CHAPTER 8 - I - TRAP
The Battle of Cullen and its aftermath delayed us for two ‘long sleeps’ before we could move on, considering the relatively short distance of the Duchy of Braunhauer from the royal capital. Anyway, I realized the Duke of Braunhauer actually sent men to help us defeat the rampaging mercenaries—they were the horsemen that approached the enemy lines from behind, having maneuvered undetected while the paladins occupied their attention.
Well, at least it’s all over now. The only thing that’s left was the interrogation of the captured mercenaries, which could shed light on what happened that led to their rampage.
“…”
Meanwhile, I had to confront a new problem at Cullen’s town hall, where we set up our temporary quarters…
“A paladin guard whose armament was a demon weapon.” Maddie had a sardonic smile, “It sure is a great irony, huh?”
“W-Well…I tried to refuse the appointment…but the Marquise of Monfort overrode me.”
“Maddie and I asked her to. We gave her the authority to coerce you into joining.” Lily admitted.
“Why?”
“It’s for your punishment, first. Second, the Marquise of Monfort likes you as her student.” the Head Maid told me, “And also for the third reason, it’s so that you won’t be able to go far away from us. I mean, you’re a paladin guard now, and your job is to protect us.”
“If protecting would come into consideration here, you two are more than enough for an entire army. Maddie’s the Saint, and you’re the Iron Princess.”
“Of course, that’s just the official part of your functions, Kuro.” Maddie’s smile was really jubilant; as if she won a lottery, “The other, actual job you have is to be with us, A.L.W.A.Y.S.”
Your Holiness, you know you sound like a yandere…
“Oh indeed I am crazy-in-love with you, Kuro!” the Saint told me, with an air of impending doom surrounding her, “And Lily as well. That’s why we’re stressed-out worrying about you when the paladins brought you back with a face soaked in blood, see?
“Please don’t do again, Sir Kuro.” Lily backed her up, “Or, I’ll be forced to chain you with us.” She brought out a pink, frilly set of chains with a leather collar at the other end. My name ‘Kuro’ was clearly written on it. Her innocent smile as she showed it to me gave me the creeps, to be honest.
That’s…sweet. Did she borrow it from the Marquise of Monfort?
“Err…” I’m not sure if they’re joking or not, but anyway, I guess I should take care of my actions. Some ladies didn’t want to be widowed early on…
Wait. I’m not yet even married to any of them!
Anyway, the cavalry that helped us was led by the Ban of Kistral, Sir Stefan. He was sent by the Duke of Braunhauer the moment the paladins of the Marquise of Monfort arrived to ask for their help in stopping the rampage of the mercenaries.
They were the ones that sealed the victory for us. However…
“Your Holiness!” the Ban gave respects to us before proceeding with his talk, “I was sent here by the Duke of Braunhauer to escort you all the way to his fief’s town.”
“Ah yes, thank you for your efforts, Sir Stefan,” Maddie answered. But her face had an annoyed look at it.
“Hey, Lily, why’s Maddie kind of irritated? Did something happen?” I whispered to her.
Lily replied with a low voice, “The Ban of Kistral may have declared that he’s escorting us to the Braunhauer lands. However, I could tell that he was here to monitor us. I mean, don’t you think it’s strange that they’d only come escorting us after the battle happened and we already jumped into the fray?”
“Well, we rushed out of the royal capital.”
“Don’t you think I sent an advanced party to notify the Duke of our arrival?”
I fell silent when I realized that. Indeed, if aristocratic logic would dictate courtesy, the Duke would send at least an armed escort of men to meet us halfway; or if not, he’d send nothing at all. However, he only sent an escort after we got ourselves involved deeper into this mess. It’s as if he wanted to witness whether we’d commit on either side…
If that happened, then our impartiality would be questioned, and Maddie would lose her credibility to force a negotiated settlement on both factions.
Damn…I failed to see through that possibility!
