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“…!”
The fake prince couldn’t hide his shock. The real prince also stared at Eugene with blank eyes. It appeared he was quite shocked as well.
It wasn‘t just the two of them.
Pranbow, Princess Lilisain, and even Galfredik looked rather surprised as they stared at Eugene. Only Romari remained unfazed as she was still devoting herself to calculations.
It was a natural reaction. The Roman Empire was a power recognized by the entire world. There was even a saying that all culture stemmed from the Roman Empire. It was customary since ancient times for new kings of countries and newly established dynasties to send a messenger to the emperor to report the change. So how could someone refuse a proposal from the imperial prince of such a place? It would be an extremely difficult decision to make, regardless of one’s race and nationality.
“Kuhaha! That’s my master!” Galfredik shouted boisterously. He stemmed from a poor family of knights, and he found Eugene’s attitude extremely pleasing and refreshing.
It was only natural! It didn’t matter if it was the request of an imperial prince. His master was the monarch of the Dark Clan. Someone worthy of representing an entire race didn’t need to dwell on a prince's proposal. Moreover, Romari was usually quite fussy. For her to remain calm in facing the unexpected situation meant that she already knew this truth.
“O-oh, no. It’s not something to refuse just like that. Let me explain my situation a bit more, Lord Batla,” the fake prince hurriedly said.
“I don’t think there is any reason for me to do so. I’m busy with my own work, and I have no reason to go all the way to the empire to help Your Highness,” Eugene responded.
“No, but…”
“Your Highness, I think you might be getting a little agitated. Why don’t you stop here for today?” The real prince stepped up and dissuaded the fake prince.
The fake prince hesitated, then he smiled awkwardly. “Ehem! Hmm! I became a little agitated without realizing it. I apologize for my disgraceful behavior, Lord Batla,” the fake prince stated.
“That’s not what you should be apologizing about,” Eugene muttered to himself.
“Hmm? What did you say?” the fake prince asked with a curious gaze.
Eugene responded, “It’s nothing. I think everyone should have gotten enough rest, so let’s continue moving. Galfredik, take charge of the knights. Evil golden spirit, pull yourself together and go make some water. Princess, Master Pranbow. Get ready to depart.”
Eugene mounted Silion after giving his orders and moved away. He didn’t spare a single glance at the prince’s group the entire time.
“That arrogant man…” the fake prince muttered.
“Shh. Even if no one here knows our language, we shouldn’t be negligent,” the real prince responded.
“Ah. I apologize, Your Highness,” the fake prince said.
“Don’t bow. Pat my shoulders instead,” the real prince replied.
“Yes,” the servant answered in the empire’s language and patted the shoulder of the real prince before asking, “Why must it be that man? I agree that he is a great figure, but I’m sure we could find a stronger knight.”
“No. I don’t think there are any knights stronger than the Duke of Batla. My knowledge may be lacking, but I have never laid my eyes on such a figure, even in the imperial castle. As such, we must have him join us. For the future of the empire… and for my survival,” the prince said in a grim voice while bowing toward the fake prince as if he were being scolded by his master. However, his gaze remained on Eugene’s back the entire time.
***
“Your Excellency, we will get going now. Please call us back anytime!”
“If it’s for your sake, I will draw my blade anytime, no matter who the opponent is.”
The expressions of the knights returning to their bestowed territories and manors were filled with loyalty toward Eugene. It was only a matter of course. Eugene didn’t take all the money and wealth he had gathered from the western nobles. Instead, he had distributed them to his knights.
The knights were already more than satisfied to have become official knights of the kingdom and masters of their own territories. Whenever Eugene rewarded them for their loyalty, and after every battle, their sense of loyalty toward him would grow even deeper.
“Well, it’s good that you would do that for me, but remember to always keep your blades sharp for the king. The one who swore you in as knights was the king, not me,” Eugene responded.
“Yes, of course. His Majesty has been our comrade since he was an aide of Your Excellency,” one of the knights said. Most of the knights had been acquainted with Eugene since his time in the Caylor Kingdom, and they quite liked both Eugene and Luke. Luke could not be compared with Eugene in terms of skills, but the image of the humble aide who had always fought fiercely on the front lines, and the fact that Luke had never refused any bothersome chores were still fresh in their minds.
