Chapter 430: The Start of the War
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 430: The Start of the War
The method I used to treat the Grand Duke was surprisingly simple.
‘I never thought watching a first-aid video on NewTube would come in handy.’
I had pressed his acupoints to suppress the reverse flow of his aura, but as a result, a massive amount of aura stagnated, causing the Grand Duke's meridians to swell up like a balloon about to burst.
If he were a lesser opponent, I could have solved it by channeling my internal energy into him to guide the flow of his aura.
The problem, however, was that he was a high-level Aura Master.
Even if I tried to force the flow, the chances of failure were high.
And even if I succeeded, it would have likely backfired.
That's when I thought of a cardiac defibrillator.
The principle behind a defibrillator is simple.
It forcibly stops an erratically beating heart for a very brief moment, ‘resetting’ it to start beating again with a normal rhythm.
My palm, infused with Indestructible Vajra Body energy and the element of lightning, served as the defibrillator. All that was left was to control the power just enough not to burst his heart and strike him squarely in the chest.
Unlike martial artists who gather internal energy in their dantian, knights accumulate aura in their hearts.
This is called an ‘Aura Heart.’
It was my first time trying it, so I was naturally a little anxious, but in the end, I succeeded in restoring the normal flow of his aura.
That's what I meant when I told Amelia the Grand Duke had to die once.
I got a slap on the back from Amelia for the first time for explaining it so vaguely, but after the treatment was done, I was showered with kisses.
‘I never imagined he’d drag his battered body straight to the conference hall the moment he heard about the traitors.’
I watched for a moment as dozens of maids skillfully cleaned up the piles of corpses before leaving the conference hall.
Honestly, I didn't think he'd kill all those nobles. Even if they were traitors, they were key figures in the Duke Faction.
I thought he might spare a few, but the Grand Duke was not a man who showed mercy.
‘Are they puppies or something?’
The three nobles who had carried out the massacre in the conference hall were trailing behind the Grand Duke like puppies.
For the record, Baron Dorasilb was dragged away by a doctor on the Grand Duke's orders.
“Your Highness, I never doubted for a single moment that you would awaken!”
“I felt the same, Your Highness.”
Just as Count Alestro and Baron Bipolun, despite their large frames, were tearing up, only Count Castrel spoke up, cautiously testing the waters.
“...Your Highness. If it is not too rude, might I be so bold as to ask about the circumstances of your awakening?”
“It was thanks to him.”
“Pardon?”
The Grand Duke turned his head and looked at me.
His gaze stopped on my hand, intertwined with Amelia’s.
I glanced around and tried to subtly pull my hand away, but Amelia quickly tightened her grip.
“...Not yet.”
“Tsk.”
Seeing Amelia’s flushed face, the Grand Duke’s expression twisted.
I am innocent.
“He saved my life. Treat him as a benefactor of the ducal family.”
““Yes, Your Highness!””
At the Grand Duke's command, the way the nobles looked at me changed 180 degrees.
But the Grand Duke's own voice sounded incredibly reluctant.
To be treated like this after saving his life.
‘...Is this how a father feels when his daughter is stolen from him?’
I chuckled and approached the Grand Duke.
“I think it’s a bit premature to say I’ve saved your life. What I did was merely first aid. If you don’t receive proper treatment right away, it wouldn’t be strange if you collapsed at any moment.”
Stopping the rampage and reverse flow of his aura didn't mean his body, weakened from being bedridden for a year, had recovered.
In fact, it was a mystery how he was even moving right now.
“What must be done?”
“There’s nothing more for me to do. The rest is up to the doctors and priests.”
Of course, I could help him recover a bit faster, but honestly, it was too much of a bother.
Besides, no matter how quickly he healed, it would be impossible for the Grand Duke to play an active role in this war.
He’ll need at least three months of recuperation to move like he used to.
“Understood. Count Castrel, find a priest. However, exclude any from the Sun Cult.”
“I will see to it, Your Highness.”
