Chapter 345: River of Blood, Mountain of Screams (8)

A Transcendental wasn’t so weak that they would faint from merely being hit on the head with a flower vase. However, Endymion felt humiliation from the dampness he felt on his head and the droplets dripping down along his jawline. Above all, the fact that he had fallen for a trick and was ambushed was absurd.

Wait, I just got ambushed?

When explaining what kind of beings dragons were, it was said among elves that dragons existed even before the concept of pride was born. Dragons were extremely prideful beings. They neither lied nor ambushed.

However, Keter had just done both.

The reason I have been fooled by Keter’s lie is that I believe a dragon would never do that.

In other words, the Keter before him was not a dragon. That was Endymion’s conclusion.

“Your gaze has suddenly become gentle. Are you not gonna fight?” Keter flicked his finger and provoked.

Despite Keter’s taunt, Endymion shook his head. “I’ve realized you aren’t a dragon, so there is no reason for me to fight you.”

“A moment ago, you said let’s fight, now you’re saying let’s not. Seriously, you elves are impossible to understand.” Keter clenched and unclenched his fist in disappointment.

Beside him, Daat pointed at Endymion and said, “Big Brother, by the looks of it, you two probably haven’t even been introduced. This here is Sefira’s elder, Endymion. He calls himself Sefira’s guardian.”

“Elder? Guardian? No wonder. I wondered how Sefira had no Prime and still managed to stay safe. Why have you been hiding until now and suddenly show up?”

“Come to think of it, I haven’t heard the reason for that either,” Daat added.

The air changed, and Endymion was now the one who had to answer.

Endymion briefly pondered, then said, “I could not reveal myself because of Lillian’s threats. However, she disappeared, and the Four Lords are at odds with each other. I thought there was no reason not to step forward.”

“

Hmm

, that explanation skipped a lot, but I roughly understand now.”

“My turn. I’ve always wanted to ask. Have you reached eight-star Irregular?”

Beyond seven-star Prime was eight-star Irregular. It was something even Endymion hadn’t achieved. He could be considered infinitely close, but was never able to reach it.

Keter immediately answered, “I can certainly feel that I’ve gotten significantly stronger, but I’m not sure if I am an eight-star Irregular. I’m unsure, as I’ve also seen one before.”

The Mad Saint King Kron was an actual eight-star Irregular. Having faced him, Keter believed that he was still far from that level.

Endymion nodded. “I don’t think you are an eight-star either. However, if that body of yours has absorbed a dragon heart, you should easily be able to use Ein Sof.

Endymion pointed at Keter’s chest. His chest had once been grotesque to look at, but it already turned back into that of an ordinary human. Still, the heart beating inside it was surely a dragon’s. Additionally, Eslow’s arm, which had looked awkward after grafting on his shoulder, was now moving flawlessly as if it were his from the beginning.

Keter stroked his chest and muttered, “I can finally feel the power of the bloodline a bit.”

He had absorbed a dragon’s heart and also taken the arm of Eslow, one of the Four Lords.

It hadn’t simply been attached through chimeric healing. Eslow’s Authority was Weaponization, and Keter’s Authority was Reversal. With his own Authority, Keter used Eslow’s Authority to attach the arm.

A prosthetic arm also falls within the category of a weapon.

It meant that Keter’s right arm now was a weapon made from Eslow. That wasn’t all. Survival of the Fittest, the street technique of Liqueur that Keter had learned since childhood. He grew stronger every time he survived a life-and-death crisis. He had survived fighting Eslow and had also fought and won against Paratul in the mind world.

Keter had grown exponentially to the point he could momentarily overwhelm Endymion, who was on par with the Four Lords. Even so, he hadn’t reached eight-star. That was how endless the wall of becoming an eight-star Irregular was. However, Keter wasn’t disappointed.

I would have already achieved it in my past life if it were that easy.

Moreover, unlike his past life, he wasn’t hopeless now. This time, he could see the answer. He had a rough idea after seeing and sensing the Ein Sof that Endymion had used.

It’s similar to how Eslow’s arm assists me and the dragon heart guides me.

Then a question suddenly arose.

Why didn’t Eslow and Deyal use Ein Sof?

They surely would have been able to use it, yet the two had only used Ein.

I’ll look into that more later.

