Former Fake Becomes Grand Duke of the North

The next few days after Count Wirner arrived at Kaltbrand Castle were rather uneventful. The count’s presence turned out to be less intrusive than I expected. Not much changed in my daily schedule. I spent my mornings in training, my afternoons at successor lessons, and my evenings with Grand Duke Kaltbrand and Knight Commander Bardin, where the three of us planned for the upcoming banquet. The only difference was that I would sometimes catch Count Wirner observing me from a distance.

In the beginning I expected him to continue to question and test me about my qualifications to be the heir to House Kaltbrand. However, it soon became clear that Count Wirner was content to watch me from afar. At first I found it a little unnerving, but I soon grew used to his presence.

One thing I noticed, however, was the strange relationship between Knight Commander Bardin and Count Wirner. There was an awkwardness between them. It was something I noticed when the count first arrived. Knight Commander Bardin respected Count Wirner, that much was obvious, yet she also treated him with cold indifference and kept him at a distance. It was also obvious that Count Wirner didn’t like this current state of affairs. I guessed he wanted a closer relationship with Knight Commander Bardin, who was his daughter as well as his disciple.

My intuition told me that the two had a complicated history. Otherwise things wouldn’t have gotten to this point. I was curious about that history, but I kept my mouth shut and didn’t ask questions. It wasn’t any of my business. I was Knight Commander Bardin’s disciple, but that didn’t give me the right to pry into her private affairs. If I were her actual son, instead of just a fake, perhaps things would be different. However, I wasn’t, so the point was moot.

In other news, the twins kept an eye on the Kaltbrand Castle servants for me, watching for any suspicious activity. They hadn’t found anything yet, which was either a good sign or a bad one. It either meant that no one had made any moves against me and House Kaltbrand yet, or they were subtle enough to avoid the twins’ attention. The only thing they were able to tell me was that Kaltbrand Castle, as well as Frostheart, was abuzz with news of my arrival.

I also had the twins keep me informed of any news about the other potential heirs and their houses. So far, none of them had made any suspicious moves. House Steuben, House Arbeit, and House Gerhard were still hives of activity. The potential heirs and their families were meeting with their allies and vassals, no doubt coming up with ideas on how to respond to my appearance. However, I didn’t expect this current state of affairs to last for long. Someone would act. The only question was, who would be first?

After giving it some thought, I decided to take a more proactive approach instead of waiting for the potential heirs to move first. Of the four of us, my position was both the weakest and the strongest. The weakest since I didn’t have much support among the northern lords. The strongest because I had Grand Duke Kaltbrand’s backing. The more I strengthened my position, the better. That way, when I left after the year was up, Grand Duke Kaltbrand’s real heir wouldn’t have as much trouble to deal with.

To that end, I asked the twins, or the Blue Shadows rather, to take a deeper look into the potential heirs, starting with Lady Adelheid Gerhard. Of my three “rivals”, she had the weakest position. Hopefully, that meant she was also the easiest to deal with. At a minimum, I needed to eliminate her as a threat. However, I would prefer to sway her to my side and have her join my faction. That way, I could make her strength my own.

For that to happen, I needed to know more about what drove her. Why did she want to become the heir to House Kaltbrand? Wealth? Power? Glory? Or did she have some other goal in mind? If I knew what she wanted, it would give me a better idea of how to deal with her. I hoped that the Blue Shadows would find something I could use.

The days passed like that, one after the other, quiet and peaceful. As restful as it was, I also found it a bit dull. Over the past three years, I had spent most of my time hunting demonic beasts. However, ever since I came to Kaltbrand Castle, the only time I drew my sword was for training with Knight Commander Bardin. I enjoyed it, yet a part of me yearned for battle. I was a warrior, not an administrator.

The gods must have been listening, because my wish soon came true.

One day, just after I had finished with my successor lessons, I had been on my way back to my rooms when a messenger intercepted me. Grand Duke Kaltbrand wished to see me in his study. I thanked the messenger, before heading to the study, where I found the Grand Duke, Knight Commander Bardin, and Count Wirner waiting for me.

“You wished to see me, Dad?” I asked after greeting everyone.

By this point, I had gotten used to calling the grand duke “Dad”. However, I still hadn’t called Knight Commander Bardin “Mom”. Gods willing, I would never have to.