“Count Alestro, take the rebels’ letter of surrender, fill it with everything you want to say, and send it back. I will not tolerate any empty formalities.”
“Of course!”
“And Baron Bipolun. You are to return to your territory, lead your army, and establish a defensive line on the Eastern Plains. We will meet the enemy there.”
Baron Bipolun bowed his head and immediately withdrew, vanishing as if he were never there.
After skillfully issuing commands to the nobles, the Grand Duke followed the doctor who arrived shortly after and headed for his bedroom.
And before he left, he looked at Amelia and me in turn, leaving us each with a final word.
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
“...Father.”
Amelia ran into the Grand Duke’s arms, crying.
Watching the dramatic father-daughter reunion made me feel warm and fuzzy for some reason.
“And you.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t call me Father anymore.”
The touching moment was shattered in an instant.
As if that wasn't enough, the Grand Duke pulled Amelia closer to him, as if trying to tear her away from me.
Honestly, I was dumbfounded.
Where in the world could he find a son-in-law as excellent as me?
Sure, I might have a few too many women around me, but it’s natural for a hero to have three wives and four concubines.
‘I killed a Malefis executive who was trying to sacrifice the duchy’s people to a great demon, and I’m going to win this war for them. That’s more than enough to qualify as a hero.’
Besides, the World Tree even acknowledged me as a Hero.
Most importantly, this world is overflowing with nobles who chase women far more than I do.
“Of course, I can’t thank you enough. But that doesn’t mean I intend to hand over my daughter—”
“Father!”
“...Let me finish.”
At Amelia’s fierce reaction, the Grand Duke frowned and pressed his forehead.
He looked like a man betrayed by the daughter he trusted, facing his pathetic end.
“I have no intention of handing over my daughter, but it would be ridiculous for me to object when you two are fond of each other. Do as you please. However, I will not give you the ducal title.”
“I don’t mind. It’s not the ducal title I want, it’s Amelia.”
The two of them had distinctly different reactions to my words.
Amelia covered her beet-red face with her hands, while the Grand Duke revealed a faint killing intent.
“Hoo... If my wife were alive, she would have surely stopped this...”
“If it were Mother, she would have started planning the wedding day immediately.”
“...Now that you’re all grown up, you won’t even let me get a word in.”
The Grand Duke shook his head tiredly and walked toward the bedroom.
Amelia stared intently at his departing figure.
“Amelia.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll be fine, so go on.”
“...”
She had just been reunited with her father, who had been unconscious for a whole year.
She must have a truckload of things she wanted to say to him.
“...Thank you.”
Chu—
Amelia planted a kiss on my cheek and then quickly followed the Grand Duke.
And so, I was left standing alone in the hallway.
No, to be precise, I wasn't alone.
“Shall we be on our way, then?”
“Yes.”
Guided by Morad, the head butler I had met when I first entered the ducal castle, I headed for the treasury in the castle’s basement.
When I mentioned I needed medicinal herbs and elixirs, the Grand Duke casually handed me the key to the vault and told me to take as much as I needed.
Relieved that he wasn't a cheapskate, I passed the tight security and entered the treasury.
It was enormous, on a scale that could rival the vaults of the British Royal Family.
Occasionally, an artifact would pique my curiosity, but I quickly looked away.
That wasn't what was important right now.
‘What Iris needs is an elixir to stabilize her magic power and medicinal herbs to help her recuperate.’
She doesn't usually show it, but Iris's condition is like a raging sea, with massive tidal waves crashing relentlessly.
If it were more like a swimming pool, I could have alleviated her symptoms by simply draining some of the water, but trying to bail out the ocean was like trying to carve a mountain with a spoon.
Therefore, I needed an elixir that could stabilize her magic power, like calming the rough waves to make the sea tranquil.
Of course, an elixir that could forcibly circulate her stagnant magic power would be even better, but such things weren't easy to come by.
I asked the treasury's keeper just in case, but as expected, he said they had nothing of the sort.
