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**Chapter 330: I Have So Many Questions** (2)

Raoul is from a kingdom other than Ruthania.

Neither the people of the Duke Faction nor anyone else knows where he originally came from. At some point, he gained the Duke’s trust and took charge of the Duke’s affairs.

Initially, the retainers who had served the Duke for a long time strongly opposed this, but those dissidents vanished without a trace.

― Ever since that devilish guy joined the Duke’s household, His Highness has changed.

People whispered among themselves, but there was no stopping him, as he held all the power. Instead, the Duke handed everything over to Raoul, encouraging him to act freely.

Raoul learned a bit about the secrets related to the Forest of Monsters thanks to the oral traditions and various texts collected by the group he belonged to.

‘The Forest of Monsters is an incredibly dangerous place. It’s uncertain whether we could conquer it even with the kingdom’s entire military might. And after that… when ‘that day’ comes, we’ll need a significant force.’

Thus, Raoul hoarded troops with an obsessive level of dedication.

Of course, the staff didn’t know the exact reasons behind this. They just followed orders, even if they didn’t understand the direction set by the Duke’s family.

In any case, Raoul spent a long time wooing the nobles to strengthen the Duke’s faction and gradually reduce the Crown Prince faction’s influence.

The Duke’s family already held the most power in the kingdom. With that strength backing him, everything went smoothly… until Ghislaine appeared.

‘I can’t believe that guy is capable of so much. This is unbelievable.’

Raoul had met Ghislaine in person at Marquis Branford’s banquet.

Even back then, he thought Ghislaine was quite remarkable. He won victories in battle and created new products that earned him a substantial fortune.

What was particularly impressive was his bravery, showing no sign of drooping even in front of him, with a gaze filled with resentment that seemed odd.

Still, Raoul thought Harold would be able to handle everything just fine. At that time, the gap between Ghislaine and Harold was significant.

‘And that guy… has now defeated Harold and is called the strongest in the North.’

For Raoul to chalk it up as his own mistake was impossible, given the enormity of what Ghislaine had accomplished.

Even based on the information revealed, it was too great to call simply genius.

It seemed as if he was moving while knowing everything about them.

‘This is absurd.’

Raoul shook his head and cleared his thoughts.

‘Regardless, since that guy has meddled with the Forest of Monsters, it has now become an irreversible situation.’

Upon hearing the news that Ghislaine had developed the Forest of Monsters and obtained a Runestone, Raoul immediately ordered Harold to destroy Perdium.

The Forest of Monsters was that crucial of a place to Raoul.

‘I thought no one would touch it… I never expected that punk would have the guts to pull that off. And he succeeded, no less.’

Although it was just the outskirts, Ghislaine’s development of the Forest of Monsters was highly irksome to Raoul.

In the end, Harold, following orders, had Digald instigate a war, but it ended in failure.

Perhaps that was when things began to unravel one by one, leading to the current situation.

“There’s no choice. I’ll tear that punk from Penris apart myself later. Prepare for something big now.”

“What do you mean…?”

Raoul continued in a chilling voice.

“Right, I’ve made my decision. Instead, prepare so that we can win the internal conflict with minimal casualties. While preparing, convince whoever can be persuaded as quickly as possible.”

“Understood.”

The advisors left with grim expressions.

An internal conflict was not the same as a simple territorial battle. All the lords and nobles of the kingdom would be split into two factions.

The Duke didn’t seem to care if there was damage to their side in the internal conflict, but others felt differently.

Even if there was war, they had to win with the least possible damage. Only then could they handle the next issues.

To achieve that, extensive preparations were required. They needed to pour their heart and soul into ensuring not a single error occurred.

Once the advisors left, Raoul was left alone to ponder.

“I still can’t grasp what’s at play.”

He wasn’t talking about Ghislaine. It was specifically about Erlhardt, whom he served.

Clearly, it was Raoul and his faction who had awakened the Duke’s mission by directly meeting him and guiding him on a new path.

Yet he still couldn’t decipher what Erlhardt was thinking.

Since he entrusted everything to Raoul, he could guide things as he wished. But the occasional glimpses of that chilling gaze unsettled him.

When they first met and Raoul revealed the Duke’s secrets and helped awaken his mission, Erlhardt had smiled and said,

― I knew I was a special person. My long-standing doubts have been somewhat resolved.

The Duke accepted his mission calmly. But his subsequent actions were quite shocking even for Raoul.

