The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 79

Chapter 11: Elves: An Exciting Thug

To my question about his origins, the knight chuckled and shook his head.

“Heh heh heh, you think I’d tell you that?”

Seeing him act tough makes me happy. I was secretly worried he’d be too polite. I took out my dismantling dagger and licked the blade.

“Tell me slowly when you remember. We have plenty of time anyway.”

I’ve become quite skilled at torturing people since dealing with Gavin, the skin collector.

I pulled out the bandit leader’s fingernails and focused on hitting the most painful spots, which made him tremble all over, seemingly enjoying it too much.

Later, when I threatened to cut off his right hand to ensure he could never hold a sword again, he finally surrendered.

“I’ll confess.”

“No, you can endure more.”

“Huh?”

“To endure even this, you have a good amount of patience.”

“I was wrong! So please!”

I gagged the guy who was begging to confess and gave him additional training until I felt better.

Once he realized I was even crazier than he imagined, he spilled every story he could think of to save his life.

And the bandit leader’s identity was, as I expected, a former knight.

“A knight from the Molty County?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

For reference, the Molty County is one of the subordinate families supporting the Lloyd family, and it was the maternal family of my half-brother Phillip, who had been bothering me since I was possessed into this game world.

During the territory war over Albus Castle, Rosalyn and Phillip received considerable support from the Molty County.

After Rosalyn summoned the intermediate demon Dantaleon and died, Phillip, who had lost his power, was forced to move to the Molty County at the semi-coercive recommendation of Marquis Lloyd.

Of course, I wanted to finish Phillip off for good, but I let it go out of consideration for Marquis Lloyd’s reputation.

Besides, tracking down the Twilight Church was more urgent than dealing with him, and I didn’t have enough time to invest in that.

So, why would a knight from the Molty County be engaging in banditry in a place so far from his territory?

“Why would a knight bother doing this? If you just stayed put, your lord would give you a regular salary.”

The bandit leader gives me a puzzled look.

“Are you perhaps a foreigner? If you were from around here, there’s no way you wouldn’t know what’s been happening in this area lately.”

The news he shared next was shocking.

“Elves from the Eastern Great Forest have occupied the nearby Molty County and are effectively ruling it?”

“That’s right.”

“What about Count Molty?”

“He passed away. The Count’s head is still hanging at the main gate of Molty Castle. Sob…”

The bandit leader looks grim, feeling guilty for not protecting his lord.

“I understand what you’re saying. So, you lost your job and became a bandit? If you’re a knight from Count Molty’s side, you should know how foolish it is to engage in banditry in the Marquisate, right?”

“Do you think I wanted to do this? The elves who occupied Molty County took my family hostage and forced me to commit banditry, stirring up chaos in the Marquisate.”

In the Arnia Continent, elves are considered an extremely passive race.

They are highly exclusive towards other races and usually stay within the Great Forest, giving them a strong image of living well among themselves.

What could have driven these other races to suddenly attack nearby territories and even threaten the Lloyd family?

‘Come to think of it, Sasha was also sold as a slave at the Half-Moon Market.’

As far as I know, Sasha is also an elf from the Eastern Great Forest.

I had a feeling that her being sold as a slave might be related to this commotion.

Standing here and worrying won’t solve anything, so I should return and meet with Marquis Lloyd first.

* * *

I arrived at the Lloyd Marquisate.

As soon as I arrived at the gate, the guards who recognized me immediately stood at attention.

“Welcome, Baron!”

“Good work.”

Having successfully completed my military service in the North, led the territory war to victory, and dealt with the intermediate demon Dantaleon, my popularity in the Marquisate was comparable to that of a famous celebrity.

Perhaps that’s why, as soon as the news of my arrival spread, people flocked to see me.

“Baron! How do you do!”

“We were worried because we haven’t seen you lately. Please take care of your health.”

“I picked some seasonal fruits, and they taste amazing. Please try some.”

The warm welcome from the territory residents.

Even the children call out my nickname with sparkling eyes.

“Our lord is a demon slayer.”

“No! He’s a hero!”

“Both are right, so be quiet.”

Some of the territory residents gave curious glances to the hundred bandits following me.

Anyway, I finished the long journey.

As I entered the inner castle, the servants lined up on both sides and bowed to greet me.

