Regressor of the Fallen Family - Chapter 404
Episode 404 – The Emperor’s proclamation of McLane’s personal government.
– Mobilize all your power, including the dragon’s horns and wings and claws, excluding the dragon’s teeth.
– Among the kings of Sabang, excluding King Seoa, King Bukgak, King Dongyik, and King Namjo ordered to mobilize all forces.
The sudden deployment of three of the kings of the four directions and the imperial central army, excluding the king of Xia, who was in charge of the western part of the empire, was declared.
In the eyes of the world, it seemed as if the spark that started from the conflict between the Holy Kingdom and the Empire was accidentally ignited in the east.
– The empire revealed its desire for conquest in earnest.
– no. It was just a natural revenge for an empire angry at an unexpected defeat.
Opinions were divided, but everyone agreed on one prediction.
This war will never end easily.
* * * Three days northwest of Ruspelheim, a large city located at the eastern end of the empire. There has been a noisy atmosphere in Penna, a large city where King Dongikbu is located, for a few days now. The entire army of the Eastern King, who had been entrusted with ruling the eastern region of the empire, gathered in Penna to prepare for the expedition.
Since the battlefield was Macline in the east, it was certain that the Eastern King would be the first to enter the war among the Four Bang Kings.
It was natural for the entire city to become noisy, but the atmosphere deep inside the palace was quite different.
[…I don’t think it will work anymore. I’m sorry, Your Highness.]
“…I see.”
[yes. Each secret line is being cut off one by one. It seems like the imperial family has noticed.]
“What are you planning to do?”
The man in the communication port smiled calmly at King Dongyik’s hard face, which is rarely seen.
[I will probably be found out soon too. I think this will be our last communication. Thank you so much, Your Majesty.]
“…I have no shame.”
[no. I am fortunate to be able to repay the kindness I received from His Majesty in this way. I will try to take as much time as possible. Your Highness, please avoid it in time.]
“Thank you. Really.”
[Please take care of your Majesty.]
You too.
While I was hesitating, wondering if it would be too hypocritical to say that, the light disappeared from the communication port.
“Hmm…”
King Gerard von Aserian of the East Wing closed his eyes tightly and sighed.
Then the handsome blonde knight standing next to him took a step forward.
“If Lane says something like this, you should avoid him right away.”
“It may already be too late.”
“majesty!”
“…We can’t rule out the possibility that they have already identified me and are strangling me.”
“Then…”
“We have to think about the worst case. First, let’s start with an excuse to leave the royal palace…”
But the imperial family’s hand was faster than he expected.
“His Majesty King Dongyik has come from the imperial family. I will serve you.”
The drivers blocked the way as soon as they came out of the communication room.
Six knights with the Golden Dragon emblem engraved all over their armor blocked the path without even opening the visors of their helmets.
Gerrard’s face turned pale at the sight of his special attire and arrogant attitude.
‘Imperial Inspection Department.’
If the ghosts called the Special Inspection Department are beings in the shadows, they are beings that represent the emperor’s authority in the sun.
If ghosts come secretly in the middle of the night and take your life, then they are the ones who come proudly in broad daylight and destroy everything. In a way, they were even scarier than the ghosts of which there were only rumors.
So much so that Gerard’s complexion naturally frowned.
“At the imperial court? What’s going on?”
The people standing in front of them did not flinch even when faced with sharp interrogation from one of the kings of the four directions, who could be said to be of the highest status next to the royal family, King Dongyik.
“Follow me and you will find out.”
Among the six knights, the one who seemed to be the leader stepped forward and continued his normal tone.
He shows an extremely overbearing attitude towards King Sabang, one of the rulers of the empire. From that appearance, it was clear that the outcome had already been decided.
‘This… I can’t help it.’
Instead of protesting, Gerard sighed softly.
“Jay.”
“yes.”
“Cut it.”
A sword that swings as soon as the words run out.
The auspicious red light that erupted at the same time colored the hallway for an instant.
Flashing.
Skag.
The imperial knights who were holding the hilts of their swords out of fear could not react and were cut in half.
Toad-duk-duk.
While everyone collapsed all at once without even being able to scream, the driver who was the leader was still holding his breath for some time even though his lower body was cut off.
“Kuhuhuhhh. Cough.”
Of course, even that didn’t last long.
“Oh Auror…?!”
Kwasik.
The moment the head of the leader, who had not been able to leave a proper last word, was crushed, Jay turned around and got down on one knee.