Erlhardt killed his own wife. He entirely obliterated her lineage.

― There’s a rumor that the Duke’s wife committed treason. So he was enraged.

People spoke like that, siding with the Duke.

After all, the kind and well-liked Duke wouldn’t do something so heinous without reason.

Then the Duke killed his own children.

― They were trying to seize their father’s position. That’s something I can never forgive.

Even then, people sided with the Duke.

Subsequently, the Duke killed all siblings and collateral relatives. He left not a single drop of his bloodline alive.

If any had married out, he brought them back to kill them too. If there were any offspring, he killed those too. If they resisted, he crushed their families as well.

At this point, people could no longer support the Duke’s actions.

Killing those who had no power, including collateral relatives and those from different families, had no justification, no matter how one twisted it.

Thus, the Duke unleashed a massacre and erased all his relatives from existence.

On the day he killed the last remaining relative, the now sole Duke smiled with blood on his face. He left behind just one phrase.

― Now I have obtained a small measure of freedom. I have broken one of the heavy chains binding me.

The rumor that the Duke had gone mad started from that day. The few who still sided with him concocted theories suggesting that Raoul had orchestrated it all from behind.

But Raoul had never required such deeds. He had also never anticipated that the Duke would carry out such atrocities. It was an act that benefited neither of their grand schemes.

Yet the Duke carried out a massacre. Afterward, he entrusted everything to Raoul and secluded himself.

Raoul still didn’t understand why the Duke had resorted to such actions.

“Perhaps he really has gone mad…”

Raoul clicked his tongue and changed his thoughts. Whether the Duke was mad or not was irrelevant to him. His mission was to seize Ruthania Kingdom and the Forest of Monsters.

Raoul’s gaze turned to the massive map in front of him.

The map showed not just the Ruthania Kingdom. It indicated all the nations and independent forces across the continent.

On some regions, a blazing black sun was drawn.

“There’s not much time left.”

Soon, this same image would be drawn over the Ruthania Kingdom. That was Raoul’s goal.

* * *

“That brat went to the Forest of Monsters again?”

Amelia furrowed her brow upon hearing Bernap’s report.

Ghislaine had already succeeded in developing the Forest of Monsters with the money he extorted from her and made an incredible profit.

Honestly, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Ghislaine had become this big largely thanks to her. So, whenever she heard about the Forest of Monsters, irritation flared up.

At Amelia’s sharp inquiry, Bernap hesitated before speaking.

“Yes, according to the reports sent by the spies, he led troops to the Forest of Monsters recently.”

Raybold was situated in the same North, allowing it to acquire information about Penris faster than the Duke’s. Since Ghislaine had also lifted the blockade on his territory, spies were abundant in the Penris Territory.

Of course, truly critical facilities or information were still thoroughly concealed, making them hard to grasp. However, the general situation of the territories was now somewhat understood.

“Hm, do you think he’ll succeed this time?”

“Probably, right? He’s already succeeded before. Ah, if we had known there were such precious resources there, we should have taken some for ourselves.”

Bernap thought simply.

Ghislaine was skilled in battle. The Penris Army was strong. So, it was only logical that he could attain valuable rewards from the Forest of Monsters, given that he had succeeded once before.

But Amelia was different from Bernap. It wasn’t a matter of doubting whether he would succeed; she was curious about the method.

‘If it were that easy, the Forest of Monsters would have been developed long ago.’

Having come from the North herself, Amelia knew well. The Forest of Monsters had been a taboo in the North for a long time. The rumors were dreadful, and there was little business viability.

Attempts to develop the Forest of Monsters had been made several times since ages past. The ancestors of Perdium attempted it, and so did various lords from other territories in collaboration.

They all failed, which is why the Forest of Monsters became a taboo. Every person in the North knew this from the records.

Yet, that lowlife Ghislaine, who had been of insignificant status, managed to develop it alone. Even if it was just the outskirts, the lords of the North had never achieved even that much until now.

So it was only natural for Amelia to be curious.

‘How on earth did he do it? Ghislaine wasn’t overwhelmingly strong at that time, either.’

No matter how poor Perdium was, it was a territory that had elite warriors who had gathered a wealth of experience in the North.

In a place like that, Ghislaine produced results that were unimaginable.

No matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t grasp the method. Frustrated, she felt on the verge of madness.

Then Bernap mentioned an unexpected remark.

