Chapter 35

‘…What am I seeing?’

Raymond dazedly recalled what had happened three days earlier.

After a heated argument with Tristan, Lucian had departed for the city of Grebe at the head of the mercenaries.

“We’ve received intel that the enemy may launch a surprise attack on Grebe as part of a diversionary tactic. Everyone gather and move out!”

The mercenaries, who had never even seen a platinum coin up close, grumbled but obeyed without resistance.

They had already witnessed Lucian’s capabilities firsthand and knew that if the situation required it, extra payment was guaranteed.

Even Raymond, used to regular armies, had to admit that Lucian knew how to handle mercenaries with ease.

The real problem came afterward.

“If the enemy really attacks, I’ll tell you where to move. If there’s no attack, just take turns keeping watch.”

An order so lax it bordered on irresponsible.

Raymond froze. Weren’t they supposed to prepare for a serious battle? Then why had Lucian brought the mercenaries?

“Young master, even if it’s not full-scale defense, shouldn’t we reinforce surveillance far more than this?”

“I already did.”

“That’s not what I mean. I’m talking about proper military deployment. The attack is in just three days.”

At Raymond’s plea, Lucian smiled calmly.

“They’re mercenaries divided into small groups. Forcing them to coordinate would only lead to them getting in each other’s way and accidents happening. It’s better to set minimal rules to avoid clashes when the time comes. Besides, this is how they’re used to operating.”

“That only works if you can control them in the moment. As far as I know, you’ve never fought on a real battlefield.”

“There’s a first time for everything. Mine just happens to be now.”

Lucian’s confidence drew a sigh from Raymond.

He always had a plan and the courage to carry it out, but leading soldiers on a battlefield where blood and flesh fly was a completely different matter.

‘People aren’t chess pieces. Even elite troops, after brutal training, sometimes disobey orders. How can you expect that from mercenaries?’

Morale depended on training, trust between comrades, and the certainty of victory.

Unfortunately, the mercenaries under Lucian’s command met none of those requirements.

‘They’ve never trained together, they split up over money at the drop of a hat, and they don’t even know what kind of enemy they’ll be facing. They could fall into chaos and self-destruct.’

The only reassuring thing was that they couldn’t run away and leave Lucian behind.

If he died, Grand Duke Sigmund would hunt them down and tear them apart one by one.

The mercenaries knew it, so even if they hesitated, they wouldn’t flee.

‘If everything falls apart, I’ll have to take command and stabilize the situation. For the young master, it would be a very costly lesson.’

Also, the black mage didn’t know that the mercenaries had moved to Grebe.

He would think he was attacking a defenseless city, so he wouldn’t send too many monsters.

As long as the forces didn’t scatter, they could hold out.

That’s what he believed—until the battle began.

“Damn idiots! What are you standing around for? Move unless you want to die!”

“Don’t stray too far from the person next to you! Want a hole in your gut?”

“Do I have to kick you to make you react? If one point falters, support it immediately!”

As if all his worries had been pointless, Lucian was running back and forth shouting orders.

***

Individually, they might be competent, but as a group, they were a disaster.

And yet, Lucian handled them like they were his own limbs.

The orders never stopped coming, and the dazed mercenaries obeyed.

‘Unbelievable even in this chaos, those wild types don’t dare complain.’

Hugo, mixed among them, couldn’t help but admire his lord in silence.

Lucian gave them no time to think and was also at the front lines, verifying orders in real time.

That way, the mercenaries had no room to question anything.

“Grrrk!”

“Hey, it got up…!”

Splat!

“Idiot! Don’t let your guard down!”

The moment a gnoll managed to climb over the low wall, Lucian’s sword flew out.

After watching the gnoll fall with its chest split open, Lucian slapped the mercenary without hesitation.

“Wake up, moron! Want to die?”

“S-sorry…!”

“Shut up and defend! There won’t be a second chance!”

Lucian shoved him back into position.

That scene had already repeated itself several times.

Every time a point looked like it would break, Lucian appeared at the exact moment and reinforced it.

