Chapter 369 — Agreement (1)
A deal? A deal, you say?
What kind of proposal could it possibly be, that they barged in without warning, and even went so far as to blow away the envoy of another territory?
'And how in the world did they break through the castle's security?'
Even if all the close aides had fled, there were still at least some soldiers guarding the gate.
And the envoy had brought escorts as well.
On top of that, just in case, a skilled Mage had been secretly hired, and multiple security magic circles were set throughout the castle's interior...
And yet, the fact that the intrusion had been permitted, without the slightest commotion, was difficult to accept.
Liam was confused.
More than anger toward the intruders, it was bewilderment that overwhelmed him.
Still, he struggled not to be swept away by emotion, and tried to maintain his rationality as much as possible. He could not afford to invite losses.
That was his late father's teaching.
Barely moistening his throat with the cold tea, Liam spoke.
"What kind of... deal are you proposing with me?"
A cautious response for his age.
They had expected him to rage wildly, planning only to calm him down lightly, but it seemed there would be no need for that.
Verden quietly raised his evaluation of this man named Liam.
"I've heard that the Arein family holds the registration rights to the auction house in Gargant. It was when you were young, do you remember?"
"If it's the Gargant auction house... ah, you mean 'Ignasia's Scale'. Of course I remember. It's the right our family paid the greatest price to obtain."
That day, when they were practically driven out of the megacity, pushed aside by merchant guilds backed by countless powers.
At the time, Liam had been only in his early teens.
'Back then, the tangible and intangible assets left unsold in Gargant were as much as three-fifths of our entire fortune.'
Leaving them untouched, it was obvious the ruthless competitors would devour everything, so in a fit of despair, they had simply donated it all to the city where a Transcendent resided.
The relieved yet utterly devastated expression on his father's face that day remained etched in his mind.
Liam, recalling the past for a moment, tilted his head.
"But why bring that up so suddenly...."
"Because we need it."
Hearing the purpose of the deal, Liam quickly began working through it in his mind.
Organizing his thoughts, he spoke cautiously.
"...The right to use Ignasia's Scale can't be bought or sold."
"It's enough if you stand as our proxy."
"If the item registered doesn't meet the standard, the responsibility will fall on me as the proxy."
"I swear, that won't happen."
"You mean... you can guarantee the will of a great Transcendent?"
"If we didn't have such certainty, we wouldn't have come here. And if we'd wanted to harm you, we wouldn't have bothered setting up this arrangement — we'd have done it already."
Involuntarily flinching, Liam felt a chill run down his spine. Pretending to hesitate, he quietly clasped his hands and fidgeted with his fingers.
His eyes moved in silence.
Seeing the maid Mires trembling in terror, he glanced at Keirel.
The cat demi-human slightly tilted her chin.
Was that a sign to trust them?
Uninvited guests who wouldn't even reveal their identities?
Liam brushed his lips and let out a heavy breath through his nose.
"If I become your proxy... if you truly want to make a deal, then what will you give me in return?"
"We'll let you live."
So they weren't bandits.
Even if this was an Ownerless Land... still, wasn't this going too far?
'If I refuse, you'll kill me? What kind of....'
Liam felt a misery he could not put into words.
Because he understood it as a cruel and merciless threat.
And moments later, he realized that wasn't what they meant.
"They say other lords are after your life. If you're not careful, you could be brutally executed. We'll stop that from happening."
"...Pardon? You mean, you'll protect Arein?"
"If that's what you want, we can do that. Either way, it's all the same to us."
Liam's eyes went wide, and he swallowed nervously.
'Is that really possible? To keep other lords from conquering this city?'
Did they bring hundreds of mercenaries? That didn't seem right.
If such a large group were on the move, rumors would have spread for sure.
Then, could it be that these people were that powerful themselves?
They certainly looked extraordinary, but Liam, who had only ever swung a shortsword a few times, couldn't even begin to gauge them.
He looked to Keirel for counsel, but she only furrowed her brows slightly and inclined her head.
He couldn't understand what that meant.
Should he accept the deal?
Could he really place trust in uninvited strangers, who had appeared without warning?
'Or perhaps refuse outright, and somehow placate the unconscious envoy, to buy some time....'
No, wait.
Was refusal even an option to begin with?
From the circumstances, it seemed they had come only for one answer.
His head spun.
His forehead burned hot with feverish heat, as Liam strained to speak.
"Do I... have a choice?"
"That depends on what you think."
If you want to live, or if you want to die, each has only one option.
If you have no attachment to life, then you're free to choose.
Liam let out a short laugh, as though he couldn't believe it.
Wiping his cold sweat with his forearm, he belatedly shook his head back and forth.
"Very well. I'll make the deal."
"I trust there's no need to draw up a contract."
Each would pay their price.
The contract was concluded, agreed upon verbally.
"But, do you know the procedure for using the auction house?"
"W-Well, I know a little, but not precisely. Honestly, I've never once exercised the right."
No matter how prestigious their merchant guild had once been, and even now as lord of a city, it had been nearly impossible to acquire treasures worthy of catching a Transcendent's eye.
"I see. Then, Keirel?"
"Yes?"
"I heard you were familiar with the registration process. Could you help Liam? You'll be compensated."
"No compensation is necessary. I intended to help from the start."