“Some lunatic claims he went with the Count of Penris to the Forest of Monsters. He talks such rubbish when he drinks, that some of the rumored stories are quite amusing. They say there are outrageous monsters there.”

“What?”

Amelia tilted her head.

It was well-known that among the knights Ghislaine led, there were mercenaries who helped him develop the Forest of Monsters.

They all became Penris Knights afterward without a single one defecting. Therefore, it was impossible for someone who had been in the Forest of Monsters to exist.

“Weren’t all the mercenaries who entered the Forest of Monsters with Ghislaine under his command?”

“Exactly, so no one believes it. The Penris Knights are already famous, right? So they just think he’s someone who’s telling amusing stories. I’ve seen that fellow a bit, and he doesn’t look like someone who could survive the Forest of Monsters.”

“What’s he claiming?”

“He talks about how he followed them around and fought some monsters. He also curses the Count of Penris a lot. Pure nonsense, utter nonsense. I just remembered it when the Forest of Monsters came up.”

Upon hearing that, Amelia thought for a moment before asking again.

“What kind of nonsensical monster is that?”

“Uh… what was it, they said something about a monster that won’t take damage unless there’s light. Supposedly there are hundreds of them. So unless you use mana, you can’t defeat them.”

“How did they catch them? The mercenaries at the time probably couldn’t use mana.”

“The Count of Penris foresaw those kinds of monsters appearing, so he prepared light scrolls. They lured them in and took them out in one go. Ah, does that even make sense? Where on earth do such monsters exist? Even if they did, how could he know and prepare beforehand without any information about the Forest of Monsters? No, even if it were all a fabricated tale, it lacks any plausibility. Hahaha.”

Bernap waved his hand and laughed. But Amelia didn’t laugh.

As the atmosphere grew tense, Bastet let out a disdainful meow.

Meow!

At that, Bernap stopped laughing and scratched his head.

Amelia, still wearing a cold expression, seemed deep in thought before she spoke.

“Bring him here.”

“What? Why would we bother with a blowhard like that?”

“Right now.”

“Yes! Understood!”

Whose command could one dare defy? The soldiers moved quickly to capture the man of the rumor.

The man looked extremely shabby. It seemed he hadn’t bathed in a while, and a foul odor emanated from him.

“Y-Your Lordship, I present myself before you.”

The rat-like man prostrated himself on the ground before Amelia, who sat at the seat of honor.

He was not just maintaining decorum because she was a noble. There was some genuine gratitude behind it.

Living in Raybold, Amelia was a thankful lord. She often distributed provisions to the cities and towns, ensuring no one went hungry.

That’s why the man had not left since coming to Raybold but lived there.

Amelia frowned slightly upon seeing him. No matter how she looked at him, he appeared to be just a drunken fool rambling nonsense.

Still, she didn’t immediately dismiss him and asked,

“So, are you the mercenary who claims he went with the Count of Penris to the Forest of Monsters?”

At those words, the man’s expression stiffened.

That was something that needed to be kept secret. But in his drunken stupor, he had inadvertently bragged and let some details slip.

It appeared that rumor had spread.

The man hesitated for a moment, then sighed and said,

“Yes, I have experience from my trip to the Forest of Monsters.”

He spoke quite calmly, prompting Amelia to ask with interest.

“Then, what is your name?”

“My name is… Manus.”

The man was Manus, who had sought to flee when he encountered the Blood Python alongside Ghislaine in the Forest of Monsters.

Surprisingly, he had survived that encounter and had been hiding in Raybold all along.

“What’s your occupation?”

“For now… I’m resting a bit, but originally, I was a mercenary.”

Amelia inquired about Manus’s background before diving into the main proposition.

“I’m a bit curious about the Forest of Monsters, and I’d like to hear about that incident in detail.”

At her words, Manus’s eyes gleamed maliciously.

‘The lord wants to hear my story, huh?’

It had initially been meant to be kept secret, but he had already drunk too much and let it slip several times. Since the cat was out of the bag, he should take this opportunity.

He had always been full of complaints and loved to incite others, so he was accustomed to taking advantage of situations.

He thought that if he could extort a nice amount from Amelia and then leave this place.

Feigning a serious tone, he said,

“It’s not difficult to tell you. However, I have a small request for the lord.”

“What is it?”

“It’s information I obtained at the cost of my life. I would like to receive a small reward for this information.”

“Reward for information?”

Could he dare to negotiate with her under the pretense of information?

A chilling smile spread across Amelia’s face.