Chapter 683
Simon told the Grand Duke everything about the situation.
“What you saw must have been a creature of the Three Brothers’ class.”
The Grand Duke spoke.
Whether the North Star had originally been able to use the “fourth”, or if after the Three Brothers’ deaths he had prepared corpses in advance and turned one into a fourth to send to Bilkenos, it could not be known.
Still, one thing was certain, just as the Grand Duke had deceived the range of the Bow of Tempest, the North Star too had several hidden tricks.
“I was rash.”
She twisted her lips. Both her fists were clenched so hard they looked as if they would break.
“I should have taken more time, prepared for a protracted war.”
“N-no! Milord, I believe you made the best decision under those circumstances.”
[So then.]
Feer crossed his arms.
[What will you do now? Legion Commanders. It is the time to choose.]
“......”
The Grand Duke closed her eyes and thought deeply.
The fourth was attacking the empty Bilkenos. And the place where the North Star was, lay several mountain ranges away from here.
Which side to choose.
The hesitation dragged on. She tilted her head back, turned her gaze around once, and ground her teeth.
Every minute and second was precious, yet the fate of the entire northern region hinged upon this one decision. She had no choice but to weigh it carefully.
The Grand Duke considered several possibilities. At last—
“I have decided.”
Her lips opened.
“We return to Bilkenos.”
“W-wait a moment!”
Simon’s eyes widened.
“We’ve come this far at the cost of so much sacrifice! You would just go back like this?”
“If we leave the fourth be, the sacrifice will be beyond comparison to now.”
At present, in Bilkenos there was only a small defensive force led by Steward Godrick. And when the North Star died, the uncontrolled undead would rampage, so most of the northern population had taken refuge in Bilkenos.
If the fourth stormed the city as things stood, a massacre would occur.
“My duty is not to slay the North Star, but to protect the North.”
She closed her eyes.
“Even if I were to slay the North Star, what use would that be if there are no people left to live in the North? I cannot turn my eyes away from my duty.”
Listening quietly, Erzebet shrugged her shoulders.
[What if all our forces pressed on swiftly to Frost Field and struck down the North Star?]
“That too is impossible, Ancient Undead.”
The state of the northern army was nothing short of the worst. The campaign was prepared hastily, supplies and winter gear were soon to run out.
They were prepared only just enough to reach Frost Field, defeat the North Star, and return.
But now, to lead a fatigued army over mountains and fight a battle in a new Abyss?
“We would be annihilated. Even if we won against the North Star, we would not return.”
The Grand Duke slowly raised her arm. It looked as though she was linking to the thoughts of the undead above the Abyss.
“The blizzard blows. The North Star has the power to control the weather. In such storms, communications and teleportation magic circles, as well as outside reinforcements, cannot be expected.”
Lowering her hand, she gave a bitter smile.
“Checkmate. I hate to admit it, but this expedition is a failed expedition. The North Star was several moves ahead of us. That is all.”
“......Grand Duke.”
She turned her back, her cloak flaring.
“We retreat. I shall have General Ganiro gather the troops and withdraw in order. I will run ahead to Bilkenos with Hate and the Phantom Knights.”
“......”
“In the end, I could not cut off his breath, and remain a Grand Duke who only reached Frost Field.”
Just then.
“No.”
Simon stepped forward.
“We will strike the North Star. With the 7th Legion alone.”
She stopped walking and turned with shocked eyes toward Simon.
All the other Ancient Undead fixed their gaze on him too.
Simon was also a Legion Commander.
He had been following the Grand Duke’s orders, but ultimately he had the authority to move separately.
“Arrogant one. Do you even know what you are saying?”
“Yes.”
Simon understood the Grand Duke’s position.
For her, the defense of the North outweighed the elimination of the North Star.
Even if, by chance, Simon and the Grand Duke joined forces and swiftly eliminated the North Star, the fourth would not stop. As a hive-type being like the Three Brothers, the fourth could act independently and judge on its own. Bilkenos would be destroyed with certainty.
Therefore—
“It will be the 7th Legion alone that strikes.”
“Foolhardy!”
She strode up and gripped Simon’s shoulders.
“How do you plan to cross the treacherous mountains of Frost Field?”
Simon grinned and pointed to the side.
“With Herseba’s ‘Geheim’.”
Beside him stood the sand woman perched atop her staff, smiling and waving lightly.
Simon explained about Herseba’s Geheim, newly unleashed.
“......”
The Grand Duke’s eyes turned serious.
“But there are ten Abyss holes, can your legion alone conquer them all?”
“Of course.”
Simon nodded with confidence.
“My father’s legion has many Ancient Undead. This time, I will liberate the North.”
Her pupils shook.
‘Yona.’
The man who, upon coming north, had destroyed the North Star’s forces and saved her.
She bit her lip hard, then smiled.
“Is your strategy to rely only on your Ancient Undead?”
“I will also rely on the Grand Duke and the northern army.”
“What?”
Simon spread his palm.
“You said the North Star reacts sensitively to your Darkness. If the Grand Duke departs to confront the fourth, and the northern army begins to retreat, how do you think the North Star will react?”
Without further thought, she answered.
“He will strike our retreating backs. The North Star has always fought with such tactics.”
“Yes, he will send part of the forces that protected him. It will be the perfect chance to annihilate the northern army. And above all—”
Simon pointed at his own feet.
“We are not caught in a trap. We have ‘conquered’ the Abyss. It’s true that we’ve greatly consumed the North Star’s forces.”
Simon clenched his fist.
