The Count’s Youngest Son is a Player

The Count’s Youngest Son is a Player 55

Chapter 55

Captain Bill’s prediction hit the mark exactly.

As soon as Asen arrived, he began thrashing about in a frenzy, resulting in several soldiers getting injured.

Four horses that were being ridden by knights stirred up the camp before disappearing somewhere, paving the way for trouble.

Asen, who usually didn’t exercise much, had to be carried around the gate like baggage on the back of a knight.

The bigger problem was the enormous number of casualties during the assault.

The knights, without their horses and unable to fight properly, had no choice but to hold their ground to protect Asen.

The battle had to be entirely left to the lower-ranked mercenaries and soldiers, who were so poorly trained that encountering monsters resulted in one or two being killed or seriously injured every time.

The monsters that appeared were at best kobolds, goblins, or some kind of mutant wildlife.

Their numbers didn’t even exceed a dozen, so a hundred troops should have been able to handle them without any casualties under normal circumstances.

Ultimately, on the first day of the assault on the gate, as many as twenty mercenaries and soldiers were killed and nearly half were injured.

This outcome was not unique to this gate.

On that day alone, nearly a thousand casualties occurred across 35 F-Grade gates.

Fortunately, there were no cases where the conquest itself failed, but it was far from a satisfactory situation.

There were several reasons for such losses in dealing with just an F-Grade gate.

Firstly, the quality of the troops deployed.

No noble would send their elite troops from their own territory to the capital not knowing what might happen at their gate.

Most hastily conscripted soldiers and low-ranked mercenaries were just filling the numbers.

Secondly, the capability of the commanders.

Most families sent their young offspring as leaders of this mission.

It was partly to match the performance of the noteworthy Raul and, frankly, because there was a risk attached to sending the main forces of their domain.

As a result, knights not participating in the battle to protect their young superiors became common, leading directly to losses.

Other issues included inadequate preparation, negligence, and lack of real combat experience, among others, but the conclusion was that the first day’s assault ended with heavy losses.

However, most families did not consider this a significant detriment.

Proving this, the next day they entered the gates again with the same number of forces as the day before.

After all, troops and mercenaries were considered expendable as long as the result was the clearance of the gate.

“Damn, what a miserable experience this is.”

It was already the fourth gate’s conquest.

Asen grumbled about the unfamiliar weight of the armor, moving with heavy steps.

He never imagined having to sweat in such an unknown place.

‘What’s the big deal with these damn gates anyway?’

People were sucked into them when they first appeared, sure, but now almost no victims emerged as everyone learned to avoid them.

And who knows what will happen in the future, but so far, no monsters have sprung from the gates, right?

It seemed like there would be no issue if they were just left alone, so what’s all the fuss?

In fact, his own family hadn’t yet interfered with the gates, just surrounding them and watching.

In a way, his being sent as part of the first assault team on the gates was hardly any different.

“It’s empty.”

“How did this happen? Did they know we were coming and run away?”

The knights tilted their heads in confusion, but they couldn’t easily find an answer.

“So what now? Is it over or not?”

When Asen asked, Marco replied impatiently,

“You have to kill all the monsters to complete the gate attack. Of course, it’s not over yet.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Go find them and kill them!”

Asen, irritated after a long walk, shouted.

“…Understood.”

Marco replied reluctantly and walked towards the knights.

They couldn’t wander around in the forest without proper scouts, so they needed a plan.

But then,

Marco felt as if he stepped on something squishy and lifted his foot to check, tilting his head curiously.

“What’s this?”

A somewhat yellowish and slippery semi-solid substance was on the ground.

Looking around, he saw these substances scattered throughout the village.

‘Monster slime? Or rather, could this be… oil!?’

Startled, Marco was about to inform his colleagues when,

Whizzz!

A fire arrow flew from the forest outside the village and landed.

“Everyone, take cover! It’s a trap!”

Marco shouted too late, as the troops had already settled in the village square.

“Aaah!”

“It’s fire!”

“Save me~!”

Chaos ensued.

Although the entire village didn’t burst into flames instantly, the fire, spreading from the strange semi-solid substance, emitted choking smoke that plunged people into confusion.

“Young master! We must escape!”

“Cough, Mar, Marco! What’s, what’s happening…?”

Tears and mucus streaming down his face from the smoke, Asen was grabbed by the arm and pulled out of the village by Marco, with other knights following.

The knights moved swiftly, and only a few quick-thinking mercenaries managed to join the escape.

But they had to stop in their tracks with the village gate in sight.

“Growl.”

Unidentifiable monsters had surrounded the village.

Their presence was on a different level from any monster encountered in an F-Grade gate before.

It was because these creatures were the empire’s bio-weapons, the ‘demon beasts.’

‘It seems today is more cursed than blessed.’

Of course, media outlets, temples, and mage towers were constantly sending out warnings.

“Neglecting a gate could turn into a significant threat later on.”

“Failure to conquer a gate will result in an increase of up to three times the number of gates in the vicinity.”

