My Disfigured Duke Husband Helps Me Plot My Revenge
Chapter 48: Who Is This Hero?

Chapter 48: Who Is This Hero?

Considering he ascended to the throne out of a knee-jerk reaction, King Stephano III was not prepared for the mess his father had left behind.

The bloody war of Letum was his biggest issue as he looked through records containing oversight and a complete and total lack of planning. Things were piling up and the situation in the north became worse.

His father’s plan for the war was to throw as much manpower as he could until the problem was solved. There was no strategy or seeking a true solution. Bodies were starting to pile high and the kingdom was feeling the effects of able-bodied men being sent to the front lines.

He knew solving the war was a surefire way of proving himself worthy to the kingdom.

As he gathered advisors and military strategists to work with him on a plan, he realized it was far beyond the bounds of anything the kingdom had ever witnessed. There were no pacifying monsters. They wouldn’t have treaties or trades that would make it worthwhile for either side.

Something drastic needed to happen to turn the tide.

For days, the King locked himself away with the men he gathered, offering an olive branch and lowering himself at least somewhat so they would see his genuine attempt to solve the problems of the kingdom.

On their second day of talks, King Stephano was at the head of a long table with his hands pressed against the top of the polished wood and a serious expression on his face. As he was about to speak, there was pounding on the locked doors and he scowled.

His aide went to the door without needing instruction.

There were specific instructions not to bother the men as they discussed strategy unless it was an emergency.

However, on the shoulder of the servant tasked with delivering the message to the King, there was a large messenger hawk with its feathers ruffled from the wind of early spring. It had a rolled-up letter on its ankle.

At the edge of King Stephano’s patience, he managed to sigh before doing something hotheaded.

"Feed the bird something and get it out of here," he ordered. "This better be worth the interruption."

Interruption of what, he wasn’t entirely sure. He and the strategists along with what was left of his advisors were talking in circles. There were no agreements to be had.

The King took a seat for the first time in quite some time as he unrolled the letter and went over it with narrowed eyes.

How he managed to keep his expression in check, he wasn’t entirely sure.

There was a word of an awakened dragon being the reason for the monsters’ unusual reemergence. It was disturbed by the late King’s men searching for precious metals in the mountains it inhabited.

As King Stephano sat up straighter in his chair, he read faster to try and absorb as much information as possible.

The letter detailed camps being destroyed and the already muddy situation of people living in filth as they tried to stand up to constant waves of monsters getting much worse. However, it was explained that it would have been a lot worse if it weren’t for the singular soldier who stood up to the dragon.

The attack happened at night and they didn’t find what was left of his body until the next morning. Survival was grim but he was a hero worthy of acknowledgement from the King. Even if he never awoke again, it would go a long way to boost the morale of soldiers who had been fighting for five long years without being able to return to their families.

By the end of the letter, King Stephano stood up with an intense expression on his face that those around him were terrified of.

He managed to keep himself from trembling. The ending of the letter felt ominous. It was dragging out strange feelings as he theorized the only person courageous enough to face a dragon all on their own.

"We will head to the battlefield," King Stephano declared.

"It’s a dangerous–"

The monarch’s eyes narrowed at the advisor which shut him up immediately.

"The war is as good as over," he said. "It’s time for me to behave as a ruler since my father failed to."

No one dared speak ill of the late king, but his son didn’t fear what was no longer living. He often had remarks about how worthless his father was and no one agreed, they only bowed their heads in resignation. They didn’t want to seem disloyal but they didn’t want to go against their own actions in the past.

As abruptly as the strategizing began, it ended and Stephano gathered guards from the palace so they could go north to Letum. Men were awaiting further instruction. However, based on what he saw there, he imagined he would simply send everyone home.

In the letter, it said that monsters had ceased movement entirely after the dragon vacated its century-old hiding spot.

It would take over two weeks to make it to the battlefield. There were large mountain passes and deep valleys they had to travel through. A few monsters who escaped the front lines caused them issues, but the King was eager to swing a sword despite the guard’s efforts to keep him out of the action.

They got to their last mountaintop before it would lead down to the valley where the battle was.

Stephano could already tell that the state of the valley was grim after so many years of occupation.

As they made it lower to the heart of the valley, it started with mass graves being dug for those who didn’t make it since they didn’t have the manpower to transport everyone back. There was also a certain stench of death, blood, and filth that stuck to the King’s nose the moment he made it to the edge of what was supposed to be an encampment but had become a more permanent home for years.

Soldiers who seemed lifeless at first perked up at the sight of a King with more guards and supplies in tow. He had a large party with him to ensure that everyone had whatever they needed.

Who seemed to be an officer stepped forward first, taking charge of the situation by greeting the King.

"Your Majesty," he greeted with a deep bow. "What do we owe this pleasure of the rising sun of our kingdom visiting the battlefield?"

"Rise," Stephano urged the man, having no time for all the song and dance that came with greeting a monarch. "I want to see the hero."

"Right away, Your Majesty!" the man exclaimed.

No names needed to be said. There was only one person who could be given such a high honor.

The King was quickly brought to a tent that seemed more tidy than most of those around. A lot of effort was put into that place.

Before the King could lift a gloved hand and open the door, he overheard a healer inside the tent.

"All that golden hair," the female mage said. "It’s such a shame."

"It came off when you changed the bandage?" another asked.

"I practically scalped him to remove the bandages," the first explained. "His skin is so fragile, I don’t know how he’ll possibly survive–"

Stephano had already pushed his way into the tent and he looked at the two mages discussing their patient with such horror in his expression. They immediately bowed at their sudden visitor. No one would expect to see a royal in a place like that.

"Your Majesty," the second mage started to greet him.

"Please get out of here," Stephano said, trying to keep his tone even. "Give me a moment with the hero alone."

The mages hesitated considering the state of their patient. Their hands hovered over his lifeless body but they were terrified at the new King who had slaughtered his father.

The hero’s bandages were in place so they decided it was okay for them to leave.

Soon after they vacated the tent, Stephano crouched next to the body covered in bandages. However, they weren’t covering all of the burnt flesh that covered the man. He could still pick out crisp and blistered skin.

The King removed his glove and reached toward the small part of the hero’s face that wasn’t completely damaged. He only had one eye remaining.

As he pulled back the man’s eyelid, he was met with an unresponsive ruby colored eye.

Stephano hadn’t cried since his mother died, but he felt emotions well up at that moment making him feel like someone’s hand was wrapped around his throat.