Chapter 80
Chapter 80
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: The Prince's Declaration
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A hush fell over the hall in an instant.
The moment Lian finished speaking, even Saira wore a slightly surprised expression.
She hadn't expected him to confront it so directly.
"This guy..."
A silence like thin ice spread through the room.
Ethan simply gazed at Lian with sunken eyes. And then,
"Kukukukukukuku, hahahaha!"
Laughter burst from Ethan's lips, his shoulders shaking.
"Wow, Your Highness."
The attendant beside him urgently called out to him, as the laugh might seem a bit frivolous.
But Ethan raised a hand slightly to silence him.
Ethan's gaze remained fixed on Lian.
"That was a completely unexpected question."
"...My apologies."
"No, no need for that. It was just your question, wasn't it?"
Ethan slowly rose from his seat. He murmured as if reciting poetry.
"Do you dream of conquering the continent..."
For a moment, Ethan's eyes drifted into memory.
Come to think of it, when he was very young... he remembered dreaming such dreams while watching his father's proud back.
Dreams of the Artian Kingdom's prestige extending across the vast continent.
But at some point, such things stopped mattering.
Taking care of the people right in front of him, his own subjects, became the priority.
"If I become king..."
If he became king... if he became king...
He tossed the same question around in his mind countless times.
What about me now?
Do I still hold onto that childhood dream?
A smirk.
As he gazed out the window, mulling it over, the corners of Ethan's mouth curved up widely.
Soon, as if his thoughts had settled, he slowly turned to face those in the room.
His closest aides. His sharpest blade. And...
"It may have been a short time, but you're the first besides Father to give me homework like this."
Ethan's expression soon hardened into seriousness.
"Yes, you asked if, upon becoming king, I intend to stabilize the kingdom and go further to conquer the continent."
"...Yes."
Lian bowed his head. Ethan replied.
"If I become king..."
He paused briefly, a small breath escaping. Then, without hesitation, Ethan continued.
"I will unify the continent."
* * *
"Cunning bastard."
It was something he'd already anticipated. But the guy had prepared quite thoroughly, uncharacteristically.
"The actual destination turned out to be Kurtain."
"Kurtain? What's there?"
"It's where the 3rd Battalion of the 6th Legion is stationed."
"Battalion? That means at most 1-2,000 troops... Why go there?"
"...Shall I look into it?"
Marquis Dwayne bowed his head slightly as he spoke.
Within the kingdom, there were only two people to whom Dwayne showed such respect.
The current bedridden King of Artian, and the Second Prince Byron whom he served.
The man with dark brown hair sitting in the chair before him stroked his chin.
The guy who'd been holed up in his territory playing house had been moving around more lately.
He'd leave him alone if he was content with just that territory...
"Kurtain, huh."
Something felt off, tickling the back of his neck. Byron said to Dwayne.
"Find out. Check for any variables, down to the smallest detail."
* * *
Thump.
Lian felt his heart pound strongly for a moment.
But he wasn't the only one startled.
Saira beside him also looked at Ethan with a slightly surprised expression.
She'd known the Third Prince for quite a while, but this was a first.
Saira glanced at Gilbert, standing beside Ethan.
Gilbert, silently clenching his fist.
To think even that stone-like guy would react like that.
Ethan's words carried a power that ignited something in the hearts of those present.
"Then..."
Ethan, having answered, looked at Lian.
"Now it's my turn to ask, 100-Man Commander Lian."
"I await your command!"
At Lian's words, Ethan asked.
"If I become king, my first task will be to stabilize this chaotic kingdom and create one where the people can live with smiles."
This was the biggest difference between Byron and Ethan.
Byron chose the fastest path to satisfy his greed and selfishness.
Thus, after becoming king, he ignored the kingdom's state and thrust his sword toward the continent, starting the conquest.
That ushered in the "Era of the Great War" after Byron ascended the throne.
Perhaps Byron wanted to be a king whose name echoed loudly in history.
Due to that hasty war in his past life, the kingdom's people shed bloody tears, crushed by taxes and war, dying in droves.
It was an era like a plague, with no preparations whatsoever.
But Ethan chose a different path. That's why Lian had asked that question.
Stabilizing the kingdom was right priority, but if stability was the *only* goal, it wouldn't align with Lian's aim of becoming a great general.
Ethan continued, looking at Lian.
"But after that... in the grand undertaking of unifying the continent, can you become my great general and help achieve that goal?"
Thud!
The moment the question ended, Lian dropped to one knee, bowing his head.
It was as if something solemn enveloped just the two of them, hiding the others.
In the quiet atmosphere, Lian slowly raised his head and looked at Ethan.
"I, Lian."
In truth, he'd agonized much on the way here.
How his actions might change the future. And what that changed future would look like.
Thus, he thought it might be best to let history unfold as he knew it.
Even though that history was drenched in blood and filled with screams.
