Chapter 126
The Calix Estate conference room, which reflects Raul’s true nature. As the executives, including Philip and Bernard, gathered, the head of the information team, Kane, was delivering a briefing.
“… Unusual signs have been discovered in three estates.”
The information reported by Kane was updated on the map attached to the front of the conference room. Three satellite estates of Raul, slightly distant from each other, and three adjacent baron estates were marked.
“This is… too blatant, isn’t it?”
Bernard furrowed his brows and spoke. After the Gate incident, the baron estates struggled to reinforce their forces and secure their estates, focusing purely on survival.
However, at some point, reconnaissance troops witnessed the monsters being driven out, with the defense lines of the estates being secured by their troops. And leading these forces, there was a group of knights numbering in the dozens, hardly recognizable as the baron’s knight order.
“Do we know which family the knights belong to?”
At Philip’s question, Kane shook his head.
“The knights’ armor, weapons, shields, nowhere did they have the family crest engraved.”
“A mysterious knight order…”
“Have they instigated any conflicts or crossed the estate borders?”
“After confirming the presence of our reconnaissance troops, they quietly retreated.”
It was time for the estates that had secured their safety to start paying attention to the outside world. Probably, like Raul, there would be an increase in situations where some price would be paid to dispatch a knight order or lend soldiers.
And there might even be cases where estates were seized. However, in any situation, it was rare for a family to conceal their affiliation and act covertly. Knights took great pride in their own lineage and family.
The fact that they hid the family insignia?
It was clear that something fishy was going on. And the fact that such incidents were occurring right next to the estates Raul had recently acquired was not something to be taken lightly.
“It’s not common for a barony to mobilize dozens of knights. There must be someone behind him or a collaborator,” Raul nodded at Bernard’s words and asked Kane.
“Have any prestigious families or factions shown any unusual movements?”
“For now, among the prestigious warrior families, both the Templeton Duchy and the Greer Marquessate are quiet. They are families that seldom engage in political activities. As for the McNeil Marquessate, they were the quickest to stabilize after the chaos, aside from our Ashton County. There are reports that the Master, Marquess Clifford de McNeil, took action personally, suggesting they had prepared in advance.”
“The McNeil Marquessate, huh.”
Raul’s mind grew complicated.
‘I need to sort things out someday…’
The truth was, from the perspective of the Ashton Viscount, the most troublesome family would probably be the Rendall Viscount. They always seemed to stir up trouble.
However, when looking at the entire Ruben Kingdom, the McNeil Marquessate was the one to be most cautious of.
“The McNeil Marquessate was a traitor to the kingdom.”
After the empire invaded in his past life, the Ruben Kingdom rallied around the Templeton Duchy to resist. But there were families that refused to join and sided with the empire, one of them being the McNeil Marquessate.
Fortunately, due to an internal whistleblower, the Viscountcy didn’t turn the tables on them, but there was still a power vacuum.
“The issue is when the Viscountcy was co-opted by the empire. If there hasn’t been contact yet, we should try to persuade them to our side as much as possible. If not…”
They needed to act before things deteriorated. They still had time before the empire invaded. Kane’s informants were working hard, so they would soon have enough information.
“… The suspicious families are McNeil Marquessate, Randal County, and the movements of the Viscount Jaden’s faction that Master mentioned aren’t reassuring either.”
“I see. What is my uncle currently up to?”
“Viscount Jaden, who had laid low since the Gate incident, seems to have returned to the capital recently. It seems he’s scheming with his faction members, and it’s likely related to the recent territorial dispute.”
“For now, strengthen surveillance, and report immediately if any special information comes in.”
Based on the information so far, one of the knight orders appearing in nearby territories seemed to be one of them. Raul could roughly guess who they were up against.
‘It seems they’re planning to start poking around here, but… Will things go as they expect?’
The information they had about Raul and the First Knight Order was from when they were active in the capital seven months ago. They probably thought nothing much had changed in less than a year, not knowing that player time flowed differently from NPC time.
“Philip. The Knight Order will be on high alert for the time being. All knights are to remain in the city ready to portal immediately should a situation arise.”
“Yes, Master!”
“Jake. The gate management and suppression missions previously handled by the Knight Order will now be transferred to guild forces. How far along is the transition to cavalry units?”
“We have completed the transition to cavalry units for 2,500 out of the current 3,000 guild forces. If we secure enough mounts for the remaining troops, we can mobilize them at full capacity immediately.”
Bernard interjected in response to Jake’s report, “We can acquire an additional thousand steeds by the end of this month. We anticipate a stable supply through ranch operations thereafter.”
“Good. The key to our troop deployment is securing mobility. Once the cavalry formation is completed, continue training all territorial troops with the goal of transitioning them to cavalry units as well.”
“Yes, Master!”
Locking eyes with his subordinates present at the meeting, Raul spoke, “I’m sure you all feel it too – the hostile forces against our territory and us are beginning to move in earnest. They may think of us as easy prey, but is that really the case?”
“No!”
“They mistakenly believe themselves to be the hunters, ignorant of who their true adversaries are. How should we deal with such fools?”