Keter looked at Daat. “Dork, what’s Sefira’s situation right now?”

“After Eslow disappeared, two master families of the south formed an alliance and declared war. That was four days ago. Now, it’s a situation where full-scale war could break out at any time.”

“Is that so? Then let’s deal with those guys first.”

“Shall we?”

As Keter and Daat spoke as if they were just talking about clearing snow piled up in front of the house, Endymion stepped in front of them.

“Wait. I know you’ve grown stronger, but fight after you fully know how strong the enemy is. The other side has more than three Primes.”

“I’d like to respect you since you’re older and the elder of this family, but I can’t do that if you’re this timid.”

“Sefira has been making strategies day and night to minimize sacrifices. Do you intend to turn all that effort into nothing?”

“I wasn’t in that meeting, was I?”

Endymion was shocked.

“Elder, I am very upset right now. I clearly said back at the Sword of the South Tournament that archery is superior to swordsmanship.”

Keter showed a cruel smile after summoning Amaranth for the first time in a while and gripping it in his hand.

“This time, I will certainly make that clear.”

***

The southern territory of the Lillian Kingdom had been split into two. The territory of Sefira, and the territory of Garcia and Luban, the Masters of Swordsmanship. The forces supporting the second prince also joined Garcia and Luban.

Currently, they had marched out with tens of thousands of elite troops and were putting them on the front lines to conquer Sefira. The patriarch, knight commanders, generals, and strategists of the two families were gathered in one place at the alliance’s command tent.

Daul Garcia was the head of the Garcia family. He wore the badge symbolizing the supreme commander.

“How are Sefira’s movements?”

At his question, the leading strategist answered, “It seems they chose a defensive stance in this war. We infer they will make use of their own advantages suited for defense while employing hit-and-run tactics using cavalry, just as when they faced the royal army before.”

“Has there been any unusual movement?”

“We are watching closely, but so far there has been none.”

“Do not let your guard down for even a second. Sefira excels at deception. That is how Bydent and the royal army were defeated.”

“Yes, sir.”

Daul looked at the man sitting directly before him. Krise, the vice commander and head of the Luban family.

“Vice Commander. Are the tunnels prepared?”

Krise grinned. “Digging tunnels within a tight time of four days would be impossible for anyone. However, the Luban family has dwarves skilled at tunneling. Preparations finished yesterday. A tunnel has been made from here to near Sefira’s walls.”

The reason the alliance army had gathered their forces yet waited four days had all been a smokescreen to hide troops using a tunnel. In other words, Sefira was misdirected at the moment. The alliance army was one and a half times larger than what Sefira believed.

However, that wasn’t all the alliance had prepared.

“Good. As planned, we will launch a full-scale attack the moment the fog grows thick tonight.”

How could humans predict that fog would fall tonight? There was magic that controlled the weather, but that was an eight-circle group foundation spell. Moreover, weather manipulation magic was forbidden, so using it would bring attacks from the mage towers.

The secret lay in the second prince’s support. The allied families served the second prince, and the second prince had given them several forms of support so they could defeat Sefira. First was high-quality amantir armor, and the second, incantors.

It was widely known that incantation was an inferior form of magic. Its casting time was absurdly long, and its casting conditions were strict. However, it also surpassed magic in certain aspects. One of those was weather manipulation.

The strength and weakness of archery were the same. Archery was a long-range attack. It couldn’t be used without visibility, and the closer the distance became, the more significantly archery’s stability fell.

Commander Daul realized this after receiving incantors from Prince Rakan, and had ordered them two things.

“Create a wide barrier to block arrows, and create fog to obscure their vision.”

The incantors the prince had provided said it was possible, but they needed sacrifices and time.

“I will provide all of that. In return, have it ready within four days.”

Daul had deliberately camped near Sefira’s border to buy time for the dwarves to dig tunnels and for the incantors to prepare the barrier and fog. As if intending a long war, he gave off the impression that his plan was to starve Sefira out to mislead them. However, his actual strategy was a short, all-out battle.

We can’t give Sefira time to prepare.

He hadn’t thought Sefira would defeat Bydent. Even if they had a formidable weapon named Keter, a prince was baking Bydent. Yet, that very Bydent family had been crushed miserably without even inflicting any notable damage to Sefira.

