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The government general of El Pasa was a long fortress-style castle built using granite and marble. It was built on the site of the royal palace of El Pasa, which had existed far before the Aragon Empire was founded.

Leus strictly separated the governor’s residence from the residence of the imperial army, but El Pasa’s 11th regiment barracks was located inside the governor’s castle.

This was because the governor of El Pasa was also the 11th regiment commander.

Generally, the role of a governor and a military commander were assumed by separate individuals, but El Pasa was a special exception. The reasoning lay in the location of El Pasa. As a city in the South, the royal family held less influence compared to its counterparts in the mainland. As such, a difficult situation could arise if the governor and the imperial commander happened to enter a conflict.

Moreover, the 11th regiment only possessed around a dozen galley ships and no battle ships, which was unbefitting of a port city’s main force.

The reasoning was as such. Placing battle ships in El Pasa could provoke the southern lords, including the Arangis Duchy, so the city was only provided with the bare minimum. Instead of battle ships, which were capable of proper naval battles and sailing, galleys were provided to bolster the city’s defense in coastal and port battles. In addition, the 11th regiment had 1,000 infantry and 1,000 navy soldiers.

For these very reasons, Count Cedric was somewhat disregarded by the southern lords, even though they were of lower status than him.

However, the matter could not be helped. Even though he was a count and a governor-general, it wasn’t as if he could vent his anger when the Arangis Duchy, the ruler of the south, was standing behind the lords.

El Pasa would be akin to a flickering candle in front of a storm if the Arangis Duchy ever decided to attack with their fleet. They possessed more than dozens of large sailboats, and ten times that number of galleys. Moreover, they had numerous sea griffons under their control as well.

Even though there was a possibility, the Arangis Duchy was unlikely to ever attack El Pasa. It would be considered outright treason to attack an imperial city for no reason. The governor-general acted on behalf of the emperor, so taking action against him was the equivalent of attacking the emperor.

And so, Count Cedric ruled over El Pasa in peace, trying his best to control the balance of powers over the five years he had ruled as the governor.

But just today, a tremendous event had occurred, an incident so huge that it could shake the entire south, in addition to El Pasa.

***

“We have to deport them immediately, my lord! We must show the southern lords and the Duke of Arangis that they have nothing to do with us, Your Excellency!”

“That is right! I am certain that in less than four days, the relatives of the Arangis Duchy will come knocking on our doors! The lords of El Zada and Hain will bring along their soldiers and the knight orders.”

“And is it not obvious that more and more troops will gather as time goes on? Do you really want to see the flags of those southern lords outside the walls of El Pasa, Your Excellency?”

In the palace of the governor’s residence, dozens of nobles and leaders of El Pasa were raising their voices with a mixture of worry and fear.

But the Governor-General of El Pasa, Count Cedric, remained silent with his brows furrowed.

As if finding the governor’s reaction to be frustrating, an old nobleman raised his voice once more.

“Your Excellency, we need to get Duke Pendragon and the 7th regiment out of El Pasa as soon as possible. It is obvious that the series of events will reach the ears of the Ocean King. El Pasa and Crete Island are only four days’ distance from each other. No, if the Sea Griffon Corps get involved, then by tomorrow…”

“So, you want me to evict a duke of the empire from the city? A man who is trusted by Prince Ian and the emperor himself? Chase him out and ignore him, because it’s not my business and he can go die in the sea for all I care?”

“…..”

Count Cedric replied in a low but heavy voice. The nobles and the leaders shut their mouths.

Count Cedric slowly lifted himself up.

He was born in the South, but his appearance was rather unique. Descended from the Gapusa Royal Family, he had black skin and blue eyes.

Southerners tended to be smaller than the mainlanders, and when Count Cedric stood up, he appeared at least two heads taller than the rest.

