I Am Not The Duke's Evil Son
Chapter 47: Chadwick’s Return

Chapter 47: Chadwick’s Return

On the outskirts of the Thornedark Forest, amidst dense thorny underbrush, Chadwick and Archie were running at full speed, fleeing from a pack of feral monkeys.

The state of the two veteran soldiers was miserable, scratches and bruises covered their bodies, their faces were deathly pale, and dark circles hung heavily beneath their eyes.

"Damn it! Is there no end to these beasts?!" Archie shouted loudly, barely holding back tears.

"Shut up, you coward! If you hadn’t dropped my sword, I could’ve fought them off. They’re just E-rank beasts!" Chadwick pointed a furious finger at him, veins bulging on his forehead. He hated every second he’d spent with Archie.

"Then fight them yourself, you ungrateful bastard!"

Without slowing down, Chadwick punched a small monkey that had leapt at him from the side and cursed, "What did you just say, you little shit? I’m a swordsman, not a martial artist—I can’t fight them barehanded! And how dare you scold me when this is all your fault?!"

Archie’s forehead tightened as he kicked a monkey beside him and shouted, "You bastard, screw you! If we survive this, I’m going to kick your ass!"

The two continued running and arguing for several kilometers. After nearly two hours, they finally managed to shake off the pursuing monkeys. Both of them collapsed onto their backs, panting like madmen from exhaustion, yet neither of them shut up.

Through ragged breaths, Chadwick mocked, "You talk big, but you’re just a little girl hiding inside a stone shell. I’m going to tell everyone you cried during the beast attacks."

"You asshole!" Archie tried to get up and punch him but couldn’t muster the strength. Instead, he settled for cursing. "You bastard, don’t think I forgot you pissed yourself from fear. Say one more thing and I’ll ruin your pathetic reputation!"

"I pissed on you, to be precise."

Huff!

Suddenly, both men fell silent and stared up at the sky, visible only in patches through the treetops. They exhaled deeply in unison.

Slowly, Chadwick stood up. "Let’s go. We need to report the mission’s failure to the lord. I don’t know what he’ll do, but we’re definitely getting punished."

Archie only nodded and followed him out of the forest. When they saw the open land and the crop-filled fields beyond the treeline, they finally breathed a sigh of relief. With the last of their strength, they returned to the castle. On the way, they passed through the village—their miserable appearance caught everyone’s attention. The villagers stared at them in shock. No one knew exactly what happened, but one thought crossed every mind: The bandit extermination mission failed.

Even before the two men reached the castle, news of their defeated return—tails between their legs—had already spread. They were received by the new recruits at the gate. The recruits treated Chadwick with respect and offered him water immediately upon seeing him, he had served as their instructor for a time, and they had a good impression of him.

Archie, on the other hand, received no such welcome. In fact, they regarded him with suspicion and saw him as a threat due to his known loyalty to the Baronet.

Neither Chadwick nor Archie were aware of the recent changes in the castle, so they were shocked to see unfamiliar recruits and wondered what had happened to the old soldiers.

But they had no time to ask questions, Arthur had summoned them.

...

Inside the main hall, Chadwick stood, staring at Arthur who sat before him. His gaze was full of worry, and he could barely keep his back straight from sheer embarrassment. After a short silence, he heard the question he dreaded most.

"Chadwick, tell me what happened. I sent you with over fifty men, and now you return with only one soldier?"

Arthur’s cold voice was enough to erase the words Chadwick had prepared on the way.

Chadwick wasn’t a coward—he had never feared Edgar before. But things were different now. After a brief hesitation, he gathered his courage, stood straight, and answered, "They’re all dead, my lord."

"Dead?"

"Yes. Every one of them. We were caught in the middle of a monster Tide. We tried to fight and maintain our formation, but we lost nonetheless. There were too many strong beasts—some even C-rank. The soldiers fell one after another. There was nothing we could do, my lord. But I assure you, none of them fell without a fight."

Arthur furrowed his brow and responded, "So you’re telling me they fought bravely to the last?"

"Yes, my lord. They died with honor." Despite being abandoned, Chadwick didn’t want to tarnish the reputation of those he had once fought beside. They were gone now, and he decided to suppress his anger and let them rest in peace.

But Arthur didn’t care. With disgust, he snapped, "You idiot , who cares about their honor? I only care about the living. Do you understand what it means to lose all our elite troops? And on top of that, you’re telling me the forest beasts are rampaging? Do you realize how dire this is? How the hell are we supposed to defend the barony now? Useless, all of you!"

Arthur fell silent, then turned to Archie, who had remained quiet the entire time.

"I heard Tanks are strong as stone, but I didn’t realize they were mute statues. Speak up, you bastard. How did the two of you survive when everyone else died?"

Archie tensed up, unable to respond. Chadwick quickly moved to speak in his place, but Arthur shouted, "Shut up! Let him talk!"

After a short pause, Archie finally replied, "A strange man helped us."

"Who?"

"We don’t know. He wore a mask and didn’t show a single part of his body. But he was probably a very powerful mage. He used wood magic."

Arthur’s brows arched in anger. They saw it.

"Absolutely useless, the both of you. Get out of my sight. But know this, I will punish you both."

Chadwick and Archie quickly exited the hall. As the door closed behind them, Arthur sighed heavily and exhaled.

’They were able to identify the magic I used... If they learn what happened to the Baronet, they might connect me to the masked man.’ He had anticipated this possibility but still found it somewhat irritating.

Still, his mood quickly shifted. He felt a twinge of relief that Chadwick had survived. He’d been worried about him and hadn’t wanted to lose someone so reliable. Archie’s survival was also a net gain, Arthur needed capable leaders. He had already planned to recruit more youths for his forces and intended to impose mandatory training on all citizens to prepare for the coming goblin army.

’No need to overthink it.’

After organizing his thoughts, he called Octavia and instructed her to bring some skilled builders—he was ready to begin his second major project: a massive lumber workshop.

Wood was a valuable resource in high demand, used daily by commoners for fuel and construction. Even the lye needed to make soap was derived from wood ash. Arthur knew demand for wood would double in the coming weeks due to his future projects, so he decided to solve the issue before it arose.

The workshop would gather all carpenters and woodcutters under one roof. He would assign a management team of two or three people to oversee operations.

At the same time, he planned to lower the price of wood and make the workshop the primary supplier for the public.

Once the builders arrived, he showed them the pre-made design and the location where it would be built. After a brief discussion, he dismissed them and headed to his room.