“Baron! You’ve arrived!”

Now that I’ve solidified my position as the true heir of the Lloyd Marquisate, the servants no longer questioned me.

And many of them owed me their lives from the Dantaleon summoning incident, so they treated me with the utmost respect, completely different from before.

In front, Head Butler Sebastian greeted me with a good-natured smile.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“It was nothing.”

“You must be tired, but the Marquis is waiting for you in his office.”

“I was planning to see him right away anyway.”

Sebastian’s gaze turned to the bound bandits.

“Who are they?”

“I picked them up on the way. Lock them up in the inner castle’s dungeon.”

“Understood.”

I left the bandits to Sebastian and immediately met with Marquis Lloyd.

The atmosphere in the office was calm.

Only the rustling sound could be heard.

My father, who was quickly moving his quill and applying ink to the documents, smiled slightly when he saw me.

“It took you a long time.”

“There were several unexpected events. I heard that there have been complicated issues here while I was away.”

“We’ll discuss the matters here later, but let’s talk about the Liang case first. Did you find any clues about Greed?”

I have a lot to tell.

Before explaining in detail, I decided to simply state the conclusion first.

“I caught Greed, one of the Twilight’s Great Executives.”

“Your jokes are too much.”

“I’m serious right now.”

“That’s quite an amusing prank.”

Seeing that he didn’t believe me at all, I explained everything from the beginning.

Starting from the time I accidentally clashed with the Merchant Guild while investigating Liang, to capturing Guild Leader Haman and discovering the imprisoned Mayor Yuron.

Subduing the remnants of the Twilight Church at the Half-Moon Market and storming the City Hall with another Seven Star, Tom.

To winning the desperate battle against Greed and hunting down the catastrophic curse monster he had prepared as a trump card.

You couldn’t make up a story like this even if you tried.

Disbelief turned to astonishment in the Marquis’s eyes, and he couldn’t close his gaping mouth.

“You really caught Greed?”

“Of course, Tom’s help was significant, and it was achieved with the assistance of many others.”

“Heh heh…”

Marquis Lloyd looked at the ceiling and clicked his tongue.

It must be unbelievable for him.

Every time he entrusts me with a task, it always comes back on a massive scale.

“Greed is known among the Twilight Church executives for his cunning and treachery. To bring such a cautious guy to the surface and defeat him, it must be solely your achievement. You’ve truly accomplished a great feat.”

“You flatter me. More than that, I want to hear in detail what has happened in the Lloyd Marquisate.”

I reported to Marquis Lloyd about encountering the group of bandits from Molty County and the confession of their leader.

When the story of the Elven race occupying Molty County came up, a shadow of concern fell over the Marquis’s face.

“What you heard is true. Suddenly, the elves came out of the forest and killed our vassal who had served us for a long time, and now other lords, including myself, are on high alert.”

“Immediately raise an army and counterattack.”

“I want to do that too, but it’s ambiguous. Recently, a large army suddenly moved from the Hilton County. So, all available soldiers have been diverted there to confront them.”

The Hilton County.

Could it be that they harbored resentment after losing the Albus territory war?

Even so, the timing is truly coincidental.

It wouldn’t be strange if they had formed an alliance with the Elven race and launched a pincer attack.

“It’s troublesome in many ways.”

“As a result, our family doesn’t have the spare capacity to mobilize troops. Even if we squeeze out the available forces, we can only operate about five hundred.”

Five hundred is insignificant to influence the overall situation.

Above all, the Elven race had excellent combat capabilities.

From what I felt while taking the Golden Branch test, they were agile, good at archery, and knew how to move in an organized manner.

“Still, we can’t ignore Molty County.”

“I’ve issued a mobilization order to the subordinate vassals. The soldiers will gather in a few days.”

“Have you decided who will lead them?”

“Well, I’m not sure.”

If Marquis Lloyd, with the reputation of a Seven Star [a highly skilled and respected individual], were to take charge, the morale of the allied forces would rise, but Marquis Lloyd seemed too busy guarding against the Hilton County right now.

“Marquis, if you give me the opportunity to lead the Lloyd Allied Forces, I will achieve results beyond expectations, as I have done so far.”

