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Chapter 189

Normally, wolves dislike the smell of metal and avoid it, especially when many people are moving about. Surprised though he was, the knight realized that the movement of so many people had actually caused him to miss his chance to flee, so he drew his sword. With a crucial battle ahead, he couldn’t afford to waste time on a mere wolf.

With a loud growl, the wolf charged. Just as the knight calmly aimed to strike it down, a sudden owl swooped down from a tree and struck his head.

An owl in broad daylight? As the knight was baffled, the owl’s talons left a deep gash in his eye. Soon after, the wolf bit and pulled at his leg. The horse too sensed the knight’s dismay. The knight hadn’t even managed to shield his eyes before he was thrown to the ground.

A breath-stopping shock ensued.

The knight, rather than shouting, screamed wildly as he swung his sword haphazardly. Then, out of nowhere, a wild boar charged and hit him in the chest. With mysterious brute strength, the knight rolled several times before struggling to his feet.

A creature such as this could not kill a knight of Georg. He could not explain this bizarre event, but… he attempted to chant an Elil prayer as he swung his sword. However, what came out of his mouth instead was a sopping wet rat.

“Choking, gasping, coughing.”

The knight felt strange and ghastly things growing and bubbling inside his body. The fetid smell of beasts gnawing at his guts and suffocating his breath climbed up his nostrils.

At that moment, the wolf bit into his nape.

There was no scream.

Such incidents were occurring throughout the rear of Georg’s army.

The mischief of the Witch Hectali was well known throughout the kingdom of Elil, so naturally, Georg’s forces were aware of it too. Yet, it was unclear why such an event had happened now. However, they soon recalled one reason.

“The Holy Grail Knight is not here, but over there!” shouted a knight of Georg as he tore leeches sprouting from his body and threw off his armor.

There was only one plausible reason. The witches had suffered severe damage from the Holy Grail Knight and vowed revenge. This incident was well-known to Georg’s forces as well.

And finally, the witches had come for their revenge!

Precisely timed with their battle!

Indeed, to the witches, all knights of Elil looked the same, whether they were Isaac or his enemies. It was believed without doubt that the witches attacked them without thought.

“The witches are too foolish to even distinguish between the forces of Aldeon and Georg,” it was thought.

This seemed more realistic than the assumption that the witches had become vassals of the Holy Grail Knight and were attacking Georg’s forces on his orders.

“Forward! We must move forward! Our enemy isn’t some wild beast, it’s Aldeon’s forces! Fight the enemies with spears and swords!”

Villon shouted incessantly.

He struggled to push the knights in the rear forward when a more desperate scene unfolded before his eyes. From the rear, left, and right flanks of Aldeon’s forces, countless flags and knights and soldiers were appearing.

It seemed unlikely to be a coincidence; the timing had clearly been orchestrated.

“Villon! We must retreat! We’ll be annihilated if we stay!”

Calbert shouted upon seeing the numerous flags.

Villon gritted his teeth.

Although the charge of Aldeon’s forces was imminent, the soldiers could not ignore the screams behind them. Unlike other soldiers, Villon knew that the Holy Grail Knight was behind Hectali’s attack. He had either persuaded or subdued Hectali somehow.

But Villon had no intention of retreating.

“This is an opportunity to kill more of them! All forces, charge!”

“You’re mad! Elil would never want such a foolish battle…”

In an instant, Villon swung his spear and impaled Calbert through the neck. Calbert’s eyes widened. Villon swung his spear again, knocking him off his horse and spraying blood.

“Noisy old man! Any comment that breaks morale is met with summary execution!”

As Villon’s madness became apparent, some knights exchanged looks and began to retreat. These were knights of the Elion Order, who, while agreeing with Villon, had orders from Lianne to retreat immediately if it seemed to be a trap.

Seeing the Elion Order retreat, Villon realized the situation had become even more desperate. Blaming them for cowardice was futile.

Villon thought it unnecessary to worry about the knights’ departure from the front line. After all, his forces were of the Immortal Order, which, even if killed, would not die. They could take damage, retreat briefly, and then be resurrected. The enemies might sense something odd, but by then, he would have taken the heads of Edelred and Isaac. Above all, Villon still had a trump card left.

As soon as Villon gave the order, the soldiers, instead of dwelling on complex thoughts, chose to obey. After all, facing a curse from a witch was less honorable and glorious than fighting fellow humans like Aldeon’s forces.

With numerous shouts, Aldeon’s forces clashed with Georg’s.

***

The battle situation itself flowed in favor of Aldeon’s forces.

The terrain was chosen by Aldeon, and it was the time they wanted to fight. Moreover, the presence of Hectali initially greatly disturbed Georg’s forces, preventing them from deploying their full strength.

