The Count's Gun-Shooting Scoundrel-Chapter 65

“It seems there’s a story behind it.”
Millerf nodded at Arthur’s words.
“I will handle it.”
“Don’t get swayed by emotions. Your opponent is someone called a Grand Mage. Furthermore, if he can even move the Emperor as he pleases, it’ll be difficult with our current strength.”
“…I apologize.”
Millerf bowed his head.
Arthur shifted his gaze to Drakan.
“I’ll return with Millerf, so you and Skevin take care of the aftermath.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Don’t let a single one escape.”
Arthur returned to the castle with Millerf.
As soon as Arthur disappeared from sight, Drakan gave orders to the Knight Order.
“Search the surroundings thoroughly!”
The Knights scattered with their Giant Wolves.
***
At that time.
Someone was watching the entire scene from a mountain adjacent to the coast. It was Hazan.
When the Apos Mercenary Group didn’t return, he was escaping the Grada territory through the mountain range.
During his escape, he discovered an unidentified ship and Knights. He watched, hoping it might be forces sent by the Emperor.
After a short while. The Knight Order of the House of Count Julius stormed in.
Seeing the two groups clash, he was convinced that these were the Emperor’s forces.
However, the Phoenix Knights, led by Britannicus, were too strong.
A retreat order was given to the Emperor’s forces, and they re-boarded their ships.
He wanted to board the ship and escape with them, but he couldn’t.
It was then, as he couldn’t help but feel regret for not escaping with them, that it happened.
He appeared. Count Julius!
That devil-like man mercilessly unleashed Aura with a strange weapon.
The Knights were helplessly struck down.
As everyone’s attention focused on him, an astonishing sight unfolded.
A Mage, unseen in the battle against Count Yarve, had appeared.
The middle-aged man in a white robe quickly finished his spellcasting and unleashed magic.
Fire Rain! It was a powerful 6th-class spell.
But it was different from what he knew. Instead of a rain of fire falling from the sky, hailstones poured down.
Its power was immense, beyond words.
In an instant, it incinerated all the ships and sank them.
All the information known to the public about the House of Julius was wrong.
Having gained demonic power, they had become unimaginably strong.
Hazan clenched his fists, watching Arthur and Millerf leave the battlefield.
‘I will definitely get my revenge.’
***
“It’s the Young Master!” shouted a Knight of the Defen Knight Order guarding the castle walls.
Upon hearing this, Dark quickly rushed out of the castle.
Arthur and Millerf were approaching.
‘As expected.’
A faint smile touched Dark’s lips.
Arthur never betrayed his trust.
Upon arriving at the castle, Arthur shouted loudly.
“The Knight Order will be bringing in prisoners, so prepare!”
“Yes, sir!”
The castle became busy once more.
As Arthur dismounted from his Khan and entered the castle, Andrew approached him.
“Her Ladyship is looking for you.”
“Mother?”
“It seems she has something to say.”
“Understood.”
Arthur immediately headed to the office.
Madeline stood by the window, looking outside.
The Knights of the House of Baron Hexa were constantly moving.
She had heard that the daughter of the House of Count Kandara had also escaped with the Knight Order.
All the families branded as followers of the devil had fallen.
Moreover, the children of these fallen families were leading their Knights and gathering at the House of Julius.
This, then, had become the final rallying point.
‘If this continues…’
Madeline’s face darkened.
Knock, knock. A knock was heard.
She quickly turned her head to the door. Arthur entered.
Strength emanated from him as he removed his golden helmet and bowed respectfully.
Watching him, her anxiety disappeared.
Still, she worried if he had been hurt anywhere.
“You’re not hurt, are you?”
Arthur replied with a faint smile.
“No.”
“That’s a relief.”
Madeline let out a sigh of relief and calmed her heart.
As she and Arthur sat facing each other at the table, Aild entered the office.
“Welcome.”
Aild also approached and sat in a chair.
It seemed she had called him too.
Madeline smiled, looking between the two of them.
Then she asked Arthur.
“How are things progressing now? I saw the Knights of the House of Count Kandara, too.”
“What?”
Aild knew that the eldest son of Baron Hexa’s family had brought Knights, but he had no idea about the House of Count Kandara.
“They arrived a little while ago.”
“So, that place has fallen too?”
Arthur nodded silently.
“Ah…”
Madeline asked with a face full of worry.
“What will you do now?”
“We are currently constructing defensive walls within the territory.”
“I heard about that. Van is gathering all the blacksmiths in the territory to build a large barrier in the western mountain range. Is it to prevent monster attacks?”
“I judged that we must secure safety from internal enemies before we can confront external ones.”
“You’ve thought well.”
“Although we won the battle against Count Yarve, the war is just beginning. Furthermore, with the Hexa family and Kandara family having joined us, the castle is in disarray.”
“What will you do about them?”
“For now, if we are to survive, there is no other way than to grow stronger. If they wish to join us, I intend to accept them.”
“I see.”
A faint smile graced Madeline’s worried face.
She trusted Arthur, but the current situation was too overwhelming for someone his age to handle.
And she couldn’t ask anyone else.
It wouldn’t be right for her, who should trust and support Arthur, to show signs of nervousness, and it might even negatively affect him.
For that reason, she had been suffering in silence, unable to speak to anyone, but seeing him handle things so well made her realize her worries were unnecessary.
Madeline smiled contentedly.
“You’re splendid.”
“I am merely doing what needs to be done.”
“Still, it’s not as easy as it sounds. Though he’s my younger brother, I truly respect him.”
Aild also looked pleased and happy.
“As long as enemies don’t invade, I intend to focus on making the territory safe.”
