Episode 105
Chris couldn’t help but suppress a chuckle as he saw right through Baron Bord’s true intentions.
“But the escort is the real problem,” Chris said.
“Escort… you mean?” Bord asked nervously.
“Out of respect for the Law Kingdom, you can’t just send a whole battalion of knights. Maybe we should ask Sir Press for help.”
“Sir Press?” Bord’s voice grew even more anxious.
Sir Press, the strongest knight in the White Kingdom, was not aligned with Baron Bord’s faction. He was neutral. If Sir Press accompanied them, no trickery could be pulled off.
But—
“Given the current situation, it would be difficult to ask Sir Press. He has to protect the White Kingdom, after all.”
“Y-yes, that’s true!”
“Instead, how about this?”
Chris tossed out a bait laced with poison.
“Your uncle will be my escort.”
“!!”
“Isn’t your uncle a four-star knight? If he’s with me, I think I can feel safe.”
Baron Bord swallowed hard.
He barely managed to suppress the smirk threatening to rise on his lips and replied, “Of course… just trust me.”
The delegation set off immediately.
As promised, it was a small group.
A few retainers to accompany the audience with the Law King.
Baron Bord and a handful of escort knights made up the entire party.
Then, on the road to the Law Kingdom, Baron Bord revealed his true colors.
Just as expected.
With a soft hiss—
Bord and his knights drew their swords.
“W-what is this, Baron?!” the retainers who had come along gasped in horror.
“Silence. You’ll all die here,” Bord’s blade gleamed menacingly.
“Especially you, Roy. You won’t die a peaceful death—just like your father.”
“!!”
The retainers’ eyes widened.
They realized that Baron Bord was the one who had cursed the Count!
“Baron Bord, no matter who you are, you can’t commit such a heinous act!”
“The heavens will never forgive you!”
Some retainers shouted angrily, but—
“What does it matter? You’ll all die here anyway.”
“!!”
“I’ll kill you and become the master of the County of Bursen. Then no one will be able to punish me.”
The retainers swallowed hard.
Step by step, Bord and his knights advanced.
As fear gripped everyone’s faces—
Young Count Roy spoke calmly.
“Just one question.”
“…What?”
“Is it true you conspired with the minions of the Dark Mage to curse the Count? Who exactly did you make a deal with?”
Bord looked puzzled.
His nephew’s face was unnervingly calm.
As if he had no worries at all.
‘Is this guy crazy?’
Bord had thoroughly checked the surroundings before launching his coup.
‘There’s no hidden backup plan.’
Roy’s knight rank was only two stars.
“Why are you curious about that when you’re about to die?”
“I want to satisfy my curiosity before I die. Even if I die, I need to know how my father and I died.”
Bord scoffed and replied, “Fine. I made a deal with the Liberi family of the Dark Mage. I offered a human sacrifice, and they gave me the curse.”
“So I thought.”
Chris nodded and then addressed the retainers who had come along.
“Please remember what was just said.”
“…What?”
“It’s a confession of guilt.”
“!!”
In other words—
Chris had deliberately brought these retainers along.
To serve as witnesses.
“You’re insane,” Bord snorted and stepped forward.
“First, I’ll cut off your limbs!”
He raised his sword high, confident Roy couldn’t resist.
Like an executioner about to bring down the blade.
Swish!
A mana blade flared up magnificently.
A knight’s power matching a black sword.
A dull brown glow wrapped the blade, and Bord grinned cruelly, ready for the massacre.
“Your movements are too slow and big.”
Screech.
A red line sliced across Bord’s neck—right where the carotid artery was.
Bord’s face registered surprise for a moment, and that was it.
Blood spurted like a fountain.
His body slowly collapsed.
A final shudder, then he went limp.
“He’s dead, Baron?!”
“W-what?!!”
The knights accompanying him cried out in shock.
They hadn’t fully grasped what had just happened.
Only then did they see the young count holding a bloodied sword.
“Ah, what happened? I saw an opening and struck. Showing such an opening is basically asking to be killed, isn’t it?”
“!!”
“What good is manifesting a mana blade if you’re so bloated with greed you can’t wield your sword properly?”
The young count—no, Chris—smiled coldly at them.
Like a predator eyeing its prey.
“But you all look just as bad as him. Do you think you can take me on?”
The knights hesitated.
It was incomprehensible.
Young Count Roy was only two stars.
They were all three stars.
Three of them, no less.
Yet they were the ones feeling uneasy.
“Don’t be scared for no reason! What just happened was a fluke!”
“Kill him!”
The knights gritted their teeth.
Blood splattered.
All the knights fell.
A crushing victory.
Not a scratch on Chris.
It was unbelievable.
Chris was currently inhabiting Roy’s body.
The problem wasn’t just that Roy was a two-star knight.
