Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 109

“This is utter nonsense! My castle has fallen?!” Bang!

The Bifrost barracks were on one side of the central front. When Roger shouted, everyone inside became very noisy.

Even though Roger Bifrost’s face was red as he shouted, his men stayed silent with their heads down.

“What are those Peretta fellows doing?!”

“Sir, we received news that the castle fell before Peretta’s army could even leave.”

“Ugh. Rentor, that fool!”

Roger was even insulting Rentor, who had failed. Showing himself so upset in front of his men was not like him at all. It showed how shocked he was.

“At least the ladies and young masters escaped safely, or so I’m told. They are on their way here now….”

“Is that what matters right now? My castle! My land has fallen into the hands of those Maclain bastards?!”

Roger was so angry, he didn’t even notice how his men were looking at him. He just kept shouting.

“I’m returning at once! I’ll catch those bastards, kill them, and tear them limb from limb. How dare they touch my land!”

The anger he had been holding back burst out.

“Prepare to retreat! My territory comes first! I must reclaim my land. I will speak to Duke Jordyn Valtmaim myself.”

Now that things were like this, Duke Jordyn Valtmaim wouldn’t be able to stop him. Roger Bifrost hoped he would even help.

But what really happened was not what he expected.

“Impossible.”

The grey-haired giant said the same thing as before.

Roger Bifrost twisted his face in frustration.

“My land! My base is under attack by ruthless villains! So why is it impossible!”

“The forces on the central front are evenly matched right now. And you want to pull out Bifrost’s forces? Are you saying your land is more important than the big plan?”

“…That, that is not what I mean. If my territory is safe, then I and my army can join the big plan without any problems! Also, those bastards ignored Your Excellency’s warning and are crazy. If you just leave them alone….”

“I will not simply leave them alone.”

“…Yes?”

For a moment, Roger felt hopeful, but the answer he got was not what he wanted.

“I will personally tear them apart after this war thing is over.”

“Your Excellency…!”

Jordyn responded to Roger Bifrost’s angry look with a cold smile.

“But before that, I will contact them and bring them into our group.”

“Yes? What does that…?”

“And I will drag them to the front line and use them as meat shields. Would that be okay? Those crazy people who ignored my warning will have no right to refuse.”

“Ah….”

Roger Bifrost also had no right to refuse.

But the crazy people had another choice.

[If you threaten us like that, we will have to join the First Prince.]

The man acting as the lord of Maclain replied with a smile. The lord himself was not there, and his son was stepping forward, grinning. His relaxed look made it hard to know how far he would go.

Jordyn Valtmaim’s face twisted noticeably, having been embarrassed in front of his subordinate.

“You know that you are ignoring my warning and refusing my offer, right? And that this is an act of defying His Highness Romaine, who will become the next ruler of this nation?”

He sounded calm, but a powerful anger filled the air around him. Roger Bifrost and his men, sweating a lot, stepped back carefully, but the anger couldn’t reach beyond the communication device.

[I know I am going too far. However, Your Excellency, the bad blood between Bifrost and us started a long time ago. This is not meant to disrespect Your Excellency or His Highness Romaine.]

“Then prove it. Bring your army and fight on the front lines to earn honor. If you do, my anger and the prince’s anger will go away.”

[Unfortunately, we cannot do that.]

Bang!

[Hmm? I hear a strange noise. Is the connection bad…?]

The explosion at Jordyn’s feet made everyone quieter, but the red-haired man on the other side of the device was just pretending not to know.

“…Asking for death.”

With his intent to kill becoming clearer, Roger Bifrost, who had been sweating a lot, gave a small smile. But the other side didn’t seem worried.

[I plan to stay neutral, as my teacher wanted. My loyalty to the royal family is still there, so I hope you won’t doubt me because of the old grudges between our families.]

“Insolent fool! How dare you say such a thing…!”

“Your Excellency! The First Prince’s group is moving!”

It was either good timing or bad. The knight who burst into the barracks with news from the front lines turned pale at the sudden, intense intent to kill.

[You seem busy, so please continue.]

Logan’s relaxed voice from the device made Jordyn even angrier.

