I Become a Rogue Lord in a World Where Only I Level Up - C98

C98: Means of Obtaining an Army (7)

“Over there! Father sent me out from over there…….”

Perhaps she was feeling impatient, but Serena rode even faster. The more she did so, the more she couldn’t avoid encountering the rebel forces scattered all over the capital.

They naturally attacked me and Serena but every time they did, I fired off a series of [Attack] commands without even allowing them to get close but there was a limit.

I hurriedly crushed the spear of the cavalryman attacking her. I could have used the Dairen to make it impossible for anyone to get close to her, but on a battlefield like this, anything could happen at any time. It would have been foolish to use my last resort for safety against a mere group of soldiers.

“It’s not safe from here, so we’ll take my horse.”

“I understand.”

I put her on my horse.

As I was riding in this state, what I saw was a battlefield. Dofle was lying in front of a large number of dead rebels, the battle was already over.

“Father!”

Serena got off her horse and ran to her father.

Dofle’s chest had been pierced by a spear. That meant he was beyond recovery.

“Father!”

Serena screamed.

The rebels around us reacted and jumped on us but I dealt with them. As I was slashing down the rebels attacking me in the dark, an enemy general who seemed to be the commander of the rebel army appeared for the first time.

[Lecter Gethmann]

[Age: 34]

[Martial Force: 84]

[Intelligence: 20]

[Command: 78]

I was surprised when I saw his martial force. There was no way that Lushak’s abilities could match his, it meant that a real leader had appeared.

Perhaps their objective was to capture the king, so an important person had appeared.

“What the hell are you doing?”

The man gives me a questioning look.

“So you’re Kashak’s best friend, Lecter Gethmann.”

Kashak had a friend who was involved in the rebellion. They were quite close and created a synergy that led to the reconstruction of Estren until it was destroyed by the Narja Kingdom. I can’t remember his name, but judging from his abilities, this person is probably his friend.

“Do you know me? Who are you? You don’t seem to be a nobleman of Estren.”

That’s what Gethmann said when he saw me in my nobleman’s attire.

I didn’t respond to that and since he’s an obstacle to my strategy he needs to be removed, unfortunately my martial force is only 82 while his is 84. Lushak needs to be left alone to become a violent tyrant. I don’t want anyone to be able to control him.

I have some saved points that I can use to increase my martial force but why do I have to go that far? The right thing to do was to save as many points as possible.

It seems that this guy is the strongest around here, so I should use Daitouren. Using Daitouren against an 84 martial force is like using a cow tool to catch a chicken. Anyway, I summoned Daitouren and used the [Attack] command.

“What?……!”

Just like when Kashak died, this man, with an incomprehensible look on his face, was struck by Daitouren and fell from his horse. After dealing with him I also took care of the rebels around me.

I got off the horse after sorting out the situation without difficulty.

Dofle was still breathing.

“You’re here…….”

“Yes.”

As soon as he saw me, Dofle coughed up blood and smiled at me.

“Can I ask you to take care of my daughter? I want you to take her to Aintorian…….I want her to be free to live……”

Then, with tremendous mental strength, he continued his speech.

“Father……Father!”

Serena tried desperately to stop the blood from flowing out of the area where the spear had pierced, but to no avail.

“Serena……”

As soon as he looked at Serena, Dofle coughed up blood.

“Father……!”

“Serena, I’m sorry for everything. I hope you have a happy……rest of your life.”

“Father, please don’t say another word. No…….no…….!”

Dofle tried to bring his hand to his daughter’s face, which was covered in his own blood, but he dropped his arm, unable to continue his words any further.

“Father!!!!!”

Serena screamed again.

But there were no tears in her eyes. She only screamed, shaking her body for some reason in a situation where she should have shed tears. Perhaps she could not accept the death of her father.

She just kept shaking Dofle’s body and fell into a state of mental collapse.

I was going to lose my mind if this continued so I went to her side and picked up Dofle’s body.

“He is a man who has worked all his life for his country. We can’t allow him to be hurt by the hooves of an enemy horse. Let’s bury him.”

Serena squeezed her father’s arm and followed me silently.

***

Serena, who had been hugging Dofle’s tombstone, finally opened her mouth. Fortunately, she seems to have regained some of her senses when she talked to me.

“Thank you, Master Haddin.”

She still thought I was Haddin. Well, it’s not like she has a system, and since I called myself Haddin, it was only natural for her to think I was Haddin.

“By the way…….”

She slurred her words as she looked at me with a strange look in her eyes.

“What is it?”

I asked back.

“You’re not going to tell me your real name?”

She asked me with a look of conviction on her face for some reason.

“Why do you think I’m not Haddin?”

“I know who you are.”

“What do you know?”

“I’ve heard that Lord Merja Haddin is a civil servant. I also know that he is much older than…….”

“Oh…….”

How did you know that?

Until Fihatri joined us, Baron Merja Haddin was the only nobleman in my household. So the name is known in its own way, but I didn’t think she even knew how old Haddin was in this distant country.

“The truth is, I’ve always been fascinated with……Aintorian. My father used to tell me stories all the time, and every time he did, I felt like I was parading around the world. So I was even more fascinated. I know……because it was the joy of my life to beg my father to send people directly to Aintorian to get more information.”

I looked at her, a little surprised. It was true that I had become famous on the continent. The destruction of Bridget had ensured my fame. So I’m not surprised that she knows me, but I’m amazed that she knows so much about my vassals.

“Was that so?”

“Yes. I wanted to hear more Aintorian stories, and I even begged my father to let me see you. I also asked my father to persuade the nobles to form an alliance…….”

So that’s what happened.

I was a little confused as to why Count Dofle wanted to help me, but I didn’t know there was a story behind it.

“The story of Aintorian was very new to me as I was trapped in the royal palace. So……you are…….”

“Who do you think I am?”

I asked, and Serena looked a little troubled.

“When it comes to Lord Yusen and Lord Elheat, the image is different and…….But your hair color is…….well, gray hair is a symbol of the Aintorian family.”

It seemed she had guessed it from the start by looking at the color of my hair. Then there was no need to hide any longer. However, Serena blinked and looked at me as if she still couldn’t believe it even though she knew what was going on.

She blinked repeatedly for a while, her face stunned.

“Your Highness?”

I held my hand out in front of her and called her, and she finally said it in a shaky voice.

“Master Erhin……no, I did think that you looked like the figure I always imagined, but……why are you here, Lord of Aintorian…? I can’t believe it!”

“The vassals’ work was so important that I came myself, is there a problem?”

“What should I do……! What am I supposed to do……!”

She began to get flustered, choking on her words.

“Your Highness, I suggest you calm down and talk…….Take a deep breath.”

I grabbed her arm, which was trembling badly. Then Serena nodded vigorously and did as she was told and inhaled.

“Huh……but this is impossible……!”

“And by impossible, you mean……you met the hero of your dream story and he wasn’t what you imagined?”

“No, of course not! It’s exactly as I imagined. My father would be pleased. My father also enjoyed the story of Aintorian a lot. He was the first person to tell me about it…….”

Serena, who had been speaking while thinking about her father, suddenly stopped talking. She saw the tombstone again, and the fact that her father was no longer there must have crossed her mind.

Fortunately, this meant that she had accepted her father’s death and was coming to her senses.