Chapter 362 - Krang's Gambit

Five paces from Krang, the whip-bearing guard kept a keen watch on their surroundings. Krang had also brought a bald warrior who looked capable in a fight. The man stood behind him like a statue, his back to them. He had a well-trained body. Encrid could tell at a glance. This was no mediocre fighter. The two guards reminded Encrid of Andrew, who would be looking miserable inside the party right now. Hadn't he complained that the guests wouldn't even treat him like a Ghoul? At least a Ghoul would earn notice and a scowl. They simply ignored him. Who would bother with a life peer, a mere vice baron at that, and an idiot who had chosen the wrong side? Even the butler at the entrance had snubbed him. ["Baron Andrew Gardner? Are you sure you've come to the right place?"]

The butler hadn't even bothered to speak respectfully. Andrew had sighed inwardly but answered impassively. ["Why? Am I somewhere I shouldn't be?"]

["Your invitation?"]

["You must have been busy. Mine was overlooked."]

["... You may enter."] The butler had let him in with a thoroughly displeased look. Encrid, serving as his bodyguard, hadn't even been allowed inside. Actually, he had entered a few times before. That had made his face known and drawn attention to him. Afterward, the host had apparently barred bodyguards. He hadn't been interested in the party itself anyway. He had only come to gauge the atmosphere and see Krang. Truthfully, he had hoped all this walking through the streets at night might draw another warning fanatic out of hiding, but nothing of the sort had happened. Eventually, he had found Krang and asked his question.

"Knights, eh?" Krang considered it for a moment. His eyes were steady, and he showed no sign of tension. He merely took a moment to choose his words before continuing. "Why hasn't Count Molsen been punished for calling himself the King of the Frontier? That was my first question." He had asked the question and already found the answer, so he could explain.

"You know Rihinstetten, the great power in the south?" His tone was casual, as though he were recommending a famous tavern in the marketplace. Evening had fallen, but it was no longer cold. It was pleasant enough to talk outside. An old bench. Light spilling from the mansion where the party was in full swing. A few insects like fireflies appearing here and there. None of it suited their conversation, but Krang's voice was as cheerful as ever. Despite the subject, it felt like a leisurely evening stroll. "We've been fighting the Kingdom of Rihinstetten for seven years now, but they've never pushed us back easily, have they?" True. Encrid had never heard any such reports. "Why do you think that is?"

"The southern territories fight well?"

"Then didn't they fall far too easily as soon as the monsters started stirring?"

"Then why?"

"Because Sir Cyprus and another knight are holding the line there." Objectively, the southern power of Rihinstetten had greater military strength than Naurilia. Its own circumstances made an overwhelming victory difficult. Even so, Naurilia should not have been able to hold it off like this. Yet it had. It had endured. It had resisted the invasion. "I heard about it and went there myself. I saw it. Those two knights are achieving something close to a miracle. Without them, the southern front could be pushed back as early as tomorrow." As he spoke, Krang nudged a stone in the ground beneath the bench with his toe until it came loose. He kept tapping it with his foot as he continued. "So two knights are tied down. Do you think they're the only ones?"

"The knight order must be tied down too." Encrid was no fool. What was the best way to keep from losing ground on a battlefield? Send in troops and reinforce the fighting force. That was what the kingdom had done. Two knights were defending the southern border. Had even one turned away from it, Rihinstetten's invasion would already have left the kingdom half destroyed. Krang knew what a goddamn mess this country was. Now Encrid knew too. "What about the third knight?"

Naurilia had three knights. No, three that were publicly known.

"The third is facing down a horde of monsters." This was news to Encrid. It was a secret among secrets, yet Krang's manner remained unchanged. "Some troublesome monsters appeared and formed a colony. And the Mercenary King of the East is always watching for a chance to strike us, so part of the knight order has to be detached there too. Those aren't the only threats, either." Even during the all-out war with Aspen, one knight had barely managed to leave his post and join the fighting. The focus of that battle hadn't been on whittling down Aspen's forces. It had been on striking swiftly and briefly, then withdrawing. Why?

'Because he couldn't be away for long.'

A knight's absence put other places in danger. He had only come because Aspen was the most urgent threat. Otherwise, he would never have joined the battle. It all sounded plausible. It all made sense: the absent knights, the fact that only part of the knight order remained at the palace. And all of it offered the perfect opportunity to those nursing ambitions and dreaming of treason. 'They've let even the Royal Guard become embroiled in the factions.'

