“Uuuaaaah!”
Overwhelming destructive power. The rushing torrent of water pouring through the collapsed fortress walls was a disaster.
Bodies of soldiers turned corpses floated helplessly in the overwhelming current.
Even those who survived were in disarray. It was an impossible situation, unable to even set foot on the ground.
In the early morning of the neighboring town, under the sky brightening with a blue hue, the interior of Hrit Castle was like hell. (+)[1]TLN: Sorry guys I made a mistake in translating Hurheet. It should be Hrit instead of Hurheet. Since the pronunciation of “흐리트” is closer to Hrit instead of Hurheet. I’ll be using Hrit from now on. Sorry for the inconvenience.
From the window of his resilience, King Rohalak watched the scene with an endlessly calm expression.
‘In the end, it has come to this.’
The moment he confirmed the receding tide of the sea at dawn, he fervently hoped it wasn’t a natural occurrence.
He prayed that the Imperial forces did not intend to eliminate the sea for some purpose.
But worst-case scenarios have a way of unfolding. The king faced the worst situation he had feared.As the surprise attack towards the fortress walls began in the early morning, the king sensed it was a preemptive strike.
He was prepared, but it was unstoppable.
Whether the soldiers’ morale was low or the enemy hid well for a surprise attack didn’t matter.
‘Anyway, the result wouldn’t have changed.’
There was one reason for King Rohalak’s calm demeanor. He had retreated as if there were opportunities, but deep down, he expected this outcome.
Because there was no visible solution.
The best option in the west was Hurheet. There was no place more suited for defense. Retreat deep into the west?
That was out of the question.
While the enemy’s supply would be difficult and the soldiers would tire, the problem was the widening front.
A long battlefield. The enemies would attack freely.
The morale of the soldiers who saw their land being attacked would hit rock bottom, and desertion to protect their homeland was only a matter of time.
Even if they took families as hostages, it was a fact that noble rebels would rise.
‘How tragic.’
The best situation for the king was for the Empire to blindly attack Hrit Castle.
As long as Rudehrn’s head wasn’t pierced by a sword, such a thing would not happen, but…
Amidst the imperial succession dispute and the emperor’s anger, it might become possible.
The commander didn’t always make the right choices. It was just that Rudehrn wasn’t stupid.
Yet, there was a faint hope. If the war dragged on, who knew how the situation would change?
“Carl Schurtafen. Is it all because of that guy?”
According to the information sent by spies, this situation was also that guy’s scheme
The king still gazed at the uncertain sky.
Clouds tinged with a blue hue sadly approached. It was not a good day to die.
The despondent king wanted to inquire loudly.
‘Why does this is happening…’
Akiten. Epyder Plain. Battle at Hrit Castle. The entire situation had changed because of Carlyn alone.
Let’s leave the battle at Hrit Castle aside.
In any case, victory was slipping away on the battlefield. The allied losses were increasing, and it was regrettable that they couldn’t inflict greater damage on the enemy.
But Akiten and the Epyder Plain Combat were painfully bitter defeats for the king.
If they hadn’t been defeated there, victory would have been his.
The ones who retreated were not them but the Imperial forces that lost the front until additional reinforcements arrived. The Western forces would have stirred up the Empire.
‘If only we had maintained the front without variables there…’
Time was on the king’s side. If the war dragged on, the old emperor wouldn’t have lasted long.
Amid the succession dispute, the war would become a mess and eventually conclude with a ceasefire.
The king, who unified the West, had enough time to establish a new empire.
Taking advantage of the chaotic empire, he could even surpass the continental hegemony.
“C-Carl Schurtafen!”
The king hated that name. For him, everything had changed because of that one person, Carlyn.
It wasn’t an entirely wrong thought.
In a game that Carlyn didn’t know about, the West had made the Empire struggle quite a bit.
If they hadn’t been betrayed by the nobles who received the Empire’s support, the West would have seized hegemony over the continent.
The water that had flooded the castle was receding. Among the bodies lined up along the street, soldiers soaked in water lay vomiting.
The knight approached cautiously by the side of the king, looking down at the scene.
“Your Majesty, the nobles are rescuing my family and escaping through the western gate. The Sword Master is also with them…”
He had suspected it. Since the outside was bustling. But now, with the enemy’s attack underway, there was no intention to stop.
And they couldn’t have stopped it.
“Leave me be.”
It was fortunate that they didn’t come to him with swords drawn. The king closed his eyes.
The past few years. The past unfolded before his eyes.
Having lived as the second prince, joining hands with the Empire was an unavoidable choice to survive.
Because his brother tried to kill him.
Killing his brother and then his father, he usurped the king’s position. As the king, he desired the Empire to bring division and chaos to the West.
The geopolitical situation. He couldn’t refuse.
Riding the unstoppable flow, the king realized that all the long-standing divisions in the west were the Empire’s doing.
Geopolitics. It couldn’t be refused.
Riding the unstoppable flow, the king realized that all the long-standing divisions in the west were the Empire’s doing.
‘I’ve changed a lot too.’
Is it the position that shapes a person?
Having become king to survive, he dreamed of grand revenge with an unknown sense of responsibility. He wanted to plunge the sword he wielded with the Empire’s power into the heart of the Empire.
The plan was perfect. After receiving as much help as possible, he gained control of Rohalak’s intelligence network.
He excluded the Empire and, after unifying the West, revealed to everyone in the West that the division until now was orchestrated by the Empire.
The boiling hatred was enough. All that remained was to stab the sword at the Empire.
The antics of the imperial princes were like trash, and to the king, the Empire was a setting sun.
Certainly, the princess didn’t even look his way.
Things had gone awry because of one person from Haisen. The king opened his eyes.
‘Should I escape?’
