Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: Under the Mountain
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“You’re awake, Your Highness. Did you sleep well?”
The moment I opened my eyes, Davy greeted me. Ugh... what time is it anyway? The sun’s already high in the sky?
“Didn’t even think about it, but I slept like a rock. This thing’s a real gem.”
I dragged myself out of the deerhide sleeping bag the Ancient Bears had laid out for me. The soft, warm feel was so perfect that once I crawled inside and closed my eyes, I was out like a light.
“The sleeping bag really is top-notch. I asked the other knights to take watch and caught a quick nap myself.”
“They said they made it to trade honey with the elves. Where’s Lanir?”
“He went back to the Eternal Forest at dawn to pack his things.”
Davy glanced toward the distant foothills as he answered.
“I heard Your Highness promised to take that elf boy into the knight order. Is that true?”
“Yeah. I figured having one elf in our knight order wouldn’t hurt. Why? Don’t want to train an elf?”
“It’s just that they were our enemies not long ago, so I’m a bit worried.”
Davy’s face practically had ‘Can we trust elves?’ written across it. I nodded without a second thought.
“It’s fine. I don’t know about other elves, but Lanir’s trustworthy.”
“Understood. Your Highness has a keen eye for people.”
Davy bowed his head without argument. Truth be told, it was because I’d read his innermost thoughts with the sovereign’s gaze... but whatever. Since it came up, maybe I should check Davy’s feelings too?
“......”
A touch of wariness.
A touch of anxiety.
And boundless trust and loyalty toward me.
“Wow, and Lanir’s not even here to hear this?”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
“Nah, nothing. Anyway, where’d all the bear cubs go?”
The Ancient Bears had been chattering away yesterday, but now not a single one was in sight. Did they already head out to wipe out the earthworms?
“There’s a plaza north of the village. They’ve gathered there since morning, preparing for battle.”
“I see.”
“They said they’d let me know before setting out. Earthworms, huh? I had no idea the Ancient Bears had such a hidden struggle.”
“Me neither. Of course, I didn’t even know Ancient Bears existed a few months ago.”
“I’d heard vague rumors. What should we do? Just give the order, and I’ll join the fight.”
“I want to help too. But when I asked yesterday, they flat-out refused.”
That brought back our conversation from last night clear as day.
-No matter how much armor you wear, melee’s still dangerous, right? Other bears might die mid-battle. So this time, let me lead the charge. I can even take out their queen if you want. Sound good?
-No.
-No? Why not?
-This battle is a sacred duty passed down through generations in our tribe. We Ancient Bears must break through with our own strength, and at the final moment, I, the chieftain, must end the queen. We cannot let outsiders lead or borrow their power.
“......So we agreed I wouldn’t fight directly—just heal the injured bear cubs from the back.”
“You really plan to stop at that?”
“No way.”
I shook my head with a big grin.
“I’ll do everything except frontline combat. Spread Strength with area magic, throw up Light Shields if things get dicey and send them to the front, summon spirits if needed.”
“Wouldn’t spirit magic be too direct?”
“Who cares? I’m not fighting myself. If they complain later, I’ll apologize then.”
“Your Highness must really like those bears.”
Davy smiled as he asked. Yeah. I do. Those bear cubs really grew on me. Their pure white fur makes them look like polar bears—kinda cute.
“They’re impressive, right? Especially Chieftain Babdal. I admire how he’s endured for a thousand years without seeking outside help. Lanir mentioned the same yesterday. Even after all that time interacting with the Ancient Bears, the elves didn’t know about their plight.”
“They feel it only counts if they solve it with their own power. They have incredible attachment and pride for Darkness Mountain.”
“Yeah. So you stay back too.”
“Understood. I’ll just guard Your Highness from behind.”
“That’s plenty. Oh, before that—spar with me.”
Emotion reading.
I needed to test this new ability properly. Davy’s eyes widened suddenly, and he dropped to one knee right there.
“Splendid, Your Highness. To request training in a place like this—you’re a true exemplar for the Empire.”
“No, not training—a spar.”
“Isn’t that the same?”
“It’s not. I need to check something. So...”
I picked up the smallest shortsword I’d brought from the sovereign’s castle a few days ago, leaning against the sleeping bag.
“I ate a core and something changed. It could help in real combat, so let’s test it now.”
* * *
I drew my sword and said,
“Start. Go all out, of course—but not so much I die. Hold back a little. But don’t go easy. Pour your emotions toward me as much as possible.”
“......Those are some tricky conditions.”
Davy gave a wry smile and drew his sword. At that moment, I realized my last words were total nonsense.
Fighting spirit.
A pure battle intent, free of hatred or hostility, crashed over me.
Ugh... this... I didn’t do anything, but my body’s getting crushed...
“What’s wrong, Your Highness?”
Davy asked. I barely suppressed the urge to run and shook my head.
“Nothing. Just thinking Knight Masters are something else.”
The Davy who’d drawn his sword was a completely different person. Whew, can’t breathe. Using the sovereign’s gaze to read emotions or intent might actually be a disadvantage here?
“Your Highness is truly remarkable. Gauging an opponent’s capability is a knight’s most vital skill.”
Awe and satisfaction radiated from the smiling Davy.
