Volume 9 Chapter 5 The Noble Sacrifice Of A Loyal Retainer
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Wait! What about Marietta? Why did you come back alone?”
”Lady Marietta has been bound by Nokin and handed over to Lord Blackdagger. I was… set free… ugh…”
Gilbert sliced through the officer with the sword at his waist.
”You traitor! Snatching Marietta right under our noses! My intricate schemes, ruined!”
Gilbert’s face was flushed with anger.
Although he showed his anger to the officer, essentially, he seemed to be trembling with fear of Kent.
Gilbert’s anxiety was likely due to the fact that if Lord Blackdagger, who possessed one of the formidable military forces on the Demon Continent, turned against them, the chances of this coup d’état failing would be extremely high.
”Lord Gilbert… We mustn’t forget that we have hostages. Even if it’s his father-in-law, Arbalest, in our grasp, he won’t dare make a move. He’s surprisingly loyal to his father-in-law, so we should increase our surveillance on Arbalest.”
”Understood. Increase the surveillance at once. And tell Letticia, who’s guarding the 4th-level castle gate, that if she doesn’t hold her ground, Velis’s life will be in peril.”
Gilbert began pacing around the room, his composure lost.
”I’ll go capture Miriallia as well. Lord Gilbert, once we get past this, victory will be within our reach.”
He shouted to encourage the disheartened Gilbert.
Here, if the leader of the rebellion, Gilbert, faltered, there was a chance the current situation could be shattered.
”Ahh, I know. Lord Sven, quickly capture the Dream Demon’s Black Dagger for me.”
”Understood. Excuse me, then.”
I hurriedly erased my presence and left the royal castle.
I whistled softly to gather my troops.
Several of my subordinates appeared silently.
”What’s the situation?”
”Yes, sir, we have about ten to 20 intruders on both the east and west sides. The enemies consist of the Dorman family’s bodyguards and members of the Miriallia organization. Currently, we’re engaged in a battle, surrounding them with about 50 men on each side, but the enemy is proving to be quite formidable.”
Miriallia has also brought in their Elite Troops to infiltrate.
We can’t tell which team is the rescue squad──both sides seem to have failed their diversion and ended up caught in the defensive perimeter I set up.
”For now, let’s head east. Hold the west!”
”Yes, sir!”
I decided to make my way to the eastern district with my subordinates.
* * *
Upon arriving in the eastern area, my eyes were immediately drawn to a writhing mass of soldiers, all rendered combat ineffective.
The source of these soldiers was a middle-aged man from the Majin Clan, his hair a distinguished shade of romance gray.
He was sporting a cheerful smile as he sent my subordinates flying with ease.
On closer inspection, it was clear that multiple enhancement spells were cast on him, significantly boosting his physical strength, power, agility, and more.
”It seems the big boss has finally arrived. I’ve been looking forward to this meeting. You must be Lord Sven, Lord Gwain’s trusted blade, correct?”
With a gentlemanly tone, the man from the Majin Clan addressed me.
”I won’t deny it, but to encounter the ‘Silver Gray Gentleman,’ the head of the Dorman family’s bodyguards, is quite a twist of fate for me.”
The man before me was a figure that symbolized terror in the underground world.
In reality, standing in front of him made me feel like a waterfall of sweat was pouring from every pore of my body.
Am I cowering in fear?
…That’s not possible.
I’m a man who has walked through the shadows for a long time, surviving the trials of clan battles…
I steadied my nerves, refusing to back down against the menacing aura radiating from the man before me.
Dispersing my killing intent, I kicked the ground, closing in on the man known as the Silver Gray Gentleman.
Whoosh!
An arm, glowing with the light of magic and enhanced by physical fortification, sliced through the air, narrowly missing my black robe.
That attack held a power capable of shattering bones if it landed.
Sebastian smiled at me as I deftly dodged his straight punch.
The legends of those who faced off against the Silver Gray Gentleman and lived to tell the tale might actually be true…
”Hmph, hmph, hmph. To dodge that… You’re quite the fighter, aren’t you? Well then, how about this?”
Seeing through my ability to avoid his straight punch, Sebastian flicked the small stones he held between his fingers towards me with considerable force.
One after another, they whizzed past my body with a *pyun* sound.
My Robe was instantly riddled with holes, but thankfully, nothing hit me directly.
This guy… is he really from the same Majin Clan?
His finger shots are ridiculously powerful…
Cold sweat trickled down my forehead as I was shown the difference in our abilities.
”That’s not human… You monster.”
”I think you are quite the monster yourself, to dodge my finger shots.”
Sebastian didn’t lose his composure, and with a smile, he seemed to be sizing up my abilities and evaluating them.
If this continues, I’ll be broken through… I have to stop him, no matter what…
”Against Lord Sebastian, the odds are against me… So, I’ll have to use a secret technique.”
I provoked him to draw his attention.
And while he was focused on me, I gave Instructions to my subordinates to attack Sebastian from behind.
”Too naive!”
However, the subordinates’ slashes were easily dodged, and Sebastian’s palm strike landed on their unguarded side.
My subordinate was blown away and fell to the ground.
”Their Education is still lacking… They can’t defeat me with that level of slash.”
”Damn it, you monster.”
”This is where the real show begins! [Fighting Spirit Technique]!”
