Chapter 336: I Leave the Rest… to You (2)
Chapter 336: I Leave the Rest… to You (2)
It was a rather strange sight.
Even though the tide of battle had turned significantly, this was still a battlefield. It was a chaotic shambles where life and death crossed paths every second.
Yet, Patrick paid no mind to any of it, silently staring at the Overlord.
The Overlord held his sword toward Patrick, but he couldn't bring himself to charge recklessly. Even with his reason eroded, he could feel it—the vast, abyssal gap in power between himself and Patrick.
Patrick gazed at the Overlord for a long moment before speaking.
"Look at the pathetic state you're in."
"……."
"I asked you, what the hell is this?!"
The moment Patrick roared, the Overlord lunged forward reflexively. It wasn't so much seizing an opportunity as it was a paroxysmal counterattack, like a cornered rat pouncing on a cat. However…
The Overlord was still the Overlord.
The massive King’s sword descended toward the crown of Patrick’s head.
"Young Master!" April cried out urgently.
Patrick hadn't made a single move until the very moment the Overlord’s attack was about to land. Knowing the Overlord’s skill all too well, she couldn't help but be horrified. But then…
BOOM!
It sounded like a massive bubble bursting.
The Overlord’s signature strike, the Lord of the Sword—a blow that boasted invincibility on the battlefield—shattered the moment it touched Patrick’s sword.
Then, Patrick charged with a speed so blinding that even April’s eyes almost missed it, grabbing the Overlord by the collar. And then…
"You absolute moron!"
CRACK!
Patrick slammed his fist into the Overlord’s face. He hadn't even used his sword, yet the punch sent the Overlord flying into the distance.
Patrick frowned as he watched the fallen figure. "Dammit. If I knew it would come to this, I should have just killed you back then."
"……."
"I didn't give you a chance because I wanted to see you end up like this."
The Overlord struggled to his feet, his body broken and staggering. Patrick watched him with a look of pure pity. Sighing as he looked into those still-unfocused eyes, Patrick spoke.
"First, I need to snap you out of it. You're not even in a state to hold a conversation."
Patrick walked toward the Overlord without hesitation. Though it was just a normal walk, the Overlord sensed the danger and immediately counterattacked.
Grab!
Before he could even swing his sword, Patrick had already closed the distance and seized the Overlord’s wrist. Though it was just a simple grip, the Overlord’s entire body froze, unable to move.
"I'm still a bit clumsy with this," Patrick said. "It’s probably going to hurt like hell."
Patrick then forced his divine power into the Overlord.
"AAAAAAAAAGH!"
A scream of pure agony erupted from the mouth of the mindless Overlord.
Regardless, Patrick continued to pour divine power into him. He had to push out Jonsa’s dark magic, which had seeped into the very marrow of his bones, and find the Overlord’s personality buried deep within.
In that process, Patrick saw everything that made up the man known as Sierion Vaisus Yuzef, the Overlord.
* * *
His childhood, though ignored by the royal court, was spent under his mother’s protection. It was the only time in the Overlord’s life that he felt anything resembling peace.
[Mother. Like this?]
[Lower your center more. Yes. Like that. You’re doing well.]
His mother had originally been a knight. She had no interest in royal politics; her only joy was teaching her son her swordsmanship. Sierion was also at his happiest during those hours spent learning the blade from her.
But the mother and son could not have known then that this would become the seed of tragedy.
[Oh… He is a true genius.]
[Your Majesty. Prince Sierion will undoubtedly become a 7-Star Knight in the future. I guarantee it.]
At the age of only ten, Sierion felt aura for the first time and laid the foundation of a 1-Star Knight. The King was overjoyed and began to keep the young son he had previously ignored close to him.
This sparked a severe sense of crisis in the other queens and brothers. All the siblings eyeing the throne agreed that the sprout named Sierion had to be crushed.
Shortly after, the mother and son were framed for an absurd crime and exiled to the eastern frontier. Even during their journey into exile, pursuers tried to take their lives. And then…
[Run, Sierion.]
[Mother! Mother!]
[Sir Carvan! I entrust my son to you!]
[…I will protect him even at the cost of my life.]
[Motheeeer!]
[Become a great king, Sierion.]
