Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Tamos fidgeted, his legs shaking.
The soldiers were unable to get close to the fire, so they were barely managing to move the injured who had escaped.
At first, quite a few had come out, but now hardly any soldiers were emerging.
“Damn it, they’re all injured! What am I supposed to do with this?”
Those who had escaped early were somewhat alright, but the rest were all on the brink of death.
Even combined, they barely numbered 500.
“Viktor, you idiot! Acting so clever, and look what this has turned into! How could an army this large end up getting defeated?”
While Tamos was cursing Viktor, Lowell, who was watching the battlefield with a glance, began to sweat.
“This can’t be. No matter how fierce the flames are, it’s a plain. Even if injured, they should be able to run out. Something is… something is off.”
Count Desmond had sent trained knights and soldiers as reinforcements.
In a situation like this, there’s no way all of them would be in a panic.
“Was it because the troops were in a tight formation? If their movements were hindered, causing the flames to spread…”
He had expected at least a thousand troops to emerge, yet there were far too few coming out.
The screams of agony continued from within the fire.
“They’re screaming like that, and yet they don’t come out?”
A bad premonition made his heart drop.
Lowell immediately checked the east and west sides of Fortress Perdium.
“There’s no dust cloud!”
If the enemies had started pursuing, they would have mobilized cavalry. By now, a dust cloud should have been visible.
“What the hell is happening inside?”
Chills ran down his spine.
He gritted his teeth and shouted to Tamos.
“My Lord! We need to retreat immediately! Lead the remaining soldiers and knights away!”
“Huh? But we’re taking the injured with us?”
“There’s something in there! Get to safety now!”
Tamos, who had been twitching in his seat, suddenly brightened at Lowell’s words.
“Right! Let’s run! Everyone, retreat!”
But it was already too late.
Those in Black Armor burst through the flames.
They looked like demons from hell.
“Th- that armor…?”
Both of their faces turned pale.
Smoke was incessantly pouring from the black armor.
Tamos immediately turned his horse.
He didn’t even care how they had come through the flames.
“Stop! Stop those bastards!”
That was all Tamos said before he kicked his mount and started fleeing.
“Huh? Huh?! My Lord! My Lord! I’ll take good care of you!”
Lowell babbled nonsense and quickly followed behind Tamos.
As a few remaining knights fled alongside their lord, the soldiers, having lost all their commanders, fell into chaos.
“W- we should run!”
“What about the injured?”
“We’ve already lost! If we stay here, we’ll all die!”
Quick-witted soldiers began to scatter one by one.
Without a second thought, they abandoned the injured and weapons, running for their lives.
The troops sent from Desmond were no different. They had lost the will to fight.
“Everyone retreat! We need to return to our territory alive, no matter what!”
The mercenaries began to crazily chase down those who were fleeing.
“Catch them all!”
“Kuhahaha! Where do you think you’re running?!”
“Kill them all!”
The mercenaries, intoxicated by the bloodshed, ruthlessly butchered the fleeing enemies.
“Uwaaaah!”
Screams from the captured enemies echoed across the battlefield.
The mercenaries rushed past helpless injured soldiers. Those limping away met the same fate, with their necks severed.
Crunch! Crack!
“Save me! I’m surrendering! I give up!”
“Uwaaaah! Stop it!”
“I’ve dropped my weapon! Please spare me!”
The soldiers fell to the ground or knelt and pleaded, but there was no way excited mercenaries would listen to that.
“Our chief says not to accept surrenders! Kahaha!”
Only a handful of soldiers successfully escaped. Tamos’s escort troops were almost completely wiped out.
“That’s enough! Stop chasing!”
Gillian raised his hand to stop the frenzied mercenaries.
If they kept chasing, even their own troops would become scattered.
“Phew, a bit disappointing.”
“I feel refreshed after letting loose. Kuhuh!”
“Is it really over? Let’s search the bodies.”
The mercenaries began to rummage through the fallen corpses.
They were checking for rings, necklaces, or any items of value.
As the mercenaries laughed and joked among themselves, Gillian approached and growled.
“What are you doing? Didn’t we agree to divide the spoils fairly after the war?”
“Eh, what’s this? A guy who knows it all, acting so high and mighty.”
