88 – Midland-3

“First, I should introduce myself. Just call me William.”

No matter how much he misunderstood me, it was an overly humble attitude.

“This is Enerel.”

“It’s a name I haven’t heard… I’m sorry. I came from an adventurer, so I don’t know the name of the famous family. Excuse me, but what’s your family?”

“That would be a bit difficult to say now.”

The name of the family, Leodrin, was still a bit awkward.

And the fact that that person is a real hero must have already spread throughout the capital, and it is only a matter of time before Eleanor’s identity is revealed.

As soon as it is revealed that I sided with one side and managed the situation, my actions will have numerous political implications.

It doesn’t matter if you can find what you want in a few months. However, if more time is consumed than expected, and if the political structure changes in the process.

There’s nothing wrong with holding a card that can put pressure on the emperor in case of emergency, but at least his power should be maintained while he’s helping me.

“As expected.”

William clicked his tongue with a sad expression on his face.

As he said, it was not thought that he came from a famous noble family. As an adventurer, mercenary, or soldier, he must have earned his position through achievement.

“Still, I’d like to hear from you. What’s your plan?”

“Um… First of all, this is a temporary situation.”

“I’ve heard it’s a conflict zone for quite some time. Isn’t it?”

“That’s true… well, it’s been a while since real soldiers glared at each other. Most of them end in duels or diplomatic battles.”

Now it feels like my common sense is working. The emperor’s control didn’t even seem that weak, but it made more sense to fight and kill each other.

“So you mean not now?”

“It seems to be a little quiet for a low-level person like me… but it seems that there are vicious rumors going around in the capital.

It was a name I didn’t want to hear, but I couldn’t continue the conversation without him here.

“The situation is not good. Right now, we are fighting each other around there, but… Wene family soldiers have already started to be deployed nearby.”

“But something like a balance of power…”

“It collapsed. Because of the demon king’s invasion, too many soldiers died.”

“why?”

“Because this family was following the Emperor. They were put into a more dangerous battlefield, and they had no choice but to recruit more soldiers.”

When the demon king woke up, it wasn’t just our party fighting.

There were World Trees and some southern countries that didn’t face monsters and battle lines, but at least for the people of the empire, it was a life-or-death struggle.

“Was the Aldgild family originally friendly with the emperor?”

“That… it won’t be absolute. Usually, the weaker side is loyal to His Majesty, and the stronger side makes ties with the nobles.”

“Why?”

“Regardless of the era, the imperial family wanted peace.”

Could it be that the strong side sided with the nobles to claim territory, while the weak side sided with the emperor to somehow preserve the territory they had occupied so far?

In fact, I didn’t want to take anyone’s side in this situation. It was an ambiguous situation to distinguish between good and evil.

However, I was also responsible for the weakening of the emperor’s control.

Although I thought that the emperor himself had to do well to prevent this from happening in the first place.

“I told you, but if the ulterior motive is to use us to take over the territory…”

“You’re claiming territory. All I want is peace.”

For now, it is because the interests of his family coincide with peace.

“How painful would it be for the soldiers who sacrificed themselves to stop the demon lord to see the ruins when they returned home?”

“Yes. I understand, so please explain the plan as soon as possible.”

A bright smile spread across his face. He seemed quite young for someone who had even earned a title of nobility through his exploits.

“As I said, this problem happened when His Majesty’s control weakened. With a little bit of time, peace will be maintained, albeit on a narrow scale.”

“understand.”

“And these families… have never directly crossed swords. They showed off their wealth to buy a lot of mercenaries, or called a great warrior and settled the dispute in a duel.”

If it’s a fight with similar families and you can’t use the standing army of the territory, the quality and number of mercenaries naturally decide the outcome.

If you can gauge the quality of mercenaries through duels and guess their number through financial strength, there is no need for useless fights.

Even the victorious family would have to pay the price for that many mercenaries, so it’s better not to have an actual fight.

