The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 58

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 58. I Won’t Allow This Marriage! (1)
Sub Quest [I Won’t Allow This Marriage!].
If the meaning of “Sub” I knew was correct, it referred to a Quest that was ‘optional—do it or don’t’.
Knights, adventurers, and mercenaries took on such Quests to fill their spare time when they had nothing better to do. Literally optional Sub Quests.
Therefore, there was no obligation.
A Quest where you could do it or skip it.
“What?”
“Y-yes? What did you say, sir?”
“No. It’s nothing.”
I brushed off Adlern’s confusion and turned my gaze elsewhere.
Then I carefully reviewed the Quest details one by one.
‘…What?’
I genuinely had no idea what this was about.
Prevent Seraphia’s marriage?
Suddenly?
And if I refuse the Quest, the penalty is—
‘The Frost Lord’s awakening…?’
…I was momentarily at a loss for words.
This is supposed to be an optional Sub Quest?
How in any way is this a ‘Sub’ Quest?
Looking at the reward alone, it was certainly a Sub Quest.
Kai’s affection.
To be honest, I had no interest in that madman’s affection.
But the penalty for refusal was catastrophic.
Nothing less than ‘The Frost Lord’s awakening’.
I wondered what kind of Quest would have such a penalty.
‘Prevent Seraphia’s marriage?’
I couldn’t fathom why Seraphia’s marriage was suddenly relevant.
In the first place, Seraphia wasn’t even conscious right now.
Somehow.
‘What in the world are they doing in the Whitewolf Territory?’
It seemed I needed to head to the Whitewolf Territory immediately to find out.
Establishing a branch and all that—none of it mattered.
The Frost Lord’s awakening was a far more serious matter than anything else.
But before that.
I retrieved the last thirty platinum coins remaining in my inventory—30,000 gold—and handed them to Adlern.
“Take this.”
“Huh?! Is there another task you need me to handle?”
“No, it’s compensation for your efforts.”
“Eh?! No, sir, I couldn’t possibly—!”
Adlern waved his hand dismissively and took a step back.
“Just take it. Haven’t you been running around on my behalf?”
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he’d practically been supporting me.
All while sacrificing precious hours when he should have been increasing sales.
“But 30,000 gold is far too much!”
Well, I suppose he had a point.
…Damn it.
This wasn’t the time to be bickering over such things.
“Then I’ll just throw it away.”
“Wha—?! Why would you throw it away!”
“Then take it.”
“B-but…!”
“Then I’m throwing it away.”
I actually dropped thirty platinum coins onto the floor.
Only then did Adlern cry out in alarm and scramble to pick up the scattered coins.
And then he prostrated himself completely.
“For life! I shall follow only you, Adrian!”
“Don’t follow me out of faith—follow the money. There is no trust deeper-rooted than gold on this Continent.”
Just as I turned to leave.
◆Your favorability with Adlern has increased!
A semi-transparent message appeared before my eyes.
◆Your favorability with Adlern has reached [Friendly] status!
◆Those in [Friendly] status display a warm and positive attitude toward you.
◆Such individuals actively provide assistance or cooperate with you, and you may receive their support in combat or specific situations, or seek their aid in times of crisis.
As expected.
He was talent worth cultivating as a branch manager in Frecce.
* * *
After parting with Adlern.
I hastily summoned the Merchant Guild members and soldiers.
And on a hunch, I asked about Seraphia’s marriage.
“Ah….”
“As expected….”
The guild members and soldiers nodded as if they’d anticipated this.
Their expressions suggested they’d been waiting for this moment.
“What do you mean ‘as expected’?”
“Uh… You didn’t know?”
It seemed there was something I was unaware of.
“Didn’t know? What are you talking about?”
When I pressed them, the guild members hesitated and fell silent.
But the moment I furrowed my brow, they quickly opened their mouths.
“Truth be told, the Beneron Barony House has been seeking a marriage alliance with Seraphia.”
