Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 429

429―――――

It’s Zion Klausen again.

The heroes have returned.

Those who called themselves the light, yet cast a shadow darker than any darkness, those unworthy of even being called the Heirs of Light, were defeated and banished from this land forever. Now, the true heroes have returned.

“Waaaaah!”

“Eternal glory to the Heirs of Light!”

The people of Hispaña, who did not directly participate in the war but remained behind to support them, came out to the streets to celebrate their victory and return.

Not only the soldiers of Hispaña but also the northern warriors, the beastmen, and the fairies received the same cheers.

Everywhere they went, they were greeted by crowds of at least tens of thousands, so even the fairies, who rarely revealed their inner thoughts, couldn’t help but shrug their shoulders.

“…”

However, some could not hide their gloomy expressions even in this celebratory atmosphere.

Ludwig, in particular, was in low spirits, as he had left with his father but returned alone.

“Smile.”

“…Commander.”

“Drop the title and formalities now.”

“Why…”

“Because now you are, Ludwig Redenen, the head of the Redenen Marquisate [a noble title, ranking below a Duke] and a Marquis of this country.

Marquis Volko’s death, and the deaths of so many others beside him, are heartbreaking, but the image you must project here is not one of gloom, but of a hero waving confidently.

That is how people will feel reassured, and the soldiers will recognize that they fought well.

So, save your sorrow for when you are alone, perhaps with a bottle of wine. This is neither the time nor the place.”

“Ah…”

Ludwig sighed.

Listening to Zion’s words, he remembered when Marquis Volko, after returning from battle, had not flinched during the victory parade despite the deaths of his cherished subordinates and soldiers, only to mourn for days without eating or drinking after returning to the castle.

Mourning and honoring the departed is essential.

However, one must also be careful not to let it overshadow the purpose of victory.

Ludwig engraved in his heart what his father, Marquis Volko, had first taught him, and what Zion was now reminding him of.

“…Thank you, Zion.

If it weren’t for you, I would still be a callow knight.”

“Of course, you should be grateful.

If I hadn’t done this, your father would have risen from his grave and beaten you into a decent human being.

He was quite frustrated seeing you constantly going astray when you could clearly become a decent knight and nobleman with just a little effort.”

Ludwig let out a short laugh at Zion’s joke.

Looking at the endless welcoming crowds, he said in a casual tone,

“The Redenen Marquisate and the Klausen County have been subtly building a friendship.”

“But if that were to be revealed in political circles, they would call it collusion, and both families are martial families, so they would constantly engage in minor conflicts out of pride.”

“I intend to end that in your generation and mine.

Zion, what do you think?”

“The Oner Marquisate might not, but the Gutchen Marquisate will bite Redenen right away?

Isn’t the secret to maintaining the three Marquisates to avoid appearing too close to other noble families?”

“That’s true, but I think you’ll break that balance soon enough.”

“Are you saying I’m going to stir up discord among the three Marquisates?”

It was just a jest, but Ludwig turns serious, saying he wouldn’t even consider such a thing.

If anyone else had said that you were the type to do that, he would have drawn his sword and held it to their neck, which meant Ludwig was evaluating Zion as highly as Kim Yu-hyun did.

“Think about what you’ve accomplished so far, the merits you’ve achieved.

Do you think the Queen will leave you as just a Count?

Even if your territory increases and only the western part of the land that Nudia is giving up goes to your family, it will still be at least eight times larger than the current Klausen March.”

“So, you’re saying the Queen will create another Marquis title for me, or something?”

“Frankly, even that would be insufficient.

Right now, the praise for you among the mid-level commanders, especially the knights, is endless.

If someone who has achieved such great merit is only raised to the rank of Marquis, it would diminish Hispaña’s national prestige.”

“You seem to be misunderstanding something, the Marquis title is still a big deal.

Even in Hispaña, no one has been granted the title of Marquis since the three Marquisates, no matter how much merit they’ve achieved, right?”

“Their merits weren’t this great.

Moreover, the Klausen March was only nominally a County, but in reality, it had territory and authority equivalent to a Marquisate, so giving you the title of Marquis now wouldn’t be seen as a reward by others.”

Somehow, the direction Ludwig is speaking in is similar to the picture Zion had been drawing in his mind.

Zion looked at Ludwig, wondering, ‘Could it be?’

In response, Ludwig smiled and tapped his chest twice with his right hand.

“I may not be as good as you, but I am a member of the three Marquisates and, as you said, someone who will take on one of them.

I have that much sense, and I can vaguely understand what you are planning.”

“Impressive.

