Chapter 236
Chapter 236
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 236
Chapter Title: The Star Turning Its Back to the Light (4)
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Even as the corpses from yesterday cooled, their hearts froze, and the light of life faded from their eyes, a new sun rose over the battlefield.
To the crusade army, it brought the belief that the gaze of their god was upon them. To the allied forces, it offered warmth to thaw muscles stiffened by the night's chill. In either case, it served as the driving force to return to the fray—a point on which both sides agreed. The Atalans, whose bodies were seventy percent water and thirty percent filled to the brim with the will to fight, would battle on even if the sun didn't rise for centuries...
Up until now, the pattern of battle had generally been Goltaran and the allied forces charging ahead without a second thought, met by counterattacks from the crusade army.
But not today.
Allied forces supreme commander Goltaran stood his ground with a grim expression that outshone the dawn. Shadows darkened the faces of his direct aides even further. Those shadows deepened toward the rear, until the women at the back looked as if they wore pitch-black masks.
"So, in the end, we couldn't find Yevril."
"Yes, unfortunately... We found no traces at all, General."
"Unless someone committed some unspeakable act and hid it perfectly, I suspect some inexplicable miracle occurred..."
The aides answered the general's question with troubled voices. The sentries and women paled at the thought that they might face punishment under military law.
Goltaran roughly rubbed his face. Of all times, for their finest shaman to vanish now? It was absurd. The situation was already dire enough, and now the path ahead grew even darker in facing Elga's star.
In ordinary circumstances, it wouldn't have been cause for immediate alarm. Up to now, the crusade army had merely held their position without launching any aggressive offensives.
But for some reason, today the crusade army was charging at them first.
With an excited momentum unlike before, as if they had sensed trouble on this side.
If the vanguard leading that charge was Elga's star... then today, they would be hard-pressed to avoid annihilation.
"......"
"......"
Even so, there was no thought of avoiding the fight.
Even against an enemy they had no hope of defeating, they would stand and battle to the end until death—that was the Atalan way of life.
Goltaran donned his full armor and hefted a new battle axe to replace the one that had been shattered. He turned to his subordinates and bellowed thunderously.
"Non-combatants, return to your tents immediately! All whose veins pulse with the blood of warriors, follow me! Fear not death! Those who fall today, regardless of origin, shall reach the paradise of endless war and revelry! The Lord of Eternal Battle watches over us from the heavens—glory to Atala!!"
"Glory to Atala!!"
"Glory to the Master of the Invincible Legion!!"
"Ataaaaaala!!"
The Indomitable Legion warriors and the auxiliary soldiers all chanted the war god's sacred name in unison as they charged. At their forefront, as always, stood 'the Border Butcher' Goltaran.
Fortunately, Elga's star was not among the enemy vanguard. In the first clash, a massive barbarian warrior's axe cleaved a holy knight's helmet.
Kwa-kak!!
"Grk!"
Spraying red blood served as the signal flare for battle. Soldiers hiding behind shields gritted their teeth and thrust their spear tips forward. Goltaran smashed the spear shafts with his axe, then kicked the shield with all his might. The brutish kick sent a line of soldiers tumbling, only to be mercilessly trampled by those following behind.
"Gaaaaah!"
"Aaaah, my back!! My... Gah!!"
Barbarian warriors pressed forward, crushing soldiers underfoot without mercy. The crunch of bones breaking beneath their soles grated through. Another holy knight stepped up with a flail to block the way.
"Lord of Eternal Glory, Elga!! Grant me the strength to smite this heathen who worships the god of dust!!"
Woooong, ka-ang!!
A blinding white flash repelled the battle axe. The holy knights then simultaneously invoked Elga's divine arts. Seeing this, Goltaran activated his tattoos and roared at full volume.
"Vanguard, listen up!! Draw forth the power of your tattoos and stand against the enemy now!!"
"Vanguard! Activate all tattoos now!"
"Vanguard!! Activate all tattoos now!!"
Woooong!!
