Chapter 800

The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

Release schedule: 2 chapters per week

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Target: The Imperial Capital (2)

Viscount Horento swallowed hard.

No matter how composed he tried to appear, it was clear that deceiving the eyes of a Transcendent was no easy feat. After all, how could someone be called a Transcendent if they couldn’t even tell whether their opponent was nervous?

Suddenly, Count Braxian’s nickname came to mind.

‘The Ruthless Mad Dog.’

Count Braxian was a fallen noble. Starting from the very bottom, he spared no means or methods in his pursuit of success. Eventually, he ascended to become a Transcendent, grasping both wealth and honor but it was said the number of people he killed along the way could fill a river.

However, because of the nobles who kept him in check by using his humble origins as an excuse, Count Braxian was unable to rise any higher. To him, this great war was nothing short of a golden opportunity for advancement.

A man like that wouldn’t miss even the tiniest slip. He was the type who would latch onto even the smallest excuse and never let go.

‘He’s suspicious. He’s definitely suspicious.’

Viscount Horento wanted nothing more than to whip his horse and widen the distance. He wanted to shout for someone to strike down the Julien Mercenary Corps immediately.

But behind him stood another mad Transcendent. And that one scared him even more.

If he didn’t want to die, he had to find a way to survive this crisis—somehow.

Steeling himself, he put on a furious expression.

“Yes, I admit I’m a bit tense. How could I not be, with fierce armies lined up on both sides? It’s human nature, isn’t it? I’m not a soldier, after all.”

“…Hmm.”

“And the Imperial Army has failed its mission. I’ll also be held responsible for that. If I were at ease right now, wouldn’t that be even stranger?”

Viscount Horento gave it everything he had, performing with the desperation of a man struggling to survive.

Of course, deep down, he wanted to put as much distance as he could and scream for the Julien Mercenary Corps to be wiped out.

Still, his argument made sense.

Count Braxian nodded.

“I understand your point. But something just feels a bit off.”

“Then say it quickly. Do you not realize how serious it is to detain an imperial messenger?”

“Oh, I know very well. That’s why I’ll get to the point.”

After glancing once more between Viscount Horento and the Julien Mercenary Corps, Count Braxian continued.

“Not long ago, I heard something rather interesting.”

“What kind of news?”

“A few years ago, there were some chefs and servants from our kingdom who were abducted by a dragon. They returned just a few days ago.”

“……”

“And thanks to that, our kingdom has gained quite a bit of new information about the Julien Mercenary Corps. It’s all quite the coincidence.”

“What… what exactly is so coincidental?”

With a chilling gaze, Count Braxian pointed his finger at the Julien Mercenary Corps.

“If we exclude only you, Viscount… the number they saw matched the Julien Mercenary Corps exactly.”

“What are you talking about? The Imperial report clearly stated the Julien Mercenary Corps numbered…”

“No, the number the Empire first assessed was incorrect. We know that now.”

The Empire’s initial count of the Julien Mercenary Corps had excluded Marika and her subordinates. Darents had hidden that fact out of fear of reprimand from the Pope.

As a result, the Empire never had an accurate headcount of the Julien Mercenary Corps.

But the Kingdom of Snowbrur, which had recently obtained information, was different. They had gotten the exact number from the chefs and servants.

Of course, they hadn’t thought it was important, so they hadn’t shared it elsewhere. They assumed that no matter how many there were, they’d be captured and killed as soon as they landed.

But Count Braxian, somehow, had remembered it and cross-checked the numbers.

“Hic!”

Startled, Viscount Horento let out an involuntary hiccup. Trying to calm his racing heart, he spoke.

“T-That’s nonsense! Are you suggesting the Julien Mercenary Corps is moving with me? Are you mocking the Marquis of Ferington and ten thousand Imperial troops?”

Logically, it didn’t make any sense. Viscount Horento pointed that out.

Of course, the ridiculous situation was actually happening.

Count Braxian curled the corner of his mouth upward.

“I know. It’s absurd. But it’s possible there are things happening in the world I don’t know about, don’t you think? So wait here for a moment.”