Followed by even fiercer battle intent.
“Here I go!”
Before his voice, a sharp current poured forth.
What do you call this? Killing intent?
Slash!
I dodged the killing intent, and the following blade veered with it.
But it didn’t end there. In Davy’s eyes locked on me, the flow of every planned attack poured out as killing intent.
That let me narrowly dodge the horizontal slash that followed.
Clang!
I deflected the thrusting stab and, with quick footwork, leaped away from Davy’s body slam.
But I’d thrown myself too hard—ended up rolling on the ground a few times, covered in dirt.
“Phew...”
But Davy went too hard too! If I hadn’t dodged like that, I might’ve died!
“......Impossible.”
Davy stared at me in shock.
“I can’t believe it. That last attack was unavoidable for Your Highness.”
“Really? Whew. I told you to hold back! What if you’d slammed into me full force?!”
“Of course, I planned to pull back right before impact.”
“No! You didn’t hold back at all! You came at me full speed!”
“Naturally. Since Your Highness dodged.”
“Huh?”
Davy sheathed his sword and knelt on one knee again.
“Your Highness, I’m moved. This is exactly what I told you before.”
“Huh? What?”
“The ability to read an opponent’s attacks in advance. The synesthesia Lord Regall mentioned... I only explained it in words, but Your Highness awakened it on your own power.”
“Oh.”
“I knew I wasn’t wrong. Your Highness’s talent is the best.”
A raging storm of respect and admiration poured out.
Ugh... I can’t handle this! Too embarrassing—I’ll just shut off the sovereign’s gaze!
“It’s not exactly the same... Seems like it came from eating the Ancient Bear core yesterday. You said it’s like predicting the future?”
“Yes.”
“I see intent. Battle intent. Just now, the attacks came where the intent pointed.”
Of course, better not mention seeing detailed emotions. Davy nodded in surprise, then said,
“I see... That makes sense. As Lord Regall said, it varies by individual.”
“Yeah. Anyway, this’ll help in combat too.”
Assuming I can endure the pressure.
Intent? Killing intent?
Seeing this stuff isn’t all upside. If I face someone who sees me as their parents’ killer...
“Human there!”
An Ancient Bear stood on its hind legs in the distance and shouted.
“We’re heading to the earthworm den soon! Follow if you want!”
“Got it! Thanks for the heads-up!”
Davy waved back. Good. Time to support the bear cubs and change the mood?
* * *
In my 9th cycle, I summoned the fifth wave from the otherworld.
The final result, of course: failure.
The fifth wave was powerful on its own, and the resources spent getting there couldn’t be recovered.
Resources meaning everything but me.
My closest subordinates.
The Empire’s army.
The dead don’t return, and shattered units can’t be rebuilt quickly.
Most importantly, my own power. No matter what anyone said, I was the one stopping the waves.
But as the Empire’s army vanished and my subordinates fell one by one, the burden on me skyrocketed exponentially.
That’s when I realized: no matter how strong I get alone, there’s a limit.
So while fleeing from the fifth wave, I pinned my last hopes on things I’d only thought about but never tried.
Success or failure.
Like two sides of a coin—the hidden card I’d saved for the final 10th cycle.
One of them...
Select 100 elite knights from the Empire’s orders and form a new knight order.
Equip them with special magic armor forged by the dwarves. The armor’s effect: prevents external magic effects from penetrating inside.
Different from the anti-magic armor worn by Anti-Magic Knights, which nullifies magic power outright.
Anti-magic kills the spell’s power, but this just blocks it from reaching inward.
Why need that?
Among contractable spirits, there’s a lightning spirit named ‘Ilex.’
Unlike other lightning spirits that shoot bolts, Ilex charges lightning directly into enemies, turning them into living lightning bombs.
Problem is, enemies don’t just sit and wait to become bombs.
They sense something’s off and flee early, or die from electric shock before the bomb forms.
Or worse, once turned into bombs, they charge into our imperial knights and self-destruct.
Sigh, that was probably 6th cycle? After that, I never contracted Ilex again.
But equip knights with this special armor and turn them into lightning bombs?
Crackle!
In theory, it creates something insane. The so-called ‘Lightning Bomb Knight Order.’
Area-denial weapons that plunge into enemy lines, discharging lightning from every inch?
If it goes as predicted, five lightning bomb knights could clear a single gate.
But crafting 100 sets of that special armor takes about five years, per the dwarves’ estimate.
And even then, it’s not done.
Knights need time to adapt with training—minimum three to six months.
Plus, to contract the lightning spirit Ilex, you must forgo contracts with the wind spirit Loondga clan, their natural enemies.
Compared to finicky Ilex, the Loondga’s power is simple: hurl countless wind blades into enemy ranks.
So except for 6th cycle, I always picked Loondga over Ilex. Results proved it best.
That’s why I abandoned the Lightning Bomb Knight tech tree until 9th cycle.
But in this 10th cycle, I planned to push it. All-in on me alone couldn’t even break the fifth wave.
But now, even the five years for special armor are gone.
Thanks to that damned, filthy sponsor!
The Lightning Bomb Knights vanished before they could start.
Goodbye. Farewell, my little knight order. Even if you never existed in reality... I’ll never forget you. Sob sob.