I Became the Patron of Villains

64. It was there. (5)

The nobles’ expressions were filled with confusion.

The nobles who had followed Alon were equally bewildered.

The nobles who had expected the king to suppress the growth of the Calpa were also shocked and astonished.

However, they were not the only ones making such expressions.

“`

“……??”

Alon, who had heard such words from Cretania Siyan, was also questioning what this situation was.

‘Marquis, you say?’

For a noble, a ‘title’ carried a great deal of significance.

It was akin to a social rank, and moreover, the title of marquis would grant Alon far more power than his current countship.

From the number of private soldiers he could raise to the extent of his domain, it affected many aspects.

There was no discomfort in leading a faction within the noble society either.

Although Alon, despite being a count, was already the leader of Kalpa, it was an anomaly. According to the original rules of noble society, it was impossible for a mere count to sit in the leader’s seat.

It was, in fact, a bizarre structure.

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But if Cretania Siyan were to elevate his title to marquis, such a strange structure within Kalpa would be immediately resolved.

In other words, Cretania Siyan was not restraining Kalpa but rather aiding it.

‘What is this……?’

Alon couldn’t help but look up at her with a blank expression.

Siyan, however, spoke leisurely, resting her chin on her hand.

“I heard the story. That you eradicated all those who were gnawing at Asteria. This is your reward.”

Her voice echoed calmly.

It was a reasonable statement, but even so, the question did not disappear.

There was no reason for her to reward him according to such logic in the first place.

‘This feels like an excuse to elevate my title to marquis.’

Alon looked at the king.

‘……Is it confidence that he can suppress Kalpa if it grows too large?’

A rational assumption flashed through his mind.

Even though he stared at her face, wondering if she could read his thoughts, her face showed nothing but a profound indifference, with no trace of emotion.

At that moment.

“Why, do you dislike it?”

Alon snapped back to reality at Siyan’s words.

“No, Your Majesty.”

Alon replied, bowing his head.

Siyan, who had never shown even a faint smile until now, stood up from the throne with a very slight smile.

Step, step-

With light steps, she stood before Alon.

Then, bending her body, she met Alon’s eyes as he raised his head, and with her index finger, she pressed the right corner of his mouth, pulling it sideways.

“…?”

Alon, whose expression was altered by Siyan’s finger, now had one corner of his mouth lifted.

It was a strange expression to anyone who saw it, but she, who had created that expression, smiled slyly.

“Smile. It looks much better that way.”

With those words, she removed her finger from Alon’s cheek.

The king, who was looking at Alon with a satisfied expression, his unique golden eyes shining, said,

“I shall take my leave now, so everyone enjoy the banquet.”

With those words, he turned his body as if he had no more business at the ball.

Creak-! Bang!

The grand door opened and closed, and silence flowed through the ballroom.

And Alon, who was staring blankly at the place where she had left, thought,

‘…What was that?’

He could only become more bewildered.

####

After the king had left.

The ballroom, which had been silent for a long time, began to slowly regain its vitality.

The only difference from a moment ago was that the nobles who had been smiling were now the exact opposite.

The nobles of the royalist and aristocratic factions, who had expected that today’s ball would surely curb Kalpa, all had expressions as if the world had ended.

On the other hand, the nobles who had entered the ballroom following Alon were all beaming with broad smiles, praising themselves for having chosen the right side.

And.

Alon, who had now become the de facto protagonist of this ball, was surrounded by nobles who were eagerly flattering him, regardless of his reaction.

“Congratulations, Count!”

“Oh, Count? Soon you’ll be a Marquis!”

“Ah, right. I misspoke-“

And the Duke of Altia and Count Zenonia, who were genuinely impressed, said,

“Indeed, Count Palatio, no, Marquis, you are truly remarkable.”

“Indeed. When did you manage to win over the king-“

Receiving their mistaken and burdensome gazes, Alon thought.

‘At some point… no, I really don’t know.’

Alon turned his confused gaze to the door Siyan had exited.

‘What is this…?’

He recalled the information he knew about the 8th King of Asteria, Critenia Siyan, one by one.

But no matter how many times he thought about it, Critenia Siyan was not the kind of person to act like that.

‘…Although she has little interest in state affairs, she would ruthlessly cut off anything she deemed a threat to the throne. So what was that smile about?’

Alon thought about the smile she had shown earlier.

As far as he knew, Siyan was a character who never smiled in any illustration or narrative from Psychedelia.