Both Keter’s and Sefira’s capabilities were beyond our imagination. That must have been the same for Bydent. Being too careless. That was the reason Bydent lost.

Even the royal army had been defeated by Sefira. However, General Colton had commanded the army. Colton used to be his teacher and never fought battles he would lose. Daul had never thought Colton would lose, yet he did and had even gone missing.

Daul was afraid of Sefira’s capabilities. That was why, after Keter fought Eslow, Daul immediately mobilized the army, even before Second Prince Rakan’s order to attack Sefira.

We can’t give Keter time to recover.

That was why they had prepared as quickly as possible, which took four days, and today would decide everything. Night was when visibility decreased. On top of that, thick fog was cast at the moment. These conditions were unfavorable for archers. Additionally, with hidden troops in tunnels, it was a perfect move that thoroughly sealed off the advantages of archery.

Even so, Daul felt uneasy, so he looked to his son, Rajis Garcia. Though he was ugly, he could be said to be the best in terms of genius and effort.

“Rajis, you’ve fought Keter many times.”

“Yes.”

“Can you defeat him?”

Rumors had spread that Keter had fought Eslow and survived. In other words, it was confirmed that Keter was at least a seven-star or higher. Moreover, Rajis had previously fought Keter and lost, even though he fought with others.

Daul knew that too. Yet, he asked because Rajis had gained enlightenment. He had become a seven-star Prime at an astonishingly early age, even in the history of both the Garcia family and the Lillian Kingdom.

Rajis slowly shook his head. “I do not have confidence in defeating him.”

Daul showed slight disappointment at Rajis' words, and the others also made regretful expressions. However, Rajis wasn’t done.

“But, I can hold him back.”

“

Hm!

” Daul seemed satisfied with that and smiled contentedly.

After all, Rajis wasn’t the only Prime. There were still three more Primes, excluding him. No matter how capable Keter was, he wouldn’t be able to handle four Authorities at once, even if Keter was in perfect condition.

He must have suffered fatal wounds even if he survived fighting one of the Four Lords.

Keter would need at least a week of recuperation even if he used an elixir. The possibility of Keter joining the battle was low to begin with, but even if he did, Daul was confident. That was a shared thought of the alliance.

Meeting everyone’s gaze, Daul asked, “I shall ask one last time. If anyone has something to say, speak now.”

No one raised a hand. They had already discussed countless times before. Even the discussions of the same plans had been repeated two or three times.

After a brief silence, Daul struck the table and stood up. “Feed the soldiers and knights well. Tonight, we will subjugate the south.”

Second Prince Rakan had promised the alliance that he would grant them all the southern territory if they dealt with Sefira. It was a war they had no choice but to fight. Still, after the heat of battle, a significant reward would follow. Their resolve was firm, and they were filled with desire for victory.

Daul left the tent first. The others also went out one by one to attend to their tasks. However, Rajis remained seated with a face full of concerns.

A strategist approached and sat beside him. “Execution Corps Commander, is something troubling you?”

The Execution Corps was a knight order Daul had established for Rajis. It was a special unit with four five-star Masters and no fewer than thirty four-star knights under his command.

Rajis looked at the strategist sitting beside him. She was the only woman among the strategists and also the youngest. Also, she was a woman who showed particular interest in Rajis.

Rajis wouldn’t have replied if it had been anyone else, but it was her.

He said, “I feel anxious.”

“Because we might lose?”

“Both. Even if we win, I feel there will be nothing good.”

The strategist looked around them.

Only after confirming they were alone did she cautiously say, “I can feel that our kingdom is in danger too. However, it’s not good to get on the princes’ nerves right now. Everyone will likely be thinking that.”

“No, it’s not only that. I feel like something worse... something bad will happen.”

“For example?”

“I don’t know. That’s why it’s frustrating. I don’t know what’s making me feel this frustrated.”

“

Hmm

... In that case...” The strategist boldly grabbed Rajis’s hand.

Rajis was startled. It was the first time a woman had taken the initiative to hold his hand. Moreover, he felt it was filled with affection.

Blushing, she said, “Come on a walk with me—”

Just then, something fell from the sky and pierced her head.

Without even having time to register her death, Rajis instinctively swung his sword above his head. His wrist throbbed. Soon after, Rajis checked the identity of what he had blocked, and his eyes widened.