The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Chapter 110

“……Here it is, Sir Sylbeta.”

The White Knight opened the box he held with a nervous expression.

Goooooo.

Inside, there was a murky red stone that emitted an ominous feeling.

It exuded an aura that made those who saw it feel discomfort and revulsion, yet they couldn’t take their eyes off it.

An artificial mana device, the Blood Jewel.

“Uh, Sir Sylbeta, perhaps you should reconsider…….”

White Knight Endawin advised his lord.

This Blood Jewel was a prototype and a failure.

“As you know, this is a prototype made from the blood of monsters. It’s dangerous.”

They hadn’t used human sacrifices to create jewels from the beginning.

When making the prototype, they captured monsters and used their refined blood.

However, monsters, which inherently had flawed mana, had chaotic characteristics in their mana and life force.

The completed prototype Blood Jewel was judged to be unusable due to its unstable energy.

Therefore, when creating the second jewel, they used the life force of the Fairy Tribe, which had the purest mana, as the base and supplemented it with human blood.

“I don’t have time.”

If he delayed any further, the mana device would be permanently damaged.

“And the more unstable it is, the more powerful it is.”

Although he was currently consumed by madness, he hadn’t lost all his rationality.

The Conqueror of the Winter Queen’s Domain, Aden Remes.

‘Though I don’t know how he did it, he defeated the Winter Queen.’

According to recent information, he was at the pinnacle of aura, a semi-master.

However, it was well-known that he had visited his father, Grand Duke Vernon, and received a piece of the Ice Drake King’s core.

With the power of that elixir, he could be led to the realm of a master from a semi-master.

It was impossible for someone who had defeated the Winter Queen to be only at the semi-master level.

‘Aden Remes, at minimum, is at the level of a superhuman, a Sword Master.’

He would know where the essence of the Winter Queen was.

If he had hidden it somewhere, they needed to find it, and if he had consumed it himself, they needed to deal with him and use him to create the complete jewel.

But to face such an opponent, he couldn’t be in a state with a damaged mana device.

“If this jewel is incomplete, I will simply make it complete.”

So he just needed to hold out for a while.

Enough time to cut off the neck of that damned Aden Remes, who had trampled on his ambitions.

The Thunderstorm Knight Sylbeta grasped the Blood Jewel in his hand.

And then…

“Hup!”

Slam!

He forcefully drove the sharp part of the jewel into his own chest.

As red blood spurted out, half of the jewel embedded into the center of his chest…

Wriggle.

Then, something like tentacles sprouted from the jewel, rooted into his body, and burrowed inside.

“Ugh!”

Clenching his teeth, enduring the pain that made blood vessels in his eyes burst, the jewel completely burrowed into his body.

“Sir, Sir Sylbeta? Are you alright……?”

“Ugh…… hehehe.”

The groans that had been seeping from Sylbeta’s mouth soon turned into laughter.

“Ahahaha!”

Boom-!

Rumble, rumble.

Mana surged around the Thunderstorm Knight, emanating powerful energy.

“Ugh!”

The White Knight was thrown to the ground by the force.

Sylbeta slowly opened his eyes.

Feeling his body’s condition, a bizarre smile spread across his lips.

A faint red aura was rising from his body.

“It’s been a long time since I felt this invigorated.”

He felt an immense power and exhilaration.

The true strength of the Grand Duchy’s Sword Master, the Thunderstorm Knight, had been revived.

Of course, he could feel it.

The monster’s mana within him was lying in wait, ready to devour him.

But it didn’t matter.

For now, he felt invincible.

Then, a thought crossed his mind.

‘If I obtain the essence of the Winter Queen now…’

Then he could become the strongest knight he ever desired to be.

Just the thought of it made him so delighted that a smile spread across the Thunderstorm Knight’s face.

His greedy expression made him look like a monster.

* * *

Aden had prevented the Thunderstorm Knight Sylbeta from repairing his damaged mana device and from obtaining the essence of the Winter Queen to make a new Blood Jewel in a short time.

A Sword Master with a damaged mana device.

