Chapter 57

An early morning, with sparrows chirping.

Fernan dragged his tired body and sat down in the garden. The servants served him coffee and some light snacks.

“Are you alright, young master?”

“I’m exhausted.”

How many days had it been since he last slept well?

“Why don’t you rest a little?”

“I can’t afford to.”

He knew he was pushing himself too hard, but there was no room to relax, knowing the appearance of the demon Andromalius was imminent.

“Duke Randgard keeps complaining.”

“Complaints? That grumpy dwarf is always grumbling, but when he’s working, the smile never leaves his face.”

Randgard was one of the best blacksmiths on the continent, now loyal to the Pellenberg family.

Fernan was receiving help from both him and other artisans and mages of the family line.

“Duke Durleo’s help has been enormous. He’s corrected things I hadn’t even noticed myself.”

Having the support of a great mage was, without a doubt, a relief.

“Hmm?”

It was then that Fernan sensed an unfamiliar presence.

A man he had never seen before. Huge build, close to two meters tall. Muscular, covered in scars. He looked to be in his late forties.

“This guy isn’t from the family…”

But what really made the back of Fernan’s neck go cold was that he couldn’t feel anything from him at all.

It was one of two things—either he truly had nothing, or he was so strong he was beyond Fernan’s perception.

“Isn’t that the patriarch’s office?”

“Did he come from meeting my father?”

If so, then he wasn’t an enemy. After all, no enemy would dare step into the heart of Pellenberg territory.

‘Who could be meeting my father this early? His face looks familiar…’

While he thought about it, their eyes met.

“……!”

A wave of terror ran through him, as if he were facing a wild beast. It was raw, latent fury—almost animal.

“What…?”

Hyde hurried to step into his line of sight.

“I have no intention of causing harm. Step aside.”

The man was already right in front of them.

He lightly pushed Hyde, who couldn’t resist at all. And then, he fixed his gaze back on Fernan.

“So it was you. The one who sent that boy there.”

His deep, growling voice seemed to pierce through Fernan’s chest. And at that moment, a flash crossed Fernan’s mind.

The world turned upside down.

[—So it was you. The one who was with that boy in that place.]

The man seemed a bit older. But his aura hadn’t diminished.

No—on the contrary. It was wilder, more ferocious. His unfiltered rage made Fernan’s heart tremble.

[—Yes. I’m sorry.]

[—You don’t have to apologize. He was simply weak. I was the one who didn’t teach him enough.]

Fernan bowed his head. He, too, looked more mature in that scene.

The man forgave him calmly, but the fury beneath his words hadn’t lessened in the slightest.

[—How did he meet his end?]

[—He was braver than anyone.]

[—Damn fool. I taught him not to care about justice or valor, but only about money and life…]

He let out a hollow, bitter laugh—a mixture of pride and regret.

[—Who was it? Who killed him?]

[—A demon.]

[—A demon?]

[—It was Andras.]

[—A demon, you say… And what happened to him?]

[—I killed him. With Varus’s help.]

[—I’d heard rumors that the corrupted were on the loose… But I thought it had nothing to do with me. And yet, they were the ones who took my disciple from me.]

The man let out a sardonic laugh.

[—If they took Varus from me, then I’ll take what they’re after.]

[—I’ll devote the rest of my life to killing demons.]

A wave of hatred and bloodlust, beyond anything Fernan could imagine, slammed into him. His consciousness faded for a moment… until he returned to reality.

‘Varus is going to die…?’

Wait—then this man was—

Fernan fought against the headache and looked closely. His face was familiar. Of course—he had seen it in the records of notable figures.

“…The King of Mercenaries.”

One of the few to bear the title of knight or mercenary.

One of the ten greatest knights.

“You forgot the title, Pellenberg pup.”

“…It’s an honor to meet you.”

“I heard you were the one who gave Varus the mission. Why?”

“…I thought he was the most suitable for the job.”

“He is. Not just because he’s my disciple. Varus is truly an exceptional mercenary.”