“I know what all of you are worried about. But the official seals have already been stamped and Duke Pendragon wants to meet me. If I refused him and deported him out of the city in this situation, what do you think the people will think of me? Not only El Pasa, but those in the neighbouring cities as well?”

“B, but sir. Our city’s safety is more important than our immediate reputation…”

“Safety?”

Count Cedric turned his head towards the old nobleman. The old man flinched, and Count Cedric continued with a vain laughter.

“Haha! Since when has El Pasa been safe that you are bringing up such matters? A bunch of hounds are aiming for my city outside the walls, and the waters are swarming with pirates just 20 nautical miles out the harbor. And yet, you talk of safety?”

“…..”

“It has only become relatively safer after Duke Pendragon and the 7th regiment took care of the Orc Eater and the 3 major pirates! Do you know what the merchants are saying? The ones who entered El Pasa through the Latuan Straits?”

Count Cedric shook his head at the silent crowd, then continued with a cold gaze.

“A liberator! The Duke of Pendragon is being praised as the liberator of the inland sea! His knight named Elkin Isla is being called the ruler of the storm! Every islander of the inland sea is praising them without holding back!”

“Hm…”

In the end, everyone dropped their heads.

Count Cedric’s words were all true.

Those gathered here had their own respective information networks and heard the rumors. They were well aware of the public sentiment and the events that unfolded in the inland sea.

Although it had not yet spread inland, Duke Pendragon’s reputation among the inhabitants of the islands was piercing the heavens.

Originally, rumors were slow to spread between islands. However, the stories of Duke Pendragon and the 7th regiment were spreading like wildfire.

An unbelievable reason existed for the fast dispersion of rumors.

“John Myers, Captain of the Winter Storm Pirates, has surrendered to the Duke Pendragon. No, to be exact, he became Duke Pendragon’s subordinate.”

“What?”

Everyone widened their eyes in surprise.

“Are you being serious? The John Myers?”

“Is there another John Myers? Of course it’s the one you are thinking of.”

“Ehem…”

The nobles coughed in embarrassment and stepped back. They had been so surprised that they had asked the question without thinking.

Count Cedric continued while looking around at the nobles and the leaders. All of them had expressions of shock.

“The island occupied by the Winter Storm Pirates was considered imperial territory, but it had no residents. The same with Red Skull and Zagielka. But unlike the two of them, the Winter Storm let the ships go after the plundering. Or, if the people wanted, they let them reside on ownerless islands.”

“…..”

This was true as well.

Of course, blood was shed when people resisted, but unlike Zagielka, Red Skull, or the island orcs, the Winter Storm had their own philosophy they adhered to.

There was even a joke in the seas – if you see a pirate ship, pray that it’s the Winter Storm.

“The people of the islands are traveling from island to island to spread the news along with the Winter Storm Pirates and soldiers of the 7th regiment. Now with the major pirates gone, Orc Eater dead, and the island orcs having fled to their islands… who would the residents of the islands rely on? Who would they consider their lord?”

“Ah…!”

The nobles and the leaders exclaimed after finally figuring out the premise of Count Cedric’s words.

“Deport Duke Pendragon and the 7th regiment in this situation? It is the equivalent of severing our relationship with His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness Ian. Do you think Duke Arangis will leave El Pasa alone then? Hmm?”

“….”

No one could retort Count Cedric’s logical reasoning. After looking around with a frosty expression, Count Cedric relaxed his face and continued.

“I’m sure that all of you know of the deep connections between the southern lords and the Arangis Duchy. However, you must also know that the entirety of the South does not belong to Arangis, right?”

“Hm…”

The nobles and the leaders nodded their heads while looking around at each other. Even though it was a minority, some of the southern lords were certainly not favorable to the Arangis Duchy.

“Gapusa and Agadir especially don’t get along with Arangis. Thanks to the now-dead Orc Eater and the island orcs, they had to force their trading ships to take a long detour. The complaints have grown so massive due to that. The Arangis family were forced to send a fleet to the coast due to Gapusa as well.”

