How a Two-Life Scoundrel Lives - Chapter 35
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 35】
“What do you mean by that? Over a hundred?”
“Exactly what I said.”
Carlisle answered Kudo’s question while still keeping his eyes tightly closed.
“I can sense their presence. Roughly over a hundred.”
Grimgand was truly befitting of Chaos King Cain’s Inheritance Sword.
Not only did it detect the killing intent of the barbarians approaching the fortress and inform its master Carlisle, but it even told him the approximate number…
“Is that really true?”
“Yes.”
Carlisle nodded his head.
“The distance, what’s the distance.”
“They’re still far, but they’ll be close soon. About 5 to 10 minutes?”
From what Carlisle could sense, the barbarians were slowly tightening their encirclement around Bowden Fortress.
Though he couldn’t be certain, it seemed their intention was to eliminate the perimeter guards while simultaneously striking like a tidal wave.
“Then let’s move. We don’t have time to waste here.”
“Ah, yes.”
Kudo grabbed Carlisle and pulled him along.
If what Carlisle said was true, then an emergency had erupted.
For a small fortress with only about 70 stationed troops to face an attack from over 100 enemies, they might have to prepare for total annihilation.
“I’ll wake the Scout Unit first. Carlisle, please relay this news to Sir Helen.”
“Let’s do that.”
Following Kudo’s instructions, Carlisle immediately ran toward Helen’s office and quarters.
Crash!
Clatter!
Without even having time to knock, Carlisle smashed through the door of Helen’s office and quarters.
Helen wasn’t sleeping.
As if handling administrative duties as a commander, she was writing something on parchment at an old, crude desk.
“Finally showing your true colors, Carlisle van Sigmund.”
Helen growled as she grabbed the sword placed beside her desk.
“You disgusting beast. No matter how hard it is to endure, how could you…”
“It’s not like that.”
Carlisle cut off Helen’s words.
“What madman would think of forcibly attacking their commander?”
“If it’s you, it’s entirely possi…”
“It’s an enemy attack.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Exactly what I said. Enemies are approaching.”
“How would you know that?”
“This.”
Carlisle showed Helen the Grimgand.
“As you know, it’s the unique Divine Authority of my Inheritance Sword.”
“Ah!”
“We don’t have time.”
Carlisle closed his eyes tightly and listened to Grimgand’s voice.
“They’re gradually surrounding us, and at this rate, we’ll be caught.”
“Alright, I understand.”
Helen shot up from her seat.
“I’ll trust your Inheritance Sword this once.”
“Let’s do that.”
Carlisle didn’t care what Helen believed in.
Whether she believed in Carlisle van Sigmund or the Inheritance Sword, what did it matter.
The important thing was that Helen was taking action.
* * *
“Everyone, quietly and swiftly prepare for enemy attack.”
“Yes.”
Helen, along with the Scout Members who had awakened, woke the Engineers and ordered them to prepare for battle.
‘Am I finally going to experience real war?’
Watching the Allied Forces soldiers moving busily, Carlisle realized he had truly come to a battlefield.
A place where dozens of battles occurred daily in dozens and hundreds of large and small fortresses against the backdrop of vast primeval forests.
That was the reality of Kuberin, called the Blood-Soaked Land.
“Private Carlisle.”
“Yes, Sir Helen.”
“How close are the enemies?”
“Let me check.”
Carlisle gripped Grimgand and concentrated his mind.
Grimgand informed him quite precisely of the enemies’ position and distance through its Detection Ability.
“They’re still at some distance. About 200 meters.”
“Their speed?”
“Quite slow.”
“How much time do we have?”
“Just a moment.”
Carlisle took out his pocket watch and estimated the enemies’ expected arrival time based on their movement speed before answering.
“At this speed, we still have about 10 minutes.”
“That’s fortunate.”
Helen nodded and commanded the soldiers.
“All troops prepare fully and ready for enemy attack!”
“Yes!”
Following Helen’s command, the soldiers moved in unison, taking out spears and bows to prepare for the approaching enemy.
“Hmm.”
Carlisle stood there blankly with no particular assigned mission, then frowned at a sudden thought.
‘Can we hold out?’
Bowden Fortress was surrounded by wooden palisades, so defensive capabilities couldn’t be expected.
The entrance was also made of connected logs, so it would likely be breached easily.
Moreover, the enemies outnumbered them by about twice…
‘The entrance will definitely be breached. When they rush in… can the Scout Unit alone stop them?’
In Carlisle’s judgment, the majority of forces stationed at Bowden Fortress were non-combat Engineers, so even if Helen and the Scout Unit fought valiantly, it would certainly be a difficult battle.
‘Some method… Ah.’
Carlisle turned to look at Helen at a thought that flashed through his mind.
“Sir Helen.”
“What is it?”
“Traps.”
“Traps…?”
“Let’s plant Magic Stone Traps at the fortress entrance.”
“…!”
“We still have some time, so it seems possible.”
“Are you trying to lure the enemies in?”
“It’s not about luring them. The entrance will likely be breached anyway.”
“Does the Inheritance Sword tell you such things too?”
“Because there are many enemies.”
“Alright, let’s try it your way.”
Helen wasn’t a narrow-minded commander, as she readily accepted even the tactics Carlisle had proposed.
“Engineers 3rd Squad. Bring magic stone traps from the warehouse and install them at the fortress entrance.”
“Yes.”
Following Helen’s orders, the engineers installed magic stone traps at the fortress entrance.
“How much time is left?”
“About 1 minute.”
Carlisle answered Helen’s question.
He could feel it.
The enemies who had been slowly approaching were now moving faster and faster, and now they were charging toward the fortress with reckless abandon.
