Chapter 27: TBSL

Chapter 27

Rishikida Amshel, the senior knight of Nudia, decided to surrender to the Clauzen March.

Immediately after that, Shion appointed her as his new escort knight.

The unexpected development left not only the knights but also several retainers in confusion.

Rishikida, once known within Clauzen’s ranks as a model of loyalty, had become a completely different person in just two days spent beside Shion Clauzen.

Even Shion himself—who had just recently taken in an enemy knight as his escort—was the center of rumors.

What is this? How did Rishikida Amshel end up by Lord Shion’s side?
Did the young lord seduce her with some kind of fatal charm?

“No, you idiots!”

“Don’t spread weird rumors! I just barely got her to stay!”

“Hey! Of course it makes sense! You all saw it, didn’t you? Lord Shion jumped straight into that hell just to save a single soldier!”

“Yeah, I saw it too. Damn… even watching it, it felt unreal.”

“The knights were shocked too. Their jaws dropped! I’ll never see something like that again. A noble heir charging into death just to save a single soldier—how is that even possible?”

“That young man Jimmy or whatever—he’s been praising Lord Shion nonstop because he saved his life.”

Hm. Good. Very good.

That was exactly what I was aiming for when I jumped into that fire and acted like a madman.

I think seeing that must’ve changed her mind. Otherwise there’s no way she’d join us after being captured, let alone end up by the young lord’s side in just two days.

As they say, good deeds bring good fortune…

The surrounding praise made Shion let out a quiet groan.

At first it felt good, but it was starting to become embarrassing.

All he really did was run around like a lunatic, find Jimmy Faker, and carry him out of the battlefield.

“Lucky you. Getting so much attention~”

“Not at all.”

“Hmph.”

Lilith, walking beside him with a hood over her head, clicked her tongue and moved ahead.

They had disguised her as a mage among the soldiers to avoid panic—since revealing her as a demon would have caused chaos.

Fortunately, very few soldiers had seen her clearly in the chaos of battle.

Understandable, considering a meteor was literally burning overhead at the time.

“Why do you keep acting like nothing happened yesterday?”

“If we’re talking about physical relations between men and women, then yes, nothing happened. I know that much. I can sense the condition of my contractor without spying.”

“My condition?”

“What do you think a succubus is sensitive to? Obviously male arousal. And don’t bother lying about masturbation either. We can tell.”

“…cough.”

She could even detect that?

What a convenient—and terrifying—ability.

So if I get involved with another woman, I can’t even deny it…

At this point, he’d either have to remain faithful or stick to holding hands and sleeping.

Not that he intended to pursue anyone else yet, but still—between Lucia, who lingered around him, and Rishikida, who was now practically glued to his side, Lilith’s ability was extremely problematic.

“By the way, where’s your little clingy girl?”

“Training with Kim Yuhyun. Seems like they’re settling the match they couldn’t finish last time.”

“Humans. Always wasting energy in strange places.”

With that, Lilith walked ahead again.

Shion watched her back for a moment, then followed and caught up beside her.

“Don’t worry.”

“What now?”

“My type is exactly someone like you, Lady Lilith.”

At those words, Lilith’s face turned bright red.

So red it looked like steam might burst from her head.

“…Hah. You bastard. That actually made my heart skip a beat.”

“Just one beat?”

“Shut up. Damn it, this is what happens when you’re bound to your contractor. Succubus weakness, seriously…”

Ah, so that’s why she was always weak around him.

The Lilith from the original story really was different from this version.

But it made sense.

A succubus bound by contract could only gain mana and energy through one method:

Desire shared between her and her contractor.

“Now that I think about it, Lady Lilith. You used quite a bit of power blocking Lucia’s magic. Are you okay? Don’t you need to recharge soon?”

“You’re asking that now? That was days ago!”

“Four days.”

“…Normally I can last two weeks to a month. But using that much power shortens it. Still, it’s not that bad. So…”

“So?”