His control was so tight that even the Black Lions, ready to provide support from the outside, couldn’t find a gap to intervene.

‘Is he watching the entire battlefield? Does he know exactly where the weak spots are and what support is needed—even in this chaos?’

“Graaah!”

“Hah!”

Hugo responded to the cry of a kobold emerging from below and slashed.

The kobold fell with its chest split open.

A second later, and Hugo would’ve been the one injured.

‘Just one moment of distraction, and this is what happens…’

His heart was pounding hard.

He had lived through countless slaughters in the underworld, but a real battlefield was different.

There was no hatred or resentment, only the need to kill anything that moved.

A whirlwind of chaos.

“Hugo! Still alive? You didn’t piss yourself, did you?”

Lucian’s carefree voice suddenly reached him.

Hugo let out a laugh without meaning to.

“Yeah! I’m good! I can still fight for a while!”

“Good. If you become a knight, you’ll see this kind of thing until you’re sick of it, so better get used to it now.”

“I already feel pretty used to it!”

“Don’t get cocky and die! Protect yourself and fight like your life depends on it!”

“That sounds contradictory!”

Laughter broke out among the mercenaries.

Surprised by the collective laughter, Hugo realized the tide had completely turned.

There were still monsters left, but most were already dead, and the remaining few could be counted on one hand.

Even those moved without reason, having lost all sanity.

With the advantage gained, the mercenaries finished them off without difficulty.

Boom!

“Grrr…!”

A spear pierced the neck of the last gnoll.

Its body convulsed for a moment, then collapsed lifeless atop the pile of corpses.

“Phew…”

“Is it over…?”

The mercenaries wiped the sweat from their brows and looked at one another.

It had been a fierce storm—and yet, was it already over?

All eyes turned to Lucian.

Smiling, he raised his voice.

“Soldiers!”

“…”

“Rejoice! This is our victory!”

After a brief silence, a deafening roar of cheers shook the entire city of Grebe.

***

— Waaaaaah!

The black mage Jude bit his thumbnail upon hearing the cheers coming from afar.

At what point had everything gone so wrong?

He had come to collect sacrifices and ended up losing even the beasts he had worked so hard to tame.

The discomfort wasn’t just in his stomach—it felt like someone was digging a hole through his guts.

“…Lord Jude, wouldn’t it be better to launch a large-scale attack now?”

“A large-scale attack now, my ass!”

Jude exploded at Colin’s suggestion, who clearly didn’t understand the situation.

Before attacking the city of Grebe, it might have made sense. But now that the battle was over, it would be pointless.

Even if they inflicted damage, they wouldn’t get any sacrifices—so what was the point?

“If you want to use it, go right ahead! I’m sure they’ll love that!”

“Oh yeah? Then I’ll use it.”

Boom!

Suddenly, a deafening blast erupted beside him and a blinding light lit up everything.

Jude tried to shout something, but the light shot out before he could react.

At the same time, a brutal impact ripped through his body and burning pain surged through him.

When he realized he was on the ground, he opened his mouth.

“Ghk…!”

Instead of words, foam mixed with blood spilled out.

He tried to chant a spell and form hand signs, but couldn’t move his hands.

Gathering all his strength, he barely managed to raise his right hand.

It was a pitiful sight.

His skin looked cooked as if burned and convulsed uncontrollably.

“You told me to use it however I wanted. That was a great order. So I used it my way—turned out much crispier than expected.”

“Grrr! You bastard…!”

“That’s why you should be careful when setting the terms of a pact. If it’s full of holes like that, anyone would take advantage. Hope it serves as a lesson.”

Of course, it was already too late.

Colin mocked the dying Jude with a contemptuous smile.

With his last strength, Jude tried to counterattack by forming a spell sign, but it was useless.

His lungs, half-charred, couldn’t even chant the simplest spell.

After a few pathetic spasms, the black mage Jude ended up completely roasted—and lost his life.

“Tsk. A black mage, huh? Who did you think you were going to use?”

Colin spat toward the corpse and let out a sigh.

The brief euphoria of victory faded, leaving only uncertainty about the future.