“Take care then,” Eugene said.
“Yes, Your Excellency!” The knights competed to be the first to show their respect and politely saluted before departing.
“Well, then…” Eugene turned his gaze. The beowulfs were standing in groups of twos and threes while smacking their lips with regret.
“Great job until now, all of you,” Eugene said.
“Sniff! It’s nothing.”
“That’s right. We got to fight a lot, and we ate lots of meat.”
“Oh, I want to eat grilled duck.”
“I want marinated lamb ribs. We can’t have that in the mountains.”
As always, the conversation of the beowulfs quickly started to flow in a completely unrelated direction. Eugene quickly cut them off. “You can buy some with the money I gave you before returning.”
“Ehey! We can’t do with only some. We will need at least 20 sheep to have a proper feast,” one of the beowulfs responded.
“Whether it’s twenty or thirty, you will still have some money remaining after you buy them,” Eugene responded.
“Kuhehe! That’s true!” one of the beowulfs exclaimed.
Four boxes filled with silver rested on a cart pulled by one of the warriors. However, that wasn’t the end of it. The packs that the beowulfs carried were filled with various riches as well. Eugene had given enough compensation for the beowulfs to not worry about starving for years even without hunting after they returned to Perseus Mountain.
“Wolfgan and those remaining at the castle will help the king with his duties for the time being. There will be rotations every six months, so talk to your kind back on the mountain. All of you could volunteer yourselves as well,” Eugene said.
“Why would we talk to them?! We’ll definitely volunteer!”
“That’s right. If it’s helping the dark lord and the little king, we don’t need any compensation. Instead, give us meat for our every meal and let us fight until our balls are soaked with sweat. It’s a hundred times better than hunting in the mountains.”
Kuhehehehehehe!
The warriors burst out laughing while showing their large fangs. Eugene was greatly satisfied with the beowulfs. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that they had played the biggest role during his time in Brantia.
It was hard to find mercenaries as loyal and skillful as the beowulfs. The only downside was that they consumed an enormous amount of food. However, they had no other fault besides that. However, Eugene had only formed a contractual relationship with the beowulfs, and as such, he had no choice but to let them go.
But all of a sudden, Pythamoras, who had agreed to stay behind as the king’s advisor, suggested, “Ehem. This is a united kingdom, so there’s no one stopping you from forming an alliance with the Perseus Beowulfs. Give official recognition of Mount Perseus as their territory, and you can have some of their warriors always stationed at the royal palace.”
It was a brilliant idea, as expected from a druid. It was commonly known that the combined strength of two or three experienced knights was necessary to deal with a normal lycanthrope. However, what about beowulf warriors armed with specially forged plate coats? It was difficult to guarantee the outcome even if they were placed against five or six heavily armed knights. In fact, Eugene had arranged a duel between the beowulfs and the knights from the Caylor Kingdom, and four knights had been insufficient to deal with a single beowulf.
Eugene immediately accepted the druid’s suggestion and offered Wolfgan an alliance. The beowulf agreed without hesitation. Wolfgan was quite intelligent with excellent social skills and critical thinking. He knew that maintaining a harmonious relationship with the new kingdom was the correct path for all of his kind.
“Dark Lord! Be careful on your way!”
“Dark Knight, evil golden spirit, take care!”
“Kiehhh?! I’m not an evil, golden spirit! You dog-brained mutts! Kieeeeeehhh!”
The beowulfs departed while chuckling at the sight of the spirit throwing a tantrum.
***
Eugene entered the royal castle while receiving a warm welcome from Brighton’s residents.
“Master!”
“Your Excellency!”
Luke and the nobles also flocked to the courtyard to welcome Eugene. Their faces were filled with overwhelming emotions. It was because Eugene’s expedition had led to a unified kingdom of Brantia for the first time in decades. Several dynasties had risen and fallen over the past few hundred years, but none of them had ever gotten the cooperation of the Bayman Orcs and Eland except the Knight King.
