Don’t Run Away My Lord

84 – Dragon’s Nest (3)

“Please explain in detail what you mean.”

“The Kingdom of Verabche is in a very turbulent situation right now. A lot has happened since Mr. Erga left forty years later.”

Balder explained the current situation in Berabche.

It was quite complicated, but to put it briefly in human terms, it was ‘muddy’.

“I was already trying to get to the inn, but I took the wrong coordinates and got off at the wrong place. There must have been a battle there, too, and there were a lot of corpses.”

“Really? Then I guess you ran into the city guard.”

“I met the commander and when I told him I was coming here, he let me go without saying anything.”

“He must have been the city guard company commander. Anyway… You understood the situation, right?”

“I understand. Please continue speaking.”

Balder explained to me what he said earlier, ‘If you had suitable land, would you be willing to become a lord again?’

I listened to everything Balder said and looked back at Keita and Wolfert.

“I agree.”

Wolfert answered first without even waiting for my question.

“The conditions are good, I have the ability, and I have the support. When will there be another opportunity to rise again more easily than this?”

Keita also nodded his head slowly.

“Me too. I think it’ll be okay. Above all, there’s almost no risk.”

The two agreed, and the only one left is Liana.

Of course I plan to accept Balder’s offer.

In order for all of us to stand up quickly, it is better to follow Balder’s words.

* * * * *

After eating, I spent some time on the first floor and went to Liana.

Liana had regained her stability to some extent and was breastfeeding Erhina with a somewhat pale face.

She produced so much milk that her white milk flowed down Erhina’s cheeks.

Nevertheless, Erhina closed her eyes and eagerly moved her cheeks and sucked her milk.

Erhina is the daughter.

Her hair was dark brown, resembling Liana’s, and other than that, she showed no signs of having inherited dragon blood.

But no one knows what will happen if it grows a little further.

Personally, I just want to live a normal life as an ordinary person…

“Erga.”

Liana smiled painfully when she saw me standing at the door.

“Liana. You’ve worked hard.”

He sat on her chair and stroked Liana’s head.

“Look at Erhina. She’s asleep.”

Looking at her, Erhina, who had been sucking her breast with her energy just a moment ago, was now asleep with milk flowing into her mouth.

“Every few minutes I wake up and eat and wake up and eat.”

“It’s fascinating. But why do you keep your eyes closed?”

“They say your eyes may open as soon as you go outside, or they may open a few days later. Don’t worry too much.”

I carefully caressed Erhina’s head and her cheek for a while.

It was so small and soft that it felt like it would crumble if I applied even the slightest force.

“Liana. I talked to Balder about something earlier.”

Liana looked back at me with a faint smile.

“Balder said… There is a place where we could settle down, why don’t we go there?”

“They probably won’t just give it to you, right?”

“That’s right. The land already has an owner.”

Liana smiled lowly and opened her mouth.

“Let me guess. For some reason, you have to kill the lord there and you need a third party?”

“That’s right. They say the nobles here are on the verge of war.”

“That’s why I’m trying to weaken a few territories that have a lot of private soldiers. That’s what Erga is doing.”

“That’s right.”

“Hmm. The reason Mr. Balder sends you without personally stepping forward is because of the perfect crime. If you invade the territory and leave without becoming a lord, they will definitely suspect that you were instigated by the royal castle.”

I just gave birth and my body is probably not working well, but my head is working really well.

You already know everything before you even say a word.

I asked as I watched Liana petting Erhina without saying a word.

“What do you think?”

“There must be assurance that the royal castle will look after you and block the surrounding lords.”

“I decided to go to the castle and talk to the king. I can’t just listen to what he says and move on.”

“And check the intention exactly. Are they just trying to intimidate the nobles, or are they trying to stabilize them by seizing their territory and driving a wedge?”

I understood what Liana said.

If you’re going to make the nobles hesitate, you’ll end up with a one-time strike and a loss of troops.

In that case, even if we occupy the territory, the royal support may be neglected later.

However, if you really need a lord to stand on the side of the royal castle, that is, if you plan to create a ‘base’, the story is different.

“I’ll find out for sure when I get to the castle.”

“If it’s the latter, definitely do it. Opportunities like this are rare. Instead.”

Liana spoke clearly.

“Never say anything about escaping from the island or being chased. Do you know what I mean?”

“I’m saying don’t reveal any weaknesses. I understand.”

Liana smiled and held my hand.

“Erga. When you establish a new territory… Now make sure you become a real lord.”

“When did you stop being a lord?”

“It wasn’t. It was because of me.”

She did not answer but waited for the next words.

“I tried to use you to achieve another goal. I controlled everything in the territory as I wanted. But I won’t do that anymore.”