Maddie graciously conformed to the Ban’s words for the meantime. However, it was a different matter for the Marquise of Monfort…
“Oi, Stefan!” she angrily admonished him, “Why did your men arrive only when we’re almost done with those mercenaries?”
“Pardon me, Lady Monfort, but there were preparations we had to do before we engaged.”
“Don’t give me that crap!” It was the first time I saw the Marquise that mad, “Just tell me if you’re cowering in fear. I already spotted your force, even before we attacked those bastards. You only moved when you’re sure that we’re winning!”
“Milady, as I’ve said before, we had to plan our move, since it was all too sudden.”
“And so do we, yet we attacked them. Are you trying to get us killed so that no one who’d stop you from marrying Eris?”
Lily and I exchanged looks. So, there was that angle in their family, huh? But hey! Isn’t this guy way too older than Eris? I mean, he looked like he’s of my age!
Well, of course, just like what they told me before…they get married early here.
“It’s not that, Lady Monfort.” the Ban kept on explaining his side, but the Marquise won’t listen.
“Hah! Father would surely hear of this, you idiot!” the Marquise threatened him, “And besides, your ‘sucking up’ to the Duke would soon be over!”
Those words that she threw on the Ban weren’t simple insults. She really got angry after her paladins were put into danger by his apparent inaction. I hope it wouldn’t end in ugly terms, though…
“And Eris, she’s better off with the good man I know!”
At that point, the Ban suddenly sprung up to the Marquise. I could tell he got provoked by those words that she just said, “Milady, care to explain what you told me?”
“Hah! Are you pissed? Well, I apologize ahead, but I support Eris’ marriage to Sir Kuro!”
What?
“Hey, Lady Monfort!” I had to speak up for myself, “Why did you drag my name here?”
“Well, Eris likes you, and it wouldn’t be long ‘till she desires you as her husband.” the Marquise never paid attention to my protest, “As her sister, I’d wholly support her, rather than be left with this man!”
The Ban’s glare went from her to me. Tensions were running high, and Maddie had to intervene personally.
“Lady Monfort, I understand your anger.” the Saint told her, “But please, let us put it aside for now, and cooperate for the sake of the people.”
With that, the Marquise eventually relented. But I doubt the Ban’s anger to me vanished with those words.
We set out just before dinner towards the central town of the Duchy of Braunhauer, Coventry. After making sure that the refugees and the townsfolk of Cullen were well and protected, Maddie ordered for our convoy to continue its last leg of the journey. The Ban’s soldiers led our group, with the Paladin Corps marching behind them, in a formation that subtly surrounded and protected our carriages from the Ban’s men.
Good thing the Marquise of Monfort has thought of this.
Of course, we had to leave the kitchen princess behind. We’re basically heading to their enemy’s territory, and having her along with our group could put us in danger. Jessica, who was always dutiful and loyal to the Saint, initially tried to insist. However, Lily and I convinced her to stay; it’s for her safety, anyway.
Moving along, the Braunhauer region was located right in the middle of the Amaranthine kingdom. It was a newly created territory, carved-out from the royal fief that included the capital city, as a reward to the exploits of the current Duke of Braunhauer in the last war before the Saint’s Peace.
“And, since it straddles right in the middle of trading routes from the ports and beaches of Amaranth to the south, and the royal capital here in the north, the Braunhauer fief is the most economically stable and richest region in the whole kingdom,” Maddie explained to me while on the road.
“Yep, as you know, the Duke of Braunhauer is a smart man; he developed his land into an economic powerhouse within this country.” Lily added, “And because of that, he gained power and influence almost equal to that of the royal family.”
Of course, that’s bound to happen. In human politics, having a lot of money in your coffers equated to power and influence. Add a formidable mind to the formula, and you get a dangerous opponent, as well as a sturdy ally, whichever that person chose to treat you as.
It’s one reason for conflicts back in medieval Earth. The nobility’s loyalty didn’t lie with the country, but on the person they chose to take an oath of fealty…and sometimes, it’s not the king.
“I’m just having some thoughts about the Braunhauer-von Albert relations though…” Lily suddenly spoke.
