Chapter 88
Chapter 88: We Must Receive Half (3)
“Did we… lose?”
After receiving the report, Harold’s face turned beet red. One corner of his mouth trembled uncontrollably.
Rage surged through him to the point of dizziness. He couldn’t articulate a coherent thought and merely flapped his lips in confusion.
“Whooo…”
Harold forced out a long breath, trying to calm his rapid breaths.
In front of him sat his knights and soldiers.
They all looked as if they could collapse at any moment from their injuries.
As soon as the defeated troops returned, he received the report prepared by his staff, but he couldn’t believe it, so he directly called the survivors.
A defeat! The military of Desmond, who prided himself on being the strongest in the North, has lost?
And against troops from Perdium, which should have been easily overwhelmed by their massive numbers?
“What the hell happened to cause this defeat!? Fire magic? Traps? Who in this kingdom can wield magic powerful enough to incinerate thousands of soldiers!?”
Harold raised his voice.
The knights remained silent.
Even those who had directly experienced the battlefield couldn’t grasp what had happened, so it was no surprise that those who were in the territory didn’t understand either.
Seeing everyone keeping their mouths shut only fueled Harold’s overwhelming anger.
“You idiot bastards! You come back not even knowing what wiped out your massive forces? Viktor! What happened to Viktor!?”
Those who fled the battlefield early had no way of knowing what had happened to Viktor.
Crash!
Unable to tolerate the continued silence, Harold slammed his fist onto the desk, shattering it.
Even Viktor, whom he had nurtured with care, was now missing.
Being missing in action in war meant either being captured… or dead.
It was unlikely they had let someone of Viktor’s caliber survive, so the chances of him being dead were quite high.
While losing an engineering unit that takes time to train is unfortunate, the loss of dozens of knights, who couldn’t even be compared to ordinary soldiers, was far more painful.
Above all, losing the brilliant talent known as Viktor was a bitter blow.
“Who exactly…!”
In order to definitively crush Perdium, Harold had meticulously analyzed their military strength before the war.
He sent overwhelming forces along with mages.
According to survivor reports, it was clear there was not much discrepancy between Perdium’s military strength and what had been assessed before the war.
Even the supply levels matched as predicted.
That meant there had to be a deadly variable that exceeded his expectations.
Harold opened the report again.
“Could it be these bastards?”
The report detailed the activities of the “Black Brigade.”
Harold visualized the battle situation described in the report in his mind.
Even if he himself commanded the “Black Brigade,” he would’ve been caught off guard by their unpredictable maneuvers.
Their bold and unpredictable movements resembled that of wild beasts.
“It’s just a coincidence. Just a coincidence… There can’t be someone like that in Perdium.”
Though he repeated that in his mind, Harold knew very well that the exploits of the “Black Brigade” were not mere coincidences.
The last trap they had prepared was simply too effective to dismiss as accidental.
“But how could they cast such magic…?”
Even the only two 7-circle mages in the kingdom wouldn’t be able to cast such astronomical magic.
Harold clenched his teeth in frustration. It was difficult to think deeply about this amidst irritation and anger.
His face grew increasingly expressionless. Seeing this, Desmond’s retainers and staff gradually distanced themselves from the Count.
Harold was a thorough and cold person. He rarely got excited and would mercilessly execute subordinates who made mistakes.
To witness him lose his temper for the first time was frightening, and seeing him grow colder only fueled the fear that he might seek revenge for the defeat in this war by killing all of them.
“Whooo… now is not the time for this.”
Harold tore his gaze from the report and shot a fierce glare at his retainers.
To think they wouldn’t contemplate fixing their failure and instead were preparing to flee.
It would’ve been better if I had just killed the bastard from last time.
“If only I had the time, I would’ve truly killed them all.”
Harold swallowed his irritation and commanded his retainers and staff.
“We must prepare for Raybold’s movements.”
It wouldn’t be immediate, but it wouldn’t be long before Raybold would learn the general situation.
There was no way Count Raybold, always eyeing to dominate the North, would let this opportunity slip.
Although Desmond was vying for supremacy in the North, currently, he had lost troops, making it difficult to contend with Raybold.
“I’ll expedite Amelia’s rebellion. For now, put everything else on hold. Focus solely on that matter.”
“Y-yes, understood.”