In terms of personality, she was typically a very indifferent character.

‘…Something is strange.’

Just as Alon was realizing that something was amiss and tilting his head in confusion,

“……”

In a corner, the nobleman, Marquis Philboid, was watching him surrounded by other nobles.

‘Count Palatio…’

Marquis Philboid gritted his teeth unconsciously.

Half a year ago, he had knelt before the Count, only to be dragged into the Holy Kingdom, and though it wasn’t as bad as Duke Limgrave, he had been confined in a strange cell and tortured for about a month.

As a result, he was eagerly anticipating today’s events.

He too thought that Alon would pay the price for expanding his faction so recklessly.

But contrary to his expectations, the King had instead bestowed the title of Marquis upon him, as if acknowledging his faction.

‘How on earth…!’

Marquis Philboid, gritting his teeth as he looked at Alon, let out a deep sigh.

At this point, with things having already progressed this far, there was nothing he could do.

But that didn’t mean he would do nothing, having already suffered retribution.

‘In that case… I have no choice but to meet them!’

Marquis Philboid, with a determined look on his face, turned and began to walk somewhere.

####

Five days later.

As Alon was thinking about leaving for the colony after trying all the snacks at the week-long ball,

Marquis Philboid had already left on the first day and was heading to Pakason, one of the territories of the Kingdom of Ashtalon, close to the Kingdom of Asteria.

Of course, normally he would have been cautious about such a conspicuous action, but now he was fine.

From the moment he was dragged to the Holy Kingdom once, he had already lost most of his political power and was no longer the head of a faction.

In other words, no nobles cared about the toothless tiger that the Marquis of Philboid had become, so he could reach his destination without worrying about anyone’s gaze.

And so.

The place he headed to upon arriving at Parkason was the entrance leading to the underground slum around the territory.

“Hoo-“

Sighing as he looked at the openly gloomy entrance to the underground, he firmly shut his mouth and moved towards the entrance.

It was because he had heard that the ‘Agent’, who would kill any noble or royal for a price, was here.

So he descended underground.

“Tsk.”

Frowning at the sight of the gambling den, filled with the noisy voices of people and the acrid smoke, he continued to walk.

Because the person he was looking for would be deeper inside.

Moving further into the depths of the gambling den, he uttered the password to the man blocking his way and opened the firmly closed door at the end without hesitation.

And then.

“…?”

“Huh?”

Inside the open door, the Marquis of Philboid saw a girl.

No, to be precise.

A girl with radiant blonde hair and an innocent expression.

“…”

And next to the girl, a headless corpse lying on the floor, shattered.

The Marquis of Philboid frowned slightly but did not flee in shock.

He had heard about the grotesque characteristics of the agent from the person who introduced him before coming here.

‘…I heard they were a very fierce beastman who enjoyed desecrating corpses, but this is more repulsive than I thought.’

The Marquis of Philboid quickly relaxed his furrowed brows.

Because he had to make a request to the agent in front of him from now on.

“Who are you?”

The agent’s voice, filled with pure curiosity and innocence, reached the Marquis as he steeled his resolve, and he momentarily showed a curious expression.

Although there was indeed a corpse, upon closer inspection, the agent’s appearance was quite different from what the Marquis had expected.

But only for a moment, he opened his mouth.

“I’ve come to make a request.”

“A request?”

“Yes. I’ve come to request the assassination of Count Palatio.”

Recalling the introducer’s words that he dislikes beating around the bush, the Marquis immediately stated the request.

And then.

Shiver-!

“Heh-“

Marquis Philboid could unmistakably recognize that the person before him was the agent.

As soon as he mentioned the client, the face that had been smiling innocently just moments ago,

“So-“

Twisting his lips as if amused.

“You’re saying you’ve come to request the assassination of Count Palatio?”

Because his eyes had become infinitely cold.

Facing those chillingly cold golden eyes that made even breathing difficult, the Marquis felt his knees weaken and involuntarily swallowed dryly.

“That’s right…”

At the affirmative response, the golden-haired Surlang nodded several times, his hair swaying.

“Yes, I see. But, what to do?”

“What-?”

“The person who will take your request… is right here?”

He shrugged his shoulders lightly.

Following the inexplicable words, Marquis Philboid lowered his gaze to follow Surlang’s gauntleted finger, soon realizing that her finger was pointing at a corpse with a shattered head.

“Ah.”

Only then did he realize something was wrong, letting out a low exclamation.