, which forms the Three Swords Association along with the 'Assassin' and 'Witch Hunting', is a group that operates mainly in the Kingdom of Milanol and is also a secret society that serves the owner of the Pasa Sword. If Mungchi, the owner of the Pasa Sword, went directly to the royal capital and took control of the bank, he would be able to secure more information and a wider range of operations..

Even if it wasn't for the bank, Mungchi would have been taken. He is a master of stealth, so he will be able to excel in situations where he needs to avoid other people's attention..

If necessary, he is thinking of infiltrating the Thomasian Monastery and taking out Princess Yuril. Of course, the Avenue of Glory is one of the most heavily guarded places in Middle-earth, so such a simple method is unlikely to work, but as a last resort, setting fire to the palace or its vicinity could create an opening for the group to dig in..

Perhaps some members of the secret society will follow the group, but there is no need to worry. Because they are not the ones who will show themselves in front of me anyway..

Meanwhile, Atalanta showed interest at first when she heard that she was finally heading to the royal capital, but she quickly cooled off after hearing the rough plan..

“It's going to be a pretty frustrating trip.……

“Well, I guess so. Because I have to avoid the eyes of the Royal Family and the Church of El Ganor..”

“It will be the same even after arriving at the royal capital.‘?”

“uh. You have a very distinct external personality, so you won't be able to wander around carelessly..”

She thought briefly and eventually shook her head..

“Then I'm done. I don't want to go.”

“really?”

“huh. It won't help much anyway. What if we go all the way to the royal capital and stage a siege? I'm not very confident in acting secretly.……

‘Atalanta is so powerful in large-scale battles that she is called 'the devil in her own eyes'. It was a shame that that level of power wasn't with us, but we couldn't force him to take us..

She has suffered severe mental damage due to years of abuse of mental power, oppression and abuse by Asun. Considering that situation, it was better to avoid stressful situations as much as possible..

It's not just about being considerate. It was obvious that if she, who possessed great powers of vision and void, went crazy from the stress of being in stealth, it would be difficult for her to handle..

Even as Atalanta leaned against me and groped my chest, she gave me a cool look in her eyes..

“And, they said they were going to pass by Angst..”

“Because I have to take a boat from Froshafen..”

“Then I will never go. I don’t even want to look at that side..”

I sighed inwardly..

Since we were on our way to Froshafen anyway, we planned to deal with the problem of the Nudein people as well. If Atalanta came along, the effort required would be reduced by half.…….

“Isn’t it going to be over in about half a year anyway? Have a nice trip. If you miss me, I'll follow you.”

“You talk like you're visiting next door. Do you know how far the royal road is from here??”

“Let’s go leisurely, like taking a cruise.…….

Oh, I'll leave the bicorn behind.?”

“uh. I'll take you all the way to Froshafen, but I can't take you beyond the Edge of Blades. You can't advertise that the red knight is here..”

“Well, right? Then I can ride while you're gone.‘?”

“……okay. Do whatever you want.”

“Wow, really?”

Atalanta was overjoyed and showered her with kisses, saying thank you. As always, her hands and lips slowly found their way to my buttocks, so I had to sigh again and push her away..

Princess Theodora could no longer be together..

Like Princess Yuril, Theodora also had the experience of being imprisoned in the Tomasia Convent for a long time, so having her with her would be a great help. This was an advantage that more than offset the risk that there would be many people in the royal capital who recognized the princess's face..

However, it was at this timing that Theodora was called from the headquarters of the Callan Bridge. Thanks to this, the princess was in a situation where she had to go to the main altar, that is, to the imperial capital Mitteltang, within this month..

“What's happening all of a sudden??”

“I don't know yet. I didn't write down any other reason. Considering that the deadline is within this month, it doesn't seem like it's that urgent.……

The letter was delivered to Princess Theodora on February 8th, so there was enough time. Of course, it wasn't leisurely enough to join me on a royal road trip..

Theodora, who was sparring with me, wiped off the sweat with the sleeve of her doublet and adjusted her wooden sword and shield..

“Maybe it's something to do with the southern expedition..”

“It's a southern expedition.?”

“I believe that the church also played a significant role in the emperor's great victory over the sultans..”

The princess made a surprise attack with a shield in front of her..

Instead of pushing the iron-shaped shield with my foot and kicking it, I turned to the side, and as if waiting, a wooden sword shot out from behind the shield and aimed at my neck..

It was an obviously expected tactic, so he simply let it go and slapped his wrist..

Even though he had a lot of strength, Theodora did not let go of the wooden sword and did not even break his heart..

“Phew, good!”

Exciting laughter.

Unlike his extraordinary swordsmanship, this paladin with superhuman patience and determination seemed to enjoy the sharp pain running through his wrists, although it was unlikely..

Theodora continued to attack without stopping, and I returned each and every sword strike with an elaborate counterattack. I got my shoulders, forearms, waist and thighs in succession.

Even when she was hit, she didn't even blink..

With a naturally slender frame that put her strong muscles to shame, as well as a beautiful and good-natured appearance combined with light green eyes and light blonde hair, Theodora did not appear to the outside world as a young woman who did not know anything about the world..

