Chapter 17

17

The confusion was brief.

I began to explain the situation in broad terms.

The sudden appearance of the Twin-Headed Ogre.

I explained the decision of the baron and the knights to fight rather than retreat, given that we were in the middle of the forest.

Remton's expression hardened, and he nodded.

“If it was a Twin-Headed Ogre… indeed, the extermination force formed this time would have found it difficult to deal with it. Your luck was truly terrible.”

Yeah, the luck was bad.

To be precise, I had taken away their luck.

“Is it true that about two hundred soldiers returned alive?”

“…Yes. Eight hundred soldiers died in the creature's attack. I wanted to bring back the bodies, but we were in the middle of the forest, and the remaining soldiers were severely injured… so we cremated all the bodies except for those of the baron and the knights.”

“…I understand.”

The duke nodded and called for a knight.

“First, inform the baron's family of this news. Do the same for the soldiers and the knights. We will set compensation and hold the funerals as generously as possible. Kyle.”

“Yes.”

As I responded,

his gaze turned to my waist.

Adolph and Abel, who were high-ranking knights, might not have sensed it without releasing their power, but with his skills, he would have noticed that my mana was activated in my pocket.

What, surely not.

He wouldn't ask me to show it.

Soon, the duke, who had been staring at me intently, spoke.

“You look terrible. Get cleaned up as quickly as possible and come to the meeting room. We need to hear exactly what happened during this extermination.”

“Yes.”

Nice.

It was the best order.

If I could quickly run to the annex and hide the treasure, no one would realize that I had taken the inner treasure.

“I understand.”

After finishing my response,

I glanced at Adolph.

His fists were so tightly clenched that they had turned completely white.

Smiling inwardly, I quietly left the castle.

My destination was set.

The annex.

I started running towards it.

As I arrived at the main gate of the annex, I saw Leonhardt. Was it because I had entrusted the safety of my personal maid to him before leaving?

Ersiel was standing beside him.

“I have heard the news. There was an incident with the extermination force…”

“You already know?”

“Yes. The news has already spread. You looked so bad when you entered the territory. Was it really a Twin-Headed Ogre?”

“Yes. I never expected such a variant to appear…”

I answered with a slightly dejected attitude, and the boy began to look worried.

“The failure of this extermination force is not your fault, young master. Don't be too upset.”

“You're right, young master. If such a monster appeared, no one could have done anything about it.”

Yeah.

Of course, it's not my fault.

How could it be considered a mistake, a small step for the continent?

“…Thank you. I'll get cleaned up quickly and then head to the meeting room, so please prepare.”

“Yes.”

After that, I washed my body briefly and put on decent clothes. Then, I walked towards the castle where the meeting room was, accompanied by Leonhardt.

After passing through the light inspection and walking through the castle for about ten minutes,

I arrived at the meeting room.

Most of the vassals, including Duke Remton, were already gathered there.

Their gazes were all directed at me.

I was the best-informed survivor of this incident.

And a survivor with a relatively high status.

“You're here, Kyle. Come this way.”

“Yes.”

I moved in the direction the duke pointed and looked around.

The layout was very simple.

The duke was seated at the highest position, with Abel and Adolph, and Duke on either side of him.

Finally, the vassals were seated in rows on both sides.

Interestingly, the vassals were divided into two factions.

Abel's faction was on the left side, and Adolph's faction was on the right side.

It felt like watching a court in the Joseon Dynasty.

The left and right prime ministers.

Perhaps, they were roughly divided into factions like that.

I was passing through the middle.

I could see the complex expressions of the vassals.

They were probably thinking hard about my rare appearance in the meeting room.

As I stood in front of the duke, the questions started pouring in.

With nothing to fear, I could answer confidently.

What could you do when a monster suddenly appeared?

Especially when it was a monster that could sweep away knights and soldiers, including the baron.

There was no room for suspicion.

‘And I have enough evidence.’

I had brought back the disassembled body of the ogre.

Claws, eyeballs, toes, and so on.

Just by looking at these parts, it wouldn't be difficult to estimate the size of the creature.

While I was answering,

a guy who seemed to have a lot of complaints started glaring at me.

His thick double chin and the fat all over his body made him look like a perfect example of a greedy noble.

Who was he?

“I just received a report on the inventory of the spoils, young master. One of the heads is missing. Do you know anything about its whereabouts? The creature clearly had two heads.”

His name appeared above his head.

He was one of Adolph's followers.

His favorability was -70.

I immediately understood why this pig was attacking me so aggressively.

Either Adolph hadn't told him anything about me, or

‘He might have told him to probe me directly.’

Given Adolph's current state of extreme anger, he might want to find any fault with me.

Or this guy might just be a troll, throwing out random comments.

