58. A Word That Starts With “Jeal” and Ends With “Ousy”

Just as he was about to think more about this interesting relationship, Barbarossa felt movement beneath his feet.

It was enemy soldiers climbing the castle.

Swoosh.

“Aaaah!”

Barbarossa shot an arrow, taking down one of Viscount Shire’s soldiers who was climbing the wall under the cover of darkness.

The dead soldier’s comrades at the bottom of the castle wall spat out curses.

“Crawling up in the middle of the night like rats. Polite guests should come during the day.”

Though he appeared to be wandering around Tiberius Castle aimlessly while indulgently drinking alcohol, it was actually Anette’s order.

〈Do what you do best. I’m sending you because you’re the right person for the job.〉

Go to Tiberius, drink alcohol, and diligently flatter the lord. And don’t even try to hide it.

Staying true to his character, Barbarossa also became friendly with the maids of Tiberius territory.

The enemies were now sufficiently off guard.

If the enemy is sufficiently off guard, serve them a meal. Be a good host.

That was the note Anette had passed to him at the training ground that day.

* * *

Count Tiberius defeated the enemy without ever going to the battlefield, simply by holding feasts on the castle walls for two weeks.

More precisely, it was the mercenary group led by Barbarossa.

The count’s extravagant and arrogant personality was widely known. Even in the midst of war, Count Tiberius showed no sense of crisis and held lavish feasts daily, somehow finding the supplies.

One dawn, Viscount Shire’s army captured a cart entering Tiberius Castle. The cart was full of rare food and alcohol.

“Even in this situation, they still haven’t come to their senses and eat such things!”

“Please, spare me. I’m just a mere merchant delivering food because I couldn’t refuse the count’s insistence.”

Viscount Shire’s army, who had been watching the count’s daily lavish banquets from below the castle while covered in dirt, excitedly looted the cart.

So this is what noble lords eat and drink. Indeed, the food of nobles tastes special.

The food they hastily devoured, special in taste, spread dysentery throughout Shire’s army.

Even for the lax Tiberius army, attacking the weakened enemies was an easy task.

Thus, the mercenary group led by Barbarossa achieved their first merit. It was the first step of what would become a legendary mercenary group.

* * *

“As a reward for turning the tide and achieving victory, you promised one-third of the grain harvested in Tiberius territory this year.”

When they first arrived at Tiberius territory, Count Tiberius was so terrified of the castle being captured that he wouldn’t step a foot outside his bed.

Barbarossa clearly remembered that, but the Count Tiberius now was completely different.

He was arrogantly sprawled in his private room, being attended to by a young virgin while dealing with Barbarossa.

It was exactly the typical noble image that Barbarossa hated the most.

“Hmm, did I say that? I don’t quite remember.”

Sure enough, as soon as the urgent fire was put out, the count brazenly denied everything.

“I mean, you only dispatched a hundred men. What exactly did you do to demand one-third of the harvest? Even thieves have limits!”

Despite having just fought a war because his arrogant attitude offended Viscount Shire, the count’s attitude remained unchanged.

Barbarossa was smiling on the outside.

“Are you trying to negotiate?”

“If each of your hundred men takes one gold coin, that should be enough. That’s already generous of me.”

“Count, the compensation you promised was set by yourself.”

“Back then, I didn’t know it would be just a mercenary group coming! Isn’t that right? What exactly did you do just standing around here!”

“Yes, I’m still just standing around.”

Barbarossa was already pointing the tip of his drawn sword at Count Tiberius’s neck.

“N-now…!”

“The person who sent us ordered that we should not concede even a little on Inkheart’s share.”

Do what you do best.

Had that woman thought this far ahead too?

The count trembled before the blade.

“L-let’s, let’s talk about this calmly again……”

“One-third of the harvest. Without missing anything.”

“I mean! Put that down first!”

Kyaa, the maid who was pouring wine into the count’s cup screamed. Barbarossa paid no attention.

Though what happened next did surprise him a little.

* * *

“So Count Tiberius’s daughter fell for you that quickly and said she’d make you a knight if you married her? Why did you come back here? You should have gotten married there.”

Looking at the walking sinner, I held my stomach and teased him.

I mean, how is it not funny that he mistook the count’s daughter for a village maiden being harassed by the count with money and power, not realizing they were father and daughter! The count must feel wronged about that, if nothing else.

