443

Episode 443: I knew you could do it too. (2)

The plains were soaked with blood. The rivers were clogged with the corpses of barbarian warriors.

The 60,000 strong army was annihilated here.

"Wow! I won!"

"As expected, it is the Lord!"

"Long live Raypold!"

Even the Raypolds, who had been fighting as if they had no emotions, raised their weapons and cheered at this moment.

To them, Amelia was truly the best commander.

It wasn't that a particular person had done anything spectacular, defeating thousands of enemies. It was just ordinary soldiers moving according to her strategy and tactics and achieving a great victory.

So they couldn't help but feel proud.

But next to it, a slightly different cheer rang out.

"Wow! We won!"

"As expected, the North is the strongest!"

"Our Fenris is the strongest!"

When it comes to pride, Fenris is the best. They shouted even louder against the shouts of the Leipold Army.

The Ferdium army that followed also cheered. Since Giselle would inherit Ferdium anyway, it was natural for her to side with Fenris.

With both sides shouting like that, an awkward atmosphere suddenly appeared. Something was quite irritating to both sides.

Soon the two camps were glaring at each other across the corpses of the barbarians.

Kaor, who had been flailing around with his twin swords resting on his shoulders, opened the gate.

"What? Why! What are you aiming at? Are you going to sweep away Leipold here today?"

The huge-bodied Ulkan grinned ferociously, baring his teeth.

"This cheeky redhead. Should I give you a workout?"

"Are you a bandit? I've heard your name before. I was going to catch you, but you were stuck here. Consider yourself lucky."

"I don't know you? I don't want to know you weakling."

"Ha, this kid will only come to his senses if he dies today."

One was a mercenary and the other was a bandit. Both were known for their foul tempers, so they did not speak well of each other.

The knights on both sides also put their hands on their weapons with grim expressions.

I never thought that either side would lose the fight.

Ulkan raised his voice in a ferocious manner.

"Do you trust your lord and are acting like this now? Do you think you can fight well now?"

Even though Jiselle is a master, she fought here right after fighting the crack. Her strength must have been considerably reduced.

There, their lord Amelia is not an ordinary strategist. If they fought right away, the casualties would be great, but since they had more capital, it didn't seem like they would lose.

Of course, Fenris also had no intention of losing.

Kaor held a sword in both hands and smiled cruelly.

"Do you want to give it a try? Do you know what kind of fights we've been having so far and are you ready to jump in?"

Leipold, who was stuck in the North, was less experienced than them. They were an undefeated army.

Since we had Yeongju, I thought we could win if we just pushed forward.

"You want to fight me right now? You lowly mercenary bastard."

"Okay, you big, sloppy little bandit."

As the two most troublemakers on both sides stepped forward, everyone drew their weapons. They were really going to fight without orders.

"stop."

When Amelia appeared on horseback, Leipold immediately took a step back. Her orders were absolute.

Only the angry Ulkan remained and threw a tantrum for no reason.

"Oh, my lord! This kid was the one who started the fight!"

"Step back."

At her cold command, Ulkan glared at Kaor for a moment and then stepped back.

Kaor was so angry that he threw the finger at Ulkan, but was soon hit in the back of the head by Giselle, who was riding the Black King.

"Ah! Why are you hitting me! Hey!"

"You really don't know how to read the mood."

Gillian dragged Kaor away as he was about to lose his temper. Alfoy clicked his tongue next to him.

"Oh my, you uneducated bastard."

An immediate fight was avoided, but the atmosphere was tense on both sides.

Because Giselle and Amelia were just staring at each other without saying anything.

It wasn't at all the atmosphere of feeling sentimental when meeting an ex-fiancé after a long time. It was like they were forcing themselves to see each other even though they didn't want to.

Jiselle looked at Amelia and thought.

'I knew you could do it.'

Thanks to Amelia, we were able to stop the barbarians quickly and with minimal damage.

She fought against enemies far superior to her own and held off them admirably. It was a battle worthy of being recorded in history.

No, it will definitely go down in history. Because the barbarian warriors who had been harassing the northern part of the Kingdom of Rutania have all disappeared.

I have to admit what I have to admit. Jiselle snickered and finally opened her mouth.

"Thanks to you, I can now deal with the troubles in the North at once. I'll say thank you this time."

"We did this because we needed each other anyway. I think you know what I want."

"Yes, I know that. I'm leaving it alone because it's helping me right now."

Then Amelia snorted.

"You're so confident. How long do you think you can run wild as you please?"