“So, why don’t you convince the other mercenaries? Let’s get out of this fight and make a contract to help Enerel Adventurer explore.”

If enough mercenaries fall in at once to prepare for war, the balance of power is maintained, albeit clumsily.

The army of the territory is the core of power. If the Wene family wants to use their lives instead of money to attack others, they will have to think more.

“Should I break the contract once made?”

“Most of them are just waiting for a contract, and they probably haven’t officially signed it yet. The contract with the mercenary itself is a kind of declaration of war, so even if they sign a contract implicitly, they don’t declare it.”

“Well…”

“Besides, it’s not like joining the enemy, the Aldgild family. Leaving to help an outsider can’t be considered a betrayal. With enough money, you can make them sell credit.”

I couldn’t believe William’s words completely. No, more than that, I couldn’t figure out why William trusted me so much.

“Of course, we’ll give you a generous deposit and compensation. We also don’t have enough gold, so you might feel a bit lacking… but it should be enough to buy the mercenaries.”

“If you have that much money, can’t you buy it yourself?”

“Because mercenaries never fight on the sidelines. Besides, signing a contract with us is a betrayal, so there are no mercenaries to do such foolish things.”

As if he had anticipated this situation, he was concocting a plan that fit perfectly.

“And the middle ground is dangerous. If you take enough mercenaries with you, wouldn’t it be helpful in case of a dangerous situation?”

After taking a deep breath, I nodded.

Even if I were to meet a member of the Wehne family, I didn’t think I could get a better offer than this.

It was the most effective solution as long as it ignored everything and broke through forcefully or did not reveal Eleanor’s identity.

/////

“…come out.”

It was unpleasant to see Eleanor’s face. However, just not seeing your face didn’t make me comfortable.

I hated feeling like I had run away for nothing. It was unpleasant that I felt like I was pushing myself, as if I wasn’t ready to get revenge on her.

“I get it.”

Eleanor put on a robe that covered her face and followed me right away.

“Did you change your mind?”

When she first said she would fight, I couldn’t control my emotions.

He had gone mad all alone and returned without listening to her story.

“I’m just curious. Eleanor. Do you really think you need this?”

“of course.”

We left the inn and walked to a secluded place. There was no moon, but I could see her full face.

“If it’s Dalian that you hold a grudge against me, it must feel good to overcome it with your own strength.”

“Will I win?”

“That’s why it’s necessary, Enerel.”

It’s still scary. The word couple itself is terrifying, and Eleanor’s cold eyes are terrifying. And, myself.

“This is what I need too. I’m so used to the strength of a warrior, I’m not ready to fight someone stronger than me.”

I hated that expressionless face.

Maybe, even then, he knew. that she had no ill intentions.

“Even in the fight against the white branches… I could have been more helpful. I was lacking.”

But people do not necessarily have malice to be hurt. There can be no malice in water and fire, but floods and fires kill people.

“I can’t control my strength. I could die?”

“In any training, accidents happen. No matter what happens, I have no intention of blaming you.”

I was afraid to hold the sword. I didn’t want to repeat this painful routine.

I wanted to hold the sword. can finally win I can make the unsightly person who wallows on the ground become her, not me.

“…okay.”

I finally took up the sword. Seeing the sword unnaturally raised in a clumsy posture, a false laugh leaked out.

During the previous adventure, if I had aimed my sword at her in this position, I would have immediately rolled on the floor unsightly.

The sword flew far away, and I must have been listening to her scolding. It was a clumsy and arrogant attitude that was not prepared to receive power and was not prepared to move forward.

Even so, Eleanor is glaring at my sword. I’m seriously analyzing my ridiculous sword, not letting my guard down at all.

There was silence for a moment. Time passed without incident.

We both realized something strange at the same time and exchanged awkward glances.

I subconsciously assumed, of course, that Eleanor would come in to stab me first.

“…I’ll do it first.”

Having made up my mind, I swung my sword. As if nothing happened.