I Am the Monarch – Chapter 136 : To Pershion Kingdom (1)

Roan hurried his preparations to leave .
But that didn’t mean that he was simply leaving straight to the Pershion Kingdom .
First, he had to go back to the Tale Barony along with the newly born Tale Legion .

‘I must make all the preparations at there . ’

It would be troublesome if Second Prince Tommy Rinse or Third Prince Kallum Rinse’s factions become suspicious of his actions .
Due to that, each and every action of his was careful .
Then .

“My lord . You have a guest . ”

Onil’s voice, who was managing the temporary mansion, was heard .
Faintly smiling, he continued to speak .

“It’s Princess Aily . ”

Tuk .

The hands, which were moving busily to clean up the office, abruptly stopped .
Brushing off the dust on his clothes, Roan walked towards the door .

“Where is she?”
“She is in the mansion’s garden . ”
“Why not guide her to the reception room?”
“That place is also still being cleaned up, so it is quite dusty . ”

Roan nodded slowly at Onil’s words .
His feet kept moving faster .
Onil glanced at that sight, and then stepped back and lowered his head .
Not noticing him at all, Roan hurriedly headed towards the mansion’s garden .

“Ah……”

A quiet exclamation naturally came out .
At a shade canopy located at one side of the garden .
Princess Aily Rinse was underneath it .
She, in a plain dress, looked so graceful and relaxed that only the time around her seemed to flow slowly .

“Princess . ”
“Ah, Sir Baron Tale . ”

Meeting each other’s eyes, the two bowed their heads .
Roan, with a soft voice, politely asked .

“What bring you all the way here?”

Aily showed a cheerful smile that those words as she replied .

“I heard that you’ll be leaving soon . So I came to say goodbye . ”
“Ah…… thank you very much . ”

Roan unknowingly let out a quiet exclamation .

‘Leaving……’

He was simply so busy that he hadn’t had such thought .
No, instead of leaving he had thought of it as ‘returning’ to the Tale Barony .
But .

‘Leaving is right . At least in this situation……’

Leaving and returning .
The feelings the two words gave were too different .
Roan wordlessly stared into Aily’s eyes .
Lights holding unexplainable feelings met and flowed between their eyes .

‘Ah……’

Aily soon shyly smiled and slightly lowered her head .

“I pray that only good things will happen to you from now on . ”

Roan nodded his head and replied .

“I too will pray that princess will only be happy . ”

At those words, Aily snickered and hid her small red lips with her right hand .

“It’s as if we’re people saying their last farewells . ”
“Is it?”

Roan asked back as he cheerfully smiled
Then, after hesitating for a moment, he carefully continued his words .

“I will make sure to come visit once if I come back to Miller . ”
“Yes . I’ll be waiting . ”

Aily immediately answered but then promptly redden her face with a thoroughly surprised look .

‘What do you mean I’ll be waiting?’

Her heart loudly jumped .
Roan, as he watched her, unconsciously made a bright smile .
Courage appeared in his heart .

“And if you are fine with it, please come visit the Tale Baro……”

When he had spoke to that point .

“My lord . ”

He heard confident voice .
A truly familiar voice to the ears .
It was Clay .

“Hm . ”

Roan couldn’t quite finish his words and turned his head to look at Clay .
Clay first greeted towards Aily and then looked at Roan .

“The preparations are complete . ”

It was a report that the preparations to head towards the Tale Barony were finished .

“Okay . I got it . ”

Roan lightly nodded his head .
Clay looked back and forth between Roan and Aily for a moment, and then went out of the garden after giving a respectful farewell .

“Is that person perhaps Clay?”

With a cautious voice, Aily asked .
In the capital, Miller, Roan’s subordinates also spread their fame as much as Roan .
Especially his adjutant Austin; Harrison; Brian, who was the kingdom’s swordsman who received high expectations; and Clay, who joined a bit late but showed outstanding and excelling schemes and unique plans, were notably famous .
Roan looked towards the direction Clay disappeared to and nodded .

“Yes . He is . ”

At those words, Aily wavered with a slightly hesitant look then carefully spoke with a quiet voice .

“Although it’s true that he is a person with outstanding talent…… please don’t give him all of sir Baron’s trust . ”
“What do you mea……?”

As Roan hesitated his words, Aily formed a bitter smile .

“To me, Clay’s heart can’t be seen . I can’t tell whether its inside is black, or white . This kind of case is…”

Her expression slightly turned stiff .

