Victor Mort (11)

Regardless of his condition, the conquest of the Eastern Kingdom proceeded smoothly.

The Imperial Army advanced deeper and deeper into the heart of the Eastern Kingdom. Stronger mages and knights appeared as they approached the capital, but they posed no great problem for Victor.

He was no longer affected by confusion magic. His mind had already been considerably damaged. The Grand Duke, who approached while ignoring magic itself, became a nightmare to the Eastern Kingdom’s army. Once the number of knights he had killed surpassed several hundred, the enemy fled the moment they saw the black lion banner.

Nevertheless, the Eastern Kingdom did not surrender. They condemned the Empire’s invasion and resisted to the very end. The Imperial Army brought down, one by one, the territories that shut their castle gates and fought back.

When the campaign, which had lasted several months, ended, only the capital, Narangd, remained.

“Narangd is not a difficult fortress to capture. It lies on a wide plain, and the Black Mountains surround it from behind, making it easy to encircle.”

“The problem is that it has mages far more powerful than those elsewhere.”

Victor let the staff officers’ words pass in one ear and out the other. He was too exhausted to concentrate on anything.

The staff officers continued while carefully watching the Grand Duke, whose expression had grown fiercer and gloomier.

“The Queen of the Eastern Kingdom, in particular, is a terrifying mage, Your Highness. They say she can drop fireballs and summon wind and rain with a single gesture.”

“Understood.”

Victor quietly rose. He could feel those around him shrinking back.

The Grand Duke slowly lowered his head toward the broad operations board.

“Position the cavalry on the left and right. Place the infantry in the center…… Draw their attention with the catapults while the knights rapidly approach the walls. I’ll take the lead.”

“But would that not be too dangerous……?”

Victor looked expressionlessly at the staff officer.

“You also know that no one but me can break through, do you not?”

“…….”

“This battle can end the war. Of course we must do whatever it takes.”

The staff officers eventually nodded.

A detailed operation was soon drawn up, and the meeting ended. Victor left Command’s tent. As he crossed the military camp, he sensed fearful whispers all around him.

Come to think of it, had they not said rumors were spreading? Rumors that he was a man-eating monster, or a dragon that only awakened at night. Command threatened to punish false rumors about the supreme commander under military law, but shapeless words could not be stopped.

Victor did not care. Considering his current condition, it was better if no one approached him.

Of course, his knights paid no attention to the rumors. They welcomed their liege when he returned to the encampment.

“You’ve returned, Your Highness.”

“Would you like some ale?”

Victor refused the offered cup and approached the campfire. When he gestured, they quickly gathered around him.

Victor spoke briefly.

“We attack Narangd tomorrow.”

The knights exchanged tense glances. They knew the Eastern Kingdom’s strength, which made them even more uneasy. The Southern Kingdom had been peaceful and barely possessed any soldiers, but the Eastern Kingdom was different. Without Victor, even the Mort Knights would have suffered considerable losses.

Leonard asked,

“Will we take the lead?”

“Yes. More precisely, I will.”

The vice commander frowned. The Grand Duke sharply stopped him before he could say anything.

“Kaltz agreed as well. I will hear no objections.”

Leonard closed his mouth. He seemed unable to accept his liege bearing such danger alone, but in any case, he was a knight and could not disobey his liege’s words.

As though trying to lighten the sinking mood, Raul of Radan made a joke.

“Well, at any rate, tomorrow we’ll meet one of the strongest women on the continent. The mage queen of the Eastern Kingdom…… I’m looking forward to it.”

“You truly are carefree……. Who else is there?”

“Plenty. Mercenary King Yaji, for example.”

“Yaji is a woman?!”

The knights quickly took the bait. Perhaps to forget the tension of battle, they soon began talking all at once. Wandering knights who came from regions far from Mort or were well versed in rumors each opened their store of tales.

Jane of Chivalry, who was said to have wandered the continent for more than five years, spoke.

“The women of the Southern Kingdom are astonishingly beautiful, and the women of the Eastern Kingdom use mysterious magic. But the strongest must surely be the women of the Northern Kingdom.”

“The Northern Kingdom? You mean the Kingdom?”

“Ah, right. That’s what Imperials call it, isn’t it?”

Jane shrugged.

The Northern Kingdom had been a vassal state of the Empire for so long that Imperials and Northern Kingdomers often shortened its name to simply ‘the Kingdom.’ In any case, Jane continued.

“The Kingdom is a frighteningly barren land. The capital is somewhat better, but the farther north you go, the more powerful monsters swarm everywhere. That is why many women there are skilled with weapons.”

