Chapter 11
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Just the Two of Us Left?
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'So far, so good...'
In the pitch-black night, Johann hid in a dark alley, removed his stuffy helmet, and extended his senses to scout the surroundings.
It was deep into the night, so there were no civilians on the streets. But that didn't mean the streets were empty.
'They're starting to move.'
As time passed, more and more soldiers began rushing about busily.
Knights started appearing in decent numbers, and soon massive forces were confirmed heading toward all four gates—east, west, south, and north.
'They're planning to seal the gates and hold out for a siege to buy time. If they send a messenger now, the earl's reinforcements will arrive by tomorrow night at the latest, so they're just stalling until then.'
Viscount Domos's intentions were plain as day. For a coward like him, this was the only option. Despite the difference in forces, charging out to fight had never been on the table.
In a way, it was a wise choice. But he had no idea Johann was counting on exactly that.
'Then let's end this war before the messenger can move.'
Johann suppressed his mana as much as possible to hide the eye-catching Lightning Mana and set off.
It was slower than his usual speed, but to others, it was still astonishingly agile.
Perhaps because they believed all enemy forces were gathered outside the gates? Or because every soul was committed to defending the castle? The streets inside were ironically deserted.
Thanks to that, Johann reached the inner castle's back gate sooner than expected.
'Still a fair number here.'
Even so, plenty of soldiers were visibly guarding the inner castle.
Of course, considering most forces had moved to the outer gates, this was still an unprecedented level of security.
'From here on, full speed...'
Crackle! Zap!
As Johann unleashed the mana he'd been conserving, blue sparks discharged around his body.
Lightning Mana surged through him, activating every cell.
Of course, discharging lightning in the dark night was perfect for catching the guards' eyes at the gate.
"Huh? Lightning out of nowhere? No storm clouds either."
"More like, does lightning strike from the ground?"
Boom!
In that instant, Johann kicked off the last alley, thundering as he charged full speed toward the back gate.
From the inner castle to the village, wide open plazas stretched out before both the back and front gates.
They were built for soldier parades and to monitor for infiltrators sneaking into the castle.
"Intruder!!"
"Stop him!"
That's why infiltrators trying to cross these plazas unprotected usually became pincushions for archers before even reaching the gates.
But that only worked if they could see you...
"Y-You're too fast!"
"Just shoot whatever!"
Normally, they'd rain arrows like a downpour to compensate for poor aim, but not now!
With their skill, aiming at Johann moving like the wind was impossible.
All the archers could do was fire ahead of his path in anticipation.
Lucky shots fell toward his head or back.
Crackle!
But the iron arrowheads halted, then flew onward with Johann.
"Lock the gate!"
"We hold the back gate at all costs!"
Soldiers inside the gate ordered it shut, gripping their weapons with desperate resolve.
They figured it'd take time to break through them and a locked gate—and reinforcements would arrive in the meantime.
But Johann's target wasn't the back gate to begin with.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The arrows flying alongside him discharged electricity and shot forward, embedding layer by layer into the walls.
'What the hell is he planning...'
A guard flinched after quickly scanning the arrow pattern.
"Block him!! He's going to climb the arrows!"
But even that soldier's shout couldn't keep up with Johann. By the time the warning rang out, he was already bounding up the arrows toward the walltop.
It looked like lightning ascending in reverse.
Crackle! Zap!
The archers atop the inner wall froze at Johann's sudden appearance.
They'd never trained for this. That split-second hesitation sealed their fates.
Spit.
The moment Johann's hand went to his waist, a blinding flash streaked through the archers.
Splatter!
The white line vanished, leaving only blood spraying from the soldiers' necks. As they took in their fallen comrades, the rest finally grasped the situation and reacted.
But...
Shwick! Shwick! Shwick!
In Johann's world, the soldiers moved in slow motion.
Even those dropping bows and desperately drawing swords crawled at a snail's pace—enough to make him yawn.
Johann dashed through them, slashing soldiers left and right.
He grabbed a dropped bow and two quivers, then kept running.
