I Planned a Su*cide Mission and Got Kicked Out of the Party

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The road to Harker was short and peaceful. When traveling by carriage, it was merely a two-day journey, and among the few passengers in this small carriage, two were the most powerful beings on the continent, and the other was a girl who held the potential to be among them.

No, even with her current abilities, Jenis could easily rank in the top 50 of the most powerful humans on the continent. This meant that these three individuals were far too extraordinary to be threatened by mere bandits or goblins on such a short journey.

Naturally, nothing happened during the camping. Jeongjae himself had no improper thoughts at all, and even if he did, nothing could occur between the two women who were on guard as if they would eat each other.

In fact, during the time Jeongjae journeyed alone with Jenis, nothing had occurred. There was no reason for anything unusual to happen in these two days.

Thus, the carriage safely reached the border of Harker Count Territory. At the castle walls surrounded by high fortifications, a guard ran forward, waving his hand and stopped the carriage.

Just then, the carriage, which Jenis was driving, came to a slow stop about 50 meters from the border. The guard who rushed out for inspection raised one hand to salute Jenis and then called out in a clear voice.

“Welcome back to Harker, my lady! May I check inside the carriage as part of the inspection process?”

“Please do.”

Jenis readily permitted it. In the heavily guarded Harker territory, even a countess, or the count himself, could not be exempt from such thorough inspection procedures.

At Jenis’s command, the fabric covering the carriage was pulled back, and the guard opened the door to check the person inside.

Naturally, the individuals in the carriage were Baron Harriet in a blue uniform and Princess Margaret in green attire. The guard, suddenly confronted by these two significant figures, stiffened in shock but did not neglect to check for any suspicious items inside the carriage.

After saluting Margaret and Jeongjae with both feet firmly planted, the guard closed the door of the carriage and returned to Jenis to request the final procedure.

“My lady, if it’s not too much trouble, may I verify your token?”

“Here you go. Is that sufficient?”

Jenis produced a white cross necklace from her pocket. The guard nodded as he saw the shining silver cross in the sunlight.

“All procedures have been confirmed. Once again, welcome back to Harker.”

As the guard scurried back to his post, Jenis slowly drove the carriage across the border of Harker Count Territory. Margaret nodded with a pleased expression.

“The border security is certainly tight. If they are this vigilant even against nobility, then these guards must have received proper training.”

“Count Harker is quite sensitive about these matters. He’s trained them so well that even he himself isn’t given special treatment. Our kids should learn from them too.”

“Don’t expect too much. Basic competency is necessary for learning. Except for Philip, the captain among the soldiers in your territory, I found no one I could communicate with. It was a blessing if they handled the tasks correctly; they didn’t seem worth training further.”

“Philip is the exception. And Harker as well. I suppose with people like that, the territory could be maintained even without a baron, right?”

The carriage continued to trudge through the Harker estate. Jeongjae felt that, for some reason, the atmosphere in the territory seemed more tense than when he had visited last time.

Some of the noblemen lightly bowed their heads in greeting towards Jenis, and she waved her hand in response. However, even in that brief exchange, Jeongjae could sense an unusual air of tension descending upon the people.

“That’s weird.”

Jeongjae mumbled. Margaret perked her ears and nodded.

“It feels like a city on the verge of war. Something must be amiss.”

“You’re right. It doesn’t seem like any emergency measures have been taken, yet there is tension throughout the entire city. I think I should go talk to my father about this.”

Jenis driving the carriage also nodded. The vehicle smoothly passed through the city and reached the defensive drawbridge of Harker Castle. The gothic castle presented a somewhat gloomy feeling as they approached it. Jeongjae turned to glance at Margaret’s impression of the castle, but she showed little interest, focusing instead on the atmosphere of the city.

Eventually, as the carriage reached a point where it could go no further, Jenis raised her cross insignia to let the guard across the drawbridge see it.

Upon seeing Jenis’s Harker insignia, the drawbridge guard immediately moved the pulley to open the castle gate. Margaret and Jeongjae prepared to disembark from the carriage and enter the castle.

“I’ll leave the carriage here and follow right after. You two go ahead first.”

Jenis said, still not having gotten off the carriage. Jeongjae nodded towards Jenis and started to head toward the drawbridge. Margaret followed right behind him as they crossed the bridge.

“Princess of Eramenia and Baron Harriet, welcome to Harker Count’s estate.”

The guard, standing with his stance firm and a pole raised, saluted the two. Jeongjae and Margaret simultaneously gave the guard a slight nod before stepping into the central hall of Harker Castle.

The chilly atmosphere of Harker Castle was no different from before. Margaret, who had shown no reaction to the exterior of the castle, suddenly stopped and looked around as if feeling the emptiness inside.

“Could this be the influence of war?”

“Huh?”

“Doesn’t the castle seem too barren? Arthur Harker is a noble so powerful he could suppress most dukes with a mere word. How can such a powerful count’s castle be so desolate?”

“Well… I think it might not be related to the war.”

