Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: The Vanguard's Challenge
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Loan's mind raced at the mention of ghouls, but Oscar calmed him down, saying there were procedures to follow.
"What kind of procedures?"
"This isn't the Union. We are in the capital of an autonomous duchy. Even if we use force for the sake of the duchy, getting the Duke's approval comes first."
"What kind of procedure is that…?"
Lucas suddenly grumbled.
"That's what it means to have power."
Sienna ruffled Lucas's hair and left the room.
"You need to get used to living under scrutiny."
Sienna's voice trailed off as she walked away. As Lucas watched her leave, his gaze suddenly met Adrian's.
Adrian shook his head slightly and let out a deep sigh.
Lucas was very curious about the meaning of the sigh, but with his father and Sienna nearby, he couldn't ask.
He could only follow the group.
When the four members of the Faith Division, led by Oscar, entered Duke Barchino's office, many people were already seated around a round table, discussing the matter at hand.
The atmosphere seemed quite intense, but the appearance of the four carried enough weight to bring an instant silence.
Barchino's attendant announced loudly.
"Vice-Commander Oscar of the Union's Faith Division, and Runner Sienna, Loan, and Lucas Oz."
As soon as the introduction was over, a man shot up from his seat and approached them.
Oscar bowed his head lightly in a gesture of respect to the well-built, handsome middle-aged man.
*This must be Duke Barchino.*
The man returned the greeting perfunctorily and looked at Loan.
"So you're Loan. The description I heard doesn't do you justice."
"..."
Loan, on the other hand, had almost no information about Duke Barchino.
He only knew that Barchino's swordsmanship was profound and that the Duke held the title of Barchino's First Sword.
Facing him now, he could sense the man was indeed a formidable master.
The Duke tilted his head with a smile.
"I thought the rumors were exaggerated, but it seems they weren't. I can feel a strange, sharply honed presence about you. It even reminds me of someone."
*Is he trying to see through me?*
In the Duke's gaze as he scanned him, Loan felt a sense of longing, but also something akin to killing intent.
"What is sharply honed is your Grace's Heart-Sword, I believe. It is an honor to meet the First Sword of Barchino."
The words slipped out before he knew it.
The Duke's eyes widened at the unexpected response. It was by no means an unpleasant expression.
"Haha, I haven't reached that level yet, but it's nice to hear."
"I apologize if my words were rash."
Duke Barchino relaxed his serious posture slightly and replied.
"I never imagined the boy who achieved so much in the bridge district and the hill country would be so polite. You surprise me in many ways. It's enough to make me quite envious of the Union."
Loan, too, was pleased, as if his character had been acknowledged.
"Come, have a seat. We can save the pleasantries for later. Right now, we have a fire to put out."
The Duke let out another hearty laugh and sat down first.
He possessed a cold, killing intent, yet at the same time, had an easygoing and unpretentious nature.
It didn't feel at all like they were on the verge of an all-out war that would decide the duchy's fate.
"Continue, Hans."
Commander Hans of the Security Division met the eyes of each Faith Division member before continuing his briefing.
On the large map laid out on the round table, colorful wooden pieces were scattered about.
"The area where they declared an all-out war is the Casti Plains. It's open on all sides, a terrain that makes it difficult to devise any special strategies or tactics. Of course, the same goes for Libertha, so we have no choice but to face them head-on."
Hans arranged the pieces to show a standoff in the center of the map.
The Duke rested his chin on his hand and stared blankly at the pieces.
"The enemy's numbers?"
"Even with the entire Barchino capital army and the stationed Union forces, we appear to be outnumbered."
"And if we don't respond?"
"They'll resort to the same small-scale strategies and tactics as before. Since we can't cover the entire Barchino region, we'll have to accept civilian casualties."
"Hmm... The violent crimes against civilians were the biggest reason to eliminate them, and we have to keep watching that happen? I hear they've recently started kidnapping and abducting people without hesitation?"
"The children we rescued in today's raid seem to be only a fraction of the victims."
This time, he placed house-shaped pieces in several locations, and with each one, the Duke's brow furrowed deeper.
"In that case, aren't they doing us a favor by setting the stage like this? If the numbers were right, it would be worth responding..."
Duke Barchino straightened up, his voice trailing off.
His gaze turned to Loan, who didn't look away.
"I'd like to hear our young Oz's opinion. It seems the older one gets, the more cowardly one becomes."
Loan responded without much hesitation.
"I believe the first priority is to make our stance clear so they can't resort to any further schemes."
"Stance?"
"Libertha is the one more vulnerable to provocation. We should make them focus on the all-out battle, and we will commit our full strength."
"We're already outnumbered, and we can't deploy the entire Barchino capital army."
"Of course, we must leave a minimum defensive force, but I believe taking this opportunity to annihilate Libertha is the right decision for the future."
It was a resolute answer.
*How can such a young boy be so firm in his convictions?*
The Duke was curious about his intentions and his plan.
"Even if reinforcements from the Union are coming, it will take time. So how will you buy that time, and how will you draw out their full force?"
Loan answered calmly.
"I have a plan. As a reward for my meritorious service, place me in the vanguard, and I will prove it."
In an instant, Oscar and Sienna shot up from their seats.
Hans, too, stared at Loan with a look of bewilderment.
Amidst the shock, the Duke burst into a hearty laugh.
"Haha, hahaha! Demanding to be in the vanguard as a reward for service. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Can a request to die first be considered a reward?"
