Chapter 739 ·The Duke’s Job

Chapter 0739 The Duke’s Job

Translator: Jay_Forestieri

Editor: Tseirp

“A stampede?”

Both Ryo and Abel tilted their heads.

“I’ll check the ‘pictures’ from the ‘Observation Birds’ immediately.”

As Chukudy said this, he stood up.

Only then did he seem to remember Abel and Ryo.

“My apologies, Your Majesty. I recommend that the people of the Kingdom return to the ship immediately and move out to sea.”

“Out to sea on the ship? What is a stampede?”

“In a word, it is a massive rampage of monsters.”

“What...?”

Ryo and Abel were left speechless.

The door opened again, and someone came running in carrying something resembling a crystal ball about the size of a human head.

“My Lord, the ‘picture’ has arrived from the ‘Observation Birds’.”

The crystal ball was placed on the table.

What was displayed there was...

“What in the world is that number...?”

Yes, it was truly a massive rampage.

“Thousands? No, there are tens of thousands...”

“Boars, bears, goblins... there are even ogres?”

“A scale that happens only once every hundred years?”

After saying this, Chukudy took one deep breath.

But he immediately composed his expression and demeanor and began issuing orders.

“Sound the evacuation alarm throughout the city. Direct all residents to evacuate to the sea.”

“Yes, sir!”

The subordinate who had brought the crystal ball ran out.

“Your Majesty, we should evacuate as well.”

Scotty called out to Abel from behind.

The other company commander, Zack, had already run out of the room and was heading toward the Skidbladnir.

He was returning to the ship first so that they could prepare for departure.

Meanwhile, Abel continued looking at the monsters displayed in the crystal ball.

Ryo was peering in from beside him as well.

“Somewhere between thirty and forty thousand?”

“There aren’t any griffins or behemoths.”

“What do you think, Ryo?”

“Yes, it should be manageable.”

That was all they said.

Abel turned toward Chukudy, who had been giving orders and was about to move.

“Chukudy-dono, what do you think? Would you allow us to assist in subjugating these monsters?”

“Your Majesty? As you saw, this is a horde of tens of thousands of monsters. As for subjugation... Of course, we will do everything we can to buy time for the residents to evacuate, but even so, our primary objective is not subjugation...”

Chukudy continued explaining what would happen next, still wearing a doubtful expression.

For an instant, Abel changed his tone and called out.

“Duke Rondo.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Abel had called him ‘Duke Rondo’ rather than ‘Ryo’.

Ryo adjusted accordingly.

“You are good at subjugating monsters, aren’t you?”

“Of course, Your Majesty. Please command me as you wish.”

“There are said to be tens of thousands of monsters. Is that a problem?”

“Whether it is ten thousand, one hundred thousand, or even one million, it will not be a problem.”

Ryo answered respectfully.

“And there you have it, Chukudy-dono. If you have no effective means of subjugating them, why not see what we can do?”

“That is... but I wonder whether it is really appropriate for me to ask such a thing of Your Majesty...”

“If it can become an opportunity to establish friendship between our countries, I would be more than happy to cooperate.”

Abel said this with a smile.

Chukudy thought for a while before giving one firm nod.

“Your Majesty, would you be willing to lend us your assistance?”

“Understood.”

Abel nodded once, then turned toward Ryo.

“Duke Rondo, sweep away the monsters attacking this city.”

“I humbly accept Your Majesty’s royal command.”

The group moved to the top of the southwestern wall of Borne.

Abel, Ryo, and Scotty, along with Borne’s Lord Chukudy and his aides.

In the distance, a cloud of dust was rising, and they could see it approaching.

“That is...”

The words escaped Chukudy’s mouth before he could stop them.

“My Lord, only about ten percent of the residents have completed their evacuation by sea! We won’t make it in time!”

One distressing report after another arrived.

Chukudy looked at Abel, whose expression remained calm beside him.

“Your Majesty, even with this...?”

There was no subject or object, but it still got the meaning across.

When faced with an overwhelming phenomenon, even abbreviated words could convey everything.

“It will be fine, Chukudy-dono.”

Abel said this and looked at Ryo.

Ryo nodded silently and looked at the approaching cloud of dust that had grown even larger.

At this distance, they could finally make out each monster.

“<Floating Magic Circle>”

Sixteen magic circles appeared floating behind Ryo.

And then...

“<Water Jet Thruster>”

Ryo himself rose into the air.

Seeing this, no one could utter a word.

The horde of monsters approached, emitting sounds like roaring thunder, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The people on top of the wall were stunned by Ryo’s figure, left speechless as silence enveloped them.

Against that contrast, what was unleashed...

“<Icicle Lance Shower ‘Fan’>”

The thousands of ice spears launched from Ryo and the magic circles spread out in the shape of a fan, piercing the horde of monsters approaching the city.

The first volley.

The second volley.

And then, the third...

With each volley, the fan spread a little farther.

The ice spears glittered in the sunlight as they steadily took the lives of the monsters.

From a distance, the vast array of spears was astonishingly beautiful... But they created a blood-soaked hellscape for the monsters...

Even so, the monsters did not stop.

They rushed toward the city one after another.

They were pierced by ice one after another.

And then...

Five volleys in total.

Every monster stopped moving.

No one spoke.

And yet, they remembered.

They remembered the bards traveling around singing.

The song of the water-attribute magician who accompanied King Abel.

‘And with King Abel stands a lone magician. His magic is the great water magic that can erase the heavens, shatter the earth, and freeze the world itself. To defeat an army of one hundred thousand with a single blow is no mere dream or illusion.’

They had been shown that sight with their own eyes.

‘The people praise him as Ice Fall, or sing of him as the Silver Duke.’

That very person was the robed man standing before them...

“So that is... Duke Rondo.”