His mother stayed behind alone to fight off the pursuers so that the young Sierion could live. Her back, turned to protect him—that was the last image of his mother Sierion remembered.
The East, where they eventually arrived, was a barren land neighboring the Great Forest, where people lived day to day in hardship. There was no respect for Sierion as a son of the royal family, and he had no one to trust except his only ally, Matthias Carvan.
But Sierion survived tenaciously through the adversity.
As he grew, people began to follow him one by one. The swordsmanship his mother left him and his innate charisma eventually made Sierion the ruler of the East. Having arrived with only a single knight, Sierion had grown into a powerful warlord encompassing the entire eastern region of the Yuzef Kingdom.
He gained many in the process, but he also had to lose many.
[Dammit! How long will it take to change this country at this rate?]
As Sierion raged against the wall of reality, Noah Gregory, the illegitimate son of the Gregory family, spoke to him.
[Your Highness, no matter how noble an ideal is, power is required to put that ideal into practice.]
[I know that. But it’s impossible to squeeze any more military strength out of the East.]
In the East, where human resources were limited and deaths were frequent due to the struggle against monsters, creating more military power was impossible no matter how much he thought about it.
Then Noah spoke. […It’s not that there isn't a way.]
[What?]
The method Noah suggested was a forbidden one.
At first, he didn't know. He was told it was just a special procedure created by mages. When he later learned it meant joining hands with dark mages, he was furious. Matthias was so enraged he tried to kill Noah. But…
[Stop.]
[Your Highness, are you going to forgive Noah?]
[I have no right to forgive him. From now on, we are accomplices.]
[Your Highness…]
[We simply walk this path together until the end.]
He asked himself many times. Was there really no other way? Was there truly no way other than joining hands with dark mages? But…
[The time for choice has passed.]
He couldn't undo what had already happened. He couldn't get off the carriage he had already boarded. Even if what awaited at the destination was hell, it was enough if he could carry on his mother’s will and save the suffering people of the East in the process.
[Even if the end of this road is hell, I shall walk it.]
After hardening his resolve, Sierion’s progress was unstoppable. With the help of dark mages, he strengthened the military power of the entire East, seized the weaknesses of influential domestic nobles, and took over the country piece by piece.
However, to ascend the throne after being away from central politics for so long, he needed a reputation he could flaunt to the public.
[Your Highness, Arcana is being held this year. Considering your age, it seems participation is possible.]
[Wasn't that only for Academy students?]
[Your Highness’s name has been on the Academy roster all along. You simply haven't attended under the guise of field training.]
[That’s fortunate.]
Thanks to Noah Gregory’s meticulous preparation, Sierion was able to participate in Arcana. And there, he saw him.
[Who are you? Why are you acting all friendly? Huh?]
[This brat… an elder is trying to educate you, and you’re throwing a tantrum? A tantrum?!]
[Fine. Let’s see who’s better at taking a hit and who’s better at giving one!]
At first, he wondered what kind of guy he was. Looking at his actions, he seemed like a reckless madman, but strangely, watching him was also cathartic. Especially when he thrashed the Prince of the Magellan Kingdom, Sierion burst into a rare, pleasant laugh.
‘Even if I conquer the Atronia Kingdom later, maybe I should keep that fellow by my side instead of killing him?’
Sierion’s feelings turned to shock during the finals against Garcia, the grandson of the Sword Saint.
[Ah… Ah…]
Patrick’s true skill shown in the finals. Though it was only a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg, it was enough to light the fire of longing in Sierion’s heart. If he could only have that man by his side, he would fear nothing in the world. He could cut ties with the dark mages immediately and realize his ideals with pure, righteous power.
He wanted to propose recruitment right then and there, but…
[I heard the Empire offered him a Count title and the Third Princess.]
[And?]
[He reportedly refused.]
[Haha…]
The Empire had made such an extraordinary offer, yet Patrick had refused. It was satisfying, but also disappointing. Currently, he was just a prince of the Yuzef Kingdom. He couldn't offer better conditions than the Empire, nor did he have a friendship with Patrick.
[It’s a shame. A real shame.]
It couldn't be helped. He had to sort out his priorities first. To contain a giant like Patrick Schneider, shouldn't he first become a vessel worthy of him?