But Villon didn’t care. The terror of the Immortal Order was that no matter how much damage they took, they could always be resurrected. To be resurrected, one had to apostatize, but that didn’t mean they forgot their honor.

‘I have already seen the battlefield of the dead in the Dawn Army!’

Villon silently roared as he cut down a knight of Aldeon.

No one is born a follower of the Immortal Order. No one chooses it as their first faith. All are apostates from other faiths, those who have turned their backs on their homelands.

They chose earthly attachments over heavenly glory.

Naturally, among those he fought, there were plenty of Elil’s followers to be stepped on.

‘The glory of Elil? Why beg for it in death when it can be obtained in life!’

Villon had not yet apostatized.

The miracle he had prayed for, “death insurance,” was triggered upon death. If not renounced before dying, his soul would automatically be mortgaged to the Immortal Emperor Beshek. However, since he had no intention of renouncing the death insurance, he was effectively already an apostate in spirit.

The only thing he desired, even to the point of forsaking everything he had achieved in life, was one thing.

To restore his crushed brother’s honor.

He believed this could only be achieved by drying up the seed of the Aldeon royal family.

“Dry up the seed of the Aldeon royal family!”

Villon roared fiercely, swinging his spear. With each swing, soldiers’ necks broke, and knights fell from their horses. He was not a Swordmaster, but his strength and skill were comparable.

Villon knew he could never become a Swordmaster.

“Come out, Holy Grail Knight!”

Villon was certain that no one but himself could confront Isaac at this moment. Isaac would stab at his heart, and then he, Villon, would immediately become an undead and tear Isaac apart. There were battles only the undead could fight, and the experienced Villon knew well what form such battles took.

However, Isaac did not respond.

Breathing heavily, Villon sensed something was wrong. The Holy Grail Knight, equal to or even more active than himself, had not been seen since the early stages of the battle.

‘Wait, where is Edelred?’

If the Holy Grail Knight was absent, then he should at least cut down Edelred. But Edelred was nowhere to be seen either.

Suddenly, Villon felt a pang in his chest.

‘I’ve been deceived.’

Isaac’s interest had never been in Villon.

His goal had always been the Holy Land of Elion, from beginning to end.

He had no interest in Villon, who even in turning undead sought to regain his honor.

“Holy Grail Knight!”

Surrounded by a wall of iron formed by countless soldiers and knights, Villon let out a scream-like shout.

***

“General Mors seems to be doing well.”

Isaac muttered, overhearing someone’s roar from beyond the hill. Edelred repeatedly looked back with an uneasy expression.

“I’m not sure if it’s right for us to move alone, leaving our soldiers behind.”

“As long as we’re not running away alone but instead infiltrating a dangerous area, what’s the problem? The knights all understood.”

Isaac, Edelred, and a few knights were taking advantage of the chaos in the battle to bypass Georg’s forces and head towards the Holy Land of Elion. The rifts and turmoil created by Hectali had obscured the vision of Georg’s forces, making this maneuver possible.

Had there been a high likelihood of Aldeon’s forces facing defeat, they would have chosen to fight. However, due to various schemes laid out by Isaac, Georg’s forces were unilaterally being defeated.

Villon’s belief that the outcome of the war is decided before it starts was correct.

‘The moment he considered using the power of the Immortal Order, he was already defeated.’

While the power of immortality was formidable, that was all it was.

The undead, though they might enjoy the power of their order, base it on losing all the connections and reputation they had built up until then.

Villon must have been prepared to lose even that to win this war.

However, once Isaac realized his strategy, Villon was doomed to defeat.

‘He won’t understand how I figured it out.’

Villon had hidden it quite thoroughly.

The stench of decaying corpses was masked by the battlefield’s foul odors, and rather than merging the main cavalry into the fortress, they were instructed to carry out guerrilla warfare from the outside. Appearance was concealed with armor, and those who wished to fight even as undead were selectively recruited to their side.

Indeed, many knights, including Lianne, seemed unaware of what was happening. Although they sensed something was amiss, it was highly likely they hadn’t connected it to the Immortal Order.

The reason Isaac had realized this was simple.

He had already broken the Elil route.

Years from now, the Immortal Order would firmly establish itself within the Kingdom of Elil. They would conscript the dying knights of the Elil Kingdom into the Black Empire, thereby weakening the military power of the Dawn Army. However, their goals did not stop there.

The true purpose of the Immortal Order lay in the Holy Land of Elion.

“Fortunately, it’s still early enough to eradicate its roots.”

It was a situation deep with concern, as the Elil Kingdom could potentially be destroyed. Fortunately, Villon did not have the authority to invade the Holy Land. If Lianne had also fallen for his coaxing, the worst could have happened.

The spring rain, which had paused for a while, started to fall again. Isaac moved forward, breathing in the scent of water emanating from the lake.

