The Founding Monarch Became the Mastermind

Chapter 131

“That's ridiculous……”

Philon had been about to say it was absurd after hearing the explanation about the Divine Message, but he shut his mouth.

If he thought about it, most of what he had seen and experienced since coming to Burgos would have been unthinkable in the past—a series of events that defied all logic.

Revealing the truth about Earl Rundel and redefining their relationship was one thing, but the very fact that he remained in this remote backwater was, in itself, absurd.

Because of that, the nobles of the Crown Prince’s faction in the capital and the royal palace were reportedly in an uproar. From their perspective, the current situation must have seemed utterly nonsensical.

But to Philon, who had directly seen and experienced the enigma that was Si-on, it made sense.

So even this unheard-of phenomenon called Divine Message must, in fact, be logical.

That was what Philon thought.

“Your Highness, are you unaware of it as well? That is strange. According to my grandfather, quite a few people outside of our duchy should also have begun seeing the Divine Message….”

“Perhaps my uncle… No, perhaps Earl Rundel simply chose not to tell me.”

“Ah….”

Since Sirvan had witnessed the truth about Philon and Earl Rundel’s relationship firsthand, he understood immediately.

If it was that snake-like Earl Rundel, it was highly likely that he had initially concealed the truth in order to use Philon.

“Anyway, you’re saying that the people who can see this Divine Message could become an important variable?”

“It’s not a variable. It’s a constant.”

Even though they were whispering among themselves, Si-on, with his transcendent hearing, had already heard everything and interjected.

“Let’s talk as we go.”

Si-on mounted Blackie.

Philon and Sirvan’s horses moved alongside him as they rode down the main road, continuing their conversation.

“The emergence of people who can see the Divine Message is a given. Who they are and what kind of work they’ll end up doing—that’s also a given.”

“You mean….”

“For now, everyone who can see the Divine Message is either an outstanding warrior or someone with the potential to become one. And considering the current state of affairs, the role they’ll mainly take on will be…”

“The Monster Crisis….”

“Correct.”

Si-on threw a look at Philon as if prompting him for an answer, and he got it right on the mark. Si-on nodded.

“The increase in monsters and the emergence of people who can see the Divine Message began around the same time. At least, that was the case in the Si-on Duchy. Even if other regions were slightly delayed, by now, their numbers should be significant enough to be noticed.”

Even though information and people were restricted in movement, making the world somewhat insular, enough time had passed that the higher-ups—lords and nobles—couldn’t possibly be unaware of this phenomenon.

In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising if some of those nobles and lords themselves had begun seeing the Divine Message.

“The problem is, the sample size is too small. Personally, I’d estimate it to be about one in ten thousand….”

It was possible that they simply hadn’t been discovered yet, but as far as Si-on had confirmed, there wasn’t a single person in Burgos who could see the Divine Message (system message).

And in Lagos Territory, ruled by his grandson, there was precisely one person—a castle guard who possessed natural talents rated as two C-rank abilities and one B-rank, making him quite a remarkable talent.

“One in ten thousand… That seems a bit low, doesn’t it?”

“What’s the population of the Kingdom of Obla?”

“Ah!”

Even though Philon had lived as little more than a puppet, as the Crown Prince, he naturally knew the population of his own kingdom.

Of course, since the kingdom didn’t conduct regular censuses like the Si-on Duchy, he didn’t know the exact number, but he had a general estimate.

“So, that means at least six hundred, and at most eight hundred, people?”

Si-on nodded, though he personally believed the number was at least a thousand.

“For now, that’s about right, and it’ll only increase over time. If Obla alone has more than a thousand people who can see the Divine Message, other countries should have them in at least the hundreds.”

“I see. But… isn’t the Si-on Duchy showing an unusually high number?”

‘That’s probably because of me. Since I was the first user and the first to form a clan.’

Si-on, unable to say that out loud, simply responded flatly.

“That’s because the Si-on Duchy originally had a high number of monsters, and since it was the first place where the Monster Crisis broke out, it was naturally influenced by that. I already told you, other regions will gradually see more as well.”

“Ah….”