Chants echoed in unison, and the layered tattoos glowed with a yellowish light. Empowered warriors charged fearlessly at the foe. Like dust clouds trailing a herd of bulls, the ochre mist burrowed into the cluster of pure white light. Clashing weapons, straining muscles, rising screams, blood, sweat, dust, light, and cries all blended chaotically on the battlefield bathed in the fresh morning sun.
"Atala thirsts for your blood!!"
"The judgment of Elga awaits you primitive heretics!!"
"Hold the flank!! Don't let them break through... Ghk!!"
The shamans' tattoos were in no way inferior to the crude divine arts. The allied forces pressed the enemy fiercely. Moreover, their vanguard's prowess held the clear upper hand.
Perk-grk, jje-grrrk!!
"Ghk, guhhehe... "
"A, ahaha... S-save... "
Perk-grk!!
Even deprived of his favorite weapon, 'the Border Butcher's' exploits remained dazzling. His battle axe wove skillfully between armor plates and muscles, reaping lives. Having butchered countless holy knights and activated tattoos to his heart's content, his power had long transcended human limits.
The holy knights fought valiantly in their own right, but they fell short against the frenzied barbarian warrior. Goltaran mercilessly carved through lesser high paladins and paladins, then lunged like a protective barrier toward the arch paladin he had marked earlier.
But just as he closed in, the arch paladin shouted.
"Retreat, retreat!!! Fall back to the main position!!"
"Retreat!!! Everyone fall back!!"
The crusade army fled in panic, as if they had never launched the initial assault. Goltaran immediately ordered a pursuit.
"Where do you think you're going, dogs of Elga!! Follow those cowards who know only defeat and submission, and annihilate them!!"
"All forces, pursue and annihilate the enemy!!"
"All forces, pursue and annihilate the enemy!!!"
Furious kicks kicked up clouds of dust. The allied forces became a single sandstorm chasing the foe.
As he charged at the forefront, Goltaran thought. This was a pattern repeated countless times—the enemy would soon hurl a spear to block the path. But this time, he had no intention of yielding. Today, he was determined to settle it one way or another, even if it meant death for one side.
Yet what appeared this time was no spear shaft.
It was a single radiant horse leaping into the sky.
- Whiiiing!!
And atop it, a giant plummeting to strike the ground.
―――――――― Kwaaaaang!!
The impact's shockwave didn't merely shake the earth. A brilliant wave spread like ripples from the strike point. Every single allied soldier was swept up in the dazzling torrent without exception.
Guuuuung!!
"Hup!"
"Urk, what is this..."
No one suffered immediately life-threatening wounds or death. But considering they were on a battlefield, it was as fatal as it got.
Ting, ta-dang, ching, tsrrrrr...
Spears, swords, axes, shields, bows... All the warriors' weapons passed through their hands and fell. As if they were mere illusions shaped like arms. Hands reaching to pick them up merely sliced through empty air, like stirring a watery shadow.
Only one person escaped the wide-area disarmament: the holy knight who had slammed the ground to unleash the wave.
"Serve the light. Love 'peace.' Then your soul shall one day reach the eternal fields where the sun never sets."
The golem-like man retrieved his iron mace adorned with a steel dove from the ground. A decagonal star pattern—the 'stigma'—flashed on his forehead.
Goltaran was no exception to the disarmament. The method differed, but like yesterday, he lost his axe and was left bare-handed. He could guess the enemy's identity. That pattern and bizarre authority marked him as another of Elga's 'stars,' without a doubt.
One was burdensome enough; now there were two. And to make matters worse, this one seemed full of fighting spirit and sharp-minded.
'Damn it, it wasn't a retreat—it was a lure to draw us into the miracle's range...'
If it were an opponent he could handle bare-handed, it might be fine, but that seemed unlikely. Cowed by the bizarre miracle and the foe emanating even greater pressure than a golem, the allied forces hesitated and fell back. Goltaran alone clenched his fists and barely held his ground.
"So another fool's come to play falling star... What's your name?"
"Paxstan. Paxstan, the 'Star that Calls Peace.'"
"...A name that hardly suits your looks. What, did you disarm all our weapons to preach peaceful surrender?"
"Hardly. Distrust and heresy are seeds of discord. True 'peace' can only be achieved through the eradication of distrust."