“The Beneron Barony House?”
Where had I heard that name before?
Not during my time with the Allied Forces…. Ah, that’s right.
A visitor who came to the Whitewolf Territory after the subjugation of Gelu Drake.
And before coming here to Frecce, there had been another visitor—someone who mentioned Beneron or something similar.
“It’s a territory adjacent to our Whitewolf Territory.”
“A territory situated in the Frozen Lands….”
“They have been visiting our territory consistently for some time now.”
My suspicion had been correct.
And each time, they had apparently made some sort of ‘proposal.’
“Don’t tell me that proposal was a marriage proposal?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
Now I could understand what the Sub Quest meant by ‘Seraphia’s marriage.’
But then again.
‘I’ve never heard that the Frost Lord got married?’
…I still couldn’t grasp what was actually happening.
“Since last time, the Beneron Barony House has been continuously proposing marriage to Seraphia.”
In simple terms, it was a political marriage proposal.
Yet political marriages between noble houses were commonplace.
In fact, nearly all marriages between nobility could be considered political marriages.
Which meant that for the daughters of noble houses, political marriage was practically a predetermined fate.
“…Hmm?”
Still, something felt off.
The reason being that House Whitewolf was a Count’s House.
Meanwhile, Beneron was a Baron’s House.
The nobility ranks of the Battenberg Kingdom were divided into five tiers in total.
Duke > Marquis > Count > Baron > Viscount.
In other words, House Whitewolf’s ‘Count’ and Beneron’s ‘Baron’ differed by merely one rank.
…Or so one might think, but that was far from the truth.
A Count was unmistakably classified as high nobility.
Therefore, the single rank difference between Count and Baron could be viewed as a ‘level’ gap.
Duke >>> Marquis > Count >>>>>>>> Baron > Viscount.
In practical terms, the disparity was roughly this significant.
In that sense, Baron and Viscount were not official noble titles.
More precisely, they were not titles appointed by the Sovereign.
They were ‘administrative positions’ selected by high nobility of Count rank and above for territorial management.
Bernard, the Chief Steward of House Whitewolf, was precisely such a case.
However, my father had never granted Bernard even a Viscount’s title, let alone a Baron’s.
Bernard could resign as Chief Steward on the spot without a word of complaint being justified.
In any case, a baron is not the one in charge—merely a middle manager.
What they call baronies are territories arbitrarily designated by the count.
It’s a system where the count carves out land from the county and says, “I’ll give you this, so won’t you work under me?”
But then, for some reason, the count suddenly dies.
Or perhaps leaves no heir.
And whenever a count becomes absent from a county for any reason, the allocated territory simply gets swallowed whole.
That’s what today’s “baronies” and “baronies” are called.
After centuries of such history accumulated and layered upon itself, the Royal Court eventually recognized even barons and baronets as nobility.
But strictly speaking, a sovereign—
In other words, they lack recognition from the Royal Court itself.
“Is there any real reason to arrange a marriage?”
House Whitewolf, being a count’s house, had no particular reason to arrange such a marriage.
That’s because Seraphia is the “lord” of House Whitewolf.
In other words, the next count.
There was no reason to arrange a strategic marriage with a mere baronial house.
“It’s that….”
“As you well know, sir Adrian, our county is somewhat….”
The guild members trailed off, but I understood well enough what they meant.
The Whitewolf Territory, possessing nothing.
The Beneron Barony, possessing much.
Nobles of baron rank and below harbored a complex about not receiving Royal Court recognition.
So they became obsessed with earning merit, and through such efforts, there were not a few cases where they gained a sovereign’s recognition and were promoted to count.
But the easiest method, as always, was—
“Baron Beneron has proposed a strategic marriage with Lady Seraphia on the condition of an enormous sum of gold coins….”
A strategic marriage.
It was the same principle as second sons and younger sons of noble houses entering other noble families as stewards to advance themselves.
