# Enhanced Translation
Ivan remembered Maximillian as a typical JRPG hero protagonist. Bright, virtuous, and upright. He was like a hero straight out of a 90s fantasy game, almost too perfect to be real.
In contrast, Gilbert de Etakrih was more like a protagonist from an older heroic tale.
A knight from a humble family who came to the capital, earned his title through his own strength and ability, joined the Hero Party after the Demon King's rampage, and eventually married a princess.
If it were a fairy tale, it would have been a perfect story arc. Ivan sometimes thought bitterly.
If this man's life were described as a fairy tale, it would be quite a cruel story.
"I am... *gasp*... Gilbert of Tilles! An Initiate Knight... *huff*... of the Eastern Knight Order! A commissioned knight of Saint Clovis... *wheeze*!"
The first time Ivan met Gilbert was at the entrance of a fortress shattered by the Taurus invasion.
His first memory began with the shout of a knight standing tall with blood-soaked armor, holding a half-broken shield and spear upright.
"I pledge by my name, my house, my country, and my lord. *gasp*... Even if I die here today... *wheeze*! I swear on my remaining honor...!"
Gilbert roughly removed his helmet, throwing it to the ground as he swept his hair back.
Tying his sweat and blood-soaked hair back tightly, he shook his head a couple of times and stood straight.
Around him lay countless Taurus corpses. Standing alone before the fortress entrance, he held his spear and faced forward.
Numerous Taurus were snorting excitedly, stomping the ground as if ready to charge at any moment.
In the face of such overwhelming violence that would make any man's knees buckle, Gilbert shouted with blazing eyes.
"I will kill at least one hundred who approach!"
The spear cut sharply through the air. The standoff continued between the Taurus who had invaded by climbing over the shattered outer walls of the fortress and the lone knight standing at the drawbridge of the inner fortress.
Starting with those who approached first, in order, exactly one hundred.
Because he couldn't handle more than that. But he would definitely fulfill that number before dying.
The young and inexperienced knight made his resolute declaration and raised his spear.
In what should have been recorded as the most terrible defeat on the Eastern Front, the fortress Gilbert defended succeeded in holding out after three days of fierce battle.
When Ivan and Beolgrin arrived, Gilbert was standing upright before a mountain of corpses, asleep on his feet with his eyes closed.
Because of this, Ivan thought the man was a hero. He probably thought so himself. Until Maximillian appeared, no one denied his nobility and strength.
Who would claim that any light shines before the sun? Gilbert's tragedy began there.
Born to a humble family, having dared to take a royal woman as his wife, he was a man who constantly needed to prove his worth.
He was a husband who cherished, loved, and remained faithful to his wife, who had become his shackle.
He was a knight who remained loyal to the royal family that gradually began to despise him after his value diminished in comparison to Maximillian.
A knight with a mixture of nobility and inferiority, desire for recognition and diligence, courage and timidity. A knight who was all too human.
Therefore, in Ivan's opinion.
This complex man, who couldn't be defined in simple terms, would have remained a more brilliant example of chivalry if he had been a knight in a fairy tale.
Unfortunately, this world was too cruel for fairy tale characters.
Even when the Demon King died and he returned as one of the strongest beings in the world.
Even at that moment when his fame, achievements, and his own strength had already surpassed the authority of the royal family.
In a situation with a wife of royal blood and a grown son. In a situation where, if he wanted, he could have demanded succession rights to the Tilles royal family.
Even when he was enfeoffed as the Margrave and received the title of Etakrih, even when he received orders to stand as a shield against all arrows aimed at the royal family.
"I swear."
Even as the king's sword brushed both his shoulders and fell, he bowed his head quietly and pledged.
He is a knight of Tilles.
He is a knight of the Hero Party.
He is a knight.
That was the simplest sentence Ivan could think of to define the man. Nothing more, nothing less.
No one else could call themselves a knight except that man. Swearing loyalty, faith, diligence, and fidelity, while simultaneously suffering from human pain and anguish, inferiority and self-consciousness. Always tormented by these mixed feelings.
Yet despite all this, he never broke, simply pledging to do what was right and humbling himself. Gilbert was such a knight, who had always lived to prove himself.
EP 21. Duty and Succession.
At the train station, there was Pavel with a tired face, and men with even more exhausted complexions. Ivan spotted them and briefly left his group to approach.
"Ah, if it isn't our busy commander."
"Pavel, are the preparations ready?"
"Who do you think I am?"
Pavel waved his hand dismissively. The men standing stiffly beside him answered with trembling voices.
"Re-reporting, sir! As ordered, we've placed surveillance on all the bats attached near Madame de Etoile's mansion!"
"Quietly."
"Yes, sir!!"
"It seems today's agents don't understand the meaning of 'quiet.'"
Ivan shook his head briefly. Pavel chuckled at the sight.
"When the commander himself appears to direct operations on site, how can these guys respond comfortably? They tremble just hearing your name."
