Chapter 409: A Nation for the Dead (2)
[Open your eyes!]
Cardinal Rohen Otter of the Codex of Light opened his eyes—or rather, they were forcibly opened. A searing light had suddenly engulfed his vision, so intense that he was momentarily blinded.
As Rohen groaned and crawled on the ground in pain, a thunderous voice rang out again.
[Open your eyes, you blind fools!]
This time, his sight was restored against his will. Stumbling to his feet, Rohen realized he was not alone in suffering this ordeal. All around the main Dawn Army encampment, figures clutched their eyes, either writhing on the ground or stumbling about.
Confused soldiers emerged from their tents, bewildered by the commotion. Meanwhile, every priest present was overcome—some weeping feverishly, others wailing as they pressed their faces to the dirt. Yet the Scorched Ones and those with Glass Eyes stood motionless, staring unblinkingly at the heavens, their glowing eyes radiating brilliant flashes.
"What is happening? What madness is this?" Rohen thought.
The Dawn Army had retreated to the rear of the Katla Ridge after secretly striking a deal with the Immortal Order to eliminate the Holy Grail Knight. Many commanders had been appalled at surrendering the blood-soaked ridge so readily, but Rohen had silenced dissent by declaring it the will of God.
The army had then taken an unplanned respite to replenish its strength, waiting for the moment when the "true" army of God—led by Rohen himself—would sweep away the Immortal Order after the Issacrea Dawn Army was crushed.
But now, the unexpected was unfolding.
[Reclaim the Holy Land, warriors of the Dawn Army!]
Rohen suddenly realized the voice resonating through the air belonged to the Burning Maiden. Looking up, he saw the heavens ablaze with unnatural light.
It wasn’t the sun that lit the night sky.
It was the presence of Archangels.
A woman aflame, her body radiating fire, spread fiery wings as vast as a forest canopy. Beside her hovered a colossal eye surrounded by spinning, ancient swords, its fiery wings curling protectively around itself. And then, Rohen saw the final Archangel.
The sight drove him to his knees, his hands instinctively covering his eyes.
Sixteen wings, six lighthouses—a perfectly symmetrical, resplendent figure.
For a fleeting moment, Rohen had seen the glorious form of the Lighthouse Keeper, as he had during his time in Lichtheim. The radiant light filled the heavens, banishing the night and illuminating the earth as if it were midday.
Other than the Blind Sentinel, who guarded Lichtheim, it seemed every known angel of the Codex of Light had gathered here. Priests dared not raise their heads, bowing low to the ground, trembling in reverence.
Disgusted by their servile display, the Burning Maiden let out a furious cry.
[Stand and march for the Holy Land, you fools!]
Rohen felt a sharp, burning pain on his back and shot to his feet.
It wasn’t just pain—it was as if a flaming whip had lashed him. Glancing at a nearby priest, Rohen saw the man’s back was scorched with whip marks. Realizing he bore the same injuries, Rohen winced.
"Advance! The decree has been given! March for the Holy Land of Lua!" a priest screamed, his voice cracking in terror. Though he lacked the authority to issue orders, the sight of priests being whipped by divine flame spurred the soldiers into action.
"The Dawn Army marches again! The angels are watching!"
"A divine command! Forward to Lua!"
The camp devolved into chaos as soldiers and priests scrambled to equip themselves. Some carried nothing but sticks or stones as weapons, yet still, they surged forward.
Rohen stared in speechless horror at the unfolding madness.
***
"Cardinal Rohen!"
The voice of Horhel, the most senior member of the Watcher’s Council, snapped Rohen from his daze. The man’s face was a mixture of fear and confusion as he approached.
"Do you know what’s happening? Did the Archangels give you any advance warning?"
"I… I have no idea," Rohen stammered. "Why… why would they…?"
"Did the Burning Maiden not descend upon you to give her instructions? To proceed with… the plan?" Horhel’s voice trailed off, as if afraid to finish the thought.
A chilling realization jolted Rohen to clarity.
"Did… Did the Immortal Order succeed?" he murmured.
Had they managed to kill the Holy Grail Knight? Was this sudden advance a sign that the Dawn Army, now revitalized, would take up the fight to crush the Immortal Order? If so, they could resume their carefully laid plans for the war. But this… this felt like a desperate flight.
A dreadful thought crept into Rohen’s mind, making his scalp prickle with heat.
"The Holy Grail Knight succeeded."
"What did you say?" Horhel asked.
"The Holy Grail Knight… defeated the Lord of the Graveyard!" Rohen shouted, forgetting even formal speech.
Horhel struggled to comprehend. The Lord of the Graveyard, with his vast forces and Eclipse Legion, defeated by a mere handful of troops? Yet, though it seemed implausible, the presence of the Archangels made it clear: some incomprehensible divine plan was unfolding.
"Arm yourself!" Horhel ordered. "The Archangels are advancing on Lua, and they will not stop! With the Lord of the Graveyard gone, we’ll crush the capital of Ushak in a single blow! So, hurry…"
"Oh Burning Maiden, O Sword of May, O Lighthouse Keeper, please stop this madness!"
Rohen Otter’s desperate cries pierced the chaos as he sprinted forward, ignoring Horhel’s shouts to cease his reckless behavior.
The Sword of May and the Lighthouse Keeper didn’t spare him a glance, but the Burning Maiden looked down at him, her expression twisted with irritation.