It was an instinctive thought. Should he wait for the emperor to die and then gather strength again?
It was a futile fantasy. The unification of the West had already turned into nothing. Who would believe and follow him afterward?
Imperial forces were entering the drained castle. The king drew his sword.
“You too, take the soldiers and go back to your hometown.”
“I will stay with Your Majesty.”
“It’s a worthless death.”
“Attacking the Empire was quite enjoyable for me.”
The knight spoke nonsense. The king turned his head. The knight was laughing deeply.
“Shouldn’t we spare the soldiers? Most of them might be dead by now.”
“I told the ones who could escape to flee.”
He had been with the king since his days as the second prince. The knight knew the king too well.
“Treason.”
“If you think so, go ahead and kill me.”
“As you wish.”
“The ones who said they would stay are gathering below.”
The king looked into the eyes of the knight. It was an unexpected turn of events. It seemed that the time that had passed was not in vain.
He had acted like an oppressive tyrant, but some understood and supported his intentions.
“Let’s go.”
The king who had unified the west took a step forward.
As most of the soldiers fell and surviving soldiers fled, the Imperial forces entered at a terrifying speed.
Among the soldiers, there was most, who could hardly move and had no will to resist.
Going backward toward the approaching Imperial forces were only the king, the knight, and the royal guard.
It was a reckless charge of a small group over the streets filled with the corpses of the Western forces.
“Don’t slow down! We have to take at least one more of those Imperial bastards with us!”
At first, it was fine. There weren’t many Imperial soldiers who had deeply penetrated. But in less than two minutes, the density increased.
Nevertheless, the charging speed did not decrease. The momentum of those running, knowing they were going to die, was terrifying.
“Sir Carl!”
And strangely, the charge was heading towards where Carlyn was.
Carl? Carl Schurtafen? The king threw a glance in that direction at the shout of the Imperial soldiers.
The king was genuinely impressed. He knew he was young, but seeing it in person was different.
The boy with blue eyes was an uncommonly handsome young man. The eyes of the king and the boy met.
Looking at those cold-looking eyes, the king thought that maybe all of this was fate.
The one who ruined his plan appeared at this moment; it couldn’t be just a coincidence.
Hatred swirled in the king’s eyes. Carlyn received that gaze with a calm face.
No words were necessary.
Carlyn, with a blood-stained sword, spread the blade diagonally and struck the ground. It was an incredible speed.
“Your Majesty!”
The knight beside him stepped forward first. A single sword. For a moment, the king felt like he had seen moonlight.
The knight’s outstretched sword froze in mid-air. A straight line was drawn over the standing knight’s body.
It was the place where the moonlight had passed. The knight crumbled from the lower body. It was a futile death.
“You!”
The king rushed forward reflexively. Carlyn effortlessly deflected the stabbing sword.
But the king wasn’t skilled in combat.
“Heup!”
And with a thud, the moonlight pierced through the king’s chest and protruded from his back. The king’s entire body went limp.
Carlyn and the Imperial soldiers rushed towards a handful of Western forces.
The pierced king, even after the rain stopped, continued to gaze at the overcast sky.
The end of dawn. Beyond the gray clouds, far away along the horizon, the sun was rising.
“Unjust… indeed….”
“Rest in peace.”
A calm voice. It was the last voice the Rohalak king, who had unified the West for centuries, heard.
After confirming the king’s death, Carlyn shouted loudly.
“Knight Carl Schurtafen has slain the king of Rohalak!”
“Waaahh!”
“Sir Carl has taken down the king of Rohalak!”
The Imperial soldiers cheered loudly. In the process of restructuring the forces, these soldiers, who had hoped to join Carlyn when they heard the spreading rumors, got what they wanted.
The credit for capturing the king was bestowed upon them.
To the soldiers, Carlyn taking down the king wasn’t a coincidence but a blessing from the god of war.
“Wah!”
The ecstatic cheers sharply contrasted with the deaths and somber atmosphere of the resisting Western forces.
Carlyn protected the corpse of the Rohalak king. The credit had to be made clear.
The news reached the princess, who immediately headed towards Carlyn. The path she walked was filled with cheers.
By then, rumors had already spread inside Hrit Castle.
An overwhelming victory. It was an unbelievable triumph in a siege.
Amid the cheers, the princess, Duchess Lyurik, and Emmet arrived in front of Carlyn.
“I didn’t expect the sword to find its mark again this time…”
Emmet’s admiration-mixed mutter was genuine. Capturing a king in this castle was nearly akin to luck.
The princess and the Duchess agreed.
If they hadn’t witnessed Carlyn’s actions in this war, it would have sounded like a fabricated story.
Carlyn approached and bowed his head.
“Your Highness, I have captured the king of Rohalak. Unfortunately, I couldn’t bring him alive.”
“Schurtafen, I’m relieved that you’re not hurt. I thought the king would flee, but he attacked first. He is not just someone who unified the West, I see.”
“The ability was certain. We also did not fail, did we?”
Duchess Lyurik intervened. It had been a precarious war. It was overturned thanks to one person.
The princess, who descended from her horse, patted Carlyn’s shoulder.
“You’ve endured a lot. This victory is all thanks to your prowess.”
“Thank you.”
Carlyn, slightly raising his head, met the princess’s gaze. The princess was sending a firm sense of trust.
“It seems like I owe you more and more as time goes on.”
“You don’t have to feel that way.”
“That can’t be possible.”
The princess smiled brightly.
At the end of dawn, sunlight began to shine. The princess’s golden hair gleamed brilliantly.
- 1. TLN: Sorry guys I made a mistake in translating Hurheet. It should be Hrit instead of Hurheet. Since the pronunciation of “흐리트” is closer to Hrit instead of Hurheet. I’ll be using Hrit from now on. Sorry for the inconvenience.
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