Lord of Rot

The leader of the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps couldn’t help but feel nervous as he watched Baron Porcupine’s caravans enter Mama City.

’Just selling grain?’

’Impossible!’

’They’re definitely trying to take advantage of the crisis. No matter what connection Porcupine has with Mama City, the scales of victory in this battle are no longer tipping in my favor.’

Retreat was also out of the question. The majority of his Extraordinary combat power had vanished. Death would be one thing, but if they had all defected to Porcupine... ’No, impossible!’

He had no path of retreat. All he could do now was rely on the former glory of the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps to keep up appearances. The longer he waited, the harder things would become.

While maintaining the siege on Mama City, the leader sent out a letter via raven.

The only person who could make Baron Porcupine hesitate was the Water Buffalo Count. He hoped the Count could… no, he *had* to stop Porcupine.

The reply came back quickly, arriving the very same day. He recalled how, in the past, whenever he asked the Water Buffalo Count for a favor, someone was always conveniently busy, or he was told to wait. This time, things went so smoothly it felt like a god was watching over him.

’Have the gods started to favor me now that I’ve become a noble? This is too lucky!’

After receiving the letter, a wave of relief washed over him.

During this time, Baron Porcupine’s merchants showed no sign of leaving Mama City, but his anxiety had gradually turned into confidence.

’Not planning on leaving? Then none of you will leave!’

Over three thousand mercenaries gathered from all across the desert. They were all mercenaries affiliated with the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps, and they had rushed over without a moment’s delay after hearing the call.

Although rumors were rampant that the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps had been utterly crushed by Porcupine, no one had seen it with their own eyes.

To get by in this region, you could be ignorant of a certain lord, but you couldn’t be ignorant of the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps. People firmly believed that a starved camel was still bigger than a horse, and that this outsider, Porcupine, wouldn’t have an easy time.

「Morning.」

The leader of the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps, Viscount Matthew, gazed out at the raucous ranks.

The undisciplined, disorganized mercenaries gathered in twos, threes, and larger groups, discussing women, wine, and treasure. Their buzzing was like that of green-eyed flies swarming over a pile of rotting fruit.

”Quiet!” Viscount Matthew, the leader, shouted at the top of his lungs.

Using the powerful voice of a Transcendent, his shout carried a great distance, ensuring everyone could hear. Even the soldiers on watch atop Mama City’s walls heard the cry and peered over to look, but Viscount Matthew paid them no mind.

The scene was still chaotic. The mercenaries were used to doing their own thing. They would chop off the heads of their friends and brothers for money, but no amount of pay could make them stand up straight.

For the first time, Matthew felt a sense of disgust for mercenaries. As a noble Viscount, he began to understand why the aristocracy looked down on these men. They were like dung beetles with no ambition, treating the rolling of their dung ball as their life’s mission.

He made a new resolution. ’Perhaps Mama City won’t become a haven for mercenaries in the future.’ But for now, he still needed these insolent brutes.

Raising his voice as loud as he could, he held up a letter. ”Friends! As you can see, I am Matthew, leader of the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps, and I have now been enfeoffed as a Viscount by the Count!”

It was an open secret, and he could finally announce it publicly.

The mercenaries quieted down, then erupted in cheers.

This was why they had come here.

”Mama City has betrayed the Count, betrayed the Immortal Spirit, and betrayed Princess Sophia!” He periodically glanced at the letter in his hand, which contained phrases provided by the Water Buffalo Count. War needed a justification; even with absolute power, one could not afford to lose the support of the people.

”They are notorious bandits! They ambush and kill the innocent! They cruelly reap the lives of merchants! Today, you will follow me to breach Mama City! We will hang the head of Lion·Ma Ma high upon the city walls!”

From the crowd, a mercenary shouted, ”Can you leave the Desert Pearl for me? It’d be a waste to kill her.”

A wave of derisive laughter immediately followed.

Matthew’s expression stiffened. He currently held the absolute moral high ground. He had the Count’s backing, he himself was a noble so this wasn’t an act of insubordination, and the matter of Mama City masquerading as bandits wasn’t a fabrication. For some idiot to suddenly pop up and demand to ’enjoy’ Lisu Muma was making a mockery of his righteous cause.

But he quickly forced a smile. ”Mama City has forsaken its faith! After the city falls, you have three days to plunder!”

It was an old tradition for placating restless mercenaries.

”ROAR!!” The mercenaries went wild.

Matthew only needed a city. Whether the people inside lived or died was unimportant!

Besides, Baron Porcupine’s men were in the city. Without sufficient incentive, why would the mercenaries risk their lives to break in?

Having been a mercenary himself, he knew these men all too well. They hadn’t gathered here for justice or for honor, but because they’d heard there was a crowd and wanted to fish in troubled waters.

