Chapter 75

The death of a hero birthed chaos, not legend.

The news that ‘the Unyielding Bronson’ had been killed by a friendly arrow struck the capital Kailus with a huge wave of shock and fury. When reports came that the 1st Legion had been annihilated and the front had collapsed, Emperor Alberto roared as if spewing blood on the battlefield.

“A friendly arrow, you say? Do the bastards of the 3rd Legion dare shoot the empire’s hero in the back? Cut off that commander’s head and hang it up at once!”

“Your Majesty, please calm down!”

Kaion stepped forward hastily. His face had gone pale with the guilt and helplessness of having only a vague inkling of his brother’s plan while failing to prevent the tragedy unfolding before him.

“It was a tragic accident that occurred in the chaos of battle! What we need now is not internal division but to stabilize the broken front and take revenge on Valerian!”

Kaion’s shout barely brought the Emperor back to his senses. But seeds of distrust and suspicion toward the 3rd Legion had already been sown in his eyes. A rift within the army, that was precisely another outcome Rian had sought by removing Bronson.

The atmosphere in the imperial palace grew more brutal than ever. The war had reached a stalemate, and the two nations continued a hellish war of attrition across the river of wailing, draining each other’s blood. Thousands of soldiers died every day, their corpses filling rivers and covering fields. The entire continent was turning into one vast funeral.

At that moment, smelling death, the hyenas began to converge.

In the capitals of both nations, in the darkest, most secret corners, a weapons black market thrived. There appeared an enigmatic caravan called the ‘Black Flag Merchants.’ Backed by massive funds, they unveiled weapons that were of a different order than what traditional traders handled, devilish inventions.

“This is called an ‘Aura Rifle.’ Any aura user can deliver destruction on par with a Sword Expert’s blade from two hundred paces. The price is ten thousand gold coins per piece. Stock is limited.”

“This is a ‘mana bomb.’ It’s palm-sized, but its power surpasses a 3rd-circle fireball Magic. Whether a wall or a knightly shield formation, it will clean them out neatly.”

The caravan’s owner was wrapped head to toe in a black robe, obscuring face and voice. But the weapons he showed were real. Intelligence agencies and war procurement nobles from both countries watched the demonstrations in stunned horror. If they could only get their hands on those weapons, they could end this damned war in an instant.

The prices were murderous, but the two empires, who were trading soldiers’ lives daily, had no choice. Kairos and Valerian began competitively buying the Black Flag Merchants’ weapons so as not to fall behind each other. Vast war funds flowed like rivers into the unseen coffers of the caravan.

Of course, the true owner of the Black Flag Merchants was Rian. Using Argos’s intelligence network and the distribution channels absorbed from the Marquis of the Reinhardt family, he was selling the death tools produced in his Shadow Forge equally to both sides.

He had started the war, and now he amassed vast wealth and data through it. How effectively the Aura Rifle pierced a knight’s armor, how lethal the mana bomb was against magical barriers—every piece of information was transmitted in real time to the Shadow Forge’s laboratories, serving as fuel to develop ever more powerful and cruel weapons.

At that moment, the Aster estate.

Rian was in his laboratory, drafting new blueprints with Meister Gideon.

“Gideon, the next version of the Aura Rifle needs an automatic-fire function. And lengthen the barrel to extend effective range to 300.”

“Master! That’s the realm of gods! But… with you, it might be possible! Kahaha!”

The two men’s manic conversation filled the lab. Rian’s face no longer wore the boyish smile Lily had painted; instead, a mad scientist’s cold delight sat on his features as he watched how horrifically his knowledge translated into real-world destruction.

Then Kael approached with quiet steps and handed over a report. Its contents were not about the war.

‘Master, the bounty on the Ashen Worm cult is taking effect. The cult’s subordinate networks are nearly dismantled, and the survivors have fled into the deepest darkness across the continent. However… a strange rumor is circulating among them.’

“What rumor?”

‘That soon the ‘Great Purification’ will begin, and upon the piles of the world’s rotting corpses your lordship’s ‘Ashen Paradise’ will open. They view this war as the cleansing process for the stage on which their god will descend.’

Rian’s brow tightened slightly.

‘They’re using this war too.’

He had thought himself the director of a grand theater across the continent, but perhaps he himself was dancing on a stage laid by an even greater being.

“Kael, inform Argos. Keep closer watch on the cult’s movements. Above all, find the locations of the leaders called ‘Apostles of the plague.’ When the hyenas finish fighting, the true masters will reveal themselves.”

Rian turned back to his blueprints. From his hand, ever more intricate and cruel weapons of death were being drawn.