Chapter 429: I Will Save You. (3)

The girl returned with Ghislain. Her mother was still lying down, breathing weakly.

Ghislain immediately gave medicine to the girl's mother.

It was a diluted version of medicine that could cure "Eternal Punishment," a remedy capable of curing illnesses within a day. Since the disease had weakened in its transmissibility and symptoms, its effect would suffice.

Within a few minutes, the mother's complexion visibly improved, and the red spots faded.

"Mom…"

Tears welled in the girl's eyes as she grabbed her mother's hand. It was clear that she had passed the critical stage.

Relief and joy washed over her as she realized her mother would survive.

Her mother slowly opened her eyes and asked weakly,

"What… happened…?"

"Mom? Are you okay?"

"Yes… I feel much better."

"A noble came, Mom! He saved us!"

"A… noble…?"

"Yes! F-from the North? He said he's the lord! Ah, Fenris! The Lord of Fenris!"

"Fenris?"

Her mother's eyes widened. She had heard of Fenris before.

Among nobles, Ghislain was rumored to be a devil incarnate, but among commoners, it was different.

Rumors said that no one in Fenris starved or suffered from injustice.

It sounded like paradise on earth, but there was no way to confirm it. Commoners had restricted movement.

Every time she heard those rumors, she wondered if they were true. She had always wanted to see Fenris herself.

And now, the lord of that place has come to save the people of her city!

"Ah…"

The girl's mother turned her head and looked at Ghislain standing there.

She struggled to bow in gratitude, but Ghislain waved his hand.

"Enough. There's no need for formalities."

"B-but…"

"Just focus on recovering."

The girl's mother looked flustered, but Ghislain wasn't one to care about formality or rank.

Turning to Gillian, he spoke, "Gillian, many of them are too weak to move. Make sure food is delivered to every house, and have soldiers cook meals for them directly. Recovery comes first."

"Understood."

"Also, start cleaning and repairing the city at the same time. I saw it on the way—if we don't, other diseases will spread."

"I will take care of it quickly."

Gillian and the soldiers moved immediately. Before leaving, Ghislain patted the girl's shoulder, looked her in the eyes, and said,

"Take good care of your mother. I need to go help others now."

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

The girl repeatedly bowed her head in gratitude. Even when she tried to kneel, Ghislain waved her off, leaving her with no choice but to bow her head over and over.

Ghislain smiled at her continued gratitude and said, "I only did what needed to be done. Keep the cloak—it's my gift to you."

The girl clutched Ghislain's red cloak tightly around her body.

As Ghislain turned to leave, the girl called out, "I-I'll… I'll!"

"Hm?"

Ghislain turned back, and the girl squeezed the cloak tightly in her hands as she shouted,

"I'll repay this kindness someday!"

"I'll be looking forward to it."

Ghislain grinned before turning back around. The girl couldn't take her eyes off his departing figure.

To her, Ghislain was not just anyone—he was the savior of the world.

But Ghislain hadn't just saved her family.

Clatter, clatter, clatter.

Countless wagons and soldiers entered the city.

The Northern Army, acting on Ghislain's orders, began moving swiftly to rescue the people.

Most of those remaining in the city were too weak to move. The soldiers searched every house and alley to find survivors.

"Hey, move quickly!"

"There's someone alive here!"

"Bring blankets and clean water!"

The plague had only recently begun to spread. While some of the weak had succumbed, many people were still alive.

The soldiers fed the sick medicine and prepared food for them.

To prevent further disease, they cleaned the streets, cleared bodies, and repaired houses.

Nearly 10,000 soldiers entered the city. With their coordinated efforts, the city's problems were resolved almost instantly.

At first, the people thought it was their own lord who had come to save them. But they quickly realized that wasn't the case.

"Oh, Count Fenris has come…"

"The Northern Army, which we only heard about in rumors, is here…"

"It really is him…"

The people were overwhelmed with gratitude. Their own lord had abandoned them, but a lord from the distant North, who had nothing to do with them, had come to save them.

