The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 97

Chapter 13 Summons: A Bastard on Horseback

As I mentioned before, there are currently three types of energies swirling within my dantian [an energy center in the body, according to traditional Chinese medicine].

First, there’s the Dragon Blood I received from Kyle’s legacy in the Northern Dragon Lair. This silver-tinged dragon blood possesses a combative and fierce nature. Its actual quantity is the smallest, but its efficiency is arguably the highest.

In the past, when I was stuck before reaching Sword Expert, I succeeded in advancing by adding Dragon Blood to my existing green mana. Dragon Blood still lingers in my body, providing assistance whenever needed.

Second, there’s the blue mana, brimming with the energy of the sea. This blue mana is an energy I acquired from the treasure ‘Mermaid’s Tears,’ which I happened to obtain in Liang’s black market.

It’s characterized by its cool blue color, and its nature seeks harmony. Therefore, at the time, the blue mana mediated the minor conflicts between the green mana and Dragon Blood, which had opposing characteristics, helping me rise to the intermediate level of Expert.

Lastly, the third is green mana. It’s the most common and general mana. Most mana users active on the Arnia Continent gather this green mana and strive towards new realms.

The greatest advantage of green mana is its accessibility compared to other energies. Anyone with mana affinity can obtain it anywhere on the continent. The disadvantage is that its nature is strongly inclined towards stability, so it’s slow to move unless there’s a significant amount. This passive nature naturally leads to a slower rate of development.

Feeling frustrated with this, some ability users achieve rapid growth through black mana, the mana of darkness, with necromancer Raul and the demon Dantaleon being prime examples.

Anyway, instead of dabbling in black mana, I completed the emerald-colored tri-elemental mana using Dragon Blood and blue mana. Since then, the tri-elemental mana has maintained its own balance, like Wei, Shu, and Wu in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms [a famous Chinese historical novel], creating a synergistic effect.

And today.

The moment I drank the Water of Life in the Elven Sanctuary, a torrent of energy flowed in, violently shaking my serene inner world.

“Amazing.”

A gasp escaped me involuntarily.

First, in terms of taste, it felt like drinking high-proof rum or vodka.

It was burning hot from the moment it passed my throat, and flames surged from within.

At first, I thought it was similar to Dragon Blood, but after sitting in a meditative posture and observing my inner self, I quickly realized it was a mistake.

The essence of the Water of Life that I grasped was a concentrated form of green mana.

The stable and sluggish green mana had accumulated repeatedly in the special environment of the Eastern Great Forest, and the concentrated essence thus formed was the Spring of Life.

“This is!!!”

The tri-elemental mana is collapsing.

The reinforcements were that powerful.

Swelling in size like a reliable older brother arriving on the scene, the green mana subtly pressured the Dragon Blood and blue mana within the dantian.

Of course, Dragon Blood, with its formidable temper, wouldn’t stand still.

‘Look at this one!?’

As if it had been waiting for this, Dragon Blood rampaged through the body’s energy channels, clashing with the green mana.

Boom!!

Cold sweat poured from my body.

My body, still in a meditative posture, convulsed involuntarily.

Sasha, who was watching from the side, was startled and shouted.

“Mister! Are you okay?”

Because I was focused on controlling my inner self, her voice sounded distant, as if she were speaking from afar through a wall.

Anyway, now is not the time to worry about Sasha.

I had to somehow calm the entire body’s energy channels and meridians, including the dantian.

After an hour of sweating profusely,

an unexpected savior appeared.

It was the blue mana.

The blue mana, which had been quick-witted and harmony-seeking since our first encounter, now sided with the Dragon Blood.

It was a completely different attitude from when it had crouched right in the middle of the green mana and Dragon Blood when I first absorbed it, not taking sides with either.

Thus, the tri-elemental mana, which had formed a triangle, transformed into a coalition of verdant green and silver-blue Dragon Blood + blue mana.

The tri-elemental mana was reorganized into a dual-elemental mana.

The two massive energies embraced each other and began to slowly rotate within the dantian, their shape resembling a Taijitu [the symbol of yin and yang].

‘The immediate crisis is over.’

I carefully guided the newly formed energy and spread it throughout my body.

Perhaps because a temporary peace treaty had been established, the energies followed my control well.

The energies, increased both quantitatively and qualitatively compared to before, expanded the body’s energy channels like a victorious army.

