Chapter 260: Night of Slaughter (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 260: Night of Slaughter (3)
He was a guard of Rascal.
Even as the castle gates crumbled and his comrades fell dead around him, he chose to abandon his post and flee, ignoring Count Pablo's orders. Even in the Kronos Empire, not everyone was brave. After all, it was still a nation made of humans; deserters like him were bound to exist.
Roman Dmitry is a demon. At this rate, we're all going to die.
The recent rumors surrounding Roman Dmitry were absolutely terrifying.
The brutal massacres carried out wherever he appeared left not a single blade of grass standing, proving his infamy was no mere battlefield myth. Watching his comrades get slaughtered had struck sheer terror into his heart. Under imperial law, desertion was a capital offense so severe that even the deserter's family would be executed. Yet, seeing Rascal burning on all sides, he found himself fleeing toward the Secret Passage before he even realized what he was doing.
Above all else, he just wanted to live.
Once Rascal was entirely engulfed in flames, it would be too late.
A small dog hole dug beneath the castle gates was his only way out of this hell.
He crawled through the dirt like a dog.
Covered in mud, the guard finally poked his head outside, certain of his survival.
Slash—!
That was his last memory.
The moment his head emerged, a blade severed his neck. His severed head, still wearing a look of profound relief, rolled out of the castle. Chris looked down at the guard's corpse with a cold expression. Although a fierce battle was raging inside Rascal, quite a few men had attempted to desert in secret, just like this one.
"Set fire to all the Secret Passages we identified beforehand. No one, except for our Lord, leaves this place alive."
"Understood."
Toss.
Whoosh!
He threw a torch into the passage. Thanks to the oil they had poured in advance, the fire spread rapidly, igniting the corpse and engulfing the entire passage in roaring flames.
Just like that, Chris completely cut off their retreat.
This had been agreed upon with Roman Dmitry beforehand. While Roman bought time, Chris's role was to subdue the guards at the gates, set the fires, and block the Secret Passages. Stepping back from the blaze, Chris stared at the burning town of Rascal and recalled a conversation he had shared with his Lord.
"We will return the pain Dmitry suffered in the exact same manner the enemy inflicted it upon us."
At the time, his subordinates had been taken aback.
They had experienced many things by Roman Dmitry's side, but infiltrating the heart of the Kronos Empire to exact revenge was a different matter entirely. Yet, no one questioned it. Even if it defied all common sense, if Roman Dmitry ordered it, they would march into the jaws of death to carry it out. That was the way of Dmitry.
And now, everything was proceeding exactly according to plan.
Roman Dmitry had lured the ten-thousand-strong force on his own, and while the enemy was caught off guard, Rascal was set ablaze.
Chris picked up his magic communicator.
Beep.
"The first phase of the plan is a success. All eight squads, confirm the enemy's movements and immediately proceed to the second phase. Keep in mind, secrecy and silence are paramount. If even a single person is detected during the operation, do not hesitate to abandon the second phase."
[Received.]
[Received.]
...
Messages flooded in.
Chris lowered the magic communicator and stared blankly at the burning city of Rascal.
From this point on, it was entirely up to Roman Dmitry.
* * *
Count Pablo's face stiffened at Bento's report.
"...What did you just say?"
"Our retreat out of the city has been completely cut off. It seems we have fallen into a trap. Roman Dmitry deliberately lured us here with the clear intention of trapping our ten-thousand-strong force in this fiery pit."
"What kind of nonsense is that?!"
He felt as if his brain had short-circuited.
He had been leading his forces with the absolute certainty that he would soon deal with Roman Dmitry, but this bolt from the blue plunged Count Pablo into an abyss of despair. If Bento's report was true, their ten-thousand-strong army would be wiped out by the spreading flames without being able to do a single thing.
That was absolutely unacceptable.
But now that he knew the opponent's intentions, things were different.
"Is there no other way out?"
"There are no standard escape routes. However, the walls near the northern gate are older and more deteriorated than the rest. We could use magic to collapse the wall and escape. The problem is, time is of the essence. Once Rascal is completely engulfed in flames, no method will save us."
