Chapter 159
Chapter 159
Logan struggled to calm his pounding heart as his horse galloped forward.
It wasn't the lingering excitement from the aftermath of war.
'I've crossed the biggest hurdle.'
Only now did he truly feel the weight of overcoming what had seemed like an insurmountable mountain when he first returned to the past.
The hundred knights and thousand crossbow cavalrymen following him—forces he couldn't have even dreamed of assembling three and a half years ago—were proof of how far he had come.
And behind him, his brother, Victor, Ellen, and others who would become transcendent warriors in the future were all unharmed.
Above all else—
Hmm.
'I...!'
The glimpse beyond the wall—the realm beyond human limits that had once felt vague and distant—now seemed almost within his grasp after slaying Duke Jordan.
An achievement he had never dared imagine in his past life.
The inexplicable talent he gained upon returning had illuminated a path through the bleak future.
'I can do this!'
According to his memories, the war with the Empire would break out in six or seven years. With the forces he had now, he had more than enough strength to lay the groundwork for that battle.
And for that very reason—
'I need to clean up everything left in the capital.'
Suppressing his exhilaration, Logan repeatedly shouted back at his men.
"A little more! Just a little faster!"
Of course, his urgency wasn't entirely understood.
"Why is he like this?"
"How should I know? Stay focused. Hey—watch out! Don't doze off!"
"If you fall asleep now, you'll roll right off! Be careful!"
The MacLaine knights, who had barely had time to savor the relief of victory before being pushed into another relentless march, were exhausted.
Short breaks and naps measured in minutes weren't enough to recover from the fatigue of battle.
Dark circles deepened under the knights' eyes, and the crossbow cavalrymen, despite their lighter gear, were already half-asleep in their saddles.
It was a miracle no one had fallen behind.
The MacLaine forces charged forward without pause, only stopping when they reached the plains where the towering walls of the capital, Gran, came into view the next day.
Neigh—!
"What's that army?"
"Who are they?"
"There's a lot of them!"
The majestic walls of Gran were still far in the distance, but the army of over five thousand men lined up before them couldn't be ignored.
As MacLaine's elite murmured uneasily—
"They're allies! Stay calm and approach slowly!"
Logan smiled, spotting the ornate flower crest on the banners of the foremost group with his superhuman vision.
'I thought it'd take weeks longer. You've worked hard.'
"Welcome, 'son-in-law.' I heard the news of your victory. I did my best, but in the end, I ended up as a welcoming party rather than reinforcements. I'm ashamed."
"Not at all, 'father-in-law.' Thank you for coming to greet us."
The two men dismounted and embraced warmly.
Though Ellen's face flushed slightly, the simple gesture alone reaffirmed the alliance between the MacLaine and Floyd families to the surrounding nobles.
"No, no. I couldn't help with the real trouble."
"Not at all. The forces you've gathered now will be a great help."
"Hm? Now that you're here...?"
"Yes. May I take command? I need to clean up the remnants of the rebel faction in the capital."
"Ah...! Of course, naturally."
In that moment, MacLaine's forces entering the capital tripled in size.
The Royal Knights, who had been blocking the influx of refugees, couldn't stop the entry of an army nearly seven thousand strong.
No—to be more precise, the captain of the Royal Knights himself came forward to welcome them.
"Welcome to the capital, Prince MacLaine!"
"It's Logan, Captain. Thank you for your hospitality."
"Ah! Ahahaha. My apologies for my ignorance, Prince Logan. The Third Prince awaits you. Shall I escort you directly to Sword Duke Felix's estate?"
Logan's expression twisted slightly at the excessively submissive middle-aged man with a mustache.
His skill was undoubtedly top-tier, befitting the position of Royal Knight Captain—but in Logan's eyes, his evaluation had already plummeted.
'Only crawling out after the next king is decided to cling to the winning side? Count Francisco Romero, your skill is wasted on you.'
But Logan kept his thoughts to himself and politely asked the Royal Knight Captain—responsible for the capital's security—for cooperation in his task.
"Before meeting His Highness Rogers, I'd like to search for any remaining 'traitors.' Would you assist me?"
"Huh? Remnants? That's... Ah—yes. Of course."
Though his eyes flickered momentarily, the captain remained flexible, bowing deeply.
"But when will Sword Duke Felix...?"
"He'll arrive once this matter is settled. No need to worry."
The Sword Duke has approved this. Follow orders.
The implicit meaning in Logan's words silenced any further questions from Captain Francisco.
However, he would come to regret not stopping Logan within hours.
"Drag out every last person inside. Gather them—I'll judge them myself."
After ordering raids on the mansions of Duke Walterheim and Duke Douglas, as well as the estates of former border lords, Logan added:
"Every last trace of the rebel faction's leadership—aside from the two captured marquises—will be erased."
The nobles watching paled at the radical declaration.
High-ranking nobles' heirs often stayed in the capital rather than their rural territories.
