Overpowered Extra Noble in a Novel

33.

“Make sure to get along well with the East for now.”

At this casually tossed-off remark, Leonhardt silently stroked his chin.

His cloudy gaze suggested he was deep in thought. Despite appearances, he’s actually very sharp—he’s likely calculating all the angles right now.

The person standing before him is the husband of the Empress.

Ordinarily, I would be the most powerful figure in the Empire, wielding control over everything. However, because the current power is divided among factions led by two Dukes, my position isn’t as overpowering as it once was…

Still, I’ve declared my intention to overthrow the Dukes and crush the East. Should I succeed, Leonhardt could leverage his ties to the Eastern faction and emerge as a dominant force in that region. His contemplation won’t take long.

As the unbearably sweet tea reached its dregs, Leonhardt straightened his posture.

“…Right. We certainly do need to maintain some superficial friendliness with the East for now. Pushing away Duke Lucanov and the Eastern faction can’t happen overnight.”

Saying this, Leonhardt lifted his now-empty teacup.

Of course, there was no way there could be any tea left, yet the bear of a man glanced back wistfully at the door of the Audience Chamber while absently tipping his empty cup to his lips.

Just before turning away, Leonhardt’s gaze briefly lingered on my teacup. He probably wants another cup.

‘It’s time to go.’

As we discussed earlier, if I want to clean up the issues in the northeast, I should start moving now.

Staying too long at Baron Hasson’s manor could only invite suspicion, and with matters wrapping up, I don’t have the luxury to linger if I need to return to the Imperial Palace promptly.

Even taking the time to enjoy a single cup of tea must be avoided—it’s not that I dislike tea, but there’s work to be done.

I stood from my seat before calling for the maid, and Leonhardt gave me a somewhat awkward look in response to my movements.

“Uh…”

“Let’s keep things casual.”

“Cough. You know what, Cain. Are you about to depart? Have another cup of tea before you go. We have much to discuss.”

I shook my head courteously in refusal and began gathering my belongings.

With the practice sword given to me at my investiture by Iris clipped to my waist, I turned to leave. Leonhardt rose from his seat with an expression of regret.

“I’ll go see Chris and Canary. They both seemed eager to see you.”

“The time isn’t right yet.”

My younger siblings, Chris and Canary.

Three years ago, when I was about 17, I entrusted them to Leonhardt. That would be three years now, give or take.

With an age gap of three or four years between them and me, they’ve displayed far sharper talents than I have.

‘Chris showed interest in the military, while Canary wanted to set up a trading company.’

Both of them have grown up now, and once the turmoil at the Imperial Palace has subsided, I should meet them. By that point, I’ll be able to offer them appropriate assistance. A good time might be after the wedding.

Creak.

Following Leonhardt, who opened the door, I stepped outside the manor.

Exchanging pleasantries with the knights, soldiers, and attendants of the Hasson family I passed along the way, we quickly made our way outside.

At the master’s instruction that everyone follow us, people trailed behind curiously.

And so, we departed the manor together with the crowd.

Leonhardt glanced back at the manor with a wistful gaze and asked.

“Will you return to the Imperial Palace after dealing with the northeast?”

With many spectators around, he has reverted to formal address.

“There’s quite a lot to handle. I should go back to the palace first.”

The number of people who have been executed or arrested under my command isn’t insignificant. Some worked under others, but several were directly responsible for managing towns and cities.

Now that there’s an upheaval in the existing structure, inevitably, disorder will arise.

Even if others have temporarily filled the vacancies, prolonging the instability would pose a greater issue. Only time will tell what might happen next.

Therefore, I need to return to the palace first to manage the aftermath. Fortunately, there are plenty of talents gathered in the capital. They would be better utilized outside the confines of the palace.

‘This is not demotion. It is simply placing talents where they are most needed.’

There are quite a number of people doing nothing but lounging around. Perhaps it’s due to lack of work, but those issues can be easily resolved.

‘Calion.’

Having finished my reflections, I stood up, relaxed my body a little, and summoned Calion.

Perhaps appropriately called the Holy Sword for its remarkable abilities. When I first ventured west and into the southern regions, I called upon Calion out of part curiosity, part experimentation.

To my surprise, the sword flew precisely to my location!

Though it didn’t arrive instantly in the capital, a brief wait was all it took for the greatsword to dart through the air and embed itself into the ground with a resounding crash. It took about ten minutes, give or take.

Carrying Calion is an inconvenience due to its size and weight, but it has this remarkable ability to fly to me regardless of distance. Such a feature makes it quite a convenient weapon.

The last time I used it, after completing the experiment, I gave it to the retinue returning to the capital and directed it back to where it likely still rests in the training ground.

I gave the surrounding people instructions to step back and waited briefly.

With a roar, the ground exploded.

“Kiyaak!”

“What… what is that?!”

The startled screams from the crowd erupted. The sound of hurried footsteps of many knights dashing from the distant training grounds could be heard.

Waving at Sir Hasson, the captain of the knights, who arrived amidst bursts of blue light, I pulled Calion and slung it over my shoulder.

“Ka..Cain, what in the world is this?!”

“A loud noise brought me here, but…”

Ignoring the stunned reactions of Leonhardt and the captain, I firmly gripped the hilt.

‘One… no, three times?’

It’s still challenging to take down the manor with a single blow. If only I could wield mana, I might be able to use air pressure to accomplish that.

‘Some strength should do it.’

My intention was to cleanly split it, but since it will need to be rebuilt anyway, a rough demolition should suffice.

“Ahh, right.”

Before swinging Calion.

I asked Leonhardt one last question.

“Mr. Hasson, I don’t see your wife. Is she out traveling?”

Looking back and forth between me and the manor with a confused expression, he replied.