"Burning Maiden, this cannot be! Let us lead the army! We can do as well as the Holy Grail Knight! Please, do not sully your hands with the filth of this earthly mire. Allow us to handle this instead!"
Horhel wanted to scream at him to stop.
The Watcher’s Council was meant to communicate with the Archangels, not advise or chastise them. Rohen’s audacity was both blasphemous and suicidal.
But Rohen’s pleas were not born from genuine concern for his men. They were born of self-interest. If the Archangels took control of the army, his position as its leader would become meaningless. Worse, he would be reduced to just another soldier, disposable and insignificant.
This, he could not accept.
Rohen believed himself to be a chosen instrument of the divine, the precious vessel through which heavenly will manifested on earth. If the Archangels acted directly, it diminished his importance, making him seem no different from the masses.
"Please reconsider! Let me personally—"
Before he could finish, flames erupted from within his body.
Rohen had no time to understand what was happening. The fire consumed him from the inside out, burning his heart, lungs, and entrails before his skin. Blood boiled in his veins as flames burst from his every orifice.
His body became a grotesque furnace, flames spewing from his mouth, eyes, and ears.
The Burning Maiden glanced at him, her irritation palpable, before turning her attention elsewhere.
The Sword of May observed her silently.
[It sounded like the cardinal was saying something about Isaac, didn’t it?]
[He was always a fool. Probably panicking about losing his authority to the Grail Knight.]
The Sword of May seemed about to continue, but paused when the lighthouses surrounding the Lighthouse Keeper began to shift.
Click. Click. Click.
The sound of gears winding filled the air. All at once, the Dawn Army surged forward, as if a divine hand had reached down to push them onward.
Though disorganized and lacking discipline, the soldiers moved with unmistakable purpose.
The Immortal Order’s forces, caught off guard by the sudden assault, crumbled instantly.
The path to the capital of Ushak lay open.
Yet the Lighthouse Keeper hadn’t paid Ushak any mind.
From the moment he descended, his gaze was fixed solely on the Holy Land of Lua.
The Sword of May watched him intently. It wasn’t hard to guess that the Burning Maiden had orchestrated something behind the scenes.
But within the Codex of Light, nothing escaped the Lighthouse Keeper.
Whatever she had done, it had been permitted—or at least tolerated—by him.
And whatever it was, it must have been necessary for the grand divine plan.
***
Horhel stared in stunned silence at the grotesque remains of Rohen Otter.
The cardinal’s charred body stood rigid, arms outstretched, pointing directly toward Lua. It was as if he had become a macabre signpost, guiding the Dawn Army forward.
Rohen had been one of the most ambitious and cunning members of the Watcher’s Council. A man of talent and intellect, he wasn’t the type to throw his life away recklessly.
But the relentless war had eroded even his steadfast will.
"I understand you, Rohen," Horhel thought bitterly.
This was his second campaign with the Dawn Army, but the current army was nothing like the one he remembered.
The Dawn Army of old had fought with reason and strategy—ambushes, sieges, and calculated offensives.
Now, it was a raging inferno fueled by human lives.
Rohen’s only anchor through this nightmare had been his ambition, the belief that he was fulfilling a sacred celestial mission. The moment he perceived the Holy Grail Knight as a threat to that role, his identity had shattered.
Horhel sighed, lamenting both Rohen’s foolishness and his fate.
"Of course, the Archangels knew all along," he muttered.
Interfering with the Grail Knight might have undermined the Dawn Army itself. Horhel had understood the risks, which was why he had left it to Rohen. But the cardinal, intoxicated by his supposed divine mandate, had overstepped.
"And now, look."
The Archangels’ direct intervention and the order for an all-out assault confirmed that a massive fissure had formed within the Immortal Order.
If it was true that the Holy Grail Knight had defeated the Lord of the Graveyard and routed the Eclipse Legion, there would never be a better opportunity for the main Dawn Army to strike.
"The Archangels must have foreseen all of this!"
Their ability to shatter the Immortal Order through sheer manipulation of events was nothing short of divine.
Horhel praised their foresight and wisdom, forcing himself to ignore Rohen’s death.
It was the only way to steel himself for the countless deaths yet to come.
***
"…You’re telling me Ushak fell in a single day?"
"Fell? More like obliterated," Feldren replied with a grim laugh.
Both men stood amidst the ruins of the Immortal Order’s capital, their faces pale. The legendary triple walls and seventy-seven spires of Ushak were nothing more than scorched rubble.
Feldren looked like he had been dragged through hell itself—his armor mismatched and covered in soot, his body marred with burns. In contrast, Ciero, who had arrived later, appeared relatively unscathed.
Ciero didn’t doubt Feldren’s words. After all, they were standing in what remained of Ushak.
For centuries, the capital had been an impregnable fortress. The Dawn Army had never managed to breach it, let alone advance to Lua.
And yet, here they were, standing in its ruins, the city having fallen the very day the Archangels appeared.
"How… how could this happen?" Ciero murmured.
"How else? Three Archangels descended. What city could withstand that for more than a day?" Feldren replied bitterly. "I was completely wrong. The Dawn Army won’t fail now. I can understand human madness and greed, but divine madness? That’s beyond me."
Feldren laughed bitterly again. "Or maybe I just can’t comprehend the limits of the Grail Knight. Who could have predicted he’d defeat the Eclipse Legion?"