I wanted to entrust everything to my father and focus on growth, but the time given to me to stop the end is somewhat limited.

This trend will become even more severe as the main stream progresses.

To do that, I had to quickly resolve the problems occurring nearby and reach out as soon as possible.

‘Besides, starting with Sasha, there’s a suspicious smell coming from the Elven race.’

Marquis Lloyd looked worried at my offer to take on the role of commander-in-chief.

“Are you sure? You must be exhausted from catching Greed; you should rest a bit.”

“No. How can I sleep soundly when there’s a fire in the house? I’ll rest after resolving everything and feel at ease.”

“Hmm… admirable. But don’t overdo it.”

“Understood.”

The Marquis’s approval was given.

I left him, who seemed busy, with a greeting and returned to my room after a long time.

Sion and Campbell were waiting.

Sion was playing with Coco and Sasha, and Campbell was sitting in the corner, munching on snacks.

When I opened the door and entered, they rushed over.

“Uncle!”

“Kyu!”

“Have you arrived?”

“You’re back.”

When I first came here, there was only Sion, who looked at me with contempt, but seeing the scene now bustling like a flea market, I felt strange.

“Vice-Commander, did something good happen? You’re suddenly smiling.”

“It’s nothing. More than that, I have something I want to tell you.”

I told them what I had discussed with Marquis Lloyd.

Campbell couldn’t hide his excited eyes when he heard that I would become the commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces, leading the subordinate vassals to subjugate the Elven race.

“Kuhahaha! I get to fight elves in my lifetime. As expected, interesting things happen on their own when you’re with the Vice-Commander, huh?”

Sion strongly poked Campbell’s side as he laughed heartily.

“Ouch! Why are you doing this again, maid?”

“There’s the word ‘elf,’ so there’s no need to use the derogatory term ‘Gwizengi’ [a derogatory term for elves].”

“What does it matter what I call them? It’s not like there’s an elf here…”

Campbell, who was grumbling, recognized Sasha with her long ears drooping and trailed off.

“Ah, that’s right. We have an elf among us.”

Everyone’s gaze turned to Sasha.

I also spoke to Sasha.

“So, Sasha, I have a question for you.”

“What is it?”

“Do you have any idea why the Elven race, who had been quiet for so long, attacked humans?”

Sasha’s face clouded over.

It seems my hunch was right.

The reason she was sold as a slave and this war are definitely related.

“If it’s hard to answer, I’ll give you some time.”

Sasha remained silent until she heard this and nodded. She’ll probably speak up on her own later if she gets the chance.

“Until the Allied Forces are organized, everyone has free time. Do whatever you want, whether it’s training or resting.”

I dismissed my companions and sat at my desk.

Before training, recalling the experience gained from the battle with Greed, I wrote a letter in advance.

It was a letter to Rakan, the leader of the Blue Falcon Mercenary Group.

‘It’s a battle with other races, so I can’t just face them with a disorganized Allied Forces.’

Even though Marquis Lloyd appointed me as the commander-in-chief, the troops brought by the vassals basically only pledge allegiance to their respective lords.

In a way, that means I’m just a figurehead.

At least Marquis Lloyd is a hero who saved the continent and has years of experience with the vassals.

I don’t have any of that, and even until recently, I was just a bastard and a thug of humble origins.

‘To win the war, I must unite the subordinate lords who are acting separately.’

To do that, the first thing needed is fame.

Recently, I’ve been given the title of Demon Slayer, so my fame is sufficient.

The second is personal ability, which is a non-issue for me, an expert swordsman and druid.

Finally, I needed a loyal force that would only follow me to prevent a situation where I’m just banging my head against the ground.

The five hundred soldiers selected from the Lloyd Marquisate are a bit lacking.

I decided to add the Blue Falcon Mercenary Group to show off my power.

“How strong have they become?”

It hasn’t been long since I parted ways with Rakan, but I’ve given him plenty of support.

A significant number of the slaves rescued from Liang wanted to join the Blue Falcon Mercenary Group, and the large sum of money sent by the Merchant Guild should have arrived as well.

Rakan, having tasted the money, must have been training the soldiers fiercely based on Aslan’s Art of War [a renowned military strategy manual].

I felt a thrill in my heart at the thought of seeing the newly transformed mercenary group again.