Chapter 171: A War That Didn’t Even Feel Like a War (1)

The Black Crescent Moon had completely withdrawn.

Raion and Harlan Mineta, who had been in the ravine where the carriage was, met each other’s eyes.

“Are you really saying you intend to refuse my offer?”

“I already told you my conditions earlier.”

“……Are you trying to exchange jokes with me right now?”

How difficult had it been for him to seize the throne.

Seeing me casually asking him to hand it over felt downright irritating.

Then his gaze briefly shifted toward the upper side of the ravine.

If they had enough forces to fire ‘Lightning Lance’ repeatedly, it was certain there was a considerable number of troops.

He didn’t know how far they were lying in ambush.

Losing even the knights, he needed to secure even one more ally to survive.

“I’m not joking. More than that, since the ones threatening us are gone, we should sort things out here first.”

Compared to the beginning, the defectors’ bodies had gained an enormous number of large and small wounds.

That was thanks to Patrick and Turklan relentlessly pouring out attacks.

When I approached and swung my sword at them, the white lightning that leaked from my arm drew a streak through the air as it flew.

Chwaaaak! Shwaak―!

The target was the defector whose distance had widened due to Turklan’s fierce assault.

At the same time, the white lightning struck that defector’s body, and his waist and neck were cut diagonally before splitting apart.

Thud―.

Now only two remained.

“We must not drag this out any longer.”

“That’s right. Master says to finish quickly.”

Understanding that the previous attack was the signal, Patrick and Turklan drew up the energy within their bodies even further.

Turklan seemed to retreat rapidly for a moment before running in with his massive greatsword pulled back over his head.

[Blade that Splits the Earth]

The very finisher that had earned him that nickname.

A clean, pure-white aura surged from behind his head, extending the length of the greatsword.

The trajectory was drawn straight down in a vertical line.

The defector charging toward him stiffened as if frozen. Then his body split left and right before collapsing with a thud.

“Is that the last one?”

Patrick also moved to finish things.

He rushed straight at the defector, grabbed his arms and shoulders, and pulled him in as if wrapping around him with his body.

Hwoook―!

True Martial Art, Hand-to-Hand Combat Art, Transforming Force.

It was a technique I had taught him.

The defector, who lost his balance and was slammed into the ground, hurriedly flailed to get up.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Patrick immediately pressed the aura-infused sword into his chest, pinning him down, then brought his palm to the defector’s head.

True Martial Art, White Strike, Emission Force.

Bwoong―! Thud!

Patrick drove the aura, which had twisted up from every corner of his body, straight through the defector’s head.

‘He’s already using it like that?’

Watching that, I was surprised.

Among all True Martial Art techniques learned in the Polar Unit, White Strike Emission Force was the most difficult.

Of course, Patrick had used the technique occasionally before.

But this time was on a whole different level.

With that attack, not only Turklan or Rashid, but even I would be in danger if hit properly.

It was a shock strong enough to pierce a head with a gun. No living person could withstand it.

Thus, the situation was resolved.

Just moments ago, Harlan Mineta had been furious, but after seeing Patrick and Turklan’s skills, he couldn’t help admiring them.

“You said you’re mercenaries, but your skills are quite something.”

“…….”

Our relationship was already broken, so neither of the two bothered to answer.

Seeing that, veins bulged on Harlan Mineta’s forehead.

“Are you going to keep acting like this?”

“If you don’t like it, you can run away alone.”

I politely gestured toward the ravine entrance we had come through, as if showing him the way out.

“What is it you are trying to do!”

“What else? Paying you back for what you did to us. Shall we go?”

Patrick and Turklan followed by my side.

“You’re not hurt anywhere?”

“Nothing serious.”

“I’m fine.”

Judging from their answers alone, everything seemed fine, but they were clearly battered all over.

“Restoration.”

I spoke softly and healed their wounds.

Of course, I made sure to angle it so Harlan Mineta wouldn’t notice, not wanting unnecessary trouble.

“Weren’t you trying to hurt me? What are you planning!”

“Wow… you’re loud. Why would I bother killing someone who’s going to die anyway?”

“……What?”

“You still can’t figure it out? Charoen, who lured you into a trap. Charoen, who was betrayed by his allies. Then who is the ally here? And that ally must’ve already set a trap nearby.”

I didn’t know whether he was truly ignorant to the point I wondered how he became king, or if he was blinded by prejudice and couldn’t see what he needed to see.

But the fact was, he couldn’t grasp the situation at all.

With my words, Harlan Mineta must’ve pieced it together, and a name slipped from his lips.

“Rasfer……?”

“Correct! Looks like your head is finally working a little. But how do you think Rasfer could pull something like this off—not in another country, but on Mineta Kingdom’s own land? And where do you think the troops that just cast magic came from?”

The forces accompanying Prince Rasfer’s envoy had been identified from the moment they crossed the border.

Aside from the envoy members, there had been no one else.

It was possible for troops to slip in illegally.

But unless they were knights, it was impossible for a large number of mages to sneak in and stay hidden the whole time the envoy was in the kingdom. Someone had to help.

“…Don’t tell me Marquis Drusar Huffo also betrayed me?”

