STGAAB Novel MTL - Chapter 767
Chapter 767: Clarifying Positions (2)
Shwaaaa-!
The portal opened, and the person who stepped into the room was someone I hadn’t anticipated at all. Contrary to my assumption that it would either be the Marquess himself or one of his trusted confidants, this person had no direct connection to the Marquess. Or, maybe there was some connection after all?
“Bjorn… Yandel……?”
The man who entered the room, saw my face and muttered as if he’d seen a ghost. But I was just as surprised.
“…The glasses guy?”
He was the one who had tried to persuade me a few days ago before my duel with Demon Eyes. A close associate of Noark’s Lord, who didn’t have a specific role but acted as a problem-solver when necessary? Anyway, that wasn’t the important part……
“How does the Lord of Noark know about this place?”
I asked while holding the hammer right in front of his nose. He replied in a tense voice, adding details I hadn’t even asked for.
“While the Marquess was unconscious, the Lord was granted full authority. The Marquess is now safely under the Lord’s protection, having abandoned his ambitions.”
“So, to put it simply, while the Marquess was unconscious, the Lord stabbed him in the back and has him locked up now?”
True to the Noark bastards pragmatic nature, he readily admitted my blunt accusation.
“Yes. The Marquess let his personal emotions take over instead of focusing on his grand objectives.”
“For example?”
“Didn’t he fire several shots from Thunder at you? There were far better uses for it in achieving victory, but he was blinded by personal grudges. And even after all that, he couldn’t capture you.”
Considering that Thunder was the Marquess’ weapon, it was rather shameless logic, but I could somewhat understand. After all, doesn’t firing a single shot of Thunder require a tremendous number of sacrifices? Even the Lord’s faction must have contributed to gathering those sacrifices, so they couldn’t claim they have no stake in it. But that’s not what matters right now.
“But that wasn’t my question. How did the Lord of Noark know about this place and send you here?”
Returning to the main point, he quickly realized his mistake and answered.
“Oh, ah! The Lord didn’t know that you, Baron, were hiding here. If he had known, there would be no reason for me to be so surprised, right?”
That’s still not an answer to my question. What’s wrong with this guy?
“Just the main point.”
“The Lord is incredibly astute—.”
“I said, just the main point.”
“……The Marquess, while imprisoned, requested it. He asked for confirmation if Lady Ragna Peprok was here.”
“The Marquess requested this directly?”
“To be precise, his request was to leave her be if she was safe, but if she had disappeared, to find her no matter what.”
“And the price for that request?”
He hesitated for a moment before briefly muttering.
“The transfer of authority over Thunder.”
I can roughly grasp the situation now. The Marquess, after regaining consciousness, had all his military authority stripped away and was instantly reduced to a powerless state. This means that the Marquess could no longer protect Ragna on his own.
‘So he put Thunder on the negotiation table. He must have been desperate to protect Ragna at all costs.’
‘It somehow feels a bit surreal.’
‘How did it come to this……?’
All Auyen did was make the Marquess unconscious for two days. Yet, that event alone shattered the Marquess’ grand plans before they even truly began.
‘Well, if the relationship between the Lord and the Marquess had been stronger, two days of unconsciousness wouldn’t have led to this……’
In this jungle-like world, showing any weakness is equivalent to inviting others to tear you apart. Unfortunately, the Marquess, who showed his weakness, had no choice but to offer up his flesh and bones. It’s almost hard to believe that such a massive snowball effect was triggered by the capture just one navigator.
“…W-Why are you giving me that look of a sudden……”
“I’m just proud of you.”
In the end, the small ball that Auyen had launched pierced through the atmosphere and became a star that would shine forever.
‘Anyway, that’s that……’
Even as I understood the Marquess’ situation, one question kept bubbling up.
This glasses guy, who is also the Noark Lord’s problem-solver…
Why was he so quick to spill everything without much interrogation? It wasn’t long before I got the answer directly from his mouth.
“Isn’t it obvious? I determined that there was no way to fulfill my mission other than convincing you.”
“And you think if you persuade me, I’ll cooperate in helping with the transfer of authority over Thunder?”
I let out a laugh as if I couldn’t believe it, but he calmly responded with a simple question.
“And why wouldn’t you?”
“…Huh?”
“We both know that Noark isn’t exactly your enemy, right?”
For a noble with a title from Rafdonia, someone even revered as the city’s hero, it wasn’t the kind of thing you’d expect to hear. But, looking at the facts alone, I couldn’t exactly refute it. My goal in this war was to get as many of my comrades through this crisis as possible, and ending this crisis meant taking down the Marquess.
Yeah, so……
“Tell me what you want. I’m sure there’s some room for negotiation.”
Hah, how should I handle this?
***
Before making any decisions, I first asked about what was happening outside. From how the war was progressing to the things I was personally curious about.
“Baekho Lee? After you all fled, he maintained the frontlines against us for a while longer before retreating. However, despite pursuing him, we failed to catch any of his forces.”
Hmm, so Baekho has disappeared…… What exactly is that guy hoping to gain from this war? I can’t say for sure, but based on what I’ve heard, the war was almost in a state of ceasefire. The walls of each district have become the frontlines, and both sides are in a standoff with neither making a move.
“We need Countess Peprok. If you hand her over, the Lord will positively consider whatever you want.”
“Oh, even if I ask for the Lord’s head?”
“……”
“I’m joking. I’m not that unreasonable.”
At this point, I dropped the playful tone and seriously asked one more thing.
