Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 87

87―――――

Your base is under attack.

The attack targeting Zion was clearly conveyed not only to the Royal Castle but also to the Klausen territory.

Therefore, it would be natural for the Margrave of Lichten to worry about his son’s safety and send knights, or at least soldiers.

However, even though Zion and his party had clearly entered the jurisdiction of the Klausen Margraviate, no one from the territory came out to greet them.

“This is strange.”

Even Rishikida, who was from Nudia, questioned this.

Zion had met the King in the Royal Castle and received confirmation that there would be no problem in inheriting the Klausen name.

In other words, unless he caused a major problem, Zion would become the official successor to the Klausen County.

The fact that there was no reaction even though the son, who was likely to become the official successor, had achieved several merits and returned despite the great risk of an assassination attempt, seemed suspicious.

“Young Master.”

“Let’s go to the castle for now. Then we can find out the reason, right?”

They had only entered the jurisdictional territory, not yet reached the city and castle that were the center of the Klausen Margraviate.

Thus, the group moved on, unable to shake off a sense of unease despite returning home.

And after a while, a strange aspect that even Zion could easily notice became apparent.

Rishikida, with a slightly hardened face, carefully examined the ‘traces’ and approached the carriage Zion was riding in.

“Master. No matter how I look at it, these are traces of battle.”

“Even I can tell that a fierce battle took place.”

They had no idea what was going on.

Everyone knew that the Klausen Margraviate fought a war, or rather, a series of battles, with Nudia every year.

However, those were things that took place outside the border, not within the Kingdom’s territory like this.

In the first place, if Nudia’s forces had entered this far, it would be the same as saying that Klausen had been breached.

‘Besides, there’s no way the Nudia guys who proposed peace first would stab us in the back. I heard that their delegation only left the Royal Castle recently, so they would have to wait at least until they returned to avoid international disgrace.’

In addition, Count Basura was in a position where Klausen had a very firm grip on his weaknesses.

Now, whether he liked it or not, if Nudia showed any signs of attacking Klausen again, he was supposed to immediately inform Klausen.

What if he ignored that promise and acted as he pleased?

Zion could give him ‘an ending where he would eventually be discarded after serving his purpose, no matter how much merit he gained.’

“Young Master. It’s Klausen Fortress.”

Fortunately, the ‘what if’ ended as a ‘what if.’

The fortress was still standing strong, and the city, though a bit stiff, still felt like people lived there.

“But…”

From the entrance of the city to the road leading to the Lord’s castle, the frightened eyes of the territory’s people and the soldiers’ stiff faces were clearly etched in Zion’s mind.

They weren’t this nervous even during the war with Nudia.

For them, the war with Nudia was, to put it bluntly, like fighting off a swarm of locusts that came every harvest season.

But now it was different.

It was too different.

As if they had encountered an unexpected enemy at an unexpected time, everyone’s expression was hardened.

“Master. I will head to the castle first.”

“Yeah. I need to go and hear exactly what happened from Father.”

As he returned home and faced an unexpected situation, Zion felt a slight worry.

Was he missing something?

Or had a wrong action led to a different outcome?

He had all sorts of thoughts.

As soon as he reached the Lord’s castle, Zion rushed to the conference room where the Margrave of Lichten was waiting.

Lilith, Rishikida, Lucia, and Kim Yu-hyun followed behind him.

Of course, Winnie also ran, “Uda-da!”

And busily chased after Zion’s footsteps.

“Father?”

“…So, ah. Zion! You’ve arrived!”

The Margrave of Lichten, who was in the middle of a meeting with his vassals and knights, jumped up from his seat.

Then, he strode forward and gave his safely returned son a strong hug.

“I heard the news. There were so many things that happened that I can’t even explain.”

“Indeed. There were many things. But I thought Klausen would be quiet, but it seems like it’s even noisier here?”

At Zion’s answer, the Margrave of Lichten sighed.

Zion did not miss the frustration and fatigue in that sigh.

Come to think of it, the knights sitting in their seats also showed tension from the battle along with fatigue on their faces, so it seemed that what had happened in Klausen was no ordinary matter.

“I need a proper explanation.”

“Alright. You all may leave for now. We will continue the meeting later.”

At those words, the vassals and knights all rose from their seats.

The people of the Klausen family, who gave Zion a word of welcome, saying that he had worked hard and returned safely, left the conference room.

“Sit down. While you were in the Royal Castle, I was aware of what happened and what events occurred afterward through reports to some extent, but hearing it from the person involved is the most certain thing.”

“That’s true.”

The people sitting next to Zion were all known to the Margrave of Lichten.

Starting with Lilith, then Rishikida, and on the opposite side, Lucia and Kim Yu-hyun.

And…

“Meow.”

…What is this cat?

The Margrave of Lichten stared at Winnie, who was sticking close to Zion, with wide eyes.

At that reaction, Zion let out a sigh, “Ah.”

Since Winnie had joined, there was not much left until Klausen, so he had omitted the news about her with the intention of delivering it in person.

“You know about the incident where I discovered a slave market in the Konean Territory and rounded up the perpetrators, right?”

“How could I not know? Because of that incident, the Kingdom was once again in turmoil.”

“She is a Myo-eun [cat-like beastkin] woman I rescued from that slave market. Winnie Portable, you can call her Winnie.”

“…Nyaoong.”

Winnie was still sticking next to Zion, wary of Lichten.

Still, she was not showing her claws or fangs, trying to be as polite as possible.

“Hey, Winnie. Behave yourself. He’s my father.”

“Nyaang? Oh, really? You should have told me that in advance!”

Winnie, who grumbled like that, relaxed her vigilance and looked at the Margrave of Lichten, then slightly lowered her head and opened her mouth in the most polite tone she could muster.