“Finders keepers.”
“Join in if you want.”
As the mercenaries retorted, Gillian pressed an axe against the throat of the closest one.
“Do you want to lie next to that corpse? Who told you to move without permission?”
Startled by the serious atmosphere, the mercenaries stepped back.
To Ghislaine, Gillian appeared loyal, but deep down, he was undoubtedly a rough mercenary.
During training, he pushed and nearly devoured the mercenaries, so they all feared Gillian.
The mercenaries pulled their hands away from the corpses but wore faces full of displeasure.
Knowing that hurting their pride would only build resentment, Gillian added one last remark.
“Have you forgotten the Grand Duke’s command? Even a mercenary should at least show some courtesy towards the lion. Now, receive your rightful compensation.”
“Ugh….”
“I remember our chief saying that…. What can we do?”
Recalling the orders, the mercenaries licked their lips and acquiesced.
If it had been another employer, they might have cursed and protested, but now they couldn’t dare speak back.
While tightening the leashes on the mercenaries, Gillian occasionally looked away with a heavy expression.
‘Ghislaine.’
Still no sign of where she was.
‘What could be happening?’
It didn’t make sense for Ghislaine, who had effortlessly killed enemies before, to still be inside.
Gillian checked his armor.
Dirus Ent’s inner layer had already shrunk and was nearly ineffective.
Most had fallen off, leaving only a few awkward patches.
The same went for his helmet.
In this condition, he wouldn’t last long if he entered the flames.
The fire that surged all around showed no signs of extinguishing.
With common fire, he could wrap himself in mana to endure, but this was magic fire.
Gillian couldn’t claim safety within.
‘I need to check.’
He couldn’t just wait idly.
If something was amiss, he must help, and if not, he simply needed to find her and get out.
As Gillian began to move, Kaor tilted his head and asked,
“Hey, old man. You going back in there?”
“Yeah, Ghislaine still hasn’t come out.”
“Uhaha, you’re worried about that crazy person?”
“Watch your mouth. Should I just kill you here?”
As Gillian raised his axe, Kaor acted exaggeratedly afraid and stepped back.
“I’ll do it later, next time. I’m too tired today from using too much energy.”
Gillian shot him a cold glare before turning.
“Anyway, I’m going back in, so control the mercenaries.”
“Hey, if the chief hasn’t come out yet, there must be a reason.”
“What did you say?”
Gillian frowned and looked back as Kaor shrugged and continued.
“Don’t go in and disturb things unnecessarily. We just need to do what we were told. Am I wrong?”
“Hmm.”
Kaor’s words had merit.
Ghislaine always preferred to move faster than the enemy anticipated.
That made it difficult for allies to keep up with his thoughts.
He might currently be doing something Gillian hadn’t expected.
But still, he couldn’t just let it be. He lived on the edge, walking on the knife’s edge.
Ghislaine didn’t fear the risks of losing everything due to a single mistake.
Gillian believed that supporting such a master was the duty of a loyal follower.
‘I’ll wait a little longer.’
But Kaor wasn’t wrong either, so Gillian decided to wait just a bit more.
Just a little longer.
*
Kang!
Viktor stumbled back. A powerful strike that could have decapitated him if he had been just a moment slower.
Viktor was bewildered. Was there really a knight in this territory that could pose a threat to him?
Instinctively, he thrust his sword, causing the opponent to sway and step back.
“Not bad!”
Snapping back to his senses and confirming the opponent, Viktor’s eyes widened.
“You!”
Black armor and a black helmet.
One of the grotesque figures that had continuously interrupted him during critical moments in this war.
“You dared to show up in front of me!”
Viktor gripped his sword tightly, unleashing his anger.
Yes, he needed to hunt down every last one of them.
As he stepped forward, he suddenly halted at a strange sight.
Chiiing!
Steam was incessantly rising from the opponent’s armor.
“…It’s not actually armor?”
When he used his magic power to enhance his senses, it wasn’t genuine black armor; it appeared to be something black added over the armor.
The dark mass absorbed the heat and was exuding steam.
‘That armor is blocking the flames.’
The realization sent chills down Viktor’s spine.