“A first . ”
“Hmm . ”

Roan leaked a short groan .
He could more or less notice what Aily was trying to say .

‘Don’t trust him too much, is it……’

Roan slowly nodded his head .

“Princess’s words, I’ll bear it in mind . ”

Aily wordlessly lowered her head .

‘Clay . A person whose heart couldn’t be seen……’

Her eyes for looking at people were indisputable .
That wasn’t a sort of instinct .

‘It’s the first time I’ve experienced this since I earned this power . ’

Her heart felt heavy .
Aily held her small hands evenly together and deeply inhaled .

‘There is a need to keep watch . Some kind of problem may happen to Sir Baron Tale . ’

A foreboding thought filled her head .
Her heart felt even heavier .
Then .

“Thank you for worrying about me . ”

She heard Roan’s voice .
Suddenly, the oppressing feelings that filled her head and heart disappeared as if it was a lie .

“Huu . ”

A sigh of relief pushed through her small red lips and flew out shortly .
There was a strange power in Roan’s voice .
The kind that relaxed people’s hearts and make them happy .
Aily didn’t know it yet, of course, but that was something that only applied to her .
For a while, Roan and Aily stared at each other without saying any words .
No, there was no need to speak .
The two’s feelings were passed to each other as if they were absorbed .
Like that, Roan and Aily promised of the next time and parted .
Roan prepared meticulously for one more day, and headed towards the Tale Barony as soon as the sky brightened .
Simon and the nobles who follow him came out to the mansion to see him off .
But the thing that made Roan happier than anything else were the castle’s residents who were lined up following the street and all the way out of the gate .
They, to Roan who looked after them all the while staying in the capital unlike the other nobles, held strong feelings of gratitude and respect .
Until Roan and the Tale Legion’s soldiers couldn’t be seen, the castle’s citizens clapped and cheered at them .
From the north that they left, a cold wind blew .
A chilly northern wind .
The season was now entering winter .

*****

In the middle of the mountains that neither the moonlight nor the light of the stars reached .

Pdduk!

A small bird somehow flew around between the trees .
A moment later .

Kiig!

The small bird sat down on the tree that just began to grow and let out a sharp cry .
An inky black space where not even a single presence could be felt .
At that moment, a small torch appeared and pushed aside the darkness of the space .

“A message bird at this time . ”

The message bird denoted the birds that personally passed words instead of letters or objects .
As an extremely special bird, it was hard for most people to see nor use without permission .
A rough and wild looking man soon appeared beneath the torch .
Extending his right hand towards the bird, he murmured unintelligible words .

Kiig! Kig! Kigigigik!

Then, the small bird went up on top of the man’s palm and, as if it was telling a story, chattered without a pause .
The cries of the bird shattered the silence in the middle of the mountain .

“Hmm . ”

The man let out a quiet groan .
The story the message bird had passed was considerably surprising .

“There isn’t a need to hide anymore?”

He creased his brows and contemplated for a moment, then lightly shook his head .

Kig!

The small bird left behind a short cry and flew higher and higher into the night sky .
The man quietly whispered as he chased that sight with his eyes .

“It looks like he sent message birds to all the places that are reachable . ”

Probably by now, the message birds should have arrived at the friends, the kinds, and the brothers who were living and hiding in deep places all over the world .
Although that number wouldn’t be very great even so .
The man shook and unlit the torch, then murmured with a quiet voice .

“Tale Barony, is it…… should I try going there once?”

His voice was hesitant .
It was simply that difficult of a decision to make .

“Well, there’s still time . ”

According to the story the message bird passed, there was still a plenty of time left .
The man slowly hid his body into the darkness .
Silence once again covered the mountain .

*****

In the Tale Barony, there still was no lord’s castle nor any proper castle .
Although the Mediasis village, which was the center of administration and politics, had a significantly large size, it only had a false wall built with trees stacked high instead of a solid wall .

“Once the lord comes back, we should raise the lord’s castle and the castle walls first . ”

Hundred-Man Commander Semi, who was administering the entire barony’s public order after Roan left for the capital, Miller, looked at the shoddy false walls and shook his head .

“We should also build forts at the strategic points . ”
“And repair the streets . ”
“The training ground should also be expanded . ”

The hundred-man commanders and ten-man commanders all chipped in a word .

“Come to think of bit, the training ground raised quite excellent results despite being so small . ”
“You’re right . All of them became dashing regulars . ”

The hundred-man commanders spoke praises and looked at one young man .

