Chapter 120
Chapter 120
The Iron Emperor — Chapter 120
Risel's spirits were currently plunging into the abyss. Jin-cheon was asking questions with a cautious expression, and Risel was answering with all sincerity. The problem was that the questions were testing the limits of his capabilities.
They kept asking about things that would be possible only for a legendary Archmage beyond the level of an Archwizard.
"Hmm, then."
Flinch.
Every time a word came out of Jin-cheon's mouth, Risel flinched in surprise, and everyone else looked at him with pity. It was simply the best they could do.
"Maybe I should just cut off their heads..."
Jin-cheon's muttering drifted through the air.
At that meaningful mutter, the commanders in the war council fixed their eyes on him. Sensing all eyes upon him, Jin-cheon let a meaningful smile play across his lips and opened his mouth.
"Heh. I have a good idea..."
Just then, Eulji Buru, who had been semi-forcibly expelled by Jin-cheon's order and had reentered moments earlier, tilted his head. Then, as if suddenly struck by lightning, he clapped his palms together with a jolt and shouted.
"Right!"
"...."
Two deep furrows etched themselves into Jin-cheon's brow—his sentence cut in half by Buru. Nevertheless, Buru began to speak with a radiant face.
"Master, a truly epoch, epoch-making idea has struck me!"
"What is it?"
Jin-cheon figured there had to be adequate reason for Buru to speak with such gleaming eyes. So he quietly listened to Buru's epoch-making scheme.
"You said with teleport, if you don't overdo it, you can move a total of about thirty men in five jumps, yes?"
"That's right."
"That's it!"
Buru released a voice brimming with conviction and gave a great nod. Seeing this, everyone opened their mouths with expectant eyes.
"This is the method that shall make Eulji Buru's strategy shine in this world. And troop expenditure will be low!"
As Buru spoke, waving his arms, the furrows in Jin-cheon's brow deepened. Even so, Buru's bold boasts kept the assembled figures from reading the room.
"As you said, Master, teleport is possible to a degree without counter-magic."
"Hmm... hahahaha."
Risel, who had been listening to Buru's explanation, suddenly burst into laughter, drawing everyone's eyes to him. Feeling the commanders' gazes, Risel wore a slightly sheepish expression as he let out a good-natured laugh.
"Hahaha, I was suddenly reminded of a preposterous operation from the past."
"A preposterous operation?"
The furrow on Jin-cheon's brow eased a little as curiosity flickered in his expression. It was only natural that the Gauri warriors, still ignorant of many aspects of this world's tactics, would be interested in Risel's story.
Reading their eyes, Risel wet his throat with water as if it were a little dry and began his explanation.
"Hahaha, well, this is a story from war records about eight hundred years ago. At that time, when wars frequently raged across the continent, there was a young king in a kingdom called Sekat. He possessed high martial prowess, enough to ascend to the ranks of a Sword Master at a young age."
"Hmm."
Nasal murmurs of interest came from those around him.
"The problem was that his high martial prowess led to an iron-fist rule."
"Buru. Got a complaint?"
"No, sir...."
Buru, who had unconsciously looked at Jin-cheon as Risel's story was flowing out, quietly turned his head back to Risel under the piercing killing intent.
"In the war that broke out then, the young king of Sekat took the vanguard himself. The problem was that his method of warfare, relying on might, reached its limit. Driven to repeated retreats by enemy counterattacks born of his simplistic tactics, did he not—trusting only his own martial power—carry out a preposterous operation!"
"What manner of thing was it?"
Uru urged from one side. The looks in the others' eyes were little different, so Risel, feeling a bit of pressure, continued his story with an awkward smile.
"At that time, even with the young king personally commanding, defeats continued, and the nobles' distrust was steadily mounting. So, to display his standing, that king decided to flip the war in a single stroke. Additionally, he wished to become a hero himself. Therefore, the operation was conducted in secret. The young king and about forty of his knight order..."
Pausing his speech, Risel slowly looked around at the surrounding figures. The way the corners of his mouth twitched, hinting at what he was about to say, only stoked their curiosity further.
"They attempted to teleport directly above the enemy's main headquarters! Puhahaha!"
At the sight of him speaking alone and then doubling over in laughter by himself, Jin-cheon and the Gauri warriors seemed not to understand.
Only then did Risel, who had been laughing alone, wear a slightly embarrassed expression.
In truth, it was only natural they didn't understand, as these were people who possessed only the bare necessary magical knowledge.
At that moment, Baron Levion Gowin's laugh came from the entrance of the command tent.
"Hahaha, you must be speaking of Igor the Iron King of Sekat, the strongest and most foolish."
"Hahaha, indeed."
Gowin, who had entered the tent, rendered a military salute to Jin-cheon and then took his own seat. Seeming to have roughly read the commanders' mood, he continued the explanation.
"In conclusion, teleporting into a command tent is impossible."
"What!"
Buru shot up in shock.
Unfazed by Buru's alarm, Gowin calmly carried on.