However, when she went into battle, she was as aggressive, strong, and rough as Ute Quai or Fritz. As she continued to charge without stopping, I eventually had to use grappling to subdue her..

“ha! It's refreshing.”

Theodora, who proved her sincerity with her expression, took off her doublet and poured the bucket of water given to her by the maid on her head. As if the cold water drawn from a deep well was not enough to cool her heat, steam was rising above her shoulders..

“I heard that in return for this, they decided to establish several dioceses and church orders throughout the colony..”

“Diocese and church ordinances. Are you planning to evangelize to the colony’s residents??”

“Surely that's not the main purpose? It is the duty of every shepherd and believer to spread the gospel of the Lord..”

She shook the water out of her hair, wearing only a sleeveless cotton vest..

Princess Theodora would always stick to either hard armor or attire. However, perhaps it was because of the two years of regular sparring, at some point he started to show himself as defenseless in front of me as he does now..

The first few times, I was distracted by the massive chest, but now I've learned how to control my gaze. Thanks to this, I was now able to pay attention to my forearm, which was full of bruises and scratches..

“Are you planning to leave it as is today??”

“then. I always said it.”

The sight of Princess Theodora wearing only a sleeveless vest must have been embarrassing, so the waiting maid quickly brought out a coat and handed it to her. Instead of putting it on her shoulder, the princess held it roughly around her body and wiped away the moisture running down the back of her neck..

“When you struggle to avoid pain, you end up fearing it. Facing pain directly is the mindset of a warrior and the quality of a priest. How can I, a paladin, avoid this?.”

It didn't make much sense to me, but since it wasn't something I had to say without acknowledging it, I just nodded..

Theodora planned to take a boat to Oros and then head to Mittelthang by land. We could have been together until Froshaven, where the roads overlapped..

Iopiya volunteered and said she wanted to follow along..

“Every warrior needs the advice of a shaman..”

“Is that so??”

“is it so. The mother goddess revealed to me that Phoenics is a warrior with a particularly harsh fate, so he needs the advice of a particularly skilled shaman..”

“A particularly good shaman? who is that?”

“ yes？”

Iopiya screamed with a shocked look on her face..

“Of course it's me!”

To summarize his later persuasion, he said that as a soul shaman, he had abilities that were clearly different from both wizards and priests, so he would definitely be helpful in his work in the royal capital..

She experienced a significant increase in competency, or level-up, in the process of taking over Alzenberg's slave army and magic corps and creating a free regiment. I will generously serve one person or more..

But it looks like he's only around level 30, and he's only nineteen, so I can't relax. The fact that he still looks like a child due to his racial characteristics and facial features similar to those of Asians added to this distrust..

“……Why? It's not better to wait here for Ute Kwai.?”

“My brother-in-law is doing his duty. As a Daejeon priest. I also have to do my duty..”

“Then, even if my cheeks explode again, I don’t know..”

“……I’m an adult now too! No matter what I do, I'm past the age of being scolded by my brother-in-law.!”

Iopiya was severely scolded by the Utequai for snooping around in a dangerous battlefield during the Blademan War. However, compared to then, she has become more mature externally, mentally, and competently, so it would be good to respect her judgment..

His combat power is still unreliable, but he can disguise himself as a squirrel less than half the size of my fist, so his stealth won't be affected. Considering the soul shaman's bizarre skills, you may be able to receive unexpected help..

In addition, he discussed with Conwyer which of his subordinates to take and how much troops to mobilize..

Shortly after my ascension to the throne, Conquer, who was knighted and given the title of 'Irgotton', became my commander-in-chief and the commander of a combat brigade..

As an officer-in-charge, he oversees the troops of each village, settlement, and fortress, while as a combat brigade commander, he oversees the Free Regiment, Assault Battalion, Silver Sword Battalion, and Training Battalion. To put it simply, it was safe to say that he was managing and supervising all troops in the territory except for the Eisbovalt City Guard..

Fortunately for me, Conwyer accepted this major slap with much undeserved honor. Thanks to this, he carried out whatever task I entrusted to him without saying anything, and it was clear that he would take care of it well once I told him about the composition of the troops to be mobilized for the royal journey..

“But, my lord, this is a completely different matter of importance and danger than a routine mission. The lord must guide us directly..”

I grumbled in response to Conwyer’s serious words..

“What are you saying? What's not important? Clearing the roads and dealing with goblins in the forest is not important.?”

“It's important. So, I hope that the minor will receive guidance from the lord even in such small matters..”

“Of course I want to do that too. But am I a little busy? There is so much to do in the estate. It's a mountain, a mountain.”

“……It's not like the lord is doing that mountain of work, is it? Anyway, it's all done by Miss Heila.,”

“That's not what I'm talking about now..

I trust you, so I leave everything to you. Same goes for this one. What difference will it make if you discuss it with me? I'm going to follow your opinion anyway..”

“There's no use complaining. Lady Haleyra asked me to obtain approval directly from the lord.. ”

“Ha, indeed. Hey, who are you??”

“I am your subordinate. So, let’s talk about childish things later..”

“••••••Fuck.”

Ignoring my inarticulate muttering, Conwyer spread out the combat brigade's chart on the desk..