“If so, then it’s the count’s personal preference. For a person who could acquire endless wealth to leave a castle empty like this is not ordinary. No, it’s more than just ordinary…”

Margaret stopped mid-sentence because none other than Count Arthur Harker himself had appeared in the hall to directly greet the guests.

In contrast to the castle, which was simply large yet somewhat shabby, Count Harker’s attire was sophisticated, adorned with restrained magnificence.

“I heard guests had arrived, and indeed it’s you, Jeongjae. And you must be… Princess Margaret. I’ve seen you give a speech in person.”

“Do you remember me? I apologize. I’ve heard much about your name, but I don’t recall having seen you before.”

“I was just one among the crowd. It’s rather an honor that you remember my name.”

Count Harker and Margaret exchanged lighthearted handshakes in a friendly atmosphere. This time, Harker turned to Jeongjae and shook his hand as well, asking.

“My daughter, hasn’t she joined you today?”

“Oh, she’s right outside. She’ll come in right after stopping the carriage.”

“I see. Surely, the matter you’ve come for today is quite serious?”

“Very serious. I’ve come to make a request as a lord addressing another lord.”

Count Harker’s gaze shifted towards Princess Margaret. Margaret lightly nodded and stepped back a pace.

“If it’s not something I should interfere in, I’ll step aside. I’ll take a moment to observe the atmosphere of this territory.”

“No, actually, there’s something I’d like the princess to hear as well. I haven’t been idle while my adorable daughter was in danger. Didn’t the atmosphere of the territory feel odd to you?”

Count Harker spoke just as Jenis walked into the castle after parking the carriage. The count smiled pleasantly upon seeing his daughter and approached Jenis.

“Jenis! Ah, you’ve come too.”

“Of course I followed, Father. Honestly, I should say something about how you didn’t send a single soldier in such a critical time.”

“That matter will have its time to discuss, my daughter.”

Jeongjae followed the flow of the conversation and slowly nodded.

“What’s happening in Harker Count Territory that requires immediate military assistance? But I haven’t heard any specific news. If the rear is facing a significant threat, surely Walter Hellhound wouldn’t sit idly by.”

“Come inside. Princess, you should come in too. This isn’t a conversation for standing out here.”

Following the count’s proposal, the four of them moved side by side toward the count’s office. Leading the way, Count Harker, despite not looking particularly young, walked with a dignified and poised manner.

“By the way, have all three of you eaten? I’ve had lunch already, but if you’d like, I can call the chef right away to prepare something…”

“No, it’s fine. We all ate until lunch today. More than that, we want to hurry into the main topic.”

Margaret politely declined. Harker nodded and grasped the doorknob leading to his office.

“I see. Then you may come directly into my office instead of the dining room.”

As the count turned the doorknob, the door opened, revealing the appearance of Arthur Harker’s working room. A modest yet elegant desk, thick books filling the shelves. It wasn’t cramped to accommodate guests, but in comparison to the size of the castle, it felt relatively small.

With only a small glass window, perhaps it hadn’t been adequately ventilated because the air quality was not very good. Jenis hurriedly rushed to the window, opened it wide, and magically circulated the air inside and outside.

“Father, really, you should at least prepare for guests, right? It stinks.”

Jenis reprimanded the count playfully. Arthur Harker scratched his head with an awkward smile.

“Ah, I apologize. When you stay holed up in a place like this for so long, your nose gets used to it, making it hard to tell whether the air is good or bad.”

“That’s not good for your health. You’re not exactly young anymore. What are the servants doing? It’s not even quitting time yet.”

“I had them barred from this room. Even if I wanted to clean it, they couldn’t.”

Count Harker glanced at the books lined up on the shelf. It seemed that there were aspects of the content within those books that the servants were absolutely forbidden to see, even by chance.

“Then they should at least do something about it. Sorry about this, you two. My father is somewhat insensitive to these kinds of management.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m somewhat used to the stench of bad air.”

Margaret said something that was completely at odds with her demeanor. With an appearance like that of an elf maiden, who seemed as though she could only breathe fresh forest air, one would think she could not endure any foul odor, but in truth, she was a seasoned killer of the battlefield, more acquainted with the stench of blood and rotting corpses than anyone.

“Oh, actually, I was also accustomed to being cooped up in my lab so I didn’t feel the air was too stifling.”

Jeongjae added. Jenis let out a sigh, shaking her head.

“Honestly, you all seem to be people who care nothing for your own health. Well, there must be reasons for that.”

Jenis moved the chairs that were in the corner of the office and placed them opposite the count’s desk. Jeongjae and Margaret thanked Jenis and took their seats facing Count Harker. Jenis also sat in the chair she had brought and prepared to start the conversation.

“Well, since you want to get to the main topic, shall we listen? First of all, Jeongjae, I take it this visit was your initiative?”

Count Harker said, sitting upright. Jeongjae nodded and replied.

“Yes. These two have actually followed me. The main subject is with me.”

“Speak then. What is it you need to tell me?”

“The Harker family owes a great debt to our Baron Harriet because of this battle. I have come today to demand repayment for that debt.”