"Understood. Abandon the pursuit of Roman Dmitry for now, and order the entire army to retreat."
"I will carry out your orders."
The situation had changed.
Feeling the intense heat pressing in from all sides, Count Pablo gritted his teeth and chose to retreat.
Roman Dmitry. What a truly terrifying monster.
Dmitry's plan.
Everything about it defied common sense.
The mere decision to attack Rascal in the first place was shocking enough, but Roman Dmitry had actually devised a plan to swallow a ten-thousand-strong army with only a handful of troops. Now he understood how the Hector Kingdom had their overwhelming advantage overturned. Such bold, insane decision-making was not something taught in standard tactical manuals.
Roman Dmitry was a monster.
The Kronos Empire had to eliminate him at all costs.
"All forces, retreat!"
"We will escape Rascal through the northern gate!"
The orders echoed through the ranks.
With Bento and the 7th Knights Division taking the vanguard, they ran, gritting their teeth in a desperate bid to survive.
But suddenly, the rushing crowd ground to a halt.
With the wide thoroughfare packed to the brim, Count Pablo screamed at the top of his lungs, shoving his way through the soldiers.
"Out of my way! Move!"
"It's Count Pablo! Make way!"
Even in the midst of extreme chaos, the soldiers parted to let him through.
And when his line of sight finally cleared, Count Pablo doubted his own eyes.
"Roman Dmitry...!"
There he was.
Framed by roaring flames, he stood alone, completely blocking the path to the northern gate.
* * *
It was a surreal sight.
Thousands of soldiers were unable to advance because of a single man.
Count Pablo bellowed, "Roman Dmitry! How long are you going to keep running away like a coward? If you are truly a warrior, fight us fair and square instead of using such underhanded methods! The Kronos Empire is always ready to accept your challenge!"
Even as he shouted, he had zero expectation that Roman Dmitry would comply.
Avoiding a direct confrontation was the only logical choice. If they marched their soldiers forward, Roman Dmitry would surely vanish back into the flames. He had heard of how monstrous Roman Dmitry was during the events in Valhalla. Countless soldiers had fallen to his sword on the path to Dmitry, and looking at the caliber of the deceased, he was not someone who could be dismissed as a mere mortal.
But they had ten thousand men.
With such overwhelming numbers, if they could just buy a little time, the main army would arrive.
Since this battle was taking place on Kronos soil, he maintained a confident posture even when facing the legendary Roman Dmitry.
Yet, far from retreating, Roman Dmitry took a step forward out of the flames, as if mocking them.
"Do you think you cannot defeat me because of this fire?"
"Of course! Do you think I don't know your intentions? You plan to trap our ten-thousand-strong force in this fiery pit while you buy time. But it won't work! I, Count Pablo, will not fall for your wicked schemes!"
"If that is what you think..."
Whoosh.
Roar!
The flames parted.
At first, the surroundings had been burning so intensely that it was impossible to even approach. But at Roman Dmitry's will, the inferno receded, clearing enough space for thousands of soldiers to charge at once. The power of the Flame Demon he had obtained in the underground space was formidable. It granted him absolute control over fire. From the moment Rascal began to burn, aided by the Flame Demon's power, all the flames in the vicinity obeyed Roman Dmitry's absolute command.
Ten thousand troops.
There was a simple way to deal with them.
If he detonated the Flame Demon's power, there was no way the army—already surrounded by fire—could withstand the intense heat.
The problem was, that alone was not enough.
When it came to revenge, the process was just as important as the outcome.
Roman Dmitry spoke.
"I will make you a promise. If you defeat me, I will allow you to leave this fire alive."
It was a wildly arrogant statement.
Even when facing such a massive army, he dared to look down on them. Count Pablo could no longer contain his rage.
"Arrogant bastard! All forces, attack Roman Dmitry!"
His voice boomed across the thoroughfare.
At Count Pablo's command, the soldiers of the Kronos Empire charged at Roman Dmitry all at once.
* * *
It was a spectacular sight.