"If that worked, then assassins would be teleporting down every night, assassinating targets, and fleeing. Moreover, they'd gamble their lives to teleport into an enemy kingdom's royal palace to kill the king or prince and escape, so why would they go through all this trouble?"
"That...."
At Gowin's question, Buru stammered as if his words had momentarily jammed.
"In the Imperial capital, strategic military points, and field encampments, disruption arrays and other things that interfere with teleportation magic circles are installed. Even a 2nd Circle can manage a disruption array, so they're set up in encampments or within the tent itself. The Gauri army is already well aware of this point..."
As he spoke, Gowin turned his head at the wave of mana he felt around him. Not only him, but the other commanders also fixed their gazes on one spot.
"...."
A moment of silence.
A white light seeped through the wall of the command tent. Risel, who had briefly spread both hands toward the wall and done something, carefully took his seat.
"A disruption array?"
"...."
At Jin-cheon's low question, Risel cautiously nodded. At the same moment, Gowin wondered whether he had done the right thing in entrusting himself to these people.
"So what became of the ones who did teleport?"
Uru from one side picked up the severed conversation.
Gowin, who had been lost in thought, opened his mouth again at Uru's urging.
"They had been aware of that point, so they locked the teleport location to empty air and made the attempt, but...."
Gowin's voice grew quieter.
"Their bodies were torn to shreds, and only chunks of flesh rained down."
"Khurgh!"
At Baron Gowin's words, Buru let out a strangled death cry.
Seeing Buru's deathly pale face, Hwi-garam, who had roughly guessed the nature of the brilliant operation Buru had conceived, released a sigh.
"Was the operation you were about to suggest earlier that one?"
"...I shall go make a patrol round."
Buru's pitiful shoulders, as he walked out powerless, were swallowed into the darkness outside the dimming tent.
"Hahaha, since we don't yet know everything about magic, such a thing can happen. Well then, what Your Majesty was about to say earlier..."
Rustle.
Risel tried to lift the mood again by speaking up and looking for Jin-cheon, but Jin-cheon's body was already heading out of the tent.
With shoulders resembling those of someone who had exited moments earlier, he disappeared into the darkness.
"...We must not speak of this matter ever again."
Hwi-garam's heavy voice carried quiet entreaty and resolve to the others inside the command tent.
"...."
Outside, Jin-cheon watched Buru's figure receding among the soldiers and let out a brief sigh.
At times, I think I'm fortunate to have you.
A tender sense of kinship with Buru, which had begun to bloom through the earlier danmuji incident and this event, seeped into a corner of Jin-cheon's eyes and heart.
When Buru's pathetic back reappeared, flickering in the torchlight, the deeply etched furrow in Jin-cheon's brow smoothed wide open.
"Heh."
Displaying a completely opposite expression, Jin-cheon immediately turned and reentered the tent.
"The council continues."
"Yes!"
Though the commanders found Go Jin-cheon's sudden bright demeanor strange, they swiftly returned to their places, partly out of relief.
"Risel."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
When Risel answered Jin-cheon's call with a bowed head, Jin-cheon wore a satisfied expression and spoke.
"You said to continue what I was cut off from saying earlier, yes?"
"Well... for now, there are problems with that...."
Seeing Risel stammer, unable to adapt to the mercurial changes, Jin-cheon clicked his tongue.
"Tsk tsk. Did you think I was going to suggest teleporting men into the enemy camp like Buru?"
"N-no!"
When Jin-cheon looked around at the other commanders after seeing Risel's flustered face, all of them turned their heads slightly. Only Hwi-garam sat quietly, wearing a smile.
"Risel. If a teleport were done to a normal location rather than empty air, what would happen?"
At Jin-cheon's question, Risel answered immediately.
"If that were to happen, the coordinates would be misaligned. One would either be bounced to a completely different location, or in the worst case, become a spatial castaway—that is, vanish forever without appearing in this land."
"I see."
"That is why that young king in the example is called a foolish monarch. Because of the disruption array, coordinates over empty air are split into multiple branches. That young king judged and executed the plan entirely by himself, without asking anyone else's opinion, and such a tragedy occurred."
Jin-cheon gave a satisfied smile. Countless thoughts raced through Risel's mind as he looked at that meaningful smile.
He's not thinking underground, is he?
As Risel was even entertaining impossible thoughts, Jin-cheon's voice reached his ears.
"Ascertain the coordinates of the North Roselin main camp."
"Excuse me?"
Risel suspected he had misheard Jin-cheon and glanced around. But the others' reactions were subtle as well, suggesting they hadn't misheard either. Only Hwi-garam's expression showed no notable change.
"Hoo hoo. The arrival location..."
As Jin-cheon's strange smile trailed off, Risel inwardly chanted, Not underground!, and focused on Jin-cheon's next words.
"Midair."
"What?"
"Ha!"
Everyone reeled in shock, but Jin-cheon simply wore a smile as though he had said all he needed to say.