Chapter 246: Certain Death (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 246: Certain Death (6)
News of defeat arrived from the border.
Marquis Belfir's face contorted at his subordinate's report.
"The Nokya, led by Rodriguez, has suffered near-total annihilation. Rodriguez was killed by Roman Dmitry the moment the battle began. Only a fraction of their forces survived to regroup with the rear guard."
"Tsk. I told him not to overextend himself."
The situation was obvious. Deviating from the initial plan, Rodriguez must have launched a reckless assault, and Roman Dmitry was not one to miss such an opening. He was a monster who had brought down Barbosa in just seven exchanges. No matter how seasoned a frontline warrior Rodriguez was, he never should have let his guard down.
Regardless of the outcome, Roman Dmitry's actions were truly unprecedented. No matter how reckless Rodriguez had been, the Nokya were not an easy force to deal with.
To annihilate the Nokya with such a small force... Roman Dmitry is a terrifying man. From his decisive judgment to the martial prowess required to execute it... If such a monster becomes Valhalla's enemy, it will inevitably cause problems. We must cut off his breath before he returns to Dmitry.
"Relay my orders to the deployed troops. This operation is heavily in our favor. Tell them not to recklessly force a showdown like Rodriguez did. Instead, fully utilize the Kronos forces to wear down the enemy. In the end, Roman Dmitry is only human. A moment will come when he, too, reaches his limit."
"Understood."
Having handed down the order, Marquis Belfir watched his subordinate withdraw. Though it was a difficult task, he didn't doubt its success.
But as time passed and the reports continued to pile up, his composure began to crack.
"Marquis Belfir! The guerrilla unit that attacked Roman Dmitry was tracked down and lost most of its troops. According to the survivors, once they entered the mountains, they couldn't shake off Roman Dmitry's pursuit!"
"The Kronos forces have been repelled! Dmitry's casualties are estimated to be minimal!"
"We mobilized Valhalla's rankers, but we failed to stop Roman Dmitry once again! The guerrilla operation is practically a failure. The moment they clash with him, our vanguard is almost entirely wiped out. It's impossible for us to seize the initiative as intended!"
The reports kept pouring in.
Belfir felt dizzy. Even acknowledging his opponent's strength, this outcome made absolutely no sense.
Roman Dmitry... Is he really planning to break through the border by sheer force?
In truth, he had believed there was a hidden motive behind Roman Dmitry's plan. With Valhalla and Kronos openly displaying their murderous intent, crossing the wide-open border was a decision akin to seeking death. That was why Belfir had constantly monitored the surrounding situation. He was confident that as long as they guarded against external forces rather than focusing solely on Roman Dmitry, the plan would succeed.
Yet, every single force that encountered Roman Dmitry was utterly annihilated.
The damage from this operation was catastrophic. Including Barbosa and Rodriguez, six of Valhalla's high-ranking rankers had already died.
This was deeply troublesome. With such disastrous results, even a victory wouldn't be enough to recover from the losses.
"...Roman Dmitry. You are indeed a terrifying man."
The martial prowess he had displayed in his duel against Barbosa hadn't been his full strength, and Dmitry's soldiers far exceeded ordinary standards. Not even the army of the Kronos Empire was this formidable.
If we let Roman Dmitry return alive, we will only be giving wings to a Dmitry that already possesses a powerful army.
He acknowledged his opponent's might. Time was on Valhalla's side, but now they needed a decisive move.
Ultimately...
"I must meet His Majesty the Emperor right now."
Marquis Belfir, who had confidently claimed he would handle this on his own, grit his teeth in bitter frustration.
* * *
The report was delivered.
Under the heavy gaze of the Emperor of Valhalla, Marquis Belfir and Count Gomez couldn't bring themselves to raise their heads. They looked like condemned criminals.