As such, all the nobles in Brantia had considered it impossible to recreate such a scene regardless of who ascended the throne. However, what had only ever come to fruition under the reign of the Knight King was being re-enacted hundreds of years later.
“Uwaaagghh! Your Excellency! Your Excellency!”
“All the gods and spirits of this land will bless the house of Cralwmarine and Batla!”
Everyone was thrilled. In particular, the nobles of the Batla Duchy shed tears of joy and cried out in elation. The duke had succeeded in gathering all the treasures of the duchy, then he founded a unified kingdom. The kingdom's nobles were ecstatic that such a figure had arisen within their generation. They no longer cared that Eugene was a vampire from abroad, as the duchy was entering its greatest era of prosperity since its founding thanks to Eugene. As such, they laughed and shed tears with joy, knowing that they could see and experience the glory alongside the duke.
“Hooray! Hooray to the king!”
“Hooray to Duke Batla!”
“Brantia forever!”
The cheers of the citizens shook the royal castle. Everyone rejoiced regardless of their age, ethnicity, and status. However, amidst the loud cheers and the festive atmosphere, some people watched with bitter, complicated expressions.
“Hmph! Making such a fuss about the making of a king on this small, remote island.”
“That’s right. It’s a country even smaller than the territories of our great empire’s vassals.”
“It’s only natural for bumpkins to rejoice about such trivial things, right?”
“Hold your tongues, sirs.” Sir Localope stopped the knights’ whispers in a dignified voice. The knights quickly dropped their heads and stole glances at the prince.
The prince continued while suppressing his anger, “It may be a small island country, but it is also the land on which we are standing right now. It is their kingdom and their land. But what about you and me, sirs? We have our land, but we cannot return to it. People are waiting for us, but we cannot meet them. How are we any better than the people of Brantia?”
“Y-Your Highness…”
“Please forgive our incompetence, Your Highness.”
The knights spoke while biting their lips. They couldn’t raise their heads out of shame, and their voices were filled with sorrow.
“Sirs, I know that your display of jealousy stemmed from your frantic hearts. However, keep in mind that such words and actions are unbefitting and dishonorable for knights of the great empire,” the prince responded.
“Yes…”
“And raise your heads. However bad things may be, I am still the son of the great empire. Even though I may be trotting on a dark path in the night right now, the light will definitely come. Moreover, since I have finally found light on the land of the west, where the sun sets, all of you will have to do your best,” the prince remarked.
“We will etch your words into our hearts.” The knights finally raised their heads after answering and looked at the young prince. The prince’s fists were clenched tight, as were his teeth. He was dressed as the servant, but it was clear he was born with noble, golden blood. Unlike his arrogant brothers, who could not bear even the slightest discomfort, Prince Localope was resilient and headstrong. The knights truly respected and admired the wise prince with all their hearts. Otherwise, they would have never followed him to this remote island nation.
The knights were slightly narrow-minded, but they weren’t ones without honor and chivalry.
However, they found one thing quite unfortunate…
‘Again, he’s looking at the vampire duke, not the King of Brantia.’
‘Has the prince taken such a liking to the duke?’
The knights unknowingly clenched their fists. They knew well that the vampire duke with obsidian hair and crimson eyes was a strong knight. Knights with his talent and skills would be born only every decade or so.
However, he was a ‘Marecasio’—a daywalker. Even in the empire, only a few members of the Dark Clan were unaffected by the sun. The Marecasio yielded to the imperial family because of a covenant from the distant past, and the imperial family recognized their status. However, the Marecasio was the most dangerous of all foreign races.
As knights from prestigious, strong families of the empire, they couldn’t help but worry about Prince Localope. The prince had already taken great favor to Duke Batla.
However…
‘As expected, could only a Marecasio deal with another Marecasio?’
‘It may be true. We may need the help of that insidious vampire duke to drive out the demon king who resides by the side of the crown prince…’
It was an undeniable reality. Prince Localope stared at Eugene as if he was possessed, and the knights stared at Eugene with a complex look of jealousy and hope. Vampires were the representatives of darkness, but the duke could ironically be a newfound light for them.