“…You’ll probably need to do it again within a week…”

It was the first time he’d ever seen a succubus embarrassed while talking about such things.

So even a succubus queen could act like this in front of her contractor.

“Then maybe we should try a different position this time.”

“Y-you idiot! Shut up! Are you insane?! Not now!”

It felt like he might actually get hit if he pushed any further, so Shion quickly nodded.

“Anyway, where are we going?”

“To my father’s office. He said it was urgent.”

“Oh? Why suddenly?”

“Probably negotiations with Nudia.”

“Negotiations?”

The war was over—but only unofficially.

Officially, it was still ongoing.

But realistically, once Nudia’s attack had completely failed, it was already over.

War or dates—what matters is momentum.

Once momentum is lost, it’s hard to reverse.

Nudia had failed to break through twice: once against the border defenses, and again due to Shion’s “resonance strategy” combined with Rishikida’s sudden actions.

Their army still existed, but morale was shattered.

At that point, continuing the war only meant unnecessary losses.

Credit where it’s due—they’re quick to read the situation.

Barely two weeks after declaring war, they were already moving to negotiate.

“Wow, they’ve got no pride? They started the war and now they’re begging for talks? If it were demons, they’d rather bite their tongues and die.”

“Between individuals it’s different, but this is between nations. Pride matters less than survival.”

When there’s something to gain, wars drag on.

But when there’s nothing to gain, ending it quickly is the smartest move.

“Father.”

“You’re here.”

The Marquis of Richten looked unusually bright.

Even though it was technically a border conflict rather than a total war, it still ended in less than half the expected time.

“Your contribution was significant, Shion.”

“What are you talking about? I just made some noise in front of the troops.”

“And yet you did more than that.”

He was referring to the moment Shion ran into the battlefield to save Jimmy Faker.

For Shion, it was a chaotic mess of curses and desperation.

For others, it had become a legendary scene.

Because of that moment, soldiers had even retrieved the bodies of their fallen comrades instead of leaving them behind.

I won’t leave anyone behind on that battlefield.

Those words still remained in their hearts.

“I have reported your achievements to the royal capital.”

“…What?”

This was unexpected.

Normally, the Marquis would receive all credit and be summoned to the capital.

Shion had planned to follow quietly in his shadow.

But now—

This is bad.

Being the main contributor meant being the center of attention.

And in the capital, attention meant not only praise—but jealousy, suspicion, and political pressure.

Shion’s past was… not exactly clean.

And now he was being sent into the heart of politics as the protagonist.

“Why the face? You used to talk about going to the capital all the time.”

“Ah… well, I preferred staying home lately.”

“You’re already twenty. You’ve completed your coming-of-age ceremony. It’s time to meet central nobles and learn state affairs.”

He already knew those affairs too well.

Who would betray whom, who would fall, and who would rise from the chaos.

Politics in this kingdom wasn’t a muddy pond.

It was more like radioactive waste covered with filth.

“I just want to properly conclude the negotiation first before taking credit in the capital.”

“Hm. That’s precisely why I called you. Nudia has requested that you personally attend the negotiation table.”

“…Me?”

Something felt off.

“By the way,” Lilith raised her hand, “can I come too?”

“Unfortunately, they requested only Shion and one knight.”

“Then I’ll just be that knight.”

“That position has already been assigned.”

At that, both Shion and Lilith made disgusted faces.

Lilith was annoyed she couldn’t go.

Shion, however, had already guessed who it would be.

“Rishikida Amshel. They specifically requested her.”

“…Who from Nudia will be there?”

Shion already knew the answer, but asked anyway.

“If that man were sane, he wouldn’t show his face there.”

But of course, he wasn’t.

“Nudia’s border count. The same man who always clashed with us.”

That man.

Rishikida’s former master.

The one who used her and discarded her the moment she became inconvenient.

Shion’s expression twisted.

Should I just smash his skull?