Extra chapter thanks to Spectra for the donation
«B-baron Yandel...?»
When I emerged to the surface again, some knights stiffened at the sight of me. To be fair, from his point of view he probably looked like a ghost who had come back from the dead, considering how Jerome had put me in danger after losing consciousness.
«Um... are you okay...?»
One of the knights seemed to have noticed that something was wrong, as he did not get any closer, keeping his distance. However, for some reason, he wasn't able to look me in the eyes.
Did he feel guilty or something?
«Call Count Saintred», I ordered him. «I have something to tell you».
«Excuse me? Oh... Yeah! I will go convey your message!» The knight, one of the group that had been standing guard around the tree, ran away quickly.
Shortly after, Jerome Saintred appeared with a huge group of knights. He stared at me for a while, as if he wanted to verify my identity, before saying to the others: «Leave this place to me. Go rest».
Okay, I guess I'm safe for now.
Still, I tried my best to maintain a neutral expression. This was the core of our plan. I needed to make Jerome believe that I was the village chief.
Although he was now calm enough to have a conversation, we both fell into silence. I was the one who broke it.
«Don't worry. The ritual has ended successfully».
I said it in a way that the barbarian warrior, Bjorn son of Yandel would never say.
Only then did Jerome seem relieved to say: «I'm relieved to hear it. Then give me 'that' like you promised. Or are you thinking better after coming here? If so, I suggest you think about it immediately. If you don't, you will find it difficult to live with that body outside...»
«I have no such thoughts. It's just that there's one thing I couldn't tell you then...» When I interrupted myself and left the rest unsaid, Jerome stared at me, silently asking me to explain. «That object currently cannot be moved».
«...What do you mean?»
«It's like I said. When I woke up in this body, I was next to the dimensional tombstone. And... that object had merged with the dimensional tombstone. I have tried many times, but I have not been able to remove that object».
Surprisingly, this story was half true. If he remembered correctly what the boss had said, it seemed that the heart had broken away from the tombstone when he tried to open a portal to escape. That was the moment he realized that he couldn't use the portal while in a monster's body.
However, with no way of knowing it, Jerome became enraged.
«Damn you. Why are you telling me now?»
«There is an order to all things».
«Are you kidding?!»
«There is any problem? I know you're trying to get that item for your king. Couldn't you just bring it here to use? And although I couldn't find a way to separate the object from the tombstone, you could find it».
Standing firm against his anger, Jerome calmed down. Although more than forcibly containing himself, it seemed that Jerome assimilated the new information with cold and calculating eyes.
«...lo haré».
And soon, Jerome spoke.
«I will personally check the object».
«Hmm», I hummed in a display of contemplation, »then I will take my warriors and leave the village. That way, you can take your time after-»
«No, until I've seen it for myself, you're not going anywhere.».
...i knew you would say that.
«Do what you want.»
Now, everything depended on the village chief.
***
The monster village hidden under a tree. After reaching their location, the expedition group received an order. However, they were not ordered to charge at her or destroy her.
«Prepare until you receive another order!»
Instead, they received an indefinite waiting order.
However, the knights, priests and magicians of the expedition group swallowed saliva at the order, their nerves on edge. As simple as the order was, the truth was that they were not simply waiting. No, they stood at attention as they faced the hundreds of village warriors who looked back at them.
«Ebost. If those monsters move or do something suspicious, charge up and kill them all».
«Understood.»
«And while I'm away, help Baron Yandel too.»
From the way he said «help», I realized that the deputy commander was aware of the situation. However, knowing Jerome's personality, he would not have given a detailed explanation to his assistant. Most likely he just told her to keep an eye on me and keep me on tight.
«But will you really be okay alone?», asked the deputy commander.
«Don't worry. If you can do your duty in this place, nothing dangerous will happen».
Although it may not have been obvious to the naked eye, the truth is that Jerome's actions were not reckless, not when I believed the village chief was inside my body. And since he knew that the village monsters were also tied to this place, being inside the village should not have posed any danger to him.
«Ejem ... »
So when Jerome entered the village alone, the deputy commander cleared his throat and approached me clumsily.
I ignored him, preferring to focus on my thoughts.
Alright, so what's going to happen...?
The boss had told me that if I could get Jerome Saintred into the cave alone, he would take care of the rest. He sounded so confident that I let him, and even if the boss failed, he didn't have much to lose. Whether the village chief overpowered Jerome and stole his body or Jerome defended himself and killed the chief, I would win with either outcome.
Of course, if Jerome returned alive, it would become public that I had conspired with the village chief.
But he was the one who tried to betray me first.
This was just revenge.
There would remain some hostility between us, as we had both acted against each other's interests, but we could talk about it and reconcile later.
And if the village chief wins, I will win too.