“Let’s hurry. Once we reach the Holy Land of Elion, we can end the war more quickly.”

***

When they arrived at the fortress of Elion, the gates were wide open, and the drawbridge was lowered. It was natural since the Aldeon forces had withdrawn, and they were only waiting for the return of Georg’s forces.

At a glance, Isaac could tell that the remaining troops in the Elion fortress were few.

Yet, he couldn’t be complacent. The most powerful forces of Georg’s army might still be present in the fortress.

Isaac boldly approached the front of the fortress.

Edelred and the other knights looked pale, but Isaac was confident that the remaining forces of Georg’s army would not attack further. The most extreme and belligerent had already left with Villon, leaving only the skeptics and those who obeyed Lianne’s commands.

As Isaac and his party approached, soldiers on the walls of the Elion fortress moved about busily. Isaac allowed them ample time to prepare as they slowly approached. Even as they crossed the drawbridge and reached the gates, no one tried to stop or attack them.

The Knights of Aldeon also displayed expressions of distrust, and the soldiers of Georg’s army were no different.

At that moment, a knight approached Isaac.

“General Lianne Georg is waiting for you.”

Leaving just those words behind, the knight led the way. It was unclear whether he was addressing Edelred or Isaac. Edelred exchanged glances with Isaac and followed the knight.

The knight led them to a deserted ferry point on the opposite side of the Elion fortress, leading to the Holy Land of Elion.

The pouring spring rain drummed busily on the lake, creating ripples, and a thick mist rose from the water. The thudding of the raindrops sounded like the chatter of onlookers. Amidst the misty surface of the lake, Lianne Georg stood as if she had been waiting like an ancient tombstone, fully exposed to the falling rain.

Edelred muttered in disbelief as he observed her.

“On the water…”

“There’s a bridge underneath the surface. Your Majesty. It seems the rumors about a bridge from the Elion fortress to the Holy Land of Elion are true.”

The primary role of the Elion fortress was more akin to a ‘gateway’ than guarding the Holy Land of Elion. While it had no strategic advantage, its symbolic significance was paramount. And Lianne was the successor of a family that had guarded this gateway for generations.

She carried centuries of history on her shoulders.

Lianne slowly swept her sword, Lumiarde, across the lake’s surface. White frost blossomed like flowers and scattered along the water’s flow.

Her sword finally targeted Isaac.

“It seems the tongue of the Codex of Light is stronger than the sword of Elil. Just a few words broke Georg’s army’s sword.”

Isaac shrugged.

“We didn’t accompany the Aldeon army either. Isn’t that fair?”

Continuing calmly, Isaac said, “And to be precise, it wasn’t I who broke the sword, but the swordsman himself. It was you who chose to wield a blade that was chipped and poorly maintained. I merely pointed out the fracture.”

“A frustratingly accurate statement. Fitting for a follower of the Codex of Light.”

‘Not a follower of the Codex of Light, though.’

Isaac welcomed such a misunderstanding inwardly. Judging by the reactions of the remaining soldiers and knights in the Elion fortress, it was clear that Lianne had decided to accept and concede defeat. Considering that there had been a traitor within her family who had seized control of the army’s core, it could be said that she had lost all honor as a guardian of the Holy Land.

The honor built by her ancestors had been completely lost by her generation.

Isaac was unsure how to feel about this irony.

Lianne, who wielded the honor-named sword Lumiarde, had no honor left, and Edelred, who held the justice-named sword Kaldbruch, had no justice.

‘It’s all due to the folly of the ancestors.’

Perhaps the old order really was due to collapse. And now was the time to write a new history.

Lianne swept back her rain-drenched hair and let out a long sigh. Her breath formed a long, white trail among the raindrops.

She gazed blankly at Isaac, then turned her eyes toward Edelred.

“I have lost all pride, honor, and justification. This war has turned in your favor, Your Majesty Edelred. Perhaps it was doomed from the moment I followed the will of the elders.”

Swish, swish. Yet, Lianne gripped Lumiarde tightly, readying herself to fight.

“But Your Majesty Edelred, nor the Holy Grail Knight, I don’t think you are right either. The Holy Land is threatened, and heretics are attempting to step in. I no longer know what is right.”

“Lianne…”

Edelred seemed about to burst out with something, but Lianne cut him off and declared,

“I now renounce my family. I renounce my status. I renounce vain desires.”

She clenched her sword firmly and declared,

“Only Elil will wield me as a sword here, to deliver fair judgment from this spot.”

Crack, crack, crack, crack. The surface of the lake where Lianne stood furiously froze over, forming an ice age. Simultaneously, Lianne, now a demon of the snowy wasteland, charged forth with a blizzard.

The grand finale of the long fight was a duel.

–TL Notes–