“I have carried out my orders.”
Looking at the faithful bodyguard, Gerard just sighed.
“It’s so fast… It’s faster than I thought.”
“I will open the way. You can get out of Wangbu.”
Jay said that and pulled out his sword again, but Gerard did not move willingly and just looked at his guard.
Then the words came out of nowhere.
“…If you are a superhuman, you know very well that you can enjoy wealth and glory in the empire. Wouldn’t you really regret it?”
The knight’s eyes wavered at that question.
However, there was no hesitation in the answer that came back too late.
“The beggar boy whom the Queen saved will never forget that kindness for the rest of his life. And that resentment as well.”
Heavy eyes crossing.
After a while, Gerard patted Jay on the shoulder and took steps again.
“Where… are you going?”
“For now… I guess I’ll have to go to McLane.”
“As for the magic tower…”
“Just contacting the tower owner is enough. At least for now.”
“I will take you there.”
Nod.
With those last words, King Dongyik and his guard disappeared from King Dongyik’s reign, and the empire was once again turned upside down.
* * *
– King Dongyik colluded with McLane and betrayed the empire.
News that most people who heard could not believe their ears took the world by storm.
“Why the King of Four Directions?”
“What are you doing with the empire?”
“Isn’t this a rumor?”
The entire continent was shaken by the hard-to-believe news, but the imperial family confirmed that the rumors were true by arresting King Gerard von Aserian of the Eastern Wing and his blood relatives as traitors and summarily executing everyone associated with him. The empire’s leading royal family, which built the imperial capital Aserian and was even given its name as a surname, was officially expelled.
It was something that would have a huge impact on the morale of the imperial army.
However, the emperor’s subsequent announcement was enough to make the falling morale of the imperial army soar to the sky again.
– I will bestow the title of King Dongyik to the person who made the greatest contribution in the conquest of McLane. This is the promise of the Imperial Emperor.
A declaration that makes the eyes of generals in the imperial army, especially corps commanders, light up.
With just those words, the news about King Dongik’s betrayal was completely buried. There were even eyewitness accounts that the pace of the imperial army’s advance toward McLane’s border seemed to have become much faster.
And at that time, Logan, who was still confronting the imperial central army at Kyle Castle, welcomed an unexpected guest.
“It’s already complicated in my head.”
A sigh came out of my mouth.
The size of the imperial army that was currently advancing again was already being communicated to them in real time. However, the dilemma MacLaine faced now was that he could not go out to attack the defeated imperial army camped in front of him.
‘I know for sure that reinforcements are coming, but I have to just watch.’
They killed two superhumans, Sword Spirit and Greg Marvin, and consumed more than 10% of their troops, but even so, they cannot guarantee victory outside of this castle.
The victory in the first battle was largely due to the effectiveness of the Great Magic Circle and the power of the crossbow and Liberatio projected from the castle wall.
If there was a problem, the enemy knew it and the allies knew it too.
In that situation, an unwelcome guest came to visit.
“Haa…”
Logan sighed again as he looked at the luxurious letter in his hand.
The exile of nobles has been a frequent occurrence throughout the ages.
Although there is a burden of having to start over from scratch, it is better than losing one’s life, so it was a method that royal families who lost political battles or powerful figures who were pushed out of power often chose to save their lives.
But that also has to be to a certain extent.
“The king of the four directions of the empire is in exile?”
“…The Emperor’s trap is tightening on him. And isn’t that because he helped McLane?”
“So you’re telling me to take responsibility?”
There was an edge to Logan’s voice.
As expected, the person who came as an envoy was Princess Luisa, who was supposed to be at the royal palace of McLane.
‘The potential enemy is a magician on the front line…’
Although they are currently in an adversarial relationship with the empire, there is no trust between them.
From Logan’s perspective, Luisa was like a bomb that could explode anytime and anywhere. Since someone like that came to the front line at this time, he couldn’t help but be nervous.
Moreover, the reason was King Dongik’s exile. He might have brought along some of the Dongwangbu’s soldiers, which were almost corps-level, but there was no benefit to him coming over to McLane right now.
The reason why Logan did not kill Luisa, who was like a bomb, was solely because he did not want to deal with the terror of the Black Snake ahead of the Imperial War.
But Luisa’s attitude was confident, whether she knew his feelings or not.