Second daughters and younger daughters of noble houses contributed to their families through marriages with other noble houses.
Though she was adopted, Seraphia was the eldest daughter of House Whitewolf.
Not merely the eldest daughter, but the next count.
And her appearance was exceptionally beautiful.
It was a situation where the Beneron Barony could covet her openly.
“When the previous count was alive, we wouldn’t have dared even consider it….”
But a few months ago, her father passed away.
And since he left all his inheritance to Seraphia, they thought that if they could just take Seraphia, they could swallow the entire county.
“We were absolutely opposed….”
The Whitewolf Territory, possessing virtually nothing.
Subjects who had to battle hunger and cold every single day.
It seemed Seraphia believed that if she simply accepted the marriage proposal from the Beneron Barony, she could resolve all of it.
‘So that’s why Seraphia said she’d return the position of lord to me?’
Seraphia, who had renounced all the inheritance that came to her.
Back then, I couldn’t fathom why she’d done it, but now it made sense.
It seemed she was willing to be sold off through a political marriage, but she wouldn’t surrender the Whitewolf Territory itself.
‘I see.’
In my previous life, I’d been completely unaware of these circumstances.
After all, I’d abandoned the family.
But well, that’s neither here nor there.
‘Truthfully, it’s not my concern.’
To be honest, it didn’t matter to me who Seraphia married or didn’t marry.
I checked the Quest that had materialized before my eyes once more.
==[I Absolutely Oppose This Marriage!]==
[Objective] – Prevent Seraphia’s marriage.
[Reward] – Kai’s affection increases
[Failure] – The Frost Lord awakens.
The reward certainly felt like a typical sub-Quest.
Kai’s affection.
That madman lived and breathed for Seraphia, so his affection toward me was something I could do without.
In other words, it was a sub-Quest I had no desire to complete.
But the penalty for failure was catastrophic.
Which meant I couldn’t afford the consequences of refusing to undertake it.
And the sudden appearance of this Quest meant one thing.
‘Why did I accept the marriage proposal?’
It was tantamount to the Whitewolf Territory accepting Seraphia’s marriage proposal.
In other words, Kai had also accepted the proposal.
That madman who lived and breathed for Seraphia.
‘It’s not just the Quest appearing…’
When Beneron Barony House visited the Whitewolf Territory, no Quest had appeared.
So when the proposal first arrived, there was no Quest.
Therefore, this Quest must have triggered because the marriage proposal was accepted.
‘Suddenly?’
Truly, it was incomprehensible.
To be frank, before I had nothing to my name, so accepting a marriage proposal was possible.
But that’s not the case now, is it?
With the resources I currently provided to my territory’s people, we could easily survive the frozen season.
‘Could it be that Seraphia actually wants to marry?’
If that were the case, I could understand it.
If Seraphia loved Baron Beneron, then I could understand it.
I could even understand why Kai accepted the marriage proposal.
Then it truly wasn’t my concern.
I could simply go kill Seraphia and be done with the marriage altogether.
I couldn’t ignore Ian’s regrets or whatever—the awakening of The Frost Lord was absolutely something I had to prevent.
But then.
‘How can you marry someone who isn’t even conscious?’
I couldn’t even begin to fathom what madness was unfolding.
Most importantly, according to my memories, Seraphia had no husband.
There was no information whatsoever about The Frost Lord having married.
First and foremost, I questioned whether any man on The Continent could even handle The Frost Lord.
A mere touch would freeze someone to death.
Seeing that Ian lost his left arm, even he wouldn’t qualify.
Therefore, it was safe to say no man on The Continent could handle Seraphia.
Regardless.
‘I need to see for myself.’
I needed to verify what was happening.
And quickly at that.
“You all remain in Frecce and continue the business.”
“Pardon? Just the two of us, sir?”
“Yes. If any problems arise, seek assistance from the Merchant Guild.”
They were quick-witted enough that they could manage the business adequately without me.