The King of Mercenaries let out a low laugh.

“I don’t blame you. You did nothing wrong, and giving a mission to a mercenary isn’t strange.”

After all, it was Varus who chose to accept it.

“And yet, I can’t help but think that if it weren’t for your commission, he wouldn’t have ended up like this.”

“…What happened to Varus?”

“Ask your father. And do me a favor—stay as far from my sight as possible. I know it wasn’t your fault, but my emotions don’t understand reason.”

The King of Mercenaries swallowed his hatred and walked away.

Once he was gone, Fernan was finally able to breathe, freed from that overwhelming pressure.

“Are you alright, young master…?”

Hyde, who had been powerless before the King of Mercenaries, bit his lip in concern.

“I’m… fine.”

His head throbbed as if it were going to split, but that didn’t matter. What mattered now was something else.

‘Something happened to Varus!’

And that meant that if Aint was with him, he was surely in danger too.

What if his interference with the future had made the corrupted send a stronger force?

Damn it—Fernan clenched his teeth in anger.

At that moment—

“Young master, here you are. The lord calls for you.”

A servant found him. Fernan went straight to the patriarch’s office.

“You’re here. From your expression, I see you’ve already crossed paths with Garrett.”

Garrett Schreiner—the true name of the King of Mercenaries.

“Yes. What exactly is going on?”

“Garrett came to ask for our help. He wants us to track down the culprit.”

The Pellenberg family’s information network spread like a spider’s web, unmatched on the continent.

It was only natural that the King of Mercenaries would come to them.

“…The culprit?”

“In the Abellar subjugation operation, his disciple, Varus Dene, was seriously injured and has yet to wake up.”

“……!”

Fernan let out a sigh of relief.

He felt bad for Varus, but if the corrupted had achieved their goal, they wouldn’t have left witnesses.

The fact that Varus was still alive meant—

‘Aint isn’t dead.’

Hope was still alive.

***

“What were you talking about?”

“Something serious.”

According to the prophecy book, Aint was supposed to endure the attack from the corrupted alone. But this time, even with Varus and the Shadow Lance Company present, things had still reached this point.

‘There’s only one explanation.’

It meant that the future Fernan had altered was causing a butterfly effect.

And that, in turn, implied that the future could also change in unpredictable ways.

‘I only wanted to leave some minimal preparations for Aint’s growth, but that might not be enough.’

Perhaps it wouldn’t be Andromalius who appeared, but a different demon; or maybe the students wouldn’t just be infected with demonic magic and lose their minds, but something even worse could happen.

More safety measures were needed.

Something that could at least prevent the worst-case scenario, like what had happened with Varus.

He finished the letter and placed a small gem inside the envelope.

“You know who to send this to, right?”

“To that greedy professor at the academy, right?”

“And this too.”

“Another letter?”

“To send to Luina.”

“Understood.”

Hyde received the letters.

***

After a longer winter than other regions, the melted snow had turned the ground into a muddy mess.

A knight in silver armor rode a white steed. The slippery mud was no obstacle, and her gleaming blue sword cut through the air, bringing monsters down amidst shrieks.

“Follow Dame Luina!”

“Charge!”

Thirty knights charged in unison.

Like a sharpened spear, their charge split the monsters in two.

“Good work.”

There weren’t many enemies, so the battle ended quickly.

Luina wiped the blood from her sword and gave a carrot to her horse, which was breathing heavily.

“You worked hard too. Truly, the area has stabilized quite a lot.”

Although she had returned to her fief in less than half a year, the difference was clear.

The walls had been largely repaired, and the monster nests that had sprung up since that day were almost eradicated.

“Your Excellency worked hard.”

“It was thanks to everyone’s efforts. Let’s head back. This has been enough.”

Since the purpose was reconnaissance, there was no reason to stay longer once they confirmed there were no new nearby nests.

“Yes.”

The reconnaissance squad, made up only of knights, returned to the fief.

