The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 75

Chapter 10. Incubation: The Smug Bastard

The fight at City Hall was a true uphill battle.

Greed wasn’t the strongest opponent I’d faced, but he was definitely the dirtiest.

The battle itself was far from clean; it was sticky, gooey, and felt like something constantly grabbing at my pant leg.

As soon as we entered the basement, he threatened us with slaves offered as sacrifices.

Throughout the fight, he kept threatening that the monster egg would hatch, forcing a time-sensitive attack.

He never engaged in close combat, instead tormenting us from afar with all sorts of tricks.

Among them, the Illusion Eye revealed beneath his broken mask was truly the highlight.

Even if he lacked other skills, his illusion magic alone clearly showed why Greed was one of Twilight’s top executives.

And that’s not all.

If he was going to die, he couldn’t just die quietly.

Even after death, he used his corpse as nourishment to complete an ancient curse.

The curse monster, spreading all sorts of debuffs, neutralized the party as soon as it appeared, leaving me no choice but to fight it one-on-one.

What would have happened if I hadn’t had the Orichalcum Bullet from Tom? [Orichalcum is a mythical metal known for its purity and strength.]

I might have survived, but my comrades would have died, and all the survivors in Liang would have become sacrifices to Greed’s ritual.

The monster, having devoured an entire city and learned combat data, would have grown even stronger, destroying nearby territories.

It was clear that it would have become a continental menace, wielding as much influence as the Demon King Baal. [Baal is a powerful demonic figure often associated with chaos and destruction.]

In short, this incident shouldn’t be seen as just a battle in the City Hall basement, but as an event where we overcame a crisis that could have struck the entire continent.

“Good work.”

Tom approached and placed a hand on my shoulder.

A slight tremor ran through his hand.

The way he gripped my shoulder tightly and nodded, even while trembling, showed how tense and relieved he had been throughout the City Hall battle.

Campbell, freed from the debuffs and finally finding freedom, also dragged his injured body over and gave me a tight hug.

“I knew the Vice-Captain would do it! Honestly, when that monster made a fool of me, I thought this was going to be my grave. But you defeated it! You’re amazing.”

“I can’t breathe, let go. And it wasn’t me, it was the artifact Tom gave me that did it.”

“Nonsense. Even with the Orichalcum Bullet, I wouldn’t have been in a position to use it. You’re the one who wielded that weapon and defeated that demon.”

I tried to give credit to Tom, but he waved his hand, refusing.

Next was Zion.

Her eyes were filled with tears.

“Are you crying?”

I was honestly surprised.

It was almost the first time I’d seen Zion cry.

Unless she was acting, she tried to maintain a blank expression whether she was happy, sad, joyful, or sorrowful.

That was the virtue she had to possess as an assassin, and she had been thoroughly trained by her father, Sebastian, since she was young.

For her to shed tears of joy and relief meant that the wave of emotion was so intense that it surpassed the difficult training she had received.

“Master!”

Zion jumped into my arms.

She hugged my neck.

I could feel the texture of the necklace I had given her against her chest.

“Ah…”

She buried her face in my chest and, after a moment, seemed to come to her senses, startled, and distanced herself from me.

Her face, from her neck to the tips of her ears, turned as red as a ripe persimmon as a wave of embarrassment washed over her, making her fidget.

But it’s okay.

Even though I’m not good with words and didn’t have any fancy lines, her actions alone conveyed her sincerity in caring for me.

“Goodness, you finally did it!”

The person who should clean up this situation finally appeared.

Mayor Yuron, who appeared from the entrance of the basement, couldn’t close his gaping mouth as he looked at the mess in the basement.

“It took so long that I came down. Just looking at the scene, it was truly an incredible battle.”

Mayor Yuron also had a lot to say about the series of events, but he took a few breaths to organize his thoughts before opening his mouth.

“I only saw the tail end of the battle, but the scene of you blowing the head off a monster that I’d be afraid to see even in my dreams will never be forgotten in my life.”

The look in the mayor’s eyes as he looked at me was full of respect and awe. It was truly the look of someone seeing a hero.

“Thank you for the praise. But for now, we need to clean up this place. My party also needs to rest and tend to our injuries.”

“Look at my mind. You’re right. Leave it to me here and let’s get out of here.”

We supported each other as we climbed the spiral staircase. The stairs that seemed short when going down felt so long when going up. But our hearts were much lighter.