Now, Sylbeta’s downfall was practically certain.

‘But people can do even worse when cornered.’

A knight at the level of a superhuman, having his mana device permanently damaged, was a humiliation worse than death.

Because of this, Aden thought he could end his revenge against the Thunderstorm Knight at this point.

If he gave up and stopped here, that is.

‘But that won’t happen.’

The Thunderstorm Knight would never stop here.

If he were someone who would give up his obsession with grand titles and honor for just this, he wouldn’t have gone mad to fix his mana device.

He would use his last resort.

And…

‘He will target me.’

In the memories of the Black Knight Dares Clayman, Sylbeta’s obsession with the Winter Queen was immense.

He had always masked his obsession and ambition with the guise of a noble cause.

The strongest knight who defeated the Winter Queen and saved the Grand Duchy.

Aden had stolen that dream opportunity and the hope to fix his mana device by consuming the Winter Queen’s essence.

‘To him, I am a hateful being who has taken everything from him.’

Feeling satisfied with that fact, Aden wore a cold smile.

‘He will definitely use the failed prototype.’

Then he would make a big move.

‘My job is to wait for him to make that choice.’

He was curious about what choice he would make.

“Lord Aden Remes, there is a message from Frost Fortress.”

The next day.

Priest Barkus came to Aden.

“Commander of Frost Fortress, Sir Sylbeta Sias, has invited you to a private dinner.”

As expected.

‘So that is your choice.’

A bright smile spread across Aden’s face.

* * *

Knight King Sylbeta Sias.

Aden first met him when the warlock suppression organization was formed.

At that time, Aden was tasked with sweeping one of the warlocks’ key strongholds.

Since it wasn’t a particularly large stronghold, he didn’t think much of it.

However, somehow, the information leaked, and they were ambushed by the warlocks.

Because of that, many of the mercenaries who were with him died, and Aden was also in danger.

The Knight King Sylbeta, who had been moving separately, sensed the anomaly and appeared with reinforcements, striking down the warlocks.

Thanks to that, Aden and the surviving mercenaries were saved, and that’s when they first properly met.

Since then, they often operated together due to missions, naturally becoming close.

“Aden, isn’t that too underhanded? I’ve never felt so sorry for the warlocks, even though they are enemies.”

“Whether it’s underhanded or not, winning is what matters. You stubborn knight never understands.”

“Ha! That’s rich coming from you. You’ll never shake off your vulgar mercenary ways.”

“I don’t plan to, and what’s wrong with being a mercenary? Oh, you’re so noble, huh? Our great and noble Knight King, ooh, look at you. What’s with that face? Jealous? Wanna go at it?”

“…Fine, let’s settle it today, you damn friend!”

Well, to be precise, they were frenemies.

The Grand Duke and the Mercenary King.

A knight and a mercenary.

There was a deep, unbridgeable chasm between them, making them close yet unable to truly be friends.

However, because of that, they respected each other as comrades more than anyone else.

“Aden, your assistance is invaluable. You are a comrade I can always trust.”

He had once said to Aden.

A comrade he could trust with his back.

Though Aden never expressed it, he felt the same way.

“We had no choice but to make this decision. I won’t ask for forgiveness, Aden.”

Then, on the last day of the Great Talos War, before throwing him into the Void, he had driven a dagger into his chest.

Saying he had ‘no choice’ but to make that decision.

‘Don’t forgive me,’ he had said.

‘Ridiculous.’

From the beginning, it had all been planned.

The one who kills the Demon Lord becomes the new Demon Lord, making them the perfect prey to be sealed away immediately after killing them.

To them, Aden was worth no more than that.

Aden did not forgive him as he had asked.

Not even after transcending time, returning to the past, and entering an entirely different body.

And now, as a result…

“I am Sylbeta Sias, the master and commander of Frost Fortress.”

At the gates of Frost Fortress, Aden stood face to face with the one who had been his friend, comrade, and traitor in his past life.

“It’s an honor to meet the hero who defeated the Winter Queen and saved the Grand Duchy, Lord Aden Remes.”

Sword Master, the Thunderstorm Knight Sylbeta.