In addition, the positive effect of new pathways being created followed.

Veins that had been too remote to connect were brought to light by this reorganization of the internal energy transportation network.

As the entire body became organically connected, the skin briefly became transparent enough to see the internal blood vessels and organs before returning to normal.

Flash!!!

When I opened my eyes, an emerald light, much deeper than before, overflowed.

I felt it instinctively.

That I had taken another step forward.

If my previous realm was intermediate Expert, my current realm can be seen as advanced Expert, that is, reaching maturity.

The day I reach the ultimate level, the pinnacle of the highest grade, and then the long-awaited new world of Sword Master, is not far off.

Of course, to reach the targeted place, I have to overcome obstacles much more difficult and higher than the obstacles I have overcome so far, but just getting here was a remarkable achievement.

“Mister!!”

When I shook my body and got up, Sasha came running towards me.

Her face was full of worry.

“Are you okay?”

“Of course. I’m in top condition.”

“I thought something bad was going to happen to you in the middle.”

“It almost did, but I overcame the crisis.”

Sasha puts her nose to my body and sniffs.

She looks just like a puppy.

“Mister, you were already super strong, but you’ve gotten even stronger.”

“How did you know?”

“The good smell has gotten stronger.”

Sasha hugs me tightly.

For a high elf who loves the forest, a druid full of the forest’s essence, I understand why she’s acting like this.

On the other hand, I also realized how reckless Elder Richard’s baptism was.

To feed such a potent Water of Life to elven warriors without any countermeasures for extreme strengthening.

It would have been fine if they had fed a very small amount little by little to patients like Sasha, but the Elder must have fed them a lot, saying that the more they eat, the stronger they become.

Even I, with Dragon Blood and blue mana, had such a hard time, so what about the elven warriors who had no means of resistance?

Their body’s energy channels would have been gradually damaged and twisted without them knowing due to the overwhelming energy.

Fortunately, the green energy is inherently passive and dull, so they are still alive, but if it had been a fiery temperament like Dragon Blood, their bodies would have swelled and burst as soon as they consumed this amount.

“It’s a good thing I arrived in the Eastern Great Forest before the collective baptism.”

I muttered to myself involuntarily.

Sasha agreed with me.

“You’re right.”

Sasha nods.

I asked her.

“What are you going to do now? I want to hear your plan.”

“Well.”

Sasha wrapped her arms around her legs and squatted on the stone floor.

At that moment, a breeze blowing through the top of the mountain made her sparkling silver hair flutter.

After organizing her thoughts for a moment, she said.

“To be honest… I want to leave the Elven Sanctuary and be with you.”

“Why?”

“It’s just a hunch, but if I travel with you, I feel like I’ll have a lot of new experiences that I wouldn’t be able to have in my life.”

The shaman’s intuition is definitely sharp.

“But from the way you say that, I guess you’re thinking of staying here.”

“That’s right. Anyway, I’m the elven tribe’s shaman, and with the Elder gone, all the elves are looking at me. I have a duty to lead and guide them.”

Sasha, who looked so young from our first meeting at the Full Moon Market.

Although we only met for a short period, she had grown up mentally and was already showing the qualities of a leader.

“I’ll support you. Sasha.”

“Okay.”

Clear dew drops fall down her beautiful cheeks.

Her tears suddenly burst out.

“Thank you so much… sincerely. From Liang to here… as the elven tribe’s shaman, and as an individual.”

An ordinary elven girl from the Arnia Continent.

If she had been born ordinary, she would have lived happily without any worries and passed away, but fate did not leave her alone and constantly made her a special being.

From now on, she decided to share her fate with her race. I reached out and wiped away her tears as she firmly made up her mind.

“I guess we won’t be able to see each other again? The elves have done too many terrible things to humans.”

“Are you going to go into seclusion?”

“The forest is our home and foundation. We’re going back to the way we were. We’re going to hide in the Great Forest and never be seen again.”

What would happen if the elven tribe hid like this?

The relationship between elves and humans would forever remain separate.

When humans, whose civilization has developed over a long period of time, develop the Great Forest and cultivate the land, conflicts will arise again.

The grudges of the past were bound to become future conflicts and repeat the horrific tragedy.

According to the history I learned on Earth, that was always the pattern.

“Sasha, I have a different idea. Hiding in the Eastern Great Forest is actually a cowardly act.”