At that moment, Ghislain's name was etched deeply into their hearts.

"The rumors about him being a madman were all lies."

"It's clearly a rumor spread out of jealousy by other nobles."

"They say even his administrators are extremely clean and honest. No bribery or gambling."

"I heard there's no slavery there either. And they have an exceptional successor to the Magic Tower."

"That's because their lord is clean. The vassals only follow his example. Isn't it clear now?"

The spread of incorrect rumors was an issue, but for now, the soldiers worked to save the city while the citizens held their own opinions.

Meanwhile, Ghislain was discussing the next plan with his closest aides over a map.

This city had simply been the closest, so he had come here first. He intended to make it a hub for plague relief before moving to save other places.

"Dark, contact Claude and tell him to send several administrators. Too many cities are empty. Have them send additional supplies and medicine here as well."

The nobles and administrators had fled as soon as the plague broke out, leaving no one to manage the cities.

The moment Dark transformed into a raven and flew off, Ghislain began pointing to locations on the map.

"These are the most urgent areas. Divide the troops and send medicine and food as quickly as possible. I'll assign specific tasks to each of you."

These were all places where the plague had spread because the lords failed to distribute the medicine properly. They needed to contain the disease before it got worse.

Ghislain informed the Fenris commanders of the new plan, including the supplies and quantities that had to be distributed.

Gillian cautiously asked, "What about the rift?"

A rift nearby had been expanding steadily. The territory's forces had been pushed back to the point where they requested Northern Army support.

That place couldn't be left alone either.

"If we use cavalry, transporting medicine won't take too long. While the Fenris forces handle the deliveries, the rest of the Northern Army can hold off the Riftborn."

"Then who will oversee the operation…?"

Ghislain turned to Tenant and said, "Tenant, lead the Northern Army and hold the defensive line. You can handle that much, can't you?"

Everyone was shocked. Tenant had only recently joined them, and he had once been their enemy. Entrusting him with such a large force was unexpected.

Even Tenant himself seemed taken aback as he asked, "Are you sure about giving me command? What if I have other intentions?"

Ghislain responded with a look of disbelief.

"Do you think the soldiers would follow you if you tried to pull something?"

"…"

Tenant couldn't argue. The loyalty the Northern Army held for Ghislain was absolute.

Realizing he wouldn't win this exchange, Tenant let out a bitter smile and nodded.

"Understood. I'll establish a defensive line."

"Good. Just hold out—that's all you need to do."

Tenant was a capable commander. Though he had been defeated by Fenris, he still had experience leading a large army.

With the overwhelming strength of the Northern Army, holding a defensive line would be more than enough.

Tenant immediately led the majority of the Northern Army toward the rift.

Ghislain looked around at his aides and pointed to Kaor and Alpoi.

"Kaor, Alpoi. I'll give you a list, so you two go collect the medicine and ingredients from the lords. You can handle that, right?"

"Hehe, that's exactly the kind of job that suits me. I'll shake them down to the last scrap."

"Can't I just take one of their territories and become a lord? I want to be a count."

These two were the least suited to helping others. Instead, they were far more effective at wringing resources out of reluctant lords.

The rest of the commanders moved quickly as well.

"Launch them quickly!"

Hundreds of hot air balloons carrying mages and soldiers rose into the air. Ghislain intended to use methods that had worked in his previous life.

Where roads were connected, cavalry could transport medicine and food quickly. But in places without proper roads or with difficult terrain, using hot air balloons was far more effective.

While the balloons had limited capacity, they could prioritize the most distant and inaccessible areas.

Rumble, rumble, rumble!

The Fenris cavalry, all skilled riders, pulled carts loaded with medicine and food in all directions.

Ghislain mounted Black King and spoke.

"Gillian, hold this place. Claude will send more medicine and supplies here."

