The Mad Spearman of the Northern Front - Chapter 262

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Mad Spearman of the Northern Front (262)
The thunderous sound rolled in like a wave.
Boom, boom, boom, boom, crash!
Along with the sound of something collapsing somewhere inside the castle wall, the air trembled a beat too late.
Dust and stone powder scattered on the wind, turning the sky hazy white above the South Gate.
At that sound, Duke Carbain turned his head to gaze in that direction.
‘Finally….’
Had they moved?
The commotion at the South Gate meant that someone Sedrian had sent had arrived.
If I had to guess….
‘At minimum, at least one knight order capable of wielding Aura would need to arrive for things to proceed smoothly.’
Considering the forces stationed at the South Gate, this was not something that could be easily overcome.
They had to be people capable of establishing justification for him to fall back, at the very least.
But then it happened.
Whiiiiiiiiiii!
At the long whistle sound coming from the South Gate, Duke Carbain paused.
I didn’t know who had come.
“…Fortunate.”
They seemed to be handling at least one task decisively.
At the whistle sound requesting his return, Duke Carbain looked at the forces in front of him.
They were retreating without pause under his threat, but the gap was closing rapidly.
‘If I had waited just a bit longer….’
It might not have ended in mere standoff.
The limit of what I could buy with threats alone was already nearly exceeded.
If I continued to threaten meaninglessly without casualties here, the fact that I ‘had deliberately been avoiding killing’ would be revealed.
Then perhaps those watching would have made other moves as well.
But now it didn’t matter.
Tap!
Duke Carbain turned without hesitation.
There was no longer any need to threaten them here.
And it was at that very moment Duke Carbain fell back.
“Hold! Hold!”
The officer controlling the retreating soldiers shouted urgently.
The soldiers reflexively stopped, and his gaze naturally turned toward Duke Carbain falling back.
Even knowing it was already too late, he couldn’t tear his eyes away.
“…We really almost all died.”
The words that left his mouth were closer to a sigh.
The sword Duke Carbain had wielded was, after all, merely a threat.
Though he had used his Aura powerfully, he had maintained a distance that ensured the soldiers wouldn’t die.
Of course there were wounded, but there were no seriously wounded who couldn’t move.
Yet despite this, the Battlefield was utterly devastated.
Stone tiles had been overturned, and portions of the elevated grassland’s thicket had vanished entirely.
I had heard that a single Warrior of 7th Star rank or higher possessed military strength equivalent to an entire Kingdom—but facing Duke Carbain of the 8th Star now, that description fell woefully short.
“…It seems like a natural disaster itself.”
No, it was far worse than that.
An overwhelming force without warning or mercy.
A power that could not be stopped by willpower, nor endured by the number of soldiers.
Truly.
‘Even calling him a god would not be strange.’
The Commander swallowed involuntarily.
The sound of his dry throat seemed unnaturally loud.
And another face flashed through his mind.
The God of War of the Northern Region.
Arteon.
‘Then… he too.’
Had he not reached a realm similar to Carbain’s?
If he were to directly enter this Battlefield….
The Commander laughed without realizing it.
A meaningless laugh tinged with fear and despair.
This battle.
It might end far more futilely than expected.
Not by strategy, nor by numbers, nor by justification—but by the existence of a single person.
And so a massive typhoon was already bearing down upon the Capital.
* * *
Tap!
As I entered the Imperial Palace, I sprinted through the corridors, swiftly scanning my surroundings.
Though quieter than expected, I could sense that countless pursuers were already gathering in this vicinity.
But one thing.
‘More than I anticipated….’
Their numbers were considerable.
I could not discern where such individuals had been stationed, but those moving with stealth appeared to be quite skilled.
My eyes narrowed.
‘I’ll deal with them first.’
Having made my decision, I came to a rapid halt.
One thing I could be certain of: these were not Regular Army soldiers.
The moment my gaze turned upward.
Whoosh!
Black shadows rippled from the ceiling, walls, and floor as dozens of Assassins rushed toward me.
Without considerable perception, one would not have noticed they had surrounded the area.
I furrowed my brow slightly as I watched them charge toward me.
‘Those guys….’
The patterns inscribed on their garments were far too familiar.
Nocturne.
And they were gathered exclusively from the highest echelon of assassins.
‘Have they been concealing such military strength…?’
The thought crossed my mind that this rebellion might not be merely impulsive.
Cultivating power in the shadows, waiting for such an optimal moment to materialize—it would have been impossible to nurture so many formidable warriors otherwise.
Killing Intent flickered in Arteon’s eyes.
“I apologize, but… you do not fall into the category of those I need to keep alive.”
A cold, emotionless voice flowed forth.
Simultaneously, memories of past suffering at the hands of Nocturne Assassins flashed through my mind.
Had merely three or four of these creatures moved back then, I could not be standing here now.
Yet I was surrounded and attacked by dozens of the highest-level assassins.
‘…Have I truly changed so much?’
The word ‘crisis’ did not even cross my thoughts.
Whoosh!
Arteon shifted half a step to the side and swung the Spear upward from below.
Splurt!
Though the movement was remarkably simple, that single strike bisected one of Nocturne’s highest-level assassins, spraying blood across the corridor.
It happened in the blink of an eye.
The Nocturne Assassins rushing toward Arteon flinched at the sight.
Merely half a step.
The Spear swung with such tremendous speed it was invisible to the eye, infused with an energy they could scarcely withstand.
But….
Shrill!
One of the assassins in the center drew a Whistle from his robes and blew it.
In that instant, armed Soldiers began pouring in from both the far end and entrance of the corridor.
