< Chapter 110 - Proclamation #2 >
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The Marquess of Buckingham’s estates were truly extensive.
In terms of sheer size, it was comparable to the entire northern part of the Kingdom of Seilun, which was one-third of the total.
Of course, it was the largest territory within the empire, but there were two reasons why the Marquis of Buckingham occupied such a vast – no, vast – territory.
One was that although the land was vast, surprisingly little of it was of any use, and the other was that the then Marquess of Buckingham had inherited a vast amount of land as a joint heir to several blood relatives, including his maternal and paternal families.
Although the land is vast, almost half of it is useless.
Despite having acquired an incredibly vast territory, the restraint from the imperial family and surrounding nobles was not that severe.
Furthermore, the prevailing opinion was that since the Marquess of Buckingham had many children, it would be possible to maintain such a vast estate until the time of the Marquess of Buckingham.
‘Still, the land is big, after all.’
It was true that there were few people compared to the land, but because the land was so vast, there were also many people.
‘Underground resources are also abundant.’
In many ways, the situation was similar to that of Russia – or rather, the former Soviet Union.
The Margrave of Buckingham actually had several good mines, and it was also the land where the majority of dwarves lived, as they were inseparable from mineral resources.
“The Marquess of Buckingham will come out to greet you.”
Perhaps because it was her first visit to her hometown in a long time, the Empress Dowager had a happy expression on her face ever since she left the Shadow Forest.
It was also a place where she could truly feel safe, not a land of enemies or untrustworthy people, but it was also her first visit to her hometown in nearly ten years. If her expression was not good, it would have been strange.
“I’m fine with that too.”
Even the emperor, who had a dark spot in one corner of his face even when he laughed after leaving the system, smiled brightly.
A bright smile that is perfect for her age.
“Your Majesty, this is the flag of the Marquess of Buckingham.”
As Leon spoke, pointing ahead, both the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, who had been chatting, stuck their heads out the window and looked into the distance.
“It is the Marquess of Buckingham’s flag.”
The emblem of the winged lion.
When the Empress Dowager spoke joyfully, the Emperor stamped his feet on the carriage. The Empress Dowager, who usually complained about the Emperor’s dignity, was able to let it go this time, and the Emperor was able to rejoice to his heart’s content with his younger siblings.
Two days after leaving the Shadow Forest.
The party encountered the Marquess of Buckingham, known as the Crouching Lion of the North.
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While Uther and Cordelia’s party were meeting with the Marquis of Buckingham, a group of people began to march from the northern part of the kingdom – Bayrun.
It was a sort of coalition force led by Count Bayer and Count Chase.
The two counts had already been summoned once due to the empire’s border blockade, but since the empire had been quite quiet, they had been preparing to go to war in Bayrun and had not moved at all.
But as of yesterday, the order to deploy from the royal capital was given.
Count Bayer led his knights into battle, and Count Chase joined Count Bayer’s forces along with the wizards of the Red Dawn Tower.
So another day.
Count Bayer and Count Chase, riding on black and white horses respectively, spoke in low voices.
“So it was really difficult.”
A letter from the Marquis of Orphan in the South.
Once you remove all the aristocratic rhetoric, the message itself is simple: take responsibility.
“No, is that our fault?”
“It’s okay to cry because it’s a mistake.”
The runaway of Caesar Orphan.
He went out to attend a wedding in the North and ran away with the ‘runaway professionals’.
Although Caesar usually hunted pirates and played rough(?), he never ran away from home.
Marquis Offand argued that this was all because of Jude and Cordelia, and Count Bayer found it difficult to deny this.
Because it was a well-known fact to the entire nation that Uther and Cordelia were the best runaways in the kingdom.
“If you put it that way, Count Hresvelg······.”
“I got a letter from you too. It was much more polite, though.”
Lucas Hresvelg.
A young man who was called the best giraffe in the North before Yuder came to prominence.
Lucas also attended Gale and Adelia’s wedding and ran away, so Count Hresvelg could not help but blame Count Bayer and Count Chase.
“Furthermore… I may have to filter it out a bit, but it seems that the Marquis of Offund is in a pretty difficult situation right now because of Miss Kaisha.”
“What is that story?”
Count Bayer smiled bitterly at Count Chase’s question.
“The reason that the Marquis of Orphan was able to rise to the top of the Southern Seven Families – no, the Six Families – was thanks to Ascalon, Carlos’s legacy. You know that, don’t you?”