The colorful light covering Sebastian’s body converged and was enveloped in a golden light.
And the pressure I felt from him increased even further.
…He hadn’t even activated his [Fighting Spirit Technique] yet… That strength just from Body Enhancement Magic… Am I even a match for him…?
”Hesitation leads to death! [Air Wave Palm]!”
The moment I saw Sebastian’s hand blur, a mass of air shot towards my body.
The instant I saw the mass, a dull pain, like being punched in the stomach, ran through me.
”Ugh! Ugh-raaah!”
I couldn’t dodge the air blast unleashed by Sebastian and took it straight to my stomach.
The pain was so intense that I doubled over, landing on my knees.
”Guh, ack! There’s no way an invisible attack could exist…”
”Oh my, oh my, oh my. I seem to have overestimated you a bit, Lord Sven, the so-called ‘Silent Reaper.’ Can’t even dodge this little attack?”
As the taste of iron and rust flooded my mouth, I racked my brain for a way to turn the tide, but the situation was spiraling downward with each passing second.
Damn it… I can’t hold out much longer… I feel bad for Gilbert, but this might be the time for a strategic retreat…
”Block it! Don’t let them through! This is the real deal! Send reinforcements quickly!”
I ordered Gilbert’s troops to gather the soldiers who would be used as pawns, preserving the others for later.
The soldiers called in by my subordinate began gathering one after another in the eastern section.
However, not a single one of Sebastian’s Dorman family operatives had been taken down.
They seemed to have arrived not only with high intelligence skills but also exceptional combat abilities.
”Hoh, hoh, hoh. Do you really believe you’re our main target?”
With a powerful stomp that shook the ground, Sebastian unleashed a straight punch enhanced by [Fighting Spirit] against a man among his subordinates, a fierce smile plastered across his face.
The man who was sent flying was one of the strongest among our ranks, but the disparity in strength was greater than that between an adult and a child.
”What did you say…?”
When Sebastian asked, I briefly considered that Lady Miriallia in the western sector might be the real target, but given her skills and training level, there was no way they could break through the ones I had left to hold the line.
Just then, a huge, brilliant sphere of light launched into the twilight sky from the northern sector where hostages were held.
At the same moment, Sebastian let out a laugh.
”Hoh, hoh, hoh. It seems we’ve won. Those noisy girls have pulled through for us. Since I’ve had my fun, I think it’s time for me to take my leave.”
With that, Sebastian hurriedly gathered his subordinates and made a run for the castle walls.
I… I was saved…? But that light from earlier…
Before I could fully bask in my relief, a soldier rushed towards me.
”Lord Sven!! It’s terrible!! The prison has been breached! They snuck in through a secret passage in the castle! Arbalest, Quenelra, and Aldo have all been taken!”
”What! How could this be! Was Miriallia plotting too! What has Lord Gilbert done?!”
”Lord Gilbert is forcing Lord Velis and the others to sign the imperial edict.”
Sheesh, you’re such a weakling!
Now is not the time for that!
If the hostages are recaptured, Kent will have no choice but to stop… We must make a decision.
I wanted to cause a bit of chaos in the Capital City, but it seems there’s no helping it.
Even so, the Dorman family’s retainers were too strong…
”We pull back here! Evacuate the injured personnel immediately. The rally point is where we discussed earlier.”
And with that, I escaped from the castle without waiting to see the outcome of the rebellion.
* * *
*Kent’s Perspective
I was stationed with Nokin’s army in front of the 4th layer’s castle gate.
We had already evacuated the surrounding shops and wealthy residents, leaving a string of empty houses.
However, the battle had yet to commence, and we were simply glaring down the enemy forces.
The reason was that Milly’s operation to reclaim her father was still ongoing, and Miriel had informed us that we’d know the outcome by sundown, so we held off on starting the fight.
So, for the time being, we gathered the officers under the hastily erected tents to discuss our next move.
”…Is it about time? If we wait like this, there’s a chance we could be labeled as traitors and be hunted down by the Kingdom’s army.”
Nokin, who had been ordered to halt, seemed irritable.
As mercenaries, we wouldn’t openly defy orders, but like a dog that’s been scolded, we couldn’t help but fidget nervously.
”Lord Nokin, we still have some time until sunset. Please wait just a bit longer. Besides, Valid (Veris’s father) is currently keeping the Kingdom’s generals in check, so I don’t believe we’ll see anyone switching sides to the rebel army.”
Kondrad was trying to calm the anxious Nokin by reporting the current situation.
”By the way, is it true that Letticia is guarding the 4th level? She’s Lord Velis’s right-hand woman, right? Why is she participating in the coup?”
A fox-type woman named Alonsa, who had been standing next to Nokin, answered my question.
”Just a guess, but I believe she’s been entrusted with the gate guard duty as a condition for Lord Velis’s safety. So, if the rescue plan succeeds, we should be able to bypass the 4th level with ease.”
”I thought as much… Then we should avoid unnecessary fighting. I guess we’ll have to try calling for her surrender once the rescue mission succeeds.”
”If that’s agreeable… once we break through the 4th level, we’ll advance without rest until we reach the royal castle. Please follow my instructions to swiftly secure our victory before the enemy can set up their defenses. My husband, Nokin, will take the lead, so Lord Blackdagger, you must follow closely without falling behind.”
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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