A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles

At Lucian’s sharp shout, the guards stationed atop the wall stirred.

He said he had come by invitation? With an army of that size?

Since when had declaring war started being called an invitation?

After hesitating for a moment, one of the guards looked down at Lucian and shouted.

“We will confirm it! Please wait a moment!”

No sooner had he finished speaking than the guard ran off toward the interior.

It was clear that he did not want to bear the responsibility of deciding on his own and was looking for the person in charge.

After a short wait, a metallic sound could be heard from inside, like iron scraping against iron, and the gate began to open.

Rumbleee.

“…I thought only the wall was strange, but the gate is completely out of place too.”

Hugo clicked his tongue as he watched the gate open at an extremely slow pace.

Leaving aside the fact that it was made of solid metal, what was that thickness?

It was thicker than the length of most swords; even if one drove a sword into it, it was doubtful it could pierce through properly.

Rumble, rumble.

“Welcome, Your Majesty! I am Emil Ruite, captain of the garrison of Castle Belfor, and I present my respects!”

When the gate finished opening with a thunderous noise and settled into place, a middle-aged knight with a gentle expression emerged from inside and greeted Lucian.

Although he had not added the title of “king,” this time Lucian did not try to provoke him as before.

At this point, there was no need.

“A pleasure, sir Emil. I have come in response to the marquis’s invitation. Will you allow us to pass through the castle?”

“Of course. I have already received word from the marquis. I will guide you to the north gate; if you will follow me that way.”

“I appreciate it.”

Lucian replied with a smile to Emil’s compliant attitude, but his gaze was filled with wariness.

They had arrived at a completely unexpected time, and yet that man was far too calm.

It was obvious that the marquis had been informed in advance and had prepared some kind of countermeasure.

‘What kind of trick are they planning now?’

“Well then, please follow me.”

Captain Emil pretended not to notice Lucian’s suspicious gaze and headed toward the north gate.

However, before they even reached it, a soldier came running over in a great hurry.

“There’s a serious problem!”

“What is it?”

“There’s a problem at the north gate!”

“A problem?”

Emil tilted his head, as if he did not understand what the soldier was talking about.

Seeing that awkward gesture, Lucian formed a bitter smile inwardly.

‘He says it’s serious, but he doesn’t look surprised at all.’

He was surely just acting according to a script that had already been prepared.

Such poor acting that it was obvious at a glance that it was fake.

Even so, more than irritation, Lucian now felt curiosity.

What kind of countermeasure would a knight who resorted to such clumsy acting have prepared?

As if answering that question, the soldier shouted loudly.

“The opening mechanism of the north gate has broken!”

***

“Well, it really is completely wrecked.”

Lucian clicked his tongue when he arrived at the north gate together with Emil.

The mechanism designed to open that extremely thick gate was in pieces, as if someone had deliberately destroyed it.

Looking closely, every single part was so precise that it would have to be specially commissioned from a blacksmith.

“Can it be repaired?”

“For the time being, it’s impossible. We will have to request that the blacksmiths of the main house identify the cause of the damage, fabricate new parts, and then replace them.”

“That sounds like, even optimistically, it will take more than a month.”

“I apologize.”

Emil did not deny Lucian’s words and merely inclined his head slightly.

Faced with an attitude that did not contain even a hint of genuine apology, Lucian clicked his tongue.

They were no longer even trying to hide that their intention was to buy time.

“If the gate is like this, what will you do about supplies?”

“We will have to lower them down and haul them up with ropes from below. It will be a bit troublesome, but fortunately the castle garrison is small, so it shouldn’t take too long.”

“And food for us?”

“I’m afraid that…”

“In other words, that we should go back.”

“We will do everything possible to repair the gate as quickly as we can.”

As quickly as we can?

It was obvious that they intended to drag things out until they had gathered all their troops.

As Lucian clicked his tongue briefly, Felicia, who was behind him, stepped forward.

“Shall I cut it?”

“…!?”

At those completely unexpected words, Emil’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Cut with a sword a gate thicker than the length of most swords?

“That’s a bad joke. You’ll only damage your sword; it would be better to stop.”

“As far as I can see, it’s not a drawbridge that lowers when the gate opens. If we cut through just the gate, we can pass without any problems. If you give the order, I’ll cut it right now.”

Ignoring Emil’s words, Felicia drew her sword.

Startled by the sudden action, Emil instinctively reached for the hilt of his own sword.

“What are you trying to do—!?”

Uuuuuung—

Emil’s protest did not finish and dissipated into the air.

The magical energy that burst forth from Felicia’s sword blocked everyone’s words.

That blade, of an unprecedented length, looked capable of splitting not only the gate, but even the entire wall.

At the moment when a single flick of the wrist would have been enough to split the door in two, Lucian’s voice rose.

“No, it’s fine.”

At those words, the magical energy that had been rising went out like a candle.

While everyone remained stunned, still unable to recover from the shock, Lucian spoke.

“I’ll do it myself.”

***

‘…Is he insane?’

Emil, who had only just managed to compose himself, looked at Lucian standing in front of the gate with an expression of total disbelief.

It was a look that bordered more on humiliation than simple discourtesy, but no one reproached him for it.

Because, except for a few, everyone else was thinking exactly the same thing.

‘What? He says he’ll do it himself? Does he think he’s a Swordmaster?’