"Even if things don't go my way, it's better than those who want to destroy the world. Right?"

Amelia didn't even refute that statement.

The Salvation Church is a truly mad bunch. It would be better for them to become kings and rule rather than spread monsters all over the continent.

As the two remained silent, the awkward atmosphere returned.

Amelia shook her head. She thought it would be better to just get to the point and leave quickly.

"This loot and the East… … ."

Before he could finish speaking, Zwalter came running in and shouted.

"Amelia!"

Amelia also stopped talking, placed her hand on her chest, and bowed her head.

"It's been a long time, Marquis Ferdium."

"Thank you, thank you so much."

Zwalter spoke with a moved expression, even with tears in his eyes.

He has lived in the northern fortress all his life and has never had a moment of peace. He has only been concerned with how to stop the barbarians and bring peace to the north.

The ancestors of the family all lived with that sense of responsibility. Zwalter, too, could not escape those shackles.

"Thanks to you, the people of Yeongji were able to achieve the wishes of the North without suffering any damage."

The reason we have not been able to subdue the barbarians until now is because they live in tribes that are too far apart.

Because of that problem, Jiselle also had no choice but to sign an agreement and just keep talking.

But this time, for the first time, the barbarians gathered of their own accord and annihilated the great army. Now, the only barbarians left in the north are old men, women, and children. There are no warriors.

They have a custom of giving everything to the winner, so they will quickly be assimilated into the Kingdom of Rutania.

Although Giselle's power was great, it could be said that the person who contributed the most was Amelia.

So I kept thanking her.

Amelia also knew how Zwalter felt. But she could not accept that gratitude purely.

'I did it because I needed to, but… … .'

In fact, she didn't care how the northern barbarians were set up. She thought that she could subdue them at any time.

In the past, she had never cared about poor Ferdium. It was something that was of no importance to her.

This time too, he simply followed Giselle's threatening suggestions because it was necessary for his own ambitions.

So I couldn't look straight into Zwalter's pure eyes.

Zwalter is one of the few people she acknowledges as a person of integrity. Knowing his sense of responsibility and character, she couldn't help but feel more uncomfortable.

"No. I did it because I needed to."

"No, no. No matter how necessary it may be, who would have the courage to fight against such a large army? Thank you, thank you very much. And to have achieved such a great victory. You are truly amazing."

If it had ended here, the atmosphere would have ended warmly. But Randolph was in such a good mood that he shook off the temptation.

"Hahahaha! Now that I look at it, Miss… … No, Count Leipold is also quite skilled in the military. Since it has come to this, I think it would be a good idea to proceed with the engagement again… … ."

At those words, Giselle and Amelia glared at Randolph with menacing eyes. Even the oblivious Randolph felt the hot murderous intent and turned his head away.

"No, what… … . Just joking… … If you don't like it, then don't bother… … ."

I have no idea what I did wrong, but I knew I did something wrong.

Amelia shook her head as the mood became increasingly chaotic. She just wanted to get out of this uncomfortable place as quickly as possible.

She brushed aside Zwalter's pleas to rest in the castle for a while and spoke to Giselle.

"You'll keep your promise, right? Half the spoils. And support me when I move east."

"Yeah, you don't have to worry about that part."

"Huh, who would worry about something like that? Let's go back now."

As Amelia turned around, Giselle suddenly asked as if an idea had occurred to her.

"Can I go east and take what's left?"

Then Amelia answered with a smile on her face.

"Do whatever you want. I'll take it back anyway."

At those words, Giselle also gave a similar laugh.

He has never given up anything that he has once taken into his hands.

Amelia will have to walk a lot to get back there.

As he was about to turn around to look at her walking away, Amelia stopped walking, turned around, and pointed at Giselle with her finger.

"Your general."

"Huh? Why Claude?"

"When sending people to distribute spoils or trade, I would like it if they would avoid encountering our people as much as possible."

"why?"

"It really bothers me that they take 1 gold every time. Are you taking that as a bribe?"

At those words, Giselle held her forehead and laughed.

It seems that there was someone else besides herself who annoyed Amelia.

* * *

At the western end of the continent lies the Kingdom of Lombards.

And at the western end of that kingdom is a land called the Land of the Dead.

No one approaches there. Even the Lombard royal family leaves it alone and does not interfere.

Because right there, a very famous person on the continent lived.

Thud, thud.

A man wearing a dark gray robe with its hem ragged came out of the land.

He wore a necklace made of a skull on his chest, and he also wore ornaments with some sort of magical meaning all over his body.

