Lord of Rot

When Baron Ross and his men entered the castle, the first thing they saw was Leech sitting to one side while a squire used a Little Knife to cut the shafts of the arrows stuck in his armor.

His face and armor were covered in blood, making him look as if he had just emerged from a pool of blood.

When he suddenly turned his head, everyone except for Baron Ross instinctively held their breath.

The bloody, oppressive aura made the air feel thick.

”The Black King should be in the inner keep,” Leech said, watching Baron Ross approach. ”He’s very good at waiting.”

He didn’t care whether Baron Ross had helped him. The Duke had ”publicly” given Iron Wall Castle to him, so it was only natural for the others to just go through the motions.

”Right!” Baron Ross nodded in full agreement, then immediately ordered the nobles beside him, ”Send men to storm the inner keep.”

”Yes, my lord!” the nobles replied, ecstatic.

’Leech took the glory for breaching the city, but the Black King isn’t dead yet! If we kill the Black King, we can still get a reward from the Duke.’

’Slaying a rebel king—what an honor!’

Mercenaries and militiamen from all across the land formed the front ranks, marching toward the inner keep.

Everyone was desperate to claim the final victory, and the strongest among them would pluck the largest, reddest fruit.

It was bound to be sweet and juicy!

But before long, a voice cried out, ”The Black King is dead!”

”Wait, let me take his head! His head is mine!”

Hearing the clamor, Leech nodded at Baron Ross.

They walked toward the great hall of the inner keep.

The architectural style here was markedly different from castles like Porcupine Castle. The towering great hall was long and narrow.

There were no decorations, only a dais at the far end of the hall. Upon it sat a massive stone throne as tall as a two-story house.

The towering back of the throne, roughly three stories high, resembled a tombstone and was intensely intimidating.

A man in a black robe sat on the giant stone throne, already dead, his head hanging low.

Below, a Mercenary attempted to go over and land a blow with his sword.

”Wait!” Leech shouted.

His voice stopped the Mercenary cold. After witnessing Leech fight like a one-man army on the walls, no one dared to openly defy his order.

Leech said to Lacy at his side, ”Go take a look.”

”Yes, my lord.” Lacy acknowledged the order and walked over.

The Mercenaries, Soldiers, and militiamen along the path automatically parted to make way for him. The most unforgettable figure from today’s siege was Baron Porcupine, and as such, his men carried a natural air of intimidation.

Lacy ascended the high throne, examined the corpse, and said, ”My lord, he’s been dead for at least a day. If we’d arrived a few days later, we might have found maggots on him.”

The Black King was dead, and Iron Wall Castle had fallen.

The battle for Iron Valley was over.

’A mountain of troublesome work awaits me,’ Leech thought. He had already noticed a large population of residents within Iron Wall Castle. ’To them, we’re invaders.’

’And then there’s the matter of the ”risen dead.”’

’He was also particularly concerned about the 2,000 Mercenaries from Iron Stone City. What exactly did they do in Iron Valley, and where did they go? Why was there no trace of them?’

’For now, the urgent task is to take control of all of Iron Wall Castle. Fortunately, I brought all my forces, so I should have just enough men for the job.’

Baron Ross and the other nobles also realized the truth. ’The Black King was already dead. Even if we hadn’t come, Iron Wall Castle would have fallen on its own in time.’

As they were leaving the inner keep, ”AHHH!” a miserable scream drew Leech’s attention.

He saw a Mercenary with a teenage girl slung over his shoulder.

Nearby, he saw another Mercenary draw his sword, cut down a farmer, and steal his savings.

”Stop!”

The Mercenary heard Leech’s voice but didn’t stop. He threw the girl onto a wooden table with a THUD and reached for her dress.

”Lord Leech?” Baron Ross looked at Leech. He had guessed Leech’s intentions, but Leech had already charged forward and sent the Mercenary flying with a kick.

His sudden attack startled the Mercenaries.

The moment Leech acted, Lacy Sith and Quick Blade drew their swords.

A whistle shrieked.

The Porcupine Soldiers, who had already secured the best positions on the walls, swiftly raised their rifles and aimed at the Mercenaries within the castle.

Although no one knew what the black tubes held by the Porcupine Soldiers were, common sense told them that the soldiers raised those contraptions instead of drawing their swords for a reason. They had to be far more fearsome than any blade.

The more observant had already noticed that every Porcupine Soldier carried one of these black-tube weapons, but none carried a bow or crossbow.

’Perhaps these black tubes are some strange kind of crossbow.’

The Mercenary who had been kicked struggled to his feet. Leech’s merciless kick had nearly broken one of his ribs. He gasped for breath, his eyes blazing with fury.

”Lord Ross, what’s the meaning of this?”

