Chapter 140
Chapter 140
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 140
Chapter Title: 44. Fish in Water, or an Unbridled Foal (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Opinions on the Mercenary King were sharply divided.
Some hailed him as the greatest knight, holding their thumbs up high, while others dismissed him as a worthless fraud, nothing more than trash riding on empty fame.
They were all right.
He never moved without compensation, and once paid, he acted precisely to the amount received—neither more nor less.
Sometimes he groveled pathetically in the mud of the battlefield; other times, he dominated it with extraordinary flair. At yet others, he displayed the full bearing of a hero.
Some criticized these inconsistencies as overly calculating.
But he wasn't calculating.
He always gave his all.
The reason his prowess varied so wildly across battlefields stemmed from the peculiar nature of his eyes.
Absurdly enough, the [Golden Eye] scaled its tier according to the promised reward.
So what about now?
I scanned the enemy with my eyes.
Dozens of heads worth thirty gold coins each, hundreds, thousands worth six silver each.
I gauged the value of the fortress.
But there was no need to rack my brain with calculations.
Whoosh!
A massive surge of energy welled up from my heart.
That energy coursed unimpeded through my body.
Vitality flooded my limbs.
Not a single strand leaked wastefully outward.
I simply savored the overflowing vigor in silence.
No need for words.
The reward was more than sufficient—it overflowed.
The power of the [Golden Eye]'s highest tier, the [Hero Eye], proved it.
Shrrk.
The aura blade enveloping my sword blade faded away. The incessant sword hum cut off abruptly.
I merely let my sword hang loose as I regarded the imperial forces.
"He's already worn out!"
The knights' morale was high.
They seemed convinced my stamina was depleted from the fight with the paladin.
As if this were mere fatigue. It was simply the trait of my eyes—a power so ruthlessly efficient it suppressed all energy expenditure.
"Hah!"
A battle cry thick with killing intent rang out as a sword came crashing down from above.
I parried it with the sword in my left hand. At the same time, I slashed horizontally from left to right with the other.
The plainest of attacks split the knight's chest wide open.
The knight spewed blood and toppled backward.
More enemies appeared behind him.
Swords flew at me. I blocked with one hand. Struck with the other. My eyes sought the next foe.
Block and thrust. Dodge and slash.
I repeated those simple motions dozens of times.
The knights hesitated.
In that gap, commanders played executioner, shoving soldiers forward.
Spears and swords without a trace of aura rained down on me.
I repeated the same motions again.
I deflected spear shafts, thrusting my sword through the openings. I cut them down before their blades could reach me.
The infantry kept surging in.
Whether from ironclad duty, greed for merit, or forced by the executioners behind them, they sought my death—and I repaid them in kind with murderous resolve.
Corpses piled up.
Each step back splashed through pooling blood.
Fifty? A hundred? Or more.
I had no idea how many times I'd swung my sword or how many I'd killed.
And I didn't care.
All that mattered was that I still brimmed with power.
My eyes flashed as I searched for the next opponent.
A soldier who met my gaze let out a bizarre shriek and collapsed on the spot.
Beyond him, rank upon rank of crossbowmen took aim.
Dozens of bolts pierced the knights' heavy plate and tore into flesh, now trained on me.
I stepped forward and yanked the collapsed soldier up by his collar.
Then pulled him tight against me as a shield.
In that instant, dozens of bolts hurtled toward me.
The soldier in my grasp bulged his eyes wide.
Splat, splat!
Flesh tore as his body shuddered. Several bolts punched through him and struck me.
But not one left so much as a scratch.
Thanks to the [Golden Eye]'s utility.
Its owner had loathed even the slightest injury to his body.
"Guh."
The soldier spat blood, stared blankly at me, then went limp.
The bolt volley ceased.
I tossed the corpse aside and fixed my gaze on the crossbowmen.
Those who met my eyes blanched white, fumbling to reload. I continued glaring, kicking the weapons scattered at my feet one after another toward them.
"Eek!"
"Argh!"
The crossbowmen struck by flying blades screamed.
Even the commander berating them took a blade to the chest and crumpled.
Infantry officers bellowed curses. Soldiers hesitated before stepping forward. The knights held back a step, still waiting for me to tire, eyeing for an opening.
A laugh escaped me.
How ridiculous that this horde was stalled by one man, unable to advance or retreat.
I tightened my grip on my sword.
Normally, I'd just hold the line. But not now.
Killing one grunt meant one kingdom soldier could equip a decent steel sword.
Killing one knight meant one kingdom knight could mount a fine warhorse.
So easy.
I just had to lop off the heads they were practically offering up.
I raised my sword.
And softly chanted the eye's refrain.
"Bloodstained gold is my rightful due, and soon, my power."
In that moment, the blade glowed yellow, gleaming like it was forged of pure gold.
But my sword was no soft gold.
Slash.
Everything in its path was severed.
The imperial front lines crumbled in chaos.
"Huh?"
Imperial soldiers, caught unprepared by the collapse, uttered dumbfounded noises as they faced me.
I slashed even their bewildered faces.
Thud.
I kicked off the ground and plunged into the heart of the shattered ranks.
From then on, I swung wildly at whatever was in reach, slashing left and right in a frenzy like a madman unleashed.
Suddenly, I snapped to.
I'd rampaged so far from the gates.