Eventually, once we established a branch in Frecce, they would need to lead the operations independently anyway.
“That is… well…”
“We’re not sure if we can do this well…”
Their faces betrayed uncertainty, but this was something they had to face eventually.
Experience itself was a valuable asset.
I couldn’t always be beside them, guiding their every step.
“Just proceed as you have been. Even if you make mistakes, it’s fine—treat this as an opportunity to gain experience.”
“Yes, understood!”
“We’ll do our best not to embarrass Adrian!”
The Merchant Guild members shouted enthusiastically, though worry still lingered.
But as I said, this was inevitable.
Even if something went wrong, the Merchant Guild and City Congress would step in, so there shouldn’t be major problems.
“Then I’m heading to Whitewolf Territory now.”
“Eh—?”
It happened before the guild members could even finish their confused questions.
◆Combination Skill ‘Metabolic Overdrive [U]’ activated!
◆Caloric Consumption – 100,000 Kcal
◆For [1,000 seconds], all of the player’s stats increase by [+100%]!
My abilities skyrocketed explosively.
-Huh?
The guild member’s dumbfounded voice became a faint speck in the distance.
* * *
The oppressive heat radiating through the blazing chamber.
The air in the sweltering room pressed down with suffocating intensity.
Each breath of air that touched my skin seared like flame, and with every inhalation, it felt as though my lungs were being roasted whole.
A heat as though trapped within inferno itself.
Yet this was a heat that could not be endured for mere seconds, let alone minutes.
Seraphia lay sprawled across the bed as though she existed in some distant world entirely.
Kai examined Seraphia’s condition with careful attention.
Unconscious, she lay collapsed upon the bed as though utterly drained of strength.
Even within this scorching heat, frost clung to Seraphia’s eyelashes.
Her lips, tinted a sickly blue, held no warmth whatsoever.
Her skin was pallid, and her fingertips were frozen solid, unable to move even a single digit.
Her breathing was so faint it was barely perceptible.
Only by the subtle rise and fall of her chest could I discern that she still drew breath.
Kai quietly left the room, leaving Seraphia behind.
As the door opened, Bernard, who had been waiting outside, spoke.
“How is she?”
Worry and concern were etched across Bernard’s face.
Though Bernard desperately sought an answer, Kai could not provide one.
The words simply would not come.
Seraphia was dying.
There was not much time left.
I could not bring myself to speak those words aloud.
Yet sometimes, there are truths that need not be spoken to be understood.
Bernard closed his eyes slowly.
“We must accept the proposal from Beneron Barony House.”
“Absolutely not!”
Kai’s voice erupted before I could stop it.
“He is a greedy man! To entrust Seraphia to such a person—!”
“But what other choice do we have?”
At Bernard’s words, I fell silent, my mouth clamped shut.
My heart constricted with anguish, suffocating me.
I knew there was no alternative.
“First and foremost… we must save Seraphia’s life, must we not?”
Accepting that reality was unbearably difficult.
And so, in this moment.
Ironically, one figure came to mind.
Adrian, who had departed for Frecce on business.
Could Adrian not find a way to treat Seraphia?
The power to transform the impossible into the possible.
Could Adrian not achieve the impossible once more?
It was at that very moment, as Kai deliberated.
“Right, first we need to keep your master alive, don’t we?”
A voice drifted from somewhere nearby.
I turned my gaze toward the source, where a man was approaching Kai with deliberate steps.
Even his gait reeked of arrogance.
His exaggerated, leisurely pace radiated a contemptuous disregard for those around him.
His face glistened with an oily sheen, and his ostentatiously lavish attire paired with expensive jewelry adorning each finger spoke not of refinement, but of vanity.
In his appearance, demeanor, and dress, greed and baseness were laid bare for all to see—this man’s name was—
Alteron de Beneron.
The eldest son of Beneron Barony House and the very man engaged in marriage negotiations with Seraphia.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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