Chapter 86
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: Fireworks (2)
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3.
Ha! You accuse me, a man whose family has defended this border city for generations, of plotting treason? Even a stray dog wouldnt believe such a thing.
Leandro, whom they met at the halfway point, shouted in displeasure.
That seems an inappropriate attitude for someone who came to clear up a misunderstanding, Margrave Leandro.
At Rebellios remark, Leandro bit his lip hard.
...Your Highness, I dont know what you may have heard in the city, but I am truly being wronged. From the day I was born until now, the only thing I have ever done is diligently protect the Empires border. That is all.
At those words, Rebellio began to interrogate Leandro as if he had been waiting for this moment.
For someone who claims to have diligently protected the border, Reven is horrifically corrupt. The slave trade, forbidden by the Empire, was being conducted in broad daylight... and whats more, Margrave Leandro, you personally ordered your men to capture people of other races.
Your Highness. That is
I have no desire to hear it. I have already heard the testimony from your men, and I have acquired the ledger of slave trade payments from your mansion.
After cornering Leandro with only the revealed truths, Rebellio added a spoonful of lies on top.
Furthermore, evidence of your treason was also discovered in your mens testimony. Do you still intend to deny your crimes!
Rebellios reaction, no different from Karrons, convinced Leandro that the Sixth Prince was also on their side.
The Sixth Princes political backing was the Leston Ducal Family.
In the end, they were all in it together. And he could easily deduce the reason.
...The Leston familys machinations!
It was a petty scheme by the Leston family to oust Duke Salmon, whom he served.
Karrons arrival in Reven must have been the beginning of this ridiculous plot.
I must endure.
Leandro wanted nothing more than to punish these two brats who had thrown his city into chaos.
But to bare his fangs here would only be helping them play out their intentions.
Although everything was surely fabricated, for now, he had to quietly comply with their request.
Only then would he get the chance to go to the capital and clear his name of this unjust accusation.
Clank.
Having finally made his decision, Leandro unfastened the sword at his waist, scabbard and all, and placed it on the ground.
Then he immediately knelt and bowed his head, crying out.
Someone is framing this innocent man with a vicious false charge! I, Margrave Leandro, will set aside my grievances and head to the capital to prove my innocence! I implore Your Highness to understand my feelings!
It was a humiliating, yet most certain and political choice.
All he had to do was get to the capital.
Leandro knew well that they had no evidence.
He had never even considered treason in the first place.
Once I get to the capital... I will have to admit to the slave trading.
The significant source of income that had lined his pockets would be cut off, but that would be the extent of it.
At the very least, he could completely absolve himself of this utterly absurd charge of treason.
Revenge would have to wait until after he had cleared his name.
Hah.
Karron watched Margrave Leandro surrender so meekly and laughed as if in disbelief.
The man was built like a bear, but he acted like a fox.
He thought a little prodding would make him flare up, but this bear-like fox had instantly found a way to save his own skin.
To think a man commanding a vastly superior army would surrender so obediently.
This is no fun.
Karron bent down slightly, meeting Leandros eyes. He smiled brightly and said.
You really not going to fight?
Leandro scowled deeply and replied.
Did you think I would fall so easily for the Leston familys scheme?
Tsk. You dont know a thing. Why would we scheme against you?
...Youre looking for a pretext to attack His Grace, Duke Salmon
Does our family really need to create a pretext to push aside someone like Duke Salmon? You seem to be the one with a misunderstanding... This isnt a family matter. Its personal.
The smile on Karrons lips deepened.
Surrendering... A good decision. You can prove your innocence once you get to the capital, right?
I was innocent from the start, Karron Leston.
Of course, I know. But you know what? Sometimes, guilt is something created by someone else.
...What?
It must have been the same for the slaves you sold. When their master says, You are a sinner, the slave becomes a sinner. Because that is the natural fate of a slave.
Unease.
At the madmans words, goosebumps suddenly erupted all over his body.
Had he missed something?
If he hadnt missed anything, then why was this lunatic smiling so gleefully?
But Leandro quickly regained his composure.
There was nothing this bastard could do in this situation.
There were too many eyes watching.
He had already surrendered; surely they wouldnt kill him now.
Whether I am guilty or not will ultimately be revealed in a court of law in the capital.
At those words, Karron slowly brought his mouth to Leandros ear. He whispered in a small voice.
Ill bet my life you wont make it to the capital.
What do you think you can do now.
Watch closely.
It was then.
Whoosh!
An arrow flew from where Leandros soldiers were stationed.
Thwack.
Keoheok!
It struck Rebellio squarely in the shoulder.
The impact sent Rebellio tumbling to the ground, and Karron rushed frantically toward him.
Brother! Brother!
Karron clutched the fallen Rebellios body and glared at Leandro.
Leandros mind went blank as he watched the scene unfold.
A prince had been struck by an arrow.
An arrow fired by a soldier under his, Leandros, command.
The arrow had literally left the bowstring.
N-No! I never ordered such a thing
As he stammered, his eyes fell upon Karrons face.
Despite a prince being attacked, Karrons head was slightly bowed, a smile playing on his lips.
The princes condition was even more suspicious.
Despite being hit by an arrow, he wasnt even bleeding.
And those werent the only two suspicious things.
Mason Paul, the princes escort knight, stood behind them.
With the skill of an 8-star knight, he would never have allowed a mere arrow to pass, even from a distance.
...No way.
A setup.
The word suddenly flashed through his mind, but before he could say anything, Karron shouted.
