I Alone Regress in a Hero Party That Was Annihilated - Chapter 77

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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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#77. One-Man Siege (2)

Ranger Hayal.

He was a veteran Ranger assigned to Guard Post duty.

Inside the log-built Guard Post, he was warming himself by the Wood Stove.

Bubble bubble bubble bubble bubble…

The Brass Kettle placed on top of the stove was boiling and releasing steam.

Hayal took a sip of the tea Water.

‘It’s about time for the Soldiers on shift duty to return.’

He had even prepared tea to give to the guys returning from the Castle Walls, but somehow no one was coming back.

‘Are they delayed because of the Snow?’

This Vibuak Castle was small in scale, but strangely had very high Castle Walls, making the Stairs extremely steep.

When Snow fell, the already narrow and high Stairs became slippery, causing Soldiers to get injured frequently.

It seemed like someone got hurt this time too.

‘Should I take a quick look around?’

Hayal left the Guard Post.

Although Snow was falling, not much had accumulated on the Stairs yet.

Hayal judged that there shouldn’t be any major problems for the Soldiers returning, and decided to wait a little longer before going back to the Guard Post.

Just as he was about to open the door and enter.

“Hm?”

Beyond the white Snow Field, he saw something moving below the black Castle Walls.

The Drainage connected to the outside of the Castle Walls.

Something black was wriggling through that small hole designed for rainwater to drain out.

Hayal frowned.

It was something that happened often.

When frozen clumps of dirt or piles of fallen leaves got stuck tight in the drainage, water couldn’t flow out and would pool together and freeze solid.

Sometimes small animals would approach to feed on the corpses of cockroaches or rats that had gotten trapped there.

‘A dog? Or maybe a rabbit?’

Hayal walked toward the drainage of the Castle Walls.

Soon he could see a snow pile that bulged out prominently.

“Huh?”

Hayal’s eyes widened.

From a distance, he had thought the drainage was simply blocked, but when he came closer and looked down beside the snow pile, he could see a large hole that shouldn’t have been in the Castle Walls.

And there.

“I’ve been found out.”

A boy with black hair, black skin, and red eyes was digging a cave.

“You bastard!”

Hayal immediately drew his sword.

The blade wreathed in bluish mana pointed toward the Intruder.

However.

Whoosh!

A crimson aurora also rippled from the sword tip the Boy was holding.

Hayal almost let out a sound.

‘3-Star!? No, at that level it’s almost 4-Star!’

Despite his youthful appearance, his opponent was an incredible expert.

Hayal mustered all the strength in his body and barely managed to block his opponent’s blade.

Claaang!

The moment sword clashed against sword.

Chill—

Hayal felt a vicious Cold Aura transmitted through his sword.

Before he could even react, his sword, hand, wrist, and even his elbow were consumed by white frost.

Crackle-crackle-crackle!

Heavy ice Chain Armor sealed Hayal’s Right Hand.

As his right arm’s weight suddenly increased by what felt like 30kg, Hayal’s body swayed.

The moisture in the air froze, creating a haze that even blurred his vision.

Right at that moment.

…Bang!

The shield the Boy thrust forward struck Hayal’s body.

From the powerful shockwave, Hayal felt his consciousness becoming hazy.

Crash!

The sound of ice shattering came from his right arm as the weight suddenly became lighter.

Thinking that the heavy ice restraining his right arm had broken from the recent impact, Hayal triumphantly swung his sword.

However.

“!?”

What had shattered wasn’t just the ice attached to his right arm.

Hayal’s frozen right arm had also shattered into pieces like frozen meat struck by a hammer.

“Aaaaaahhh!?”

Hayal screamed.

But like the seasoned Ranger he was, even while screaming, he was coldly tracking the enemy’s movements.

Spot―

The enemy lowered their center of gravity and glided like a Ghost.

They threw the Shield they had just swung to the ground, stepped on it with their left foot, and kicked off the ground with their right foot to move.

The enemy who had moved across the smooth Ice Sheet at tremendous speed tilted their body almost to the point of lying down.

…Slash!

The sharp Blade finally severed Hayal’s ankle tendon.

But Hayal was also a veteran Ranger.

At the very moment he was falling, he threw the Dagger from his chest.

That Dagger was condensed to the limit with a 3-Star Knight’s Mana.

Bang!

Unable to withstand the power of Mana, the Dagger exploded in Midair, scattering Iron fragments in all directions.

Hayal was certain this attack would deal a fatal blow to the enemy.

However.

Clang-clang-clang-clang―

The mysterious Boy swept away all the fragments in Midair with Swordplay that was almost divine.

Hayal’s eyes widened as if they would tear from seeing the trajectory drawn by the Boy’s Sword Tip.

“Mörsolt!”

That was his final Death Cry.

Clang―thud!

A crescent-shaped Slash Attack extending from the Boy’s Sword Tip sent Hayal’s head flying through Midair.

…Whoosh! …Whoosh! …Whoosh! …Whoosh!

The arterial blood spurting vigorously from the severed artery freezes in the extreme cold, blooming red like salvia flowers.

Soon, the boy who had been moving while stepping on the shield straightened his body.

“The Purosange Rangers are each quite skilled.”

Featherback.

He was rampaging through the interior of Vibuak Fortress like it was an empty field.

Having already created twenty-four secret doors connecting to the outside, it was perfect for guerrilla warfare.