“My lady, His Excellency calls for you.”

“My father?”

Count Bercheff awaited her in his office. He had prepared tea and sweets on the table, as if expecting her.

“Welcome.”

“No new monster nests were found near Alsen.”

“Good work. First, have some tea. There’s also chocolate, the kind you like.”

“Thank you.”

Luina, who was a bit low on sugar, took a piece of chocolate and put it in her mouth.

‘…It’s not the same.’

Although it was high quality, she had grown too used to kraken-ink chocolate and felt this one lacked something.

“Here.”

“What’s this?”

“A letter for you.”

It was sealed with the Pellenberg emblem, but it wasn’t from the patriarch.

“Fernan?”

“When I was told you’d grown close to Fernan and even paired up, honestly, I didn’t believe it. But it seems it’s true. You even exchange letters during vacation.”

“…It’s nothing special. Did you open it?”

“I’m not so vile as to open my daughter’s letter. Though, of course, I was dying to.”

Luina opened the letter.

It didn’t say much.

[Corrupted sighted.]

It was both information and a warning. It told her to be ready, because when vacation ended, there might be a fight against the corrupted.

‘Seems he’s telling me to return early.’

That was probably it.

“May I ask what it says?”

“It’s nothing important.”

Since they had decided to keep the matter of the corrupted and Fernan secret, she couldn’t tell him.

“If it’s nothing, can I see it?”

“Why do you want to see it?”

“Pellenberg may have lent us money, but they also keep us chained with that debt. I’m not sure it’s good for you to be so close to Fernan Pellenberg.”

“Fernan promised to exempt us from interest for three years.”

“I know. Thanks to that, we can breathe a little easier.”

But even so—

“I still don’t understand it. Why would a family so obsessed with money make such a promise and keep it? The debt we owe is enormous. Giving up that interest is no small matter.”

“That’s…”

“No matter how much I think about it, I come to only one conclusion. But I don’t want you to end up married off as if sold to pay a debt.”

Luina’s face flushed red.

“…It’s not that!”

“Then, can you show me?”

“……”

“I feel like that letter is from that bastard Fernan pressuring my dear daughter. Since it arrived, I’ve resisted many times the temptation to open it.”

“……”

Under the count’s stern gaze, Luina bit her lip. After hesitating for a moment, she spoke.

“Promise me you won’t tell anyone what you read.”

“I promise.”

“On your honor?”

“Yes.”

Carefully, Luina handed him the letter. The count read it carefully, then stood up.

“Father?”

“Follow me.”

“Where are we going all of a sudden?”

“You’ll know when we get there.”

The place they went to was the heart of the fief.

“Open the door.”

“Yes, my lord.”

The soldiers opened a guarded door, revealing a staircase leading underground.

“I’ve always wondered. The ignorant believe the north is a hell full of monsters, but that’s not entirely true.”

Monsters were beasts, yes, but they were living creatures of this continent, with their own laws and ecosystems.

“But that day was different. They came in an unimaginable horde and swept through the fief.”

Though they had managed to hold out, it was barely. Much of the fief was destroyed, and many soldiers and civilians died.

Without help from other fiefs, the empire, and Pellenberg’s loan, Bercheff would not have been able to recover.

“It was something impossible.”

That’s why, as they rebuilt, they also searched for the cause.

“And I found it. Recently.”

“Found what?”

Creak!

The underground storeroom door opened.

Inside was a corpse.

A repulsive, filthy, nauseating corpse that provoked instinctive rejection.

“…It can’t be.”

“It’s exactly what you’re thinking. And thanks to it, I understood.”

He understood why that tragedy had occurred.

How it was possible for dozens of different monster species to descend together.

“They didn’t come to invade. They were driven out of their territory by something stronger.”

In the extreme northern lands, a demonic creature had made its nest.

“……!”

“So tell me clearly, Luina.”

The count looked his daughter in the eyes.

“What is really happening at the academy?”

Luina could no longer keep the secret.