“Wait? Are you saying you dare to detain an imperial messenger?”

“I’ll send my own messenger to the Imperial Army to verify the truth. It won’t take long if I dispatch knights.”

“Ridiculous! Time is of the essence! Even if you’re a Transcendent, can you bear the consequences of this?”

Viscount Horento pressed harder. Even a Transcendent would find it difficult to oppose the Empire.

But Count Braxian was not someone to be underestimated.

“I’ll take full responsibility. Escort the Viscount somewhere safe.”

Clank, clank.

A few knights stepped out of formation and approached Viscount Horento.

With a stunned expression, he looked toward Ghislain. And before he even realized it, he muttered,

“W-What do we do?”

Once those words left his mouth, it was over.

Count Braxian frowned and reached for his sword.

At the same time, Ghislain spoke.

“Break through.”

KWAANG!

Ghislain charged straight at Count Braxian.

His sword, drawn at some point from his waist, slashed toward Count Braxian’s neck.

KANG!

Count Braxian, already prepared, blocked Ghislain’s sword. He bared his teeth in a grin.

“Julien Mercenary Corps?”

“That’s right.”

“I’m earning merit already.”

Count Braxian was genuinely delighted.

The Julien Mercenary Corps was practically a treasure chest the entire continent had its eyes on. Capturing them would earn him great praise from the Pope and grant him a path to even greater heights.

He had no idea how the Imperial Army had failed to capture them and even let Viscount Horento fall into their hands but now that they’d shown up here, the Julien Mercenary Corps was as good as dead.

Count Braxian swung his sword wide at Ghislain and shouted,

“Kill them all! Don’t leave a single one alive!”

As for the Sacred Stone, they could search the corpses. Surely, these people had it in their possession.

It would make no sense for them to have come all this way without it.

KWAANG!

Count Braxian’s and Ghislain’s swords clashed once again, sending out a powerful shockwave.

The Kingdom of Snowbrur’s troops immediately thrust their spears toward the Julien Mercenary Corps. Already encircling them, they moved swiftly.

At that moment, dark shadows rippled around the Julien Mercenary Corps.

FWOOOSH!

Death Knights, summoned without anyone noticing, intercepted the kingdom’s attack.

Then Julien and Kyle charged forward, swinging their swords.

KWAANG!

“Guaaaagh!”

The soldiers blocking the way screamed as they fell.

Immediately after, Ereneth summoned spirits, and Marika launched dozens of daggers in a sweeping attack.

KABOOM! BOOM! KWAANG!

In an instant, the front line began to break.

The Julien Mercenary Corps didn’t stop—they kept charging straight ahead without looking back.

They ignored their flanks and rear. Ghislain had said to break through, so they did just that—breaking through and running.

Viscount Horento was tucked under Osval’s arm.

Trembling, he shut his eyes tightly.

‘Please… let me live…’

He had hoped someone would notice what was going on but not like this. He’d wanted it to happen while he was in a safe position.

Now that Count Braxian had given the order to kill them all, he could only pray the Julien Mercenary Corps managed to break through alive.

The Kingdom’s troops surged in from all sides to block their path.

“Capture them!”

“Don’t dodge—engage them head-on!”

“Block them with your bodies if you must!”

Even for the Julien Mercenary Corps, it wouldn’t be easy to handle this kind of sudden assault from every direction. Especially since they still hadn’t fully recovered.

Just then, a black smoke swirled in midair and Nakturah appeared.

“Hah… this damned mercenary corps, seriously, they’re something else. Are they insane?”

They never stopped fighting. It was so exhilarating, he felt like he was going mad with joy.

The Julien Mercenary Corps needed to live for a long time. That way, he could continue this thrilling life.

Nakturah stretched out his staff and pointed forward with deliberate precision.

BOOM!

A bolt of lightning struck the Kingdom’s formation blocking the Julien Mercenary Corps.

A gap opened up for a moment. Julien and Kyle surged forward again, cutting down enemies in their path.

Nakturah’s barrage of lightning spells rained down continuously onto the battlefield.