Leaning against the wall, Keirel flicked her tail lightly.
With business concluded, Verden rose from his seat.
As he gently stirred his magic power, the unconscious envoy's body floated into the air, spatially lifted as a whole.
At the same time, Verden issued an order to Adrian.
"While I am away, I ask you to guard them."
"Leave it to me."
Nodding, he headed for the entrance with the envoy in tow.
Keirel, watching that sight, blinked.
"Wait, where are you going now?"
"To carry out the contract."
Verden left the reception room.
***
He had barged into the lord's castle, attacked the envoy of another territory, and struck a verbal agreement with Liam.
As if that wasn't enough, he then walked out with the envoy in hand.
'Carrying out the contract? What exactly is he carrying out?'
Wasn't the condition to protect the city and Liam?
Then why is he leaving?
Keirel, dumbfounded, stepped toward the window.
Whoooosh!
A strange carriage rose into the air from the inner courtyard, then shot swiftly into the sky.
"What the hell is that."
Keirel, who had been through countless hardships, had never seen such a thing in her life.
Her mind simply couldn't wrap itself around the situation.
So she had to ask.
"Hey, where is he going...?"
She avoided speaking her old friend's name, voicing only the question.
Liam and Mires, awkwardly silent, perked their ears with curiosity.
Adrian, arms folded, replied quietly.
"In battle, the best defense is, in truth, attack. The same applies when it comes to protecting someone."
"...?"
"If you remove the cause, the danger disappears."
Silence hung in the air.
Liam, his hands trembling, burst out in shock.
"L-Lord Dallehin is such a cruel man, and he's going alone...!!!"
And Keirel, grasping Adrian's meaning, opened her mouth.
"This madman."
***
The name of the lord who had sent an envoy to Liam was 'Dallehin'.
Last year, he had captured the previous lord, executed him publicly, and begun ruling the territory as a conqueror.
By bloodline, by appointment, or by violent seizure.
In this Ownerless Land, there were many ways to inherit land and titles.
"Ha, haha. It may be savage, but for someone like you, it will be a perfect match. Especially since the lord I serve, Lord Dallehin, respects and treats capable individuals. Unlike Arein, a weak and impoverished city!"
The envoy, having regained consciousness on the way to Dallehin's territory, blabbered on about everything he knew, including things no one had asked.
At first, he had seemed defiant, but when he realized that he was inside a carriage flying high above the earth, he became utterly compliant.
'Like a rat.'
Even his voice seemed to carry the essence of flattery.
It was understandable that each had their own survival strategy, but that sort of slyness — betraying at the drop of a hat for the sake of advantage — was something Verden could never abide.
Before long, they arrived at Dallehin's territory.
It wasn't far from Arein, and Verden's flight speed and magic power were in a league of their own.
"If you plan to meet the lord, allow me to guide you! In fact, he is always recruiting Mages! He will be angry that I was forced to leave my escorts behind... but surely, once he sees you, he will welcome you!"
Unfortunately, the envoy had not the faintest inkling of Verden's magical power.
He was an ordinary man, unawakened to even the slightest mana.
Judging from the greed gleaming in his eyes... he probably believed the flying carriage was some kind of magical artifact.
Well, it was true — he had likely never even heard of a Mage dragging a carriage along with raw
Fwoooosh.
Verden landed the carriage at a spot some distance from the castle gates.
He simply did not wish to cause unnecessary turmoil within the city.
The envoy's attitude was deeply distasteful, but as before, Verden was no butcher.
He had no intention of attacking Dallehin simply because he was Liam's enemy.
The first step was persuasion.
If Dallehin lost his reason to seize Arein, then that, too, would be the removal of the cause.
'Though it likely won't go that way.'
In truth, in cases like this, experience told him that words alone never settled matters.
Even so, he clung to the same method, for it was Verden's way of holding the line.
Step, step, step.
Letting the envoy's obsequious chatter wash past one ear, Verden advanced toward the castle gate.
And as he drew nearer, his expression hardened.
'....'
Bodies were impaled on long spears driven into the ground.
From the walls hung corpses, nooses tight around their necks.
Caw, caw!
Crows flitted about, tearing at rotting entrails.
The stench of decay stung his nose. After a pause, Verden asked.
"Why were they executed?"
"Those? They're the previous lord's family. They tried to run, got caught not long ago. Tsk tsk, they were bound to end like that, just a nuisance in the meantime. They deserved what they got."
To annihilate hostile forces that posed a potential threat — in one sense, that was natural.
Unfamiliar with the detailed circumstances, Verden kept his silence.
He glanced briefly at the pile of children's bones beneath the wall, then moved on.
With the envoy leading the way, he entered the city.
And what he saw, was unlike any city Verden had encountered before.
"You bastard, skimming off the tax money and still daring to resist?!"
"No, I already paid yester... ack! Aaaagh!"
"You wretched dog. Hey! Ransack his house! Everything, down to the food!"
Soldiers armed with blades and spears surrounded an old man, beating him savagely.
Mercilessly, with no concern whether he lived or died.
The envoy chuckled.
"That's called taming. When a new lord takes over, you have to periodically tighten discipline. It's a demonstration, you see."
"Kyaaaa!"
At that moment, from inside a house, a young girl was dragged out by her hair, screaming.
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