Chapter 1441. Continental War (21)

‘They were more or less aware of each other after all.’

First Ki-Young and First Ji-Hye weren't active at this point in time, but Commander Jin was aware of their presence a long time ago.

After all, he recognized the Brigade during the debutante ball, so he would at least know that the ones putting their heads together against him weren’t figures from the Empire or the Union of Kingdoms. He had to have concluded that there was no way the Empire or the Union of Kingdoms had people as competent as them.

Of course, the Union of Kingdoms had plenty of talent, but there was a difference between theories and actually fighting up there.

It wasn't the difference between tactics or strategy. It was really hard to explain, but it had to be something only Commander Jin was aware of. He was taking this entire process as a form of conversation. The reason he bothered to redirect his troops here was that he missed that sort of thing.

For a commander who could only communicate through things like this, they were his first conversational partners since Peneloti.

“...”

“...”

‘Even so... he really is capable.’

If I had not known the outcome of this story from the first life, I would’ve definitely sided with the Republic. At a glance, the two forces look evenly matched, but in reality, they weren't evenly matched at all. I wouldn’t call it overwhelming, but the side with the advantage was clearly the Republic forces under Jin Cheong’s command.

Of course, the so-called skirmishes resulted in losses or wins that weren't small at all.

Since war wasn't something played with pieces like chess, errors could occur. In the end, the fighters were the soldiers in the flesh, along with a few named individuals capable of having a major impact on the war.

Even so, it felt as if he had calculated every one of those trivial errors.

At this point, he stood on a more favorable height than First Ki-Young or First Ji-Hye. There were differences that came from his position as the Republic’s commander, such as control over the troops and the unification of the command structure, but even purely within the realm of strategy, he seemed to be above both of them.

‘That’s why they’re trying to kill him no matter what.’

If a guy smarter and more capable were to go on a rampage, there would be nothing scarier than that.

‘How in the world did he turn the tables?’

The win rates of the two sides looked like a graph where one side kept going down while the other kept going up. The more troops entered the front line, the more obvious it became that the graph was skewing to one side.

It got to the point where I wondered if the Masked Duo really had to find another method to win this. There was no way First Ki-Young or First Ji-Hye hadn't realized that they were going to end up at a disadvantage.

Whatever it was, their situation was so dire that they needed a variable to disrupt things.

‘Isn’t this the point where First Commander Jin dies?’

“...”

“...”

‘Or... does our Holy Sword Hero... and the Black Rose Salon become the variable?’

I closed the Telescope and turned my head to see a face that, for some reason, didn’t inspire confidence.

Just moments ago, I thought he would definitely be ready...

“Th-then what do we do? A big battle is going to break out soon... What are we supposed to do? Are you saying all those troops are going to gather in one place?” Sung Ji-Hoon asked.

“...”

“When exactly is it? When is it... J-Jin Yoo, what are we supposed to do? Isn’t this really bad?” he asked.

‘Why is he making such a fuss? Seriously...’

“Damn it... are we just supposed to sit here and do nothing like this?” he complained.

The only consolation was that this guy was not thinking of running away. Of course, the fear on his face was obvious. However, it felt like Jin Yoo’s half-formed goal of wanting to stop the war had somehow become his goal as well.

Naturally, I couldn’t help but sympathize with how he felt.

“No, we’re not going to stay still,” I answered.

“

Huh?

”

And yet, once I actually said we wouldn’t just sit still, he ended up getting scared.

“R-really?”

‘What? You thought I was joking?’

“Yes. The situation is bad, but there’s definitely something we can do. Mr. Felix, please gather everyone,” I ordered.

“Yes, sir.”

I had to act like we were in a hurry. I had to show them that it was urgent, so I had to act like a government worker running around in a civil defense vest after some disaster had broken out.

In reality, I was just walking quickly, but since there was someone already anxious, this much acting was necessary.

At the very least, they needed to know the situation was under control, and in truth, we really were controlling it. Even as we kept moving, the unit commanders were gathering around us one by one. Of course, Oksana was among the ones who joined us.

I was sure they knew that a big battle was coming soon, so it was right to assume that they were essentially ready to respond.

“You called, sir?” Oksana asked.

“How long until the troops are ready?” I asked.

“Two hours will be enough,” she answered.

“What about basic supplies...” I asked.

“We can hold out for several months,” she replied.

“That is a relief. You... prepared well all this time,” I complimented.

“...”

“...”

“I heard the Republic’s forces are entering the front line,” I said.

“That’s right.”

“The Empire and the Union of Kingdoms’ forces as well,” I added.

“That’s correct.”

“The supply depots not far from the front will be our target,” I announced.

“...”

“...”

“I think it’s impossible to stop the major battle outright. For now, I want to focus on ensuring that both sides aren't clashing. I want to do that for as long as possible. We’ll prioritize stopping the units engaged in small skirmishes, or disarming the reserve forces that have yet to reach the front line and freeing them,” I added.

𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

“So the goal is to draw the Republic’s attention this way as much as possible?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“If it comes to fighting...” she paused.

“We won’t avoid it. No, we

can’t

avoid it,” I said.

