Published: January 15, 2026
[Yard]
The preparations of the hastily gathered mercenaries were progressing slowly, and it took much longer than expected before departure.
Meanwhile, I received orders from Father to depart before me. I might have given a bad impression here. Anxiously, I had my private soldiers handle other preparations and even helped the mercenaries organize their equipment.
The expenses were no joke. Hiring a mercenary for a month would cost about one to three silver coins per person. But with a hundred men, that would be one to three gold coins a month. A thousand men would be ten times that. Considering that a knight’s annual income is usually three to four gold coins, it’s a significant expense.
Moreover, I don’t expect this expedition to end in a month or two. If we don’t achieve much, it will be a huge deficit.
That’s why it’s urgent to reach the frontier village as soon as possible to improve His Majesty’s impression even slightly.
“...Van’s territory, huh? I never imagined that useless one would end up with a noble title.”
Not only lacking aptitude for four element magic, but he was even called incompetent. Espada and Dee accompanied him out of pity, and with their strength, he probably managed to earn some achievements. I also heard he hired adventurers or mercenaries. Perhaps he received financial support from them too.
Of course, Dee is impressive, but I also heard Espada had earned military achievements on the battlefield before. With those two, defeating a dragon was probably possible. As a result, Van was treated like a hero who saved a small frontier village and slew a dragon. I suppose luck played a part, but that’s important too.
However, this time I intend to show my power by burning the battlefield with flames and make the name Yard Guy Fertio known. With that resolve, I headed toward Van’s territory, swaying in the carriage.
We recovered some stamina in towns and villages along the way, but the long carriage ride was mentally exhausting. Even talking with Sesto, we both gradually showed signs of fatigue.
Eventually, the leading mercenaries reported we had arrived at our destination.
“Lord Yard! We’re almost there!”
“...Damn it. Can’t you report more quietly?”
I was irritated by the coarse voice and stuck my head out the carriage window. Their vulgar speech made me shout at the mercenary leader on day one, which helped improve their manners somewhat. Unfortunately, this was still among the better reports.
Frowning, I glanced at the neighboring carriage and met Sesto’s equally grim expression.
“Looks like we’re finally arriving.”
Sesto murmured wearily. I nodded and sighed.
“It’s good to realize the vastness of our marquisate. But I do pity the youngest brother, pushed to the far edge. His treatment will differ because of his talent, but that just means he was judged utterly lacking.”
I spoke with some pity for Van’s situation and a slight sense of superiority as a four element magician. Sesto furrowed his brows and looked toward where the carriage was headed.
“...Brother Yard, what’s that? Could it be... that’s Van’s territory?”
Startled by Sesto’s bewildered tone, I looked up, but soon felt the same way.
“...A wall? Could it be that they built such walls in just over a year?”
Beyond the road, a fortress city enclosed by walls was clearly visible. Small in scale, but still large enough to house over a thousand people. Soldiers could be seen atop the walls, vigilantly watching the surroundings.
“So Dee and Espada are definitely involved. But how much money must have been spent?”
I muttered calmly but was deeply unsettled inside. The town where I served as magistrate was far from Van’s territory, and I only heard recent rumors about Van after returning to Father. I had dismissed them as absurd.
They said Van built houses and weapons with magic, and that his territory developed greatly because of it.
Ridiculous. I had never heard of such magic. It’s certainly production-type magic, but no such production-type magicians existed historically.