“It’s all thanks to the new recruits, who worked diligently . ”

The young man bashfully smiling and being humble was, in fact, Glenn .
In the last several months, he, who was appointed as the supervisor of the training ground, had given it his all to train the newbies .
Thanks to that, the greenhorns, who used to be no more than a mere mob, were able to be reborn as regulars .
As the result, the Amaranth troop that was left in the Mediasis Village was able to achieve grand results in both quantity and quality .

“When the lord sees this, he should be so surprised, right?”

Numerous hundred-man commanders nodded at Semi’s words .
They turned towards the long and straight street that stretched inside the village .
On the street, magnificent soldiers were filed up one after another .
And behind the soldiers, the people of the Mediasis Village and nearby villages had came out and waited for Roan .
It was an incredible crowd of people .

“It should be about time for the lord to arrive……”

Semi looked towards the village’s western entrance and scrunched his nose .
At that moment .

Deng! Deng! Deng!

The watchtower’s bell noisily rang .
Finally, Roan and the Amaranth Troop had appeared at the end of the western field .
Suddenly, a strange heat circled the entire village .
That heat brought blazing lava to mind .
It was sense of an incredible energy that seemed like it’ll immediately explode being condensed .
The Amaranth troop including Semi as well as the ordinary villagers all held back the heat within their chests and watched the western entrance .
And finally .

Flap!

< TaleLegion . >

The lead carrying the legion flag entered the village .

< Amaranth Troop . >
< Roan Tale . >

And following that, the troop flag and the commander’s flag shined their brilliance .
And right behind that .
The person that they’ve been waiting for so much finally showed himself .
Roan Tale .
Riding on a robust war horse, he appeared with a regal look .
Instantly .

“Waaaaaaah!”
“Roan Tale! Roan Tale!”
“Tale Legion! Tale Legion!”

Cheers poured out .
The heat that was held in their chests exploded out at once .
It was to the degree that bodies would stagger from the vigor .
Roan brightly smiled as he raised his right hand .

‘I have come back . ’

A fresh feeling of pride and longing stormed .
It was also the same for the Amaranth Troop’s soldiers who came back from the capital, Miller, following Roan .

“Has everyone been well?”
“I’m back!”
“Have you heard the news about us?”

Towards the soldiers that lined the sides of the street, they shouted and waved .
On their face were obvious looks of bottomless delight .
Meanwhile, the soldiers who became a part of the Tale Legion after the rebellion suppression made bewildered faces at the incredible welcome .

‘Just what……’
‘The popularity is amazing . ’
‘To think commoners would like a noble this much . ’

It was something hard to imagine in other places .
Feeling a sense of pride that appeared for no reason, they raised their heads that they had momentarily lowered up high .

‘I’m no longer a rebel . I’m a Tale Legion soldier . ’
‘I’ll bury my bones here!’

The courage in their hearts soared .
Their shoulders opened up on their own and strength was put into their steps .
Slowly but truly confidently, the procession continued .

‘Glenn has done well . ’

Roan looked at the soldiers that formed long lines on the either sides of the street and faintly smiled .
Their postures were straight and the light in their eyes was good .
Although there probably were areas that were lacking compared to the established Amaranth troop, with a bit of work, they would be able to become the strongest regulars in the surrounding region .

“My lord!”

When he arrived at the end of the street, the hundred-man commanders,including Semi, as well as the ten-man commanders neatly lined up and saluted .
Roan dismounted from the horse and walked towards Semi .

“All of you have excellently carried out the jobs you were assigned . ”
“We have simply given our best . ”

Semi answered as their representative .
He looked straight into Roan’s eyes and continued his words .

“We have heard the news through Agens’ agents . We truly congratulate you . ”
“Congratulations!”

The other soldiers soon followed and shouted at the top of their lungs .
Roan cheerfully smiled and nodded .

“Because you guys were here, I was able to do the things I had to do with ease . All of you have done well . ”

At those words, Semi and the numerous hundred-man commanders showed greatly moved expressions .
Recognition .
They had received Roan’s recognition .
Although merit evaluation and awards were good, there was nothing that felt better than to be recognized for their abilities and hard work by their lord .

“Waaaaa!”
“Welcome back, sir!”
“Roan Tale! Roan Tale!”

Listening to the cheers that still continued to fall down, Roan lightly closed his eyes .
A tender feeling wrapped his entire body .
A familiar and longed for feeling .
With his eyes still closed, he quietly whispered .

“Yes . This here is my home . ”

< To Pershion Kingdom (1) > End .

Translator : CSV

Proofreader: st8_lupe .