‘Even if he wants to boast, he should look at the situation.’

‘If he fails, how does he plan to endure such ridicule?’

It hadn’t been long since the funeral of the previous Swordmaster, Eisen, but Felicia’s existence was already widely known.

Eisen’s successor, the undefeated heroine, the youngest Swordmaster, the executioner of knights, the decapitator.

Since the subjugation campaign of the House of Count Calix, her extraordinary deeds had earned her countless epithets.

That was why, when Felicia displayed overwhelming power, everyone was surprised, yes, but they accepted it relatively quickly.

If she bore the title of Swordmaster, it wasn’t strange that she was that strong.

But for Lucian to claim that he could demonstrate comparable strength was a completely different matter.

‘Was His Majesty the King really as strong as Lady Felicia?’

‘No. He was roughly on par with Baron Harald, the so-called Wolf Hunter.’

‘And what level of power did Baron Harald have?’

‘Even if he were reborn, he wouldn’t be able to do anything to that gate.’

‘Good grief, this is a headache.’

The knights and soldiers Lucian had brought were no less uncomfortable.

If the enemy made a fool of himself, they could at least laugh, but what were they supposed to do if it was the lord they served?

Inside, they wanted to tell him to stop immediately, but even if they spoke up, Lucian didn’t seem to have the slightest intention of doing so.

After observing the gate for a moment, Lucian turned to Emil and asked.

“Does this gate open inward?”

“…That’s right.”

“Then if it’s pushed outward, will it break?”

“Probably. It’s never been pushed outward, so I’ve never seen it break, but I suppose it would.”

“Since we’re here, let’s take the opportunity to check.”

Ignoring Emil’s mocking tone, Lucian calmly placed both hands on the gate.

Then he stepped forward and pushed it just as it was.

Craaash!

“…?”

Hearing the sound of metal deforming, people tilted their heads in confusion.

What had that sound been?

While the soldiers remained stunned, Lucian continued to advance.

His steps were as light as if he were taking a stroll, but the phenomenon he caused was terrifying.

Craaak, crunch.

“Eh, eh?”

“The gate is opening!”

“No! The gate is being torn off!”

One of the soldiers murmured in shock, and someone beside him immediately corrected his words.

A gate designed to open inward, forcibly pushed outward—how could it open properly?

The gate destroyed the fittings that held it in place and ended up tearing free, crashing to the ground with a dull thud.

At that absurd sight, the soldiers’ eyes opened wide.

He hadn’t cut it with sword technique; he had torn it off with sheer brute strength.

Was something like that really possible with a human body?

“Tsk, like this it’ll just get in the way.”

Amid the heavy silence, Lucian muttered as he looked at the fallen gate.

Because it was so thick, leaving it there would force the soldiers to go around it one by one.

After thinking for a moment, Lucian raised his foot and kicked, one after another, the torn-off leaves of the gate.

Craash!

With a roar that shook the entire castle, the doors went flying off in opposite directions.

It was as if a giant had struck the side with a hammer.

After clearing the path with just two kicks, Lucian smiled as he looked at Emil, who was completely out of it.

“Well then, there’s no need to wait a month anymore. Isn’t that right?”

***

“…They failed again?”

Marquis Bernhardt received the messenger’s report with a blank expression.

He was so stunned that he was left speechless.

They had physically damaged the mechanism that opened the gate; how in the world had he gotten out of that?

Even the marquis himself, in such a situation, would have had no choice but to wait until it was repaired.

“What miracle did he pull off this time? Did the mage accompanying him turn back time? Or did someone repair everything in a single day as if by magic?”

“I… I think it would be faster if you read Sir Emil’s report.”

At the marquis’s irritation-laden voice, the messenger replied with a terrified face.

Bernhardt sighed and snatched the report from the messenger’s hand.

“Yes, of course. The one who let them pass without resistance should know better than anyone. Let’s see what kind of excuse he wrote…”

Grumbling, he unfolded the report and became completely still upon reading the first line.

— The duke tore the gate off by pushing it outward.

The marquis rubbed his eyes, thinking he had misread it.

But no matter how many times he reread the sentence, it didn’t change.

And the second line, to make matters worse, reinforced the first.

— I know it sounds absurd, but it is the truth. The duke tore the gate off with his bare hands. He even kicked the torn-off gate and sent it flying.

“Did Sir Emil smoke something strange? What the hell is this?”

Bernhardt crumpled the report at once.

It was fine if he wanted to make excuses, but at least he should say something minimally believable.

What? He tore off the entire gate and then kicked it to make it fly?

“Bring Emil Ruite here immediately! He must be judged for mocking his lord to cover up his guilt!”

“M-marquis! Everything written in the report is true!”

“Damn you…!”

“I saw it with my own eyes! The duke pushed and tore off the gate of Castle Belfor right in front of me, and then sent it flying with a kick! I swear it!”

At the messenger’s desperate shout, Marquis Bernhardt’s eyebrows trembled.

For a moment he even doubted, wondering if they had all conspired to make a fool of him.

But the messenger, as if he were being unjustly accused, struck his chest forcefully and exclaimed.

“If you still doubt it, send someone else to Castle Belfor to check! The gate the duke tore off and kicked is still there! The footprints on the ground and the marks of his hands on the gate are clearly visible!”

“…!?”