Chapter 560
The Fight Starts Now. (2)
The most fundamental tactic to counter a superhuman without having one of your own is sheer numerical advantage.
No matter how powerful a superhuman may be, if they overextend their mana and exhaust themselves, even ordinary soldiers can take them down.
The fortress commander had prepared to fight a superhuman using that very strategy. Anticipating the gates’ destruction, he had arranged various obstacles and stationed soldiers in place.
“Here they come! Hold the line!”
The soldiers waiting behind the gates gritted their teeth and raised their weapons.
A man with a cold expression stood alone before them.
Charging in alone might have seemed reckless, but he was powerful enough to cleave through the gates in a single strike. They had no choice but to stake their lives on stopping him.
Even with fear etched across their faces, they resolved to stand their ground against Julien.
“……”
Julien cast a brief glance at them, wordlessly. He had no particular intention of breaking through the front lines himself.
He had merely opened the gates in advance to make it easier for others to enter, anticipating resistance to the very end.
Fwoosh!
Suddenly, Julien began scaling the fortress wall.
The soldiers stationed behind the gate could only watch, bound by their duty to defend the entrance. Meanwhile, those positioned atop the walls were still in shock, unable to react in time.
Thud.
Julien landed gracefully atop the fortress wall, his movement picture-perfect. Without hesitation, he swung his sword.
Slash.
“Uaaaagh!”
Only after the heads of the nearby soldiers went flying did the others snap back to their senses.
“Attack! Kill that bastard now!”
The fortress commander shouted from a distance.
A superhuman had infiltrated alone. They had to drain his stamina and inflict as much damage as possible. Their side would suffer heavy losses, but if every soldier swarmed him, he wouldn't be unstoppable.
If a single superhuman could take a fortress alone, then superhumans would have already ended wars single-handedly.
“Waaaaaaah!”
The soldiers charged at Julien, and even the knights guarding the commander rushed forward.
They all knew there would be no better chance to take down a superhuman alone.
Julien swung his sword at the swarm of soldiers rushing toward him.
Slash.
As he drew a wide arc with his blade, the heads of the charging soldiers fell in unison.
Before the first row of soldiers had even collapsed, Julien moved once more.
Slash.
Thud, thud, thud.
Another wave of severed heads tumbled to the ground. At last, the remaining soldiers halted in their tracks.
“Huh? Huh?”
“What just happened…?”
“Why…?”
The battlefield, which had been roaring with tension, fell silent in an instant, as if doused in cold water.
They had always viewed superhumans as walking weapons of war.
They had braced themselves for overwhelming strength, for destruction beyond reason. That much, they had expected.
If Julien had at least displayed an overwhelming show of force, the soldiers might not have been so shaken.
Even if their bodies were crushed and torn apart, they would have followed orders. The madness of war does not subside so easily.
But this… this was different.
There was no impact, no explosion, nothing even touched them. He had merely swung his sword, and yet, the soldiers charging from afar had all lost their heads.
Fear.
An incomprehensible terror froze the entire Atrodean Army in place.
“I-Impossible… We can’t win against that.”
“We can’t even get close!”
“How the hell are we supposed to fight?”
These were soldiers with low morale and little experience to begin with. At their level, they could not withstand even a fraction of Julien’s swordsmanship.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
At that moment, knights who had followed behind Julien latched their grappling hooks onto the fortress and climbed up.
“Sir Julien!”
The knights swiftly approached, shields raised, forming a protective formation around him.
They were knights of the Turian Army and the Allied Forces a force of over a hundred men.
It was not an insignificant number, yet not nearly enough to wipe out all the fortress’s defenders on their own.
And yet, their faces held no fear, only unwavering confidence.
Because as long as they fought alongside Julien, victory was always assured.
At the same time, Marquis Gideon, who led the allied forces, roared.
“The gates are open! Forward, now!”
“Waaaaaaah!”
Thududududu!
The waiting cavalry of the Allied Forces burst forward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring.
Now, they would strike through the opened gates.
The fortress defenders should have been using arrows and siege weapons to stop the oncoming forces. But with Julien standing atop the walls, no one dared to move.
The fortress commander’s voice rang out, veins bulging in his neck.