When I glanced at Adolph, he was watching the scene with interest.

It didn't seem like he had given any direct instructions.

But he didn't seem to be actively trying to stop the baron either. It was as if he was waiting to see how I would react.

“Yes, I used it. Is there a problem with that?”

The baron's expression brightened at my words.

It was like the expression of a detective who had caught a criminal.

“Of course, there is a problem! According to the principle, all spoils obtained from the extermination force should be brought back here and then distributed!”

It seemed like he had eaten a hot pepper.

He was shouting as if he couldn't wait to eat me alive.

“Really? Over just one head, aren't you overreacting?”

“One head? The head of a Twin-Headed Ogre is one of the most valuable items!”

Well, that was true.

I had taken it without permission.

But,

“Considering the help I provided in the battle, I think it's reasonable to take that much. Isn't it usually distributed based on contribution? Especially for high-level monsters like ogres.”

The baron snorted at my words.

“Indeed! It's problematic to speak as if you've achieved something great just because you've reached 1st Circle! Even though you overcame Hermes, it's premature to say you've made a significant contribution! I can't possibly think that your contribution was enough to take the ogre's head without permission! The baron and the knights must have made significant contributions! Is it right to use the valuable spoils obtained through their sacrifices so carelessly!”

He's really annoying.

It felt like he had a personal grudge against me.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be shouting with his eyes bulging out like that.

At that moment,

“Enough.”

The duke's voice was heard.

The baron and I slightly bowed our heads.

“Is it true, as Baron Hemmington said, that you took the head?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I thought the brain of a Twin-Headed Ogre would be excellent research material.”

“I understand your reason. But did you really contribute enough to take the head?”

“Yes. Just by looking at the ogre's body, you can see that I did. While Baron Jerome and the knights and soldiers did make significant contributions, it doesn't mean I didn't contribute.”

Perhaps because of my confident answer,

the pig's eyes showed a moment of confusion.

This guy's thoughts were obvious.

He probably thought he had caught me red-handed as soon as he checked the inventory.

The head of a Twin-Headed Ogre.

Given its high value, he must have thought he could use this to find fault with me.

He must have thought that the ogre was captured solely through the sacrifices of Baron Jerome, the knights, and the soldiers.

He probably assumed that a mere 1st Circle mage couldn't have contributed at all.

If I had just watched from the sidelines as he thought,

I would have been seen as a bad guy.

What could I do?

I had helped the extermination force a lot.

Especially in capturing the ogre, I had contributed at least 20%.

Taking one head wouldn't be enough to be questioned to this extent.

“I can't believe it!”

The pig shouted in a fit of rage.

The duke seemed to have made a decision and spoke.

“Bring the ogre's spoils and the soldiers here. I want to verify it myself. If your contributions were as significant as you claim, I will overlook this matter. But if you lied, you will be punished accordingly. Is this fair enough?”

The vassals nodded at the duke's words.

Soon, the spoils piled on a cart and the soldiers arrived. The vassals, lined up, seemed tense, swallowing hard.

Remton then looked at the soldiers and asked,

“I heard that Kyle, who led you, took the ogre's head.”

The soldiers nodded reluctantly.

They couldn't lie in front of the lord.

“I have one question. Do you think Kyle contributed enough to take the head? If not, you can shake your head.”

The moment the duke's question was thrown,

the soldiers nodded.

Very confidently.

Then, some of the more impatient soldiers started speaking.

“Indeed, the young master… provided significant help during this extermination. If the young master's magic hadn't supported the knights… everyone would have been overwhelmed by the monster. We also felt more at ease with the young master's magic.”

The first stage passed smoothly.

The soldiers who had witnessed me wouldn't have shaken their heads in that situation. It was worth the mental cleansing I had given them.

The duke nodded and began to carefully examine the spoils.

“Indeed, the magic was effective.”

He started showing the traces inside the body, where the magic had cut through.

The flesh inside, where lightning and fire had passed,

was charred, clearly showing the damage from the magic.

“According to the soldiers' testimony and the extent of the injuries, it seems that the young master supported the knights with auxiliary magic. I think taking one head is a reasonable reward. Does anyone disagree?”

“…”

No one opposed.

The evidence was too clear.

While the soldiers' testimonies could be manipulated, there was no way to deny the traces inside the ogre's wounds.

Even the pig, who had been aggressively questioning me, turned red and bowed his head.

At that moment,

“Kyle.”

“Yes.”

“Your contributions during this extermination. As a reward, I will lift your suspension.”

The duke stated it decisively.

Nice.

Thank you, pig.

Thanks to this pig's outburst, the matter was resolved much more smoothly. It improved my image and lifted my suspension as a bonus.