The wooden swords had broken, and with that, the excitement was ruined.
“Where did you learn that?”
“Learn what?”
“The swordsmanship you just showed me. That rootless, mercenary-like swordsmanship—what is it?”
‘Rootless? That’s harsh.’
But Ian couldn’t refute the comment.
It was true—his swordsmanship had no formal foundation.
It was a practical style he had naturally picked up through countless hours of gameplay.
But precisely because it was born from real combat, it was undeniably threatening.
The way the sword would dart in menacingly the moment you let your guard down was proof of that.
“I learned it on my own.”
“You did?”
Ian shrugged.
“So, you called me here to test that.”
Even though Ian had clearly said he wanted to bond as brothers.
It seemed Hubert still didn’t trust him one bit.
“I am the legitimate heir.”
Hubert continued, looking at Ian as if stating the obvious.
“Right now, it’s just this much, but as someone who isn’t even recognized as a proper member of the family, you’ll never surpass me.”
Ian chuckled.
‘He’s really trying to provoke me.’
But he wasn’t particularly angry.
If things went as Hubert said, it would mean all the problems in Ian’s near future would be resolved.
And it also meant Hubert had that much confidence in himself.
“Well, if you become a reliable pillar of the family, I’ll have nothing to complain about.”
That was sincere. Ian had no desire to suddenly become the lord and deal with all the tedious responsibilities.
“I’m a bit tired now. I’m going to head back and wash up. If you want to keep training, take it easy and rest when you need to.”
Ian picked up the broken wooden swords, stacked them in one place, and left the training grounds.
Hubert stared blankly at Ian’s retreating figure.
‘What’s going on? Did he really become a completely different person?’
The usual inferiority complex was nowhere to be seen.
If this were any other time, Ian would have hurled every curse imaginable at him for what he just said.
Had he finally grown up, as their father had said?
Hubert was confused by this unfamiliar version of Ian.
A Peaceful Day Interrupted
One peaceful day, as Ian was going about his usual routine, Oswell and a few knights urgently came looking for him.
“Young lord!”
“What is it, Sir Oswell? And why are you in armor?”
Ian looked at them curiously.
Unless it was training or an emergency, knights rarely wore armor within the estate.
“Haven’t you heard? The monsters are starting to rampage!”
“Rampage?”
In the untamed lands teeming with monsters, a rampage occurred about once every thirty years.
‘Now that I think about it, it’s about that time.’
A bad feeling settled in his gut.
“Is that… so?”
The chances of the monsters heading toward the Schrantz territory were extremely low.
While it was random, the probability of them going to nearby territories or even north to another country was much higher.
The odds of them coming to the Schrantz territory were about one in 350 playthroughs.
That was the result streamers had gotten from extensive testing.
‘It should be like that.’
But Oswell’s urgent expression, his armor, and Ian’s veteran instincts were telling him something was wrong.
And then.
“They’re heading straight for the Schrantz territory!”
[Quest ‘Crisis of Schrantz’ has been triggered.]
<Crisis of Schrantz>
Objective: Defend against the monster rampage.
—A large-scale monster rampage has begun. Stop the monsters heading toward Schrantz.
Reward: Experience points based on contribution, rewards based on contribution.
Ian, who had just hit the one-in-350 odds, fell silent for a moment.
Then he muttered, “I’m about to lose my mind.”
He couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all.
The Lord’s Meeting Hall
Inside the meeting hall of the lord’s estate, the vassals sat around the round table with grave expressions.
Hugo and Hubert were no exception.
“I’m here.”
Ian was the last to arrive.
All eyes turned to him.
No one was pleased to see him barging into such an important meeting.
They assumed he was there to ask for his allowance.
Hugo thought the same.
“We’re busy right now. If you have something to say, do it later.”
“I heard about the monster rampage. Of course, I should be here.”
The room buzzed at his words.
‘What’s with their expressions?’
The fact that he was present at all was shocking to them.
Ian, who had never shown any interest in the estate’s affairs, was now acting like it was natural for him to be there.
Of course, as a member of the family, it was only right to be concerned and attend such meetings.
But this was Ian, who had never done the bare minimum until now.
His mere presence here was a monumental event.
Even Hugo, momentarily forgetting the crisis at hand, was wide-eyed with surprise.
“So, you’ve heard the news?”
“Yes. Sir Oswell told me.”
“Your expression says it all.”
Ian’s face was twisted in frustration.
Hugo took it as a sign of how serious the situation was, but in reality, Ian was just fed up.
Why did he have to be the one to hit this absurd probability?
‘At this point, it feels like the world is out to get me!’
But he couldn’t just sit there complaining.
This situation had to be resolved, no matter what.
Ian took a seat next to Hugo.
“How many monsters are we talking about?”
“At least a thousand. And with monsters like Goblin Champions and High Orc Warriors among them, this is on a completely different level from the previous hunts.”
“……”
The feeling of despair was already creeping in.