“Y-you… You had this trap planned from the start…?”
From day one of the war, the enemy was wearing that armor.
That meant they could ignite this fire at any moment.
But to maximize the trap’s effect, they had bided their time, luring him to gather all his troops first.
“Y-you….”
Viktor was struck with such shock that he could barely string his words together.
The opponent shook his head.
“Yes, I went to great expense to prepare this trap. Like it?”
“You prepared it? Who are you?”
He couldn’t even see the face beneath the helmet.
But a figure of such caliber was someone he should know.
Surely, a lord or a knight commander, or perhaps a general…
“Ghislaine Perdium.”
“…?”
“Don’t know me?”
“Ghislaine… Perdium? Grand Duke Ghislaine?”
“Yes, that is indeed me.”
Ghislaine arrogantly held his chin high as he declared it.
Breathless, Viktor stared at him, increasingly overwhelmed.
‘The obnoxious Grand Duke… the loser Swordmaster… the trash from the North…’
He had never considered Ghislaine, not even once. Not even worthy of making his danger list, a name he couldn’t fathom.
To be bested by such a man was humiliation he couldn’t endure.
Heat rose to his head, making him dizzy. Viktor wobbled, barely managing to regain his footing and straighten his posture.
“Me, the greatest knight of the North… bested by a scoundrel?”
“Yes. And your life will end here, Viktor.”
“…!”
In an instant, Viktor snapped back to reality as if cold water had been splashed on him.
“How do you know my name?”
He was a hidden trump card of Harold. His name was still not widely known.
Yet this rustic lord, as well as the scoundrel known as a Grand Duke, knew his name?
‘The Count was wrong. The Count’s information must have been flawed.’
Viktor was certain of it.
The defeat in this war wouldn’t be his fault, but the Count Desmond’s mistake.
There had to be a traitor in the territory. That bastard must have revealed all of the Count’s plans to Perdium.
Thus, his name became known, and Perdium was able to prepare such a massive magical trap.
So then… he just needed to kill this one.
And he could return, saying it wasn’t his fault. He had killed the one who had disrupted him, so it would be fine.
“You arrogant bastard, you dare to appear before me and flap your mouth knowing who I am?”
Viktor’s eyes blazed with fury.
He was oblivious to the heat of the flames surrounding him.
Only rage boiled within him, ready to erupt.
“How could a scoundrel think they could face the greatest in the North?!”
Kwang!
Dozens of swords were unleashed towards Ghislaine.
Kakakakakang!
Ghislaine swung a massive two-handed axe to block the swords, but he was gradually pushed back.
Indeed, Viktor was skilled. Even injured, he showed no signs of it during their clash.
With a technique that could be called the epitome of knighthood, Viktor relentlessly targeted Ghislaine’s vitals.
The momentum was so strong that despite holding a far larger weapon, Ghislaine was forced to yield.
Kang!
In the moment Ghislaine’s axe collided with a sword and deflected away, Viktor seized the opportunity and stabbed.
Fwooom!
Twisting his body to evade the thrust, Viktor’s sword grazed and pierced Ghislaine’s shoulder.
Chiiing!
The scorching hot blade ignited his flesh. Smoke started to waft from Ghislaine’s shoulder.
Just as Viktor was filled with delight and prepared to attack again.
A chilling voice pierced his ears.
“How’s that?”
“What?”
Woosh!
An axe sliced through the air from the side. Startled, Viktor leaned back.
Kagaagaat!
Creak!
The chest piece of his armor cracked, spraying blood.
Ghislaine didn’t miss that moment and swiftly turned, delivering a powerful kick to Viktor’s abdomen.
Perrk!
“Ugh!”
Losing balance, Viktor stumbled backward but quickly got back up.
Fortunately, the next attack didn’t come immediately.
“You! How could you—!”
Could that trash fight equally with him?
No matter how injured he was, he couldn’t believe it.
Clank.
Ghislaine tossed his axe to the ground.
Throwing aside his helmet revealed his sweaty face.
“You certainly have skill. But is that all there is to being the greatest in the North?”
He slowly drew a sword from his waist, aiming it at Viktor.
Then he laughed dismissively.
“Get up. Let me show you who the real greatest in the North is.”