“The magical energy measurements of neglected gates are gradually increasing. On the other hand, even high-grade gates reset their magic levels once they are conquered.”

Despite the circulation of such news, I honestly wondered why it mattered.

Even now, monsters hid and lived throughout the territory, but they weren’t causing any problems.

In fact, the nobles from neighboring territories who were always looking for an opportunity posed a more significant threat than the monsters, didn’t they?

Of course, they say the haze surrounding the neglected gates is getting thicker, giving off an ominous feeling, but that’s just superficial.

“Damn it! I thought I’d at least make some pocket money….”

There were others, a brother and a younger sibling, who said they would come. But I insisted and went ahead, which I deeply regretted now.

During the conquest, there were occasions when valuable loot appeared.

Unlike the monsters outside, some monsters inside the gates often harbored mana stones in their heads, and the corpses of mutated monsters were so valuable that mages would pay top dollar for them.

Hadn’t I received offers from all over when I was assigned here?

But it all turned to be futile. Anything obtained here couldn’t be taken outside.

The moment the gate disappeared, so did everything I had gathered.

With this in mind, was there really any point in conquering gates?

Following that revelation, word came from home that no more reinforcements would be sent, and orders were given to conserve our forces while still conquering gates.

‘Were they planning to withdraw from the gate soon?’

It was a relief that we wouldn’t have to engage in such foolish acts anymore, but I would have to endure hardships until then.

Knights were expected to lead in battle, meaning I had to move my own body.

‘When you think about it, this is all his fault.’

Raul de Ashton.

A nobody who suddenly appeared and became the star of the capital Thurium in an instant.

‘If only that guy hadn’t made such a fuss….’

Initially, I was quite envious and covetous.

Anyone with common sense wouldn’t cling to gates, incurring losses, unless they stood to gain something – so everyone thought.

It must be because he was obtaining something that he hired a thousand high-class mercenaries to target the gates.

Or perhaps he was just too rich and was squandering money.

“That scam artist.”

Either way, I was the one suffering because of it.

Although not participating in actual combat, walking for more than three hours a day was no easy task.

“Sir Marco, much further?”

“It’s a bit strange. The number of monsters seems too low. It looks less like we’re encountering less than a fifth of the usual count. By now, we should have almost cleared them out….”

“What’s the problem? Less monsters is a good thing, right?”

“… I hope I’m just being paranoid.”

Marco couldn’t shake off a feeling of unease.

Thus, Asen and his group crossed the forest, arriving at a site presumed to be the goblin’s stronghold. Marco bit his lip hard and shouted, “Charge!”

Regardless of how they knew to set a trap or what their true nature was, the priority was to survive.

From Marco’s sword, a sky-blue blade energy blazed.

* * *

Knock, knock.

“Young master. The captain of the guard is here to see you.”

“Let him in.”

As Raul finished speaking, the door burst open, revealing the captain of the guard with an urgent look on his face.

“young master Raul, we have a serious problem!”

“Yes?”

Truth be told, Raul had expected a visit from the captain of the guard at some point, but this was sooner than anticipated.

‘I thought at least after the appointment ceremony, what could it be?’

Even after discovering the gate was as empty as a tin can, the family’s reputation was at stake. Nobles wouldn’t withdraw from a gate in less than a week.

“A team has gone missing!”

“What do you mean? Are you talking about the team that entered the F-Grade gate?”

Raul asked with a slightly incredulous look, to which the captain of the guard nodded, as if equally bewildered.

“Yes. It seems impossible, but that team really has gone missing.”

“Wait, ‘teams’? You mean it’s not just one?”

“Yes. Over the past two days, a total of ten teams have not returned. No, they’ve disappeared!”

Raul pressed his forehead, sinking into thought.

‘Not just one means it’s not a gate transformation… But usually, even E-Grade gates can be tackled with three knights. There’s something more!’

Occasionally, gates changed in ranking, but at most by one grade. This situation seemed unrelated.

“Has anyone else entered the gate, apart from the expedition teams? Especially the gates where people have gone missing.”

“We’ve investigated, and according to the soldiers, no one else has entered. And as you know, until a gate is completely conquered, no one can exit. Even if someone did enter, they couldn’t evade our soldiers’ eyes to escape!”

“Of course, but…”

It wasn’t entirely without precedent. But could they have already appeared…?

Something flashed through Raul’s mind at that moment.

‘Could it be that they have made their move?’

Leaning forward slightly, Raul asked with sharpened gaze, “What is the status of the gates where the disappearances occurred? A rescue team has surely been dispatched, right? What have they found? What’s the situation with those gates now?”

“Eh? Yes??”

Facing the flustered captain of the guard, Raul pressed on.

“Time is of the essence. Tell me everything you know, without leaving out a single detail!”

“Ah, yes. I was about to inform you.”

The captain, overwhelmed by Raul’s intensity, began to sweat as he started to unravel the details of the incident.

Raul’s eyes faintly gleamed with a golden light as he listened.

(To be continued)