In the end, I settled for taking some medicinal herbs to replenish the energy of the weakened Iris.
However, I had to avoid any herbs with excessively strong yang (陽) energy.
“This one looks good. This one seems nice, too. I’ve never seen this before... should I just take it?”
And so, I continued my shopping, losing all track of time.
It was about an hour later when I finally left the vault.
*
Vwoosh!!
A sword traces an arc through the air.
The sword dance scatters in all directions, then converges to a single point before fanning out once more.
There was no hesitation in my swing.
No, I correct myself.
I am not swinging a sword, but my arm.
Unity of Body and Sword (身劍合一).
It was a state I had reached long ago.
The person becomes the sword, and the sword becomes the person.
It sounds incredibly profound on the surface, but in reality, it was a state that any swordsman who reached the Transcendent Realm could achieve.
After all, becoming one with the sword is a prerequisite for creating an Aura Blade.
“Hoo...”
I sheathed the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword and wiped away my sweat.
In the distance, the sun was setting beyond the ridgeline.
I had been so focused on my training that I hadn't noticed the time pass.
A day and a half had already passed since the Grand Duke regained consciousness.
Quite a lot had happened in that time.
The rebel army, having received a reply filled with all sorts of insults and curses, finally raised their forces. In response, Count Alestro and Count Castrel led their troops and marched to the Eastern Plains.
Meanwhile, Baron Bipolun, who had handed over command to the two counts, remained at the castle to oversee its defense.
As the captain of the Royal Guard, it was his natural duty.
‘I believe they said the two sides would clash in two days.’
A war for the fate of the duchy was about to begin.
But none of that registered in my mind.
Because last night, Iris had a seizure.
It wasn't uncommon for Iris to have seizures, but yesterday was the first time she had coughed up blood.
Honestly, I don't remember much about yesterday. My mind probably went blank the moment I saw the blood.
‘...Coughing up blood doesn’t mean Iris’s condition has worsened. It was just bad blood coming out due to the stagnant magic power.’
If anything, it was proof that the herbs I decocted for her were working.
But regardless of that objective reality, I had been barely holding onto my sanity since yesterday.
That must be why I've been cooped up in the training grounds until now, after swinging my sword all night.
I was feeling impatient.
If I had my way, I would leave for the Santala Kingdom this instant. But I couldn't do that.
Shing—
“...Dermier von Edramond, Birellion Ricks Belmoras, Oswin Cardamon Orion, Balthazar Erebon Kailix, Julien Theodore Bellastir...”
Clutching the hilt of my sword, I mulled over their names one by one. These were the names of the rebel commanders I had to cut down.
I'm a greedy man; I can't make a choice to abandon one thing for another.
So, leaving Amelia behind like this was also impossible.
That means there is only one thing I must do—
end this war as quickly as possible.
I was slightly tired from a full day of training, but my senses were sharper than ever.
Vwoooom—
“Don’t be impatient. I’m taking you with me.”
Tiring—
[New item information has been collected.]
[Corrupted Starlight Staff
Grade: Epic+
A staff made from the bones of the Archlich Cornelius, who once tried to burn the western continent.
Bestows a curse upon the user.
Absorbs the user's magic power to dramatically increase the power of spells.]
It was a staff I had borrowed from the ducal castle's treasury.
The description was very simple, but just by holding this staff, some people had aged rapidly, while others suffered from hallucinations and auditory illusions until they committed suicide.
Even high-ranking priests couldn't resist the curse and would lose their minds, becoming idiots.
Thanks to that, I was able to borrow it after it had been left neglected in a corner of the treasury for decades.
Besides, thanks to ‘Lelia’s Little Key,’ curses don't work on me anyway.
“Well then, shall we go?”
Whoosh—
Dressed in black, I slipped out of the mansion through the window.
Just then, the sun had completely set, and darkness began to cover the world.
My destination: the Eastern Plains, where the rebel army's camp was located.
I had a feeling tonight was going to be an especially long one.