“I know.”
“But that Ascalon has disappeared. To be exact, the real thing has disappeared, leaving only a fake behind.”
“Wait a minute, then maybe?”
“That’s exactly it.”
Kaiser Orphan ran away with the real Ascalon.
For the other five families who were already uncomfortable with suddenly losing their leading positions, this was truly a blessing.
I don’t know for sure, but I’m sure he’s been harassing the author of Ofund every day.
“But I heard that Caesar ran away.”
“With our children.”
Count Bayer and Count Chase sighed together.
“But I guess nothing will happen?”
“You have to believe that it won’t happen. You’ve also become a lot stronger.”
Both Uther and Cordelia have made remarkable progress.
No, can we simply pass this off as a rhetorical device that talks about being dazzling?
In just 1.5 years, Cordelia became a great wizard, and Uther, who was too sick to even go outside, became a member of the Ten Swordsmen.
Abnormal growth.
But the two counts knew better than anyone that the growth was real.
“Anyway… there must be some meaning to this this time too.”
Count Chase frowned at Count Bayer’s words, but nodded.
If you look closely at each of the runs away from home up until now, they weren’t simply a matter of love escaping.
Although it may be a consequential interpretation, every time they ran away, Uder and Cordelia returned with great achievements.
“I was thinking that when you come back this time, why don’t you just get married right away?”
“I agree. There’s no need to drag it out like an engagement.”
And in fact, there was a side effect that was being aimed at.
The two counts looked back at Gale and Adelia, who were riding side by side in the distance, as if they had made a prior arrangement.
A sight that was literally dripping with honey.
Even though we were just looking at each other, I felt like I kept seeing a pink aura.
“It definitely decreased.”
The couple had significantly reduced their outings since getting married.
Even after the wedding, I stayed in my room for more than three days.
“It’s truly a pleasure.”
As Count Chase spoke with a proud face, Count Bayer smiled slightly and nodded.
“I might become a grandfather soon.”
“Okay, Grandpa.”
That was it.
The two people finished their conversation by smiling at each other, then changed their expressions and began discussing the affairs of the kingdom.
“Is this the call of Her Highness the Crown Princess?”
“That’s what they said. Moreover… it doesn’t seem like it was simply a move to prepare for it.”
The two counts immediately took the lead in leading the elite troops of their territory.
Even the northern ravens were preparing to move, so a major war with the Empire could possibly break out.
“When you get there… you’ll know then.”
The order from the capital was not to move to the border. It was to lead the elite troops to the capital.
Why is that?
What are your plans?
The two counts looked straight ahead again.
We crossed the border between the north and the center and headed towards the royal capital.
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The night I met the Marquis of Buckingham.
Because the Marquess of Buckingham was so large, it would take about two days just to get to the large city of Grand Pen, which could be called the capital of the Marquessland.
Because of this, the group ended up spending the night at the castle of Viscount Lennon, a vassal of the Marquess of Buckingham.
“The Stone Tablet of the Solari Church?”
Scarlett asked, blinking, and Uther nodded.
“Oh, there are four of these slabs in total, and I’ve collected three of them. And I know where the last one is.”
In Uther’s room, there were not only Cordelia and Scarlett, but also Lucas, Kaisa, and even Kirara.
I thought about calling Leon and Sarah too, but compared to the three people before them, their relationship wasn’t that deep yet.
“Prince Yude, then… are you saying that you will go and find the remaining fourth stone tablet?”
“Yes, I intend to do so. I think it’s time to go now that I’ve joined the Marquess of Buckingham.”
Furthermore, the fourth stone tablet was hidden in the Zainan Valley, one of the borders between the Marquisate of Buckingham and the Shadow Forest. Considering the route, it was right to go get it now.
Cordelia also nodded and said.
“They say that if you collect all the stone tablets, you can obtain the last secret treasure left by the Solari Cult. I don’t know what it is, but it will definitely be helpful in the fight against the demon followers. I think it would be a good idea to secure it before the war… the civil war begins in earnest.”
The secret of Solari that could be obtained when all four stone tablets were collected had not appeared in Heroes Chronicles 2, so even Uther and Cordelia had no way of knowing about it.
But still, it was the legacy of Solari – and the last remaining secret message from the sect.
Even if it wasn’t a combat weapon, it would probably be helpful in some way since it contained enormous divine power.
‘In the end, be prepared.’
It was the same principle as gathering allies and raising combat power as much as possible in preparation for a fight with the Guardians in the royal capital.
