Chapter 199
Chapter 199
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 199
Chapter Title: The Clan's Traitor 1
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“Karzen. I can deal with the approaching assassins.”
“You, the notorious dullard, think you can handle our Aragasa against other Heralds?”
“I’ve already beaten many active Heralds in duels. Plus, I’ve racked up all sorts of merits, which is why I’m the 2nd Herald now.”
“The 2nd Herald?”
Karzen was skeptical at the claim that Azadin had risen to such a high rank.
“So leave the assassins to me.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. How am I supposed to trust you? What if you go after Manza-Zadek instead? We’d lose our employer and be completely ruined. I’ve had enough of a life wandering as the ‘Soulless Blasphemer,’ insulted by everyone. I don’t want that horrific existence for my children!”
“…….”
Listening to Karzen, Azadin finally understood why so many Heralds quit and sincerely served the Golden King.
Life as an Imperial Herald was grueling and humiliating. Even if it was honorable and necessary, who would want to pass that suffering on to their children?
They only did it because the curse of service forced it upon them generation after generation.
In a situation like that, it was only natural to pledge loyalty to Manza-Zadek, who offered a way out and such benefits.
‘I used to scorn the Herald clans for betraying their kin to serve some cripple when I didn’t know the truth. But now that I understand, their desperation makes perfect sense.’
Considering a parent’s wish to give their children a life free from persecution, Azadin could comprehend why Karzen and the other Herald clans served Golden King Manza-Zadek.
Azadin genuinely wanted to help Karzen and her subordinates. So he humbled himself and began persuading them with utmost sincerity.
“If I killed Manza-Zadek myself and took his throne, how do you think the other clans would see me?”
“They’d look up to you.”
“Do you think the Elder Council’s top brass would want that? I’m Azadin the Incompetent. The guy everyone in the clan despises and ignores. Who would want to see someone like that suddenly rise to prominence through merits?”
“But you said you’re already the 2nd Herald?”
“That’s exactly the problem. It was a unilateral decision by my patron, Aldis. Everyone’s probably upset about it.”
Karzen was taken aback by Azadin’s words. She’d seen people beg to be trusted before, but never one asking her to trust their bad reputation.
“If you can’t trust me, then trust my infamy. Plenty of my kin hate me. They wouldn’t stand for my sudden success now, would they?”
“What a bizarre argument.”
“And separately from that, believe in my skills. I’ve beaten multiple active Heralds fair and square. If I fight on your side, you can end this with minimal casualties.”
Karzen knew they couldn’t repel a proper Herald assassination attempt with their own strength alone… Azadin’s words preyed on her fears and desire to flee.
“Fine. Golden Lion. I’ll trust His Majesty’s judgment in entrusting you with the Golden Decree. He’s no pushover, so he must have seen something in you.”
*********
Atop the palace roof amid the pouring storm, Royal Guard Captain Karzen gathered her guard officers.
Azadin wondered if they were banding together to execute him, but when Karzen decided to trust him, the other guards rejoiced.
“If a young, vigorous guy’s willing to take on the active Heralds, it gives us some breathing room.”
“I was just a servant, not even a Herald, so the thought of Heralds storming in kept me up at night. At least this is a relief.”
“But isn’t Azadin the Incompetent famous for being a dullard? Can he really handle active Heralds?”
There were three Aragasa among the guards, but they were all fairly old, with low Herald ranks or not Heralds at all, so they feared a Herald assault. With Azadin stepping up to face the active Heralds, they welcomed it with open arms.
“Come on. Our guard has necromancers, blood mages, and all sorts of heretical mages the King’s Church wants dead, beyond just the Aragasa. We’ll mobilize all their manpower to support you. Azadin, you stay at the palace center, on the roof. When we spot assassins, come reinforce us.”
“Is that okay?”
That setup would scatter the guards everywhere while Azadin guarded the spot closest to Manza-Zadek.
He’d asked to be trusted, but he hadn’t expected her to trust him this thoroughly.
“Ah, whatever. It’s all a gamble anyway, so let’s go all in. You’re not really a deputy, but you’d better hold the line. No complaints about fighting your own kin, right? You’ve been scorned by the clan—this is your chance to take them out and enlist with Manza-Zadek.”
“Enlist?”
“It’s not a bad deal. How long are you going to cling to the ghost of a dead Emperor, wandering at his whim? Settling down here isn’t so bad.”
“It’s hot and humid, bugs are venomous, but at least no worrying about the King’s Church.”
The Aragasa in the guard, content with life in Btuma, chimed in with praise.