His laughter continued for quite some time.
Loan waited patiently for the Duke's approval.
A moment later, the Duke stopped laughing and gazed steadily into Loan's turquoise eyes.
Loan's seriousness gradually spread to the Duke's face.
"So be it. It might be interesting to bet Barchino's fate on a boy from the Union."
Sounds close to groans escaped from around the round table.
This came not only from the Union's side but from Barchino's as well.
The Duke's temperament, like the heat of the southern lands, was always this impulsive.
Fortunately, whether because he saw things others could not, the results were usually excellent, and his orders were absolute.
With no counterarguments, the meeting was thus concluded.
The attendees hurried from their seats to prepare for battle.
"What on earth were you thinking?"
Oscar's rebuke was aimed at Loan as they left the Duke's office. His voice was laced with bewilderment, worry, and anger.
Sienna and Lucas, seemingly sharing the sentiment, also glared at Loan.
The Duke had accepted Loan's proposal, and now the situation was irreversible.
"I'm sorry for acting without consulting you."
Loan stopped walking and bowed his head to them, apologizing for his impulsive action.
"However, the Duke asked me directly, and we were short on time. I had already concluded that, as it happens, the best way to provoke them was for me to step forward."
Everyone knew that Loan's thinking was profound and extraordinary.
Lucas especially. Still, it was only natural for worry to come first.
"You do know what it means to be the vanguard in an all-out war, right?"
"Yes. That's why I have to do it."
"Let's hear your reason."
Oscar asked, pressing him.
Once they were in a place where he could no longer sense any mana flows besides those of the Faith Division, Loan explained his plan.
The brows of the Faith Division members slowly relaxed.
* * *
The next morning came.
With no more time to waste, a portion of the Barchino capital army, along with the Union's Security and Faith Divisions, headed for the rendezvous point.
The Union took up a position at the front of the capital army.
Though they numbered less than twenty in total, it was a natural arrangement, as each individual's combat prowess was a match for a hundred.
"Lord Oscar. Are you certain the reinforcements will arrive today?"
Standing beside him, Oscar answered Hans's question.
"The Harmony Division and the Honor Division are on their way."
The Honor Division.
The thought of Commander Magda's indiscriminate bombardment reassured Loan.
He had never seen them, but the Harmony Division, rooted in the Strong Sword style, was a unit specialized in full-scale combat, just like the Honor Division. They were said to rage like a storm. His expectations were high.
*Four divisions gathering...*
It was a clear indicator of how much effort the Union was pouring into this decisive battle with Libertha.
Sienna continued with a supplementary explanation.
"The Harmony Division is coming up from the south, and the Honor Division is coming down from the northeast, past the bridge district. Each has around twenty members. We expect them to join us by noon today."
"We'll have to hold out until then."
The gazes of the two men fell on the back of Loan's head.
Loan, standing one step ahead, listened to their conversation, his eyes fixed on the ruffians.
An incredible number of them.
More than during the decisive battle with Le Tell. There had to be at least two hundred.
Among them were some individuals with immense mana he had never seen before. Perhaps Libertha's supreme commander, who was said to have fought four commanders, was among them.
*Just as I expected.*
Undaunted, Loan took a few steps forward to play his part.
The sight of a young boy stepping out as the vanguard alone caused a stir among the enemy.
"What's that? Is he planning to fight one-on-one?"
"They're sending out a fledgling like that?"
"Since they're making a desperate stand anyway, maybe they plan to sacrifice the kid to boost their own morale?"
"That wouldn't be a very pleasant morale boost."
"It would just make them more desperate."
Loan, his senses sharpened, heard every word clearly.
He needed to turn that murmuring into an uproar.
"Aul."
"Aul?"
He reached into the mouth of the suddenly appearing Aul and pulled out a lump.
A lump of mana with the property of wind, or perhaps the atmosphere.
Inside Aul's stomach, things of the same nature had clumped together, forming a denser shape, but even so, its destructive power was weaker than other mana lumps.
*It's fine.*
It looked like a transparent cloud, but a fierce vortex was swirling within it.
Loan slowly dissolved it into his Convection.
The Convection soon swelled, becoming like a vast membrane of clouds surrounding Loan.
Feeling a strange sense of resistance pushing against them, Hans and Oscar took another step back.
*Just do what I always do.*
Loan thought.
There are many people, and the stage is wide and far, but in essence, it's no different from when he was reciting.
To drive my voice into every corner, into the very heart of the most distant villain—for now, that is all.
Loan slowly opened his mouth.
The rich Convection, following his will, carried his voice—
Vwoooom—
and began to spread in all directions.
"Libertha. When I look closely at your evil deeds, I see nothing but pathetic tricks used to torment the weak. In terms of cowardice, you are worse than beasts, let alone us."
The provocative words raged like a storm, creating a shockwave that made bodies stagger as it struck the ears and chests of the villains filling the plain.
Loan didn't stop.
"If you truly seek strength, you should not be tormenting the weak for satisfaction, but endlessly challenging the Union, the continent's greatest military power. Wouldn't that at least make you better than beasts?"
Every nook and cranny.
Loan's voice spread until there was nowhere it didn't reach, and there was no one who wasn't enraged by it.
"I make a proposal to you lowly creatures. I am Oz Loan of the Union's Faith Division. Which swordsman of Libertha will dare to test their skills against a mere novice who joined the Union barely two months ago?"
The plain began to stir.