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â–¶Clan Master Citrio Altus in a Coma.
-During the battle with Ebel Stroke, he was sent flying approximately 10km due to the impact received.
-Traces of a landing technique remain at the site, suggesting he maintained consciousness until just before the fall.
-He is receiving healing magic from an archbishop-level priest, but shows no signs of improvement. It is believed that the impact from the battle caused brain damage.
â–¶A Total of Nine Executives Dead, Including the Knight Battle and Subsequent Engagements.
-Deceased: Ugo Campos and eight others.
-The cause of death for executives outside the knight battle participants is unknown, but is expected to be revealed soon through the Church of Utility’s Secret Numbering Counter (S).
Casualties Among 380 Regular Clan Members: 69.
-Injured: 58, Dead: 11.
-Damage was less than expected due to early surrender.
-However, circumstances strongly indicate that the executives chose to escape via the underground waterway, so once the Church of Utility’s judgment is complete, the clan members used as sacrificial pawns are likely to leave Caracol.
It was a report filled with unbelievable content.
The man, Sinisha, stared at it intently.
“There are far too many inconsistencies with the information collected so far. Above all, we’ll need to revise our evaluation of Ebel Stroke. I never imagined he’d be strong enough to defeat Citrio Altus.”
Knock knock!
Suddenly, a knock sounded, followed by the voice of the butler who had served him for many years.
“I have something to report, Master.”
“What is it, Lubork?”
“The Blispiel Clan side has requested contact.”
“What? Not another member of the Luser royal family, but specifically me?”
“The letter states they wish to meet face-to-face soon with the most famous ‘phantom thief’ in the northwest. It seems they’ve already figured out your identity.”
“Ha….”
Sinisha’s expression twisted in dismay.
His public identity was the youngest prince of the Luser minor kingdom, part of the Bolrestrom Union.
But in truth, Sinisha was one of the continent’s foremost brokers in the shadows, a capable information dealer. And his true identity, known only to a select few, was none other than the infamous ‘Iron Mask’.
In other words, the phantom thief the Blispiel side wanted to contact was Sinisha Luser himself.
“A clan in the central continent has uncovered my identity? It might be worth meeting them.”
He smiled as if intrigued.
The venue for the clan war merit ceremony was the Praga branch of the Church of Utility.
“Hmm… First, I extend my thanks to everyone for gracing this occasion despite your busy schedules.”
The representative observer from the Church of Utility, Flora, began her tedious speech while looking around at the envoys from various forces.
Naturally, no one was listening attentively to her words, which were merely recited from a prepared script.
“Ha, over there is Percy Williams, a core executive from Lapis Clan. Quite the big shot.”
“And not just him. Excluding the Willowria Clan, who’s busy fighting, all four major clans have sent core executives.”
“It’s unbelievable that this is just a venue for reporting the results of a single clan war! It was worth attending just for the networking opportunities.”
The audience was unusually glamorous.
Not only core executives from the four major clans, but also nobles from powerful nations far from this central region were present. The Glicia civil war was a battle of the century that could influence the central continent’s hegemony, so it was only natural for it to draw this much attention.
“…Finally, I guarantee on the honor of Flora Markroti, the full proxy of the Church of Utility, that all the content to be announced hereafter is the truth.”
At last, the boring speech ended, and the Secret Numbering Counter (S) floated in the air.
Gulp! Right after the sound of swallowing echoed through the crowd, Flora opened her mouth.
“Ebel Stroke, you achieved the feat of defeating Continent’s Twelve Hero Citrio Altus in a one-on-one battle, contributing approximately fifteen percent numerically to ending the civil war. However, you participated strictly as a mercenary under a prior agreement. The Glicia Kingdom shares are automatically transferred to your employer, the Blispiel side.”
“Hmph.”
Ebel nodded as if it were no big deal, and immediately after, people murmured in disbelief.
“…He defeated Citrio Altus one-on-one, and it’s only fifteen percent?”
“The Blispiel alliance had thoroughly prepared and overwhelmed Caracol and Prince Ramon’s side. Even though a duel between Continent’s Twelve Heroes is a rare event, it’s hard to say it decisively influenced the civil war’s flow.”
“More than that, transferring all shares to the Blispiel side means the rumors are true—that the Stroke Principality intervened in the civil war.”
The atmosphere quickly grew noisy.
“Ahem.”
Flora cleared her throat lightly, brushing back her dark blue long hair, and continued.
“Next. Clara Elbrid, Epio, Chesa Utland… The combined contributions of the Blispiel regular clan members amount to seven percent shares. They each contributed through healing injured alliance members, securing victory in the knight battle, and destroying Athanas’s guardian barrier, among other actions.”
Promising talents always draw significant attention wherever they go. Proving this, the audience’s gazes followed the three mentioned.
“To think she defeated an assassin like Domingo Galan at that age? Unbelievable….”
Despite countless eyes on him, Epio nonchalantly munched on food, paying no mind.
“That stunningly beautiful lady is a mage powerful enough to shatter the barrier with ease?”
“I hear she’s the young lady of the Utland ducal family in the Croa Kingdom.”
Chesa remained expressionless, but she couldn’t prevent her face from flushing slightly. Until three years ago, she had been ridiculed as a dullard unworthy of her family’s prestige. How long had it been since she received such positive attention for something beyond her appearance?
Among them, the one drawing the most attention was a silver-haired girl.
“Come to think of it, the alliance members recovered from serious injuries almost immediately and were redeployed.”
“Unbelievable… Could that small girl have handled all the alliance’s injured by herself?”
Clara Rephindarx Aldemar.