I thought you were just a naive knight who was always getting scolded by Marquis Volko.”

Ludwig wasn’t a complete mess like Zion in the novel, a typical example of failed parenting.

He had even been somewhat at odds with Kim Yu-hyun, and when Hispaña was in danger, he hadn’t hesitated to sacrifice himself to buy even a little more time. That was Ludwig Redenen.

Zion roughly knew Ludwig’s true nature, so he gave a lesson to the guy who had been ignoring this body, but instead of discarding him or completely destroying him, he raised him well and used him properly.

“I want to join you, Zion Klausen.”

“…”

“As a great pillar supporting Hispaña, as a nobleman and knight dedicated to the country, to make this country, at its peak, an unprecedentedly powerful nation.

Yes, I want to make it an ‘Empire’.

And I want to follow in your footsteps on that great journey, contributing even a little.

For the glory of the Redenen family, of course, that can’t be completely absent.

But that’s not the main reason.

I want to see this Hispaña, which my father gave his life to protect and which a genius like you will lead, become the most shining, the greatest nation on the continent.

I want to walk that path with you.”

Despite Ludwig’s firm words, Zion showed no particular reaction.

This seemed to imply that he couldn’t know his sincerity, so Ludwig said several more times that he could do anything for Hispaña and asked him to trust him.

In fact, Zion wasn’t doubting him, but rather wondering how to use Ludwig, who had come over as he had hoped, to open the imperial era in a spectacular way.

‘I was wondering what to do if I couldn’t persuade Ludwig, but he’s coming in on his own.

With this, I’ve secured one of the most powerful allies, except for Vanessa.’

This is Hispaña, not enemy territory, where Zion will be staying for a very long time.

He can’t just unleash ‘Tactical Nuke’ Kim Yu-hyun, and in this kind of power struggle, stamping out opponents with justification is better than crushing them with force, making it impossible for them to rise again.

In that respect, the full support of the Redenen Marquisate, one of the three Marquisates, is welcome.

If Hispaña becomes an empire from a kingdom, the first to be checked by the imperial family will be those Marquisates.

Now they are treated well because they are the pillars supporting the kingdom, but in an empire that is more solid and sensitive than that kingdom, they hate the decentralization of power.

It was clear that the powers of the Marquisates would be reduced by taking away some of their authority, so if the Redenen Marquisate still supported the birth of the empire, it would certainly play an important role in the battle for justification.

“…If you say that much, I welcome it.

But are you sure?

It’s a path that could ultimately reduce the power of the Marquisate.”

“At best, only a few authorities will disappear.

The Marquisate won’t collapse because of that.”

“It’s not something to say so easily, Ludwig.

People inherently hate losing what they already have.”

“I don’t intend to do that, even if others do.

I just want to see Hispaña, which shines so brightly as a result of my father’s sacrifice and will be led by a genius like you, shine more brilliantly than ever before, more brilliantly than any other nation.”

If Marquis Volko had watched this scene, he would have finally felt relieved and closed his eyes in peace.

Depending on the people around you, you can either develop or regress, and fortunately, Ludwig seemed to be the former.

“Okay.

If you say that much, I have no reason to stop you anymore.”

“Seeing you say that, it seems you were already preparing to transform Hispaña into an empire.

Has this been discussed with Her Majesty the Queen?”

“It’s a bit much to tell you that far.”

“…What?

What are you talking about?

Hey, Zion Klausen!”

It is said that to deceive the enemy, you must deceive even your allies.

If he gave a definite answer here, Ludwig, who has good sense and intelligence but whose acting skills are not yet satisfactory, might make a mistake, and the nobles, who are armed with political savvy, might notice something strange.

If that happens, things that could have gone easily might have to go around in circles, so Zion had to act very thoroughly from now on.

―

Finally, the allied forces of Hispaña, the northern warriors, beastmen, and fairies reached the capital.

During that time, countless welcoming crowds greeted them, but recently, a strange atmosphere began to flow among them.

“Why isn’t she here?”

“That’s strange.

She came out even when we only defeated Nudia last time, didn’t she?”

“What’s going on?

What on earth is going on?”

From ordinary citizens to nobles.

Everyone was looking around, as if searching for something.

Not only that, but even the soldiers of Hispaña, who were proudly parading, had to tilt their heads in confusion.

It was only natural, a predetermined result, that they were showing this reaction.

In the past, when Zion had defeated Nudia, he had been greeted by the late King, Edgar IV, and it was rumored that Queen Vanessa, who succeeded him, cherished Zion very much.