“Winnie Portable. I came to repay the favor I owe Zion. Please take care of me.”

“…Starting with a demon, then a Nudia knight, and now a beastkin.”

The Margrave of Lichten seemed quite embarrassed by the lineup gathered around Zion.

Beastkins, especially the Myo-eun, were famous for being extremely wary of people and not easily following them.

The Wolrang [wolf-like beastkin] were the only ones who interacted with humans to some extent, and the other two tried not to encounter humans unless absolutely necessary.

“I’ll tell you the details later. More than that, I want to hear the news from Klausen.”

“Alright. You probably don’t know anything about the situation in Klausen yet.”

The Margrave of Lichten let out another deep sigh.

Seeing that the man known as the solid shield of Hispania [a region known for its strong defense] was showing such a serious reaction, Zion felt a sense of tension rising in his body.

“Monster attacks have surged in the past few days.”

“Yes? Monster attacks?”

“Yes. Originally, it was a negligible number, less than five times a year, but it has doubled since a few years ago, and Lord Rido has been staying nearby to find out the reason.”

“…So, Father suspected that temple and investigated it?”

As Lucia nodded as if she finally understood, Lilith, who was sitting next to her, questioned whether that made sense.

“Huh? The temple I was trapped in? What does that have to do with monsters?”

“We only predicted that there might be a connection. We felt an unusual mana from the temple. But after Lilith left the temple, they all disappeared, so we decided that it was not the cause of the increased monster attacks.”

Following Lucia’s words, Kim Yu-hyun, who had been listening with his arms crossed, opened his mouth.

“In addition, my teacher’s mana barrier was doing its best to block the movement of monsters for the time being. In any case, it was possible because the number of monsters approaching the territory was not that large. But the fact that the frequency of attacks has increased to the point where we can feel it like this means one thing.”

“…The number of monsters has increased much more than before.”

“It’s an extremely unnatural thing.”

As the Margrave of Lichten said.

It is never natural for the number of monsters to suddenly increase.

Monsters are also living beings, and as part of nature, they live in harmony with each other according to certain laws of nature.

Most monsters made their homes in the mountains so as not to overlap with human settlements, their territories were clear, and their food chains were firmly established.

It is the natural instinct of monsters to avoid conflict and to avoid leaving their territory unless absolutely necessary.

“At first, I thought that a few monsters that had been pushed out of their territory had come down the mountain. But recently, the number has really exploded. The types are also diverse, from goblins who avoid contact with humans as much as possible to trolls who do not avoid people. Sometimes, even herbivorous monsters are mixed in.”

“…Um, it looks strange to me too. Unless they are really ferocious, many monsters avoid encountering humans. If they accidentally clash and a large army is dispatched, their territory will be devastated. Nyaang.”

Even Winnie, who usually doesn’t talk much, said that.

In other words, the fact that the number of monsters has increased and that they are rushing into the territory indiscriminately is evidence that something unusual has happened somewhere.

“Of course, the situation is not hopeless. Zion. Thanks to you, the war with Nudia is over, and above all, it’s a great relief that the Basura County is not showing any movement even though they know that our Klausen is in a chaotic situation. It’s really fortunate that the wolves who would have rushed in as soon as they saw our territory in chaos are being quiet.”

Zion nodded at the words of the Margrave of Lichten.

At the same time, he was constantly cursing inwardly, ‘Damn it.’

‘Shit! I made a mistake. I know most of the events, but in the end, the novel I remember is what I see from Kim Yu-hyun’s perspective, the story I hear as I follow in his footsteps. Naturally, the places where Kim Yu-hyun was not present are naturally distanced from the flow of the novel!’

At this time, Kim Yu-hyun was originally staying in the Royal Castle before moving north to suppress a rebellion in the north.

And after that, he spent several months there due to the incident with the barbarians.

What does this mean?

While the novel’s content was focused on the north following Kim Yu-hyun, the Klausen Margraviate was naturally erased from the novel’s flow.

The flow of time that was not described at all in the main text, and the events that took place during that time, were all proceeding as they were in this world.

‘When Kim Yu-hyun finished his work in the north and returned to the Royal Castle, news came that the Margrave of Lichten had died. In the end, the King sent a letter appointing Zion Klausen as the next Margrave of Klausen and ordered him to firmly defend the border.

But only two weeks later, news came that Klausen had fallen. The border was devastated, and it was said that Nudia and the monsters had engaged in battle, so Nudia’s army was able to enter unopposed and ravage the Kingdom’s territory.’

What Zion knew exactly was that the Margrave of Lichten was not killed in battle, but by his son, Zion Klausen.

And that Zion Klausen, who was supposed to protect the border, failed to fulfill his duty, and the Klausen territory, which had been serving as the shield of Hispania, was absurdly destroyed.

‘I just thought that they failed to properly defend against Nudia’s attack, but there was also a sudden large-scale attack by monsters. Damn it, damn it! Why didn’t I think of this? The novel ultimately follows Kim Yu-hyun, so it was natural that I couldn’t know when, how, or in what way the other events would occur!’

I made a mistake.

I was too relieved.

Because I knew the contents of the novel, I had handled all the events well so far.

I thought that I could prepare for and prevent any event that came my way.

But that was just because I was familiar with the original flow of the novel.

What if I was in a place where Kim Yu-hyun was not originally, and unexpected things happened there?

It was clear that a situation would unfold where it would be difficult to even prevent it, let alone prepare for it.

‘Life is a bitch…

Nothing is easy.’

Sighing inwardly, Zion pulled his slightly relaxed mind back up.

As expected, he, this body.

Even a little carelessness would lead to a fall into the abyss, boasting an extremely difficult level.