“Yes, Wulfe,” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said with a serious expression on his face. “One of our patrols has sighted a group of demonic beasts led by a few Proteans close to a nearby village.”

I resisted the urge to let out a curse. Proteans were a rare kind of demonic beast, and dangerous ones at that. They were Rank Three, meaning they were equivalent to Aura Experts in terms of strength, speed, and toughness. That alone was troublesome enough. However, it was their…unique characteristics that made them more dangerous than the average Aura Expert.

Proteans, as their name suggested, had no set form. They were shape-changers with malleable bodies. By default, they were giant lumps of flesh, each one about the size of a small house. However, they had the ability to form any kind of body part they wished, human or otherwise, from any location of their body. Eyes, mouths, limbs, etc. This, combined with the sense of wrongness that all demonic beasts exuded, made them grotesque abominations in every sense of the word.

Their favorite method of killing was to devour their victims alive. For the truly unlucky ones, this could take hours or even days, as the Protean took its time to savor its meal. Because of this, no one hunted Proteans alone. Instead, they went after them in groups. That way, if someone got caught by a Protean, their comrades could attempt a rescue.

Due to their size and toughness, Proteans were difficult to kill. Fortunately, each Protean had a “core” that acted as their heart. The easiest way to kill one, aside from using divine power, was to destroy their core. The problem was that the core had no set location, since a Protean could shift it around to any point in their body.

Other than that, the only way to kill a Protean was to inflict massive amounts of damage and cut away pieces of its body. This wasn’t a problem for Aura Masters like myself. However, for everyone else, fighting a Protean became a dangerous and grueling slog.

The only time I had ever fought Proteans was during the battle at Jagged Tooth Pass. That was how rare they were, despite the prevalence of demonic beasts in the Barrens. Sometimes, when I had nightmares about that battle, I heard the screams of men and women being eaten alive by Proteans.

“At first I thought about just sending Sofie here to lead a contigent of knights to wipe the demonic beasts out.” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said. “However, after giving it some thought, I decided that this was a good opportunity for you to show off your strength.”

I nodded. That made sense. Watching an Aura Master in battle was different from watching one spar. This was a good chance to elevate my standing among the Coldsteel Knights, as well as the people of the Barrens in general. After all, House Kaltbrand were the guardians and protectors of the north. It was part of the foundation of their rule and the source of their legitimacy.

“Very well, Dad,” I said. “When would you like for me to leave?”

“Within the hour,” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said. “While the demonic beasts were sighted some distance away from the village, the sooner we deal with them the better.” He gestured to Knight Commander Bardin. “You’ll accompany Sofie for this mission. She will be in command. While you are my heir, she is the leader of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade. Follow her lead. However, I want you to take this opportunity to observe her on the field and learn as much as you can. Do you understand, Wulfe?”

I nodded. I would have done that even if he hadn’t told me. The chance to see the legendary Knight Commander Bardin in action? Only a fool would pass that up.

“Yes, Dad,” I said.

“I will accompany you as well,” Count Wirner interjected. “As an observer, not a participant.” He glanced at Knight Commander Bardin. “Sofie and the knights of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade are more than capable of dealing with a few Proteans. An old man like me won’t make much of a difference.” He narrowed his eyes at me. “This mission will also give me an opportunity to observe you on the field, away from the comforts of Kaltbrand Castle.”

I suspected as much. Otherwise, why else would the count be here, in the grand duke’s office? As far as I knew, Count Wirner wasn’t involved in House Kaltbrand’s affairs. Not anymore at least.

“Do you have any objections?” Count Wirner asked, as if challenging me.

I shook my head.

“No, I don’t,” I said. “In fact, I look forward to it. As the former leader of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade, you have decades of experience in dealing with demonic beasts. I would appreciate it if you shared some of your insights with me.”

Count Wirner raised an eyebrow at me.

“I’m surprised,” he said. “Considering you became an Aura Master at such a young age, I figured there wasn’t anything you would care to learn from a mere Aura Expert like me.”

“I may be an Aura Master,” I said. “However, there is so much more for me to learn. To turn down the chance to learn from someone like you, simply because you are an Aura Expert, would be the height of arrogance.”

Count Wirner studied me for several seconds, as if judging the sincerity of my words, before nodding.

