Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: The Great Bell Tolls (2)
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Horos, captain of the 2nd Company of the Governor-General's 1st Guard Battalion, stared vacantly at the battlefield ravaged by the white lion.
Debris from shattered structures littered the ground, and among it, the corpses of the dead lay scattered like fallen leaves.
It was a truly gruesome scene.
Groans from those who hadn't quite died yet echoed from all directions.
Horos gazed beyond the walls in the distance.
The thunderous explosions that had roared like lightning had fallen silent at some point.
The enemy's noises had vanished.
‘Is it finally over?’
Considering the divine power he had displayed, it seemed even the Governor-General had fallen.
If they had captured or killed him, the Governor-General's office wouldn't be this quiet.
Clearing the ruins was now the task of the survivors.
Horos rallied his company members and helped move the wounded.
That was the most urgent matter first.
“Captain!”
As he was directing his troops, someone came running up in a panic. The soldier's face was pale as a ghost.
What now?
Heightening his senses with unease, he could hear fresh commotion in the distance.
No massive explosions like before, but something had definitely gone wrong.
“What is it? Wasn't the situation over?”
“Th-the white lion has come back.”
“What?”
Horos startled in shock, letting out a gasp.
He had returned.
“Why the hell?”
What more could he possibly want from this place!
He felt like rushing over and demanding answers from the white lion right then and there.
You bastard!
Hadn't he had enough already!
“Sector 3 sent a request for support. The white lion is currently occupying the Arsen Tower.”
Arsen Tower?
The reason was unknown, but he was part of the 1st Guard Battalion.
“Isn't that Sector 3's responsibility?”
“All company commanders and above have been ordered to head there.”
Damn it.
They were gathering forces to capture the guy. Since regular soldiers couldn't do it, they were calling in the officers.
These worthless idiots.
If they had eyes, they must have seen the white lion's power. What difference would this make...?
“Got it. I'll wrap things up here and head over.”
“They said to assemble within ten minutes...”
Shit.
Not even giving time to slip away.
Horos gathered the nearby company commanders and forced his reluctant feet to move.
“What's going on?”
“How are we supposed to stop that bastard? Looks like even the Special Task Force got hit.”
“Exactly.”
“But we can't just let him be.”
They couldn't hunt the bastard, but they couldn't hand the entire Governor-General's office over to some Francia scum.
This would become a stain on the Empire's honor later.
“Why the Arsen Tower, though?”
“No idea.”
As they ran urgently and the Arsen Tower drew near, they slowed their pace.
“...One minute left.”
Arriving exactly at the ten-minute mark, Horos saw the thick wall of knights.
They showed no interest even in the arriving reinforcements.
“What the hell is going on?”
Thinking the situation might be over, he asked someone standing at the back.
The man glanced at him, then stepped aside, unwittingly pushing Horos to the front of the group.
‘Damn it! Curiosity killed the cat!’
Somehow, Horos ended up in the front row.
And there he saw the white lion, casually sitting guard at the tower's entrance.
Arms crossed, lounging comfortably like the wall of knights before him didn't exist.
Wearing a mask, it was impossible to tell if his eyes were open or closed.
Yet, despite being so defenseless, no one approached.
The corpses strewn around him.
It was all too clear what happened to those who got close.
Beyond that, most had already witnessed the white lion's divine might firsthand.
What fool would charge in recklessly?
Surviving this long was miracle enough.
‘That monstrous bastard.’
Horos stared fixedly at the white lion before him.
His form was human, but the power he'd witnessed transcended humanity.
Thinking back to how he'd torn through the battlefield still sent chills down his spine.
He'd heard countless tales of a Sword Master's might, but facing it directly was like a natural disaster.
A force that swept through in one go.
Horos, raised by the sea, likened him to a colossal typhoon.
How profoundly must one master the sword to do that?
To render the number of soldiers before him meaningless.
To blow away a massive gate in one strike.
No matter how much he trained, Horos knew he could never achieve it.
Thud.
Someone bumped into him, making him stumble forward, but another grabbed and pulled him back.
“Get a grip.”
“?”
“Look down.”
At the man's words, Horos lowered his gaze.
Right at his feet was a long trench-like line gouged into the ground.
Horos followed it left, then right.
The line stretched far, dividing the living from the dead.
“He said he'd kill anyone who crosses it.”
