Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: 41. Ghost Step (3)
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“Kill him!”
“If we take out the emperor, we can escape from here!”
The assassins charged wildly. Some used stealth techniques to hide their bodies, apparently planning to bide their time in the darkness.
Watching them, the young emperor of the Philius Empire, Raymond, slowly opened his mouth.
“Wipe them out.”
“We shall obey your imperial command.”
“For His Majesty the Emperor’s victory!”
The Crimson Tower Lord and the Azure Tower Lord stepped forward and began casting their spells. Intense mana erupted from the completed magic circles.
The ground split open, and lava surged forth. From the sky, an ice storm crackling with lightning raged.
It was hell itself for the assassins. Even those who had hidden in the shadows with stealth techniques couldn’t escape the powerful area-of-effect magic.
“Aaaagh!”
“Gaaah!”
Screams erupted from all directions. Those lucky enough to escape the high-tier magic’s range fell to the spears and swords of the Imperial Army. Ghost Step Diego bit his lip as he watched his subordinates die so pointlessly.
“Is this all the power of the ‘Full Moon Flower’ that terrorized the Western Continent? If you’re hiding your true strength, you’d better reveal it now! Otherwise, you’ll all perish here!”
Raymond shouted in a chilling voice—a light provocation that wouldn’t be out of place for a typical novel villain. He hadn’t even expected Ghost Step to take the bait.
“Looks like you’re clinging to that precious lifeline of yours!”
But Ghost Step Diego fell for it hook, line, and sinker.
“Master! Don’t!”
Anna tried to stop him, but Diego was already using his signature technique, ‘Ghost Step,’ to slip through the Imperial Army.
“Everyone, protect the Master! Damn it!”
They hastily gathered forces to break through the Imperial Army, but even if they moved now, they couldn’t catch up to Diego, who was piercing through with Ghost Step.
Anna spat curses in despair but couldn’t give up just like that. She rallied the assassins and chased after Diego.
“You’re not getting past us!”
As expected, the Imperial Army under Cassias’s command blocked their path.
Unlike Anna, who clashed with the Imperial Army, Diego broke straight through their lines and reached Raymond. He kicked off the ground, leaping into the air and releasing Ghost Step.
“Die, Emperor!”
Diego swung his arm, unleashing a barrage of dozens of throwing weapons, each infused with aura. The Imperial Army’s mages deployed defensive magic, but the aura-laced projectiles pierced the shields and targeted Raymond.
Even as the dozens of weapons maneuvered erratically toward his vital points, Raymond didn’t so much as twitch.
“Desia.”
At the quiet call, Desia stepped forward. She drew a magic circle with her staff and extended her left hand, summoning a massive shield brimming with blue mana. The powerful shield woven by a high mage blocked every single aura-infused projectile.
“A high mage, huh?”
To pierce a high mage’s shield, he’d need to infuse aura into the blade he held directly, not throwing weapons. Muttering in regret, Diego landed on the ground, only to be surrounded by the Royal Guard.
The Shades emerged from the darkness too, their sharp daggers glinting. Despite being encircled by over fifty elite troops in an instant, Diego showed no panic. His face, hidden beneath the black mask, was nearly expressionless.
“You dare face the Continent’s Shadow Emperor as mere assassins?”
Diego raised his presence. But the Shades, whose loyalty to the Philius imperial family had reached fanatic levels, charged at the Shadow Emperor without a trace of fear.
“Ha! I’ll grant you death!”
Scattering projectiles pierced the Shades’ bodies. Red blood sprayed, and the black-clad men collapsed limply.
Diego leaped over their corpses, kicking off toward Raymond. The distance closed in an instant. The Royal Guard moved to block him, but Diego’s Ghost Step was faster.
“N-No!”
“Stop him!”
The Royal Guard swung their swords and unleashed magic at Diego, but nothing connected.
The ‘Ghost Step’ that had earned him the title of Shadow Emperor wasn’t mere movement. It was a near-magical technique that let him walk while hiding his body in another dimension. Attacks like mana blades or spells wouldn’t work.
“His Majesty the Emperor!”
Thanks to Ghost Step, Diego slipped through the Royal Guard’s formation with ridiculous ease.
Gestaan hurriedly stepped in front of Raymond, swinging his aura blade, but it missed again.
Desia deployed her shield, but it couldn’t stop Diego. He passed right through the blue barrier, thrusting his sharp dagger toward Raymond.
The blade’s tip reached right up to his chin, yet Raymond remained utterly still.
“His Majesty the Emperor!”
“You must evade!”
The Royal Guard rushed over, and Desia began chanting a pointless binding spell. The dagger’s edge was moments from piercing Raymond’s throat.
That was when Diego realized thick chains were binding his arms, legs, neck, and torso.
“I-Impossible... This is another dimension...”
Diego’s eyes shook. He couldn’t believe it. He was using Ghost Step—how could something interfere with his body in another dimension?
As if hearing his futile cry, Raymond took a step toward Diego and smirked.
“Did you think hiding in another dimension would save you?”
His cold voice echoed quietly.
“What are these chains, Emperor...?”
“Chains of Eternity. They can seal even a fallen deity.”
Raymond calmly finished his explanation and flicked his left hand. Diego’s body, dwelling in another dimension, was sucked back into the present one.
“Urk... Grgh!”
“Is this the trump card the Edriger Kingdom prepared? If so, it’s a bit disappointing.”
Smirking, he raised his right hand, now gripping a white mana sword—the Soul Sword.
“N-No...”
Anna’s voice came from behind Diego’s shoulder. But Raymond didn’t stop. He thrust the Soul Sword forcefully, piercing Diego’s heart.