“It doesn’t mean you should take responsibility, but rather look to the future. I’m not asking you to accept it unconditionally. I’m recommending it because there are real benefits.”
“benefit?”
“Jay Pulson, the escort knight who is coming into exile with his father King Dongyik, is an Auror user.”
“…Hoo?”
Of course, Logan couldn’t help but show interest in those words.
A hidden superhuman?
However, there were doubts.
“A superhuman follows a traitor to the empire?”
It was an even more suspicious story for Logan, who had experienced first-hand how much the emperor cared for talented people, especially superhumans (including those who had the potential to become superhumans).
But Luisa snorted and dismissed the suspicion.
“Not everyone in the Imperial Army is loyal to the Emperor. You can tell by looking at our father and daughter.”
“Hmm… Well, it’s the joining of an Auror user. If that’s true, then there’s no reason to deny asylum. However, if that friend is also from ‘that side’, it’s a bit of a problem.”
“Don’t worry. That friend is only loyal to our mother, no, our mother.”
“Isn’t that what you’re saying because King Dongik is also from there?”
“…You can trust that friend. He is not a former magic swordsman from the tower, but is a pure Auror user. Your Majesty, once you meet him, you will know right away, right?”
It wasn’t wrong.
But there was one more problem.
“You don’t think someone who is only loyal to King Dongik would go to our battlefield? We accepted him with great effort, but what’s the point if he’s only protecting his master in the rear? We can’t completely rule out the suspicion that he’s a spy.”
“…That can’t be possible.”
“hmm?”
“Because my father wants to go to battle himself.”
“Hoo?”
What does this mean?
“I believe that your Majesty now knows that my wife hates the Emperor. And as you know, your father is a pure magician who does not use ‘tower’ magic, so you don’t have to worry too much.”
“But why did King Dongyik personally…?”
“Because the emperor will also appear on this battlefield.”
“That’s right. What does it matter?”
“It may be low, but I will definitely step forward just in case I get the chance to end the emperor’s life myself. And me too.”
“Huh…”
Logan was so embarrassed that he could not easily continue speaking.
There is no reason not to welcome the addition of a 5th circle wizard to the battlefield.
Moreover, if an auror user is also included.
But what? What kind of grudge would make a nation’s royal family want to destroy their family and jump into battle themselves?
Logan shook his head calmly, forcing himself to organize his increasingly complicated mind.
“Okay. I will grant asylum to King Dongyik and his bodyguards and include them in my military strength. But it will probably be on the front line.”
“That’s probably what my father wants too.” Do
you even accept this?
When Logan got an unexpected answer to the words he just shouted, he was once again lost for words. But he soon came to his senses. He drew the final line:
“But even if they don’t know, you can’t, Princess Luisa. You know the reason better, right?”
Luisa bit her lip at those words.
Currently, the Empire was using the pretext of hunting down the Black Snake as an excuse to conquer McLane. But what if the magic of the Kassel Tower really appears? That false justification becomes the truth.
However,
“Are you still questioning the justification when the war has already started!?”
Luisa also had a point.
Even if there was a justification in the beginning, what remained immediately after the war broke out was towards each other. There is nothing but hatred. It may seem ridiculous to look for justification again in a war that has already intensified.
Unless there is nothing more to aim for.
“Of course. Western countries need to come together and respond to the empire.”
“Hah…!?”
“At least until then, the Kassel Tower must not really appear.”
Not all countries are like McLane. The empire’s intentions are visible. Even if it is obvious, it is clear that if the cause is established here, the pro-imperial faction will stumble. At a time when
Damian is currently doing his best to inform Western countries of the empire’s ambitions, this side is directly pouring cold water on him. I couldn’t put it on.
“It leaves no trace. From behind…”
“I said no, princess.”
“I am confident!”
“When your own life is in danger or when your father is in danger. Can you guarantee that you won’t use magic?”
Luisa seemed speechless at those cold words.
“That…”
“It would be a better choice for me to cut off your head right here than send you to the battlefield. . “I will accept your application for asylum as a condition of your participation in the war, but you must go back,”
Logan said, dismissing Luisa’s words.
But just a few days later, when the Imperial reinforcements were approaching the McLane border again,
an unexpected bomb exploded.
– A large number of assassinations and attempted assassinations of heads of Western countries occurred.
– Presumed to be the work of a ghost.
A huge bomb that suddenly established the formation of a coalition that had been sluggish among Western countries.
Please seek asylum.