Chapter 736

The Siege of O’Toul Fortress drew to a close, as the Kavala Kingdom’s reinforcements were swiftly driven off by the neighboring countries allied under the Rozermoore Alliance.

Clip! Clop! Clop!

The sound of hooves echoed in the distance.

Michele rode up to the O’Toul Fortress on a white steed. He dismounted and knelt on one knee, offering a respectful bow in front of Siegfried.

“Your humble servant, Michele, greets Your Majesty.”

“You idiot...”

“My apologies for the delay, sire. I hope you can forgive—”

“You should have been here earlier!”

“P-Pardon...?”

Michele was taken aback by how irritated Siegfried sounded.

“You have no idea what we went through here!”

“What...?”

“We thought we were goners!”

“Well, I—”

“You should have finished your job on time!”

“Now, hold on a minute. Do you think I have been relaxing this whole time? Do you have any idea how much I had to talk just to get those sly old men to ally with us in such a short period of time?”

“Well done.”

“I had to run around—

eh?

Excuse me?” Michele muttered, taken aback by the sudden change in Siegfried’s tone. Then, he asked, “What do you mean by that?”

“Even if it was late, you got here, and that’s a huge relief for me.”

“

Ah...

”

“Thanks for working so hard. I mean it,” Siegfried said, patting Michele on the shoulder.

“What do you mean by that, Your Majesty...?”

“Anyway, I’m giving you a fat bonus this month.”

“

Eh?”

Siegfried leaned on the fortress wall and added, “I really want to thank you for your hard work, but... I’m too exhausted right now. Let me rest for a bit.”

With that, Siegfried closed his eyes while basking in the warmth of the sun shining in the sky.

‘

Looks like he’s been through hell and back,’

Michele thought. He could tell from Siegfried’s haggard face, his body language, and slumped back just how grueling the battle was.

The reason Siegfried had an outburst just now before suddenly calming down was that Michele's arrival with reinforcements had brought him undeniable relief.

The battle had indeed been grueling, and he felt like crying tears of joy the moment he saw the armies from the various neighboring nations. However, he was still the king, so he could not break down crying in front of his subjects.

Thus, he let his feelings slip and voiced out his complaints before calming down again.

“You did well, Your Majesty,” Michele said gently.

Siegfried’s figure grew faint, flickering unsteadily as he finally succumbed to sleep.

During the last few days, Siegfried hardly slept, dedicating nearly twenty hours a day to the game. The only reason he rested for four hours each day was to avoid being forcefully logged out for not meeting the mandatory rest requirement.

The grueling routine had left him both mentally and physically drained.

“Take His Majesty to his quarters,” Michele ordered.

“Yes, sir!”

The soldiers carefully carried Siegfried and moved him to his bedchamber.

***

The next morning...

“

Ugh...”

Tae-Sung was greeted by a wave of discomfort spreading all over him as soon as he woke up. He slept for over ten hours, but he did not feel refreshed at all. He felt sore all over. The intense concentration he had been maintaining over the past few days had taken a toll on him both physically and mentally.

Unfortunately, sleeping in the capsule had only made it worse.

“I need a break today,” Tae-Sung said while yawning.

He went down to the residents-only gym. He sparred with the trainer to relieve his sore muscles, and afterward, he dined at a restaurant and drove to a hotel spa in Seoul for a well-deserved massage.

This rest day was just what he needed to shake off the fatigue after the grueling battle against the Zavala Kingdom. He did not check his social media accounts, nor did he reply to the messages.

Apart from a quick call to his mother and sister, he invested the entire day in complete relaxation.

Those few hours to himself had turned out to be absolutely necessary.

‘

It’s not like I’m an amateur anymore,’

Tae-Sung thought. As a professional gamer, taking time to rest and refresh himself was almost second nature to him.

‘

You know what? I’m not going to do a single thing until dinner.’

With that, Tae-Sung sank back into the warm water, ready to embrace a day of well-deserved rest.

***

On that same evening, Tae-Sung's fatigue finally disappeared after a rejuvenating sauna session and afternoon nap.

“Congratulations on your victory, Your Majesty!”

“Your Majesty! The heavens have truly blessed you with this victory!”

As soon as he logged in, the leaders of the alliance greeted him with cheers and congratulations.

“Everyone... I am extremely grateful to each and every one of you. You all did such an incredible job,” Siegfried replied sincerely. Then, he turned to Lieutenant General McKnight, “And... I extend my deepest gratitude to the Rozermoore alliance, too.”

“Your Majesty is too kind,” Lt. General McKnight replied with a bow.

Lieutenant General McKnight was the appointed Commander of the Rozermoore Alliance—the alliance formed by the Zavala Kingdom’s neighboring countries.

“I hope you will continue to stand with the Proatine Alliance against the Zavala Kingdom.”

“Of course, Your Majesty. The Rozermoore alliance stands ready to uphold justice and fight alongside the Proatine Alliance!”