On the walls of Mama City.

Through the eyes of a Corpse Ghost, Leech watched the mercenaries several miles away as they constructed siege ladders, Wooden Curtain Carriages, battering rams, and other equipment.

’The Wild Boar Mercenary Corps really has some nerve. So, is he declaring war on Mama City and me directly?’

He himself wasn’t in Mama City, and the forces he’d left behind were not nearly strong enough to deal with such a large number of mercenaries.

Even if a raven was sent out at the first possible moment, by the time Leech could muster his troops and rush to their aid, this hasty siege might already be nearing its end.

The enemy was trying to race against time.

However, Leech believed the leader of the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps dared to do this because he was standing on the side of ”justice,” convinced that Leech, as an outsider noble, wouldn’t dare to intervene rashly.

From what Leech knew of Mama City, the family indeed had a stained reputation. His first Extraordinary Corpse Ghost, Aina, had been beaten to near death by Stallion·Muma’s subordinates and then put up for sale on the Black Market.

Through Corpse Ghost Aina’s memories, he was aware of many of Mama City’s evil deeds.

Lisu Muma stood not far away. She drew her longsword and shouted, ”They won’t spare anyone! They will slaughter our families and plunder our property and warhorses! Everyone, we fight to the death!”

”Yes!!”

The two hundred-odd city guards against over three thousand mercenaries… even with the defensible terrain, it would be difficult to hold them off. Besides, among the three thousand-plus mercenaries who had arrived, it was impossible that there wasn’t a single Transcendent.

Leech was not optimistic about the outcome. Still, the fact that the Wild Boar Mercenary Corps wanted to forcibly wipe out his caravan also infuriated him.

’I didn’t have time to settle the score with you then, and now you’re getting up in my face?’

He suddenly froze.

A jolt, like an electric current, shot through his mind.

’Swear an oath to the Immortal Spirit, swear an oath to Princess Sophia... that’s right! How could I have forgotten? The true leader of the desert is Princess Sophia, not the Water Buffalo Count!’

Leech looked over at the short-haired Lisu Muma.

’Look, I have a princess now!’

He now had a reason to intervene. And he suspected that it was the Lucky Potion that had helped him think of it.

「Bonta Market.」

Leech immediately ordered the female barbarian Lin Nuo to gather their forces, had the noble youth Hade organize their arms and weapons, and sent men to find Buerwell and the other Wandering Knights, who were currently disguised as desert bandits and raiding throughout the desert.

At his strict command, all his forces gathered at once.

”Buerwell.”

Leech looked at the old, weather-beaten Knight.

”My lord?” Buerwell looked at Leech blankly, not understanding what he meant.

”Do you still remember what Princess Sophia looked like?”

”Of course!” He straightened his back, and the whiskers at the corners of his mouth seemed to perk up. ”Her beautiful face was like the waters of the Sapphire River, and her eyes were full of wisdom, as if they held the entire desert within them…”

As Leech listened to the description, the image of a face in the style of Van Gogh unconsciously formed in his mind.

’How can a person look like river water? That’s a bit too Cthulhu-esque!’

”If Princess Sophia had been pregnant back then, how old would her child be now?” Leech asked. All he needed to know was that she was beautiful.

”Back then?” Buerwell frowned. Though he wasn’t a personal guard Knight, he was very familiar with Princess Sophia. It was impossible for the princess to have been pregnant.

”I’m speaking hypothetically,” Leech said.

Buerwell hesitated. ”About twelve, I suppose. But my lord, Princess Sophia was not pregnant.”

If Princess Sophia really had been pregnant back then, how would the Water Buffalo Count have had the chance to usurp her position? He would never have obtained the right of succession. Since ancient times, Leon City has had only one ruler, and the desert recognizes only one ruler: Princess Sophia.

The Princess Sophias of every generation!

”Fifteen!” With a single word, Leech forcibly determined the age of the non-existent, never-born Little Sofia.

”Huh?” Buerwell was stunned.

”I have found the Princess Sophia,” Leech said. ”She’s in Mama City, living under the name Lisu Muma to hide her identity.”

”What?”

Buerwell had seen Lisu Muma before. He admitted she was beautiful, but she looked nothing like Princess Sophia.

Leech gave him a strange look and asked, ”You’ve finally found the princess you swore to protect. Aren’t you happy?”

Understanding dawned on Buerwell.

’That’s right. What they needed right now was a Princess Sophia.’

’Does it matter who Princess Sophia is?’

’What matters is who helps Princess Sophia!’

”Thank you for your help, Lord Leech!”

Leech smiled and shook his head. ”It is all for the sake of justice. Princess Sophia is under attack by rebels right now. We must hurry and help her.”

”Yes! We will protect Princess Sophia to the death!”