The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 45

6. Recapturing: The Bastard Starts

The siege to recapture Albus Castle had begun.

The attacking soldiers fired arrows and advanced battering rams toward the high castle walls.

They tried to fill the moat with earth, and soldiers without weapons even threw stones.

But their efforts were short-lived.

As all sorts of projectiles, including boiling water, rained down from the castle, casualties rapidly increased.

“Retreat! Retreat!”

Thud! Thud! Thud!

At the sound of the drums, the soldiers retreated in droves, as if they had been waiting for the signal.

Thus, the two-day siege ended with the attacking side’s first defeat.

Philip’s camp.

Wounded soldiers with arrows lodged in their bodies and burns causing pus to ooze from their skin groaned throughout the barracks.

Inside the barracks where the leaders were gathered, Philip’s angry shouts could be heard.

“Why did you just stand there?!”

Philip, greatly angered, spat and yelled. His target was Rakan, the leader of the Blue Hawk Mercenary Company [a group of hired soldiers].

“Our soldiers were getting slaughtered. If we had attacked together, we could have inflicted some damage on the enemy, but why did your mercenary company just watch from across the river?”

In contrast to Philip, whose face was red with rage, Rakan maintained a blank expression.

“It’s not wise to collide head-on with a fully defended castle. I tried to dissuade you even before the siege began.”

Philip had expected that the mercenary company, hired for a fee, would move passively without much enthusiasm. However, the unpleasant feeling of actually experiencing it was completely different from simply hearing about it.

“Why did you even take the money if you were just going to cower like this? If you’ve eaten the gold, you should be worth your weight!”

Philip regretted shouting as soon as the words left his mouth.

The air in the barracks became heavy.

He, who had barely reached the intermediate level as a user [referring to his in-game abilities], felt a prickling sensation in his throat and became breathless.

The intangible pressure was coming from Rakan.

“Phi.lip.young.mas.ter.”

Rakan, the mercenary company leader, spoke each word slowly, his eyes flickering with suppressed anger.

Crack!!

The edge of the table that Rakan gripped with his hand was crushed. Philip swallowed hard at the display of pure strength, unaided by mana.

“Even if you pay the penalty now and withdraw, we won’t hold it against you. If you want to find a new mercenary company to break through the encirclement after a frontal assault, be my guest.”

“Ahem, no.”

“Then I expect you to respect the Blue Hawk Mercenary Company’s exclusive operation rights. We are doing our best within our capabilities.”

“I know that well. I misspoke.”

Rakan took a deep breath and continued.

“I have something else to say. In fact, you are the one who broke the contract, young master.”

“What are you talking about now?”

“Didn’t you see the uniforms of those defending the castle? There were Hilton family soldiers mixed in there. At least several hundred of them.”

“!!!”

Philip’s eyes widened.

The Blue Hawk Mercenary Company leader naturally seized the initiative, pressing his advantage as his opponent was flustered.

“Didn’t you know? Well, I suppose you wouldn’t. We’ve worked with the Hilton family a few times, so we easily recognized the unique uniforms of their territory’s soldiers.”

“I, I see. I didn’t know.”

“Originally, our contract was only against the Albus territory soldiers. Now that Hilton has joined the fray, shouldn’t we receive a higher reward?”

“Hmm…”

“But I won’t insist. I’m sure you didn’t know Hilton would come either, young master.”

Philip’s face brightened at the words that he would not demand additional compensation. In the meantime, the Blue Hawk Mercenary Company’s passive attack attitude, which was the initial point of contention, naturally faded from the discussion.

“Anyway, that’s how it is. We will also completely surround Albus Castle.”

“I ask for your help.”

“Just leave it to us.”

The mercenary leader Rakan left the barracks.

He thought to himself.

‘Whether it’s personality or ability, Henon is several levels above, even though he’s a bastard.’

At first, Rakan had scored Philip higher.

He had the strong support of his maternal family, the Molti family, and had thousands of troops that he could mobilize immediately.

However, after meeting Henon a while ago, his existing standards were shaking a lot.

Henon’s first meeting.

He accurately grasped the power dynamics he had prepared from the entrance of the barracks and went out fiercely as if to show off.

He didn’t waver even when he was rebuked like Philip just now.

He showed only as much force as needed when force had to be used, and when he had to talk, he cornered the opponent with skillful rhetoric.

Moreover, he even had strange gold coins that even he, who had wandered all over the continent and had been to most regions, had never seen before.

It didn’t even seem like the gold coins he showed were all of his wealth.

That means that Young Master Henon also has the ability to hire a mercenary company right away. Nevertheless, the meaning of only traveling with his subordinates…

‘It must be sincerity. The declaration that he will destroy this impregnable fortress with only five people.’

At this point, he began to believe it little by little.

