Chapter 157: The Board Overturned

‘This has gotten bigger than expected.’

Earl Eben, who had come down to the South under the orders of Marquis Visque of the Royalist Faction, felt that the situation was anything but ordinary.

The Kingdom of Might in the South was even harsher than he had anticipated.

It felt several times more barren than the territory of Border Count Hamira, located directly above it.

‘Above and below are right next to each other… Is this even possible?’

It was as if a curse had been placed upon it.

In the southern Kingdom of Might, wastelands could be seen everywhere.

It was a miracle the country could sustain itself in this state.

He had known it intellectually, but seeing it with his own eyes was different.

‘This is why they couldn’t develop.’

Although it was bound together under the name Kingdom of Might, the kingdom was practically divided into three parts.

The next king hadn’t even been elected yet.

‘They call them lords, but you could just as easily call them tribes.’

With dozens of territories and tribes, three major tribes held the power divided among themselves.

Theas of the South.

Atid of the North.

Bifs of the Center.

These three each had distinct characteristics.

Their only commonality was that they were the same race and were warlike.

Eben, who had come down under Marquis Visque’s orders, was assigned to the nearest tribe, the Atid of the North.

While the smaller tribes couldn’t settle down and wandered nomadically here and there…

‘…It’s quite splendid.’

For a tribe like the Atid, they had a central settlement.

Since they had a nomadic nature, there were no towering buildings or massive palaces.

But the chieftain’s tent where the Atid chieftain stayed was splendid enough.

Smaller tents were connected, with a massive tent at the center, and the embroideries woven between them could be seen as works of art.

The image of barrenness he had first felt as an Earl was starting to wash away.

When he entered, he saw the Atid chieftain. The first impression he got upon seeing him, who was practically a king within the tribe, was…

‘He’s strong. A true warrior.’

Strength itself.

He wasn’t wearing armor like a knight, but his entire body was thick. Yet, it was muscle that could flex nimbly whenever he wished.

The various scars visible over his armor-like muscles showed that he was no easy opponent.

‘I heard he killed all his brothers.’

The previous chieftain. Hundreds of his descendants.

He was the one who had risen by cutting down every single one of them.

It could be called barbaric, but his ability to cut down even his family when necessary was a testament to his strength.

“The Atid’s proud sword.”

The Earl paid his respects in the manner of the tribe. The chieftain nodded slightly, accepting the greeting.

It could have been perceived as an insult, but the Earl was not naive.

He simply waited for the chieftain to speak first.

For a long moment, the chieftain scrutinized the Earl as if sizing him up.

“…You’re no warrior. But you have backbone.”

It was the chieftain’s acknowledgment. At the very least, it was recognition that he was worthy of conversing with him.

They were people of the Kingdom of Might who respected the strong and weren’t ashamed to bow to them. Once acknowledged as strong, the treatment changed.

The chieftain, who had been half-lying down looking at the Earl with an arrogant posture, straightened up.

“What business do you have?”

“I came to ask you to make a small show of force.”

“A small one…”

The chieftain closed his eyes as if in thought.

“Well, it is about time for that. I can never understand your methods… but the price will be sufficient, yes?”

Contrary to expectations, the chieftain was quite talkative.

“Twice the previous amount.”

“Oh? Twice?”

“However, I would ask that you keep it in check.”

“Hmm… That’s no fun. Well, let’s hear it first.”

Quickly and smoothly.

The conversation between the Earl and the chieftain proceeded rapidly.

‘Perfect!’

Over the course of several days, discussions about the transaction went back and forth several times, and Earl Eben realized that things were proceeding as he desired.

As they wished, the Atid tribe began to move, and once a disturbance arose on the northern border, the rest would be…

‘Taken care of by Marquis Visque himself.’

Eben, who was more of a politician despite holding the rank of Earl, was satisfied with how smoothly everything was going.

“Why not stay and enjoy yourselves a bit longer?”

“Unfortunately, matters call me back home…”

“Hmph, I can never understand your ways. Well then, see you later.”

All he had to do now was use the ensuing chaos to set the board as they desired.

A while later.

“Isn’t it about time for a hunt?”

“Yes, it is!”

“Hehe, let’s move for the first time in a while then. Only by filling our bellies well can we endure the harsh and desolate times, right?”

“With pleasure.”

Having received their payment, the Atid tribe began to move.

Northward.

Towards the territory of the Kingdom of Malexia, which had instigated them.

‘Interesting fellows. Though they appear united, they are divided.’

What the Atid wanted was a border disturbance. A bit of plundering.

What the Royal Palace wanted was to weaken the power of South’s Border Count Hamira, and also one more thing.

‘They call it a divine being or something. An interesting thing has appeared.’

It was to create a trap to capture Rayrn, who was now called one of the kingdom’s divine beings, after unifying the tribes.

‘I wonder how far he’ll show himself. A divine being can also fall.’

For the Atid chieftain, who had spent his time idly outside of hunting, this was a fairly interesting situation.