“Crisis is opportunity. I believe the best chance to strike the North Star’s true headquarters is right now.”
The Grand Duke quietly closed her eyes and sank into thought.
Then she spoke.
“I still cannot trust it.”
Simon, who had been striking a spirited pose, flinched and sheepishly lowered his hands.
“Y-you will not permit it?”
“We are equal Legion Commanders. If you decide to sortie, I cannot stop you. However—”
The Grand Duke turned her head.
“Pluto, go with him.”
[Eh? Babysitting duty, mew?]
“It is important. Obey the orders of the 7th Legion.”
[No helping it then. Mew mew!]
Pluto bounced up and landed lightly on Simon’s shoulder.
[Pleased to work with you! Mew!]
Simon’s eyes widened.
“...You would even send Pluto to my side?”
“Of course. The Fourth, Hate and I are enough to handle it. And also—”
Flap!
She opened a subspace and pulled something out.
Simon’s eyes widened.
It was a golden banner.
It was a banner used by the riders of the North, but it was somehow different from ordinary banners.
“I still have one last move remaining.”
She planted the banner into the ground.
“W-what is this?”
“Half of my power.”
She raised the Bow of Tempest. At once Hate moved, wrapping around her body and the bow.
“I shall use it here.”
Whoooooooosh!
She aimed the Bow of Tempest toward the sky above the Abyss and fired it.
The storm of recoil drove Simon back, along with the surrounding Ancient Undead.
‘Uwaaah!’
Simon broke into a cold sweat.
It was the strongest arrow he had ever seen from the Grand Duke.
It shot up from the Abyss toward the end of the heavens, then glittered and vanished.
“When you find yourself in danger, use this banner.”
She pulled the banner out and handed it to Simon.
“Whether it be the North Star, or any mighty foe, if you use this banner, you will be able to destroy them.”
Simon received it respectfully.
The Grand Duke had sent Pluto, the Ancient Undead, to him, and even spent half her strength.
She had, in truth, done everything she could for Simon.
The moment he took her banner, it felt as though her will was being conveyed into him.
“Simon Follentia. I appoint you as the honorary rider of the North.”
Simon, holding the golden banner, smiled with resolute eyes.
“I won’t disappoint you!”
Thump.
Suddenly she stepped forward, pressing her forehead to Simon’s. Simon was startled, but upon seeing the earnestness in her expression, he did not step away.
“......Thank you.”
Her voice trembled faintly.
Countless emotions came pouring forth.
The frustration of having to retreat with the North Star right before her eyes.
The sorrow for the soldiers who had fallen.
The worry for Simon.
And the immense gratitude for his vow to take her place.
Simon steadied his voice, trembling with emotion, and smiled bravely.
“Leave it to me.”
* * *
Bilkenos.
“Emergency! Emergency! Enemy assault!”
“Keep running! Take the children to the shelter!”
With the sudden attack of the “Fourth”, Bilkenos was thrown into chaos.
Screams erupted everywhere. People fled from their homes toward the shelters, while the narrow paths leading to the Grand Duke’s castle were crammed with crowds.
The warriors grabbed weapons and rushed to the walls.
Thud-!
Thud-!
Thud-!
The walls shook violently. The Fourth was ramming his head against them.
Rumble-
The walls wavered dangerously.
The Fourth’s appearance was that of an underdeveloped child’s body enlarged into a giant’s form. Though giant, his two arms looked stunted, his legs thin, his head abnormally huge.
Fortunately, with his physical ability he seemed unable to climb the walls, but it looked as though he intended to smash them down with brute force.
“Hold the line! Stop him somehow!”
Northern warriors rushed to the wall and fired arrows. Most bounced off his skin, but the Fourth flailed his short arms, as though stung by the pain.
“That thing, doesn’t seem all that much, does it?”
“Yeah, looks like a failed experiment to make another of the Three Brothers.”
Thump.
Just then, the Fourth grabbed his oversized face.
Bulge- bulge-
Then his head began throbbing like a beating heart. Veins protruded on his bald scalp, and the faint outline of his brain appeared.
Bulge- bulge- bulge- bulge-
From his body, streams of Darkness leaked, forming the shape of magic circles. The warriors sensed something ominous and staggered back.
“W-what is happening?”
“Look behind! T-the city!”
Crack!
Crash!
The houses in Bilkenos’ downtown began to rise into the air.
Countless buildings hung frozen in the sky.
“They’re falling!”
All those fragments crashed down.
A great catastrophe struck in the heart of Bilkenos, the largest city of the North. People ran, but some were too late.
Kwooooooosh—!
At that moment, a crimson wave surged forth.
“?!”
The crimson waves moved like living things, sweeping away the falling debris. They even spread like umbrellas above scattered people, or caught them before they could be crushed.
“Are you alright?”
Splat.
From the crimson wave dropped a girl with light-violet hair.
“Use this chance, run quickly!”
“Th-thank you!”
The warriors stared at her blankly. She wrapped herself in blood, then leapt onto a collapsed building’s pillar, glaring at the Fourth.
“Stop. I won’t forgive you for harming people any longer!”
She spoke with force in her eyes.
But the Fourth again invoked black magic, wrenching buildings from the ground into the air.
Kamibarez placed her hand on her abdomen, and a magic circle flared.
The result of the special class.
Her pupils gradually turned crimson.
“If you continue to harm people......!”
One fact the North Star had overlooked.
It was this.
“I too will fight, for the North, and for Simon!”
In Bilkenos, there was a vampire of Ursula.
Finally a new chap
Can I get the link for novel
Chat is this real?
Who got the license for English translation