The fact that this generous young master might have really eradicated the Twilight executive.

In any case, he was far superior to Philip, who crashed head-on into a castle that couldn’t even be estimated and blamed others.

‘If Young Master Henon makes the impossible possible…’

Rakan had often heard that he would have become a useful merchant if he hadn’t taken up the sword since he was young.

His intuition was telling him.

Young Master Henon is a promising customer candidate worth investing in.

‘There’s less than a day left until three days [referring to a deadline]. If he really does it… I’ll definitely decide on a route and not look back from then on.’

Rakan vowed as he looked at the setting sun. He thought that the direction of the territory war would be decided in some way by the time the next sun rose.

* * *

Same time.

The Mediterranean Sea that separates the southern free city of Liang and the Albus territory.

There were four people watching the sunset while listening to the cries of seagulls and the sound of waves crashing.

“Is everyone ready?”

Sion, Campbell, and I took out the ranger uniforms we had worn in the north again after a long time.

It’s more comfortable than wearing the tight formal wear that nobles have been wearing lately.

Above all, there was a hood on the back of the clothes, so if you pulled the hood down, your identity was naturally hidden.

“Henon, shouldn’t we stop now? No matter how I look at it, this is an overreach.”

Perhaps he thought I was bluffing until now.

Peter’s face turned white as he pulled the boat to the beach, as if he was just realizing it now, and tried to dissuade me.

“It’s not too late yet. Let’s gather troops, even if it’s a small number. Then we’ll attack Albus Castle.”

“Well, it’s a bit difficult to turn back now that we’ve come this far. And I don’t intend to in the first place. If you don’t like it, go back alone, Peter.”

Campbell, Sion, and I all looked at Peter. He bit his lip and clenched his fists tightly. After thinking for a while, he nodded slightly.

“It doesn’t make sense for the person involved to be missing when it comes to reclaiming my territory. I’ll join you.”

“Good thinking. Then let’s all get on the boat.”

I lightly tapped Peter’s shoulder and boarded the boat.

Then Sion got on, then Peter got on.

Finally, when Campbell got on, the boat tilted.

“Ugh!”

“You crazy!”

“Young master, I clearly said to leave the pig out!”

“Lose some weight, you idiot!”

“This is all muscle!”

It seems a bit uneasy from the start.

The small rowboat is completely full with four adults on board.

I and Campbell, who were sitting diagonally to balance the center of gravity, started rowing.

To release the information I had found out in advance, the Mediterranean Sea of ​​the Arnia continent was like Jekyll and Hyde [a reference to a story about a person with a dual nature].

During the day, the waves are calm and the horizon reflected in the sunlight boasts a beautiful scenery that does not fall behind any other place.

On the other hand, it is completely different at night.

Even on good weather days, the waves are high and the sea is quite rough. On days when there is a storm, you have to put all the boats on land.

Because the day and night are so different, it is also called the ‘Goblin Sea’ among the continentals.

Anyway, I went through the dark surface of the Goblin Sea.

Fortunately, the weather was good, and it wasn’t like crossing the vast Mediterranean Sea, so it only took about three hours to move.

The stars in the night sky were spread out like the Milky Way and flowing slowly. Compared to Korea, where even the countryside was polluted and the stars were not visible before I possessed the game, it was a great sight.

“It’s really beautiful.”

Sion said, staring blankly at the sky. It was clear that she had no time to look at the sky because she was doing training and housework every day.

“Sometimes it is necessary to stop for a while in a busy daily life and take a step back to contemplate the inner self. I think that time has come for you, Sion.”

The way to gain enlightenment is different for everyone, but in Sion’s case, I felt like I knew it somehow.

If she relieves the pressure in her heart and regains her composure, the wall of the expert will be easily broken.

Even if you explain this simple principle a hundred times from the side, it is useless unless you truly feel it yourself.

In that sense, even a brief moment of peace during the operation will be a good opportunity for her.

“Vice-captain, if you go back to your hometown after this war, propose to Lisa, whom you liked…”

“Don’t set up a flag [a reference to a trope where mentioning a positive outcome leads to the opposite happening].”

Of course, Campbell is carefree as Campbell is. That’s another charm of Campbell. He is simple and ignorant, but he hits the core with a head-on breakthrough whenever the situation is complicated.

“Albus Castle is visible over there.”

As Peter said.

The shadow of the pointed spire was reflected in the starlight.

I arrived near the cliff, cutting through the water.

As I had identified in advance, there were many reefs, so even parking the boat was a job.

“The boat will sink if we’re not careful.”

“We have to be careful.”

After wandering around for about 20 minutes after arriving, I finally found a place to stop the boat.

It was right next to a large reef.

Now I have to climb the cliff from here…

“It’s quite rough.”

“Vice-captain, should we just go back?”

