365

Episode 365: Who is bullying whom? (2)

Marquis Rodrik continued to laugh as if he found it amusing. In fact, to him, this incident was nothing more than a random amusement that arose in his boring daily life.

Showing off his power and instilling fear in his opponents is his favorite activity.

"I've been really bored lately."

These days, there are very few stiffs like that. Even if there are, they are just the small fry.

Because Marquis Rodrik has been a leader who has ruled the West for a very long time.

When power builds up, it tends to explode. Having ruled the West for a long time and built up his power, he always wanted to show off that power.

However, because he was under the control of the Duke, he was forcibly suppressing that impulse. There was no way he could miss such a good opportunity.

"When will the top cosmetics come?"

"I think it will be around next month."

"Oh dear, I better get ready quickly, Tennant."

"yes."

"Let's start with that. Just a quick glance. Let's provoke Fenris's love interest and the Marquis of Branford."

"How much should I send?"

"Send an appropriate amount, maybe… a thousand?"

A thousand people is enough to fight small fiefdoms and fiefdom wars. However, to Marquis Rodrik, it was just a number that could be used to raid a small number of the upper ranks.

Tennant also nodded his head indifferently as if a thousand people were nothing.

"I will make sure that the name of Marquis Rodrique is known and bring the goods along with it."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm already excited to think about them protesting. It'll be even more fun if we start a full-scale war."

Marquis Rodrik shivered with genuine joy. He was so grateful to the son of a bitch who had died at the hands of the Drake mercenaries.

"As soon as you are ready, let all the nobles know that we have a just cause. Then we can openly harass Fenris's darling."

So Marquis Rodrigo began preparing to take down Giselle's cosmetics.

* * *

Although Rosalind was entrusted with cosmetics sales and branch expansion, she was not completely leaving Fenris alone.

It was Fenris' job to send the cosmetics to each branch.

Originally, it was only sent to the capital, but as the cosmetics business expanded, Fenris had more work to do.

Rattle, rattle, rattle.

The upper ranks were also moving towards the western branch. Dozens of wagons were heavily loaded, and the number of people guarding the procession was close to 400.

A knight who was watching the scene from afar said.

"What's going on? Why are you all dressed like that? Do you usually walk around like beggars?"

The knight clicked his tongue. When he checked again, the top was indeed the top of Fenris' cosmetics. Fenris' flag and the Marquis of Branford's flag were hanging, so he was certain.

However, the guards and workers at the top were all wearing dark robes. If others saw them, they would have mistaken them for some kind of assassination group.

The knight muttered as he glanced at the matrix above.

"Hmm, but aren't there a lot more escorts than I thought?"

According to confirmed information, the escort of the cosmetics convoy heading west usually consisted of about 200 people.

That was also quite a lot. Since it was not a region ruled by the royalist faction, they had a lot of escorts.

But now, twice that amount has arrived.

"Those guys are scary, I guess."

The knight was the commander of a force sent by Marquis Rodrik to raid the upper reaches.

'You confidently rejected the writer's request, but it seems you've prepared yourself.'

He looked at the troops behind him.

The total number of troops he brought was about 800. About 200 of them were currently waiting elsewhere.

"I don't think we'll lose, but there are more people than I've heard. It's better to drive safely. Well, if they attack, we'll just have to fight."

I planned the operation assuming that the opponent would run away without fighting back. If the guys who were attached as escorts at the top weren't stupid, they would quickly realize that someone was after them.

But with that number of people, I thought they might fight to the death.

"I wish I could just fool around. That way I could hit more easily… … ."

The knight muttered to himself and then raised his hand.

Flutter!

Immediately the flag of Marquis Rodrik was raised above the soldiers' heads.

The knight had no intention of acting like a bandit. He wanted to make it clear who had messed with them and escalate the fight.

"let's go!"

Doo doo doo doo doo doo!

The Marquis's troops moved toward the upper ranks. The figures guarding the upper ranks were seen panicking as a large force suddenly approached.

They saw the flags of the approaching troops and immediately turned around and started running away.

A symbol of two axes crossing a tower in the middle.

I found out that it was the emblem of the famous Marquis Rodrik in the kingdom.

"Hahaha! Those guys are running away without even fighting! That's great!"

The Marquis's knight who was commanding the troops laughed loudly.

The opponent also seemed to have reinforced the escort troops at the top just in case, but they must have been surprised to see twice as many people rushing towards them.

It was even better. Maybe they didn't even know what was on the other side they were running from.

"Don't chase too fast! I have to drive you to the promised place!"

They are all cavalry. In comparison, the other side, although riding horses, is pulling a lot of carts.

Doo doo doo doo doo!

Although he could catch up at any moment, the knight adjusted his speed appropriately in order to push his opponent in the desired direction.

As the situation continued where they could not catch up, the upper ranks of Fenris had no choice but to move as the Marquis' forces wanted.

There is no escape route in this area except the one the upper class uses. The knight knew this and deliberately set up camp here and waited.

"We're almost there."

A low valley was visible in the distance. The upper part of Fenris had no choice but to enter the valley to avoid the Marquis's forces who were pursuing them closely.

The knight following him smiled cruelly at the sight.

"You idiots. This whole area is in the palm of our hands. We can handle it easier than you think."

The knight smiled pleasantly. If he could wipe out 400 people, he would be recognized for his great achievement.

In a broad sense, this also weakens Fenris' power.

Doo doo doo doo doo!

The upper part of Fenris, which had been running away with its tail wagging, eventually stopped without being able to escape the valley.

This was because a group of troops had set up a fence on the other side and were waiting. They were cornered by the enemy and were trapped without being able to move.

The Marquis's knight raised his hand to slow down the troops following him and slowly entered the canyon.

