Chapter 119
Unlike the rugged, mountainous, and sparsely populated northern and eastern regions of Avalon, the southern region was flat and fertile. The south also produced around eighty percent of the empire’s food.
The roads were paved exceptionally better in the southern region compared to the other regions because transportation here was far more important than in the other parts of the empire.
As such, the ruling class had always been concerned about the southern region, and the nobles liked the southern region as well. However, a certain noble in the southern region was extremely upset, and that person was controlling the southern region’s most powerful business sector.
***
There was a magnificent room covered in gold from floor to ceiling.
The owner, a middle-aged man, sat at the podium of the room. He had an intimidating visage at odds with the artistic decor, which would make anyone question why the room was even decorated like this. It made one wonder how much he had squeezed out of the commoners to build such grandeur. His face that looked like an inverted triangle reminded one of a mouse. His name was Gehor don Crombell, the current patriarch of the Crombell Family. And currently, the Crombell Family held the most influence over the southern region.
The middle-aged man’s vassals stared at him with bated breath, and he eventually lifted his diamond-adorned fist and smashed it into the conference room’s desk.
Bam!
“Duke Pontier…He's sure as tough as a cockroach. Shouldn't he be dead by now?” Marquis Crombell glared at a bearded man next to him and asked coldly, “Gott! Are you sure that Duke Pontier has collapsed in the duchy? You reported that he took the poison!”
“I-I’m sure of it, my lord. Duke Pontier had taken the extremely potent Gari from the Blue Mountains! It is very difficult to recover from the effects of that thing, even if you consumed just a tad bit of it,” Gott said while sweeping his gaze across everyone else.
“But, why?! He should be dead by now! If the patriarch falls, the family should be in the ruins too! How come they’re still struggling so fiercely?”
“Can I say something, my lord?”
“Speak, Jackson.”
At the words of a middle-aged knight, Marquis Crombell slightly relaxed.
It was all because the middle-aged knight, Jackson, was his most powerful knight. In addition to being a count, Jackson could already be considered Marquis Crombell’s right-hand man. Thus, his words should have some merit.
Jackson slightly bowed his head as if he was grateful to receive Marquis Crombell’s permission to speak.
“As you are aware, we are in a stalemate. The Pontiers’ territories and businesses are less than a third of what they were. The difference between our overwhelming success and the tight battles we were used to is our use of ripple assaults and him.”
“The Mercenary King…” Marquis Crombell grimaced. “Still, they should collapse sooner or later. The head of their family has already fallen, after all. I don't really want to rely on the Mercenary King that much.”
“Of course.” Jackson nodded in agreement. “The Mercenary King requested for half of the land that we took over from the Pontier Family. I’m not sure if His Majesty would agree with our arrangements, but I’m sure His Majesty wouldn’t mind as long as the Mercenary King decides to commit to Avalon. No, His Majesty would actually be grateful. After all, His Majesty appreciates talent and skill, and will likely welcome him with open arms. Then, the Mercenary King would become a potential enemy to us.”
“Right…” Marquis Crombell muttered.
“Since we have the advantage now, I don't think we should ask the Mercenary King for anything. I am not sure how much he will ask from us in return,” added Jackson.
Marquis Crombell’s frown deepened.
“How should we proceed, then? We should not underestimate them since they are giving their all like it's their last battle. Since we have occupied most of the eastern region, they only had one route left to defend. They can focus all their manpower on guarding that route that leads to their final bastion. It's the best grounds to play the defensive.”
Marquis Crombell’s worry wasn’t unfounded.
The southwestern area of the Pontier Family’s Territory contained the Pontier Family’s final bastion. Unfortunately for Marquis Crombell, the place was a basin surrounded by steep mountains, and there was also only one way to get inside the basin, unlike the rest of the south region, where roads were excellently paved to accommodate trading.
“Aiden Gorge is a kilometer-long canyon famous for its heavy fog even in broad daylight. It is nothing short of a celestial fortress for them, so we definitely have to make use of this trait.”
“What are you…” Marquis Crombell started.
However, Jackson interrupted him by asking a servant, “Bring me a map.”
The servant hurriedly laid out a map on the table.
It was a map that was as good—if not better and more detailed—than the Pontier Family's map.
“We can exploit a flaw they could have never imagined—the source of Aiden Gorge’s fog.” Jackson took a red marker and drew a line from the Dennis River through the basin.
There was a long river not far from Aiden Gorge. It was the Dennis River, which cut straight through the basin's heart.
“That’s…”
“It’s impossible, my lord.” Gott finally spoke up, “The Dennis River’s flow is extremely strong, and our forces could get wiped out before we could even fight.”
At that, Jackson's eyes briefly shone. “What if we can regulate the river’s flow?”
“That’s…” Gott muttered with bewilderment.
Marquis Crombell quietly glanced at Gott before asking Jackson, “Do you have confidence in achieving that?”
“Of course, my lord,” Jackson replied without hesitation.
Marquis Crombel kept his mouth shut for a while.
