READ WEBNOVEL Chapter 80 Fallen Castle
Chapter 80 Fallen Castle
“Are they’re really attacking!? ”
Noon of the next day.
After waiting for the arrival of the Mithril alloy-equipped army of Earl Lumberjack, the entirety of the combined army under the Second Prince launched an all-out attack on the Royal Castle.
“Fret not! The difference in strength will be decisive! We just need to earn some time! Hold the castle! It’ll be our win if we endure until reinforcements arrive! ”
The Prime Minister Val issued those commands towards the Third Knight Order’s captain, Djarum, as he flustered asked him.
However, a few minutes later, the Prime Minister noticed the presence of the Mithril alloy armed soldiers.
The Lumberjack soldiers formed a line without any gap and moving in unison, they pushed back the First Prince’s faction soldiers into the castle.
The difference in equipment was as clear as day. Mithril swords and spears which could defeat enemies in one blow, and Mithril armor that could withstand two or three strikes. Moreover, its extreme lightweight provided excellent mobility. And there were 2,000 soldiers equipped with such gear. Normal soldiers were no match against them.
“Magic Curtain, ready! ……Fire! ”
They were not the only active reinforcements. Particularly notable were the mages of the First Royal Court Magician Division.
Taking advantage of their mobility, they moved to their sidelines and used Magic Curtain――That is, continuous 《First Form》 spells. The enemy army was shocked by the heavy rain-like 【Magic】 fire, being shot at them from diagonally in front of them. Since they didn’t know a way to combat it, they simply started to turn tail and run.
The most effective aspect of that rain of spells was the fact that it didn’t stop. Unlike the 《Second Form》 and 《First Form》 spells, 【Magic】 of the 《First Form》spells had a very small preparation and cooldown timers. By firing in tandem and taking turns, the First Royal Court Magician Division achieved a continuous rain. It would be pointless if their spells did the same harm as a pea shot, but here, the increase of their INT became visible. As a result, the power was so serious that it simply couldn’t be ignored. In other words, the number of injured soldiers increased immediately. This, in a way, was more troublesome than a high death toll.
“Fuck! Temporary retreat! Rearrange the formations and strike at that mage division on the side! ”
In such confusion, the commander of the enemy army gave those instructions and tried to rebuild the soldier lines somehow.
Then, as something fell to the ground…… Even more fear struck them.
“! ? ”
As he raised his sword to issue those instructions, the commander’s arm was blown away in an instant.
Nobody present understood what had happened.
“I-It’s a sniper……! ”
The commander yelled in a coarse voice. At this point, terror and confusion had spread all across the soldiers.
But that was only obvious. This had been an 【Archery】 attack that could blow off their arms even while being covered in armor in a single shot, and could snipe them from an unknown position……No matter how they struggled, this was hell.
They all must have been thinking this: “Next will be my head”.
It was a combined attack of Grade 9 《Rook Archery》 and Grade 9 《Knight Archery》――An attack from Silvia Virginia.
“Retreat! Retreat! ”
……And so, it ended. The Second Prince’s faction successfully surrounded the Royal Castle.
It didn’t even take two hours since the war begun. It was a splendid end of campaign where only the minimum number of pieces were used. Probably only possible because being under the command of Windfield.
_____________________________________
“Where did they hide such force!? And where on earth did they get this amount of mithril armor to fit this many soldiers!? ”
Not being able to accept the scene in front of him, the Prime Minister held his head in an attempt to escape this reality.
He was ignorant to the fact that it had been Second the one who had collected all this mithril in just a month or so. No, he knew he had been gathering mithril. But he never expected it would be this many of it.
“Where are those reinforcements!?! ”
Running out of patience, he opened his communication device. And over and over again he tried to make contact.
However……He had yet to receive a formal response to his request for reinforcements.
He waited, and waited, but no matter how long, there was no response.
“…………I see.”
At this point, it finally dawned on him.
He had been abandoned.
“………………WHY……WHY DID THIS……AAAAHHHHH, AAAAGHHH……! ”
His insides seethed with anger. His voice turned into not so much like a voice but a suffering and frightened wail.
If reinforcements came, they could win. If the Empire sent their reinforcements, even these mithril armed soldiers would become trivial.
And yet, even with that――!
