Chapter 74. The People of Bincheubureukeu
When Binaeril's name was mentioned, the people all praised him in unison.
“By the time we entered the audience chamber, Sir Binaeril had already subdued the nobles.”
“The monsters we encountered on our way to the Duchy, he stepped forward and subjugated them as well.”
“Even the knights who challenged him countless times…….”
Praise poured forth toward him in a dizzying torrent.
Alcohol had a way of making people honest. But Binaeril was not drunk, and so those words were a little embarrassing.
Bibian chirped cheerfully, reporting to Duchess Mellina.
“All of Father's knights challenged Sir Binaeril and lost. At Paguin Castle too….”
“Sir Binaeril uncovered the castle lord's conspiracy. He even saved my life, which had been caught up in it.”
In truth, what surprised the Duchess more than those achievements was the fact that she had never seen her daughter, Bibian, praise a man of her own age like this.
“What conspiracy was the castle lord plotting?”
The Duke relayed the brief situation to his wife.
“That is quite a serious matter.”
“Indeed, my dear. I believe I must depart for Roteupallen at once.”
“If the lives of the territory's people are at stake, then you must certainly do so.”
The Duke was always busy.
While he traversed the terribly vast territory settling incidents, guarding the Bincheubureukeu fortress had always been the lot of Lady Mellina.
Therefore, within the fortress, Lady Mellina's standing was no less than the Duke's.
Binaeril, intending to change the subject, asked as he watched the Duke downing beer like water.
“Is that tasty?”
Only then did the Duke realize that Binaeril's glass had been empty this whole time.
“Why, why has your glass been left empty? Fill it at once.”
“I declined. I have never drunk alcohol before, so….”
The noise at the bustling dining table subsided all at once.
The Duke asked with incredulous eyes.
“Never drunk before…….”
“You there!!”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
“Bring the finest beer from the storehouse!”
“No, Your Grace. There is no need……”
“Do not refuse so absurdly! It is unthinkable to come to Bincheubureukeu and leave without tasting our special beer!”
It seemed the Duke took immense pride in his beer, for some reason.
“Is it truly that delicious?”
“Indeed! It is a beer brewed with the secret techniques of the Toin! There is no finer drink in the Empire!”
“The Toin?”
‘Oops.’
The Duke thought he had brought up an unnecessary matter.
Should Binaeril reveal hostility toward demihumans, the dinner atmosphere would turn cold and sour.
The Duke's army included many demihumans, and most among them were Toin.
Those present all considered them their comrades-in-arms.
A sense of belonging and pride transcending race. Should Binaeril dare touch upon that…….
“Secret techniques of the Toin... Then I shall have a glass.”
“Hmm?”
“Why do you look surprised? I will take just one glass.”
With a somewhat disgruntled expression, the Duke filled Binaeril's glass.
“Do you not know what a Toin is?”
“Are they not demihumans of short stature?”
“That is correct, but….”
Binaeril swallowed the beer in large gulps.
The refreshing sensation hitting his throat was indescribable. He felt he could understand why the Duke sought chilled beer.
“Ahh!”
As Binaeril emptied the glass in one breath, applause burst from among the knights.
‘Why, most nobles would recoil in disgust, deeming anything made by demihumans unclean.’
Yet Binaeril appeared completely without reluctance.
“…How is it?”
“Your Grace. I hope you will pardon my words, but……”
“It's so delicious I wouldn't notice if the person beside me dropped dead!”
Raucous laughter erupted, and applause burst forth once more.
The Duke, who had been on edge, finally let down his guard and clapped Binaeril's shoulder hard enough to break it.
“It tastes better than any drink I have ever had.”
The Duke was delighted, as if the praise were for himself.
“Hahaha! Good! Very good!”
The modest dinner ended, and the Duke and Duchess retired to their bedchamber.
The Duke pointed to a pile of papers stacked in the corner of the bedroom and asked.
“My dear, what are all these?”
“What else? They are letters requesting betrothal to Bibian.”
The Duke roughly tore open the letter on top and perused its contents.
「To the beloved Duke Dukseu, may Your Grace's household overshadow the Empire... this time, your daughter of advanced years……」
The Duke stopped reading and shredded the letter to pieces.
“Calling my one and only daughter a wench!”
“...The word 'matured' is not an insult; it means she has passed the usual age for marriage.”
“Why are you keeping such things, my dear!”
Mellina sighed and calmed him.
“It is because you coddle Bibian so. Is it not time for Bibian to find a spouse as well?”
A bizarre sound that was neither a burp nor a ghostly wail flowed from the Duke's mouth.
“Not yet! Not until the dirt fills my eyes!”
“You cannot leave Bibian alone until then. The child will come to hate you the most.”
The ghostly wail grew even thicker.
“That is why she ran away to the capital this time. Because Bibian is always cooped up in Bincheubureukeu, did she not sneak away? How long do you intend to keep the child locked up?”
“Then what should I do?”
“She must find a spouse.”
“What insolent brat could possibly become a match for my daughter!”
Lady Mellina brushed through the stacked letters.
Most were from nearby noble houses.
Names of powerful and high-ranking noble families were mixed in here and there.
“You do not like the senders of these letters, do you?”
“I do not!”
Mellina subtly approached her husband.