His former comrade, who couldn’t hide his murderous intent and delight as he glared at Aden with bloodshot eyes.

He activated Master Fear against Aden openly.

Showing no intention of hiding his killing intent.

“Ha.”

Aden couldn’t help but laugh.

It seemed he had gone through more trouble than expected.

There was no Knight King Sylbeta here.

Only a Sword Master, blinded by greed and allied with warlocks, stood

before him.

Aden liked the Sylbeta he had created.

Suppressing the urge to burst into laughter out of enjoyment, Aden looked around, unable to hide his smile of delight.

“This is quite the welcome.”

On Aden’s left and right, fifty knights each were lined up.

A hundred knights in total.

“Such a grand welcome might make one think someone important is here. Isn’t that right, Thunderstorm Knight?”

They were all fully armed and emanating a subtle killing intent.

All were loyal subordinates of Sylbeta, at least at the level of advanced sword aura.

Surrounded by a Sword Master and a hundred advanced sword aura knights.

Even a master-level mage or swordsman would struggle to survive here.

-So, what about that warlock leader?

‘Of course, Niketa is an exception.’

To handle her, at least five Sword Masters would be necessary.

A smile deepened on Sylbeta’s lips.

“Judging by your expression, you seem to know everything already.”

“Well, I’m not sure what you’re referring to. Trying to cripple my brother at the imperial banquet? Aiding in turning the Sacred Fire Order into Chaos’s puppet? Supporting the Umbra Guild’s bio-experiments?”

“……”

Sylbeta’s expression turned cold at Aden’s words.

The surrounding knights didn’t show any reaction to Aden’s words.

This meant they had known about Sylbeta’s deeds from the start and were in on it.

“Then you must know why I called you here. Yet you still accepted the invitation… you have no fear.”

“Of what? That I might die to these guys? I, who defeated the Winter Queen?”

Twitch.

At the mention of the Winter Queen, the Thunderstorm Knight’s eyes twitched.

Boom-!

The killing intent that had been faintly lingering now manifested openly as Master Fear, pressing down on Aden.

But…

“This level of Master Fear…”

Aden’s own killing intent, Master Fear, rose from his body.

Crackle, crackle!

The Thunderstorm Knight’s Master Fear and Aden’s Master Fear clashed, cancelling each other out.

For a moment, the Thunderstorm Knight’s eyes widened, and then he burst into laughter.

“Haha! You’ve reached the level of a superhuman! No wonder you defeated the Winter Queen!”

His laughter was filled with intense killing intent and jealousy.

“Let’s get to the point. What did you do with the Winter Queen’s essence? Did you consume it? Or hide it somewhere?”

“Do you think I would tell you that?”

“Well, if the saintess of the Sacred Fire Order is held hostage, it might be a different story.”

“…What are you talking about?”

Seeing Aden’s face harden, a cruel smile spread across Sylbeta’s face.

“I have semi-master knights, a red knight and a white knight as my closest aides. Where do you think they are right now?”

“……”

“By now, my knights would have taken over the Sacred Fire Order’s temple. The young saintess of the Sacred Fire Order, and your companions, should all be subdued by now.”

“That’s impossible.”

Watching Aden’s eyes waver as he denied reality, Sylbeta scoffed and took out an artifact, a crystal orb, from his pocket.

“Heh, if you can’t believe it, I’ll show you…”

The crystal orb displayed the red and white knights, and the knights sent to the Sacred Fire Order…

“W-What, what is this…?”

And soon, Sylbeta’s eyes trembled with shock.

“Puhahahaha!”

-Kuh, excellent acting, Dragon Slayer.

Watching this, Aden burst into laughter, discarding his earlier anxious expression.

Meanwhile, Sylbeta’s gaze remained fixed on the crystal orb.

-Kyaooo!

-Kraaagh!

-What’s that giant wolf beast?

-What’s with that ogre in priest’s robes?

-Aaaargh!

The crystal orb showed Choco, the priest Bali, and other companions wreaking havoc, mercilessly dealing with Sylbeta’s knights.