He wasn’t trembling.
Nor was he afraid.
‘Yes, even if I die, I’ll take at least one more with me. Just as you wish.’
Carlisle sneered toward his father, Grand Duke Guntram, who had sent him to this Bowden Fortress, and gripped Grimgand tightly.
* * *
“Valhallaaaa―!!!”
The Barbarian Warriors let out fierce war cries as they charged toward Bowden Fortress.
The [Valhalla] they shouted was one of the afterworlds the barbarians believed in, a heaven that only those who died in battle could reach.
The barbarians considered dying while fighting enemies a great honor, and among all forms of death, they regarded death in battle as the most noble.
Perhaps that’s why Barbarian Warriors always began combat by shouting [Valhalla].
“Kill them all! Every single one without exception! Valhallaaaa!”
Bjornsen, the centurion of the [Butcher Tribe], shouted as he sprinted at full speed toward the continentals’ fortress.
“Valhallaaaaaa!”
About a hundred Barbarian Warriors followed behind Bjornsen, charging forward.
Swoooosh!
As if they had been waiting, a rain of arrows poured down.
“Foolish.”
Thwack!
Bjornsen precisely deflected the incoming arrow with his shield and grinned wickedly.
“They’re quite quick-witted, but do they think they can defend that ramshackle hut with such tricks! Grokan! Clear the path!”
“Yes!”
Grokan was a Barbarian Warrior with an enormous build.
“Brave and cruel ancestors!”
Grokan chanted the incantation for Spirit Possession.
This was both a racial trait and unique ability of Barbarian Warriors.
It involved communing with ancestral spirits through tattoos inscribed by shamans, channeling their power through spirit possession.
“I, Grokan, son of Kardu, need the monstrous strength to break down the enemy’s castle gates…”
The more he chanted, the larger Grokan’s build became, until he was almost comparable to an ogre.
Considering that ogres, commonly called the tyrants and emperors of the forest, stand about 3 meters tall and weigh around 500 kilograms, he had grown to a size that could no longer be called human.
“Hup!”
Grokan took a deep breath and charged toward the fortress gates like an enraged ogre.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
His charge was so fierce that his heavy leaping seemed to shake the very earth.
Ting, tiing!
The arrows aimed at Grokan bounced off helplessly.
At this moment, nothing could stop Grokan.
In the blink of an eye, Grokan reached the fortress entrance, and a thunderous roar erupted from his mouth.
“Val-hallaaaaaa―!!!”
CRASH!
SMASH!
The castle gates made of connected logs shattered into pieces from Grokan’s body slam.
Grokan didn’t stop.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
Unable to control his momentum, he collided head-on with a stone building inside the fortress before finally stopping his charge.
“Brave and brutal Butcher Tribe! The gates are open! Everyone advance!”
“Valhallaaaaaa!”
At Bjornsen’s cry, the Barbarian Warriors charged madly toward the wide-open fortress main gate.
* * *
CRASH!
Rumble rumble rumble!
“Insane.”
A deflated mutter escaped Carlisle’s lips as he watched the wall collapse.
Not only had they broken through the castle gates, but they had even brought down a stone building inside the fortress…
‘Was the power of Destruction Chariot this strong?’
Carlisle knew all too well what skill the barbarian warrior who had destroyed the gates and building wall had used.
[Destruction Chariot] was a skill that could be used by 3-star warriors who had three tattoos inscribed on their bodies.
During casting, the user became unstoppable and immune to crowd control effects like stun, blind, and knockback, serving as a battering ram for barbarians who lacked proper siege equipment.
Though it had fatal weaknesses – being very difficult to change direction and the caster being stunned for a few seconds after hitting something…
“I’ll handle him!”
Kudo launched himself toward the Barbarian Warrior who had cast [Destruction Chariot].
From his hurried movement, it seemed he too knew the weakness of [Destruction Chariot].
‘He’ll handle it himself.’
Carlisle turned his head toward the fortress main gate.
The war cries of the Barbarian Warriors were getting closer and closer.
“All forces! To positions!”
“To positions!”
At Helen’s shout, the soldiers formed a fan-shaped formation, pulling back slightly from the fortress entrance.
‘Three, two, one.’
Just as Carlisle counted to three in his mind, the Barbarian Warriors came pouring into the fortress!
A cold smile appeared on Carlisle’s lips at that moment.
Bang, boom, bang, bang, boom!
Explosions engulfed the enemies, the Barbarian Warriors.
Just as Carlisle had devised in his tactics, the magic stone traps installed moments before reacted to the Barbarian Warriors’ footsteps and exploded.
The scene after the explosions was horrific.
“Aaaaaaahhh!”
“My leg, my leeeeg!”
Barbarian Warriors with severed legs or lower bodies rolled on the ground screaming in agony.
Seeing the scattered human flesh strewn everywhere, one couldn’t help but think this was truly the horror of war.
Meanwhile, Helen didn’t miss the opportunity.
“Now!”
“Yes!”
At Helen’s cry, the soldiers used long spears or arrows to finish off the Barbarian Warriors who had stepped on the magic stone traps.
Nevertheless, the Barbarian Warriors did not retreat.
“An honorable death!”
“Valhallaaaaa!”
The Barbarian Warriors knew that Magic Stone Traps were laid at the Fortress Entrance, yet they did not stop their advance.
Crying out the name of their faith, [Valhalla], they continued to push forward relentlessly, endlessly.
Just when the number of buried Magic Stone Traps was running out.
‘This is.’
Swoooosh!
The bracelet worn on Carlisle’s left hand.
[Whisper of Earth] emitted a gentle light, revealing its presence.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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