“What are you waiting for?! Kill them! Fight, damn you!”
And yet, the soldiers did not advance. The thought that they must not fight dominated their minds.
Julien slowly extended his sword forward and spoke.
“Stand aside.”
Julien had stepped out into the world to save people.
He had not earned the title of Savior without reason.
He wanted to minimize casualties as much as possible.
At the chilling command, the entire fortress garrison instinctively took a step back.
But not all of them.
Even here, though few in number, there were those who had sworn the Knight’s Oath.
“Attack, damn it! Charge!”
The fortress knights roared as they rushed toward Julien in unison.
Their intent was clear to sacrifice themselves in order to reignite their allies' fighting spirit.
They were enemies, but their resolve was admirable.
They were true to the duty of a knight.
“……”
Julien decided to show them a measure of respect.
Even if it meant using more strength than usual.
Slash.
Fwoooosh!
A geyser of blood erupted from the chests of the charging knights.
Their hearts, along with their torsos, had been severed in a single stroke.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The knights collapsed to the ground all at once. Their heads remained intact, preserving their bodies in death.
This was Julien’s way of honoring a worthy foe.
However, upon witnessing this, the soldiers recoiled even further in terror. They now fully understood they could die even without approaching him.
Tap!
Without another word, Julien leaped forward.
Using the soldiers’ shoulders and heads as footholds, he shot through the air at an incredible speed.
The fortress commander, seeing Julien closing in, drew his sword.
Slash!
Julien spun once midair before landing softly on the ground.
The fortress commander, unable to even swing the sword he had drawn, crumpled as his body was cleaved diagonally in two.
Thud!
Clank.
Julien looked down at the fallen corpse for a brief moment before sheathing his sword.
His battle was over.
The knights who had climbed up behind him shouted loudly.
“The enemy commander is dead!”
“The commander is down!”
“Surrender! If you surrender, we will spare your lives!”
A mere hundred knights were now demanding the surrender of over ten thousand soldiers.
The Atrodean Army soldiers turned toward their subordinate officers.
The lower-ranking commanders were just as lost. The battlefield’s momentum had completely shifted because of one man.
Step. Step.
As Julien turned and began to walk, the fortress soldiers instinctively stepped aside.
No one dared to touch even the hem of his cloak.
Thududududu!
The Allied Forces' main army arrived at the gates, exuding an overwhelming presence.
If the fortress refused to surrender and chose to resist to the end, a massacre would begin.
That was the fate of every stronghold that had resisted until the bitter end.
Right now, Julien was giving them a chance.
Clatter.
A lower-ranking commander closest to him dropped his weapon.
The rest immediately followed, discarding their arms in a hurry.
Truthfully, they had already lost their will to fight the moment they witnessed Julien’s power.
They could fight if they had to but no one wanted to be the first to die.
“Everyone, lie down!”
At Marquis Gideon’s command, the entire fortress garrison dropped to the ground.
“Waaaaaaah!”
“We won again!”
“As expected of Sir Julien!”
The Allied Forces raised their weapons and roared.
Once again, thanks to Julien, they had swiftly captured the fortress with minimal losses.
How could they not be brimming with confidence and joy?
Marquis Gideon approached Julien and bowed his head.
“Well done.”
“……”
Julien inclined his head slightly in return before making his way back to camp.
Once the battlefield was cleared, they would march toward the next fortress.
Suddenly, a thought crossed Julien’s mind, and he stopped in his tracks to gaze at the sky.
He had heard that the Ritania Army, taking the roughest route, was advancing the fastest.
‘As expected…’
It was thanks to overwhelming military power, but that didn’t mean it should be dismissed.
After all, that power had been built from nothing by Ghislain himself.
Julien knew this well, having read The Fenris Grand Duke Chronicles (Revised Edition – Written by Claude).
A man with strength on par with his own, exceptional wartime command, and an extraordinary ability to expand and govern his territory.
The more he thought about it, the more he realized Ghislain was truly remarkable.
Julien himself couldn’t have achieved the same.
His thoughts drifted back to that day.
A friend…
To befriend someone, to fight alongside them it was an unfamiliar concept for Julien.
But not anymore.