The slope itself was almost the same level as the crevasse I had fallen into in the north. So Campbell and Sion would be showing such reluctance.

But it was easier for me than then. The crevasse was even covered with ice, but at least here it is made of stone.

“I’ll take the lead, so everyone follow me.”

“I will stay here and protect the boat. I don’t have the ability to go up, and someone has to protect this place.”

It was Peter’s words.

I stared at him intently.

I heard about Peter’s betrayal from Sion.

Will Peter still be guarding the boat when we return? Won’t he run away? In the first place, he doesn’t believe that this operation will succeed at all.

“Good. Peter, wait until we come back.”

“I understand. I’ll be ready to leave as soon as you come.”

Peter’s face, who remained in the rear, was filled with relief that he didn’t have to participate in this crazy operation. I, who was watching that figure carefully, decided to give him the last chance I had thought of before.

“Everyone, turn around for a moment.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I want to take care of business because I’m nervous.”

“!!”

Sion’s face turned as red as a persimmon and quickly turned her body. Peter and Campbell also turned their bodies with bewildered expressions at the sudden request.

In the meantime, I…

Poong!

I put silver-green mana on my finger and made a small hole in the bottom of the wooden boat.

The hole is so small that the bottom of the boat is only slowly getting wet now.

But what if time passes?

The bottom will gradually be submerged in water and the boat will slowly sink.

‘Peter, the moment you abandon us, you will also be abandoned by us. I hope you make a careful choice.’

The sound of the waves was so loud that the group who turned their backs did not see my strange behavior.

That’s how the peeing commotion ended.

Now it’s really time to go up.

I kicked off the floor and jumped up, supporting myself in the crevice of the cliff, and gestured to Sion and Campbell to follow me.

Sion and Campbell also clung to the cliff well, perhaps because they had been training their bodies all along.

“Come back safely. I wish you good luck.”

With Peter’s greetings as the last, I climbed the cliff.

The Albus recapture operation had begun.

* * *

The Lord of Albus enjoyed the cool night sea view from his bedroom today. Before becoming the lord, it was always the place that his older brother, the former Lord of Albus, had watched.

“That’s why you can’t let go of power.”

Although he had ousted his older brother, he was an illegitimate half-brother who came from the same womb anyway.

He had consistently said that Albus should follow the Hilton family, but his older brother opposed this.

In the end, he started a rebellion with the help of the Hilton family and succeeded, and is currently enjoying the sweet fruits.

‘When was Seven Stars and when was Sword Master? I should be loyal to Count Hilton, who promised full support, rather than Marquis Lloyd, who has only one leg [meaning Marquis Lloyd is losing power].’

The Lord of Albus did not blindly betray Marquis Lloyd. He went through a thorough preliminary investigation before turning his back.

The result was nothing special.

An extremely ordinary and greedy successor, Philip, a marchioness who was already blowing her skirt wind [a metaphor for using her influence], and an aging marquis.

Based on all the data, he concluded.

Even if it’s not now, the marquis family will have no future even after only 10 years.

‘The only thing that bothers me is the bastard Henon, who has been making a name for himself recently.’

But the Lord of Albus was a person who firmly believed in the saying that people don’t change. [a variation of “a leopard can’t change its spots”]

Even if a bastard had a chance, nothing would change much. At best, his bluff would have increased a little.

According to the information he heard, Henon was the one who saved Peter and proposed to rescue Albus Castle first.

The lord did not even believe that.

In the first place, the rumors were fabricated and the ignorant Henon was clearly a pawn of the old wolf, Marquis Lloyd.

‘Anyway, it doesn’t matter. No matter who comes, the fortress will never fall. In the end, I am the ultimate winner.’

“Kyahahaha!! Kyahahaha!!!”

The Lord of Albus spread his arms wide and burst into laughter. Behind him, the sound of the door opening was heard.

Squeak

To dare to open the lord’s bedroom at this late hour without permission. This was far beyond etiquette.

“Who is it! What guy dares to open the door without rudely notifying me…”

The marquis, who turned around, could not finish his words when he saw the unfamiliar intruder.

The person who opened the door was a tall man.

The eyes hidden in the hood flashed.

“Is it Sir Horman?”

He calls the knight from the Hilton family, but the opponent does not respond.

Just slowly taking off the hood.

Then, a handsome appearance reflected in the moonlight was revealed.

It was a face I had never seen before.

“Who are you?”

When asked in a trembling voice, the man smiled and opened his mouth.

“You don’t need to know. It’ll all be over when you open your eyes, so rest well until then.”

“Guard!!”

“It’s already too late.”

The man’s figure becomes blurred.

A strong shock comes to the back of the neck.

The expression of the Lord of Albus, whose consciousness fades, is shock itself. His last thought before fainting was this.

‘How on earth?’