“Anyway, there’s something odd about the current situation. Well, once Jenna sends in her intelligence report, we’ll know the full story. Until then, we just focus on our own tasks. Sirvan.”

“Yes.”

“The ones from Alphmarine—what are they doing now?”

“They’re receiving weapons and forming their units. Initially, they planned to organize their own independent squads, but after witnessing yesterday’s events, they changed their minds.”

Alphmarine was the largest directly governed city in the northeastern region, the place where Si-on had recruited the Janstrick Mercenary Group.

Because of the Monster Crisis, the demand for mercenaries had skyrocketed, leading to a golden age for Alphmarine. The first thing every lord did was rush to Alphmarine to hire mercenaries.

But recently, that trend had cooled down.

Why?

Because protecting people and goods from monsters or providing escort services was one thing, but devising and executing strategies to exterminate monsters was an entirely different challenge.

For example:

The South Korean military had originally been structured primarily for defense against North Korean aggression. However, at some point, it had established the 7th Mobile Corps, an elite strike force designed for offensive operations with a singular motto: "Advance north, no matter what!"

Did that transformation happen overnight?

Of course not. It took years of meticulous planning, immense financial investment, and continuous manpower development.

The mercenary groups of Alphmarine were no different.

They had primarily been engaged in protecting people and goods from regional conflicts, bandits, and monsters. But they had never faced large-scale monster battles.

So, when Alphmarine’s large mercenary groups, flush with confidence, marched off to battle after securing contracts worth multiple times their usual fees…

They all got utterly wrecked!

Maybe not wiped out entirely, but they had suffered catastrophic losses—so severe that the word annihilation would not have been an exaggeration. Now, they were barely clinging to defensive duties, focusing solely on protecting the territories or castles of their employers.

If the large mercenary groups ended up like this, then the smaller ones—those with just 20 or 30 members—didn’t even need to be mentioned.

Those mid-sized mercenary groups, which had once strutted off with lucrative contracts and overconfidence, had simply ceased to exist.

After all, unless they were specialized monster-hunting units like the Peregrine Division, it was pure nonsense to think that a 20- or 30-man team could accomplish anything significant.

Couldn’t they just combine multiple small mercenary groups to increase their numbers?

Sure, but when you gathered a bunch of mercenaries who outright refused to follow orders, the only result was complete chaos in the command structure, ultimately weakening their combat effectiveness.

Instead of 1 + 1 + 1 = 3, the outcome was a miraculous 1 + 1 + 1 = 1.5.

Moreover, while monsters usually didn’t attack armed forces recklessly, these weren’t usual circumstances.

Larger, stronger monsters had begun displacing weaker ones, and those displaced creatures, with nowhere to go, were now fighting with reckless abandon.

Faced with a choice—take on the stronger monster that had driven them out or attack the humans, whose strength was uncertain—

The instinctual prime directive of these monsters led them to choose the latter.

And so, the mercenaries unfamiliar with monster hunting… had no choice but to be utterly crushed.

The medium-sized mercenary groups, barely avoiding total annihilation, had lost more than half their members to death or serious injury. Their only fate was either disbandment or absorption into another group.

Si-on sent people to Alphmarine to summon exactly those kinds of individuals to Burgos.

Since they had already been utterly crushed once, their value had plummeted (even more than before). And with the added prestige of that Sir Salen, whose name was well known even in the south, including the Si-on Duchy, the mercenaries rushed to Burgos without hesitation.

However, if knights were high-class thugs, then mercenaries were mid-tier thugs (with the low-tier being actual street gangsters).

They received weapons and armor at a cheap price (though unfortunately, all on credit) and underwent basic training from the Peregrine Division members. But a thug's nature didn’t just disappear.

So, like the brute-force mid-tier thugs they were, they tried to slyly test the waters, erasing from their minds the memory of being utterly obliterated by monsters.

But then, they either witnessed firsthand or heard about how high-class thugs, stronger than themselves, had been completely wrecked by that Sir Salen, the Governor of Burgos.

And so, just like the envoys from the northeastern territories before them, the mid-tier thugs who sought refuge in Burgos were all ‘reformed.’

“They tried to form their own separate unit? Hmm. You could’ve just left them alone.”

“…Pardon?”