“Show them our true strength!”
“We should beat some sense into them!”
“They should pay the price for recklessly provoking us!”
Everyone clenched their fists and shouted in agreement.
“Let’s use this opportunity to crush our enemies and make the power of the First Knight Order and Ashton County known to the world. We will lead the nation from now on! Are you all ready for this?”
“Of course!”
“Count on us!”
With everyone rallying together, the meeting came to a close.
As Raul was about to leave, he called Bernard back and gave him special instructions, “It looks like I’ll have to stay in the capital for a while. If you can’t reach me and something happens to my father, take Nakia back to our home as quickly as possible as we discussed before. If we need to mobilize troops, seek assistance from Knight Philip.”
“Understood. I will act according to your instructions in case of any unforeseen events.”
“Good. Also, if any orders or requests for cooperation come from our home, ignore them unless they are specifically from Dylan. I’ll take full responsibility.”
They had not yet fully identified all the traitors or collaborators among their household members. It was necessary to consider all possibilities.
“Their plans might have gone astray somewhat, but their target probably hasn’t changed much. They’ll definitely aim for Father first.”
If Count Melvin was in good health and attempted something, they would truly be fools.
Count Melvin’s influence and control were solid. Dissenting factions or potential traitors wouldn’t be able to do anything if the Count was in good shape. If the opponent couldn’t even grasp that level of situation, Raul wouldn’t need to intervene.
“It probably won’t come to that.”
Ideally, preemptively dismantling any plots to target the Count would solve any issues, but unfortunately, Raul had no way to do so in this case. Even in his past life, he found treatments but couldn’t uncover the cause.
“And in a way, this could also be an opportunity.”
He couldn’t proceed with the scenario while leaving hidden dangers within the family estate. Just like pathogens should be eradicated early on; treating them after an outbreak was never a good solution. Raul intended to take care of all such potential risks this time. Since basic precautions had been taken, immediate issues were unlikely to arise.
“So, I should handle the postponed matters first.”
* * *
The capital of the Ruben Kingdom, thurium.
Although there were significant damages due to the Gate incident, the situation was slowly recovering. Buildings that had collapsed were being rebuilt, and residents, after mourning their lost ones, were returning to their daily lives.
The central army forces that had stayed within the castle for a while left on expeditions to clear the surrounding monsters and reclaim villages affected by the Gate incident. Mercenaries, hired at a high cost by the lords, also headed to the provinces.
As nobles and knights remaining in the capital left to deal with monsters on their territories, the city felt quieter than ever.
Yet, there was one place where people bustled and moved energetically – the Thurium branch of the First Knight Order.
“Have you arrived, Master?”
Lowering his head in greeting was Elias, the branch manager.
He was one of the six trainees who followed Raul in the early days, originating from the Golden Bear Knights. Now, he had reached the level of an Expert and was rightfully one of the top executives of the First Knight Order.
“It’s been a while, Elias.”
“It’s been a while since you last visited.”
It had been a few months since Raul had visited Thurium. During that time, he had been busy with his newly acquired territories and player-related matters, and there was no urgent business in the capital that required his attention.
“Well, Branch Manager Elias has been handling things so well that there was no need for me to come anyway.”
Raul joked as he walked into the branch. Inside the long stretch of walls, he could see a wide garden, training grounds, and the imposing main building.
It was perhaps too grand and sophisticated to be used as a guild branch; it looked more like a noble mansion.
This place was one of the rewards given by the royal family after the Gate Incident. It was one of the mansions of the nobles associated with the Imperial spy, Viscount Plank, which Raul had acquired and renovated.
In addition to the Thurium branch, there were 500 guild troops and about 20 knights that he had recruited.
Upon the royal request, they were managing several dungeons near the capital and also undertaking missions from other nobles and residents.
As he headed towards the meeting room in the mansion, he was greeted by a few knights and individuals who seemed to be adventurers waiting for him.
“It’s been a while.”
“Nice to see you again, Master.”
These knights were none other than Raul’s academy classmates who had applied to the First Knight Order.
Dalton was managing the guild academy in the free city of Mira, but the others had stayed in the capital to deal with the nobles.
As promising members of the Academy’s S Class, being part of the guild and receiving system assistance had accelerated their growth significantly.
Having been at the upper tier of Advanced Sword users, they were all aiming to reach the Intermediate level, surpassing the Expert’s barrier effortlessly.
After exchanging some light conversation to catch up, Raul slowly brought up the purpose of his visit.
“I heard you found the entrance to the ancient dungeon. Could I hear more about it?”
“Our guide will explain that to you.”
Then, the adventurer who had been patiently waiting since the introduction, finally spoke up.
“I discovered the place about a week ago. Originally, I was exploring the new gates that appeared…”
As the adventurer explained about the ancient dungeon, a sense of certainty began to grow on Raul’s face.
“Definitely. I finally found it.”
Raul had finally uncovered the ancient dungeon he had been searching for.
(To be continued)
TL’s Corner:
New chapter after a long while.