Her eyes widened as if surprised by my words.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you should come to the forefront.”

“But…”

“I know. Humans hate elves. At least the residents of the current Moltke Territory will never forgive you.”

“That’s why I’m trying to hide, because I think it will be as you say.”

“Even so, what if you sincerely apologized and sought reconciliation for a long time? Would they still hate you even after generations?”

Sasha, who has a good understanding, quickly understood what I meant.

“You mean invest time.”

“Yes. Punish the mastermind of this incident for sure and show it to humans, and try to continue communicating with the rest.”

“Do you think it will work?”

“I’ll help you.”

In fact, this idea was an inspiration that flashed through my mind after seeing the letters between Elder Richard and Count Hilton a little while ago.

The two men formed an alliance between different races, albeit superficially and hypocritically, to swallow the Lloyd family.

Since even the greedy two had formed an alliance, I also wanted to form an alliance between different races with Sasha.

I wanted a soul alliance where we could sincerely call each other comrades, not just a simple formality.

“There will be many difficulties. There will probably be humans who show indiscriminate hostility towards elves. And there will be elves who are tired of this and show their teeth in the same way.”

“But will it eventually be resolved if time passes?”

“That’s right. The elves’ long lifespan is an absolute advantage. If you maintain a consistent attitude while humans forget and forget, I believe that peace between the two races will surely come.”

My proposal was sincere.

If Sasha accepts, I was willing to dispatch troops to Moltke Territory to mediate between the two races.

Hoping that even that would not be necessary when humans and elves began to mingle as time passed.

“Your plan is good, but there’s a problem.”

“What is it?”

“Moltke Castle, the closest human settlement from the Elven Sanctuary, is too far away. It will take a long time just to go back and forth.”

I chuckled at Sasha’s words.

“Why are you worrying about such unnecessary things? Have you forgotten how my army got here?”

“…Ah!”

Sasha, recalling the wormhole generator, exclaimed.

“I’ll leave the teleport device here. There’s also a spare, so there’s no burden. You just have to use the wormhole to interact with humans.”

As the plan became more concrete, Sasha began to sob again.

“Then can I see you again?”

“Of course. Come visit when you have time. You’re always welcome.”

“Misterrrrr!!!! Hwaaa!!”

My clothes were soaked with Sasha’s tears.

I gently stroked her head.

It felt pretty good.

* * *

Around the time Henon was finishing up his work with the elves, the lord coalition, which had been advancing with great momentum, was completely cornered.

“Damn it!”

Crack!!

Baron Piento, unable to contain his anger, punched the rectangular table, shattering it in an instant.

Thanks to this, the strategic map spread out on the table and the pieces used to mark the troops all fell to the floor in a mess.

The conference room had such a tense atmosphere that your skin would be cut if you moved even a little.

Baron Piento, sitting in the highest seat, barely opened his mouth, clutching his temples, which were throbbing with a headache.

“What’s the solution?”

Silence.

There was no answer.

Suppressing the rising resentment inside, Baron Piento asked again.

“I’m talking about a solution. Give it to me.”

Again, there was no answer.

The baron, clutching his head, sighed.

“How on earth did we get into this situation…”

Clearly, in the beginning, when they confidently declared to Lord Lloyd and started the attack, they were as excited as if they were on a picnic.

Everyone was dreaming of quickly getting rid of the barbaric elves and dividing the territory.

But the accident happened from the evening of the same day.

“Elven archers are ambushing us at night.”

They cleverly hid in the surrounding bushes, sniped at the soldiers from afar, and disappeared.

When the army was led to search the area under the commander’s orders, the elven archers who had attacked were long gone.

As this happened repeatedly, no one wanted to stand guard, morale declined, and military discipline began to falter.

Still, they thought it was okay.

No matter how strong the elves were in the field, they would be useless if their base was destroyed.

They dismissed it as a problem that would be solved automatically once they occupied the fortress.

“Exterminate all the cruel elves!!”

The siege of the fortress was fierce.

Although the number of elven warriors was small, each one was brave and had amazing martial arts skills.

It was impossible to estimate how many Expert-level warriors there were.

Above all, their tenacity, showing hostility to humans and fighting even in the midst of death as if they had taken drugs as a group, was enough to make the opposing side shake their heads.

To make matters worse, the elven archers who ambushed at night began to pick off only the commanders.

