Whoosh.

In front of the ruins of the Garcia Duchy, Duke Garcia gazed at the devastating scene with a horrified expression. 

But the problem was not just the destroyed estate.

“Are these all the remaining soldiers?”

“I’m sorry, Your Grace.”

“Ha…”

While some knights remained, a significant portion of the soldiers had been severely injured by the bombardment. 

Most were not even able to stand, requiring long-term care to recover. 

The sight of the fallen soldiers made the Duke’s brow twitch in anguish.

‘To think that the Garcia Duchy, which had never been invaded before, could be reduced to such ashes.’

This was more than just an attack. 

If word of this incident spread, it could tarnish the previously immaculate reputation of the Garcia family.

‘If that happens, everything will crumble.’

Not only would his standing with the royal family be shaken, but his position among the nobles would also weaken. 

The nobles, whom he had subdued with his vast wealth, might rise to surpass Garcia. 

Just like the Adria Duchy had once fallen, the Garcia Duchy might also face the same fate.

Hence, Duke Garcia gnashed his teeth.

‘To think that ungrateful red-headed beast… How did I treat him?’

It was he who had made Ian, who would have ended his life as a mere serf, into a prince. 

It was he who had brought him into the ducal house, treating him like royalty. 

Yet now, Ian was repaying that kindness with enmity. 

No, not merely animosity—he was shaking the very foundations of the Garcia house from the ground up. 

He even turned his subordinates Galon and Nathan against him!

‘He was a vital piece for the grand plan, to maximize the succession war and awaken the Seven Sins.’

For that reason, he had been the crucial puzzle piece found by the First Prince. 

However, the strange thing was that Ian, who surely did not know that, had inexplicably turned hostile towards Duke Garcia. 

In the end, it resulted in the devastation of a territory that was virtually his face and the loss of the castle.

‘Where did everything go wrong?’

Was it when he supported the First Prince’s plan? 

Or when he elevated Ian, a mere serf, to prince status? 

Yet, those details mattered little now.

‘The castle has been taken. It’s clear that the royal army outside will attack the duchy. The grand plan isn’t the problem anymore; the very existence of the Garcia Duchy may be at stake.’ 𝔯𝘢ɴŏʙË𝒮

For the first time, the Duke’s face was horribly contorted. 

There was only one choice left for him.

“We must not let them leave this place alive.”

“Prepare the archers and have the soldiers infiltrate.”

“No, that won’t be enough. Bring the siege weapons.”

“W-What, Your Grace?”

At the Duke’s words, the eyes of all the knights, including the chief officer, widened in shock. 

To attack the castle with siege weapons was simply unthinkable.

“That’s out of the question! Other nobles will laugh at you, Your Grace.”

“Indeed. To attack your own castle… It could result in the walls being damaged!”

“The Garcia Castle has never faced an attack until now. How can you suggest such a thing…”

The thought of tarnishing the honor of a house with such a long history weighed heavily upon them. 

But the Duke shook his head.

“I lost my castle in my own courtyard. If this news spreads, it will be a greater disgrace than that.”

“However…”

“Enough. I have made my decision. Are you all refusing to follow my orders?”

“…”

The Duke’s resolve was firm. 

He was prepared, if needed, to destroy his own castle with his own hands, ensuring no enemy escaped. 

The murderous intent in Duke Garcia’s eyes unmistakably conveyed that sentiment. 

And he wasn’t done yet.

“I’ll also tell you about the secret exit. Prepare to enter with the soldiers through there.”

This secret exit, known only to Duke Garcia, revealed the hidden passage that had been passed down through generations. 

To outside, orders were given to launch an assault using siege weapons while covertly infiltrating the castle to eliminate Ian, the seventh prince, and his followers. 

The knights nodded in response to the Duke’s murderous voice.

“We will carry out the task without fail.”

“Not a single one will be left alive.”

The commander of the knights, Alby, rose from his seat, particularly moved by the Duke’s command. 

Only then did Duke Garcia nod.

‘But it’s still not enough.’

Up until now, he had only been played by Ian. 

If he didn’t return the favor, he wouldn’t be able to call himself Duke of Garcia. 

Any noble would then disrespect him. 

With a cold tone, he whispered to the chief officer.

“Right now, relay this to the Secret Special Force: do not leave a single person in that damned territory alive.”