But the moment he saw Ethan, Lian was certain.
If the future changed, a brilliant hope might shine upon the kingdom.
Lian answered.
"I will become Prince Ethan's arrow and pierce the enemy."
Ethan gave a small smile at those words.
* * *
"...Crazy bastard."
Saira muttered as she looked at Lian standing before her.
But Lian simply pretended not to hear, standing at ease in silence.
Saira let out a small sigh at the sight.
A smirk.
She soon lifted the corner of her mouth and said.
"Still, it was pretty cool."
"Thank you!"
"So, what do you plan to do?"
Lian knew what her question meant.
He recalled what Ethan had said just before leaving.
-You'll be my arrow? Hmm... Then I should give you some power. So you can fly strong and far.
Ethan had backed Lian as much as he could.
Promoting his officer rank from lieutenant to captain.
His position from 100-Man Commander to 1,000-Man Commander.
And Ethan had said.
-I'll give you three months. It'll be tight, but use that time and all your abilities to create the perfect unit you envision.
Saira silently watched Lian pondering her question.
She was curiously wondering what answer he'd give.
Finally, Lian spoke.
"I'm thinking of going to... Bieltuna."
"Bieltuna?"
It was an unexpected answer.
At Saira's question, Lian nodded and replied.
"The soldiers and officers I met there were all battle veterans. Long years of fighting made them tough and seasoned."
"Well... now it's more about reconstruction than fighting there."
Saira nodded at Lian's words, then asked again.
"So, you're planning to merge the Bieltuna troops?"
"If they want to."
"I could force it with my authority over Bieltuna's forces."
Lian shook his head at Saira's words.
"It's homework from the Prince. It'd be meaningless if I didn't solve it with my own strength."
Create a perfect unit in just three months.
Time was incredibly tight for Lian.
But he didn't want to rely on others' help.
'If I can't even do this... it wouldn't mean anything.'
In that sense, the Bieltuna soldiers were proven reliable.
Moreover, having fought together on the battlefield, their camaraderie was strong.
They could trust each other's backs even in life-or-death moments.
"Hmm, then no helping it."
At Lian's answer, Saira stood up.
A satisfied smile now graced her face.
"Then I'll look forward to it. Do your best."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Lian replied loudly.
Then Saira and the others all left the unit.
A sense of stillness and quiet, as if a great storm had swept through, filled the camp.
"...1,000-Man Commander, huh."
He'd thought reaching 500-Man Commander would be the best he could do. Yet he'd leaped up several ranks at once.
Of course, he was still far from 5,000-Man Commander, a general rank...
Unlike the past when it seemed utterly unattainable, now a faint light was visible.
After quietly organizing his thoughts, Lian headed to his tent.
To meet Isaac.
"Isaac, we're going somewhere together."
"Understood."
"...Shouldn't you at least ask where?"
"Anywhere the Vice Commander says, I'll go. But... where are we headed?"
Lian burst into laughter at Isaac's response.
"Bieltuna."
* * *
"..."
Barus, on duty at the watchpost, silently stared ahead.
Peace had come, but from some point, an odd emptiness had settled in.
"Hoo."
Since the Porhen Gorge pass was destroyed, the number of barbarian raids on Bieltuna had drastically decreased.
It was only natural.
The barbarians invaded the kingdom to supplement scarce food from their barren lands or to find shelter from harsh winters.
But with the gorge pass gone, reaching Bieltuna required detouring around Porhen Gorge.
Even at the shortest, it took half a month just to go around.
For those without mountain game or ample food, crossing Porhen Gorge to Bieltuna was practically impossible.
Better to go elsewhere in that time.
Indeed, after the pass was destroyed, barbarian attacks happened only twice.
Those were desperate moves by groups pushed out in internal power struggles.
With fewer than a hundred each time, repelling them wasn't hard.
"Were you here?"
Homel approached Barus, who was standing watch alone.
He glanced in the direction Barus was looking.
Toward Porhen Gorge.
"Standing in again? How can we manage if the commander is at the watchpost every day?"
"Nothing much to do. And the view's great here."
"...It is."
Homel gave a short reply to Barus's words.
A brief silence followed between them.
Soon, Homel looked down at the people bustling below.
Efforts to change Bieltuna, which lacked proper facilities after long battles.
Houses were being properly built now, and work was underway to channel river water around the fortress.
Plenty of work, but now everyone smiled in Bieltuna.
"Peaceful... feels good."
"Yeah..."
Seeing people smile more than before was indeed joyful.
He felt accomplishment and pride in creating this.
But Barus had lived on battlefields for over a decade.
Separate from this happiness, a hollow emptiness like a hole in his chest had lately been weighing heavier.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Then someone rushed up the stairs.
"Captain Barus!"
"Hm? Shift change isn't for a while yet."
Barus tilted his head and asked the approaching soldier.
"What is it?"
"A guest... has arrived."
"A guest?"