Finally, we emerged from the basement and came out to the front gate of City Hall. The bright sunlight permeated our skin, invigorating us.

The sound of a rooster crowing, announcing the morning. Sparrows chirping and flying away. The fragrant smell of bread tickling our noses. A line of merchant ships rising on the horizon.

Only now did I realize that true peace had come to Liang.

“Mayor, we’ll be on our way.”

“On your way? I’ll empty my house for you, so stay there.”

“No. And I don’t know what the situation is at the mayor’s residence right now.”

Mayor Yuron’s mouth closed at my words.

Greed had been acting as mayor for quite some time, so who knew what he had done to his family.

Yuron needed to figure out the safety of his own family first, and he also had to undo the many things Greed had done in his absence.

“Send someone when things are settled. We’ll be staying at an inn near City Hall.”

“Understood.”

“And please keep what happened in the City Hall basement today as secret as possible.”

If the news that another Twilight executive had disappeared after Jealousy spread throughout the Arnia continent, it would be good news for ordinary people, but it wasn’t welcome news for me right now.

Especially if the rumor that I participated in Greed’s hunt was revealed, Twilight would mobilize all its forces to destroy the Lloyd family this time.

I would welcome it with open arms if Twilight touched us while we had adequate force, but it was premature since I hadn’t even reached Master yet.

“Of course. Rather, I’d like to ask you that. If the fact that a Twilight executive was acting as the mayor of Liang spreads, do you think my neck will be safe?”

Fortunately, Mayor Yuron and I were in similar situations, so I didn’t have to worry about that.

“Leave the aftermath to me and get some rest.”

“I’ll leave it in your care.”

“No. I’m the one who’s grateful.”

After parting with Mayor Yuron, Tom also said he had somewhere to go for a while and parted ways.

“Where are you going?”

“Didn’t we catch the traitor Milo? I have to report this fact to the Pilgrim’s Assembly.”

“I see.”

“It’s a huge incident. The news will shake up this society.”

Before leaving, Tom recommended an inn for us to stay at.

I heard it was the inn he stayed at while living in Liang, and it was cost-effective.

In this situation, I just wanted to lay my head on a bed, so I readily accepted his recommendation.

“Get some rest. I’ll come by tomorrow.”

“Take care.”

After parting with Tom, we went to the inn.

A plump landlady greeted us with a kind smile.

“Welcome.”

I needed a bed urgently.

I took out a gold coin from my subspace pocket.

“Kyaa! Customer? This is a gold coin!”

“It’s a gold coin, so please show me to a room.”

“Yes, yes!!”

The landlady hurriedly opened the door.

As soon as I entered, I jumped onto the bed.

After that, a dark cloud covered my consciousness, and my memories disappeared.

* * *

Flash!

I opened my eyes.

As soon as I woke up, I looked around.

Since entering the world of the game, I had never been able to sleep peacefully.

In the Lloyd County, I was plagued by assassination threats from Philip and Rosaline, and in the North, I slept fitfully due to the harsh environment.

Of course, Liang was an operational area, so I never let my guard down, but this was the first time I had a good night’s sleep.

To be precise, it would be more accurate to say I passed out rather than slept soundly.

[Tenacious Vitality Activated]

[Fully Restored Health]

The passive skill, Tenacious Vitality, which I obtained when I first became a Druid, completely relieved my physical fatigue, but it seemed it couldn’t resolve my mental fatigue.

Especially since this battle consumed a lot of consciousness to escape from the illusory world, I must have felt much more tired.

The light shining through the window was blinding.

I definitely fell asleep when the sun was up, but when I woke up, it was still morning.

When I grabbed the Thousand Demon Sword next to the bed, the voice of a grumpy old man echoed in my head.

-You sleepyhead! You’re finally awake!

“How long have I been asleep?”

-You slept for three days straight. Do you have a sleeping ghost on the back of your head?

I thought it was just a day, but it was three days.

I must have slept for a very long time.

My mental fatigue must have been considerable.

-That’s right. Wake up the maid next to you too. Like master like servant. She’s just like you, she won’t wake up no matter what. If I had a friend, I would have bet on who would wake up first.

Looking at the bed, Zion, who had taken up a spot next to me, was sound asleep, oblivious to the world.

When I thought about it, she was pushing herself even harder than I was in the same environment.

She didn’t even have a stamina recovery skill, so she must have been forcing herself to endure by sleeping only two or three hours a day.