KWAANG! KWAANG! KWAANG!

With every strike of lightning, the soldiers of the Kingdom were reduced to ash. And with each bolt, the Julien Mercenary Corps moved even faster.

The Kingdom’s mages hurriedly raised mana shields, but unfortunately for them, they were fewer in number than the Empire’s mages. They had no 7th-Circle Mage—6th Circle was their highest. So even with shields, all they could do was slightly reduce the magic’s power.

The Death Knights held off the enemies rushing in from the flanks. Since they didn’t care about injuries, they focused solely on protecting the Julien Mercenary Corps.

And if any openings appeared, the spirits summoned by Ereneth stepped in to halt the enemy advance.

It was an impeccable response—there could hardly be a better defense but the sheer volume of incoming soldiers made gaps inevitable. Again and again, openings were created.

The Kingdom’s commanders and knights didn’t miss those moments.

“Target the horses! Kill the horses first!”

NEIGHHHH!

Eventually, a few of the mercenaries’ horses were struck by spears and collapsed.

The mercenaries sprang up and swung their swords, but were quickly surrounded by waves of soldiers.

They needed to follow Julien and Kyle up front, but now they were blocked by a wall of enemy troops.

This was the true danger of being surrounded.

That’s why the Julien Mercenary Corps always prioritized avoiding encirclement but walking straight into the heart of the enemy from the start left them with no choice.

Nakturah swiftly cast spells to both flanks, clearing out space once more. But by then, the enemy forces had already thickened in front of them.

“Tch, it’d be nice to just sweep them all away,” Nakturah muttered with frustration.

This was different from when they fought the Imperial Army. Now, he had to be careful not to catch allies in his spells.

One mistake, and they could be trapped again. His new master seemed just as ill-tempered as the dragon had been.

Another problem—he was running low on mana.

“Damn it… If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve held back a little…”

During the battle with the Imperial Army, he had gone all out—firing spells recklessly in direct clashes with the mana barriers. Blocking divine power had also cost him extra mana.

He needed several days to replenish his reserves, but hadn’t had the time. Of course he was running low.

And the longer the battle dragged on, the more problems arose.

TWANG! TWANG! TWANG!

Arrows flew in from the rear, aiming for Nakturah.

“Kh… these pathetic mortals…”

Nakturah was furious. Every time he took an arrow hit, he had to use more mana to defend himself.

To make things worse, the enemy mages—realizing their mana shields were ineffective—were now pouring everything they had into attacking him directly.

BOOM! TWANG! RATATAT! THUD!

With each arrow and spell that struck him, Nakturah’s mana dwindled rapidly.

Furious, he shouted,

“You ignorant mortals who know nothing of true terror! I shall show you fear so deep it will be etched into your very souls!”

Though his voice rang out grandly, in truth, there was nothing he could do right now.

In the end, Nakturah focused on conserving his mana and protecting the mercenaries.

TWANG! THUD! KWAANG!

He kept taking hits, muttering bitterly to himself,

“Just you wait… I will never forget this humiliation…”

Everyone was exhausted, far more so than during their battle with the Imperial Army. Naturally, their pace in breaking through the enemy began to slow.

As the encirclement tightened and the situation grew more dire—

A clear, resonant voice rang out—Deneb, eyes closed in prayer.

“O Goddess, under Your divine blessing, we fear no evil. Protect us with a wall of light, that our breaths may not falter within.”

FWOOOOSH!

Brilliant light burst forth from her body.

Divine Power held the strength to protect. Blessed allies could sometimes withstand even direct attacks.

And when such power expanded on a wide scale—

“W-Whoa! What is this?!”

“It’s a wall! A wall of light!”

“This is insane—Deneb’s nuts! In the best way!”

The mercenaries cried out in exhilaration.

Massive walls of light rose to their sides, blocking the Kingdom’s attacks.

The light spread without end. Kingdom soldiers, unable to retreat and trapped within the wall, were struck down without understanding what was happening.

Even the Death Knights guarding the Julien Mercenary Corps began to burn and slow under the radiant backlash.