The idea that we would fight in order to stop a war sounded ridiculous even to me, but this was just how things were here. As long as one reminded people that justice and the light were on our side, anything could be justified, and that was the defining trait of this sort of sentiment.

Right now, both the Saint and the Hero were here, living and breathing together. Of course, our loyal soldiers, who had been more or less indoctrinated for two months, couldn't help but believe that justice and the light stood with us.

Even as we walked and discussed things with Oksana and the other commanders, more and more people gathered around us. We heard that two hours would be enough to prepare, but it seemed that some were so moved by the light emanating from the Saint that they stood ready ahead of time.

The salon was usually dark, so I really liked that one of the three carried a candle with them.

‘The mood was perfect. Seriously.’

Whatever the case, Holy Sword Hero Sung Ji-Hoon also couldn’t take his eyes off the gathering soldiers. I turned to Oksana and raised my voice so everyone could hear me.

“It’s going to be a dangerous journey.”

“Saint...”

“Someone may die or be hurt, or we may end up hurting someone else. What I’m trying to do and what I want to do...it will no doubt seem reckless and foolish to some people, and in truth, there’s a good chance it will turn out to be something foolish.

"There’s also a high chance that everything will end without us leaving anything behind, without us even being able to resist,” I continued.

“...”

“I may not actually be the kind of saint others think I am. No, I definitely am not. I have never once thought of myself as someone

that

valuable. I have never heard the voice of God or anything like that. The reason I want to stop this war isn’t some mission given to me by someone else, but a decision I made myself,” I said.

“...”

“I hope you will not be swayed by the empty title of saint. I want you to choose not because you are carried along by it, but because you don’t want the pain and sorrow you've endured to be handed down to the next generation.

"I want you to recognize that it’s not the will of God, but the will of us who live on this continent and have to live through this reality,” I added.

“...”

‘Look at them staying quiet. It’s an impressive sight seeing the believers trying to write down every single word.’

“I will not stay in God’s embrace as the saint who simply follows His words. I’ll fight and die together with all of you,” I said.

“M-me too,” Sung Ji-Hoon said.

‘No, Ji-Hoon, just stay quiet. If you’re bad at talking, you should just keep your mouth shut.’

“I’ll fight and die with you, too,” he added.

‘Well... that’s kind of touching. From the look in his eyes, it felt like that took a lot of courage.’

“Mr. Ji-Hoon...” I muttered.

“I-I’m not some Hero chosen by God either... I-I’m going to become a full moon,” he said.

‘Why bring up the full moon out of nowhere when everyone is listening? It’s embarrassing. And getting all worked up and raising your voice like that just makes it worse.’

He was talking surprisingly well for someone who looked like he would run away at any moment. Of course, he wasn’t the only one who looked like that. The same went for our soldiers, but I saw some of those from the Black Rose Salon holding weapons. Some of them were even stomping, and it was probably because they had seen someone do it somewhere.

Since the salon was in such total chaos, there was no way our Lady Brush wouldn’t burst out. The effort I had put into slowly raising her favorability level was worth it, and it was proven by how she looked genuinely shocked.

She definitely knew that we would leave one day, but there was no way she expected us to suddenly head straight for the battlefield like this. What showed in her eyes was fear. The same fear as when she had lost Aina Peneloti. Of course, she knew that Jin Yoo and Aina Peneloti weren't the same, but trauma wouldn't disappear so easily.

“T-this is impossible,” Brush mumbled.

“...”

“Do you really understand what it means to leave the salon without ample preparations? T-this is suicide. This makes no sense,” she said.

“...”

“It’s like trying to smash a rock with an egg. We’re talking about the Empire, the Republic, the Union of Kingdoms, the three greatest powers on the continent that are about to collide with each other. You think you can stop that war with just... just this many soldiers? It’s impossible,” she continued.

“Lady Brush,” I said.

“We need to gather more strength. No matter how I think about it, now is not the time. Just a little longer, if we wait just a little longer... an opportunity will definitely come. T-then I’ll help too. It may not be much, but I’ll do everything I can. You have to understand just how reckless this is...” she suggested.

“...”

“...”

“No. If we wait, it will be too late,” I told her.

“...”

“If we don’t move, nothing will change,” I added.

“That’s...”

‘You were the same way.’

“T-that... that’s!”

‘You didn’t wait either.’

“Thank you for taking the risk and taking care of us. Truly, thank you,” I said.

I didn’t listen to her answer. There was no reason to start a pointless argument here. After two months in the salon, the soldiers eventually became close with the people here, and they said their farewells to those people in their own way.

I thought some of them would choose to stay, but the ones who had been in this place knew better than anyone how horrific war truly was. I was sure they knew that this madness couldn’t go on forever.

Just like that, the Saint and the Hero were going to throw themselves into the chaotic continent, signaling the real beginning of this story. Of course, this wasn't some predictable fairy tale where only the Saint, the Hero, and the Demon King would appear.

‘Lady Brush... looks like she has a lot on her mind.’

— Pastel...

— ...

— Pastel... should be able to help. Yes, I’m sure she’ll help.

— I’m sure... Pastel will...

Through the Telescope, I saw Lady Brush hurrying toward the abandoned castle where Pastel remained.

— Please... please... Pastel...