“Even so, could they be stronger than the Mercenary King?”

“Who knows?”

Jane laughed lightly.

“No one knows what is hiding in the Black Mountains, do they? There may even be monsters among humans. In fact, I heard the strongest knight in the Kingdom is a woman.”

“That’s rather unsettling.”

“Imagine it. A woman as strong as His Highness…….”

The knights each stared into empty space before shuddering at whatever they imagined.

Victor almost interrupted them with a reprimand, but stopped himself. In any case, this was also a subject that had recently interested him.

A strong person. Someone who would not be sent flying like paper before his sword, but who could defeat him and grant him rest. That was the person he sought.

Perhaps he may meet someone like that tomorrow.

The Grand Duke thought.

Tomorrow, he would fight the strongest mage on the continent. According to their intelligence, the Queen possessed magic capable of burning hundreds of knights to death in an instant.

Victor rubbed the blade of his sword with leather, filled with unpleasant anticipation.

The battle began in the morning.

As the soldiers advanced toward the castle, arrows flew from the walls. While the infantry blocked the arrows with their shields, the cavalry split to either side and rapidly approached the fortress.

Then he felt scorching heat overhead.

“Everyone, scatter!”

The moment the knights scattered in every direction, a massive fireball struck the ground. Victor calmed his startled horse and looked up at the sky.

It was a strange sight. Fireballs were pouring down like rain from a clear sky with nothing in it.

Shouts erupted everywhere, and the soldiers scattered wildly, unable to maintain their formation. But the Imperial Army had already anticipated such a situation. Following their training, the soldiers advanced to the sound of their commanders’ horns.

Victor galloped forward with the knights. The soldiers screamed when they saw him with his black cloak billowing behind him.

“It’s Walking Death!”

Victor advanced while cutting down enemies like sheets of paper. Lightning began striking from the sky, but the Grand Duke reached the wall in an instant, grabbed a rope, and climbed. Neither arrows nor men were a match for him. He killed mages and knights, cut down archers, and opened a path for his allies.

The heavy stench of blood gradually numbed his sense of smell. The endless screams of people felt like a dream.

And then…… the Grand Duke met the Queen of the Eastern Kingdom.

The Queen was not atop the wall. She was inside a small prayer chamber beneath it, surrounded by an unusually large number of guards. The Grand Duke cut down every soldier and entered through the door.

The interior was strangely quiet. Only an enormous magic circle covered in incomprehensible writing burned pitch-black across the floor.

The woman standing at its center slowly turned her head. Just as Victor did, the Queen recognized who he was at once.

“Ah, so you are Death.”

“…….”

“I expected the face of an arrogant victor. Why, then, do you look as though you wish to die at any moment?”

The Grand Duke stared at the Queen without answering. Whether she was using some damned magic or not, she seemed to be reading his mind. The Queen gave a twisted smile.

“You lack the courage to drive a blade directly into your own heart, so you seek another’s sword. But what a pity. You are too strong even for me to kill.”

Only then did the Grand Duke speak.

“Then what am I supposed to do?”

“You ravaged my country, and yet you seek an answer from me?”

“Your people took my family from me.”

“Hahaha!”

The Queen suddenly burst into loud laughter.

“Sophistry, knight. You have already killed far too many people in the name of revenge. To commit such sins and then desire peace for yourself alone. How hideous and ugly.”

“…….”

“My power is nearly exhausted, but there is still something I can do.”

The Queen raised a long finger and pointed at the Grand Duke. Luxuriant bronze hair flowed beneath her crown.

“Your dreams will not end even if you leave the battlefield. But neither poison nor magic, nor fragile weapons, nor even your own blade will wound you. Even if you wish it.”

The Grand Duke’s eyes widened.

This was blessing magic, which only a very small number of mages were said to be able to use. Blessings that remained regardless of the mage’s life or death lasted for different lengths of time depending on the mage’s power. It was common for the blessings of powerful mages to remain for several years. If so, the Queen’s magic……

The Queen smiled.

“You will not be able to die. This is my revenge.”

No sooner had the Queen finished speaking than knights rushed through the door. They discovered her and raised their swords, but the Queen obediently extended her hands. Still wary, the knights bound her wrists with silk.

Victor stared blankly at the sight.

His revenge was over, and the Eastern Kingdom’s throne and ring had fallen intact into his hands. But he felt nothing.

Only emptiness remained. So overwhelming that he could barely breathe.