I shook the blood from my sword with a fierce swing and walked back toward the gates.
No one stopped me.
The imperials simply watched from afar.
As I halted before the gates once more, someone muttered.
"M-monster..."
Terror spread through the imperial ranks.
I raised my presence higher.
To amplify that fear across the entire army.
Proving I wasn't tired, that power still surged within me.
In full glory, I demonstrated my vitality.
Soldiers exposed to the widespread aura dropped their spears and swords, collapsing.
Surviving knights spun their halos furiously in resistance. But their auras could only barely shield themselves. Imperial morale plummeted. The enemy banners everywhere visibly wilted.
And I was just one man.
That vast host cowering before me alone.
I'd wager not even ten Quad Chain knights could match my current majesty here.
The source of modern knights' power was merely mana accumulated in human flesh—and that fell short of swaying the tide of war.
They had the might to turn battles favorably, but nothing beyond.
That was probably why.
Why today's Swordmasters had lost their glorious ancient epithets.
But that too would become the past.
Here and now, I would revive that old glory.
And so I declared.
"Tell your general this."
I spoke the words.
Of the glorious feats past Swordmasters had achieved.
"If he intends to surpass me, he'll have to lose an entire legion."
I proclaimed the might of a one-man army.
The aura encircling me roiled.
And transformed.
Like the battle spirit raised by thousands of soldiers.
My declaration echoed across the field.
That was when the retreat horns blared.
The imperials glared at me with crushed faces, then turned and fled the field in droves.
I watched their retreating backs in silence.
Toot, toot, tooooooot.
The retreat horns continued urgently.
As if some disaster had struck their rear.
"Looks like it worked."
No sooner had the imperials withdrawn than Ilai, the Gerwein trio, and Gunef appeared.
Their clothes were singed and scratched to hell, faces etched with exhaustion.
Yet their expressions weren't grim.
Ilai held out two pouches upon seeing me.
"One went down easy in the ambush, the second we somehow took out. But after that, we couldn't make another move."
His report brimmed with smugness.
Probably Gunef did all the work, with them just tagging along.
What empty boasting.
Still, it wasn't nothing, so I rarely praised Ilai's contribution.
Then the old commander arrived.
He stared at me for a long while.
His mouth opened and closed several times, words failing him.
Finally, with a complicated expression, he spoke.
"You said you'd buy time, but you drove them off entirely."
His voice held awe tinged with disbelief.
I chuckled and offered him the pouch from Ilai.
"Imperial mage heads."
The old commander's face shifted rapidly upon confirmation.
I ignored his turmoil and asked.
"How much will you value these at?"
He looked at me incredulously.
But only briefly—soon he laughed heartily, promising whatever I wanted.
"I'll go bankrupt."
With all my retainers to feed.
Discussions on merits and rewards were brief.
The situation was too dire for haggling.
"Casualties are heavy. Even gathering every man who can fight, we're shy of 300."
"We're conscripting civilians inside, but we can't expect much from them."
The commander groaned at the reports.
A victory, but a pyrrhic one.
If the enemy returned, even I couldn't handle it.
Guarding 300 ragged survivors and masses of civilians alone was impossible.
In the last clash, they'd underestimated me and fixated on the gates, retreating easily once inside seemed futile—but no guarantee they'd repeat that.
They'd likely assault the entire wall at once.
No matter how I dashed about, some section would breach, and the garrison would be massacred.
We'd only postponed the fortress's fall momentarily.
The old commander immediately convened the staff for countermeasures.
I attended as liaison for the relief force.
Commanders proposed options.
One suggested retreat. All agreed.
The issue was timing and method.
Exhausted troops battered all night needed rest, not endless flight.
We couldn't drag out half-dead soldiers just because time was short.
"From what we've seen, the imperial commander is cautious. After today's losses, he'll besiege us and have surviving mages bombard rather than risk another all-out assault."
"We'll use that time to evacuate wounded and civilians safely."
The old commander and staff believed we had time.
I thought otherwise.
"The imperials will launch a full assault again tomorrow."
They frowned at my interjection. But after my display, none openly scolded me.
A pity.
I'd prepared a comeback if they called me mercenary scum.
"Why think that?"
Smacking my lips, I replied to the old commander.
"They have reason to hurry now."
"What reason?"
He pressed.
"Some idiot who could botch a sure win is heading here."
Just before the meeting, Gunef had beckoned me over.
Said he'd spotted imperial family knights in their camp. Ones we both knew.
Only then did I recall whose imperial paladin I'd slain today.
"The empire's 3rd Prince is coming here."
He'd been the 3rd Prince's paladin.
"If I were the imperial commander, I'd wrap this up before the 3rd Prince arrives."
To an idiot who could ruin a great empire given a chance, flipping one battle was trivial.
The commander would know that too.
Plus, he had extra motive to capture the fort ASAP.
Today's orders had gotten the 3rd Prince's paladin killed on the field.
To save his neck, he'd offer the fort to offset merit and fault.
Of course, just the commander's wishful thinking.
I formally proposed to the old commander.
"Even if we abandon the fort and retreat, let's hold until the 3rd Prince arrives."
He questioned what difference that would make.
Looking at him, I spoke with conviction.
"I guarantee you, holding out that long will change everything."
And added one more thing.
Once the 3rd Prince arrived, our blocked path would open wide.