“Then are you suggesting…”

An unbelievable thought passed through a noble’s head.

Count Cedric replied with a strong nod.

“Yes. Rather than a pitfall, I see this situation as an opportunity. It is the greatest opportunity to rally together all those hostile to the Arangis, including Gapusa and Agadir, under the banner of El Pasa and the Pendragon Duchy.”

“…..!”

Everyone’s eyes widened.

The appearance of Count Cedric reflected in their eyes was akin to a black iron tower.

***

“Everyone, get out of the way!”

“Give way! His Excellency, the Governor-General!”

The soldiers shouting were dressed in thin, but tough, vest-type leather armors. The streets heading towards the port were crowded, but they split and made way at the soldiers’ shouts.

The soldiers and knights of the 11th regiment made their way through the crowds with Count Cedric’s carriage trailing behind them.

“It’s the governor. Is he heading to the harbor?”

“Maybe he is going to meet with Duke Pendragon?”

‘Isn’t it obvious? There is no other reason for the governor to come this way, is there?”

The streets became noisy.

Everyone in El Pasa was aware of Duke Pendragon’s official arrival to the city. His merchant ships and the 7th regiment battle ship had entered the port this morning, with Toleo Arangis’ head hanging from one of the merchant ships.

The rumors drove some people to rush towards the harbor to see the sight for themselves, and even the port guards had to be mobilized due to the crowding.

“What is he planning to do? Is he going to expel Duke Pendragon?”

“No way… He’s an actual duke of the empire. Besides, the commander of the 7th regiment is here too.”

“But he ought to be wary about the Arangis family.”

The people of El Pasa were cheerful, curious, and chatty in nature. They did not stop talking even when the governor was passing by.

“Bah! I’m going to follow them to the harbor, this is driving me crazy!”

“Yeah! Let’s go then, go!”

A long procession started to arise behind the 11th regiment and Governor Cedric. Nevertheless, Count Cedric and the knights did not care whether the people were following or not.

It could never happen in the mainland, where status was of paramount importance, but El Pasa was a free city that housed numerous foreigners. Such situations were rather common in El Pasa.

Above all, Count Cedric did not deter the following of residents because he had a reason to attract their attention today.

After a while, the knights, soldiers, and Count Cedric finally arrived at the port with a countless number of people following behind them.

“Hmm…”

El Pasa’s harbor was always busy, but Count Cedric immediately noticed a particularly crowded place far away. A sailing ship was anchored in front of hundreds of onlookers.

Count Cedric took a light breath after spotting it, then moved towards it.

Several people rushed out of the access center as Count Cedric approached.

“I greet Your Excellency the Governor-General! You should have let us know that you were coming!…”

“It was a special circumstance. So, Nabil, where is he?”

“Yes, he said he would be on the ship for now… Please come this way.”

Nabil Peguli hurriedly led the count.

“Oh! It’s the governor-general! Lord Cedric is here!”

Someone shouted after noticing Count Cedric and his soldiers approaching, and the crowd in front of the sailing boat stepped out of the way like a low tide.

Count Cedric’s horse came forward.

Soldiers were surrounding and guarding the ships in an ironclad formation. Someone walked out from between the soldiers as Count Cedric approached.

“Glory to his majesty and the empire! I am Isak from the 7th regiment.”

Isak saluted in a simple, restrained manner befitting an imperial soldier. Likewise, Count Cedric answered with a military rite by lightly placing his hand on his chest.

“Nice to meet you, Sir Isak. I am here to meet His Excellency Duke Pendragon and Lord Moraine.”

“Yes, they are waiting for you. Please board the ship.”

The ladder started to descend from the ship at Isak’s words, but then…

“He is the guest, so I should be the one to come out.”

Count Cedric looked up upon hearing the calm voice resound from the deck. His eyes met with a young man with a cool smile on his face, reminiscent of the southern winds.