The guy next to him whispered.
Only then did Horos understand this bizarre standoff.
Those lying dead ahead were probably the ones who had gathered earlier, and those behind the line were like him—late arrivals.
Knights who couldn't retreat with the enemy present, yet couldn't step forward to offer their necks either.
They simply aimed their swords, unable to advance, staring at the seated white lion.
“What are you lot doing!”
But they always existed, everywhere.
Those who didn't know their place and were all bravado.
“That guy's already tired! Charge all at once!”
A few latecomers who hadn't grasped the situation chimed in agreement.
“Press him now!”
Buoyed by each other's courage, they finally crossed the line.
Thanks to them, Horos would get to witness the white lion's sword once more.
As an enemy, but as a swordsman, seeing it was meaningful.
As long as it wasn't aimed at him.
Whoosh!
As the knights surged forward dynamically, the white lion remained still.
Then, as they closed in, he moved.
He raised the scabbard at his side, drew his sword, and swung in one motion.
A brilliant flash extended with a chilling beam of light.
And then.
Pssh!
The knights split open, spurting blood in an instant.
Five knights were cleaved or sent tumbling in a single blow.
Overwhelmed by that power once more, silence fell again.
‘...Does that bastard never tire?’
His movements were still light and agile.
Just like that first moment when he'd seen the sword.
Indeed, the line before him marked the boundary between life and death.
But what did that bastard want?
What else was there to take from the Governor-General's office besides the Governor-General's head?
Occupying it wouldn't reclaim the capital.
No matter how long he sat there, nothing would change.
Even he couldn't have infinite stamina.
The Governor-General's office had been ransacked, but countless Imperial troops still remained in Magnet.
The capital was vast; not all forces were concentrated here.
This was just a fraction.
That's why his actions made no sense.
No matter how strong the white lion was, all he could do alone was behead the Governor-General.
What was here that warranted this?
This is the na...?!
A thought flashed through Horos's mind, and he craned his neck skyward.
The tower's summit came into view.
‘Damn it...’
Only then did he realize why the white lion was here.
At the spire's tip fluttered a massive flag.
Replacing the Empire's flag was a foreign one.
A roaring white lion on a navy blue field—Leonir Lancer.
The flag of fallen Francia hung there.
Just then, the dawn's light began to touch it.
Day was breaking.
Swoosh.
At that moment, he rose.
The knights lowered their stances into defensive postures, watching him from behind the line.
“Do not cross the line.”
His low voice rang out.
At that chilling tone, their feet stuck fast to the ground.
With those words, he looked up toward the tower.
Boom!
Kicking off the ground, his figure vanished as if sinking into the earth. Those with skill followed his blurry motion skyward.
The white lion, bounding along the Arsen Tower's outer wall, disappeared into an arched opening high up.
Inside was the bell tower.
“What do we do...?”
They exchanged glances, eyes wide.
They knew what he intended.
But no one could move.
What could they do by rushing to the bell tower?
All they could do was watch from afar, as now.
If they valued their lives, that is.
Honor and pride be damned.
You had to be a match to stand on it.
Charging him was suicide, plain and simple.
* * *
Ascending to the bell tower, I beheld the vast panorama of the capital spread before me.
The city, shrouded in darkness, gradually revealed its contours under the rising sun from the east.
I had occasionally come here with my father to view this very scene.
-Behold. This is the land you must rule.
-Isn't it beautiful?
I nodded unwittingly.
Then I gazed once more at things I had forgotten.
From this height, it looked no different from Magnet in my previous life.
My life, my dreams, my everything—they were all contained within.
This landscape was the Francia I remembered.
As the sun fully rose and darkness lifted completely, even the distant outer walls were visible.
The day was splendid.
A clear, refreshing breeze blew.
Now everyone would see the flag atop this tower.
I stepped down from the railing and approached the massive timber used to ring the bell.
It was like the one I'd seen at Tenasta Square, but its surface bore handprints.
I placed my hand over them and infused mana.
Whumm!
Fully charged, it began pulling back on its own.
Then, striking the bell's surface.
Dong-!
It let out a majestic toll.
The sound didn't echo just here.
It rang simultaneously from the west, east, south, and north of the capital.
Dong-!
The bell tolling enormously across the entire city.
The capital, Magnet, was awakening to that sound.
Dong-!