Chapter 369: The One-Day War

Boom...!

“How on earth did the Digon tribe make it here so quickly? And the Immortal Council as well... What the hell are the Dawn Council and Sir Jarvant doing?”

Tiren could barely contain his anger at the sudden arrival of enemy reinforcements.

“Watch yourself. There might be more going on than we realize. Besides, they’ve barely mustered 100,000 troops. It won’t change the outcome.”

Kuwell felt a pang of regret for not pushing harder when Miliana’s forces had shown up. He could feel the morale of the imperial troops begin to wane.

“There’s nothing we can do. Though Digon itself isn’t much of a threat, we lack a magical battalion to counter the Immortal Council’s magic,” Elan added with a grim expression.

“What about Faiman?”

“Luckily, he survived, but it doesn’t look like he’ll be able to rejoin the battle anytime soon.”

“Let him focus on recovery.”

“Yes, sir.”

The three Kuwell had personally brought from the House of the Sword were all Sword Masters, yet one of them had fallen instantly—a shock even to Kuwell.

“Don’t worry. The immigrants may be swift, but so are we.”

It was then that a man entered the command barracks.

“Serga...!”

“Our rear support has just arrived. Great, we don’t have to worry about supplies anymore,” Tiren remarked. “How did you manage to get here so fast?”

“I used magic to reduce the weight of the supplies. With so many provisions, the spell requires quite a lot of mana, and it doesn’t even last that long, which is why I hesitated to use it at first, but the situation was dire. Given the depletion of their mana, the sorcerers won’t be able to provide support tonight, but with the additional supplies, you can now fully focus on the battle.”

Although Serga spoke nonchalantly, enchanting rations for an army of over 500,000 was nothing short of impressive, showcasing the exceptional skill of the Academy sorcerers.

“No news from the Dawn Council?”

“When they heard the Immortal Council attacked the Ivory Tower, Sir Kadin went personally to investigate the situation, but we have yet to hear from him. In all honesty, we did not expect the Immortal Council to appear here.”

“It’s not just them. The magic battalion of the Ulkas Guild has also joined the battle for Tatur. Can I entrust them all to you, Sir Serga?”

“Rest assured,” Serga responded confidently to Tiren. “Though one concern remains—Karyl MacGovern isn’t here. He looped around and struck our rear.”

“Were there any losses?”

“A few sorcerers were killed, but only a handful. He fought the Platinum Dragon.”

“...Alone?”

“Yes.”

Tiren shivered slightly at this revelation. Ever since the assault on the imperial palace, he knew Karyl’s abilities were beyond what they could handle.

“Still, he was eventually defeated by the Platinum Dragon and fled. Facing a dragon might be too difficult for us, but fortunately, the gods have granted us their protection through this dragon, so we can handle him.”

“Whatever he’s planning, the simplest way to end this war is to take Tatur before Karyl can make any moves.”

The barracks opened once again, and everyone inside lowered their heads.

“You’re here, Sir Neil Blanc. How is the Platinum Dragon? We’ve been awaiting your arrival, as you’re the only one who can communicate with the Guardian.”

Tiren looked at Neil Blanc with anticipation. When Olivurn had introduced Neil, the most enigmatic of the four dukes, to the nobility, he had finally explained why Neil had remained hidden all this time.

The Blanc family had long been the chosen stewards of the Platinum Dragon, which explained why they had been kept from the public eye, residing only in the dragon’s domain—the Promised Land, an area forbidden to humanity.

It was only natural that no one else in the empire had known about them.

In accordance with this arrangement, as Olivurn had explained, the Platinum Dragon showed himself to the empire only in his dragon form and communicated solely through Neil Blanc, unlike the other dragons, who expressed their thoughts directly.

“He commands us to rescue Cruah.”

“Sir Neil Blanc, if I may ask... is it possible to see Lord Narh Di Maug in person?”

“As you know, while he is the empire’s Guardian Dragon, he prefers not to converse with humans.”

“But I thought he used to speak directly?”

“When was this, exactly?” Neil Blanc inquired, as though genuinely perplexed. His uncanny gaze sent a chill down Serga’s spine.

“...”

The same feeling had struck him when rescuing Neil from the battle between Narh Di Maug and Karyl.

“My apologies.” Serga bowed slightly, though he couldn’t quite mask his lingering suspicion.

“I will form a strike unit to rescue Cruah. Serga, if you could use your special magic to engulf Tatur in mist, my father will lead the main force to draw the enemy’s attention.”

“Understood.”

“The moment the mist falls, Lord Elan and Lord Magtou, you’ll break away from the main force to carry out the rescue. All we need to do is release the bindings restraining the dragon. Afterward, rejoin the main force to eliminate the remaining enemies.”