"Hmm."
"Did I ever tell you why I became the captain of the royal guard?"
"No."
Pavel grinned at Ivan's indifferent response.
"Having a diligent superior above me was too exhausting, so I figured I might as well sit in the highest position myself and take it easy."
"And?"
"I think I should become the intelligence commander soon too. Our commander is just too diligent."
The king's envoy cannot officially hold positions, especially those related to the military. Therefore, after his marriage to Elizabeta, the position of intelligence commander would naturally become his.
Everything was going according to plan. Pavel smiled slyly and said.
"We've planted magnetic moles on all three snakes, and we'll personally manage Madame de Etoile's safety. Soon, Count Grandmartel will receive sad news about his son's disappearance."
"How do you plan to approach him?"
"By promising support and persuading him. For now."
"The Eastern Front?"
"I've sent some of our people there too. Well, as always with our foreign intelligence department, it's not entirely trustworthy, but they say they'll do their best, so we have to believe them."
According to Yu-jin's confirmation, Count Grandmartel has some kind of connection with the demon race.
While we don't know the extent of it, starting the investigation with Count Grandmartel is the right approach.
Pavel nodded quietly while looking into Ivan's eyes.
"So don't worry and go. I'll report directly to His Highness. Dragon hunting, hah! That's exactly the kind of job I should be doing."
"You?"
"What? Didn't you know why my spear is called the Dragon-Piercing Spear? One thrust with this and any dragon or whatever is done for."
Pavel laughed and patted Ivan's shoulder. Naturally avoiding his hand, Ivan nodded lightly and left.
Watching Ivan and his group disappear into the crowd, Pavel turned his gaze and said.
"Follow him. Someone quick."
"Yes, Deputy Commander."
"Tsk, when that guy is in such a hurry, there's definitely something going on. Unnecessarily tight-lipped."
Pavel scratched his head vigorously and grumbled. It's really tiring having such a diligent superior in his later years.
For someone so meticulous and thorough, he has unusually bad luck, so it's impossible not to worry.
As an older brother figure, he can't just stand by. In any case, he should at least lay down one line of support for emergencies.
If that guy comes back all beaten up again, the princess will hide somewhere and sob, he thought.
"He should just get married and retire already."
He's the type who enjoys stepping into muddy waters for some reason, which makes watching him quite nerve-wracking. Despite being able to rest comfortably if he wanted to, he insists on doing this.
Pavel smiled wryly and shook his head. I'm not one to talk, he thought.
"Brother, I have something to report."
"Go ahead."
Ivan nodded while reading a report. In the rattling vehicle, Yu-jin spoke in a low voice.
"About the quest that just appeared. Do you remember the additional objective [Keep destroyed territories under 15 total.]?"
"Hmm."
"Two have been destroyed already. It shows [2/15]."
"..."
That means at least two territories have been destroyed.
Ivan put down the report and frowned briefly. Could this happen even with Gilbert there? With just one dragon?
Dragons are, of course, extremely powerful creatures. So powerful that they have no natural predators as individual beings.
But if there's a major flaw in dragons, it's that they're territorial animals. It's rare for more than one dragon to establish territory in the same area. In other words, if one appears, it's likely the only one in the vicinity.
A single dragon could never threaten Gilbert.
"That, the Hero Party knight. Gilbert. One of the quest objectives was his survival, but..."
"Don't tell me he died?"
"No. It still shows him as alive, but the fact that we need to maintain his survival means..."
"It means he could die. I know."
"Then doesn't that mean one dragon isn't the problem?"
"Correct."
Ivan nodded. Isn't that obvious?
"It probably said something like 'The seeds of a long war from the Eastern Front are just beginning to ignite.'"
"Yes."
"It's the Taurus."
The war on the Eastern Front was against the Orcs and Taurus. The races ruled by Tumor of Taesan. Until Tumor was killed by Maximillian, they had literally crushed all countries east of Tilles.
After Tumor's death, they lost power and became divided, but that actually made them easier to manipulate.
This was within the expected range from the beginning.
'Just because they're puppets behind the princes doesn't mean the Tilles royal family will fundamentally collapse.'
The core objective of this mission is the continuation of the Tilles royal family. In other words, the hostile forces are trying to overthrow the Tilles royal family.
To bring down the royal family, the first step would naturally be to remove the Margrave. At the very least, it means diverting Gilbert's attention elsewhere.
The timely appearance of the dragon is suspicious from the start. If we assume this is also the intention of the 'Three Grand Counts,' their purpose and actions would look something like this:
1. Use the dragon's rampage to tie down Gilbert and the Eastern Knight Order in one place.
2. Join hands with the Taurus tribes and create tension on the Eastern Front.
3. Take advantage of the Eastern Front legions being tied down by the demon race to seize the empty capital.
4. Drive out the royal family and take Tilles.
In other words, if the Three Grand Counts are truly acting with the intention of ending this royal family, their grand strategy, as can be inferred through Yu-jin's quest, would look like this.