I felt bad about waking her up, so I tried to get out of bed, but Zion suddenly raised her upper body when she heard the sound.

“Did you wake up?”

She looked around with half-closed eyes, grasped the situation, and got out of bed.

“I’m sorry! I’ve committed an impoliteness.”

“Knowing is enough. Pack your bags. Tom will be here soon, since it’s been three days.”

“…Yes?”

“Can’t you hear me? Tom is coming.”

Zion tilted her head with a blank expression, as if denying the fact that she had slept defenselessly next to the master she served for days.

Then, as if belatedly overwhelmed by the shame, she covered her face with her purple hair and hurriedly gathered her luggage into her arms.

Teasing the flustered Zion was a small pleasure, but unfortunately, I had to postpone the opportunity to the next time.

Because a shout was heard from the first floor where the restaurant was located.

“Please stop eating!”

“The Vice-Captain threw gold coins at us.”

“You’ve already eaten much more than the gold coins. And it’s all on credit. If this goes on, we’ll run out of ingredients and won’t be able to do business today.”

“What kind of pub doesn’t have food?”

“It’s not that we don’t have any, it’s that you ate it all!!”

I could tell who the problem was just by listening.

I took Zion with me and went down to the first floor, and the kind-looking landlady I saw last time was angry at Campbell.

The customers of the pub were watching as if they had a good show, sipping their beer, and Campbell was scratching the back of his head as if he was embarrassed, but he didn’t stop forking food into his mouth.

I was ashamed to be called his party, so should I pretend I didn’t know him and leave the inn? I glanced at Zion, and she was looking at me too. It was telepathy, and it was clear that we had the same thought even without exchanging words.

“Yo~ Vice-Captain! You’re awake? I thought you were dead in your sleep because you didn’t come down.”

Unfortunately, I missed the timing.

Campbell, who had piled up dishes like a mountain on the table and was stuffing food into his mouth, found me and Zion and raised his hand.

All eyes in the pub were on us, so I sighed and approached Campbell.

“What are you doing here?”

“I was eating.”

“On credit?”

Campbell scratched the back of his head as if he was embarrassed by the height of the mountain of dishes.

I was about to say something, but I felt bad about scolding him for eating when he had saved Liang from the monster.

Instead, I flicked five gold coins to the landlady.

“Oh my! What is all this!?”

“This is for the past few days of unpaid bills and lodging fees. Keep the rest as a tip.”

“Oh my! Customer! Eat as much as you want. I’ll go to the market and close the door so you can eat until you burst.”

The landlady’s change of attitude after the gold coins were injected was faster than an arrow.

However, Campbell didn’t seem to have any luck eating today.

A commotion was heard from outside, and soon the door burst open.

Those who came in, who looked like they had deliberately opened the door hard, puffed up their shoulders and stood up.

“Hey, are you crazy?”

“Who comes in with such bad manners?”

“I’ll pull out your toes and shove them up your nostrils to wake you up…”

The bouncers became silent as they saw the clothes of those who came in.

Because those wearing matching white uniforms were the Liang City Hall guards.

Those who faced the public power quietly sat down and concentrated on their meal, burying their noses in their plates as if they had never shouted.

A mustachioed man who seemed to be the captain of the guard scanned the room and fixed his gaze on me.

“Are you perhaps Baron Henon?”

The pub buzzed at the captain’s words.

Because Liang’s location was close to Lloyd County and Hilton County, my rumors had recently spread to Liang.

When I listened to the whispers of the drunks, various words such as executioner, demon slayer, and braggart were mixed together indiscriminately.

“That’s right.”

I nodded briefly.

Then the soldiers lined up to the left and right, centered on me, and the line continued from the pub to the outside.

“Present arms!!”

The guards on both sides raised their spears at once, and they even brought in musicians from somewhere to beat the drums and liven up the atmosphere.

The red carpet that was hastily laid on the road I was about to walk on led to the finest eight-horse carriage that had been waiting in advance.

Everyone who watched the guards’ extreme courtesy jumped in surprise, and the landlady gave Campbell more food for no reason.

On the other hand, I just shrugged my shoulders because I didn’t know what was going on.

Then the captain of the guard knelt on one knee and said.

“From this moment on, Baron Henon Lloyd is the most honored guest of Liang. The mayor requests to meet you. Please take your precious time.”

It seemed that Mayor Yuron was very grateful to me.