“Excellent!” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said. “Now that everything is settled, you’d best be off. The village is only a few hours away from here, so if you leave now, it will be well before nightfall by the time you arrive. It’s a good thing too, since fighting Proteans in the dark sounds like a nightmarish experience.” He looked over at Knight Commander Bardin. “See that Wulfe is fitted with some coldsteel armor before you leave. Since he’s an Aura Master, he doesn’t need it as much, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Knight Commander Bardin let out a derisive snort.

“Of course,” she said. “What kind of fool do you take me for? There’s no need to state the obvious.”

With that, Knight Commander Bardin, Count Wirner, and I said our goodbyes and left the grand duke’s office.

Several hours later, the three of us arrived at the village with a contingent of Coldsteel Knights in tow. To preserve our strength, we all rode horses even though it would have been faster for us to run to the village on our own two feet. When it came to battle, even the tiniest sliver of stamina could make all the difference between life and death. It was late afternoon. Nightfall was only a few hours away.

After leaving the grand duke’s office, Knight Commander Bardin and I headed to the annex where the Coldsteel Knights were headquartered, in order to fit me with some coldsteel armor. Count Wirner went off to make his own preparations. As Grand Duke Kaltbrand said, I didn’t need coldsteel armor, or armor in general, as much as other Aura users, since I was an Aura Master. However, it would allow me to converse my mana, meaning I would be able to fight for longer.

After that, I went off to collect my bodyguards so they could join us. While I could have left them behind, I decided not to. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have let me hear the end of it. It took some effort to wake Viktor up, though we managed in the end. My bodyguards watched over me in shifts. Sir Kane guarded me in the morning, Elise guarded me in the afternoons, and Viktor guarded me during the night. At first, Viktor grumbled at being woken up before his shift, but when I told him that we were going to fight demonic beasts, he grew excited.

Soon, all of our preparations were done. Knight Commander Bardin and I met up with Count Wirner again, before heading out with a contingent of Coldsteel Knights in tow. Each knight carried both a spear and sword. Despite the name of their order, the Coldsteel Knights were trained to use both the spear and the sword, though they much preferred the latter.

To my surprise, along with the count and the knights, two others joined us: a priest of the God of Darkness and a priestess of the God of Light. Both could wield divine power, which would be helpful when we faced the demonic beasts.

When our group arrived at the village, we found it deserted for the most part. The only people we found were the patrol who spotted the group of demonic beasts in the first place. Good. The patrol must have warned the village about the demonic beasts and the villagers chose to evacuate. That meant we wouldn’t have to worry about innocents getting caught up in the battle. Since we hadn’t seen them on our way here, they must have fled in another direction.

The village itself was typical of its kind, at least for the Barrens. It consisted of a dozen or so wooden buildings, surrounded by a wooden palisade. Given the dangers that lurked in the north, even the smallest hamlet had some kind of defensive structure like this in place. Most wouldn’t last long against demonic beasts, but they weren’t meant to. They were meant to buy enough time for help to arrive or for the villagers to escape.

Knight Commander Bardin and I met up with the patrol to learn more about the group of demonic beasts. Count Wirner hung back and just observed. The soldiers of the patrol gave me speculative looks as they reported to Knight Commander Bardin, but kept any questions they had to themselves.

We learned that the group of demonic beasts consisted of about half a dozen Proteans, as well as hundreds of Rank Two and Rank One demonic beasts. By some miracle, the patrol managed to notice the group without being noticed themselves, allowing them to sneak away to report what they saw and warn the nearest village. The patrol consisted of Aura Warriors, so if the demonic beasts had seen them, they wouldn’t have gotten away.

After the patrol gave their report, Knight Commander Bardin ordered them to leave and then started barking out orders to the Coldsteel Knights. She had everyone dismount and take up defensive positions behind the wooden palisade in order to use it as cover. The knights, led by their officers, moved to obey her orders almost before she even finished giving them.

Watching a group of well-trained knights work together as a unit like this was an informative experience for me. As a mercenary, I worked alone most of the time. The few times I worked with a group, it was as part of a loose collection of mercenaries who came together in order to hunt particularly powerful or troublesome demonic beasts. The only time I worked as part of a group as organized as this was for the battle at Jagged Tooth Pass.