This operation was a joint effort between Marquis Belfir and Count Gomez, yet even after fifteen days had passed since Roman left the capital, they had failed to eliminate him. At this point, no punishment would be surprising. To simply excuse their failure by claiming Roman Dmitry was too strong was unacceptable, especially since their nation was revered as one of the two great pillars of the continent.
The Emperor of Valhalla laughed.
"Roman Dmitry... what an incredibly interesting fellow. He accepted the invitation despite knowing Valhalla's intentions, and now he intends to return alive through sheer force without allowing a single compromise. The guerrilla operations are no longer meaningful. If even battle-hardened warriors like Rodriguez are taken down in a single blow, it practically means there is no way to hold him back unless Valhalla's top-tier rankers step forward."
Even so, they couldn't send additional Valhalla troops. People had eyes and ears; mobilizing a large force would inevitably draw suspicion to the border. Kronos and Valhalla were different. While Kronos didn't care about committing evil deeds openly, Valhalla had not yet brought its public sentiment completely under control.
The moment public sentiment caught fire, Valhalla would plunge into chaos.
Perhaps Roman Dmitry had known that from the very beginning.
"We cannot afford to lose any more of Valhalla's warriors. If the Valhalla Empire were the main instigator of this affair, I would have ordered Roman Dmitry's death by any means necessary, regardless of public scrutiny. However, the main instigator of this matter is the Kronos Empire. That means the responsibility for this defeat ultimately lies with them."
Suddenly, the Emperor grew curious.
He knew Kronos's intentions well. Having been repeatedly defeated by Roman Dmitry ever since the total war in Cairo, Kronos had made thorough preparations to achieve a definitive result this time. For Valhalla, this was as far as they would go. From now on, the Emperor wanted to see if Roman Dmitry could completely thwart the conspiracy Kronos had prepared.
The Emperor of Valhalla was excited. Sometimes, his own amusement was more important than the empire's benefit.
"Pull the troops back. From now on, we will watch how the battle between Dmitry and Kronos unfolds."
"We obey your command."
Certain death.
That intent remained unchanged. If Roman Dmitry showed even the slightest opening, they would unleash their murderous intent once more.
* * *
Fifteen days.
It was a grueling, nerve-wracking ordeal. Even though they had taken moments to rest while on the move, the exhaustion on the faces of Dmitry's soldiers could not be hidden.
"Die!"
Thud!
A sword plunged into the opponent's heart. The shadow trembled violently but continued to swing its dagger until the bitter end. The Dmitry soldier slammed his body forward, tackling the opponent to the ground, and frantically stabbed his sword down again and again. His face was caked with splatters of blood—whether old or fresh, it was impossible to tell. Only after a relentless assault did he finally cut off the shadow's breath.
"Huff, huff."
He gasped for air.
When he raised his head, enemies still filled his field of vision.
It was overwhelming. Even for Dmitry's soldiers, who had endured hellish training, a forced march of over fifteen days had pushed them to their absolute limits. Yet, even as their bodies threatened to collapse, they grit their teeth. They had prepared for this from the start. They knew it would be difficult, but above all else—they could see Roman Dmitry fighting the enemies at the very front.
Rumble! Rumble!
It was truly a spectacular sight.
In every battle, Roman Dmitry faced the enemy's attacks head-on at the vanguard. As a result, the vast majority of the attacks were concentrated on him. Even for the soldiers who had followed him through countless battlefields, his unwavering presence over the past fifteen days was nothing short of miraculous.
That was why they held on.
Because Roman Dmitry had not fallen.
They blindly believed that if they trusted and followed him, they would return to Dmitry alive, just as they always had.
Slash! Crunch!
Roman Dmitry cleaved through an opponent's body.
He instantly penetrated the ranks of the shadows, dodging the attacks raining from all directions with concise, measured steps. His presence swelled terrifyingly. When he stepped on the ground, a wave of mana erupted, throwing the shadows off balance. The moment he swung his sword, the bodies of the enemies were instantly torn apart.
One against many.
It was a familiar scenario.