Initially, he had planned on burning down the food warehouses. 

But he changed his mind. 

He wanted to destroy everything related to Ian, not just those who offended his pride.

‘Even if it costs a fortune, I will use any means necessary to obliterate everything connected to him.’

As the chief officer left to carry out the order, Duke Garcia turned to Alby and whispered once more.

“Inform the First Prince as well. The priority now is not the royal palace, but Ian.”

“However, by now, he should have reached the royal palace, correct?”

“He’ll understand if I say this. I’m sure the prince will agree.”

“Then I will convey your message.”

Ian had disrupted all his plans, reversing the steps of the First Prince, who had entered the royal family to declare his survival and reclaim the crown prince position. 

But before Ian could cause further trouble, he needed to be removed. 

Not doing so now felt like everything would crumble.

Duke Garcia fixed a cold gaze on the castle as he solidified his resolve.

‘The plan has changed… I will definitely kill you here, Ian Kaistein.’

He had already laid out all his moves. 

His eyes fixed on Ian above the castle.

***

“Eh?”

Nathan, scouting outside on the castle walls, widened his eyes in shock. 

Urgently, he called out to Ian..

“Your Highness! This is bad! Really bad!”

His usually composed face was pale as he shouted.

“It’s siege weapons! Duke Garcia must have finally gone mad!”

The reason was clear.

More than five siege weapons had appeared, all accompanied by massive boulders. 

Until now, the weapons had been aimed at the castle gates, but now they were targeting Duke Garcia’s castle. 

However, Ian merely chuckled.

“Siege weapons, you say? Don’t worry about it.”

“Pardon?”

“If a few rocks could destroy this castle, we wouldn’t have made it this far in the first place.”

“What do you mean…?”

“More importantly, take this. We still have a lot to gather.” 

Ian tossed the documents and bags of precious metals he had collected from the Duke’s chambers to Nathan.

At that moment, gathering their belongings took precedence over anything else.

‘These are documents related to the First Prince, as well as the contents of his schemes to usurp the Kaistein throne.’

Moreover, he had managed to pick up plenty of treasures. 

Among them were the Duke’s heirlooms, which couldn’t simply be bought with money, carefully stored in a Small Subspace Ring. 

After gathering a significant amount, Ian stole a glance to the side. 

He watched Nathan anxiously rummaging through the Duke’s treasures.

‘Really… it’s strange.’ 

It made sense. 

In his previous life, Nathan had attacked the Garcia stronghold alongside the Third Prince. 

They had even succeeded in driving their swords right up to the Duke and Ian’s throats.

‘And now Nathan is my knight. It feels strange.’

In the past, they had been the ones on the defensive, but that was no longer the case. 

Although they were still facing an attack from siege weapons, Nathan was now by Ian’s side. 

Moreover, Ian had shifted from a defensive role to an attacking one. 

Naturally, it was a new experience for him. 

At that moment, Nathan, with a bag on his back, approached.

“But do we really not need to worry? It feels like they could start hurling boulders at any moment?”

The other knights looked slightly uneasy as well. 

However, Ian smiled nonchalantly.

‘In my previous life, it took three days and nights of mobilizing siege weapons just to finally breach this place. And that was with a massive number of knights and equipment.’

But now, in front of him were only five siege weapons.

Furthermore, the knights were preoccupied with putting out fires and managing the fallen soldiers, meaning they couldn’t be properly organized for battle. 

The real issue, however, was something else.

“Strangely enough,” he began.

“What do you mean?” Nathan replied.

“The number of knights seems fewer than expected.”

“That can’t be right. There seem to be almost ten knights visible right now.”

“That’s exactly it. There are barely ten of them, aren’t there?”

“Wait, what?”

Ian cast a cold glance at the Duke and his surroundings. 

The sinister Duke Garcia was undoubtedly hiding a substantial number of his knights.

“Especially, the commander of the knights, Sir Alby, is absent.”

“!”

Alby, the commander of the White Hawk Knights, was not an ordinary opponent. 

Not only had he emerged unscathed from the joint attack by Nathan and the Third Prince, but he had also overwhelmed them. 

To the extent that those two had to lure Alby away and then attack Garcia.

‘If Commander Alby wasn’t lured away, Duke Garcia wouldn’t have been in danger.’