The monsters, which were far from weak, were coming in numbers equivalent to a third of Schrantz’s entire population.
‘Once it hits the thousands, even defending becomes dangerous.’
No matter how they tried to stop them, the damage would be significant.
‘If it’s 2,000, we should just pack up and run.’
No matter how much of a veteran Ian was, some things were just impossible.
An overwhelming numerical disadvantage was a problem that couldn’t be overcome, no matter how skilled they were.
“Ian seems to be thinking along the same lines. It’s best to assume the worst and plan how to stop them. Does anyone have any ideas?”
“What if we send someone to the neighbouring territories to request reinforcements?”
At that suggestion, everyone turned to look at the vassal who had spoken, their expressions a mix of disbelief and exasperation.
“The neighbouring territories would never help us.”
“If they did, they’d demand something outrageous in return.”
“……”
The territories surrounding Schrantz were all hostile.
Even if they knew they were next after Schrantz, their reaction would be the same.
The reason all the neighbouring territories harboured such animosity was due to past events.
Having plenty of time to kill, Ian had flipped through some history books.
The saying that Meta Pangaea was “a masterpiece that created a new world” wasn’t for nothing.
Not only was the game incredibly free-form, but its settings were also absurdly detailed.
You could find the reasons behind any event in the game’s history books.
Thanks to that, Ian had a decent grasp of the situation.
To summarize it in one sentence:
‘The ancestors of Schrantz worked hard to sow chaos and create these relationships.’
That’s right.
This was all the handiwork of the previous lords of Schrantz.
They sowed discord between friendly families, threatened other territories for no reason, and extorted them.
As a result, they were surrounded by enemies and lost all their original territories, leaving only a small piece of land.
And even then, the neighbouring territories weren’t satisfied and were plotting to completely destroy Schrantz.
‘It’s all self-inflicted.’
From an outsider’s perspective, it was entirely understandable.
‘And of course, I’m the young lord of such a family.’
Ian let out a deep sigh.
It wasn’t someone else’s problem, so he couldn’t even laugh about it.
In any case, the neighbouring territories would band together, but the idea of them helping Schrantz wasn’t even worth considering.
Schrantz was completely isolated, with no one to lend a hand.
That was the reality of their situation.
Knowing this, the vassals didn’t even entertain the idea of asking for help.
“Then what if we…”
“That doesn’t seem like a good idea either. Maybe we should…”
“That doesn’t seem right either…”
The other vassals shared their thoughts, but none of them had a solid plan.
Even Hubert remained silent, unable to come up with a solution.
Time was passing meaninglessly.
“Ian, do you have any suggestions?”
While quietly listening to their discussions, Hugo turned to Ian.
He didn’t seem to have high expectations, but they were desperate for any ideas.
The vassals’ attention shifted to the father and son.
Ian answered immediately.
“What if we request help from the imperial family?”
There was a possibility.
They wouldn’t just sit back and watch their territory be ravaged by monsters.
“Do you not know what’s happening in the empire right now?”
What’s happening in the empire?
‘Ah, right. The princes are probably preparing to write a bloody family history, aren’t they?’
It was only then that Ian realized why no one had suggested this.
The emperor had suddenly fallen ill, and the crown prince, who was on his way back after hearing the news, had been killed by bandits.
That was the current state of the Fried Empire’s imperial family.
While the princes’ infighting hadn’t fully erupted yet, it was clear to everyone what was coming.
In other words.
‘They’re not going to help us.’
They were too busy with their own problems to care about some backwater territory’s request.
‘The real infighting in the imperial family starts in two years. And at the same time, the territorial wars will begin.’
Even if Hugo survived, the territorial wars were inevitable.
This was the perfect opportunity for their long-standing enemies to destroy Schrantz.
In any case, they had to find another solution.
‘We have to use everything we can. It’s absolutely impossible with Schrantz’s current strength alone.’
Where could they find help?
As Ian mentally mapped out the surrounding territories, a thought struck him.
‘Wait. The imperial family? Infighting?’
A solution seemed to appear.
He turned to Hugo and asked, “We’re a vassal family of Duke Endran, right?”
“That’s right… Are you thinking of asking the duke for help?”
Before Hugo could finish, a sharp voice cut in.
“Young lord. His Grace the Duke would never move his troops so carelessly.”
It was Jurdan.
‘That’s the general consensus.’
Duke Endran was currently at odds with Duke Eaton, who was right next to him.
The two were on such bad terms that a territorial war could break out at any moment.
‘But precisely because of the current situation, it might work.’
If Ian’s understanding of Duke Endran was correct, sending a single letter might be enough to get him to send troops.
Remembering the imperial family’s infighting, Ian realized Duke Endran was at the forefront of it and came up with this idea.
There was no guarantee it would work, but in the current situation, there didn’t seem to be any other options.
“This is an unrealistic and absurd suggestion.”
But before Ian could explain why he thought of this, his mood soured as his words were cut off.