“But if that guy’s the Golden Lion, isn’t that his meteoric rise? If he settles here, we might get screwed over?”
Karzen clicked her tongue, realizing her slip. She’d initially approached Azadin out of resentment over him receiving the Golden Decree and becoming the King’s proxy as Golden Lion.
Yet somehow, she’d ended up raving about the joys of settling in Btuma.
“Whatever, we’ll think about it after this crisis. Infighting now would just make things worse.”
“You’re right.”
“Then, Joan.”
The young sorcerer with a shrieking crow on his shoulder jumped in surprise.
“Yes!”
“Stick by this guy and assist him.”
“Got it.”
“Who’s that?”
“Joan. He’s on our team. Blood mage who faints at the sight of blood.”
“…….”
“But he’s useful as a messenger. Alright!”
Karzen and the guards moved to their assigned positions.
*********
Though the storm raged on, the nagas’ assault dragged.
Naga tactics involved flooding the city first, then striking when flooding crippled defenses.
They were accustomed to fighting in water, while humans floundered when submerged—a rational, effective strategy.
But it also meant holding back major attacks until the storm peaked and flooding advanced.
The problem was Btuma’s constant readiness for squalls with full sewer systems. This time, they’d even drained flood zones in advance for thorough defense.
Coral Sahara had panicked from immediate flooding in the storm, but Btuma drained quickly, resisting submersion.
Even when nagas infiltrated via waterways, Btuma’s forces, who knew them inside out, responded with concentrated fire.
Naga warriors from sea serpent tribes, several times larger than humans, burst from sewers only to be crushed and torn by war elephants. Necromancers in Btuma’s ranks promptly turned the corpses into corpse soldiers and sent them back at the nagas.
The nagas used necromancy aggressively too, but attacking upward left them suffering one-sided losses.
*********
“…That’s the report.”
Joan, the blood mage from the Royal Guard, relayed the battlefield update via the shrieking crow on his shoulder to Azadin.
Azadin’s group sheltered from the rain under a rooftop statue in the palace.
“Btuma’s forces are fighting too well?”
“That’s why they’ve won victory after victory under the Golden King. Impressive, right, Captain?”
Shati had fretted over Btuma’s propaganda, but Scott celebrated like it was his own triumph.
“I knew they’d fight well from the start. Their drainage and defense prep were no joke.”
Azadin’s mind was conflicted. Btuma holding strong meant the Herald clans would intervene sooner.
But was he truly ready to fight his kin? Azadin lacked confidence in his own resolve.
Circumstances suggested both Aldis and Kazas were joining this horrific slaughter.
He wanted to believe their personalities wouldn’t allow it, but Kazas had once been called Demon King while serving the naga empire—Azadin couldn’t claim to know everything about him.
And the same went for Aldis.
“How about enlisting with Manza-Zadek now and settling here? Everyone seems happy and thriving. How long are you going to keep wandering? The King likes you too. Looks like you’ve got a pretty high rank already.”
Shati seemed pleased with the satisfying pay and status Manza-Zadek had promised them.
Serving under a wealthy, generous king was surely the happy, stable life everyone dreamed of. And it was right there within reach.
However….
“What’s wrong? You don’t look thrilled. You tell me to betray my kin, but betraying yours hurts, huh?”
“That’s….”
“Weird. You’ve been discriminated against by your own. Not treated well, so what’s so heartbreaking about betraying them?”
Shati sneered at Azadin. Joan, the blood mage assigned to him, suddenly startled.
“Oh no, big trouble.”
“Trouble?”
“Assassin infiltrated the east sewer defense post. High skill—probably a Herald clansman. They’re requesting support.”
“Hmm.”
Whether Azadin was ready or not, it was time to face his kin.
*********
Behind Btuma palace’s east gate, nagas infiltrating narrow sewers via a waterway barely wide enough for one met fierce resistance.
They’d slipped in through an accidentally open channel, hoping to score merits despite bloodlust, only for soldiers above to spear them.
An obvious trap.
Desperate, the blood-starved nagas threw in embalmed, necromancy-enhanced mummy troops. While mummies blocked blades, nagas poured in, managing to deploy a unit.
But when the east gate guards charged with war elephants in front, the tide turned again.
“So it’s our turn.”
“Hate dealing with those fishy bastards, but works for me.”
Herald clan infighting had thinned their ranks, leaving new Heralds hungry for achievements.
Halden, descendant of Aman from the Aragasa’s Five Great Bloodlines, joked.
“So what do you think, Midiam Etar? The Etar bloodline isn’t planning to hog all of Btuma, right?”