“…I will have to cut off your heads even if it costs us losses. That would be better for morale.”

[Is that a loss you can really afford? I heard the front lines are very tense. I don’t think you’re someone who can’t control your anger.]

“Hmph… You inexperienced fool. You will soon realize what you have done. And that it is too late to regret it.”

[I wonder. Regret is….]

Bzzzt!

Jordyn Valtmaim, who had ended the call with a stiff face, gritted his teeth and shouted at everyone.

“What are you doing! Prepare to deploy the army! We will crush the First Prince’s group first!”

“Yes!”

After all the nobles in the barracks quickly left, the Duke called his assistant over with a cold voice.

“Quietly summon …. Add a few more people and take care of that rude fellow from earlier….”

The assistant, looking serious, nodded silently at the order, which had an even darker intent to kill than the order to deploy the army.

“Hooah. It’s over.”

“But, young master. Is this really okay? He is still a Duke and a superhuman….”

Dwayne asked Logan, looking a bit worried. But Logan said without concern, as if it were nothing.

“He can’t touch us right now anyway. At worst, he’ll try to scheme behind our backs. We can handle that by being prepared.”

“Is that something you can say so easily?!”

“Or what? What are you going to do? Really go to the front line and be meat shields like they said?”

Dwayne was about to cry from frustration.

“That’s not what I mean. You could have said it nicer….”

“It’s already happened. We’re not going to meet their demands. It’s better to be confident in front of a beast that will only bite if you seem weak.”

“Haa. Gods, why do you give me such problems….”

Logan chuckled as he watched Dwayne, who was even asking the gods for help.

“Are you worried?” Dwayne asked.

“Everyone says the young master is acting strangely!” the servant replied, looking nervous.

“Well, if you’re worried, don’t come to the residence for a while,” Logan said calmly, leaning back in his chair. “Something *might* happen.” He gave a small, mysterious smile.

“Young Master!!”

Dwayne looked very surprised and stood up quickly.

“I’m just joking! Relax, I’m teasing you,” Logan chuckled. “By the way, have we heard from the First Prince’s group yet?”

“Pardon?” Dwayne blinked, confused for a moment.

“We’ve dealt with the Second Prince’s side already. It’s time for the others to react, don’t you think? Should we contact them first?”

“Eeeh? Why?!”

“Why else? They must be happy because of what we did…” Logan began to explain, a hint of mischief in his eyes.

*Zzzzzing!*

Suddenly, the communicator on the desk buzzed. The screen lit up, displaying the crossed swords emblem.

It was the Douglas Duchy’s emblem, the power behind the First Prince.

Duke Douglas’s face appeared on the screen. He laughed loudly. “Bipros is yours! Excellent news! Thank you for telling us. You are young, but you act boldly for your family. Good, very good. Taking Bipros means you want to join us, right?”

In these sensitive times, it was clear just how impactful McLaine’s conquest of Bipros had been.

“It’s a great honor to speak with you directly, Your Grace.”

Logan bowed quickly and many times to show respect to this important man.

However.

“It’s just because of old problems our family has. We are not ready to support any prince yet. I’m very sorry.”

The words came out clearer and more resolute than ever.

‘Just a little more suffering. My back.’

Swallowing his frivolous thoughts, he looked at the kingdom’s only Archmage with the brightest smile he could muster.

[Jordan won’t stand idly by. What are you planning to do? Knowing his ruthless nature, he’ll try to swallow your entire family whole……]

The blue eyes beyond the communicator stared directly at Logan.

It was clearly a smiling face, yet there was a strange feeling that the eyes weren’t smiling at all.

The indifferent eyes, showing no emotional change, sent a chill down Logan’s spine.

“We just received contact from him. We begged for forgiveness and moved on.”

[Just that?]

“Wouldn’t he be lacking the strength? It seems to me that Duke Douglas has the advantage.”

[Hoo. You certainly have an eye for things. But you’re not just saying that, are you? You wouldn’t join the Second Prince’s faction to defuse the Bipros conquest, would you……]

Duke Douglas’s gaze, as he trailed off and looked at Logan, remained unchanged.