Inside the hood of his deeply draped robe, a black darkness obscured his face.

"… … Good."

His voice was hoarse, as if he had used some kind of magic. Still, it was clear that he was truly happy.

He walked leisurely, taking in the scenery around him.

After walking for a while, he arrived at a city and took a deep breath.

"… … How fragrant."

People were dying from the plague. There were corpses all around.

This city was abandoned. No, other cities were abandoned too.

Unlike the Kingdom of Rutania, other kingdoms were severely affected by epidemics and rifts.

The world was rushing toward destruction. The scent of death rose from everywhere.

He really liked this atmosphere.

"… … I wish we had more of these materials earlier."

He smiled as he looked at the corpses and started walking again. Although it seemed like he was walking slowly, his body kept moving forward.

There was a reason why he suddenly increased his speed.

"… … A crack."

We are going to see a disaster that has struck the entire continent.

He stopped walking when he noticed a group of troops. It was the Lombard Kingdom army that was holding back the rift.

They looked like a defeated army, exhausted and defeated. They had been pushed back without being able to stop the cracks.

The soldiers standing guard saw him and approached him, saying:

"This is a dangerous place, so get back."

"Hmm."

He tilted his head. The soldier hesitated again as he tried to stop him.

A worn-out robe of dark grey, a skull necklace and various trinkets, a face obscured by darkness.

It was the appearance of someone I had been sick of since I was young.

"S, no way… … ."

The soldier shivered and stepped back. The author was a very famous person in the kingdom of Lombards.

Even if they had never seen it in person, everyone in the kingdom knew its appearance.

No one dares to imitate that image. No one even mentions it.

That's how terrifying a person he was.

"What? What's going on?"

The knight, the border commander, and other soldiers also approached, but their bodies also froze.

Everyone kept their distance due to instinctive fear, so he was able to enter the camp easily.

"I, the author… … ."

"Are you really saying that you came from the land of the dead?"

"Why… … No way… … ."

Not only the commander but even the soldiers recognized him and avoided him.

Everyone had a terrified look on their face and refused to even make eye contact with him.

Because I didn't want to be captured by him and have my soul become a slave to him.

He ignored the terrified people and continued walking. It was a familiar situation to him, even though it had been a long time.

Swish… … .

As he got closer to the crack, an ominous aura began to rise from beneath his feet.

And when he arrived at the area filled with blue fog.

Kaaaaaaah!

Countless riffraff rushed at him.

"… … There are a lot of interesting guys."

He looked around as he muttered to himself.

The corpses of countless soldiers who fought against the cracks are visible.

He waved his hand as he watched the rift approaching like a tidal wave.

Knock, knock, knock.

Then, the corpses around them began to rise one by one, creaking.

Grrrrrr!

The corpses let out soul-wrenching screams of agony.

Soon they began to advance, each holding their own weapon, just as they had done in life.

And that's not all.

Knock knock, knock knock!

Corpses that had been buried underground were also digging up from the ground. They were the corpses of countless people who had died on this land.

The rotten corpses, the skeletons that were nothing but bones, all rose and advanced towards the Crackers.

Grrrrrr!

Kaaaaaaah!

Kwaaang!

The corpses and the crackers began to fight each other.

The corpses fell easily. There were too many Crackers, but each individual's strength was different.

But he didn't care.

As long as their magic power exists, corpses can continue to rise without dying.

Still, there were too many crackers.

"… … It was a good thing I came out. There were so many of these things. Wasn't this truly the end of the world?"

He waved his hand again.

Wooooow!

Dozens of holes filled with thick darkness appeared around him.

Pfft!

From there, knights in black armor rode out on horses that shimmered with black energy.

Death Knight and Phantom Steed.

They were the best undead that only high-level necromancers could command.

Booooooooo!

The tide of battle began to turn as dozens of Death Knights joined in.

Behind him, hundreds and thousands of corpses continued to come back to life and run towards the Crackers.

Grrrrrr!

Zombies, ghouls, skeletons, and all sorts of cursed things constantly appeared and fought the Crackers.

Dddddddddddd!

The bones of huge beasts rose from the ground, entangled and engulfing him. It was like a throne made of bones.

He sat there, his eyes shining in the darkness.

He looked at the crowd of swarming rifts and muttered something meaningful.

"As expected, I can't make you my subordinates. Your souls are possessed by someone else."

Interest is the one who was considered one of the seven great powers of the continent in Jiselle's previous life.

'Dead

He was the 'master of the dead'.