In his past life as the Heavenly Demon Baek Joong-hyuk, there hadn't been many battles where the odds were in his favor. In situations where fatigue set in, hunger gnawed at the stomach, and the mind grew razor-sharp and hypersensitive, Roman Dmitry's true value truly shone.
The skirmishes were sporadic.
The shadows repeatedly hit and ran.
The sun set. The battle raged through the night, eventually welcoming the rising sun.
It was then.
Flutter.
Clack, clack.
In the distance, a troop of soldiers surged forward.
Believing that enemy reinforcements had arrived, Dmitry's soldiers grit their teeth. They did not give up. Roman Dmitry blocked the path. Looking at his broad back, the soldiers of Dmitry blindly believed that they would survive and return from the jaws of death, just as they always did.
But then, everyone's eyes widened.
The flag fluttering in the wind was unmistakably the symbol of the Hector Kingdom.
* * *
"Aid Dmitry and attack the enemy!"
Edwin Hector was at the vanguard.
With veins bulging in his neck as he ordered the charge, he channeled his mana and cast a spell.
"Fire Field!"
Whoosh! Blaze!
Flames erupted.
As the powerful fire consumed the surroundings, the shadows screamed and retreated. Their ability to disperse into smoke only granted them absolute power against physical attacks. Against magic, their bodies could not hold out.
It was a battle where a tense balance had been maintained solely by Roman Dmitry's presence. But with the appearance of Hector's soldiers and Edwin Hector, the tide of the battlefield shifted completely.
"Attack!"
"Die!"
A counterattack.
Dmitry's soldiers squeezed out every ounce of their remaining strength.
The Aura Swordsmen, led by Chris, cleared the path at the front, rushing forward to slaughter the shadows. Their bodies were at their limits. Though their exhausted frames, desperate for rest, could not replicate perfect movements, Dmitry's soldiers—having overcome countless crises—displayed miraculous mental fortitude.
They cut down the enemy, and then cut down more.
Against the opponent's counterattacks, they fought back tenaciously, guarding each other's backs.
They seized the upper hand.
Driven into a corner, the shadows ultimately had no choice but to retreat. They fell back rapidly.
This victory held a special meaning.
Aside from the support of the Hector Kingdom, this was a battle where the shadows of the Kronos Empire had made a decisive move with absolute resolve. Unlike before, the battle had raged all night. The Kronos Empire, which had mobilized countless shadows to cut off Roman Dmitry's breath once and for all, had ultimately retreated without achieving a single thing.
They had won.
Dmitry's soldiers let out a roar of triumph.
Their fatigue vanished in an instant as they raised their weapons and cheered.
However, the joy was short-lived.
Edwin Hector approached Roman Dmitry and immediately got straight to the point.
"You must return to Dmitry right now. Dmitry has been attacked by Kronos assassins!"
* * *
It was a gloomy space.
From the darkness, a figure asked, "What do you plan to do if we fail to eliminate Roman Dmitry this time as well? Roman Dmitry always acts beyond expectations. Even with Valhalla's assistance and Kronos's shadows, in a situation where victory seemed guaranteed, Roman Dmitry might just defeat them and return alive."
Everything that had happened so far—Roman Dmitry's actions consistently defied common sense.
In response to the question pointing out the worst-case scenario, the figure on the other side spoke.
"The reason Kronos is strong is because it is an 'empire' that forms a massive collective. In the end, Roman Dmitry is merely a man from a weak nation. While prioritizing his elimination by mobilizing Valhalla, we will accompany it with a strategy that eliminates all other variables. The main variable is Roman Dmitry himself. Without him, Dmitry will ultimately not be safe from the Empire's attack."
The target was not just one.
It was Roman Dmitry, and Dmitry itself.
The figure in the darkness smirked.
"Those who bare their fangs at Kronos will surely pay the price."
A few days ago, while Roman Dmitry was fighting his way through the border, Dmitry was plunged into danger in his absence.