The Kingdom’s soldiers beyond the wall panicked, pounding desperately at the wall of light.

BANG! BOOM! BAM!

“What the hell is this?!”

“This… This is Divine Power? You can do something like this with it?”

“To this scale? How is that even possible?!”

They knew Divine Power could block even powerful attacks.

But none had ever imagined a divine wall this colossal.

Kyle, thrilled, slashed with his sword and shouted,

“Did you see that?! That’s the power of the Saintess! Bow down, all of you!”

Only a small number of Kingdom soldiers remained inside the radiant walls.

Julien and Kyle swiftly cut them down, while the speechless mercenaries followed closely behind.

Though they’d lost their mounts, these mercenaries were already beyond the level of most knights. Escaping this place wouldn’t be a problem.

Nakturah recoiled and tried to rise higher into the sky—the rippling waves of Divine Power had reached him too.

“Ghh… What kind of Divine Power is this…?”

Not even during the Great War of his time had anyone shown such Divine Power—except for the Pope of that era.

“Is she really a Saintess? Wow… shit! These bastards are seriously in my way!”

Due to interference from the mana barrier, Nakturah couldn’t ascend any higher. With his mana so depleted, even just floating in the sky had become a struggle.

Enemy mages continued to tamper with his mana, trying to pull him down while attacking him relentlessly.

In the end, Nakturah had no choice but to quietly flee along the path carved by the Divine Power. At this rate, he really might crash to the ground from all the interference.

“Ignorant mortals… be grateful for the luck bestowed upon you today… For one day, I shall return and show you the terror left unfinished…”

He was the type who absolutely had to get the last word in.

Though the Death Knights had taken some damage, thanks to Deneb, everyone managed to break through the Kingdom’s encirclement and push forward.

The distance between them and the Kingdom’s forces widened in an instant.

Then—Deneb, her face pale, began to sway atop her horse.

WHOOSH!

Marika swiftly caught her before she could fall and lifted her onto her own horse.

Even with Deneb’s rapidly growing Divine Power, producing something like that was no easy feat.

She had used a tremendous amount of power all at once—her body couldn’t withstand it.

Holding the slumping Deneb close, Marika turned and glared at Lionel.

“Lionel, get a grip.”

“Y-yeah. You’re right. Sorry.”

Lionel’s role was to protect Deneb.

And yet, even though he had been the closest to her, he had failed to react properly. His mind was in such turmoil, he couldn’t focus on anything.

Marika sighed at the sight.

‘I don’t blame him…’

She understood the shock must have been great. But zoning out at such a critical moment was unacceptable. That kind of behavior endangered everyone.

Did he not realize that kind of emotional turmoil only made him weaker?

Still, Marika didn’t scold him any further. Scolding wouldn’t fix anything.

‘Unless he realizes it himself, it’s meaningless.’

She simply focused on riding while holding Deneb tightly in her arms.

DUDUDUDUDU!

The Julien Mercenary Corps continued to put distance between themselves and the Kingdom’s army. Mercenaries who had lost their mounts were now riding double with others.

At this rate, they would escape safely.

The Death Knights, already weakened by the Divine Power, had all been unsummoned.

But there was still someone who hadn’t escaped.

Even as she fled, Ereneth kept glancing over her shoulder.

‘Ghislain…’

Right now, Ghislain was holding off a Transcendent alone to protect the others. And the troops who had failed to chase down the mercenaries would now turn their attention to him.

Ereneth repeatedly fought the urge to turn back.

‘Hold it in. Ghislain will definitely make it out.’

In her exhausted state, going back wouldn’t help—it would only get in the way.

If Ghislain told them to break through, then breaking through was the right move. It had always been that way.

Still, even as they fled, none of the Julien Mercenary Corps could stop worrying about Ghislain.

No matter how strong he was, the situation was undeniably grim.

And Ghislain, who now bore the weight of everyone’s concern…

BOOM! KA-BOOM! KAKAKAKANG!

“Oh, not bad. As expected, the Transcendents of this era have some bite to them.”

…was having the time of his life fighting Count Braxian alone.