As I observed Knight Commander Bardin, I asked Count Wirner a few questions in order to clarify the things I didn’t understand. I didn’t want to interrupt my teacher, and he was the next best person to ask. To my delight, Count Wirner explained the reasoning behind Knight Commander Bardin’s actions in a way I could understand.

While I doubted I would ever use this knowledge during my time as the fake heir to House Kaltbrand, there was always the chance that I would. Besides, it wasn’t as if I planned on putting down my sword after I left the Barrens. If House Guld accepted me, I would join the Order of the Golden Rose and work my way towards becoming knight commander. If House Guld didn’t accept me…As painful as that would be, I would survive. In that case, I would join the Imperial Guard and work my way towards becoming the knight commander there.

While the Coldsteel Knights moved into position, the priest and priestess who accompanied us weren’t idle. The priest of the God of Darkness blessed the wooden palisade, imbuing it with some of his divine power. This would strengthen the palisade and make it more difficult for the demonic beasts to break through. As for the priestess of the Goddess of Light, she blessed the Coldsteel Knights themselves, which would keep them safer during the upcoming battle.

Given that each Coldsteel Knight was an Aura Expert, all of these preparations might have seemed excessive to some. However, when dealing with demonic beasts, it was better to be safe than sorry. While Rank One and Rank Two demonic beasts were much weaker than Aura Experts, they could still overwhelm them with sheer numbers alone.

Once the preparations were complete, Knight Commander Bardin gave everything once over, before nodding in satisfaction.

“Wulfe,” she called out to me. “You and I will deal with the Proteans while everyone else handles the weaker demonic beasts.” She gave me a hard look. “Focus on the Proteans, and only the Proteans. The sooner we kill them, the better.”

I nodded. The Proteans were the biggest threat. Once Knight Commander Bardin and I eliminated them, the Coldsteel Knights would be able to handle the remaining demonic beasts with ease.

“You three,” Knight Commander Bardin continued, speaking to my bodyguards. “Keep the weaker demonic beasts away from Wulfe so they don’t distract him.”

My bodyguards saluted her.

“Yes, Knight Commander,” they said in unison.

“Now then,” Knight Commander Bardin said. “Let’s lure the bastards towards us.”

She pulled out a magic tool that looked like an incense censer. A scentwind. It was a type of magic tool that used magic to spread scents over a certain area. There were different varieties of scentwinds. Some only let out a single scent, while others could let out a multitude.They were popular among nobles.

According to Count Wirner, this one was special. It had been designed by Grand Sage Arend to act as a lure by using demonic beast blood. Demonic beasts were already attracted by the smell of the blood of other demonic beasts. Apparently, this scentwind amplified that effect and spread it over a much larger area.

That was why Knight Commander Bardin had us set up in the village instead of heading out to hunt the demonic beasts. Why bother heading out when we could bring them to us?

When I first heard about this scentwind’s effects, I was amazed. In my years as a mercenary, I had never heard of such a thing. Having one on hand would’ve made a number of jobs much easier. Unfortunately, this particular kind of scentwind was difficult to produce, so their use was limited to the Coldsteel Knights.

Knight Commander Bardin pulled out a vial of demonic beast blood, imbued with divine power to keep the blood’s corruptive effects at bay, and opened it. The moment she did, the stench of wrongness filled the air. She poured the blood into the scentwind and then activated the magic tool.

The moment she did, a chorus of demonic roars rang out. It sounded like it came from the mouths of dozens, maybe even hundreds, of demonic beasts. However, the roars were strangely harmonic, meaning they came from a single source: a Protean. Chills ran down my spine. For a moment, my mind flashed back to the battle at Jagged Tooth Pass, before I snapped out of it. This wasn’t the time to get distracted.

Another Protean roared, followed by another, until it sounded like a horde of thousands of demonic beasts was heading our way. These roars were accompanied by dozens of smaller, weaker ones. The sound was nerve wracking, and many of the Coldsteel Knights faltered when they heard it.

“Here they come,” Knight Commander Bardin said in a calm and even voice. “Ready yourselves.”

Her steadfastness helped calm down the knights who had been frightened, and they readied themselves with renewed vigor, including myself. A surge of admiration and pride filled me. I was blessed to have someone like her as my teacher. However, I had no time to indulge in such feelings. I drew my sword and prepared for battle.