Chapter 143
Clang, clang!
Swoosh!
The situation unfolded in an instant.
“Drop your weapons!”
“Move and you’ll be cut down!”
Some of the quicker-reacting knights barely managed a few swings before collapsing in pools of their own blood. The others, feeling the scorching heat of mana blades near their necks, broke into a cold sweat and cautiously disarmed.
Baron Isaac, swiftly subdued by Baron Lamar—who was revealed to be the disguised Kane—sat on the ground, his shoulder dislocated, groaning in pain.
“A betrayal?”
By then, baron Dwayne, the Guard Captain of Conford Castle, had activated his power armor and was pointing his sword at the exposed Kane.
“Well, who’s the real traitor here?”
Kane, still in disguise, chuckled and quipped.
“You… You’re not Lamar. Who are you?”
Despite having served beside this man for years, Dwayne only now realized something was off. But Kane just smiled and shrugged.
‘Damn it. I should have noticed sooner.’
Reassigning Lamar to an external role had clearly been a mistake. Even so, he might have remained deceived if not for this crisis.
‘Were we trapped from the start?’
Whoever orchestrated this had executed it flawlessly. Those knights disguised as guard corps soldiers must have been hidden by the real Baron Lamar. But where did over two hundred expert-level knights come from so suddenly?
‘Such an absurd end….’
The situation was as good as over. With the knights and nobles on the ramparts subdued, the soldiers below had already thrown down their weapons and kneeled.
Despite a few knights like himself donning power armor to maintain a defense, it was futile. No elite force of fewer than ten could stand against over two hundred experts, no matter how skilled.
Yet, baron Dwayne tightened his grip on his greatsword. A yellow mana blade extended from its tip.
‘This might be my last battle…’
He had to at least give it a try.
Boom! Crash!
“Urgh!”
But it seemed even that wasn’t tolerated. A massive mana blade, far larger than a human body, sent Baron Dwayne flying off the rampart.
Cough.
As the mana blade shattered, the backflowing mana caused Baron Dwayne to cough up blood. But there was no time to rest. A massive mana blade from the sword of an approaching figure, silhouetted against the sun, covered Baron Dwayne again.
Bang! Crack.
“Ugh.”
Baron Dwayne’s sword broke, and the repeated strikes from the mana blade caused his power armor’s shield to crack.
‘Who the hell wields such brute strength?’
Baron Dwayne was a mid-Expert level knight himself. Even with power armor, how could he be so overwhelmingly outmatched?
“Oh, still planning to get up?”
“Who… who are you?”
Swaggering with a greatsword slung over his shoulder, the confident figure was none other than Jake.
“Long time no see, senior. Or perhaps I should call you a traitorous scum now?”
“Damn it.”
Baron Dwayne, in his late forties, had once been part of the Golden Bear Knights. Jake, having served nearly a decade in the same order, knew him well.
“How are you here? Your skill wasn’t this level back then.”
Just two years ago, during joint training sessions, Dwayne had defeated Jake. But now, the aura Jake exuded was at least high-Expert, perhaps top-Expert level.
“Who knows? Maybe while you were wasting your talent on politics, fighting through countless battles improved mine.”
In truth, Raul’s aid had been substantial, but Jake wasn’t about to reveal that to a traitor.
“Your presence means this is all Young master Raul’s scheme, doesn’t it? Ha, being played by a young brat… I must be getting old, urgh!”
With bloodshot eyes, Jake’s punch shattered Baron Dwayne’s power armor shield and sent him sprawling.
“How dare you speak ill of the Master! Filthy traitorous scum!”
Whack, whack!
Even after knocking him out, Jake stomped on Dwayne a few more times before spitting and turning away.
“Take him away!”
Two soldiers dragged the unconscious Baron Dwayne away, and Kane, still disguised as Baron Lamar, approached.
“Got some built-up grudge?”
“… We weren’t on good terms.”
Though not universal, many skilled members of the Ashton bloodline often looked down on knights of common birth. Even the Golden Bear Knights weren’t entirely free of such prejudice.
‘It doesn’t matter anymore.’
Today had solidified Jake’s conviction that following the Master was the best decision of his life. The day the First Knights eclipsed the Golden Bear Knights wasn’t far off.
“So how long are you going to keep wearing that face? It’s making me sick just looking at it.”
“Oh.”
Kane, as though he had just remembered, lowered his head and fiddled with his face with his hands for a moment. When he lifted his head again, he had returned to his original appearance.
“It’s always fascinating to see, but don’t do that in front of others.”
“Haha, even if they see it, they won’t catch on. It’s a trade secret, you see. There’s a bit of illusion magic involved.”
While they were chatting, the main punitive force arrived, and the rebellion in Conford Castle was swiftly quelled within just two hours.
*
“I report that we have captured all members of the 23 noble families and over 30 knights involved in the rebellion.”
“Good work. Detain them all in the inner castle’s underground prison and deploy guards at their estates and properties.”
“Yes, sir!”
Having already secured a list of the ringleaders and conspirators, the subsequent actions were executed swiftly. Since the rebellion had progressed beyond mere plotting to actual action, they could arrest those involved without concern for repercussions.