He decided to personally visit several small villages. Dividing the troops into small groups and sending them individually would be inefficient in many ways.

"Do you really need to move yourself, my lord?"

"It's the fastest and most efficient way."

"Understood…"

Surprisingly, Ghislain decided to move with only a few knights and a small number of soldiers.

There was one reason he could afford to do this.

"Let's go, Bean!"

Neigh!

Black King let out a loud cry and galloped forward.

Behind him, over a hundred carts began to move as if on their own.

Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!

Ghislain was pulling the carts using threads of mana.

Those who saw the incredible sight gaped in astonishment.

Kaor, in particular, was both impressed and troubled.

'Wow, he's a real monster. How do I ever beat that?'

Kaor had grown much stronger since first meeting Ghislain. He might even be stronger than Ghislain had been back then.

But that monster grew stronger at an alarming rate with every passing day.

'Ugh… I need to make sure I beat the old man first.'

Recently, Gillian's strength had become harder to gauge. It seemed another gap had opened between them.

And now Tenant, the new addition, was already at the level of a Master.

'I don't like him.'

Tenant had been called the West's Finest Sword. He was of higher status than Kaor and older, so it wasn't surprising if his skills surpassed Kaor's as well.

But as always, Kaor refused to accept that he was weaker.

'The head maid, Alpoi, and even Vanessa… who's already at the 7th Circle.'

Just when he felt he was catching up, everyone seemed to move even farther ahead. Lately, his accomplishments had begun to fade into the background.

Kaor found that frustrating.

'Just wait. I'll catch up to all of you.'

He wasn't particularly diligent, but he was fiercely competitive. Grumbling to himself, he pondered ways to become stronger.

In the meantime, he would vent his frustrations by beating up the lords who refused to hand over their medicine. Leading his assault corps, Kaor hurried off.

Alpoi was equally surprised by Ghislain's strength but didn't feel as competitive as Kaor.

'I'm a mage, after all.'

It was a completely different field. Someday, when he became the Magic King, he believed he could surpass even Ghislain and free himself from his contract.

'Heh, heh, heh. When that happens, I'll become a lord and a count myself.'

Alpoi, who had been brilliant enough to be considered a successor to the Magic Tower, had grown slightly eccentric since coming to Fenris. It was a place where only the straightforward survived.

He led a group of mages and a few escort knights, already thinking about how he would intimidate the lords.

Thus, everyone moved swiftly, delivering medicine and food across the land.

Thanks to their efforts, those who were saved praised Ghislain.

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

"Because of Count Fenris, my family survived."

"I will repay this kindness someday."

The places Ghislain saved were mostly neglected areas—abandoned by greedy lords or left unprepared.

These were people who had lost all loyalty to their lords, having been abandoned during the plague.

Instead, their loyalty turned elsewhere.

"May the Goddess bless Count Fenris!"

"The one who saved us is Count Fenris!"

"Count Fenris is our savior!"

Rumors began to spread from the cities and villages Ghislain had saved, proclaiming him as the 'savior' who would end the chaos and rescue everyone.

Some even claimed that Count Fenris had been chosen by the Goddess. This rumor was bolstered by the fact that Ghislain had once been rumored to be a saint in the capital.

Of course, Ghislain himself knew that had been nothing more than a staged performance with Forisco.

'A savior, huh…'

The term was a little unsettling since it was similar to the doctrines of the Salvation Church. But there was no stopping people from calling him that.

Suddenly, Ghislain turned his gaze toward a specific direction.

The Shadow Mountains, teeming with monsters. Beyond them lay the Turian Kingdom, which had been battling monsters for a long time.

'A savior.'

That title wasn't meant for him. In his previous life, there had been someone else who bore that name.

'It's about time he reemerged.'

One of the Seven Strongest of the Continent in his previous life.

The man who truly deserved to be called the savior would soon appear.

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