The Prime Minister was so angry that the sound of his teeth grinding could be heard. Blood gradually dripped from his gripped fist.
“DAMN THEEEEM!! ”
_____________________________________
“Everyone, move.”
Outside the gate, Eko called out to the people in a cheerful voice.
The besieging soldiers, complying to the words of Eko, cleared a path.
Eko then, as she readied herself to run to the gate, she prepared to activate 《Rook Shieldmanship》. This wasn’t a defensive 【Shieldmanship】 skill. It was a【Shieldmanship】 skill to attack.
This was a skill that added a multiplicative value of VIT to STR, a rushing attack made by jumping forward. And her 《Rook Shieldmanship》 was at Grade 9. This meant the bonus was 250%. Its power was unfathomable.
“Transform! ”
On top of that, she used 《Transform》. Its rank was Grade 1. Making it buff all stats by 280%.
It became all noisy, regardless of them being enemies or allies. It was a shock for those seeing the 《Transform》 skill for the first time. In the case of Eko, it was Earth Attribute Transform. The appearance of Eko, dressed in rugged rock armor, was almost like seeing a demonic child clad in warrior’s armor.
“Here I cooome! ”
“Whenever you’re ready! ”
When Eko issued that signal, Silvia, who had been in a position far in the back replied. She had also used 《Transform》. The skills she was preparing were a Combine of 《Rook Archery》 Grade 9, 《Knight Archery》 Grade 9, and 《Fire Attribute?Third Form》 Grade 9, a compound 【Magic Archery】skill――This was currently, her highest firepower attack.
“Let’s go! ”
“Oookaay! ”
Just before Silvia fired, Eko activated 《Rook Shieldmanship》 with a face full of smiles and rushed towards the gate. Their synergy was outstanding, after all they were able to do laps around the Limptfert dungeon them alone.
“This is bad”――Despite this being the attack of only two people, the soldiers of the First Prince faction intuitively sensed the danger and fired their bows all at once.
It should’ve been a rain of arrows that made it impossible for anybody to approach. However…… Eko’s rush blew everything that hit the large shield away, turning it into dust and not stopping at all. This was the frightening 《Rook Shieldmanship》 skill.
“BAーーーANG! ”
“! ? ! ? ”
Almost at the same time Eko’s rush hit the castle’s gate, Silvia released her 【Magic Archery】 skill.
The force of the impact made the walls themselves shake……And the gate was destroyed alongside a huge roar.
That’s impossible! There’s no way a living person can destroy the castle gate with a single attack!
Everyone thought this, but they were denied by the terrifying sight in front of them.
Nobody of the ones present here would believe one was a former ostracized knight, and the other was a beast person shunned as a failure in the Royal Magic Academy.
“All forces, charge! ”
And thus, the castle gate was easily broken through.
Usually, it would take dozens of soldiers using siege weapon, being showered by a rain of arrows, magic, stones and boiled oil. And only after attacking the castle gate over and over again, it would somewhat break. But here, with only two people and a single attack, it was destroyed without receiving any damage.
A siege battle should’ve been advantageous for the Prime Minister. Whatever happened, they should’ve been able to hold out for a few days. However, who on earth could’ve expected the gate to be broken right at the start, in the blink of an eye.
……No. The Prime Minister should’ve taken some counter measures after seeing Second the previous day destroy the wall of the training grounds. That is, if it was even possible to take measures in just one day.
But this was a game of speed…… As Windfield had said, a super-fast battle that didn’t leave room for the opponent to make a move. Like Oda Nobunaga, who after having both fortresses of Marune and Washizu attacked, left Kiyosu Castle just before dawn, and within half a day, and taking advantage of the heavy rain, he surprise-attacked the Imagawa army at Dengaku-Hazama, a lightning fast battle.
(TLN: I’m not sure on the accuracy of this as I just translated it as it was written and I’m not really versed in Japanese history)
The desperate siege battle was broken in an instant. Mithril alloy geared soldiers stormed into the castle from the large hole where the castle gate used to be located, and nobody could stop them.
Then. The castle, in the blink of an eye, had fallen――
******
“They really got us.”
In a large room so gorgeous that the word “luxury” wasn’t enough to make it justice, a man spoke to himself.
Good looks that anybody would envy. A perfect body in every aspect. A man with no less presence than the room itself.