And as the Soldiers rushed forward, the assassin who had blown the Whistle cried out loudly.
“Do not hesitate—attack!”
After all, they had no choice in the matter.
No matter how strong he was, were they not those who had received the highest designation from Nocturne?
Over forty of Nocturne’s entire military strength had gathered here.
And if more than a hundred Soldiers and Knights launched a Combined Attack alongside them.
‘Even if Baolent arrived, he could not escape alive.’
At his command, the assassins swiftly circled Arteon, seeking an opening.
And among the Soldiers who had entered the corridor, those bearing Bows quickly formed a Formation and drew their bowstrings taut.
“Fire! Kill him!”
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
Though the corridor was indeed quite spacious, the densely packed Archers and Knights posed a formidable threat in themselves.
Of course, this did not apply to Arteon.
The moment arrows shot forth in a straight line, the assassins swiftly split left and right, opening a path.
Dozens of arrows obscured the vision in an instant, streaking toward Arteon.
But in that moment.
Crack!
“…!”
One of the assassins dodging to the side flinched in surprise and turned his head.
Arteon had seized the back of his neck and was dragging him along.
“No, this won’t do!”
The assassin cried out desperately, swinging his sword, but the archers’ arrows came first.
Thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip-thwack!
In an instant, the assassin became a pincushion from the archers’ barrage and expired without any resistance.
Using the assassin as a meat shield, Arteon tensed his arm and hurled him toward where the archers stood.
Whoooosh!
“Hold your positions! Prepare to reload!”
The one who appeared to be the commander quickly ordered the reloading.
But Arteon, who had clearly been right before their eyes just moments ago.
“…!”
“Where, where did he go?!”
“He vanished!”
He had disappeared like a ghost.
No one in the Training Ground could react to Arteon’s movements.
Not even Nocturne’s highest-level assassins, whose senses far transcended those of ordinary humans.
Boom!
In an instant, a massive explosion erupted from the center of the archers’ formation positioned near the entrance.
As the thunderous sound shook the entire Imperial Palace.
“Aaaahhhhh!”
“My, my leeeeg!”
“The center! He appeared in the center!”
Soldiers were sent flying and screamed as the shockwave from the strike against the ground rippled outward.
The formation crumbled in an instant.
Despite not launching a direct attack, the damage was this severe.
If he had intended to harm us with intent….
‘We would all… die.’
The officer commanding the archers’ pupils trembled greatly.
Though he found himself here belonging to Second Prince Belkakrode’s forces through unavoidable circumstances, he understood.
That this was an act of treason that could never be forgiven.
But….
Grit!
‘I cannot stop here… no matter what…!’
If Belkakrode did not ascend to the Emperor’s throne, they would all become failed traitors.
‘I don’t mind if I die, but….’
Everyone close to my family would perish in agony.
That alone, I could never allow…!
But that was the moment.
“Drop your weapons. I know you don’t wish to fight.”
A weighty voice flowed from the young man standing at the center.
His appearance was that of someone barely in their early twenties.
‘What… what kind of gaze is that….’
Though he wasn’t directly looking at them, a crushing pressure bore down on their shoulders.
He continued speaking.
“I cannot speak for the Second Prince Belkakrode, but Prince Sedrian already knows the full extent of this situation. So stop here and wait. Soon… this rebellion will end, and only the traitor Belkakrode and his associates will face punishment. You… must stop here.”
Thud!
His words struck like a heavy weight crushing their chests.
Whether those words were true… there was no way to guarantee it.
Yet everyone in the Training Ground felt the same thing.
The weight of sincerity carried in his words was unmistakable.
Perhaps that was why.
Clang.
Someone dropped the weapon they held in their hand.
At that sound, the commander’s eyes widened as he shouted.
“Who is it! Who dropped their weapon!”
But before an answer to that cry could come.
Clang, ting! Ting, clang!
The soldiers around them, one by one, dropped their weapons to the ground.
And….
“Captain Hercaron, wouldn’t it be right to… stop here?”
“That’s right. This is treason, after all, isn’t it?”
“Captain.”
The soldiers gazed at the commander named Hercaron with desperate expressions.
Hadn’t they all known from the beginning that this was wrong?
And Hercaron felt the same way.
He had simply proceeded with the resolve to follow the orders given because he was a commander, because he was a soldier.
“….”
Hercaron remained silent, his fists clenched tightly.
He too… believed that this was the right thing to do.
Even if it meant disobeying orders.
“From this moment forward, all squad members…!”
Cease combat and stand by in position.
Hercaron was about to issue that command.
But at that moment.
Slash!
“Ahhhhhhhhh!”
A cutting sound erupted from behind, followed by someone’s agonized scream.
Hercaron, along with the soldiers present, turned their gaze toward the source of the cry.
Thud.
A soldier collapsed to the ground, spraying blood.
Hercaron cried out at the sight of him—already beyond saving, his body marked by wounds too deep for any remedy, now lifeless.
“You bastards!”
“Do you dare defy the Second Prince’s orders? Do you not understand that if this revolution fails, not only you but your families and all those close to you will perish?”
Falkuman, who commanded the Nocturne Assassins gathered here, spoke with a chilling gaze.
And at that sight.
“You all.”
Arteon’s final words became a blade, extending toward the Nocturne Assassins.
I had never intended to let them live, but to think they would commit such reckless acts before my eyes.
Rage surged within me at the sight of an Imperial Soldier killed by an assassin right before me.
Whoooosh!
With it came Iglis, radiating a golden Aura.
I raised Iglis and gazed upon the assassins as I spoke.
“Not a single one of you will leave this place alive.”
And that promise became reality.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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