The traitor has shown his true colors! Its treason! Margrave Leandro is attempting to assassinate His Highness, Prince Rebellio!
By the time he realized it was all a trap, it was too late.
Leandro knew he had already been dragged into the middle of a deep quagmire.
An explanation?
Could he explain this situation?
How in the world could he explain a situation where a prince had been struck by an arrow and had collapsed?
...It cant be.
If so, the only remaining option was.
All troops! Prepare for battle!
To buy time and get out of here, whatever it took.
Leandro immediately stood, mounted his horse, and spurred it on.
He turned back toward his soldiers and yelled.
If you want to live, take up your arms! They intend to brand us all as traitors and kill us!
In the urgency of the moment, Leandro failed to notice that Karron and Mason had deliberately let him go.
Look at him run.
Watching Leandros back as he fled in a hurry, Karron nodded in satisfaction.
Not a bad actor.
Rebellio replied with his eyes squeezed shut.
...To think self-inflicted fraud would be added to my criminal record.
A fitting record for the second-in-command of the illegal organization Kalligo. It suits you, brother.
The arrow just now was an illusion created by Rebellio.
But given the circumstances, that illusion moved reality.
Rebellio had brilliantly accomplished the plan. The self-inflicted injury was the very plan they had prepared.
Karron dusted off his hands and stood up.
Ill be back. You rest.
Youre going alone?
Im more than enough. How many chances does a man get in his life to go one against two thousand?
You madman.
His spirits were higher than ever.
Watching that piece of trash who sold slaves run for his life as a traitor felt like a century of indigestion had just been cured.
The end of the grand fraud was near.
A good play deserves a grand finale.
Drawing Guillotine from its scabbard, Karron surged forward without hesitation.
4.
Stop him! Stop him, even if it costs you your lives!
Leandro screamed, veins bulging in his neck, as he watched Karron charge toward him.
Did that bastard not value his own life?
Two thousand.
Two thousand thoroughly trained elite soldiers.
Elite soldiers who had pushed back even the forces of the Shion Kingdom with their movements alone. Against two thousand of them, a single knight was charging in like a moth to a flame.
The original plan was to escape before Karron and Rebellio could lead the citys forces out.
It would take a considerable amount of time to assemble the troops and march out of the city.
But that madman named Karron was already far beyond common sense. He was charging a force of two thousand all by himself.
KABOOOOM!
A fireball reluctantly cast by one of the armys mages was cleanly split in two by the madmans swinging sword.
Its just one man! Even if hes a knight, if you sacrifice your lives, you can stop
One versus two thousand.
An overwhelming, truly vast difference that no hero could overcome.
Soldiers who had trained relentlessly for anti-knight warfare should have been able to stop that madman.
But the soldiers who were supposed to stop Karron were all backing away, their faces deathly pale.
Even the commanders who should have been rallying them were just staring at Leandro with vacant expressions.
They knew, too.
There was no glory in this battle.
Even if they sacrificed their lives to stop Karron, all that would remain for them was the title of traitors who had participated in a rebellion.
...A pointless death.
Someone muttered, stepping back.
And so, the formation crumbled, and the chain of command began to fray.
Over that chaos spread the terrifying killing intent emanating from Guillotine.
As a result, the soldiers in Karrons path moved aside, opening a path. At that point, the army split into two groups.
Karron ran down that path without a shred of hesitation.
It was as if he knew no fear.
Seeing this, Leandro shouted frantically.
You worthless bastards!
All humans fear the unknown.
To the soldiers, Karron, who threw himself against a force of two thousand, was the very definition of the unknown.
Not a single soldier dared to swing their weapon at Karron.
At every moment, a warning that swinging a weapon at that man would result in their own beheading tore through their minds.
Reven Knights! If I am captured as a traitor, you will not be free from the charge of treason either!
At Leandros cry, the knights of the Reven Knight Order moved with grim expressions.
They knew Leandros words were not wrong.
Unlike the soldiers, they had no choice from the beginning.
For knights were beings who met their end alongside their lord.
Leandro placed the knights in front of him and immediately drew his own sword from its scabbard.
There were twelve knights here.
If the entire Reven Knight Order had been present, they could have subdued him for certain, but as it was, he had no other option.
He instinctively realized that Karron had surpassed the 6-star level.
A 6-star at such a young age.
Perhaps this madman would ascend to the ranks of the strongest in the not-so-distant future.
But none of that mattered to Leandro.
Right now, the only thing that mattered to him was finding a way to survive.
...Everyone, let your mana run rampant. We must use our full power.
At Leandros command, the knights unhesitatingly overloaded their cores.
They knew that if they couldnt stop Karron, they would die anyway.
We kill that bastard and escape the Empire. We must survive until His Grace, Duke Salmon, can clear our names.
The knights mana began to rage violently.
Karron had already reached them, and the knights prepared for the imminent clash.
But just then, Karron, who had been charging fiercely, came to a stop.
He then smiled at Leandro and said.
Trying to use your men as fodder and escape? Tsk, tsk, that wont do.
SHHHHNK!
Karron plunged Guillotine deep into the ground with all his might.
Ssssss.
The mana flowing from Guillotine instantly dyed the earth a dark, bluish-black.
A moment later.
KWAAAAAAA!
From all over the mana-stained earth, mana began to erupt like whirlpools.
Sea Wolf Sword Style, 6th Form: Raging Tide.
Margrave Leandro. You will die here as a traitor.
At last, the final stage for the traitor was set.