“What do you think, Merson?”
“I think we should’ve sent reinforcements.”
“Hahaha, I thought so. But this isn’t what I was referring to.”
Sitting in front of the man was a young woman, that considered their age differences, one would think as her daughter. She was an exquisite beauty with an atmosphere similar to that of the man.
“The subordination of the Kingdom ended up in failure. That being the case, maybe we need to change our approach.”
“Hoo. Do you have something in mind already? Let’s hear it.”
Seemingly interested, and acting like spoiling a child, the man urged the woman to continue.
“If it were me, I would win over the Kingdom and admonish the Sacred Country.”
“And how would you win them over? With this time’s issue, the Kingdom will be wary.”
“That’s a simple answer. Wouldn’t it work out if I were to marry into them?”
There was a moment of silence. The man erased his previous smile and faced the woman.
“That’s a good idea. However, a daughter like you is more precious than the Kingdom.”
“Your praise is wasted in me.”
“Do you think I was trying to praise you? That’s wrong. It would be naive to think that by marrying a little boy like Maine we would be able to obtain the Kingdom.”
“Why so? Even if he’s young, he’ll still be the King of the country.”
“Don’t be an idiot. You don’t seem to understand anything from this one piece.”
“Is that…… is that related as to why you rejected the request for reinforcements, Father? ”
“You heard the Shadow’s report too, right?”
“……You jest, wasn’t that really meant to be taken as some kind of joke?”
“Hahaha! You said it. Well, just wait and see. It will be a good learning experience for you.”
“Understood. If you say so, Father.”
“The Sacred Country won’t be able to put their hands in the Kingdom again. This will be a sight to see.”
“Looks like you’re having fun, Father.”
“Indeed, they picked a fight with a man like that. Why should I not enjoy it?”
＊ ＊ ＊
“Haaa, I don’t want to do it……”
On the way to the frontier.
I was worrying all by myself. I kept on thinking about how do you apologize to a friend after getting angry and having offended them.
Speaking of which, when was the last time I used 《Monster Summoning》?
It’s been since that incident when she almost killed her allies, right?
Thinking about dealing with it some other time, I simply put that off for later. I was just unconsciously avoiding it since I didn’t really know how to deal with it. All this issue with her.
However, the time has come. That’s all there is.
At last, I have to make up my mind.
Born in the darkness of the underground library of the upper-class dungeon 『Isoreus』, a mutant species of the Dark Flame Wolf, the Darkness Wolf――Anko.
A trump card that I spent every day for several months to acquire, but also, an oversized land mine that I don’t really know how to deal with.
To be honest, I’m a little scared.
I don’t know what am I scared of in particular, but I afraid of meeting her face to face again and exchange words.
Maybe it’s my feelings of guilt from having ignored her for a long time or a sense of shame for trying to use her as a tool, or maybe just primordial fear. Or probably……her “too heavy affection”, which I’ve noticed slightly.
Well, I’ll never know unless we meet up and talk.
“……Shall I call her?”
It’s been three hours since I started worrying. I finally made up my mind.
Fortunately, it’s late at night. Right now, I’m in the middle of an overnight journey.
Stopping by the side of the road, I got off Seventh Teiō.
In this dim forest road, only the moonlight illuminates the surroundings. I take one deep breath……Then activate 《Monster Summoning》.
Immediately after. As if darkness turned and twisted itself, the void slowly took the shape of a bewitching woman wearing black garments, revealing her.
Narrowed eyes and a gently smiling face from which you couldn’t feel a specific expression. Then, she silently kneeled down on the spot and bowed her head.
“…………”
Silence followed.
A few seconds later, I remembered. At that time, I ordered her “Do not take any action without my permission”.
……Does this mean Anko is obeying my orders even though I’ve neglected her for such a long time?
At the same time a chill runs down my spine, a question arises. What makes her do that? Thinking about it, I don’t know much about her.
“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting. I don’t mind if you speak.”
When I gave her permission, Anko bowed further down and respectfully spoke.
“Ahh, my Lord. My beloved Lord. I wanted to see you.”
And again, silence followed.
……Was that all? After I ignored her for a long time since I thought it was troublesome to handle her, she tells me she loves me and she wanted to see me…… is that really everything?