"Hey, children of Fenris! I am Brian, a knight of the Marquis Rodrik."

As Brian shouted in an un-knightly manner, a figure walked out from the top of Fenris.

I couldn't see his face properly because he was still wearing his robe.

"Why are you chasing us from the Marquis' House?"

"You ran away without even knowing why? You knew it well. Did you think you could refuse the Marquis' request and do business here safely?"

The robed man spoke calmly in response to Brian's sarcastic reply.

"Are you thinking of getting involved in a business that the Marquis of Branford is involved in? You have already signed a contract with the Marquis of Rodrik."

It's not that they pretend not to know each other just because their factions are different. After all, they are all nobles of the same kingdom and their only difference is their political orientation.

That's why they usually helped each other when they could and got rid of each other when they could. In Jiselle's previous life, it was only after the Duke's ambitions were openly revealed that it became a problem.

Even Marquis Rodrik could not simply block the cosmetics desired by many nobles in the West.

Many people from the post-war period also use it. There was no need to block it since it was so effective.

But now things are different, because Marquis Rodrik wants war.

Brian continued with a sneer.

"That contract is now broken. We have a legitimate reason to attack Fenris. No, actually, the word attack doesn't really fit. The level difference is too much. To be precise, we plan to continue to harass Fenris."

At those words, the robed man sighed and shook his head.

"Then shouldn't we first notify the Marquis of Branford and then finalize it?"

"I'll kill you guys first. Maybe a messenger has reached the Marquis of Branford by now. I'm sure… … ."

Brian drew his sword and aimed it at the robed man.

"You all die here and we take all those cosmetics. So there's no need to surrender. We won't accept it."

The robed man nodded several times and pushed back his hood.

A hardened face was revealed beneath the white hair. It was Gillian.

Gillian spoke to those around her.

"Put your luggage down."

Kwah! Kwah! Kwah!

The escort troops unloaded all the long wooden crates from the cart. Brian laughed heartily at the sight.

"No, are you surrendering now? Do you think I'll let you live if I give you that? I'm just going to kill you all and take it. Are you northern country bumpkins? You don't understand what I'm saying."

Gillian ignored Brian's words and waved at her men.

"Open it."

Clank, clank, clank.

The box opened. Inside, it was not filled with cosmetics, but with sharp, long spears and huge swords.

"What? It wasn't cosmetics? What are you guys?"

Brian looked dumbfounded. The crates that had been unloaded from the cart were all filled with weapons.

Gillian still ignored Brian's words and went to the middle carriage, knocking on the door and speaking.

"I don't think there are any other tricks."

Suddenly.

The carriage door opened, and Giselle slowly got out. He looked around and clicked his tongue.

"I was trying to see what kind of trick you were trying to do, but is this all? You just surrounded us. If you had wanted to fight openly, we would have fought. Why did you divide up your troops like this?"

Then the man next to the carriage took off the hood of his robe and said.

"Oh, I said let's just fight! Why are you so curious!"

The one who complained was Kaor. He had been dragged here as soon as he returned to the territory.

Jiselle shrugged and said.

"If we're going to do it all at once, isn't this better? It's obvious what these guys are going to do."

"Then let's kill them now. My body has been acting up again recently. And what? Who is bullying whom? I'm speechless. Let's show who is bullying better."

In Kaor's eyes, Giselle was the best at bullying someone in the world. She was second.

Brian asked with a cold expression at the two people's pitiful conversation.

"What are you? Are you a top player?"

Then Giselle frowned.

"What? You don't even know what I look like? Haven't you received my portrait yet? Am I not famous yet?"

"… … ."

Brian was speechless for a moment. He felt a little unlucky talking as if he were popular.

And I didn't know what that free time was, but it really bothered me.

"He asked who I was."

"This is the Earl of Fenris."

"… … !"

The Marquis' soldiers held their breath for a moment at Giselle's answer.

Earl Fenris is rumored to be a master-level man. If the rumor is true, the troops here will be unable to stop him.

'but....'

There were other rumors going around among Marquis Rodrik's soldiers. It was said that all the things that were said to have been done by Giselle were actually done by his subordinates.

This was the assessment made by Tennant, a senior knight of the Marquis, who personally saw the Earl of Fenris.

Of course, there was a warning that there might be other abilities behind the rumor.

Brian asked again cautiously.

"Are you… … really the Earl of Fenris?"

"Yes, I am the Earl of Fenris."

When I saw that confidence, it seemed real, but I couldn't believe it just from words.

At that moment, a knight approached Brian and whispered. It was a knight who had been to Fenris with Tennant.

"That is the Earl of Fenris. I saw him with Lord Tennant back then."

'Catch me!'

Brian's heart was pounding.

He believed Tennant's words, who had seen the Earl of Fenris in person, more than the rumors of the world.

What if we capture Earl Fenris, the Divine Lord and High Lord of the North, here?

The road to success was virtually guaranteed.

He shouted loudly after making up his mind.

"Hit! Kill everyone except Earl Fenris! If that doesn't work, you can kill Earl Fenris too! Just bring me their heads intact!"

Doo doo doo doo doo!

The Marquis' cavalry spurred their horses and began to charge at full speed.

"Looking at the approaching Marquis's troops, Giselle said:

"Get ready. It seems like it's been a while since we've all gathered together like this."

The 400 men that Giselle had brought were the knights of Fenris. They had brought all the knights with them to make sure there would be chaos.

Clank, clank.

The knights all took out their greatswords from the chests. Then Giselle spread her arms and said.

"Leave no one alive. It is time to strike fear into the West."

Gooooooo!

The hundreds of spears that remained inside the box slowly rose into the air.