Eventually, Marquis Crombell said, “We shall maintain our current system, and aim for all the places with the Pontier flags. Ambushes against the enemy’s supply wagons should be done. Smash everything to pieces and leave nothing behind. I don’t want a battle of attrition, so isolate them and make sure that they will eventually run out of supplies.”
“Yes, my lord!”
“And…”
Marquis Crombell stared at the bright red line on the map.
“I shall entrust you this mission.”
“My lord, I will do everything in my power, and this mission shall succeed even if I perish.”
Marquis Crombell nodded at Jackson and ended the meeting.
“Then, we’re done for today. Everyone, make sure you complete your objectives without delays.”
“Yes!”
At the shouts of the vassals, the meeting was finally adjourned.
However, none of them had any idea that the mark drawn on their map was identical to the line drawn on Charles’ map.
***
Joshua sighed once as he walked directly into the Mercenary Guild located in the heart of Haiburi Castle Town.
He was sighing because the more he walked, the more attention he gathered. Unfortunately, even he couldn’t have expected something like this.
“My… my god.”
“H-He’s here?!”
“He’s not human! He can’t possibly be human!”
"Elf! Perhaps he’s an elf? I’ve heard the elves can transform their pointy ears with the help of artifacts!"
People were dropping things on the ground and staring at him, regardless of age or gender, but it was particularly severe for the women.
- Hey, buddy, why don't you wear your robe?
Joshua grimaced at the familiar voice in his mind.
“I thought I warned you about jumping out whenever you want, Lugi,” muttered Joshua. He tried his best to lower his voice as much as possible because he didn’t want everyone to look at him as if he were a lunatic having a conversation with himself.
- I’m sure I said that I don’t want to be called that name! Call me Lugia-nim! I have made a name for myself in the Demon Realm, so how dare you call me by nicknames? You’re treating me like I’m your next-door neighbor!
“Haaah…” Joshua's sighed at the incessantly complaining voice in his head. Eventually, his resignation vanished as he scolded, “Keep this up, and I’m gonna shove you into the subspace. I will also not let you out for a week as a bonus as well.”
- ...
At that, the voice in Joshua’s head was silenced.
- Scumbag.
Of course, it still cursed him before backing off. An iron stick the length of Joshua's forearm dangling from his waist gave off a short resonance.
Joshua smirked as he ducked around the corner and wore his robe.
“There are a couple of issues I have to be worried about.” Joshua was fully aware of the situation. He knew that he was attracting attention not just because of his family history and the significance of his name.
Of course, all of this attraction was brand new to Joshua. In his previous life, people had always neglected and treated him with contempt while he was still a kid in the Agnus duchy. Eventually, he learned how to walk the harsh world on his own by becoming a mercenary after his mother’s passing.
After becoming powerful enough, he picked up the spear and spent the rest of his life on the battlefield.
'In retrospect, my life has always been pretty bumpy.'
Joshua revealed a grim smile as he recalled the scenes of the past.
He died a horrible death, but he somehow regressed and was given another chance at life.
Still, all he had been thinking about was revenge. Of course, revenge was still there, but…
‘I still haven’t thought about what my life will be after everything is done...’
- You seemed to forget something. Once you are done with your vengeance, your life is mine. You know that we’re in a contract, right?
“...” Joshua kept his mouth shut at Lugia’s cheeky voice.
- What do you think about conquering the Demon Realm? After all, this body of mine is still a spear—Oh my go—
Joshua’s patience finally vanished as he opened the subspace and shoved the iron rod on his waist inside of it.
- Sir—no, Master! Brother, please! It’s so cold and stuffy in—
The voice abruptly vanished when the subspace was closed.
By now, the awe of encountering Lugia had already disappeared, and Joshua was even starting to question if the Lugia he had encountered in this life was even the real deal. After all, before his regression, Lugia only manifested after Joshua reached Level 4 of the Magic Spear Arts and became as strong as an A-Class Knight. In addition, Lugia had already manifested when he still wasn’t as impressive as he was in his past life.
‘Stop thinking about it.’?Joshua shook his head a few times.
Joshua had to find a way to hide his identity. Fortunately, there was a high-end artifact that could hide Joshua’s identity, and it was the artifact he absolutely needed right now.
'The artifact can alter not just one’s hair color or a portion of one’s body, but one’s entire body as well as one’s demeanor as well. It’s a complete transformation, to say the least. In addition, the inventor of such a remarkable artifact was just a young girl from Avalon. She’s not even from the Magic Kingdom Terra or the Magic tower.’
Joshua wasn’t aware of the artifact’s entire lore, but he knew that the inventor was a young girl born with a natural aptitude for mana and that she had created that masterpiece in the middle of a crisis after being pursued for many years.
He could hide his identity after he got his mercenary card but his appearance was too recognizable. People could instantly deduce his actual identity from his looks. And the mercenary status that he painstakingly got would just be a talk of the town.
'I don’t exactly remember the details of the item, but the inventor was pretty famous back then.'
But upon recalling her name, Joshua’s smile looked sour.
“The Cold-Blooded Slaughterer, Ice Flower.”
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