Because the link involved using another’s body, there was a subtle awkwardness compared to moving one’s own body.
Even moving a centimeter was slightly off in range.
It was fine for everyday life.
But in life-or-death combat, that slight misalignment was fatal.
Yet Chris, with his genius, calculated every misstep and defeated all three three-star knights using only two-star strength.
And he didn’t even kill them. He made sure they confessed Baron Bord’s crimes in front of everyone.
Considering that subduing someone alive is far harder than killing them, even if Chris’s original rank as Seonghwi was five stars, this was an incredible feat.
‘Well, it’s simple enough.’
As he brushed dirt off his pants, a heavy pressure suddenly settled over him.
Startled, he turned his head to see a new figure.
The strongest in the County of Bursen.
Sir Press.
Sir Press approached and knelt before him.
“…Young Count.”
It was Chris’s first time seeing Sir Press.
Six stars.
He radiated the power befitting a ‘Master Knight,’ but Chris showed no reaction and said,
“How did you get here? Weren’t you supposed to be guarding the castle?”
“…Baron Bord seemed suspicious, so I hurried after him. I thought I was too late…”
Sir Press fell silent.
“…Young Count, you’ve performed a miracle. What exactly happened?”
Sir Press looked like he couldn’t believe the situation.
Understandable.
Chris shrugged and said casually,
“Who knows? Maybe I was a genius for a moment.”
“……??”
Sir Press looked utterly confused.
It didn’t matter.
Chris decided to end this operation now.
“By the way, Sir Press, you must be tired from rushing here. Mind if I take a short rest?”
“Young Count?!”
Young Count Roy collapsed to the floor.
The link was severed!
Sir Press caught him, sighing in relief. He was unharmed.
‘By the way, earlier…’
Sir Press replayed the battle in his mind and swallowed hard.
The terrifying sight of someone cutting down opponents stronger than himself with minimal effort.
This was nothing like the Roy he knew.
‘Could he really have become a genius?’
An unsolvable mystery.
The next day.
Young Count Roy let out a long sigh.
He felt completely different from the imposing figure he’d been just moments ago.
His original consciousness had returned.
‘What on earth… is this?’
Roy’s face was throbbing with pain.
He hadn’t lost his memory while Chris’s consciousness controlled his body.
He had shared senses and witnessed everything.
‘How could this happen?’
Roy recalled all that Chris had accomplished using his body and shuddered.
Just a few days.
With a handful of strategies, he had cornered and executed Baron Bord.
‘I never even dared to think I could stand against him.’
Having witnessed it firsthand, Roy fully grasped how extraordinary Chris’s achievements were.
It gave him chills.
‘Is the real guy some kind of demon?’
As he shook his head in disbelief—
“Hey there.”
“!!”
Startled, Roy turned to see the unforgettable face of Chris sitting on the window ledge.
“How did you get in here?”
“I just walked in. You might want to pay more attention to castle security. So, how do you like what I did? Satisfied?”
Roy sealed his lips tightly.
‘Satisfied?’
This wasn’t something you could sum up with a simple word.
It was the best possible outcome he could have imagined.
Baron Bord was dealt with, Roy had become the true young count, and even his father, the Count of Bursen, was recovering.
It felt like a dream.
Chris was both his ally and the savior of the County of Bursen.
“You look satisfied. Now, it’s time to pay me.”
“Pay you?”
“Of course. You didn’t think I’d do all this for free, did you?”
Roy recalled his first meeting with Christian and tensed up.
Chris chuckled softly.
“Don’t be so scared. It’s nothing to worry about. Just take it.”
“What’s this?”
“It’s proof that Baron Bord has been secretly colluding with the Liberi family, vassals of the Dark Mage. I found it on my way here.”
“!!”
After severing the link, Chris scoped out Baron Bord’s residence.
Having once been a master thief, Chris quickly located a hidden safe and uncovered incriminating documents inside.
“So, we just send these papers to the Duchy of Bursen, accusing the Liberi family of treason to bring about their downfall?”
Roy had spent the night researching Christian.
He learned that the Dark Mage’s sacred order was involved, and that the Liberi family was a sworn enemy of Ashid, the leading candidate for the highest position.
“Yeah, that’s right. But there’s something you need to be careful about. Don’t send the letter just yet.”
“Huh?”
“And have the Bursen troops who had retreated fall back toward Count Kazar’s territory. Make it look like a real war is about to break out.”
Roy tilted his head in confusion, then his eyes widened.
“You mean…?”
They wanted to fake the situation, make it seem like the conflict was still unresolved.
A chill ran down Roy’s spine.
“They’re trying to catch the Liberi family off guard. This guy’s definitely plotting something else.”
Memories of Christian’s past behavior flooded back, and Roy couldn’t help but feel sorry for those who had become his targets.