Turning Chapter 1065

Chapter 1065

Peletta Castle was located at the highest point of the territory. To reach there, one had to climb a rough and steep slope, and the only normal entrance was that single path.

On the opposite side of the entrance, that is, behind the castle, there was nothing. Only the deep sea spread out below the steep rocky cliff.

Yuder watched through the carriage window as the crude and small castle, standing precariously on the cliff as if it would collapse at any moment, got closer and closer.

"It's quite unimpressive for a castle. From afar, it looks like nothing more than a lumpy pile of gray stones, but it's still sturdy enough to have guarded this place for over 700 years."

Enk, who had followed Yuder's gaze and looked outside, kindly explained the history of Peletta Castle.

"They say the reason a castle was built here was because they needed a place to watch for monsters and enemies that might invade through the sea. At first, it was just a single watchtower, but as it became the residence of Count Pelletiam, the first lord of this place, it expanded to its current form."

"It's a name I've never heard before."

"It's already a family that closed its doors hundreds of years ago due to a lack of descendants."

Kishiar, who was sitting next to them, added with a smile.

"After that, a few families became lords, but almost none of them lasted more than three generations before leaving. Before I came, there was no lord for nearly 10 years, so the acting lord had to take care of everything."

As he said that, Kishiar grinned at Enk. Enk coughed awkwardly with a strange expression for a moment. Yuder made a guess from that exchange of glances.

'Could that acting lord have been Enk?'

Before he could confirm if his thought was correct, Enk continued.

"...Still, the traces of that family remain in the name of Peletta and that castle. I heard that Count Pelletiam, who built the castle, was a knight who had risen from humble origins to obtain a title, and he seemed to like practical things more than beautiful ones. Well, I'm the same, so I have no complaints, but I'm a little worried that it might disappoint the guest because it's so crude."

Although she said that, Enk didn't actually look very worried. The concern was just a polite remark, and her eyes seemed to be filled with pride in this place more than anyone else.

Yuder slowly shook his head and opened his mouth.

"I'm not disappointed. Rather... I like it."

"Thank you. You'll like it even more after you go inside."

A smile appeared on Enk's face.

"They're here! Open the gate!"

"Whoa!"

The horses that had finally reached the top with difficulty stopped, stomping their feet. Those who had crouched down rushed over familiarly to soothe the snorting horses.

As soon as he got out of the carriage, a rough wind incomparably harsher than before mercilessly clawed at his entire body and passed by. It was a cold that was on a different level from the sea breeze in the south, literally like a storm.

Yuder took off his cumbersome hood, brushing back his hair that had been instantly disheveled by the wind hitting his forehead. As he looked up at the castle spread out beyond his refreshingly clear view, Kishiar approached him.

"The wind is stronger than expected. Are you cold?"

"No. I'm fine."

In the first place, he didn't feel much discomfort from the cold or heat, and now, even the wind that had been directly hitting his body was almost blocked as Kishiar stood next to him. It felt like a wall had suddenly appeared in front of him out of nowhere. The man who had deliberately stood to block the wind grinned without even thinking of fixing his wildly fluttering hair.

Yuder's gaze was suddenly captivated by that face.

The sky of the North, which looked uniquely high and blue-gray.

Kishiar, who stood more naturally than anyone else with a face that seemed completely out of place with the crude Peletta Castle on the cliff.

It suddenly hit him that this was a sight he had never seen before.

"Come this way!"

At that moment, Enk, who had gone ahead to the entrance, called out to them. Nathan Zuckerman was already talking to those who were trying to sort out the carriage and moving away. He looked as comfortable as if he had come home.

"Now that we're here, it really feels like we've come to Peletta together. Shall we go in?"

Kishiar gestured with his eyes. Yuder nodded and walked side by side with him, matching his pace.

"Even though it looks like one lump from the outside, there is a distinction between the inner castle and the outer castle. The outer castle is where the people working here mainly stay, and the inner castle is the Duke's space. You can also go directly from the inner castle to the watchtowers and towers in the outer castle, so if you want to see the outside at once, that would be more convenient. It has quite a charm at sunset, so I recommend that time."

Yuder looked around while listening to Enk's explanation. It wasn't much different from the information about the castle structure he had memorized in his previous life to assassinate Kishiar.

'But of course, I never heard information like it's good to enjoy the sea view from the watchtower at sunset back then.'

"Will you have a meal right away? I have everything prepared so that it can be served as soon as you sit down."

"Is everyone else here too?"

Kishiar asked. Enk nodded.

"Yes. Denny, Welliven, Shusainer... They'll all come right away if you call them."

"Then let's have a meal right away without making them wait any longer. It doesn't seem necessary to change clothes first."

"Understood."

Enk guided them to the dining room in the inner castle. There were about four long, old-looking dining tables in the dining room. Although it was said that the inner castle was the Duke's space, there was no way Kishiar alone used all these tables. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like they had prepared to serve a feast because today was a special day, not just leaving it as it was normally used.

Yuder looked up at him and asked.

"Do you... always have meals together here with everyone working in the castle?"

"That's right. There isn't a suitable space in the outer castle for everyone to gather and eat, but the inner castle is too big for me alone. I thought it would be better in many ways for everyone, including the knights and the workers, to gather and eat together, so I made it like this."

The lord and the workers having meals together in the lord's space every day. It was something that couldn't happen anywhere else. But if it was Kishiar, he would have really done that. He wasn't someone who lied about such things.

"Wasn't anyone uncomfortable with it?"

"There were. But once they acknowledged that this was better in every way, everyone got used to it quickly. Well, the castle wasn't that big, and the finances weren't generous enough to have meals prepared separately multiple times."

Just that one remark gave a sense of how impoverished Peletta Castle's household was in the past and how many absurd things that man must have done to get to this point.

Kishiar naturally sat at the head of the leftmost table and offered Yuder the seat next to him. And he briefly explained the names and positions of those who would soon visit.

"Denny is the stable master and in charge of all transportation in Peletta. He's close with Mick. Welliven is the captain of the Peletta Knights and also takes care of the garden, and Shusainer is the chef and also in charge of educating the workers."

"No one has only one position."

"Since there are few people and a lot of work."

A smile appeared on Kishiar's face.

"I remember meeting the vice-captain of the Peletta Knights before, but it's my first time meeting the captain. I'm curious what kind of person he is."

"Originally, he was the head of Peletta's autonomous security force. He worked hard for a long time for the safety of the territory without receiving a single salary. Without him, the Peletta Knights wouldn't have been able to welcome such good talents as they do now."

Yuder glanced at Enk, who was talking to the workers in the distance.

"Earlier in the carriage, when you mentioned the acting lord of Peletta, you looked at Attendant Enk. Was she the acting lord by any chance?"

"That's right. She was, in the past. Enk was actually of the bloodline of the family that last held the position of lord. Although she couldn't inherit the castle."

That meant Enk was the illegitimate child of a noble, similar to Kanna's position.

How did the young duke from the imperial family, who suddenly appeared one day in Peletta, which had been struggling without a proper lord for a long time, look in their eyes?

'I don't know for sure... but I don't think they easily became the way they are now.'

However, after a long time had passed, Enk had become Kishiar's faithful attendant and was here, and Welliven, the captain of the Peletta Knights, was the same. It wouldn't be much different for the others.

Yuder listened for a long time to the stories of these people flowing from Kishiar's mouth. Even though it was an explanation of people he had never seen or heard of in his previous life, it didn't feel boring at all.