hotmtlnovel Chapter 173 : Chapter 173
Chapter 173 : Chapter 173
Chapter 173“…Tomorrow morning, you’re saying you’ll fight a one-on-one duel?”
“Yes, General Nana.”
Niko quietly bowed his head.
Nana had many questions she wanted to ask.
But they were caught in her throat and did not come out easily.
“Then……”
She barely managed to pick out one question.
“…what do we gain from that duel?”
The tide of battle was already extremely favorable to the Empire.
The 11th and 14th Legions had arrived.
No, with a horde of twenty thousand fishmen and three Cordis legions gathered, they held an overwhelming advantage that couldn't be expressed simply by the word ‘favorable.’
The fact that Shion and Amethus had come alone to take the head of an Imperial Ten Great General proved the West’s disadvantage.
It was a situation that couldn't be overturned unless they did something that drastic.een.
Since then, she had lived resenting Niko.
Because Niko had sent a lot of money to the family, but nothing else.
She resented him, pushed him away, and spoke down to him.
She didn't treat her grandfather as a grandfather but as an inferior, always pressing down on him.
Hoping that he would be hurt as much as the people he had abandoned.
But, the first glimpse she got of Niko’s heart was already full of scars.
It had hardened after nursing far, far, far more wounds than she had wished for.
That steadfastness might have protected Hobel Bay and embraced its people, but wasn't Niko also just one person?
How could a life lived with a hardened heart not be painful?
“……”
Resentment quickly turned to pity.
Not all of it had changed.
He was still heartless and hateful, but that made her feel even more sorry for her grandfather.
Nana Nereyades’s eyes reddened.
Seeing his granddaughter’s tear ducts, which had not yet dried up, Niko thought that she was truly young.
“It is shameless of me, but would you permit me to say just one thing as a grandfather? Consider it my last words.”
“…Go ahead.”
Niko smiled.
“Nana, Nana Nereyades, my granddaughter.”
The wrinkles around his eyes crinkled benevolently.
“Find out what happened on Arete Island 53 years ago.”
“…Arete Island? Where Amethus sunbae’s family was……?”
“Yes. You are acquainted with both Amethus and His Majesty Ferbias. Why do you think they came to be at odds? Look into it yourself and confirm it yourself.”
“……”
“Do not trust the Cordis Imperial Family. They are not as righteous as you think, nor are they as absolute as you think.”
“…That’s a statement that wouldn’t be strange even if you were executed for it right now.”
“I told you. I am a man who will die tomorrow.”
Niko said.
“You must be wary of the Imperial Family.”
“You’re telling me to be wary of His Majesty Ferbias……”
“No.”
The old man shook his head.
“It is the Great Emperor Continua.”
“……!!!”
Nana’s eyes widened.
Why was that name coming up here?
He was a man who had retired seven years ago.
Since then, there had been no news of him, to the point where some said he might already be dead.
“I know him. I do not think he would have retired quietly.”
“…Weren’t you close?”
“Of course. We drank a great deal of wine together. We saw each other like that for half a century.”
The Whale of Hobel Bay’s eyes were steadfast.
He had lived many years and met many people.
But he had never seen anyone as strange, brilliant, and beautiful as the Great Emperor Continua.
He was a man who seemed to have been forged to be an emperor from birth.
“And yet, I do not know him, which is why you must be careful.”
“…I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that. I’ll keep it to myself.”
“Please do.”
Niko placed a hand on Nana’s shoulder.
Nana did not stop him.
Niko carefully, very carefully, pulled his granddaughter into an embrace.
It was the first time in their lives.
For Niko, and for Nana.
Even the Whale of Hobel Bay had no choice but to close his eyes gently and take a deep breath.
His giant hand even trembled faintly.
His heart shook as much as the time he had abandoned his family, as much as he had regretted and agonized over that time.
But it was so warm that such a tremor felt like nothing.
The grandfather and granddaughter embraced each other.
It was an awkward posture, as if neither of them had ever embraced anyone in their lives.
But the warmth was certain.
“…Without having given you anything, I only give you a heavy responsibility.”
“I am used to that side of you.”
“You may hate me, but do not hate Hobel Bay. They need someone to lead them, someone to protect them.”
“…Legion Commander Niko.”
Nana said.
“You are a terrible father, and a terrible grandfather.”
“…I know.”
“But as a general… I cannot bring myself to disparage you. I respected you.”
“Is that so?”
Niko laughed heartily.
“Thank you, Nana.”
He was certain that this very moment was a gift from God.
It was an empire where believing in God was a sin, but what did it matter since he was going to die tomorrow anyway.
When he died, God would be closer than the emperor.
“I can die without regrets.”
***
“I told you that you would become a hero.”
Grand Duke Pret stroked his beard.
“You are already becoming one, Shion. A rumor is circulating that it is all thanks to you two that Niko and his forces, despite arriving at an unbelievable speed, were unable to attack us.”
That would be because it was the truth, not a single lie in it.
“Then isn’t that enough now? Let’s wait for reinforcements and focus on defense.”
Grand Duke Pret continued.
“There is no reason to fight a duel with Niko Nereyades.”
“I have already made a promise.”
I answered.
“I have decided to meet him tomorrow morning.”
“What is the point of keeping a promise with an imperial dog!”
“If I do not keep my promise, Nana and Niko will launch a joint offensive. That's effectively two Imperial Ten Great Generals. Would we even have time to wait for reinforcements?”
“…I know. Damn it, I know.”
Grand Duke Pret clutched his face.
He was not a man in a position accustomed to powerlessness.
What reason would the leader of West-Erta have to feel so powerless?
“But the West needs a hero……!”
He took my hand.
“It has been eight years since the White Lord went into seclusion… I have been waiting for a hero to unite the West. Now that the Empire’s scheme has begun to be revealed, I have become even more desperate. And my conclusion is that you are that very person.”
“You flatter me.”
“Don’t lie while thinking it’s obvious.”
I chuckled.
The word ‘hero’ felt a bit cheesy. But it was the truth.
I had been a hero before the regression, and I would soon become a hero again.
Grand Duke Pret looked at my chest. He saw the golden brooch symbolizing the Upper House of the Dawn Brotherhood.
It meant I had become one of the seventeen at the pinnacle of power in the West.
“Shion.”
Grand Duke Pret said.
“Please, please come back alive……”