“Hm? Care to say it so that Kuro can also hear?”
“Well, back in the wars of the past, the Duke of Braunhauer—still known as the Earl of Dawson, wholeheartedly supported the current von Albert king, William. They’ve forged a powerful alliance that eventually weathered Nerfes’ powerful assault on this kingdom.”
“Now that you’re saying it, I think it’s a waste of opportunity.”
“Indeed.”
“Makes you wonder why they’d part ways. I mean, if I remember correctly, the Duke of Braunhauer is Prince David’s godfather, too. It must’ve been a big, heavy reason for him to fight against his old friend and his heir…”
Maddie had a point. I knew human politics was petty and quite stupid, but then again, one wouldn’t just turn against his closest friend for a light reason, unless you had personal ambitions to rule yourself.
“That can’t be, Kuro.” the Saint explained, “The Duke of Braunhauer is one of the most loyal men of the old king, and he even swore before to be forever a friend to his house, including his heir.”
“That’s why we’re surprised when the news reached us about the events here.” Lily added, “The Duke of Braunhauer is a well-known man of his word.”
“You said before he’s a shrewd man.” I pointed out, “How’s that possible to be a man of your word and be crafty? In my world, it’s like oil and water—they don’t mix.”
“Sometimes, I wonder how broken your world is, Kuro,” Maddie said.
“Well, it is broken alright.” I chuckled at the thought that even someone who didn’t even live in my world could say that. It only showed how fucked up the society from where I came from.
“Ah, what we meant by crafty, Kuro, is that the Duke of Braunhauer is a dangerous, sneaky opponent on the battlefield.” Lily elaborated, “However, he’s an honest person with his own people.”
“Oh, so that’s it, huh? I guess I misunderstood.”
But well, even with that explanation, something’s not adding up. Indeed, if the Duke of Braunhauer is what Maddie and Lily claimed he was, then why would he lead the rebellion against the heir of his old friend in the first place?
“The Duke of Braunhauer’s power is the reason His Majesty survived our onslaught in the last war.” Lily turned to Maddie, “Remember that campaign we had back in the Dawson valley?”
“Just carry on, Lily…don’t make me remember some terrible memories,” Maddie told her.
“In case you’re wondering, our army’s campaign back in the Dawson valley during the last war ended in a stalemate.” Lily explained to me, complete with a nasty smirk on her face, “Our force was ambushed by the Amaranthine soldiers while we’re on our way to the Amaranthine capital. And Maddie was so scared during that time she went berserk!”
“Oh? I didn’t know about that!” I’m honestly interested to hear that story of Maddie during the last war.
“Come on Lily! You know it had to be done, or we’ll be wiped out because your Bloodbath was spent!” Maddie retorted.
“Heh, at least I didn’t piss on my armor and sprayed it around while slicing through the ranks of our enemies!”
“Lily!” the Saint’s face was all red, and she tried to silence her friend.
But seriously, I’m glad to hear those kinds of stories about Maddie. It made me feel that she’s more human than ever before.
“Kuro.”
“W-What?”
“You have some weird fetishes yourself, huh?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Y-You t-t-t-think it’s n-n-n-n-n-nice of me to p-p-p-piss while fighting?”
“W-What?” Lily was equally shocked.
“Hah? What made you think of me that way?” I’m not some degenerate who’d get aroused from seeing a girl pee, much more when she’s literally fighting for her life! If there’s any ‘preference’ I had in my system, I’d say I’d like to stare at a girl’s ass.
It’s normal, compared to someone pissing…
Hey. Of course it’s with reservations. I put my lewd thoughts in their proper places.
“…”
“What do you think, Lily? Does mine look and feel good?”
Lily was feeling up Maddie’s buttocks through her skirt, “Well, it’s kind of firm and bouncy…my hands can cop a feel and it’s great. I think our future husband would love it.”
“Great.”
“Better check mine too.”
“Alright, come over here.”
What the hell are you guys doing?