“If I ask for the Marquess, is that possible?”
“Of course. Ah, as long as the issue of Thunder’s authority transfer is resolved, we don’t care what happens to the Marquess.”
“Is that so? Alright, I understand your position.”
“……It’s not just my position. The Lord will make the same judgment. I’ve served him for a long time, so you can trust my words.”
“That’s something we’ll only know when the time comes.”
With that, I concluded the conversation, placing a blindfold over his eyes and noise-canceling headphones over his ears. Ah, not actual headphones of course, but a magic device that mimicked the same effect. After all, I need some time to think.
“Emily, what do you think?”
Amelia, who had been listening to the entire conversation, had a very clear stance.
“I think it’s worth considering. Of course, assuming everything he said is true.”
“What kind of person is Noark’s Lord? Can we trust him?”
“Not likely. He’s a decent man, but trustworthiness is a different matter altogether. However… he’s never been one to make unnecessary enemies since he was young.”
“Well, he did try to persuade me last time. Anyway, does that mean you’re in favor of this?”
“In my personal opinion… I think there’s a higher chance that the deal will go smoothly and end well for both sides.”
Amelia’s judgment was decisive.
“What? What about me? You’re not even going to ask for my opinion?”
Ignoring Ainar’s random outburst, I removed the blindfold and noise-canceling device from the glasses-wearing problem-solver.
And……
“I’ll speak with your Lord first. You have a way to contact him, right?”
“Of course. I can do it right now… Ah, but it won’t work properly here. Let’s step outside first.”
“Alright.”
It might be a risky decision, but there’s one reason I didn’t hesitate. Even if the deal falls through, I’ll at least know where the Marquess is.
“Let’s go.”
We stepped out of the ruined building, and I used the magical device to contact Noark’s Lord. He was surprised when I suddenly appeared on the communication line, but it didn’t take long to explain the situation and finalize the negotiations.
“[So the terms are in exchange for your help in persuading the Marquess to transfer authority of Thunder to us, we will hand the Marquess over to you? Is that all?]”
“Yes.”
“[Then there’s no reason to refuse. Hand Countess Peprok over. Once the authority transfer is complete, I’ll send the Marquess wherever you want.]”
“No, what makes you think I’ll just trust you? I’ll meet the Marquess in person.”
“[……You’re being greedy.]”
What a joke.
“Aren’t you the one being greedy? If I run off with her right now, do you think you can catch me?”
Noark’s Lord was silent for a moment before finally conceding.
“[I’ll allow you to accompany us to where the Marquess is being held. But you must understand that we’ll have to make certain preparations.]”
“Preparations?”
“[In case you have other plans in mind, we need a way to prevent that. But don’t worry too much. If the deal goes well, no harm will come to you.]”
“Fine. But aren’t you going to meet me in person?”
“[Haha! Well… I’m not foolish enough to meet someone who even the Demon Eyes couldn’t stop. Oh, and be sure to bring your comrades.]”
“Huh……?”
Normally, you’d expect him to say to come alone, but his next words made sense.
“[It’s just a precaution. No matter how strong you are, you won’t be able to escape safely with all your comrades.]”
Hah… Now it seems the whole world knows my weaknesses
“[I hope to hear good news the next time we speak.]”
After ending the conversation, we waited for a while until we received word that the Noark Lord’s ‘preparations’ were complete and that we could proceed. Following the glasses-wearing problem-solver, we moved toward the building where the Marquess was being held. It was located near the outer edge of District 4, close to the wall bordering Bifron……
Thud, thud.
As we climbed the stairs of the building, Amelia quietly whispered to me.
“Yandel, the entire building… no, the entire area around us is surrounded by enemies.”
“How many?”
“It’s far beyond a level where we could escape with the others… Maybe just you, Ainar, and I could make it.”
I see. So the Lord really went all out in those few moments, huh?
“This is the room.”
The glasses-wearing problem-solver, who had been leading us, glanced back at us briefly before slowly opening the door.
And……
“……!”
The middle-aged man lying on the bed sat up, his eyes widening as he recognized me.
The Prime Minister of Rafdonia, Ageni Lawton Tercerion.
As soon as I saw him from a certain distance, I frowned. It was a feeling of discomfort that was hard to describe. It was as if he were a different person.
‘Was the Marquess… always this frail……?’
It didn’t seem like he had lost weight or anything…… So why did he look so old and withered at first glance? Maybe it was because he wasn’t dressed in his usual lavish attire, but the moment our eyes met, I understood the source of that discomfort.
‘His eyes…’
His eyes were different. The fierce gaze that once resembled a wild beast was nowhere to be found.
‘Well, I suppose it makes sense, given that he’s lost all military authority and has been confined to this room.’
As I watched from a distance, the Marquess seemed to grasp the situation and nodded.
“…So you’ve come, after all.”
His voice carried a tone of resignation, as if he had been expecting this all along.
I responded calmly.
“I told you before, didn’t I? That I’d come for you.”
To be honest, I didn’t expect to meet him in this way, so I felt a bit disoriented. But for someone like me, a true K-barbarian, as long as I get to the destination, the journey doesn’t matter.
“It’s good to see you.”
With those words of greeting, I struck the back of the Marquess’ head.
Thud-!
It was a bit surprising. So this is the sound a Marquess’ head makes when struck. I’d been looking forward to this moment ever since the Ice Rock expedition, imagining it every day.
‘How underwhelming.’
Surprisingly, it didn’t feel as satisfying as I’d imagined.
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