It was a simple yet effective plan.

“Now that the supplies have arrived, we are no longer constrained by time. Instead, we should push for a decisive victory with all our forces.”

Kuwell nodded. “Prepare to march.”

***

“What’s the plan for the Platinum Dragon?”

“This one will handle it.” Miliana gave Aidan a light pat on the back, pushing him forward. “Cruah may be our hostage, but who knows how valuable she really is. We might as well cut her head off while we’re at it.”

Dushala looked at them in surprise, having assumed that Miliana, the most formidable warrior among them, would face the Platinum Dragon herself.

“Trust me. This guy and the assassins of Burning Darkness have probably surpassed even us southerners at monster hunting,” Miliana claimed with a smirk, to which Aidan responded with a wry smile.

“I’ll handle Kuwell myself. I’m likely the only one who can subdue him without killing him.”

Dushala nodded. She herself knew that in battle, defeating someone without taking their life was often harder than fighting to the death.

“You seem confident you can take down Kuwell, the one regarded as the mightiest swordsman, without killing him.”

“Ugh, I’m sick and tired of that title,” Miliana groaned. “It’s outdated, just like the idea of the five great Sword Masters. I mean, even this guy has managed to reach that level,” she went on, pointing to Aidan.

Miliana was right. Along with her, Aidan, Greys Fanpinel of the former Istria Kingdoms, Aidan Hamil, the three knights of the House of the Sword, and even Randol had recently reached new heights, making unprecedented breakthroughs after decades of stagnation in swordsmanship.

“A true era of the sword, then.”

“Not entirely,” another voice cut in.

Nain Darhon looked at them with a hint of displeasure, his arms crossed. “The kids behind me would match any 7th Class sorcerer in skill. Even though Mikhail still has a long way to go, his offensive techniques are powerful enough to pierce a dragon’s scales. He can layer his spells like Kaye Aesir himself.”

“...!!!”

Everyone was stunned by his claim, turning to look at Mikhail.

“Moreover, even that imperial Serga has risen to the rank of Great Sorcerer. Magic has flourished as well, not just swordsmanship.”

As Nain Darhon raised his hand, a small, dark orb emerged in his grasp, spinning slowly before shrinking down to the size of a fingernail.

“That’s mana compression...”

As Mikhail muttered in awe, Serica Lauren pursed her lips, looking as if she had just encountered yet another mountain to climb.

“And I owe some of that to him as well,” Nain Darhon continued in a low voice, letting the orb dissipate. “It may sound like an extraordinary coincidence, but the sudden breakthroughs in both swordsmanship and mana began after Karyl appeared.”

“Indeed. Before we serve him, we owe him a debt of gratitude. It’s our duty to make sure Tatur still stands when he returns.”

Miliana nodded.

“Anthem Howard.”

“Yes?”

“You said Karyl struck the empire’s rear guard before disappearing, correct?”

“That’s right.”

“On the way to Tatur, I saw the airship of the Guidance Mercenary Gang crossing the strait north. Its speed was unmatched by anything we’ve seen before.”

“So you’re saying Gordon Fabian has met with Sir Calypson?”

“Possibly. If Gordon received the power core crafted by that old gnome, that means the Gnome Kingdom has become our ally.”

“Exactly.” Anthem nodded in agreement.

“But then why is the airship heading north instead of rushing here to the heart of the battle? And why is it that Karyl hasn’t shown up yet, when Tatur is under siege?” Miliana asked everyone with a knowing look.

“That’s why I said our mission is to defend Tatur for him,” she went on.

“No way...” Anthem looked at her wide-eyed.

“Karyl isn’t coming here.”

A murmur of disbelief rippled through the hall.

Even though the Free Army had received reinforcements from Digon and the Immortal Council, the power of the Platinum Dragon and the imperial forces was still formidable. The latter still held the upper hand.

“He intends to put an end to this accursed conflict, which has plagued the continent for centuries, once and for all. He’s attempting what all other kingdoms have failed to achieve, all by himself. Compared to that, our task seems rather insignificant, doesn’t it?”

Her words left everyone speechless, some even chuckling in disbelief.

“Our job is simply to protect his nation and to fight. Karyl, on the other hand... He’s writing history.

Miliana scanned the room as she went on, “When he said he would end this war alone, it wasn’t just empty boast. All we need to do is trust him and fight. We’re not the ones who will put an end to this war. This battlefield isn’t the decisive one.”

The darkness surrounding them seemed to grow even deeper.

“Karyl...” she called out his name without realizing, her voice filled with a mixture of joy and resolve.

Thunk!

She drove her sword into the map, where the imperial palace was.

“Karyl will take the emperor’s head, seize the empire, and return to us.”