The Doomed Fief’s Dying Lord (27)

“Young master…?”

The staff who met me had reactions similar to Ronari’s.

But there was no time to explain things to them carefully.

“Everyone, pack your things. We’re leaving immediately. Coachmen, follow me first. Prepare the carriage.”

I gave the order at once.

There was no context.

“Everyone else, come down as soon as you’re ready. Let’s go.”

I didn’t give them a chance to ask for explanations.

The coachmen were uneasy.

One who followed me asked.

“Do we have to leave secretly?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure this is alright?”

“It’s fine.”

The coachman glanced around.

“There are soldiers everywhere like this…”

I looked back at him.

I did not stop walking.

“Do you doubt me?”

“It’s not that…”

A look of dismay colored the coachman’s face.

I gave him a smile.

“I understand.”

I said.

“I asked the Lord of Limone for half of his entire force. I told them to assemble in a day and depart tomorrow. They’ll be so busy with that preparation they won’t have any attention left for us.”

“I’m sorry, young master. I didn’t think it through…”

“It’s alright. If a few words from me can ease your worry, then all the better.”

Words I didn’t really mean flowed out smoothly.

“But I would never give an order that puts you in danger. You can relax now.”

I could see the coachman’s tension visibly ease.

I said to him in a low voice.

‘So never doubt me again.’

…that was the meaning behind it.

“Please trust me.”

“Understood, young master! Thank you…!”

They should be thanking me.

I should be the one saying thanks.

They became my people with just a few words.

[Regular contracted talent]

[…]

[Trust: 100/200]

[…]

I dismissed the Status Window that had appeared.

If that could bring someone to my side, I could say as many sweet words as needed.

I helped the coachmen bring out the horses and carriage.

There was nobody guarding the stables or the carriage house.

‘Of course. They probably had to scrape together every able person for that task.’

The 300 men I requested from Ludovica.

To some, that number might seem small.

But as I said, that’s half of Limone’s entire force.

Even scraping together all the troops they were currently using wouldn’t be enough.

‘Can’t you just gather half of them?’

No way.

Shall I compare it to modern South Korea?

The total military manpower of South Korea far exceeds three million.

If you include reservists.

But imagine the president saying to gather only half the forces because of a war.

The military authorities would be thrown into chaos.

One and a half million adult men who were dutifully going about their lives.

They’d be told to assemble within ten days.

Well, it’s not utterly impossible.

There are phones, cars, and modern administrative systems.

But a medieval border fief like Limone is different.

You have to go around the whole town, beat drums and ring bells to gather people.

‘All the officials and soldiers of Limone Castle must be so busy they’d wish to die.’

Besides, our group is only a few people.

They wouldn’t have the attention to spare.

I sat beside the coachman and gave directions myself.

“No one is paying attention at all…”

The coachman muttered.

It was just after we passed through the gate of Limone’s inner castle.

A tired soldier who looked like a gate guard only gestured for us to move on quickly.

We drove across the city of Limone.

Not once were we asked to verify our identities.

The elated coachman asked me.

“Young master, did you perhaps cast some kind of magic?”

“Didn’t you know? I sprinkled magic powder on the carriage earlier. I cast a spell to make us invisible.”

The coachman laughed heartily at my joke.

“To have an owner who can use magic. We’re blessed.”

“If so, please drive a bit more politely. I don’t want to donate our meals to the road on the way.”

“Ha-ha. Understood.”

After confirming the carriage had passed through Limone’s city gate, I got down from the coachman’s seat.

I stepped on the running carriage’s railing, hung onto its side, opened the door, and climbed into the interior.

Inside, Ronari greeted me.

“Hello, wizard young master. It seems your profession has changed in the meantime.”

“It hasn’t changed; it’s a side job. If the third son of a frontier fief is to become a great lord, shouldn’t he at least be able to use magic?”

She did not laugh at my joke.

Instead, she said this.

“If a few words could throw all of Limone into chaos, then that might truly be called magic.”

“Then you are the wizard. After all, you were the one who persuaded the Lord of Limone.”

“That wasn’t said to share praise.”

Her expression changed.

She spoke in a voice quiet enough that it couldn’t be heard outside.

“Young master. I don’t know how I should take those words.”

“Which words?”

“The words about becoming the Lord of Denabi. Becoming a great lord, holding vast lands and countless vassals. That… is that sincere?”

“I’m sincere.”

I answered immediately.

How convenient it is not to have to hide one’s ambitions anymore!

The night breeze seeped into the carriage’s interior.

I breathed it in deeply.

The late-spring night air was still a bit chilly.

To me, it felt refreshingly brisk.

Ronari’s expression, meanwhile, was complicated.

I spoke in a whisper.

“I understand. You probably didn’t get an answer. Ronari. There was something else you wanted to know. You wanted to ask it like this, didn’t you?”