“There’s no way that would happen. Our family has no strength, so we have no choice but to maintain a firm neutrality. And we will support Your Grace in our hearts. We hope you thoroughly crush the remaining Bipros forces.”

[Heh heh, you say everything you need to say. Well, it doesn’t seem like a lie……. Just in case, I’ll give you a warning. If you deceive me, I won’t just let it go like that foolish Jordan.]

Every last one of them was threatening him.

This must be because McLaine lacked power.

Logan gritted his teeth inwardly, but outwardly, he smiled.

“Of course.”

The civil war had just begun.

It was the moment when the McLaine family’s neutrality was officially recognized in the vortex of that conflict.

Although there remained some dangerous elements of conflict.

McLaine’s occupation of Bipros.

That sudden event surprised all the nobles of the kingdom, but among them, the most surprised was probably Max Fereta.

He was situated between McLaine and the Bipros territory and had chosen to become a subordinate of Bipros after a dispute.

And he was the one who had been told to send reinforcements to Bipros but had heard the news that the battle was over before he could even set out.

Max Fereta had to pay attention to everything happening around him. He was sure McLaine would be punished for attacking Bipros.

“Either Count Bipros will come down himself and smash them to pieces, or the faction will inflict harsh punishment.”

For him, it was a logical and obvious deduction.

But then.

[There will be no conquest. McLaine’s neutrality is permitted.]

He couldn’t help but be flustered by the single line of command that came down from above.

“H-How could this be! They said they self-destructed!”

“……McLaine must have used some trick. Roger Bipros can’t possibly tolerate this situation! The elite of the Bipros army must be perfectly fine…… Why……?”

Rihalt, who was being scolded next to him, hurriedly made excuses, but no matter how much he racked his brains, he couldn’t figure out what was going on.

“I, I was going to follow the Count’s words! I was going to help Bipros, and I was going to dispatch a knight order to the central front. It was just a little late. Shouldn’t the Count be helping us?! Rihalt! What if they target us in this situation……!”

“……If they’re neutral, they won’t be able to touch us, lord. Please calm down.”

He wasn’t usually this foolish.

Rihalt sighed invisibly as he watched his lord stomp his feet.

He understood that the situation had become strange due to McLaine’s unexpected actions.

Between Bipros and McLaine, or rather, sandwiched in the middle of McLaine’s territory as it stood now.

If it weren’t for the current special situation, it could be seen as being on the verge of being devoured by McLaine.

But Fereta was now completely part of the Bipros faction, that is, the Second Prince’s faction.

‘If they’ve publicly declared neutrality, they can’t touch us first. It’s alright.’

So he couldn’t help but find it pathetic that his lord was making such a fuss.

However, Rihalt was forced to realize that he was the real fool when he saw McLaine’s notification that arrived the very next day.

[Let’s forget our past fights and start a new friendship between our families… (omitted)… ]

To put the long, flowery sentence simply:

The situation is like this now, so we can’t attack directly, but no matter who becomes king later, we are the lords of this region.

So……

If you don’t want to die then, kneel from now on.

That was what it meant.

“……What are the odds of us winning against McLaine?”

“It’s difficult without external help.”

Max Fereta’s expression crumpled even further at Rihalt’s definitive words.

“What were the conditions?”

“First, a monthly tribute of food and supplies worth 100,000 gold…….”

1.2 million a year. It was a small amount, less than 1/10 of the Fereta territory’s budget.

If it only went this far, it would be too generous a condition, but the problem was in the other clauses.

“……There’s also the condition of lowering the 70% tenancy to 30% and allowing monthly internal inspections. And decisively, there’s also the right to conscript troops when needed…….”

It was, in effect, a threat to interfere with all finances and military power.

“What if we refuse?”

“……Historically, these civil wars last for six months at most. And when that time comes, McLaine won’t hesitate.”

Even if nothing else, you and your family will certainly die.

……He couldn’t bring himself to say the meaning in words but conveyed it only with his eyes.

The lord, who had already lost his spirit, sighed with a face that seemed to have aged ten years in an instant.

“……I will accept the conditions. I will return as a vassal family.”

And so, after 200 years, Fereta became a vassal of McLaine once more.