"Ch-Chase him!"
"We can't let him reach the lord!"
The survivors pursued late. Johann twisted mid-stride, picking them off with arrows.
The soldiers gasped at the near-magical archery.
And the lightning-infused arrows pierced clean through the followers...
From the soldiers' view, chasing after him felt like wading through lead.
But the commotion spread through the inner castle fast. Remaining knights and soldiers rushed to block paths and encircle Johann.
"You don't go any further, bastard!"
A knight in full plate armor bellowed, blocking Johann's path. Soldiers behind him built barricades, sealing the way tight.
"Yeah, I do."
Thwip! Crackle!
"...!"
The released arrow crackled with lightning, piercing space at terrifying speed. The knight was skilled enough to parry normal arrows.
But...
"Sir Sobid!"
"Sir Sobid's down!"
He couldn't even react before the shot pierced his heart.
"Move if you don't wanna die."
Johann nocked another arrow. But this one was different from the others.
The previous ones had flown too fast to track. This one matched a regular archer's speed.
Its trajectory was odd too.
'Gonna sail way over our heads.'
'What? A miss at this range?'
Over fifty soldiers blocked the barricade path. No way one arrow could handle that—they drew courage from the numbers.
But it was an illusion.
Crackle...
Rumble! Boom!!
Suddenly, lightning bolts erupted from the arrowhead overhead, raining everywhere.
Most soldiers wore chain or plate armor, drawing the bolts straight to them.
Johann couldn't match true lightning speed—his body wouldn't hold. But these were genuine thunderbolts from the arrow, falling at light speed.
No dodging that. Fifty soldiers fried instantly without a scream, collapsing in white steam.
Johann vaulted the barricade, sprinting through the fresh corpses.
"Halt! Stop him!"
"Captain! Why stop now?!"
"He's come this far—we can't stop him anymore. Besides..."
The guard captain swallowed dryly, eyeing the charred bodies. One wrong move, and it'd be them.
"This guy's beyond us. I'm not dying like a dog here. Viscount Domos isn't worth throwing my life away for."
"Well..."
How many soldiers would die for Domos? They decided to call off the chase.
Despite countless soldiers and knights left in the inner castle, Johann beat them to the lord's office.
Bang!
"Eek!"
Clatter!
The door shattered. Viscount Domos shrieked at the black-clad intruder in his office, yelling at the knight beside him.
"S-Sir Dain! Deal with him! Kill that bastard right now!"
Dain scowled at Domos's panicked hysterics and stepped forward, openly displeased.
Johann smirked at Dain's unmasked disgust.
"You don't look thrilled. Scared to die?"
"I've lived as a man, eating steel as a knight's path. Death doesn't scare me now. Just dying to protect scum like him."
"W-What?! Sir Dain, you...!"
Johann burst out laughing at Dain spilling his guts regardless of Domos overhearing.
"Puhahaha! Hope you don't regret that later."
"Won't matter. No tomorrow for him or me. Probably best for the territory too."
Dain's cool assessment despite gauging Johann's strength earned a spark of liking.
"Name's Alph."
"Knight Captain Dain. Hope it's a fight worth dying in."
Dain saluted and focused on the coming attack.
But...
Zap!
'What...!'
Unlike Gellpin or Beril, junior knight Dain wasn't an Aura User yet. No way he could track Johann moving in earnest.
In the end...
"Can't even call it a match."
Clang.
Dain saw Johann's palm on his shoulder, chuckled, and dropped his sword.
"No worries. Plenty of chances left."
"What do you—"
Crackle!!
But Dain never heard the reply. Blue lightning struck his plate armor, knocking him out cold.
"Ugh... Hah!"
"Protect the lord!"
"Raaah!!"
The remaining knights charged Johann, weeping inside but committed.
They were skilled elites guarding Domos, but even stalling against Johann was impossible.
"Just you now?"
"Ugh..."
Johann smiled down at Domos, alone and wetting himself.
"So, shall we two have a nice, intimate chat?"