I parted my lips.

“Do I truly have the will to overthrow my father, push my elder brothers aside, and become the lord?”

“…“

Ronari stiffened.

I let out a broad laugh.

“Why so tense? There’s no way I’d do that. Were you planning to start a rebellion with just the two of us?”

“No… it’s just that I…”

She looked confused.

I continued speaking for her.

“Father is still vigorous and an outstanding man. He has the kind of personality that commands those around him.”

“…Yes.“

“My two older brothers are also remarkable. They possess an unapproachable strength.”

She looked up at me with her head bowed.

‘So what is it you want to say?’

If I were my past self, I would have answered like this.

‘I’m still lacking and inexperienced compared to them. I don’t yet know if I’m worthy.’

Pleasant-sounding nonsense.

It’s a ridiculously trivial thing to say.

I had no intention of wasting time on such talk.

“But they are not fit to be lords.”

“Young master…”

“You probably don’t understand why I’m saying this so bluntly. I know. But this is my true intent.”

Alejandro, Jin, Reno.

They are excellent warriors and good leaders.

They would have made good rulers.

If Denabi were an ordinary domain.

Denabi holds far too many problems.

It’s not just the Dungeon.

Chronic budget deficits,

Conflict between the upper district and the Lower Quarter,

Issues with migrants and banditry.

There are countless other problems I could list.

“To solve the scattered problems in Denabi, ordinary approaches won’t be enough. Methodically solving immediate tasks and gradually slaying Dungeon monsters won’t be sufficient.”

‘You would acknowledge that, Ronari Arenta. You can see Denabi from the same perspective as I do.’

As expected, she nodded.

“Denabi needs talent with a new perspective.”

I continued.

“That doesn’t mean I’m saying I’ll become lord right away. I couldn’t even if I wanted to. What I want is simply to have at least one more person like you by my side.”

“…Someone like me?“

“Someone who can bring innovation, someone who can foresee the future, someone who trusts me and follows.”

I need someone like that.

“If such a person stays by my side, soon there will be no one who can deny it: that only I am truly fit to be Denabi’s ruler.”

Ronari still looked bewildered.

I didn’t expect an immediate answer from her either.

She would need time to sort out her thoughts.

That was part of my plan.

‘It would be troublesome if they’d take rash actions out of trust in me.’

I had already decided to become the protagonist.

I hardened my resolve.

But I didn’t want my people to act recklessly on my behalf.

I needed to control them.

To do that, I had to provide a clear answer and direction.

‘So they are trapped not in their own thoughts but in mine.’

I said to her, who was deep in thought.

“I know you have much to think about, but you should get some rest for now. There will be a lot to do when we arrive.”

“But what about you, young master? You’re busy too, so please sleep first.”

I smiled and shook my head.

“No. As Ronari, the strategy analyst, you have a more important mission than I do. A mission that absolutely must not fail.”

She cocked her head in puzzlement.

“Could it be… you intend to entrust me with the operation?”

“That’s right.”

I planned to give her all the credit for this Dungeon assault.

I wanted to increase Ronari’s influence within the Denabi corps.

“But I can’t interfere in the current chain of command. The lord is here and there are plenty of outstanding officers.”

“I’ll take care of that somehow.”

“No matter how you say you’ll do it… I don’t have the right for that…”

In her words I saw a shadow of my former self.

Lee Jungwoo, compulsively undervaluing himself.

And Ronari, doubting her own qualifications.

On the surface, her doubt seemed reasonable.

But just because she learned military strategy relatively recently, is young, or lacks experience…

You can’t say she therefore lacks qualification.

I asked.

“Are you afraid?”

“What? That’s not what I mean. There are many people in the corps far more experienced than I am.”

“I see.”

So you’re afraid, it seems.

“Where did the you who used to say ‘numbers will dominate the battlefield’ go?”

She replied shyly.

“That was just something I said because I didn’t know…”

“You’re acting exactly like I used to until recently, Ronari.”

“…!“

She froze.

I continued.

“You were full of confidence then. You believed the formulas of the battlefield would be rewritten according to your perspective.”

I admired the way she used to say things like that.

Talent worthy of S-rank, a genius revealing glimpses of it.

But now our positions had reversed.

This time it’s my turn.

‘If the lord doesn’t acknowledge talent, who will?’

“I will guarantee it. You have the qualifications and the ability. So I will make sure you can spread your wings.”

The words that opened my eyes flowed from my mouth this time.

“Believe in yourself.”

Starlight streamed through a gap in the carriage window.

Ronari’s eyes reflected the starlight from the shadows.

Seeing her like that, I felt a slight twinge of guilt.

Unlike her sincere encouragement, my words were thoroughly calculated.

‘Praise is addictive.’

‘I’m going to spread that disease.’

The younger Lee Jungwoo inside me said so.