He was merely remaining at the Duke’s side, but his potential could easily keep Lavaltor’s forces tied up. 

However, Nathan, unaware of this, just shrugged.

“Perhaps he was injured earlier and is receiving treatment by now?”

“Well, I’ve heard he’s a man of steel. Would he really withdraw after just that level of bombardment? After all, Duke Garcia is facing such humiliation.”

“Are you suggesting…?”

“It seems the Duke may be up to something.”

Just then, Ian, remembering something, raised his head.

“Oh! The secret passage!”

“Secret passage?”

“You know, the one that can be used to escape when the castle is in danger.”

“Oh!”

However, Nathan and the other knights were skeptical.

“Would he reveal the secret passage? What kind of secret is that?”

“That’s right. Such passages are secrets passed down only to direct heirs. No matter how much he wants to kill the prince, revealing such a secret to the soldiers…”

“Wouldn’t it be a problem if the knights knew? Surely the location of the secret passage would be revealed outside?”

The nobles were possessive of their secrets.  

They would never tell anyone about a secret passage. 

But Ian knew.

‘Duke Garcia wouldn’t just accept defeat this easily.’

Just like before, as soon as their spies lost contact, he had sent out a Secret Special Force. 

Ian steeled his gaze, knowing that the Duke understood his castle wasn’t going to collapse from just a few boulders. 

Yet if he was resorting to using boulders…

‘He will surely try to enter through the secret passage.’

The Duke was not one to simply sit by and let things unfold. 

If he intended to attack using the secret passage…

‘Things could get really dangerous from here.’

Outside, there were catapults and archers, while inside, the knights would stage a surprise attack through the secret passage. 

If even Commander Alby were amongst those attackers, there was no way Nathan could stop him in his current state. 

Ian shot a piercing glance at Nathan.

“Do you not believe what I’m saying, Sir Nathan?”

“No, that’s not it. I completely believe you.”

Though confused, Nathan looked at Ian with a trusting gaze. 

There was no other option for him. 

Up to this point, he had found Ian’s plans absurd and hard to trust, but the results Ian had shown were unprecedented. 

If he couldn’t trust someone like him, who could he trust?

Ian conveyed the same sentiment to the others through his commanding gaze.

“You don’t have to believe me. However, don’t forget who we are dealing with. Think about who Duke Garcia is.”

“Hmm…”

Duke Garcia was known as a ruthless merchant, one without compassion. 

If such a man were willing to endure his own losses just to kill Ian, how far would he be willing to go? 

Soon, the knights looked at Ian with the same gaze as Nathan. 

“So what should we do?”

“First, fortify the areas suspected to lead to Duke Garcia’s secret passage. The most suspicious location is…”

Ian paused for a moment. 

It was troublesome to let them know that he knew too much.

‘It’s also a problem to scatter our already small number of knights. Duke Garcia will definitely send Commander Alby first.’

Once a breach started, they wouldn’t be able to stop Duke Garcia’s forces. 

Even if the castle’s defenses held against siege weapons, knights sneaking in through a secret passage would open the gates immediately. 

Therefore, he needed to provide guidance on the areas closest to the secret passage.

“Start by checking the underground and areas near the restroom. There will definitely be a secret passage nearby.”

“Pardon? Even so, could there really be a secret passage in the restroom?”

“The most dangerous places are often the ones no one suspects. Make sure to inspect that area thoroughly, Sir Nathan.”

While Ian commanded the knights to find the secret passage, he also pondered the Duke’s next move.

‘This can’t be all there is. If it’s him, he will surely do something more ruthless.’

The highest possibility was that he would launch a surprise attack on Helgaia with the Secret Special Force. 

The duke might also conspire with the First Prince to strike against him. 

But Ian smiled.

‘You don’t realize how much preparation I’ve made to get here.’

He wasn’t merely planning to steal a few things. 

The destruction of the castle was just the beginning. 

He intended to shatter everything the Duke took pride in, making him feel the same pain he had experienced in his past life. 

Therefore, he needed to move on to the next operation immediately.

‘I wonder if my sister and Aria are doing well.’

Louis, the Third Prince, what about him?

Even though Ian captured Garcia’s full focus, they would totally destroy Garcia’s army inside Kaistein.

‘Now the once impenetrable Duke Garcia’s house truly meets its end.’

Even in the darkness, Ian’s eyes shone.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read