Seeing Harold’s bloodshot eyes, the staff merely lowered their heads.
If they spoke out even once, their heads would surely roll.
However, Harold’s furrowed brow showed no signs of relaxing.
“It’s a mess.”
Though he had intended to expedite the rebellion, he hadn’t planned to rush it to this extent.
Yet, due to the aftermath of losing the war, everything began to accelerate.
The thought that all his plans were falling apart wouldn’t leave Harold’s mind.
“The Duke faction won’t simply let this slide.”
The assassination attempt was unlikely to lead directly to a territorial war and, even if it failed, there were many alternatives, so it was bearable.
But being defeated in a territorial war against Perdium and suffering significant troop losses was a major mistake that could lead to doubt about Harold’s capabilities.
There were few talents as good as himself, so it wasn’t guaranteed that one mistake would cost him his life, but he was definitely in a more precarious position than before.
Duke Delphine was notoriously brutal.
And the ones who had always appeared out of nowhere to aid the Duke.
“The Duke is a problem, but especially those bastards…”
Plans to overthrow the kingdom started only after those guys appeared.
If this failure occurs, those who suffer losses would be himself…
“No, that’s not right. I can’t die here.”
Having climbed to the title of Supreme Lord, he couldn’t collapse like this.
He had to persuade them. He could say that Raybold was still in play, and that the rebellion would surely succeed.
“If we had won the war, I could have expanded my influence further. If only Viktor were here…”
Harold clutched his throbbing head and stumbled out of his office.
*
Meow.
Amelia sat in the wagon, shaking some dog grass while playing with Bastet.
Bastet leaped up, trying to catch the dog grass.
As she watched the cat with a gentle smile, she soon let out a small yawn.
“This is a bit boring.”
Perhaps having given up on sending a messenger from Perdium, no one was appearing anymore.
Still, the war wasn’t over, so Amelia continued to block the paths into Perdium.
She hadn’t been away for too long, but nobody would particularly suspect anything.
She had always participated in various social gatherings, spending more time outside than in the castle.
The image she had built over the years to act freely served her well in times like this.
“Why is it taking so long?”
Bored from shaking the dog grass, Amelia adjusted her posture.
With that kind of power, the result should have been out already, but the lack of news for over a week felt odd.
“Has something really happened?”
As soon as she was sure that Ghislaine had ambushed Digald’s supply unit, she sent someone to the battlefield.
To see what that madman was up to.
At that moment, Bernap knocked on the wagon door.
“Young lady, the spies have returned.”
Behind Bernap, several hesitant figures approached Amelia.
They looked haggard and disheveled, handing over a ragged report.
Written in a hurry on the way back, the handwriting was so crooked that it was hard to read.
Amelia preferred receiving tidy documents, so she felt dissatisfied when she saw the condition of the report but took it without a word and began to read.
Her fingers flipping through the pages paused repeatedly.
Soon, Amelia raised her head and asked, “Tell me in detail.”
As soon as they received permission, the spies gestured with hands and feet, vividly conveying the events of the war.
Bernap took a slight step back, watching.
“It’s pretty to see her angry… but I should avoid making her mad at me.”
Ever since Ghislaine swindled Amelia, she had been particularly sensitive and irritable about him.
This time would be no different.
Bastet, seeing Bernap’s movements and Amelia’s mood, quickly retreated to a corner.
“Hmm… is that so?”
To Bernap’s surprise, however, Amelia merely nodded without voicing anything else.
After a moment of contemplation, Amelia turned to Bernap.
“How could they create such a trap? A magic powerful enough to devour thousands of soldiers at once. Is there a mage of that caliber? Did Perdium even have the resources for such?”
“It’s difficult, even for a 7-circle mage. If they could wield such magic, Duke Delphine would have already overturned the kingdom as soon as he secured a 7-circle mage. To achieve that level of power, at least an 8-circle mage would be required.”
“Right. Even the mages of the royal palace couldn’t pull this off. So who could cast such incredible magic?”
“The only one who could do this alone… surely it must be someone like ‘Guardian of the World Tree’ or ‘Lord of the Undead’?”
At that, Amelia smirked and shook her head.
“… No way.”
Indeed, if it were them, they could perform such miracles alone, but they would never aid Perdium.
What would they have to gain by showing up in this backwoods territory, having built their own independent forces?