The gate guards and their captains were no different. Everyone had been put in a position where they had to choose a side. The circumstances and the facts wove together into a single story. Why did everything fit so neatly? Why had such a favorable situation been created for those dreaming of rebellion? Why had a stage been set where they could act so freely? Encrid's intuition reinforced his excellent grasp of the situation. Though he wasn't fighting, his concentration gathered of its own accord, and his senses sharpened. His racing mind produced a conclusion. What did Krang gain from all of this? Why had he come to the palace and stirred up trouble? Ever since his arrival, the nobles had acted as though their feet were on fire. After all, an heir was making moves to demand the throne. He had some influence of his own, too. Everyone already knew that Marcus of Centerpole had taken his side. Urgency drove people to act. That was exactly what the nobles had done. On closer examination, the nobles' actions could serve as signals revealing which side they stood on. Anyone who failed to choose a side would be pushed out. They had to make their allegiances clear. "Am I right?"

There was no need for a longer question. Encrid asked, and Krang answered with a broad smile. It was such an innocent smile. He hardly looked like the man behind such a scheme. To some, that smile would be terrifying. "I was just about to tell you." Apparently, he had no intention of hiding his aim. No, it seemed he had been explaining things precisely so Encrid would catch on. Krang brushed off his knees and stood. As he rose, he kicked the stone that had been lodged in the ground. It shot away with a clack and rolled beyond the reach of the light. "I'm going to gather everything we don't need in one place and clear it out. That's why. We need a civil war." Once the rubbish was gathered, it had to be burned or buried. The civil war would accomplish that. He had arranged things that way. Of course, first he needed to get the noble factions out of the palace without a fuss. Krang hadn't come to prevent a civil war. He had come to hasten it. No, he intended to accomplish his own objective completely in the process. In short, by setting the stage and subtly forcing everyone to choose a side, he would separate the pieces he could use from those he couldn't. Naturally, military strength would underpin the whole thing. 'They deliberately emptied the palace of troops to weed out anyone who would turn traitor or betray them.'

That was the conclusion. Encrid stood too. It was time to go. He could see Andrew emerging from the mansion, looking utterly exhausted. Watching him, Encrid asked the question that had brought him here for the second of his two purposes. "Do you know who leads Black Blade?" The bandit leader was inside the palace, and he was a member of the Black Lily. That was as far as Jaxon had gotten. The man had hidden himself so well that Jaxon couldn't find out who he was. Then the commission had come from someone presumed to belong to the assassins' alliance. "... It must be a coincidence, but we're after the same thing. That fellow is my biggest headache right now. I'll put together the information you need and send it over. See what you make of it. I'm doing my best to find him too." Encrid nodded. He had accomplished everything he had hoped to by following the parties around to meet Krang. His questions had been answered, and he had secured a promise of help. In that moment, he had effectively chosen his side. "Oh, Enkie. You don't intend to become my knight, do you?"

Krang suddenly stopped on his way out to ask. "What?"

"I don't think being someone else's knight would satisfy you. That's all." He wore that same innocent smile. Then he turned and left, as though an answer didn't matter. Encrid didn't dwell on it either. His focus had been on becoming a knight. He had never considered becoming someone else's knight. It wasn't important right now. What mattered was that Krang was distinguishing friend from foe. He had set the stage. Through his actions, he had spoken to every noble and shown his intentions. Of course, only a very few nobles would recognize his hidden purpose. But even those who did couldn't simply ignore it. In effect, Krang had told them all: there are no knights and no knight order here, so go wild in the palace. The effect was unmistakable. Everyone was raising private armies, dreaming of overthrowing the royal house or plotting something. Count Molsen was falsely claiming the title of King of the Frontier, and more and more people inside the palace were displaying their ambitions without restraint. 'Isn't he going to get himself killed?'

For a moment, Encrid worried. With the stage set this way, Krang was in the greatest danger. The sudden appearance of someone with a claim to the throne made him a thorn in everyone's side. To look ahead with the assumption that he would become king even under these circumstances truly showed a different caliber of man. Encrid dismissed that brief worry. Anyone this clever would have accounted for his own survival. The whole arrangement rested on military strength in the first place. He was curious, though. What fighting force did Krang have hidden away? A sudden desire to see it arose in him, even if Krang probably wouldn't reveal it just yet. "Can we please stop coming to these parties? I'm really suffering here."