This gave me a mysteriously pleasant feeling. Like when after you apologize to a friend who you thought was angry, then you feel as if they weren’t angry at all. No, that’s not all. Behind this relief was the guilty pleasure of having obtained a woman who had absolute obedience to me. A convenient woman. Seems like in the end, I’ll take advantage of her.
But, that’s no good. No good. I will hold off temptation with a resolute spirit.
“Speak your true feelings, Anko. You and I need to speak by laying everything on the table.”
Squatting down, I talked while looking at Anko’s eyes.
Making a surprised face, with her eyes in the shape of a ハ and her eyes moistened, Anko began to put together her words.
“Only you can kill me(stop me), my Lord. Only you can let me live(make the best use of me), my Lord. I can’t help but love you unconditionally, my Lord. That’s all there is to it. I’m just satisfied with you, my Lord, having released me from that binding spell from God.”
“In other words, you love me just because I tamed you? ”
“You’re wrong! I love you because you are you, my Lord. Not just anyone, but because it’s you, my Lord! ”
A fervent confession. It makes me quite happy. Happy……But I’m not quite convinced. Does she have absolute obedience because she loves me? Did she put up with it because she loves me? Is this alright with her?
“……You have a face as if this doesn’t make sense for you, my Lord. It’s alright, I have made up my mind. I will talk more thoroughly.”
Anko, who read my expression, spoke with a sharp face and a more serious expression. The dark mole next to her lips made her look very sexy.
“First of all, there’s one thing you’re misunderstanding, my Lord. It would be a huge mistake to think that I would love anyone who had tamed me. If you think otherwise, then please bring that person here right now! Do you understand? For me, now and in the future, you’re the only one. My one and only.”
“O-okay.”
“Next is. You’ve apologized for keeping me waiting. Why so!? I have no complaint about being treated as your tool, my Lord. Rather, it feels very pleasant when you do! Of course, there’s the desire of being closer and at your side a little more, but if I push it, there’s still pleasure in the fact that I, a Darkness Wolf, would be neglected! ”
“O-okay……”
“Just by being used by you, I feel ecstatic! I can be at the zenith just by serving you! Ahhh, my Lord! I am yours, my Lord. My Lord’s Anko! Just that is good enough! Absolutely do not forget that! ”
“I-I see. I get it. I’m convinced! ”
This packed quite the punch. I had no choice but to nod my head.
Maybe, I’ve opened a frightening Pandora’s Box.
“Ahh, you being convinced is just great. My Lord, please use this Anko here as a tool by all means. Let me be your slaughtering weapon. I will become the shield that protects you from anything. Here, I’m at your will, my Lord.”
Looking like she’s in a euphoric state, Anko hugged my body.
……I see, with this, I can be convinced.
In retrospect, whenever I gave her an order, she has always this rapturous expression on her face. I suppose it is a pleasure for her to be ordered, to be used. After spending centuries in solitude as the strongest being, the Darkness Wolf, at the Isoreus’ Underground Library, she rejoices at being used by a presence stronger than herself. And that just happened to be me. She has been waiting for decades, for centuries to find a crazy guy like me. And then, I appeared. For her, I’m the only person in the world she can rely on. And that caused to ‘become twisted’. For her, this isn’t described as a simple dependence, but as deep and dense love. Her life. Her soul. She stakes her whole body and soul to me.
“……Ah……”
Just as she was about to touch my lips, I released her body. As she uttered a slightly disappointed voice, Anko, for some reason, looked many times more attractive than before.
“Don’t make that face. You didn’t do anything bad.”
I, her master, must accept her overflowing twisted feelings. This is the responsibility of the man who named her, and also, the man who half-killed her 2,168 times.
I have to stop avoiding it. Also, I need to stop making assumptions and deciding what’s convenient for me. It was utterly meaningless trying not to stimulate her. I need to face her head-on. That’s all I need to do. Just that.
We exchanged whispered words at a distance where we could sense each other’s breath.
“I have a job for you. It’s a big job.”
“Yes, it doesn’t matter what it is.”
“……But before that.”
“My Lord, I’m very happy. Ahhh, For Anko, this is the best reward……”
Anko said as she moved her face closer and her eyes moistened, so as to not let me finish.
“Please, take the lead, it’s my first time.”