As the imperial army surged forward like a rising tide, Roman Dmitry charged right back at them.
Boom!
Rumble!
"Attack all at once!"
"Die!"
Murderous intent surged from all directions.
At the vanguard, the Aura Swordsmen of the 7th Knights Division unleashed their Aura. The explosive energy shone brilliantly, illuminating the surroundings, looking as if it would swallow Roman Dmitry in an instant. There was no fear in their eyes. The ten-thousand-strong army filling the space gave them the absolute confidence that this battle would end in the Kronos Empire's victory.
In that instant.
'Heavenly Demon Sword Technique - Mid-Half First Form.'
Crash!
Boom, boom, boom!
The faces of the soldiers warped into sheer horror.
The moment the vanguard clashed with Roman Dmitry, the knights of the 7th Knights Division were instantly obliterated.
It was an unbelievable sight.
The explosively erupting Aura vanished without a trace, and Roman Dmitry emerged unscathed through the thick cloud of dust. Only then did they realize exactly what kind of existence Roman Dmitry was. To defeat this monster—the man who had overwhelmed Barbosa—even an army of ten thousand had to be prepared for countless deaths.
Whoosh.
Rumble!
Moving at a speed the naked eye could not follow, Roman Dmitry charged in, slaughtering the vanguard. In the blink of an eye, he was already scattering blood in the very center of the imperial formation. Weapons thrust toward Roman Dmitry from all sides. The soldiers attacked relentlessly, aiming for his head, torso, and legs. Yet, as if he existed in a completely different dimension of time, Roman effortlessly deflected and evaded every single strike by a hair's breadth.
Flutter.
His hair whipped in the violent wind.
The moment an Aura Swordsman met Roman Dmitry's piercing gaze, he instinctively knew he was going to die.
Thuck.
"Gurgle..."
Blood bubbled from his mouth.
Roman Dmitry grabbed him by the hair, pierced his heart from behind, and tossed him to the ground like a piece of trash. The brutal sequence of events burned into everyone's eyes. Despite the overwhelming number of troops charging at him, they fell one after another the moment they clashed, as if crashing against an impenetrable iron wall.
Their heads spun. Their blood ran cold.
In a situation where ten thousand men should have been hunting a single target, it looked as if one rampaging demon was slaughtering an army of ten thousand.
Boom!
Rumble!
They were swept away by an explosive force.
As the Heavenly Demon Sword Technique was unleashed, men who had been whole just moments ago were brutally torn to shreds.
The soldiers were struck with paralyzing terror.
Those who had initially charged, relying solely on their numbers, hesitated to rush forward once the death toll surpassed four digits.
Roman Dmitry showed no signs of slowing down.
Although an army of ten thousand meant a clear numerical advantage, they had no idea how many more of them had to die before they could even corner him.
In the midst of the carnage, Bento charged forward, his face twisted with venomous rage.
"Die!"
Rumble!
A storm of Aura erupted.
Unleashing his 5-Star Aura, he attacked Roman Dmitry with all his might.
He truly believed it.
He believed that if he could create just a single opening, Roman Dmitry would be torn to shreds by the surrounding hyenas. No matter how legendary Roman's deeds had been, defeating this many troops head-on was impossible. The remaining members of the 7th Knights Division joined in. Unleashing their primordial energy, they manifested an overwhelming Aura at the cost of rapidly burning their own life force.
And then...
Splat!
They were instantly torn apart.
Bento and the elite knights collapsed from a seemingly ordinary strike, butchered just like the common soldiers.
Bento's consciousness began to fade.
It made no sense.
Logically, fighting like this was utterly impossible.
...Could it be?
In his fading consciousness, he realized the truth entirely too late.
At first, he had thought Roman Dmitry was trying to use the fire to consume the Kronos forces trapped in Rascal. But after facing him directly, he realized how foolish that judgment had been. Roman Dmitry's intention was never to rely on the fire in the first place.
It was clear now.
The fire was merely a tool to block their retreat.
Roman Dmitry intended to slaughter all ten thousand troops with his own two hands.