At that moment, a satisfied smile suddenly appeared on Amelia’s face.
“I see.”
“What is it?”
“How that pathetic little Perdium could use such extraordinary magic. There is only one way.”
“And what is that? Wait, you don’t mean…?”
“It’s the Runestone. If they used a ton of Runestones, it could be possible. With the ground bursting into flames, they must have buried the Runestones in advance.”
Bernap made a face of disbelief.
“To cause an explosion of that scale means they must have used an astronomical amount of Runestones… Does that even make sense? That amount would equal Perdium’s budget for decades. To waste it all on a trap!”
It was an utterly absurd and foolish method.
But Ghislaine was someone who would do anything outside of common sense.
“No, if it’s that madman, then it’s entirely feasible. Right, so they’re considering that degree of loss as manageable?”
Amelia was confident that no one understood Ghislaine as well as she did.
To deal with Ghislaine, one could not rely on ordinary common sense.
As she flipped through the report again, envisioning the situation in her mind, a chilling smile crept onto her face.
“They managed to train and mobilize troops this quickly? That brat actually has this kind of capability. Or he might have other advisers or figures backing him. Maybe I let a good man slip away.”
While Bernap pouted, Amelia lightheartedly ignored him and delved into deep thought.
There still wasn’t enough information for her to be sure. She had to gather more information and keep watching.
“Let’s head back. There’s no need to stick around here anymore. And gather the kids immediately for standby.”
At this unexpected order, Bernap dumbfoundedly replied.
“Gather the troops? Why?”
“Do you think my father will just sit around while Desmond is in such disarray? That foolish, greedy old man would definitely not just let it slide.”
“….”
“He’ll surely find grounds to strike at Desmond as soon as information comes in! How dare they mess with our ally, Perdium! I figured it out a little late, but I won’t forgive them now! Just giving him a pretense like that.”
Bernap scratched his head, uncertain whether to agree or disagree.
“What does that have to do with gathering our kids…?”
“Bernap, didn’t I always tell you to think? Harold’s forces were devastated, a considerable part of it. If my father mobilizes his troops now, what do you think will happen?”
As Bernap stood there blankly, Amelia sighed and added.
“Does Harold not know this? Harold may be cunning but he’s not a fool. So what do you think Harold will do?”
“Perhaps he will request support from the Duke faction?”
“Wrong. The Duke is currently pressuring the royal family. If the Duke raises troops, the royal family wouldn’t just sit idly by. It would escalate the situation too much.”
“Oh, then what?”
“Exactly, he’ll expedite my rebellion. They have no other options left now. Thanks to that, I’ll get half-baked Raybold.”
If the rebellion progressed hastily, the damage to the territory would increase as well. Then she wouldn’t be able to fully seize the territory.
Amelia released a sigh mixed with dissatisfaction.
While it was regrettable to see Raybold be ruined, what really churned her stomach was something else entirely.
“Ghislaine, you really thought you would die this time but ended up surviving again. At this rate, it’s no longer just good fortune. You creepy bastard.”
Though she had denied it out of pride, she couldn’t help but acknowledge it.
Ghislaine was not an easy opponent.
As rage bubbled up inside her, she tried to remain calm all the more.
The stronger the opponent, the colder she became.
This was what Amelia, whom Ghislaine would always be wary of, truly looked like.
“In the end, that bastard bought himself quite a bit of time. Desmond’s momentum is gone, and the Duke is busier with more important matters, so he won’t be able to act against Ghislaine anytime soon.”
“Was it possible that striking before the war was the better option?”
“Who knows…”
At Bernap’s question, Amelia pondered for a moment.
She had been sure then, but now she couldn’t be as confident.
“First, let’s secure Raybold and think about the rest.”
“How about just leaving it be? At this point, it seems the Duke’s family will handle it later on.”
Amelia let out another sigh.
Though she wanted to kill Ghislaine without fail, there were many other tasks that needed her attention. She couldn’t afford to waste time on personal grudges.
“Right, for now, let it be. Having been marked by Harold and Duke Delphine, he’ll probably die anyway. We focus on our work.”
The position of Count Raybold was not the end. It was just the beginning for her—she had greater ambitions and goals ahead.
“Of course, when the opportunity arises, I’ll ensure that I bring doom upon him.”
As she uttered her final words, Amelia’s expression was colder than ever.