He didn’t have the courage to reason with Leech; the blood-soaked Baron looked like the type to cut off your head first and have a friendly chat later. So, he turned to the more approachable Baron Ross.

”Lord Ross?” Leech looked to Baron Ross, expecting an explanation.

Baron Ross said, ”After a city falls, three days of looting are permitted.”

Leech asked, ”Permitted by whom?”

”It’s tradition! It’s been like this in every war I’ve fought in!” another Mercenary shouted.

”It was like this when my father fought in wars,” an old, silver-haired Mercenary shouted this time, and his words triggered a wave of agreement from the other Mercenaries.

”That’s right, that’s how it is!”

”Three days of plunder after a city falls! Even the King does it!”

”Yeah!”

The crowd grew rowdy.

”Tradition?”

Leech scoffed and looked toward the short Ostrich Eagle Knight. ”Sir Morton, tell me, do Knights prey on the weak?”

The Ostrich Eagle Knight, having been singled out, shifted uncomfortably. ’Leech is the one who’s antagonized everyone, what does this have to do with me?’

But as all eyes turned to him, he had no choice but to answer, ”No, a Knight protects the weak, but—”

Leech cut him off before he could finish. ”Exactly! A Knight protects the weak! Just as the Ostrich Eagle Knight says, that is a Knight’s sacred duty!”

”They’re the enemy!” a Mercenary shouted. ”And we’re not Knights! All we want is our right to three days of plunder after a city falls!”

”A girl who can’t even protect her own dress—you call her an enemy? I didn’t see you when I was storming the walls. Maybe you should have been charging up there with me to show off your ’fearless valor’! Instead, you rush in after the battle is won to tear off a girl’s clothes and have the gall to say you’re ’dealing with the enemy’!” Leech glared at the Mercenary. ”Or is it that when you face a real enemy, your only move is to drop your pants and charge? Perhaps I can find you a job presenting your ass for hire back in Iron Stone City.”

”Haha!” a few people laughed.

The fact was, Leech had conquered Iron Wall Castle. The others had simply followed him into the city; they hadn’t done a thing.

The Mercenary’s face flushed red as he demanded, ”Are you forbidding us from looting?”

His question silenced the laughter. Everyone present waited for Leech’s response, which would declare his stance on the matter.

Leech didn’t answer. Instead, he walked over to the girl.

He extended a hand to the sobbing girl. She knew this noble bristling with arrows was her only hope. Her mind was too numb to think; she just wanted someone to protect her.

The girl placed her hand on his cold iron gauntlet.

He gently pulled the girl to her feet, steadying her by the back so she wouldn’t be so afraid. ”As a Knight,” he said, ”she has cried out to me for aid. Therefore, I will protect her.”

The Porcupine Soldiers, imposing in their gleaming armor, were the reason the Mercenaries chose to keep listening to Leech rather than swarm him.

Leech raised his voice, ”There are no enemies here! The rebel Black King is dead! All of you can continue to live your lives in peace!”

”Those who wish to return to your peaceful lives, lay down your arms!” he said, looking at the other terrified and helpless people of Iron Wall Castle. ”I, Leech Clarence, swear to the Four Gods that I will protect every innocent person here!”

He turned to the Mercenaries. ”I don’t care about your so-called plunder, but I will protect the life and property of any innocent who begs me for aid, and I will raise my Longsword against any violator!”

In the end, the Mercenaries didn’t dare make a move. Even with a clear numerical advantage, they didn’t want to go to war with a noble.

’Those noble lords who hired us are all in it together,’ they thought. ’We’d be the only ones to lose out.’

After this incident, any celebration in Iron Wall Castle was out of the question.

The atmosphere grew strange.

Some nobles were eager to see how the drama would unfold, while others were calculating what they themselves could gain from this war.

”Lord Leech...” Baron Ross began, but then trailed off.

Leech was the first noble to break the ”custom” of post-siege slaughter and pillaging.

’The Mercenaries are one thing, but what about the Soldiers?’ he wondered. ’They follow their lords to war in pursuit of glory and wealth.’

’The three days of plunder isn’t just to reward Mercenaries; it’s to reward the Soldiers, too.’

But when Ross looked at the Porcupine Soldiers, he saw their resolute expressions. Not one of them was angry about being denied their plunder. On the contrary, their gazes were fixed on the abusive Mercenaries, and their eyes were filled with fury.

How could he know that the vast majority of Leech’s Soldiers were former slaves? They had all been victims of war. Compared to the simple release of bestial urges, they had a much deeper understanding of justice and the plight of the weak.

”I have enough of a mess on my hands as it is,” Leech said with a slight smile. ”You’ll have to forgive me for not being able to host a celebratory banquet.”

”There will be other opportunities,” said Baron Ross.