Now using the fake surname Elbrid, she cleared her throat with a triumphant expression.
Circumstances suggested Clara was at least equivalent to a pope-level priest. However, cases of a priest cherished and raised by the church leaking outside were rare, so to outsiders, this girl’s identity was a complete mystery.
“Blispiel Clan Master Arent Lindal’s contribution is two percent, and the combined contributions of the sixteen clans, including Iyecas, amount to five percent.”
“…!”
The audience was once again greatly shocked by the following words.
And for good reason—the Church of Utility’s merit ceremonies followed a set procedure.
Whether individuals or forces, they announce the second place and miscellaneous merits all at once, saving the MVP-like ‘individual’ for last.
In other words, the remaining seventy-one percent shares were accumulated entirely by one person.
But Ebel Stroke, not to mention the names of all sixteen clans forming the alliance, had been mentioned. All the likely names had come up.
“Next.”
Immediately after, Flora’s calm voice resounded through the puzzled venue.
“The top contributor in this civil war led the alliance with Quentaltin Clan, summoned the fairies of the Great Forest, and even secured a promise from them to transfer all shares. Demonstrating astonishing foresight, he prepared equipment to supply the entire alliance, participated as the vanguard in the knight battle to lead to victory, and during the civil war, personally defeated seven Caracol Clan executives, among other unbelievable feats.”
Most of the audience fell into great confusion upon hearing Flora’s shocking tale. However, some with superior intelligence networks focused on one person with expressions as if the inevitable had arrived.
“Additionally, he swiftly ended the civil war, minimizing civilian casualties. As a representative of the church serving the god of utility, I pay my respects and thanks to you, Aiden Stroke.”
“You’re too kind.”
Immediately after, countless gazes pierced Aiden, but he merely nodded calmly.
That day, the entire central region exploded.
A month had passed.
It was enough time for the world’s focus, previously solely on Ebel, to shift to his grandson Aiden, and for intelligence agents from various forces to grasp the inside story and truth of the Glicia civil war.
“…The investigation results show that neither the Croa Kingdom nor the Stroke Principality intervened in the Glicia civil war at all. It seems aiding Aiden was not the will of the Stroke Grand Ducal family, but the personal intent of the Heavy Sword.”
“No, then all the maneuvers shown in the civil war were entirely Aiden’s own doing?”
“Cross-referencing information extracted from alliance clan associates, the possibility is extremely high.”
Dayorbek Clan’s executive, Feydal Shirek, clutched his head as if it were about to explode.
This Aiden guy was truly enigmatic.
Just procuring that much war materiel and killing seven Caracol executives with his own hands were already hard-to-believe achievements, but he went even further.
“No, how on earth did he recruit the pointy-ears, infamous for their exclusivity?”
Records show fairy knights last appeared externally nearly a hundred years ago.
Even if his maternal line is high fairy blood, they wouldn’t lend quarter knights to some nobody over such a tenuous connection.
“…It’s too soon to draw firm conclusions with the information we have. Hey, investigate and compile every action Aiden Stroke has shown so far, down to the last detail.”
“Understood.”
Naturally, Dayorbek Clan wasn’t the only one showing interest in Aiden.
“I’ve been watching since the Giant’s Sword incident involving Loreno… Quite intriguing. Essentially, all the clans in the central region, including Caracol, were dancing on this young guy’s palm.”
Among them was a strategist from Pecheli Clan, one of the four major clans on the Prima Continent, effectively ruling the Vardia Kingdom.
“…Did you hear? That Aiden guy used a ‘bladeless sword’ in the Glicia civil war.”
“A swordsman using the same weapon as the Thousand-Man Slayer, and affiliated with the same Blispiel Clan as him? It piques my interest, like he’s claiming to be the senior’s reincarnation.”
“Though there are many similarities, isn’t it too early to evaluate a wet-behind-the-ears kid?”
“Not at all. Killing Caracol’s executives at that young age proves his talent is worthy of recognition. It’s practically a revival.”
Having lived in the same era as the peerless powerhouse Thousand-Man Slayer and become his admirers, there were swordsmen who followed him.
‘There’s an extraordinary connection between Thousand-Man Slayer and Aiden Stroke.’
A rumor quietly spreading in the northern continent, courtesy of Claude, the noble scion present when retrieving Ure. It began spreading across the entire continent triggered by the civil war.
Aiden Stroke.
Even at this moment, that hot potato was building his reputation in waves, and right now, he was preparing to meet someone at the Blispiel Clan house.
The woman before me could only be described as beautiful, nothing else.
Wheat-like light brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. Her perfectly sculpted features paradoxically exuded both elegance and sensuality.
She was more beautiful than anyone I’d seen since possession, perhaps even more than my fiancée Chesa, yet strangely, it evoked no more emotion than viewing a well-made sculpture.
“I heard from Professor Blake that you wished to see me, Young Master?”
“That’s right.”
“Hmm….”
Perhaps surprised by the impassive reaction to her beauty.
Countess Mariana Pontiroig’s expression hardened slightly.
The results from the professor’s thorough protection and observation of her at the clan house were as follows.
─Skilled in etiquette and conversation, she shows resourcefulness in various attitudes, maximizing her position and assets even in unfamiliar environments. However, that direction is strictly the accomplishments of a noble lady, not talents as a leader.
In summary, that was it.
Put differently, she lacked the qualities to rule as king with her own charisma, like her half-sister Isabella.
There was a reason Ramon didn’t purge her in the original history but married her off.
“Young Lady, there is a place you must accompany us to in the future.”
“A place I must go?”
“The temporary capital of the Glicia Kingdom, Praga.”