“You need to think about what kind of person he originally was.”

“A traitor of the former royal faction……”

Among nobles known for cunning, he rivaled even Duke Dominus Flomen.

He had once been part of the former royal faction, then betrayed them and even delivered their secret discussions to Harlan Mineta.

Now that another opportunity arose, he simply abandoned Harlan Mineta again.

“The kingdom really was falling apart.”

“On top of that, you handed him the key to cutting off your own head. Don’t you remember? What you gave Rasfer.”

Harlan Mineta understood what that “key” referred to.

“Deborah… was he aiming for my position because he got his hands on that woman?”

He had only thought of him as a reckless brat who could never dare challenge the throne.

Naturally, with such prejudice, he couldn’t have possibly sensed the stench of betrayal.

Regret came far too late to matter.

“Anyway, that should explain enough, right? So whether you fight, squabble, or make a scene here—it’s up to you.”

Raion took Patrick and Turklan and dashed toward the entrance they had come through.

Tatadadada—!

Just as they were about to reach the mouth of the valley, he suddenly came to a stop.

“Master, what’s wrong?”

“There are guests waiting here too.”

He went no further.

The three of them could already be seen from below.

After a short while, the ones who had grown impatient began crawling out first.

Urrrrr—.

There were roughly three hundred of them.

They filled the valley entrance completely, shoulder to shoulder with no gaps.

“The redhead, the old man, and the S-rank mercenary known as the Blade that Splits the Earth—it must be them.”

The one who stepped forward and began rambling was Marquis Drusar Huffo, lord of Huffo Territory.

With a smug expression, he strode out confidently.

“The new ruler of the Mineta Kingdom has declared that he will take you all under his command. Consider it an honor and obey!”

The abrupt declaration left Raion and his companions dumbfounded.

“So it’s not even a negotiation—they’ve already decided everything among themselves.”

“Indeed. I have no intention of serving anyone but the Master, after all.”

“That’s Marquis Drusar Huffo, lord of Huffo Territory. He’s a man who only spouts garbage, so it’s best not to listen to a word he says.”

Turklan added beside Patrick.

Of course, the voice carried clearly enough for Drusar Huffo to hear from the opposite side.

“W-What did you just say?! Garbage?!”

“You’re noisy… should I just cut you all down?”

Raion was still considering what to do.

Kwoong—! Kwajik!

At that moment, something fell onto Drusar Huffo’s head—and his figure vanished.

“……”

It was a massive boulder.

Patrick approached cautiously to confirm.

“…A clean death.”

At his words, Raion’s head tilted upward toward the top of the valley.

Even at the entrance, the cliffs were as tall as a ten-story building.

Ordinarily, it would have been impossible to see anyone up there—but Raion was different.

‘Looks like they made it just in time.’

The sudden death of the lord threw the soldiers blocking the valley entrance into chaos.

Then, the lord’s eldest son, Berk Huffo, hurriedly stepped forward.

“I will take my father’s place and deal with them—”

Pak—!

An arrow flew from somewhere, piercing Berk Huffo’s forehead.

The second commander was down.

Startled, Huffo Territory’s knight commander shouted in alarm.

“There’s an ambush! Everyone, shields—!”

Pak—!

As if waiting for that moment, another arrow flew—this time piercing the knight commander’s skull, just like Berk Huffo’s.

It had come from a completely different direction.

In an instant, three commanders had fallen.

The knights and soldiers standing behind the corpses were thrown into confusion.

“Those who surrender here will be spared! What will you choose?!”

Raion shouted as if he’d been waiting for this.

The atmosphere rippled uneasily.

No one could think of a proper response.

But the knights weren’t fools.

‘That’s a bluff. They’re only three. If they had more archers, they would’ve rained more arrows on us by now.’

Jefra, the vice-captain of Huffo Territory’s knights, racked his brain.

‘They only shot one arrow at a time to take out commanders. In a melee, they wouldn’t be able to aim precisely. We have a chance.’

The decision didn’t take long.

At that moment, Jefra opened his mouth to shout “Charge!”

“Dooo—!”

Patrick and Turklan’s swords flared with blue aura.

Had it ended there, Jefra would have still given the order.

But then, he saw the white lightning bursting from Raion’s sword.

Pajijijijik—!

At Jefra’s level, he couldn’t even begin to comprehend what kind of mastery was required to release such aura.

The crackling thunder that seemed ready to swallow his entire body felt like a towering mountain range pressing down on him.

“Th-that’s…”

“Well? Will you all offer your necks right here?”

The faces of the knights and soldiers behind Jefra turned pale.

Those standing further back looked on in confusion, unable to understand the hesitation of the front line.

“…Still haven’t made up your mind?”

Raion’s killing intent filled his gaze as it locked onto Jefra.

How could anyone react under such pressure?

Cold sweat streamed down Jefra’s forehead.

Shuaaaak—! Pak!

Another arrow whizzed past, just like before.

This time, it didn’t strike a person but embedded itself squarely into a massive boulder nearby.

The problem was—it sank more than halfway in.

“O-Ora…?”

A faint trace of aura lingered around the arrow’s shaft.

The archer had imbued the arrow with aura, a power said to be wielded only by knights.

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