He had only been manipulated by a black mage, but the Imperial Liberation Alliance wouldn’t see it that way.

“When they find out everything went wrong, they’ll say I was in league with the dead guy and try to kill me too. I’ll have to find somewhere else to hide.”

How many times had he been forced into exile now?

His master had left him countless tasks before dying, but he had neither time to investigate them nor a place to rest peacefully.

It was frustrating.

As he brushed off his robe and stood, the cheers echoed again.

— Waaaah! Long live! Long live!

“…Don’t these guys ever get tired? Well, I guess it’s normal to cheer after holding back that many enemies.”

A bitter laugh escaped his lips as he heard the mercenaries’ endless celebrations.

They weren’t elite, well-trained troops; as a group, mercenaries were usually useless in organized combat.

And yet, they had stopped a horde of monsters without heavy losses, guided by a single commander.

‘I don’t know who’s leading them, but he’s someone formidable. If possible, I should get under someone like that.’

Colin shook his head, as if to rid himself of the thought.

He had never found anyone who truly met his expectations.

In his experience, those with talent lacked status, and those with status lacked talent.

‘The heavens really are unfair. With skill like that, and they have him serving as a mere city guard.’

Pitying a guard captain he didn’t even know, Colin walked away from the Yellow Forest.

Hoping the next place he found would at least allow him a slightly more comfortable life.

On the quiet edge of the Yellow Forest, the only thing left was the charred corpse of the black mage, scorched by lightning.

***

“What? Fifteen minor injuries and no deaths?”

“Yes. A crushing victory.”

“This is absurd…!”

Tristan, red with fury, crumpled the report in his hand.

Grebe was a city without any noteworthy defenses, except for a mediocre, low wall.

And yet they had repelled over a hundred monsters?

While leading a group of mercenaries who had never even trained together?

“Isn’t something wrong here? No matter how you look at it, this outcome makes no sense!”

“I doubted it too at first, but the report was written directly by the Black Lions.”

If the report came from the Black Lions, it meant it would go straight to Grand Duke Sigmund.

Unless they were insane, they had no reason to falsify it.

With trembling hands, Tristan smoothed out the paper he had just crumpled.

— Minor injuries: fifteen.

— Casualties: none.

— Gnolls and kobolds defeated: approximately 140.

— No civilian casualties.

— Minor damage to the wall and gate.

Each time he read it, his head spun.

The feat was enormous, and yet there wasn’t a single mention of mages.

They had concealed what needed to be hidden, and at the same time, hadn’t sacrificed anyone.

That fact made Tristan feel even more miserable.

‘If there were no sacrifices then what the hell was my scale? What were all the decisions I made…?’

He had always believed that sacrificing a few for the good of the many was the right thing to do.

But if, from the beginning, no sacrifice was necessary, what meaning did that spilled blood have?

Had he caused unnecessary bloodshed due to foolish decisions?

“Ghh…!”

“Y-young master!”

“First young master!”

“I’m fine, stay back!”

Tristan pushed away the servants rushing to him and yanked out clumps of his hair.

If he didn’t feel that pain, it seemed like his head would explode.

When the ground was covered in ripped-out hair, he spoke.

“…Prepare to withdraw. We’re returning to Kelheim.”

Tristan’s voice lacked any life.

The monsters the enemy had planned to use in place of soldiers had been annihilated, and the black mage’s betrayal had even caused internal division.

Even if the spell that could destroy the wall still existed, they could no longer use it.

With no enemy troops and no reason to keep paying mercenaries, there was no longer any reason for Tristan and Lucian to remain there.

‘A bitter return.’

He had longed to return home for so long, and yet he didn’t feel even a shred of joy.

Once they returned, the standing between Lucian and himself would no longer be the same.

Of course, a single incident wouldn’t completely flip their positions.

But it was enough to say Lucian had come dangerously close—close enough to aim to surpass him.

“What a chill…”

Tristan touched his neck as a cold shiver ran down his spine.

He hadn’t noticed it before, but his hand came away soaked in cold sweat.

His body seemed to be telling him the time when he could take the position of family head for granted was over.