However, even though Zion Klausen had achieved such great merit in Hispaña’s history, unprecedented in any case on the continent, Queen Vanessa did not come out of the castle to greet him, nor did she even move from the palace.

‘What’s going on?’

‘Is there something we missed?’

‘Has the relationship between Queen Vanessa and Zion Klausen soured?’

Even ordinary citizens were tilting their heads, so there was no way that the nobles, who were so sensitive to power, would simply overlook that part.

They gathered in groups of three or five and talked about the royal family and Klausen, who were subtly showing a confrontational atmosphere for some reason.

There was even talk that the young hero, who had built a strong relationship with the royal family while achieving great feats, had ironically put an excessive burden on the royal family by achieving too much merit.

And the nobles’ doubts were further amplified when Zion Klausen entered the castle beyond the royal palace and met Queen Vanessa directly for the first time in a long time.

“Welcome, Zion Klausen.

It is truly admirable that you have returned after achieving such great merit.”

“I have only done my best with my insufficient talent, so it is only an honor.”

It seemed like a heartwarming conversation between the king and his subject, but the voice, expression, and the atmosphere flowing between them were clearly different from before.

One seemed to be subtly wary of the hero who had become too great, and the other seemed to be unable to hide his disappointment at being wary despite his achievements.

Even that alone was enough for the nobles to think something was wrong, but as Queen Vanessa and Zion talked, the atmosphere became even stranger.

“I heard that in exchange for receiving the west and south of Nudia, you decided to hand over all of the Holy Prussen territory to Nudia.

It is even said that the Sanctuary was completely handed over to the Celestials.”

“The Celestial who would be in charge of the Sanctuary was someone I judged to be trustworthy.

Also, the territory of Holy Prussen was too far away, so I thought it would be better to give it to Nudia and receive their territory instead.”

“The area of the territory to be received from Nudia and the land of the former Holy Prussen that they will take is at least several times different.

Are you saying that you proceeded with such a thing knowing that?”

“Since it was on the opposite side of Hispaña, I prioritized the judgment of the field commander, which was me.

I thought Her Majesty the Queen would also acknowledge my judgment.”

“Hispaña has lost so much in this war, and you are taking more advantage of Nudia than Hispaña.

It would have been not enough to ask for half of Nudia, but you made such a decision.

I worry that I had too high expectations of you.”

“…I had no intention of disappointing Her Majesty the Queen.”

“I am already disappointed in you, so it is a pity, and only a pity, nothing more.”

It was by no means impossible to understand why Queen Vanessa would say such things in front of Zion, especially at this time.

Right now, Hispaña lost Marquis Volko, one of the three Marquisates, while helping Nudia this time.

What’s more?

Hispaña lost many of the soldiers in the central region, which can be said to be the main force of Hispaña, and the skilled soldiers in the north, and the support troops from the south and east who participated later were also badly damaged.

Fortunately, Nudia suffered several times more severe losses than Hispaña, but if that hadn’t been the case, Hispaña’s military condition would have been so bad that they would have had to worry about Nudia’s attack right away.

In addition, it was none other than Zion Klausen who most actively advocated for this war.

If he had entered this war because of himself, it was right for him to do anything for Hispaña, but in reality, Nudia benefited more than Hispaña, so from Hispaña’s point of view, Vanessa, who had trusted him so much, could not erase her disappointment and regret.

‘The atmosphere is turning strange.’

The nobles, who were only thinking about the scene of the Queen praising the young hero, had not expected this development at all, and while harboring some doubts, they also pondered that there were no eternal allies in the power game, and that these two young men and women were realizing that fact and now checking each other.

“…In any case, on behalf of all the people of Hispaña, I would like to once again express my gratitude to you for achieving a great victory and returning.

Zion Klausen, you are the hero of Hispaña.”

Zion Klausen’s official return was finally made in a rather rigid atmosphere.

And a party was held to celebrate those who had achieved merit in the war, and at the same time, amidst this commotion among the nobles, work began behind the scenes to consolidate power and create new allies.

“Lady Trisha!

I am honored to see the flame that defended the royal castle here!”

“It’s an honor, Lady Trisha.

I am…”

And, at that party, the one who received the most attention, knowingly or unknowingly, was Trisha.

Most of the others who went to war had consolidated their power, but Trisha was only an apprentice knight under Zion, and she could leave as soon as she became a formal knight.

Above all, everyone now knows that her true identity is not just a knight.

Even the fact that if you get close to her, you can also contact the young hero Zion Klausen.

Therefore, the nobles had no choice but to try to narrow their relationship with Trisha, whom they considered to be the easiest prey.

―――――――Afterword―――――――

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