“Jamie will return approximately a month from now. She went to the north to visit her father…”

“I see.”

Then there’s no need to hold back.

Leaving behind Leonhardt’s shrieks, I swung Calion.

With a fierce storm, the grand manor of the great lord crumbled completely.

Afterwards, I swiftly subdued the troublemakers in the northeast and sent them to the capital.

After finishing my tasks, as I headed back to the capital, cold winds blew, scattering dry leaves to the ground. Somewhere in the empire, pure white snowflakes began to slowly fall.

By the time winter had settled and animals had sunken into their deep slumber, I completed my long journey and returned to the Imperial Palace.

*

Upon returning to the palace, I briefed Iris on the situation and discussed with Alberto the progress of our recent undertakings.

Following that, we conducted intensive meetings about personnel deployment for the vacant positions, preparations for the grand festival, and various other outstanding issues.

As the chill of winter seeped into the breath of people around me and wisps of white smoke began to rise across the capital,

I left the palace again.

This time, I openly announced my purpose, and the only person accompanying me was the knight commander of the Four Swords, Cruel.

Though Iris’s silent gaze was somewhat uneasy as I left,

This might be my last chance to move freely for a while.

“There are pressing matters to handle, Iris.”

I promised to prepare a gift on the way back, which visibly eased her unease and secured her tacit approval.

With that, we leisurely rode our horses south.

Our travels were peaceful as we left the capital completely and began our journey, all until we entered the sparsely populated forest.

“…”

In the dimly lit forest, beneath the darkened skies of nighttime, a stifled scream pierced the tranquil location, where the small bonfire cast its faint glow.

“Thud.”

The lifeless body collapsed to the ground, a pool of red blood seeping around it.

I already had five slain beneath my hands. The scent of blood that filled the air stung my nose.

“You’re pretty relentless, aren’t you?”

It started about a week after we’d distanced ourselves from the capital.

Out in the vast spaces between cities and towns, bandits began to appear almost simultaneously with the sunset. Mostly hired assassins sent by central nobles, with fewer actual bandits.

Another ambush occurred this night.

Casually dispatching the swordsmen who lunged at me like moths to a flame,

‘This is getting annoying.’

It seems some had grown complacent, drunk on authority for so long that their senses have dulled.

It’s surprising that they would send assassins to take down a Grand Duke operating officially, even if in small groups.

Of course, this also indicates they’re deeply shaken.

‘Albeit, Alberto handles this side.’

No action is without trace. Alberto would be tracking down the nobles who dispatched the assassins.

While these petty annoyances are tolerable, by the time matters in the south conclude, these individuals will find their place at the execution grounds.

I already know who dispatched these assassins.

The highest-ranking nobles most deeply entangled with the factions of Panleina and others.

When we began the purge, we left these matters aside and focused on addressing the outer regions first.

If we had started with cleaning the palace, it would have risked alarming the figures in the provinces.

So we dealt with the regions first, leaving the palace untouched. The local nobles and officials, with no time to bolster their defenses, quickly lost their heads, confessing to their crimes as proof piled up.

‘They’re usually not the type to act so rashly.’

These people have spent decades navigating the political waters.

Even escaping to a foreign land would be insufficient, yet here they are, sending assassins.

They should have calmly devised countermeasures to pressure me, but instead, their ineptitude was fairly evident.

It must have startled them to hear of rapid executions and the numerous arrests pouring into the capital from every direction.

They surely know that I won’t be bested by such assassins.

Their attempts merely buy time, hoping for the unexpected—an assassin’s blade striking home.

Shaking my head, I ended my thoughts.

Subtle rustling of crushed grass could be heard.

“Commander, this side is cleaned up.”

A grimy gray head, eerie eyes.

Depressed in demeanor but agile in motion.

Cruel emerged from the darkness, shaking off his bloodied blade.

“Good job, Commander Cruel.”

“I’ll dispose of the bodies farther away. The smell might interfere…”

“This many won’t significantly bother sleep, but clearing them with two of us won’t take long either. Let’s move them quickly.”

In winter, the likelihood of scavengers smelling the blood and coming around is less, but precautions matter. Starving predators might still linger.

Thud. Thud.

The operation progressed swiftly.

Covering spilled blood with dirt to erase any traces, tossing the bodies far away.

Grabbing usable swords and searching pockets for valuables before returning to the bonfire.

Just in case, I asked Cruel if he recognized any of the faces, but he responded:

“Never seen them before.”

They weren’t of knightly caliber and used no characteristic swordplay. Truly, they were disposable pawns.

To warm our cold bodies, we sat closer to the bonfire.

The crackling sound of burning logs. A chilly breeze swept over our backs.

Even layered clothing couldn’t entirely keep out the winter’s chill.

‘How long until I awaken as a mana practitioner?’

It’s said that upon becoming one, one gains some resistance to heat and cold.

The winters in Altain are harsh. If the capital is this cold, the northern regions are worse so.

It will be quite troublesome when I visit those icy northern lands someday.

‘What a nightmare.’

I removed my sweat-soaked gloves casually and placed my cold hands near the bonfire.

Crack. Crack.

The fire blazed brightly.

As the warmth drove the chill from my body and my senses relaxed, Cruel’s voice came as he sharpened his blade.

“Commander, wasn’t it Brion? Why are we going to that southern mercenary band? Another rebellion?”

The mercenary band of Brion.

I’m unsure about any rebellion accusations, but there’s a lingering thread tied to them.

“It’s not exactly official business, but it’s personal. Not necessarily about rebellion.”

Sshhk.

The sound stopped as he paused sharpening his blade.

“I have an old debt to settle, that’s all.”

With a tired look, I smiled at Cruel.

“And while I’m there to collect on it, I may also settle some other debts.”

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