[We’re going back. I’ll take the throne first.]
[Yes, my Lord.]
It was a long way around, but he vowed that their paths would cross again someday. After that…
Sierion successfully took the throne. He had braced himself for difficulty, but it was far too easy. Although a civil war broke out afterward as his brothers rose up, he never considered it a threat.
Later, he met Patrick again. He personally sought out the man who was shaking the entire continent during his knight training and offered him a position. But…
[Why did you dabble in dark magic?]
It was a blow that felt like a punch to the solar plexus. Patrick knew his shame, which no one else had seen through. And…
[I won't help you.]
[I’m different from you.]
[Even if your intentions are good and your goal is for the sake of everyone, if the path is wrong, everything is wrong.]
A firm rejection. At that moment, the Overlord already knew—that he and Patrick were walking different paths. But having come this far, he couldn't leave empty-handed. Therefore…
[Double Dragon. As a fellow swordsman, I challenge you.]
He challenged him to a duel, hoping to gain something by crossing blades. As a result…
[Congratulations, Your Highness.]
[Congratulations.]
[You have finally crossed the wall.]
There was a harvest. The Lord of the Sword. The ultimate sword that became his symbol and brought him victory on the battlefield. It was a technique he could never have obtained if he hadn't risked his life to challenge Patrick.
After that…
Sierion—no, the Overlord—marched forward without hesitation. He crushed the Flame Kingdom, then won the war against the Caesar Kingdom and annexed the Decatur Kingdom. Before he knew it, he had conquered three countries and become the king of a massive power encompassing the northeastern part of the continent.
His country grew strong, and his dream drew closer. And above all, the biggest change was…
[Ca… Catherina.]
[Hold him.]
[…….]
[He is our child.]
He hadn't known. He truly hadn't dreamed that becoming a father would feel like this.
Catherina von Flame. He hadn't married her because he loved her. He had only married her because a political marriage was necessary to peacefully annex the Flame Kingdom. However, because he couldn't help but feel pity for her, who had lost her country and family because of him, he had always treated her with excessively polite courtesy as his wife.
Such a woman had given birth to his child. And the moment he held that child in his arms…
[Ah…]
He was overwhelmed by an indescribable emotion. This tiny life in his arms was so precious, and the wife who had given him this precious being was so lovely. He wouldn't hesitate to give his life to protect these two. And above all…
[I have to decide now.]
He couldn't pass his flaws down to his son. The Overlord resolved to cut ties with the dark mages. While conducting a massive purge, he prepared thoroughly for a counterattack from the dark mages. And…
[Noah, Matthias. I have a request in case something happens.]
[Please speak, Your Highness.]
[If I am defeated by the dark mages and become their puppet, you must kill me by any means necessary. And I entrust my wife and son to you.]
[Your Highness, why do you speak such tragic words?]
[It’s just… just in case of an emergency.]
He hoped with all his heart that such a thing wouldn't happen. But…
In the end, that worst-case scenario occurred. No, thinking about it, it was bound to happen.
[It’s impressive that you’re holding out, but this is the end. Overlord.]
[You… bastard…]
There was no chance of winning from the start. His opponent was far more cunning and relentlessly thorough than he was. The Overlord hadn't known that they had placed a taboo on him as a vessel for an Outer God from the very beginning.
From that point on, the Overlord’s consciousness grew faint.
[Your Highness… Ugh…]
The last thing he remembered was the sight of Marquis Noah Gregory pointing a gun at him with tears in his eyes.
It’s okay. It’s fine, so shoot.
He wanted to scream it. But at that time, the Overlord was at his limit just trying to control his body to stop it. And Noah…
[Your Highneeeess…]
He couldn't pull the trigger. Though he was known to the world as a cunning schemer called the Overlord’s Snake, his loyalty toward the Overlord was real.
After that, he was barely conscious until Matthias Carvan successfully escaped with his son and wife. But after that…
[You’re pointlessly persistent. I’ll have to do some work on you to make you a perfect familiar.]
Jonsa himself began to remodel the Overlord’s body and tinker with his soul. And from that point, the Overlord’s soul sank completely into the abyss.
Deeply… deeply…
"Snap out of it already."
"…Double… Dra…gon."
Until this very moment.