At Si-on’s indifferent remark, Sirvan tilted his head in confusion. After all, one of the things Si-on hated most was people acting independently without knowing their place.

“They need to be properly crushed once to listen better next time, don’t they? Well, since they snapped back to their senses on their own, it’s not bad. If they hadn’t, they’d have either gotten beaten to a pulp or really died before waking up.”

“Ah… y-yes…”

At his grandfather’s ruthless words, the great-grandson swallowed hard.

“Anyway, keep leaving the troop formation and new recruit training to Stelman. You focus more on overseeing the arms production. That’s more important to us than dealing with the monster problem.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Sirvan, who had found far more enjoyment and motivation in his work here than he ever did at the Si-on Duchy, responded energetically.

Seeing that, Philon looked at the two of them with a slightly envious gaze. If he had met a proper mentor, wouldn’t he have turned out like that?

“Oh, and Crown Prince.”

“Ah, yes?”

Si-on spoke to Philon, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“There are nobles in the capital who support you, right?”

“Well… yes, but I think Earl Rundel…”

Now that he thought about it, the so-called ‘Crown Prince faction’ in the capital and royal city seemed to have sworn loyalty to Earl Rundel rather than himself. Philon trailed off.

Si-on chuckled.

“The Crown Prince underestimates himself too much. And he doesn’t understand human greed very well, either.”

“…What do you mean?”

“The next king hasn’t been decided yet. Not until the current king officially strips you of your status.”

“…!”

“Besides, the business we’re about to start here? It won’t just stay in the northeastern region. Eventually, we’ll expand into the central territories. And who do you think should be the figurehead for that?”

“Ah! T-the Royal Family!”

“Exactly. Even if they’re not the ones actually producing or transporting the goods, the Royal Family needs to put their name on it. If you take the lead on this—or even just pretend to—then the nobles in the capital and royal city will start scrambling.”

“I-I’ll send letters immediately!”

Even if he had set aside much of his ambition to become the next king, Philon was, by nature, someone who sought power and enjoyed being in the spotlight.

Even though he had resolved to find his true calling in Burgos, there was no way he’d turn down an opportunity to reassert his ‘presence’ in the capital and royal city.

‘And that works in my favor, too.’

Si-on had already taken care of Philon as promised to Duke Lloyd. Now, it was up to the duke to handle what came next.

And most importantly, the promise Duke Lloyd had made to Si-on—solidifying Burgos as his domain—needed to be upheld.

But Si-on wasn’t naive enough to blindly trust Duke Lloyd.

That’s why he was keeping Philon close, even though he had technically ‘removed’ him as agreed. (The reality didn’t matter—what was important was that everyone else believed it.)

With this, Duke Lloyd, burdened by lingering anxiety, would have no choice but to continue honoring his promise to Si-on. Meanwhile, Si-on, by leveraging the Crown Prince’s name, would extend his influence to central nobles—especially those of the so-called ‘Crown Prince faction’ in the capital.

‘White cat or black cat, as long as it catches mice, that’s all that matters, isn’t it?’

The undying Ancient Monster was still the mastermind behind everything—not just in the ducal territory, but in Burgos as well.

However.

There was one thing even Si-on hadn’t considered.

He didn’t fully grasp just how extraordinary he was, nor did he realize how much his very existence shook others to their core with both awe and fear.

* * *

“Immortal? Are you serious, my lord?”

“Do you think I came straight to you the moment I arrived in the capital just to spout nonsense?”

“Ahem! No, of course not…”

The middle-aged man, whose face was affable but whose clothes and accessories were excessively lavish, cleared his throat and denied it.

After briefly observing the sickly pale Earl Rundel, the man cautiously and subtly asked,

“So then… what brings you to seek out this humble priest, who is but a mere servant of the Almighty Father?”

“…I need a bit of that humble power of yours.”

Though he had called himself humble, in truth, he was anything but. The High Priest of the Kingdom of Obla, Dilosys, furrowed his brows slightly.

However, having long been more consumed by wealth and power than faith, the High Priest soon smiled widely.

“Well then, first, I believe it would be best if you provided more details regarding this Duke Jang Si-on you claim to be speaking of.”