“Well… There wasn’t a big problem. The more you messed up, the more the territory developed.”

Liana laughed out loud.

“Now I have to raise Erhina too, and I can’t install it anymore.”

“Once everything settles down, let’s build a new house for us to live in. Just like you said last time, the three of us will live there.”

“Good. To do that, you need to succeed in this job.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll finish it cleanly.”

Liana smiled and stuck out her lips.

She had just pressed her lips to hers when suddenly Erhina woke up and started crying.

“I can’t seem to see mom and dad sticking together.”

Liana smiled and gave Erhina her breast.

“And, get a promise from both the Queen and Mr. Balder. Mr. Balder will stand as a guarantee for our continued support.”

“I will do that.”

I left the room after giving both Liana and Erhina a light hug.

In the inn yard, Balder had already created a portal and was waiting.

“Let’s go now.”

We passed through the portal and went to the royal castle.

* * * * *

At the royal castle, we immediately met the king.

The black-haired queen with vertically slit snake eyes was looking at me with a smile that seemed cruel at first glance.

The numerous scars on my wrists and neck were quite impressive.

Balder explained to the queen that I am a black dragon and that I am trying to settle down in the human world, but at the moment, they are trying to attack a certain territory in the capital city, so I will let them attack on the condition that I be released from that territory.

“I was surprised that you came back after sharply rejecting my last request. You brought a great person with you, Balder.”

“Good is good. Didn’t I tell you before? The kingdom must be peaceful for the inn to be peaceful, and the inn must be peaceful for me to be peaceful.”

“And when you are at peace, the kingdom is at peace.”

Balder grinned.

“Yes. Okay, Ergaduk.”

The queen smiled leisurely and said.

“You’ve already heard the conditions, and what we want is simple. Go kill the lord and his soldiers and take over the territory. Without having anything to do with the capital.”

“That’s easy. But I have one question.”

“Please speak.”

“What benefit do you want to gain by attacking that territory from the capital?”

The queen smiled and answered my question as if she knew what I meant.

“I can’t tell you clearly, but I promise you one thing. We will spare no effort in helping you become the lord of that place and rule for generations.”

It’s not just a one-time blow… It’s just as Liana said.

“Then, please provide a guarantor. I think it would be good if Mr. Balder becomes a guarantor.”

“Eh…? Me…?”

Balder was a little embarrassed because he had not been told in advance.

“If not Mr. Balder, who will guarantee the contract between the King and the Black Dragon?”

“Hmm. That’s right. Okay. I guarantee it. If the royal castle says I don’t know, I will step in and pull out the royal castle pillar.”

Instead of getting angry at Balder’s remarks, the queen laughed.

“Ergaduk. We are not an organization that is so reckless as to deceive the dragon introduced by Balder.”

“Okay then. We have reached an amicable agreement.”

With the assistance of the Minister of Defense and several high-ranking persons, the Queen and I have put this agreement in writing.

Although it was full of complex information, the gist of it was this.

Ergaduk attacks the territories designated by the royal castle and becomes the lord of those territories.

The royal castle provides appropriate support so that Ergaduk can become a lord and rule the territory.

The above is guaranteed by Bertrand Walder of Rosens.

I took the agreement and got up from the chair.

“Then we will leave right away.”

“It would be funny to tell a dragon to be careful.”

The queen also stood up and smiled.

“Brione. Follow that person and open the portal.”

“I understand, Your Majesty.”

The short-haired brown-haired wizard who was next to the queen approached me.

Me, Balder, and the wizard left the castle and went to the city center.

According to Balder’s explanation, the portal cannot be opened because the castle has a protective shield.

The wizard stopped at an appropriate place and said.

“We will open a portal near the territory.”

The wizard was so skilled that he created a portal just by moving his fingers.

“Please come back, Mr. Erga.”

I nodded and entered the portal.

* * * * *

I got off on some shallow ground, guessed the direction, and walked slowly.

I could soon see the field tents spread out in front of me.

There were dozens of tents, each with a different pattern of flags fluttering.

Heavily armed soldiers were busy going back and forth like ants.

As I walked towards the area, the soldiers in charge of the outer perimeter screamed.

“Stop right there! What are you doing?!”

“I am Count Caple, an exile from the Kingdom of Tarda.”

“Count…? Exile…?”

The soldiers seemed a little intimidated by the word noble, so they lowered their swords slightly and looked at each other.

“He… Came all the way here from the Kingdom of Tarda… Huh? Count…?”

“That’s right.”

“But why are you here instead of going to the royal castle…?”

“After losing the territory battle, I was looking for a new territory, and I happened to find a suitable place.”