The massive figure moved like lightning. His iron mace swung mercilessly toward an Atalan warrior.
Per-grk!!
"...Urk."
A death rattle groaned out as the skull crumpled. A chunk of grayish brain matter dangled from the steel dove's beak. Paxstan calmly sheathed his divine weapon, 'Pacifist.'
"Embrace 'peace,' heretic. The world will reclaim 'peace' through your eternal torment in hell."
The allied forces' eyes bulged in rage.
Led by the 'Star that Calls Peace,' the ambushing holy knights and soldiers charged at the now weaponless enemy.
*
"...That's the full account of how General Goltaran confronted the 'Star that Calls Peace.' The rest is a report on battle losses and a request for reinforcements..."
Acting council chair Enrico set down the crumpled bundle of papers on the desk. It was the last 'wind-wing messenger bird' letter urgently delivered to Goltaran.
A heavy tension hung in the office. Duncan swallowed dryly. Kadim crossed his arms and furrowed his brow slightly.
"So, is that Goltaran guy dead?"
"...No. The general broke through bare-handed and retreated, barely saving his life. But he took heavy wounds, and over half his forces are combat-ineffective... If we don't stop the 'Star that Calls Peace,' the entire Indomitable Legion, general included, might perish soon."
"......"
The barbarian's face subtly stiffened. Enrico assumed it was worry for Goltaran and his kin, plus the bizarre miracle wielded by the 'Star that Calls Peace.'
He was wrong. Kadim paid little mind to the regenerated fake great warrior or this peace star nonsense—none of Elga's stars sitting at the fringes concerned him much.
He was thinking of an old arch paladin who had steadfastly upheld truth and integrity amid the corrupt church, but now held his disciples hostage.
'Even if darkness dyes the world at night, a star must shine in its place. Only then can someone see that light and find their way...'
Now, with darkness blacker than ever cloaking everything.
How long could the 'Star that Pierces Truth' keep shining in place?
Could he cling to noble conviction to the end, even gazing upon false light?
Hendark had urged him to stop even his own allies to prevent innocent deaths. Delaying the frontline advance was likely the same rationale. But now, precious lives weighed on his shoulders. Unless he sacrificed his disciples, conflict with this side was inevitable.
Kadim had made a clear deal with Hendark: in exchange for invading allied territory and halting the 'holy knights harming the innocent,' he would receive information on the stigmas and various rewards.
Even the deal's parties were no exception to its terms.
Kuung... Wooong.
He hefted the colossal weapon forged to shatter stars, the 'Star Crusher.' The silver mass trembled violently, as if eyeing a new victim. The enchant inscriptions and adjacent decagonal star pattern gleamed radiantly.
Startled by the sudden action, Duncan blinked wide-eyed.
"M-Master? You're heading to the central front right now?"
"Yeah. Two evil stars have shown up after ages; can't just leave 'em be."
"Wha—y-you're going to kill both?"
"Why? Got a reason I shouldn't?"
"N-No... Um... W-Would I be going with you, Master?"
"No, you stay here. If Decagram shows up while I'm gone, you handle it."
"......"
Duncan wore a hopeless expression.
Last time, he'd somehow pulled it off with luck, but how was he supposed to solo another monster like that...? Following Kadim meant facing two Decagram members for sure, one of whom had helped them, so it was awkward either way.
Enrico then put on a troubled face as well.
"Y-Your prowess is renowned in heaven and on earth, known even to the great Golden Lord... But wouldn't it be wiser to prepare more thoroughly? If the 'Star that Calls Peace's' power truly disarms all weapons, even that iron hammer grandpa's masterpiece might become useless..."
"......"
Such a reaction was understandable. Enrico didn't know Kadim had made a deal with Hendark or grasped most of the 'stigma' information. He already understood the 'Star that Calls Peace's' effects, limitations, and counters.
Of course, even if he hadn't known, it wouldn't have mattered much. Kadim casually released the hammer's haft and spoke indifferently.
"Doesn't matter. Then I'll just use this weapon instead."
"...Hm? Wh-What weapon?"
"This one."
Kadim proffered a weapon that could never be disarmed.
Enrico was at a loss for words.