‘With this, it seems the internal garbage has been sorted out.’
While not all dissatisfied elements had been eliminated, the major threats were definitively removed. The remaining minor dissenters would not dare dream of betrayal again as long as Raul and Dylan stood firm.
The remaining tasks were dealing with the rebellious families’ territories and Viscount Jaden.
“Current position?”
“They’ll arrive within an hour.”
“It’s time to prepare. Sir Waylon, I leave this place in your hands.”
“Rest assured, no one will be allowed near the Count.”
“Baron Carlo, come with me.”
“Understood. I must see this Jaden who dared to toy with the main family for myself!”
The Silver Bear Knights were the most severely affected by this incident. They had lost members to the surprise attack, and some had defected to the rebels, nearly halving their strength.
Moreover, baron Carlo, as the commander who failed to manage his subordinates, couldn’t escape responsibility. Understandably, baron Carlo’s fury towards Viscount Jaden was unrestrained.
Shortly after, at the eastern gate of the Second Outer Wall. All knights from the punitive force, 30 Silver Bear Knights, and 100 First Knights, totaling 230 knights, stood in formation atop the wall.
Additionally, 500 central troops, 5,000 guard corps members, and 2,000 auxiliary forces, making up a total of 7,500 soldiers, filled the perimeter of the outer wall.
Raul stood confidently among them, looking out beyond the wall.
“What are you planning to do?”
Philip asked cautiously, as others strained to hear Raul’s response.
“At least have a conversation. After all, he’s technically my uncle.”
“And if they attack immediately?”
Raul gave a wry smile.
“What else? We’ll sweep them all away.”
Raul’s answer elicited nods of agreement from those on the rampart, igniting their fighting spirit. However, despite his bold words, Raul’s mind was whirling with complexity.
He wanted to lead his entire force in a pre-emptive strike against Viscount Jaden immediately. But he lacked the justification. On the surface, Viscount Jaden marching towards Conford Castle with the surrounding lords was not a significant issue.
Despite the pretense, he was using the pretext of protecting his ailing brother. There was no conclusive evidence linking the internal rebellion in Conford Castle directly to Viscount Jaden, making it hard to use as an immediate excuse.
His past betrayals were too old to leverage now, and addressing them was Count Melvin’s prerogative. Thus, Viscount Jaden’s brazen approach to Conford Castle wasn’t without reason.
‘Just because this is a medieval setting doesn’t mean everything runs on brute force,’ Raul thought.
Force and justification. These were the keywords governing Connect. In Connect’s feudal system, power and legitimacy maintained the balance of forces. Even the most powerful king faced united resistance from the nobles if he wielded power without a just cause.
Furthermore, knights, forming a significant power bloc, would not pledge loyalty to a dishonored noble. Thus, the importance of a cause lay in maintaining honor.
‘Though it’s a bit tiresome, if used well, a just cause can be quite convenient,’ Raul decided to look on the bright side.
Just as laws were lenient towards the wealthy on Earth, in Connect, those with power were given leeway for just causes. If Viscount Jaden’s pretext was plausible, Raul needed only to counter with an equally plausible justification.
Now, the ball was in Viscount Jaden’s court. Raul watched with curiosity to see what choice Jaden would make as he faced a wall densely packed with knights.
***
Clip-clop, clip-clop.
“We will arrive at Conford Castle shortly.”
The herald reported to Viscount Jaden, who was looking out the window of an ornate carriage situated in the middle of a confident cavalcade. The viscount, who had set out with a confident expression, now had a slight shadow cast over his face.
“Still no contact?”
Baron Tate shook his head in response to the viscount’s question.
“Think positively, sir. If intense fighting is occurring, it’s natural that the magical communication orb wouldn’t connect. We had contact just two hours ago, so it shouldn’t be a major issue.”
“That’s right, Father. No matter how foolish they may be, they’ve already secured the outer walls; they should be able to hold for at least two to three hours. Even if they’ve lost ground, the fighting will have caused significant casualties among themselves.”
The viscount’s eldest son, Titus, spoke confidently, easing some of his father’s worries.
“You’re right. Even if those parasites clinging to the main family falter, we have other allies.”
In retrospect, there was no reason for such concern. The ‘allies’ of Viscount Jaden were not ones that the hollowed-out remnants of the Count’s forces could handle. He hadn’t known their identities from the beginning. They had first approached him disguised as a wealthy merchant guild.
Over the years, with their support and connections to other collaborators, Jaden had become confident in their backing.
‘The Empire.’
While he felt some unease, he believed he had nothing to lose.
‘What do I care about those Empire folks stuck beyond the gorge?’
For now, maintaining the alliance was beneficial, but once he regained control of the Count’s house, what could a mere espionage organization demand from him?
However, he acknowledged their usefulness at present. Their technology had elevated his knights’ abilities, and they provided hard-to-obtain equipment.
“Let’s prepare.”
“Yes, I’ll get everything ready.”
Clunk.
As Baron Tate and Titus exited the carriage, Viscount Jaden began stretching to loosen his stiff muscles. Revealed beneath his cloak, strange tattoos adorned his arms and neck.
(To be continued)