Because of this, the commanders staged humiliating acts such as wearing shabby clothes like the soldiers or getting off their horses.

The command system crumbled like a sandcastle.

Still, they achieved results.

They succeeded in occupying the first fortress after all sorts of hardships.

The five thousand soldiers had been reduced to three thousand, and the victory was only a wound, with the number of elven deaths being extremely small.

Here, the opinions of the lords were divided into two.

“Evil elves. Let’s take advantage of this momentum and exterminate them all.”

“The damage was too great. Let’s go back now.”

“What? Are you out of your mind?”

“Are you the one who’s out of your mind? Can’t you see the damage to the soldiers now?”

“If we retreat, we’ll have suffered for nothing and there will be no harvest. Is that okay?”

“Are you still greedy for Moltke Territory in this situation? Please be moderate!!”

“Who said I was greedy? Many of our troops have died. What are we going to do if we retreat without repaying their lives? You should get your mind right!”

Divided into an attack faction and a retreat faction, the command post was filled with shouting every day.

Of course, the wrinkles on Baron Piento’s forehead increased.

In the end, the final conclusion was an attack.

In the subsequent battle with the main force of the elven tribe on the plains in front of the second fortress, the human army was defeated.

The martial power of the elven tribe’s commander, called Scott, was literally a Yaksha [a fierce, mythical being] itself.

Every time his kukri [a curved Nepalese knife] flashed, the necks of allied soldiers were cut off like straw.

Baron Piento was injured when he tried to stop Scott, his left little finger was cut off, and he hurriedly retreated to the first fortress.

The three thousand troops had all run away or died, leaving only a few hundred troops, and the elven tribe surrounded the fortress where the lord coalition was crouching and poured attacks every day.

It was only a matter of time before it was captured.

It was natural that the morale of the command post was in this state.

“There is one solution…”

All eyes were focused on Baron Kante, who raised his hand trembling.

“Oh! Tell me.”

Everyone urged him with a happy heart.

And the proposal that came out of his mouth.

“How about surrendering?”

“Sigh!”

“I was stupid to expect anything.”

“Do you think they’ll let us live?”

“Your asshole has expanded, and you’ve completely lost your masculinity.”

“What? Did you just say everything?”

“Stop!!!”

Baron Piento shouted.

His inner thoughts were like this.

‘There’s not a single useful guy.’

Everyone was incompetent.

Everyone was useless.

Everyone was helpless.

If there had been just one sensible guy among the lords, things wouldn’t have come to this.

Since there wasn’t a single guy who could come up with a plausible strategy, they were crushed by the elven tribe, which was only fifteen hundred strong, with five thousand troops.

“In my opinion.”

Said Baron Norn, who was next to him.

“The Baron is also somewhat responsible.”

“What?”

Is it time to blame the commander now?

I’m sick of the incompetence.

He’s at least an Expert, but they have no martial power or leadership, and they’re greedy even though their titles are low.

“After all, we followed the Baron all the way here, didn’t we?”

“That’s right. It’s a traditional custom for the commander to take responsibility if the results are not good.”

“If we had attacked with Lord Lloyd with ten thousand troops from the beginning, this would not have happened.”

“Now that the situation has become like this…”

Suddenly, the lords began to whisper among themselves.

Seeing their gleaming eyes, Piento felt a sense of crisis.

It wouldn’t be strange if they handed over himself, the commander, and asked the elven tribe’s commander for mercy.

It seemed obvious that the elven tribe’s commander would not care about this and would give everyone an equal death.

What Baron Piento felt while experiencing this elven war was the greatness of the Lloyd family’s umbrella.

If it weren’t for the Lloyd family, those fat pigs would not have been able to maintain their titles.

‘Now that I see it, Lord Lloyd was a decent guy.’

Whether he’s illegitimate or not, that’s not the problem.

Still, Lord Lloyd led six thousand troops and also proved his own martial power.

Faced with today’s tragic results, Baron Piento regretted the fact that he had deliberately mistreated a talented person and dug his own grave.

‘If I have another chance.’

Even though it’s already over, if I ever get another chance, I’ll reach out to Lord Lloyd.

Just as he was thinking that in his heart.

A man on horseback appeared over the hill.

The man who appeared alone was holding a flag, and the oak tree was clearly engraved on the flag fluttering in the wind.

It was the Lloyd family’s emblem.