He thought it would be a small pastime and moved his tribe, but then…

“Oh Atid! Atid!”

“Please help us!”

There were those who moved first.

Smaller tribes scattered in the South, further than the Atid tribe’s territory—excluding the central Bifs tribe—began seeking out the Atid.

“Chieftain!”

“What is it?”

“A disaster has occurred!”

There was a change happening within Might itself, one that even the Atid chieftain was unaware of.

That change originated from the territory of the Theas clan in the far South.

“What’s going on?”

“The desert is expanding. Not only that, but everything we plant withers immediately.”

“What about their central area? Shouldn’t it be better than ours?”

“I went there myself to check, and it’s true.”

“Ha… What in the world.”

It was a sudden change that even the chieftain hadn’t anticipated.

A drought.

Were the Sun God angered? Or perhaps, as the Theas said…

“Wretched things invaded and caused this.”

“How?”

“They defiled the land.”

“Hmph.”

It might be that the wretched ones, those who use demonic mana, had come and contaminated their land.

It was a sudden change.

Unable to adapt to this change, the starving were left with no choice but to flock together.

Centered around the Theas, Atid, and Bifs tribes.

It wasn’t often that these still-barbaric people gathered together.

It seemed that a crisis was bringing them together.

“How long do you think this will last?”

“It will likely persist for several years at least. The shamans are working on it, but it won’t disappear. It will only slow it down.”

“What about sending it far away?”

“Unfortunately, there’s no way. We’re trying to send it upward, and some have been sent, but…”

“This is a problem.”

“In the end, there’s only one option left, isn’t there?”

When a crisis struck, they chose only one thing.

It was also a conclusion that these barbaric people could reach.

“They wanted us to make some noise anyway.”

“Alright.”

“I don’t particularly enjoy a hunt that feels forced… but there’s no choice.”

The Kingdom of Might, located in the far South, began to seethe and move.

What Earl Eben, who had passed through the Atid, wanted was a small disturbance. The goal was to set the board and destroy Rayrn.

“It’s been a long time since the three of us could gather.”

“Who will lead?”

“Shouldn’t we decide that now?”

Things had gotten big.

It was no longer just a small disturbance. It had become a massive scale that not even Earl Eben had imagined.

“Hmm… Is it really necessary to do it that way?”

“If not that, then what?”

“I was thinking a new method might be good this time.”

“A new method…”

The Kingdom of Might, which hadn’t been unified into one, had all three of them choosing a new method.

All three chieftains were young for being so cunning. Perhaps that was why it was easy for them to choose a method unprecedented before.

“That sounds good.”

“I agree too.”

“Hmph.”

The method was decided quickly.

And according to that method…

“Let’s move.”

“This will be interesting.”

The Atid, Bifs, and Theas. The three tribes began to move northward.

The direction they pointed to was the Kingdom of Malexia.

“They’re… enemies!”

Their movement was something even Marquis Visque, who had planned the operation, hadn’t anticipated.

The situation of the Kingdom of Might.

The schemes of the Malexia Royalist Faction.

The magic circle of the Black Mage.

It was a giant vortex born from the strange harmony of these three elements.

It was a world where the strong were the power.

A single strong person could cut down hundreds or thousands.

Even so, strategists were not disregarded. This was because they knew that the schemes and strategies they had accumulated could become power.

Earl Ofern also valued his strategists.

He believed they would fill in for his shortcomings. They carried out even somewhat reckless plans, even plans that didn’t align with his thoughts.

Even if it meant taking risks multiple times.

But not today.

Something happened overnight, and he changed all the plans made the previous day. Alone.

“The operation will be carried out as is.”

“…It’s dangerous.”

“It seems Duke Gisert is also showing signs of retreat. If we take advantage of this opportunity, we could…”

“How many?”

“……”

The strategists stared at the Earl. Their eyes weren’t vacant.

They were serious. His eyes were shining like that.

‘…It is the Earl’s word.’

‘There must be a reason.’

They couldn’t understand their lord Earl Ofern’s words intellectually. If they carried out the operation like this, the losses would be immense. They might have to hand over all the gains made so far to Duke Gisert.

But their lord commanded it.

He didn’t seek their understanding as usual, nor did he listen to their words.

Yet, they trusted him, probably because their lord was Ofern.

They simply had to do their part.

“If that’s the case, my lord, what about this? This part might need some revision.”

“This part too.”

They carried out their lord’s orders. They had no intention of changing the big picture. They just pointed out parts that could be made more efficient from a field perspective.

To those points, Earl Ofern…

“Good. We’ll do it that way.”

Accepted them silently.

He appeared not as a stubborn general, but as a commander who encompassed the entire army.

In the end, that day.

“Deploy!”

“Deploy!”

As commanded by Earl Ofern.

The army moved under the strategy everyone had worked together to create.

Even if they didn’t understand.

If that was the way of those who followed him…

Swish. Clang.

Even if it became a march of death, they simply moved on silently.