Since joining this war, he had begun to experience new emotions.
Unlike before, when he had to make decisions and fight alone, he now had someone to share that burden with. And that brought him an immense sense of relief.
For someone who had been so utterly lonely that even his emotions had withered, there had been a friend who approached him without hesitation.
Ghislain.
Even feelings like these he never used to experience them.
Because he had never needed anyone’s help.
As Julien stared up at the clear sky, lost in thought, Claude’s subordinates approached him.
Rustle.
Shuffle.
Like a swarm of cockroaches, they scurried forward, diligently recording every detail of his performance in battle.
And Julien…
“……”
Simply ignored them and walked back to his post.
* * *
“Waaaaah!”
The Ritania Army erupted in cheers as they seized the Atrodean Royal Castle.
At last, they had broken through every fortress and stronghold, securing complete control.
Of course, this didn’t mean the war was over. Battles were still ongoing in other regions where the Allied Forces were fighting.
However, with the capital city the heart of Atrode and its supply lines now captured, the Kingdom of Atrode was effectively finished.
With firm, confident strides, Ghislain entered the Atrodean Royal Castle.
Soon, the Allied Forces, having secured their respective regions, would gather here.
“Alright, let’s move quickly. Grab everything edible while you’re at it.”
Claude and the administrative officials scoured the castle, collecting documents and records.
Now, they would seize the remaining wealth and distribute it for the benefit of the Allied Forces.
Of course, Claude was secretly amassing a vast personal fortune behind the scenes.
‘Heh, just wait and see. I’ll become the richest man in the kingdom.’
As a slave, he had been denied a noble title during the last merit conferment.
If that was the case, then he would simply drown them all in wealth instead.
His methods had become even more discreet, so much so that even Wendy hadn’t noticed this time.
While organizing the royal castle, Belinda asked Ghislain,
"The Duke of Leinster is nowhere to be seen. No, wait, he's the King of Atrode now, isn't he? Anyway, I guess he ran away?"
"No, he was never here to begin with."
"Really?"
"Their goal was elsewhere from the start."
"That relic, I suppose?"
"Yeah. It's hard for us to understand, though."
Everyone nodded. They couldn't fathom why someone would abandon an entire kingdom for that thing.
Ghislain glanced at his close aides and spoke.
"The real battle starts now. The truly strong ones have gone to conquer the Kingdom of Grimwell."
Aiden, who possessed talent worthy of being one of the Seven Strongest on the Continent. Leonard, the insidious leader of the Revolutionary Group.
The brilliant strategists, Count Biphenbelt and Count Kalmund.
And the high-ranking priests of the Salvation Church, along with Gartros, the one pulling the strings behind the scenes.
There were still many formidable warriors and master tacticians on the enemy's side.
No matter how powerful the allied forces were, they couldn’t afford to be careless. In war, a single mistake could shift the entire tide of battle.
Not long after the Ritania Kingdom's army arrived, the allied forces led by Julien also reached their destination.
Ghislain welcomed Julien warmly.
"Hey, no problems on the way?"
"None."
Julien answered in his usual succinct manner, but Ghislain grinned.
Having the strongest swordsman of his past life by his side gave him a great sense of reassurance. Julien’s strength was an invaluable asset.
He hadn’t expected to join forces with Julien so soon. Ghislain was even more surprised that Julien had sought him out on his own.
The ones facing Julien for the first time were sure to be shocked. Even if they had received intelligence about him, no one truly understood the extent of his strength.
‘That’s going to be a huge game-changer in this war.’
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason Ghislain was in a good mood.
He was always grateful to Julien and the others for sharing his burdens.
In his past life, he had fought alone, leading only mercenaries, and it had been unbearably difficult.
‘I’ll never tell him he appeared in my dreams.’
He was curious to see how Julien's expressionless face would change if he did, but risking becoming a target for these lunatics just for a moment of amusement wasn’t worth it.
Before long, the rest of the allied forces arrived one after another.
Some legions had been slightly delayed due to fierce resistance, but none had suffered major losses.
Once the army had fully regrouped, Ghislain gave his next command.
"All forces, advance to the Kingdom of Grimwell."
It was time to completely crush the remaining enemies.