After Uther and Cordelia each finished their supplementary explanations, Kaisa scratched his chin and said.
“Anyway, so you’re going treasure hunting?”
“What… roughly?”
As Cordelia nodded, Kaisa smiled and hugged Lucas’ neck, who was next to her.
“Hehehe, good. Is Lucas okay with it too?”
“Huh? Yeah. I, I like it too. Sis.”
Lucas was not used to this kind of skinship, let alone calling Kaiser his older sister.
As I spoke, my cheeks reddening without me realizing it, a faint blush appeared on Caesar’s face as well. For some reason, even my mouth started to water.
But unfortunately for Caesar, Scarlett was there.
Scarlett grabbed the back of Kaisa’s neck and pulled her so that their skinship could no longer continue, and then naturally turned to Cordelia. She continued speaking, ignoring Kaisa’s protests.
“So you’re leaving right away tomorrow morning?”
If you go further north from here, the road to Jainan Canyon can get twisted.
In response to Scarlett’s question, Cordelia suddenly wiggled her fingers.
“We’re going to set off, but… how should I put it? Should I just say that Yuder and I will just go and come back…?”
It was extremely suspicious that he kept trailing off.
So Scarlett narrowed her eyes and asked again.
“You two are going together?”
“Yeah. It’s not like we need to rush in all at once. And I want the three of you to stay here and focus on powering up. Yeah, that’s it.”
Seeing him nod his head without saying anything, it seemed like he had said whatever he wanted and then agreed with it.
I’ll go to Jainan Canyon with just Yuder.
Actually, it wasn’t anything strange.
They were two people who had traveled alone before.
But why is that?
Should we call it the Log Master’s touch?
It felt like it had a different meaning than usual.
“Ugh.”
As Scarlett narrowed her eyes, Cordelia pursed her lips and looked away, and Kaisa, whose animalistic intuition was no less than Cordelia’s, sniffed.
‘Something smells. Do you smell it too?’
Scarlett nodded at the look in Kaiser’s eyes. Given the mood and circumstances, it was obvious what Kaiser would say.
So Scarlett smiled and said.
“Then how about taking Kira with you?”
“Kirara?”
Not only Cordelia, but also Kirara, who was sitting right next to her, blinked.
Because it was such an unexpected story.
But Scarlett had her own reasons prepared.
“The fourth stone tablet is located in Jainan Canyon, right? Kirara, who can talk to animals, will be helpful there. There will also be many monsters that Kirara can tame.”
The Jainan Canyon is notorious for its rough terrain and is home to a colony of giant, monstrous rocs.
It was a remote area with no one coming or going, so the only ones who knew the way were the animals living nearby.
“Oh, indeed. I guess Miss Kirara can find out the way by asking the animals.”
When Lucas spoke, clapping his hands together, Scarlett nodded as if to say, “That’s it.”
“Isn’t that bad? I have to go and come back quickly. And it’s not like it’s a place with that much danger.”
Scarlett’s words were both wrong and right.
The Jainan Canyon, where giant monsters run rampant, was generally considered a dangerous place.
But it was not a dangerous place for Yuder, the Grand Sword Master, and Cordelia, the Archmage.
“Euuuu······.”
But then I can’t travel alone with Yuder!
– Cordelia wanted to shout, but she couldn’t. That was because Cordelia’s face wasn’t thick enough to do that.
So I just suffered and suffered, and the situation became even more difficult to reveal my true feelings.
“Wow, then you’re going with me, Master? I like it. Please let me go with you. Okay?”
Cordelia had no way of refusing Kirara’s affection as she hugged her waist.
‘Uuuu······.’
If you travel with just Yuder, you don’t have to worry about what other people think.
There’s no need to hide anywhere.
But there was nothing I could do.
I could ignore Scarlett and Kaisa, who had wicked smiles on their faces, but I couldn’t ignore Kirara, whose eyes were shining and who wanted to go with Lucas, who said with an innocent face, “Miss Scarlett is really smart!”
“Uh, yeah. Okay. Let’s go together.”
“Really? It’s really good. It’s so, so good, Master.”
“Yeah… Me too.”
Kirara rubbed her cheek against Cordelia’s chest, enjoying it, and Cordelia smiled awkwardly.
And one person.
Uder, who had been watching all this conversation, looked out the window and let out a long sigh.
It was a really long sigh.
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< Chapter 110 - Proclamation #2 > End