Andrew had come up to him and begun complaining. "Training's better, isn't it?"

Andrew's mouth snapped shut. If he had to choose between parties and training, which would it be? "I'll take training."

In that brief moment, he had even begun to sweat. "All right. Let's do that." He was done following the parties around anyway. He had even brought Jaxon along and kept watch on their surroundings, but no one else had attacked. Things would remain quiet until the spark Krang had cast set everything off. In the meantime, they would catch the leader of Black Blade and wring him dry, watch what Krang had set in motion, and lend a blade. That would be all. Along the way, he might get to fight opponents he had never expected. Would those bundles of ambition who had formed factions really make their moves without thinking? Speeches without force behind them lost their power. Especially now, when might had become law within the palace. Hadn't they said that constable fellow was quite a threat? "Let's go. Back to training."

Andrew spoke with his teeth clenched in resolve, and Encrid set off too. They returned to the mansion. First thing the following morning, Encrid had a visitor to receive. "There have been so many rumors. You really did come to the capital."

It was Kin Vaisar, the woman called the capital's greatest beauty. Encrid was swinging a halberd, sweat pouring off him. Rem said that experience wielding different weapons mattered just as much as facing them. It did help. He was doing the absurd work of gripping the very end of the halberd's shaft in one hand and swinging it, so he was drenched in sweat. That was how he greeted his visitor. "Your way of receiving guests hasn't changed."

"It doesn't look like you came alone." As he spoke, Encrid lowered the halberd's head and turned. Sweat made his thin training clothes cling to him, outlining his muscles. Kin spoke, thinking how much she wanted to stroke them. "No. Someone wanted to see you. Would you consider washing up and greeting him properly?" Encrid could feel a presence outside the mansion. That meant there was a formidable fighter out there. Whoever it was wasn't radiating any great killing intent, but wasn't hiding their presence either. What did the ability to make oneself known like this signify? A proto knight, at the very least. "Surely there's no need to spruce up just to meet an old man." Someone spoke as he entered the mansion grounds: a white-haired nobleman. As he said, he was close to old age, but there was a subtle strength to his steps. A robust stride. Mac hurried out at his arrival, and Andrew came forward as well.

"What brings you all the way here?"

Even Andrew looked flustered. At present, Vaisar was closest to the Queen. Excluding the knight order, Count Molsen commanded the greatest military strength. Yet if commoners and nobles alike were asked to name the most noble of nobles, they would give another name. There was a man respected by everyone on his own lands for his kindness and clear, decisive administration. Beyond his lands, he commanded that same respect despite taking no side and forming no faction. Naturally, he belonged to one of the Five Fingers houses. He owned more land than anyone in the kingdom and had also been the Queen's teacher. The Marquis of Fertile Lands. The fourth finger supporting the kingdom. He looked like an old man from next door who was engrossed in chess. Entering with a smile, the marquis said, "I've come as a guest, but do tell me if I've come at a bad time. I have no intention of making anyone uncomfortable." Andrew shook his head.

"Not at all. My home is humble, but you're welcome to stay as long as you like." The fact that even Andrew showed him respect said something about how he conducted himself. Encrid had a similar impression. This man was different from the other nobles. He had built much upon his family name. Of all the so-called nobles Encrid had met here, he gave the clearest impression. That didn't mean he was someone to take lightly. The presence of the guard behind him made that clear, as did the look in his eyes as he sat at a stone table to one side of the training grounds and regarded Encrid. "Carry on with what you were doing. I arrived unannounced, so I ought to wait."

"Your Excellency." Kin spoke from beside him. With a look, she told Encrid to hurry over and sit before the marquis. Encrid saw it and replied,

"In that case." The offer to wait wasn't insincere. Wouldn't it be right to respect his wishes? This wasn't a battle of wills. Still, his choice made the presence of the guards behind the marquis grow a little more murderous. Encrid found that interesting. The two looked ready to attack at the slightest provocation. "Who's here?"

Naturally, there was a response from behind Encrid too. Rem stepped forward as he spoke. Beside him, Ragna glanced over from where he sat. Jaxon was already leaning against the wall near the mansion's entrance, while Dunbachel and Esther moved to Encrid's side. When it came to presence alone, none of them would yield to anyone.