The climax of this operation fell on the village chief. He was the one who chose this path in the first place. The only part that worried me was the possibility that they would form another agreement and betray me again.
This is eating me alive. I can't trust either the village chief or Jerome.
But the more I thought about it, the less likely an agreement between them seemed to me.
It's not like I didn't have a plan for that situation either.
For now, I just needed to see how the situation developed.
«Ebost, could I talk to my allies for a moment?». I applied, trying to test the limits.
However, I was denied without giving myself a chance.
«I apologize. When the commander returns, I will ask him to allow you to speak to your allies, so please wait until then.»
«...Of course.»
I was worried about my captured allies, but quickly put it aside for now. Judging by his stubborn response, he doubted he could find any way to convince him.
...I have to ask Missha about the Renaissance Stone too.
Of course, I wasn't going to ask him directly. I was just going to do a little check, to see if my suspicions were true. The Renaissance Stone almost certainly came from Baekho Lee, he was almost one hundred percent sure. He also had an idea why he had given the stone to Missha.
Every time I think I can trust that guy, he does something like this.
To be honest, it didn't even feel like a betrayal. I was just frustrated by how obsessed I could be.
Suspired.
In any case, I spent the time thinking about next steps while the knights kept me at bay.
«The count has returned...!»
Jerome Saintred returned from the village alone, just as he had left, and stood before me. For some reason, anxiety took over me.
Is he the village chief, or still Jerome?
I soon got my answer.
The expedition group commander looked at me as he extended his hand to me. «Baron Yandel, thank you. I was able to defeat him thanks to you».
Very good, it was a success.
He had no way of knowing what exactly had happened when it was just the two of them. There was only one thing I did know.
The village chief won.
The village chief had overpowered Jerome Saintred and taken over his body. In other words, the expedition group, which consisted of dogs loyal to the palace, had suddenly switched to any type.
With this, we had command over the entire expedition group.
«Ebost, free Baron Yandel's allies.»
«...Sorry? But...»
«You don't need to worry. Everything I did to the baron was a plan to deceive the village chief.»
«...To deceive him?»
The subcommander seemed confused by the sudden change in the situation, so I hastened to intervene: «The village chief has a method to monitor everything that happens on the island. That's why we needed to fool all of you first to fool him».
«That? Then...»
«It was an act from the beginning to kill the village chief». I finished with that and didn't give any further details. We didn't have time for that, and I might end up making a mistake if I did.
«Baron Yandel, great job», the commander said happily. «Acting like this definitely wouldn't have been easy».
«Hahaha! This is nothing!»
Although the deputy commander was unable to fully accept the situation, he remained silent while we both laughed out loud. We were the ones saying it was like that, so what could he do about it?
Not to mention that this person tended to want to believe the best in a situation.
«Hey... I was wondering why things were a little weird. I kept believing you had a plan... but it seemed like you were abandoning Baron Yandel, commander...»
In the end, if we said that these circumstances had occurred due to a collaboration between Jerome and me, there would be no problems.
Perhaps because for that reason, although the members of the expedition group doubted the process, they did not doubt our words.
I guess for now we've overcome the first hurdle.
Honestly, using an excuse like this to make the expedition group understand was very important. This would allow the village chief, who was now Jerome Saintred, to live his life without further obstacles, and would also allow us to move forward with the next steps of our plan.
The problem is that we need not to be discovered sooner...
Of course, that part didn't particularly worry me either. He knew how immaculate this guy was in everything he did after experiencing everything that had happened so far.
«Commander...! The monsters are starting to take over!»
«It seems that they have finally realized that their leader has died.»
Soon, when the monsters staring at us began to shout something in the ancient language, the village chief gave the order without hesitation.
«Charge! Destroy the monsters!», he ordered against the beings who until not long ago were his subordinates.
«¡Nia Rafdonia...!»
When the expedition group took up the charge to attack them, the monsters were slaughtered without much resistance. They couldn't even fight back properly, and it wasn't because they had lost their core, the village chief.
«They are not resisting at all...» I realized. «Just... what did they do?»
«It's not a big deal. I just told them to fight a little before they died. Now they are useless, right?»
...What the hell?
Despite feeling a chill run down my spine, I could understand why he had done it.
...They are intelligent and can communicate through ancient language, so this is the safest method to get rid of them.
The dead did not speak.
The problem now was that I was the only person in the world who knew the village chief's secret. So while I would always be on guard against him, I didn't allow myself to think too negatively about my prospects.
There were also some positive aspects to take into account.
«Everything is over...»
After the village was destroyed, the chief spoke through Jerome's voice.
«Your contribution in this battle was truly significant, Baron Yandel. As such, I wish to grant you a suitable reward... The essences we have gathered so far? Mana stones? Team? Tell me what you want».
I now had an official method of taking advantage of the wealth of the royal house.