He had even called in the ten knights who were waiting outside and ordered them to set fires everywhere, which would throw Purosange into even greater chaos.

Just then.

“Executive.”

A shadow poked its head out from atop the feed storage roof.

Hounded was calling for Featherback.

Featherback noticed the three arrows embedded in his shoulder.

“Are they embedded deep?”

“Oh, these? It’s nothing. They just hit the leather bracer.”

Hounded grinned and brushed off the arrows from his shoulder.

Featherback nodded.

“How are the Purosange bastards reacting?”

“They’re so pissed they’re going crazy. Baron Thoroughbred seems to have completely lost it. He’s running around personally with sword and torch in hand.”

“Of course. I openly declared war on them.”

Featherback had deliberately spared some soldiers.

This infiltration wasn’t meant to reduce the enemy’s numbers, but to instill fear and chaos in them.

At that moment, an explosion erupted from the Western Wall, and black smoke began to rise.

Countless footsteps headed in that direction.

Meanwhile, a very small number of footsteps headed in the opposite direction from where the explosion was heard.

Rustle rustle rustle—

Eleven people, including Featherback and Hounded, gathered in front of the Dog Hole.

Hounded spoke.

“With just a small amount of Vinegar and Alum, plus a Straw Pile, you can make a small Makeshift Bomb.”

“It would be even better if Iron Powder and Salt were added.”

Featherback nodded and passed through the Dog Hole.

Hounded took out a Leather Bag from inside his clothes and poured it against the Dog Hole.

Trickle trickle trickle…

Water mixed with Ash and Stone Powder flowed down the Wall and turned into an Icicle, blocking the Dog Hole.

Now, when viewed from the other side, it would look exactly like an ordinary Castle Wall.

Featherback and the Knights moved to the Snow-covered Hill.

“What about those who escaped outside the Castle Gate?”

“There are quite a few. They’re all Deserters from Purosange’s side. Their morale seems to have dropped tremendously.”

“Just a little shake and they’ll collapse on their own.”

The most fatal thing for those who have experienced failure once and become isolated.

That is internal strife.

With morale already at rock bottom, the Soldiers’ discipline and sense of belonging could only hit the Floor.

A defeatist mindset of “we can’t do it” makes them perceive the group they belong to as a sinking ship.

The moment the consciousness that “escaping from such a ship is in order of intelligence” becomes widespread, that group completely collapses.

Ssssssssh—

Featherback and the rest of Mörsolt’s Eleven took position in a snow cave far from Vibuak Fortress.

Soon, a Ranger appeared on top of the watchtower on the castle walls.

He was there to watch for any enemies who might flee outside the castle walls.

Featherback sent him a special gift.

Thwang!

The arrow that flew in an arc struck the Ranger on the watchtower square in the chest.

He flailed about, grasping at midair several times before plummeting straight down toward the bottom of the castle walls.

Hounded let out an exclamation.

“That was about seven hundred meters away, wasn’t it? You handle the bow amazingly well. I’d believe you if you said you were a Ranger.”

“I learned a little as a hobby. More importantly.”

Featherback asked Hounded.

“Did you find out anything about that Mage named Shedyoldis?”

“I captured and tortured several soldiers, but nothing came of it. Other than the fact that she’s a retainer who suddenly appeared one day and that she healed Grand Prince Pinin’s wrist, they knew nothing.”

“Hmm. Next time I infiltrate, I’ll have to pay that woman a visit.”

Of course, it wouldn’t end with just a visit.

He was planning to capture her and dissect her piece by piece to find out exactly where in her body that nauseating stench was coming from.

* * *

After that, Featherback visited Vibuak Fortress every night.

Sometimes he would visit not at night, but in broad daylight.

With heavy snow falling 24 hours a day, there was no one who could identify Featherback moving around with his white hair, white skin, and white clothes.

The soldiers of Vibuak Castle called such a Featherback ‘Wendigo’ and feared him.

Wendigo was a legendary monster passed down among the Northern Natives, a name that meant ‘an ominous being in the blizzard that lives by devouring people.’

The people inside Vibuak Castle would inevitably talk about that story whenever three or more gathered together.

“They say a monster named Featherback from the Mörsolt Family is targeting us.”

“No matter how many people he devours, his hunger is never satisfied.”

“He appears on nights when blizzards rage fiercely. That’s when he takes away disobedient children.”

“Not just children, but alcoholic husbands, violent husbands, husbands who can’t earn money, husbands who can’t perform at night, oh my, basically he takes away all men without exception, you know.”

“That monster lives wandering the snow fields and can appear anywhere blizzards blow. Perhaps tonight, even at our house…”

The ghost stories grew more elaborate and massive with each passing day.

And the frozen corpses discovered every morning gave substance to those ghost stories.

Was that the reason?

Dozens of deserters emerged daily from the Purosange Family’s camp.

This phenomenon wasn’t limited to just the Common Soldiers who had originally been guarding Vibuak Castle.

Even Purosange’s Elite Soldiers were no exception, and even Rangers deserted.

No, whether they had truly deserted or been killed by the Wendigo during the night and were frozen solid under some remote drainage, no one could know.

Vibuak Fortress, where the Purosange Family was isolated, was now languishing in the grip of a nightmare named Featherback.

And.

Whiiiiiiiiing…

Tonight as well, the blizzard blows without fail.

All the people in the castle tightly shut their windows and doors.

Soon the Wendigo would come.

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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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