"Our job remains unchanged."
"Dragon hunting? In this situation, wouldn't it be better to directly target the Grand Counts?"
"The risk is too high. We're foreigners."
It could easily be seen as interference in internal affairs. As long as their treason hasn't surfaced, they are currently the patrons of the princes.
Directly assassinating such people would become a serious issue of interference in internal affairs. If the reward for this quest was [Maintenance of the United Kingdom], such actions might instead result in the destruction of the alliance between Krasilov and Tilles.
Therefore, there's only one way to resolve the situation smoothly and achieve a soft landing.
"If we end Gilbert's dragon hunt early and return to the capital, their plan will ultimately fail."
Since the Grand Counts' plan starts with tying down Gilbert, the moment that fails, their treason is preemptively thwarted.
From then on, we can hunt the nobles with the authority of the Margrave behind us. Since the dispute over succession rights will end with Gilbert's return, there's no need to bear the burden of interfering in internal affairs.
That was what Maria had asked for. It would be the most effective move Ivan could make as a foreigner.
The only variable would be 'factors that could lead to Gilbert's death.'
There was no point in pondering what that might be now. The information was too scarce, and he couldn't even think of what means could kill Gilbert in this era.
'Unless the Seven Dragon Generals personally intervene.'
Ivan shook his head as he surveyed his companions, who were either chattering away, nodding off, or staring blankly out the window.
That's impossible. The Seven Dragon Generals wouldn't set foot in Tilles where Maximillian is alive and well, unless they've gone mad.
The only concern is the 'common sense' aspect.
'These kids are still first-years.'
Even Harry Potter didn't have a life-or-death battle with a British Pegasus in his first year, so there's no way the final boss battle is already scheduled.
'By the way.'
Yu-jin, that guy. I thought he would be useful, but he's more capable than expected, Ivan thought quietly. With a little more training, he'd make quite a good agent.
He provides basic information on a person's real name and race, as well as their survival status, and depending on the level of intimacy, more extensive information about a person's condition.
Additionally, under specific conditions like quests, he can even brief on changing battlefield situations in real-time.
'If he can survive when deployed in the field, regardless of his level of training, this guy could become the best early warning system.'
After this brief reflection, Ivan reopened the report and began to scan through the summarized data on Tilles military facilities.
[Ivan Petrovich Yeremov]
[Person: Affinity toward Yevgeny Novikov Karamzin]
[29 (Neutral)]
"...What?!"
In the now quiet vehicle, Yu-jin jumped up in shock.
The score went up this much! he thought.
Affinity increased? Why?
Yu-jin's eyes filled with astonishment. He looked at Ivan with trembling eyes.
Stay calm, it's okay. It could be a misunderstanding, or even if it's not, so what? Even if he has... that kind of preference. Yes, I'm an Earthling. I can understand. Anyway, I just need to refuse and that's it.
Yu-jin instinctively sank deeper into his seat.
"What is it?"
Ivan's cold eyes stared at Yu-jin. Yu-jin chewed his lips nervously as he chose his words.
"Just, hypothetically speaking."
"Speak."
Is the situation changing? Ivan narrowed his eyes and waited.
"We're all from Earth, right? The 21st century."
"...?"
"We're Korean! And of course, I don't discriminate against anyone based on their sexual orientation. I mean, I'm completely heterosexual, but I don't discriminate against anyone for that kind of thing."
"...?"
Yu-jin closed his eyes tightly and blurted out.
"Are you possibly... homosexual?"
Well, Isabelle, who even made kimchi for him, who made Ivan tear up, only has an affinity of 27 points.
In a situation where all the women who say they like him and follow him around daily have affinity scores stuck in the 20s, the person with the highest affinity is the already dead former king. (According to the statue's description, he was a muscular, large-built man.)
Why hadn't he suspected this until now, Yu-jin cautiously opened his eyes.
"..."
5 seconds.
In just 5 seconds of their eyes meeting, he revised his thoughts. Ah, those eyes are definitely not the eyes of a homosexual man looking at another man, he concluded with certainty.
The gaze was so chilling it felt murderous.
"Or not...!"
"..."
Ivan silently turned his gaze back to the report and continued reading. Wiping away cold sweat, Yu-jin cautiously tapped his status window.
[Ivan Petrovich Yeremov]
[Person: Affinity toward Yevgeny Novikov Karamzin]
[27 (Neutral)]
'This judgment criterion isn't affinity but...'
Usefulness!
So the 2-point deduction means I've become a little less useful by saying something stupid.
Hmm, then Miss Isabelle has about as much usefulness as making kimchi dishes.
Yu-jin sighed and pressed his forehead.
'Wait a minute.'
Among the 'living' people with over 50 points, there are exactly two women. Then these people are...
As Yu-jin pondered in anguish, the train crossed the Saint Matilenne Plains of Tilles.