Logan's words meant uprooting the entire foundation of his enemies.
But there could be no opposition.
The de facto leader of the victorious MacLaine family had spoken—and every high-ranking noble remaining in the capital was already cooperating with him.
"The Royal Knights will guide you! Capture them all! Kill any who resist on the spot!"
Logan's command made everyone present keenly aware that a new era had arrived.
In a world where magical communication was advanced, news of the war's outcome had spread three days before Logan reached Gran.
By all logic, the direct heirs of the rebel border lords should have fled long ago.
At least, that's what Logan had assumed.
If asked why he still carried out this purge—
'A symbol. A warning that rebellion won't be tolerated.'
But once again, reality defied expectations.
"Let go! Release me! Do you know who I am?!"
From the obese man wearing the Douglas ducal crest to—
"How dare you not release me?! I am Roland Walterheim! The third grandson of Duke Jordan Walterheim!"
—the fool waving a shield emblazoned with the roaring lion crest of House Walterheim while screaming his lineage.
Logan could only laugh dryly at the parade of idiots who, for some reason, had stayed in the capital instead of fleeing.
'Do they have some delusional belief I don't know about? Or are they just convinced they're untouchable?'
He couldn't tell if he was the fool for not understanding—or if they were the fools for staying.
Of course, not every heir had remained.
The only noble houses with no direct heirs left in their mansions were Count Talos and Count Ulvus—both of whose lords had presumably fled, as no trace of them was found at the MacLaine battle.
'Lina... Well, I never expected that fox to stick around.'
For some reason, he felt a faint twinge of disappointment.
Shaking off the pointless thought, Logan turned his gaze to the hundreds gathered in the palace courtyard.
Half a day had already passed since the first captures.
By now, the prisoners (?) were watching Logan's every move intently.
The killing intent radiating from the soldiers and knights surrounding them was enough to make even the most oblivious nobles tremble.
'The servants were cross-checked and released, so these are all direct or branch family members... or retainers.'
Under the gaze of hundreds—no, thousands, including the soldiers—Logan stood.
Sensing the ominous shift in atmosphere, voices rose from the crowd.
"Sp-spare us, Prince!"
Those begging for mercy.
"Wh-what are you planning?!"
Those demanding answers.
"No noble has the right to take another noble's life!"
Those spouting nonsense.
"You! Release me at once! Do you know who I—?!"
...And the outright morons.
Surveying the motley crowd, Logan uttered a single, emotionless sentence.
"Kill them all."
Even the knights who had been briefed beforehand flinched at the cold command.
But after a brief hesitation, the order was carried out without further delay.
"Aaaagh—!"
With the last obese man's scream, silence fell over the palace courtyard.
The corpses littering the blood-soaked ground naturally had nothing to say—and those who had created the carnage stood stiffly, unable to speak.
Logan turned his head calmly.
"Is the confirmation complete?"
"Yes. Not a single drop of rebel blood remains in Gran."
"Good. Then next—we head to the palace."
"Yes. ...Huh?"
Even Victor, who had remained expressionless throughout the massacre, widened his eyes at the declaration.
'...Surely not?'
The same question flashed through everyone's minds.
"The children of the First and Second Princes. And the bureaucrats from the old factions hiding in the palace. Capture them all and bring them to the Grand Hall."
Logan's shocking order fell like a hammer.
An unprecedented act of regicide by the ruling nobility.
Even the knights hesitated—but Logan's next command brooked no refusal.
"I'll take responsibility! Drag them here!"
With renewed resolve, the knights sprinted toward the palace.
"Um, son-in-law... Are you sure about this? Did you really discuss this with Sword Duke Felix?"
Count Roberts Floyd, speaking on behalf of the nobles pale with shock, asked cautiously.
"It's necessary. I'll bear all responsibility."
Logan's tone was unyielding.
'He's really going through with it.'
'Even if it's royalty...'
'I'd better stay out of his way.'
The nobles, their faces cycling through shades of white and blue, instinctively took a step back.
Logan smirked at their reaction and strode toward the palace's Grand Hall.
'Did you think I rushed here just to wipe out the border lords' bloodlines?'
The reason he had pushed his men to exhaustion, leaving the battlefield cleanup to his master, was precisely for this.
'Third Prince Rogers von Grandia—every royal not tied to him will disappear today.'
To reshape the kingdom, he couldn't afford to leave behind even a single potential obstacle.
Today, the royal family would be cleansed—and any royals lucky enough to avoid this purge would have to renounce their lineage if they wished to survive.
'And once that's done...'
BANG!
The doors to the Grand Hall burst open, revealing the extravagant throne at the far end.
'The king himself won't be able to ignore my words. Never again!'
A complex mix of emotions flickered across Logan's face as he stared at the throne.
'Preparing to stop the Empire starts right here.'
For that goal, he would do anything.
To ensure the faint glimmer of hope he had seized after overcoming the civil war wouldn't slip away.