“Gah...!”
Diego spat up red blood.
“D-Damn it... To think I’d go out so pathetically...”
“You have only one failure, Shadow Emperor Diego.”
Raymond spat coldly, pulling the Soul Sword from Diego’s heart. He gazed past Diego’s shoulder at Anna, charging toward them with all her might, and flashed a chilling smile.
“You underestimated me too much.”
“Damn it. To think he was such a monster...”
“Too late.”
He swung the recovered Soul Sword again, severing Diego’s head. Even with his heart pierced, Diego had clung to life desperately—now his breath was fully cut.
“N-No...”
Diego slumped lifelessly to the sound of Anna’s despairing voice. Confirming his death, Raymond waved his hand lightly, dispelling the Chains of Eternity.
With the bindings gone, Diego’s body fell limply to the cold ground.
“His Majesty the Emperor!”
The Royal Guard gathered around. The Shadow Emperor was dead, but his assassins remained.
“What shall we do with the remnants?”
Cassias, clad in golden armor, approached and asked.
“Kill them all.”
“We shall carry out your imperial command!”
At Raymond’s cold order, Cassias struck his breastplate hard with his iron gauntlet and joined the Imperial Army to mop up the remnants.
“Entire army! Advance! Purge the traitors who dared to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor!”
Cassias’s voice echoed across the fog-shrouded battlefield. Anna and the Full Moon Flower guild members resisted to the end, but they were thoroughly exterminated without a single survivor.
The emperor’s order had been “kill them all,” so not one was taken prisoner.
Ghost Step, the assassin known as the Shadow Emperor, met his end. Along with him, everyone mobilized for the assassination attempt on the Philius Empire’s emperor perished.
The Labyrinth Formation had been an unexpected variable they hadn’t anticipated, so all the assassins died within the formation prepared by Count Denitz.
After Diego’s death, Anna, who resisted to the bitter end, fell to a Shade’s dagger, ending the assassination battle. Count Denitz then deactivated the Labyrinth Formation.
Raymond had wanted to use the Labyrinth Formation against the Free Isirian Kingdom Army, but the Denitz family hadn’t perfectly preserved their secret technique. Much of the ancient content had been lost, making it unsuitable for large-scale armies.
“The enemy is retreating.”
A messenger reported calmly.
A retreat flag rose from the Free Isirian Kingdom Army’s camp.
Field Marshal Marquis Lanins had pressed a reckless assault, trusting the joint operation of Edriger Kingdom’s eagerly prepared ‘Full Moon Flower’ and Hashashin as pre-arranged. But with the Shadow Emperor dead and the assassination unit annihilated, he had no choice but to withdraw his forces futilely.
That day, the Free Isirian Kingdom Army lost 3,000 troops they had painstakingly assembled due to their overzealous offensive.
“The Free Isirian Kingdom Army has lost momentum. We should mobilize the entire army and advance while we have the chance.”
“I agree with Count William Acon. With the knight brigade joining us today, the demoralized Free Isirian Kingdom Army is nothing to fear.”
Count Dancihi supported Count Acon’s opinion. The Northern Central Army commanders and northeastern nobles saw this as the perfect opportunity and hoped Emperor Raymond would issue an imperial decree to mobilize the full army.
Raymond, quietly organizing his thoughts, turned his gaze to Count Denitz, who couldn’t tear his eyes from the military map on the table.
“Count Denitz.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Only then did Count Denitz lift his gaze from the map and raise his head.
“Do you think our forces can handle an expanded front?”
From that single question, Count Denitz instantly grasped what the young emperor of the Philius Empire was concerned about.
“You’re worried about facing Marquis Eraser’s territory and two other counties simultaneously.”
Crossing the border meant confronting Marquis Eraser’s territory and two counties at once.
As expected, Raymond was concerned whether the Philius Imperial forces could manage their private troops and reinforcements from the capital across such a wide area.
“We can handle an expanded front right now. But if the Free Isirian Kingdom’s royal army or heavy cavalry joins, I can’t guarantee it.”
Count Denitz said. Raymond nodded slowly and spoke.
“Then cutting off their reinforcements is key.”
“Of course, Your Majesty.”
“Can it be done?”
Raymond asked cautiously. He knew there was no obvious way to block the Free Isirian Kingdom Army’s reinforcements in this situation—like grasping at straws.
“Yes, it can.”
Not expecting much, Raymond was surprised to hear Count Denitz had a plan. His confident reply brightened Raymond’s expression.
“What’s the plan?”
“Simple. Seal off Marquis Eraser’s territory and the two counties.”
“Seal them off? How?”
At Raymond’s question, Count Denitz smiled faintly and drew a line on the military map with a red pen.
“Deploy a cavalry unit led by the knight brigade to break through Marquis Eraser’s territory, split the enemy, form a new front line in their rear, and isolate Marquis Eraser’s territory and the two counties. Follow up with infantry reinforcements after the cavalry secures the line.”
It was a bold plan, fraught with risks. Count Acon, the Northern Central Army’s supreme commander, who had been listening quietly, slowly raised his hand.
It was a request to speak, and Raymond nodded slowly in permission.
“Grand Marshal, the risks are too high. If we misstep, our forces could be defeated piecemeal.”
The other commanders nodded at Count Acon’s point.
“A cavalry unit including the knight brigade can hold the rear line.”
“They won’t have enough strength alone. We need more troops. The Free Isirian Kingdom’s royal army marching south for reinforcements is no pushover.”
Count Acon countered Count Denitz’s words.
“Not enough strength?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Count Acon replied. Raymond nodded and spoke calmly.
“Then I’ll lead them myself.”
The shocking declaration left the commanders speechless.