“And then that shameless man tried to act tough and refused to pay after you drove away the enemy, but his daughter heard it from the side and immediately shouted at him to pay what he owed. Because she liked you.”

If being handsome is a crime, then you deserve life imprisonment, I snickered.

This guy is something else. The count’s daughter grabbed him and asked him to marry her, and he turned pale and fled to Inkheart. He should try to change his fate.

I told him. This guy absolutely cannot date nice women. His taste is really terrible.

“She was too young to know about bad men.”

“Aren’t you regretful though? It was a chance to become a count’s son-in-law.”

“I prefer women I can break up with easily. Such a pure-hearted girl is a bit troublesome.”

“This guy’s personality, I swear.”

“This guy’s popularity, I swear.”

Barbarossa, who wanted to hide his entanglement with the count’s daughter, gritted his teeth saying he’d kill whoever spread the rumor, then asked me.

“How did you come up with such a plan? You don’t seem like someone who’s ever opened a tactics book.”

“Curious?”

“How could I not be? That strategy determined the outcome of this war.”

In the original story, the war became known for the participation of Inkheart soldiers, famous for their strength. Viscount Shire faced the war with firm resolve, resulting in a considerable long-term battle.

Amid the strict defenses, Darius witnessed a suspicious scene in Tiberius Castle.

〈What are you bringing in, Count?〉

〈Ugh, Grand Duke Inkheart…!〉

〈Bringing outsiders into the castle at a time like this. Are you insane?〉

〈N-no! This person isn’t suspicious, he’s… someone who has long been trading with Tiberius…〉

Wartime is naturally different from peacetime.

Food and other resources must all be conserved.

Therefore, Darius was maintaining strict military discipline in the castle, but the owner of the castle, Count Tiberius, could not.

Unable to bear being away from his luxurious lifestyle, he secretly called for a merchant. Promising to pay five times the price for supplies.

While some were risking their lives fighting, the main party involved in the war showed no tension—a situation that would make anyone’s blood boil.

〈How long has this been going on?〉

〈No, I really only called him a few times! I’m struggling too, and got nostalgic! I was wrong! But since I’ve already called him, just this once…〉

〈Speak clearly. Since when have you been calling this merchant, and from where, through what route?〉

Darius used the count’s foolishness to reversely trap the enemy.

He poisoned the luxurious supplies heading to the count’s castle and deliberately let the enemy loot them. In the original story, the enemies ate the food without realizing they were poisoning themselves.

Seeing that the same strategy worked this time too, Darius was truly a genius.

“Darius is amazing.”

Recalling his achievements from the original story, I couldn’t help but smile.

Count Tiberius had no reason to feel wronged about having so much money taken away despite doing little this time. After all, he had made Darius suffer so much in the original story.

‘Consider it paying karma for what his counterpart in another world did.’

“Why is the lord’s name coming up there?”

“Well, there’s a reason. Anyway, you said Count Tiberius wasn’t willing to pay up?”

But the count’s daughter, who seemed to only look at men’s faces, fell for Barbarossa and made sure he got paid.

‘In the original story, there’s no way that Count Tiberius would have given the money easily either?’

Come to think of it, in the original story, when Darius went to collect payment for the territorial war, the count also acted dirty.

He did eventually receive the promised money… but there was no mention of how he got it.

“Could it be?”

Did the count’s daughter fall for Darius back then too? So was it the daughter who scolded her father and handed over the household money then as well?

“So how did you come up with that plan? Which military text did you read it from?”

“Well… at least they didn’t meet each other this time.”

Because the girl’s first love went to that guy.

“Madam?”

“You seem useful in situations like this. Like a charm that prevents unnecessary things.”

“Oh, come on! Madam!”

I couldn’t help but glance at Barbarossa’s handsome face.

The reason I felt bad was, well…

‘Why does Darius, who should be connected with Evangeline, have so many romantic flags everywhere?’

I felt bad as the love angel who needed to connect the two. Yes, that’s it.

‘No, what am I saying about feeling bad? It’s as if I’m jealous of the girl who almost fell for Darius?’

Haha. Jealousy? No way. There’s no reason for that even if I looked hard.

Lady Ygret’s betrayal never happened, Castle Inkheart’s finances were sound, and I didn’t miss any events from the original story.

It was a satisfying day in many ways.

Except for one unsettling fact—that Darius had an abundance of romantic flags assigned to him in the original story.

Ah, this is kind of… bothering me?