“If there’s anything I can do to help, tell me anytime.”
“I’ll try to enable mass production of potions.”
Arthur nodded.
“Brother, you can focus on that, and Mother, I have a request for you.”
“What can I do for you?”
“Frankly, it’s impossible to oppose the Emperor with our strength alone. So, I intend to absorb the surrounding territories first. I need information on each territory.”
“If you’re thinking of forming alliances…”
“No, I will absorb them.”
“Absorb? I don’t quite understand what you mean.”
Madeline looked at Aild, bewildered.
Aild wore a puzzled expression, then his eyes widened, and he looked dismayed.
“You don’t mean… you’re thinking of starting wars with neighboring territories in this situation?”
“Branded as followers of the devil, all territories of the Empire have turned their backs on us.”
“Even so, there’s no need to start a war with them. They won’t attack first unless the Emperor orders it.”
“That’s why I intend to absorb them before they become our enemies. Unless we do that, we will never survive this war.”
Faced with Arthur’s resolve, Aild was speechless.
He exuded a completely different aura than the one who had been comfortably conversing just moments ago.
An Aura that could not be easily defied was felt.
Madeline’s eyes welled up with tears at Arthur’s dignified demeanor.
“I’ll prepare that for you. If your father had seen you, how happy he would have been…”
“I will become stronger. Only then…”
Arthur’s eyes flashed sharply as he continued inwardly.
‘Can I protect everything.’
***
“My Lord.”
Millerf quickly approached Arthur as he emerged from the office.
“What are you doing here?”
“Her Ladyship said there were family matters to discuss and asked no one to enter.”
Arthur nodded and walked down the hallway.
Millerf followed, carefully asking.
“What will you do about the Horkamun Tribe?”
“What do you think after meeting them?”
“Speaking of which, I have something to tell you about that. I heard he gave you a treasure called ‘Laos.’ Do you have it?”
“The one shaped like a pinecone?”
“Yes.”
Millerf’s eyes sparkled.
If he reacted like this, it didn’t seem like a mere gem.
“Do I need to see it now?”
“It seems you’ve found a way to grow stronger more quickly, My Lord.”
“…!”
Arthur’s eyes flashed, and he moved his steps towards his room.
Arriving in his room, he opened the bedside table drawer and took out Laos.
“Here.”
Millerf quickly took Laos and examined it.
The gem, dyed in a deep blue, was identical to what he knew.
“Let me check.”
He placed Laos on his palm and chanted a runic spell as if to himself.
Then the gem glowed very faintly.
‘What is it?’
Arthur watched the scene with his arms crossed.
After a few seconds, unlike before, the gem glowed very brightly, and sparks flew.
“This is!”
It was what he had seen when Blizan attacked.
“As expected!”
Millerf smiled meaningfully and dispelled his magic. Then he held out the gem to Arthur.
“Try wearing this around your neck.”
“Hmm.”
Arthur was curious about the reason, but for now, he put Laos around his neck as instructed.
The golden color from the necklace he was already wearing shone dazzlingly.
Then Laos also glowed deep blue, as if reacting to that light.
The gems of the two necklaces seemed to resist each other, then lightning erupted from Laos, and sparks flew.
“What?”
Arthur looked at Millerf, slightly surprised.
Millerf extended his hand as if telling him to stay still and spoke.
“Try using Mana.”
Arthur drew out only about 1-star of Mana.
But he couldn’t feel any difference.
“Keep raising it until there’s a reaction.”
At Millerf’s words, Arthur continued to raise his Mana.
2-star… 3-star. And when he drew out all his strength and reached 4-star.
“…!”
Arthur’s eyes widened.
The light and lightning of Laos were sucked into the existing necklace as if absorbed.
Then it lost its light and disappeared like dust.
Instead, lightning erupted from Arthur’s necklace, and golden light and deep blue light intertwined in a spiral.
Zzzap-. CRACK!
With intense sparks, it changed into a single color. Darker than deep crimson. Blood-red!
Millerf nodded heavily.
“As expected!”
“This is concerning.”
Arthur frowned and ripped off the necklace.
Sparks flew from the hand gripping the necklace, but he didn’t even blink.
“Explain what happened.”
“You absorbed the power sealed within Laos.”
“Sealed power?”
“The owner of that power is Lord Rumacas.”
“What did you say?”
“You can consider the power of lightning that exists in this world to be a trace of Lord Rumacas, the Golden Dragon.”
“Ah…”
“The necklace you’re wearing was given by Lord Rumacas to Lord Teheran, and it contains the ability to absorb all of his power. That’s why, when I heard ‘lightning’ and ‘sparks’ earlier, I rushed to you.”
“I see.”
“Check it. Your Mana must have increased.”
“Hmm.”
Arthur, with a serious expression, drew up his Mana.
Up to 3-star, it was no different from usual.
But from the moment he entered 4-star, sparks erupted from his body.
Power surged uncontrollably.
However, it seemed 5-star was not yet reached, as the fifth circle had not formed.
Beyond that, he wanted to confirm something.
Arthur spread his right hand and envisioned it in his mind.
He wasn’t sure if he could summon ‘that’, but even if not, he hoped something surpassing the Benelli M1 would appear.
After a moment, a golden object flowed from his hand and began to take shape.
But contrary to his expectations, it was a K1.
The only difference was that lightning enveloped it.
‘Do I have to achieve 5-star?’
It was then, as disappointment clouded Arthur’s face.
Suddenly, an intense energy was felt in his left hand.
“…!”
He quickly looked at his left hand.
A golden object began to flow from his palm.
“No way!”