“We will all be counting on you.”

The war against the Zavala Kingdom was far from over. Despite the staggering losses that the Zavala Kingdom had suffered at the siege of the O’Toul Fortress, their kingdom still remained a formidable great power on the continent.

They used their immense resources and large population to replenish their army swiftly. Even now, the Zavala Kingdom was definitely conscripting new recruits, mobilizing troops, and manufacturing war supplies.

Another invasion of the Proatine Kingdom and the Rozermoore Alliance was inevitable, as this was just the beginning of the conflict.

This was just a prelude to a much bigger and messier war.

Fortunately, with the near collapse of the Bayerische Kingdom, the Proatine Kingdom could now afford to redeploy their elite units and soldiers from the southern front to the front lines.

This seemed to be just a small edge compared to the massive economic machine of the Zavala Kingdom, but it would prove crucial in the upcoming battles.

“The troops are exhausted, so let’s give everyone a week to rest before we mobilize again,” Siegfried said.

The current situation presented an ideal opportunity for the Proatine Alliance and Rozermoore Alliance to press their advantage against the vulnerable Zavala Kingdom, which was still consolidating its forces.

However, the battle was simply so grueling that the Proatine Alliance soldiers were too spent to fight. Despite using potions and receiving blessings from the holy spells of Saintess Janette, the battered troops needed at least one week to recover.

In addition, quite a few soldiers suffered mentally from witnessing the deaths of their comrades, mountains of corpses, and rivers of blood. They struggled with symptoms of PTSD and were being tormented by the horrors that they had witnessed.

Siegfried knew that he had to give the men time to recover for the sake of both their physical and mental health.

“We will focus on our men’s well-being for the next week. That concludes today’s council,” Siegfried said, concluding the war council for the day.

“Your Majesty,” Saintess Janette approached him. Then, she flashed a warm gentle smile and said, “If I may, I have something I would like to ask you.”

“Please, go ahead,” Siegfried replied with a nod and a warm smile.

Saintess Janette had been an invaluable asset in the Siege of O’Toul Fortress. Her healing spells had saved countless lives and prevented even greeted casualties while boosting the morale of the men with her mere presence.

“Would you like to go for a walk?” he offered.

“I would be delighted to, Your Majesty,” she replied with a smile.

And so, they went off to talk in private.

***

Saintess Janette stole glances at Siegfried before finally asking, “May I ask you something personal, Your Majesty?”

“As long as it is something I can answer... I guess?” Siegfried replied with a shrug.

“Do you... have a god you believe in?” Saintess Janette asked carefully.

“Excuse me?” he replied, looking surprised.

“I heard that Your Majesty does not follow any faith in this world. Is that true?” she pressed on.

Siegfried shrugged once again in response. He never bothered following any religion in BNW, as religion was one of the very few things that kept BNW a game for him.

In the real world, religion and faith still remained a mystery.

There could be a god out there, or there could be none.

In this game world, however, religion and gods were nothing more than artificial constructs. They were NPCs or objects at best—purely fictional.

“No, not in this world," Siegfried replied without much trouble.

“What about back in your world? Do you practice any faith over there?” Saintess Janette asked, continuing to press the matter.

“That’s...” Siegfried muttered in response, sounding unsure.

Siegfried was caught off-guard by the question, as he did not expect to be questioned by an NPC about his beliefs in the real world.

“Do you?”

“No, I do not practice any religion in my world either.”

“I see...”

“To be honest, religion is something I have never been interested in. Of course, I respect other people’s beliefs, but it is... just not for me.”

“I find that hard to believe, Your Majesty,” Saintess Janette said, shaking her head.

“

E-Eh?”

“For someone with no faith, neither here nor in your world, to wield such divine power... It should not be possible at all. It defies all logic and common sense.”

“

Ah...

”

Siegfried realized the reason why she had been probing him regarding the matter. She must have been extremely curious about the source of the miracle he performed in the battle, as she was a clergy member herself.

“That was... something I am curious about too...” he said, sounding unsure.

“Pardon?”

“I have no idea where this divine power comes from. I am not sure why and how I can wield it either. In fact, this has been the biggest mystery in my life as of late.”

“Huh? Even Your Majesty has no idea about it?”

“I mean, do you think I would keep it from you if I did? I would just go ahead and tell you since it is not like I have any reason to hide it—”

It was then.

"Please... save us..."

"Those vile demons... our village...!"

"I beg you...! Protect us... please...!"

A bunch of voices echoed softly in Siegfried’s ears. They were so faint that it was hard to hear them, but those voices were unmistakably pleading for someone to help them.

“What was that?” Siegfried muttered, looking around his surroundings.

He couldn't quite understand the faint and fragmented whispers, but there was one thing he was sure about it. The whispers were undeniably desperate, and they all belonged to both genders, ranging from young to old.

The voices whispering to him seemed to belong to a crowd.