She had noticed the peculiar emotions her daughter had shown at the banquet.
“What about Sir Binaeril?”
“What? Who?”
“Sir Binaeril, whom we met today. Would he not make a fine match for Bibian? Bibian seemed quite taken with him……”
Lady Mellina poked at the Duke's sore spot.
The Duke had already been racking his brains trying to keep Bibian away from him during the journey.
To protect Bibian, he had even incited his knights to spar with him every night…….
“Ah, absolutely not!”
“Why?”
The Duchess closed the distance by a foot.
“Why not?”
Another foot.
“Are you fine with Bibian growing old and dying alone like this?”
Another foot again.
“Just how long do you intend to keep Bibian imprisoned like a criminal?”
Unable to meet his wife's gaze, the Duke broke out in a cold sweat.
The being he loved most was his wife, but simultaneously, the one he feared most was also his wife.
“But Sir Binaeril's appearance….”
“What about his appearance? He is a strikingly handsome man. I like that he does not look savage and brutish like you.”
“His house….”
“I asked earlier, and his main family is the Count's household of Rubeun. He is not a commoner; that is more than adequate.”
“His ability….”
“Were all your knights' praises for Sir Binaeril at the dinner table lies?”
“His character….”
The Duchess glared at her husband silently, then approached the window and flung it wide open.
Whether because youth was indeed a fine thing, the knights were chatting away, sharing beer even after the meal.
Binaeril was among them, and seated across from low-ranking soldiers, Toin were also conversing together.
“We must also ask Sir Binaeril's intentions….”
“There is no need to worry about that.”
Duchess Mellina crossed her arms and spoke confidently.
“What man in this world would dislike our daughter?”
Though she showed it less than the Duke, she was undeniably a doting parent as well.
“I understand, my dear. I do! But Sir Binaeril lacks one more thing.”
“What is it?”
“Merit!”
That was the Duke's last bastion to bring up.
The Duchess immediately attempted to refute him.
“But at Paguin Castle….”
“Ahem! That is not enough. It is true that Sir Binaeril distinguished himself, but many of my subordinate knights have achieved similar merits.”
The Duke flicked his finger.
“But you have not thought of marrying Bibian off to any of them, have you?”
“Sir Binaeril will be leaving soon; what exactly do you wish for?”
“No.”
The Duke had promised to accept the request Binaeril had made at Paguin Castle.
“He shall accompany me to Roteupallen. If Sir Binaeril achieves great feats at Roteupallen.”
The Duke shut his eyes tight and made a promise before his wife. Though it was only words, it felt as though his heart were tearing apart.
“I shall listen to my Bibian's wishes.”
“And there I grabbed the sword of Jeueonha….”
“Hey! I was there too, where do you get off lying? This bastard's bluff….”
As the drinking continued until late, everyone was heavily intoxicated and rambling as they pleased.
Binaeril, too, had downed quite a lot of beer, but was completely unaffected.
While the knights' tongues were twisting, he had merely gone back and forth to the restroom a few times; his mind was perfectly clear.
Knight Beoron exclaimed in admiration as he looked at Binaeril.
“Sir Binaeril, you are incredibly strong at drinking.”
“Is that so? After drinking it, it just seems like a beverage.”
“Sir Binaeril isn't just strong at drinking, you bastard! He's just strong. It's Injagang, Injagang. Do you know what Injagang means?”
After the dinner, the drinking gathering included not only ordinary soldiers but also Toin.
At first, people worried about Binaeril's reaction, but instead, he showed curiosity and spoke to the Toin sitting in the front row.
“The beer tastes very good, does it not?”
“Is that so? Haha! Beer is one of the prides of us Toin. No other race in the world can brew beer as delicious as ours!”
He grabbed Binaeril's hand firmly and spoke.
“My name is Bapalluga!”
The strength with which he shook his arm was formidable.
“This guy's nickname is Buffalo. Truly a bison of a man.”
Another soldier nearby added.
Bapalluga had a bushy beard and was a stout, short man.
However, the firm muscles that could not be hidden even by his clothes were impressive.
Whether he was strong because he was a soldier of the Duke, or because his race was inherently strong, was unclear.
‘Come to think of it, most of the Myo people had slender and agile-looking bodies.’
“I have heard that Toin are also remarkably skilled at making things.”
“Please don't use honorifics! Since you are a guest of the Duke, are you not practically my superior?”
But speaking casually to an uncle-like man with a bushy beard was no easy task.
“This is more comfortable for me, Sir Bapalluga.”
“Where do you think all these weapons of the Ducal army come from? They all pass through the hands of us Toin!”
“Do you make weapons directly as well?”
“Of course. We Toin are soldiers of His Grace the Duke, and smiths, artisans, and miners.”
He thumped his chest as he spoke.
“Then might you take a look at this?”
Binaeril unfastened his necklace and held it out to him.
It was a necklace shaped like a tooth, of a primitive design.
Bapalluga received the necklace and examined it closely.
“It is a necklace I received as a gift from the Myo.”
At the word “Myo,” those nearby showed curiosity about Binaeril's necklace and gathered around.
The demihumans belonging to the Ducal army were mostly Toin, so they had never seen the Myo either.
“Th-this object……!”
Bapalluga, who had been inspecting the Myo necklace, let out an exclamation.