The Mad Spearman of the Northern Front - Chapter 277

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

Mad Spearman of the Northern Front (277)
A wind carrying the mingled scent of dust and blood swept past the City Gate of Robeltia.
Once a vibrant hub connecting the Southern Region, the city now barely clung to life amid the remnants of battle.
Smoke still rose through the fractured Castle Wall, and makeshift stretchers lay scattered throughout the streets.
Then it happened.
Thump, thump, thump.
A Flag emerged from the southern road’s end, accompanied by the measured rhythm of disciplined footsteps.
It bore the Imperial Family’s crest, rendered in unmistakable clarity.
“…The Imperial Family?”
The Soldier standing atop the City Gate’s eyes widened.
What followed was a Reinforcements unit clad in pristine Armor, with a Carriage at its center.
The Carriage door opened, and Sedrian descended.
In that instant, every Soldier and Officer both inside and outside the City Gate froze.
“Y-Your Highness the Prince!”
Someone cried out urgently, and those nearby immediately knelt and bowed their heads.
But Sedrian raised his hand to stop them.
“Formalities can wait.”
His words were brief and resolute.
His gaze turned directly toward Arteon.
“More importantly… what is the situation here?”
Arteon stepped forward.
“The Castle Wall has crumbled on all sides and requires urgent repairs. The internal damage is worse than anticipated, and there are many Wounded. We’ve established temporary Barracks for treatment, but we face a critical shortage of medical supplies.”
It was a concise report.
Yet the weight it carried was far from light.
Sedrian’s jaw tightened imperceptibly.
“…I see.”
He gazed briefly at the ruined Castle Wall and the bustling Soldiers, then turned and issued his Command.
“The Reinforcements are to distribute Supplies immediately. Prioritize medical supplies and Food Supplies, and deploy the engineers to reinforce the Castle Wall. Assign the triage of Wounded to experienced military physicians.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
As the Command fell, the Soldiers moved as one.
Crates were unloaded, and physicians rushed about moving stretchers.
Before long, the stagnant atmosphere of Robeltia began to shift.
Watching this transformation, Sedrian spoke quietly.
“Once this place is stabilized, we move south. Balteron and Drament… and Sheriol as well—the situation is grave in all of them.”
Arteon nodded.
“I’m uncertain if I can be of service, but if needed, I will accompany you.”
Sedrian regarded him for a moment, then silently patted his shoulder.
“With you present… it makes a difference.”
Though brief, his words carried genuine sincerity.
The two soon made their way toward the Barracks where the Wounded had gathered.
The Barracks was a hastily constructed structure of timber and canvas, yet it proved far sturdier than expected.
The pillars were driven deep into the earth, and the roof was angled and lashed to allow the wind to escape.
Inside, military physicians moved with practiced efficiency, continuing their treatments.
“Ugh… water… please….”
“Just a little longer. It will be over soon.”
The physician’s low voice and groans of pain intermingled.
Sedrian paused for a moment and surveyed the Barracks.
For a temporary structure, it possessed a remarkably high level of completion.
With reinforced canvas thickening only the wall surfaces to block the wind, it would be more than adequate for use.
“Did your Squad Members construct this?”
“Yes, the Squad Members built it.”
“Their ability is considerable. It wouldn’t waver even in ordinary winds.”
Sedrian gently shook the central pillar of the Barracks as he spoke.
It was only natural.
In the Northern Region, where winds blow fierce enough to carry people away, a poorly constructed Barracks wouldn’t last even an hour.
These were warriors who had survived for years on that harsh Northern Battlefield.
This level of craftsmanship was merely the bare minimum.
Soon, Reinforcements soldiers entered carrying crates.
“Medical supplies! We’ve brought Bandages, painkillers, and fever reducers!”
The physician exclaimed with relief.
“Set them here! Quickly!”
The Barracks soon became a flurry of activity.
Fresh Bandages were applied, and the patients’ groans gradually subsided.
Watching this unfold, Sedrian’s gaze softened ever so slightly.
Before long, the first round of Supply distribution was complete.
Stepping outside the Barracks, Sedrian gazed upward at the sky for a time.
The sun was already descending, casting a crimson light that stretched long across the Ruins.
He called quietly to Arteon.
“Arteon.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Sedrian stepped closer to him.
“Once this place is sufficiently stabilized… we shall head toward the Southern Region.”
After a brief pause, he added softly:
“Will you accompany me?”
It was a request more than a command.
Arteon did not hesitate.
“If it is your order, I shall follow.”
Sedrian nodded.
“It is not an order… but a request.”
His gaze swept once more across the Ruins of Robeltia.
“I have no certainty either about where this battle will ultimately lead.”
The wind passed quietly.
Distant footsteps of soldiers echoed, and within the Barracks, hands still moved busily, grasping at life itself.
Arteon nodded.
“Understood.”
“Thank you.”
With those words, Sedrian stepped out of the Barracks.
Arteon immediately called for Isaac.
“I’ll accompany the Prince to survey the attacked Southern cities. I’m counting on you to manage things here.”
“Don’t worry. Have a safe journey.”
Though he was an 8th Star Warrior, what help could a mere soldier like himself truly offer?
Yet seeing Sedrian’s complicated expression, he found himself unable to refuse.
Arteon boarded the same Carriage as Sedrian.
He had suggested riding a horse separately, but Sedrian’s insistence left him no choice.
And so the Carriage departed.
Clatter, clatter.
The Carriage cut across the paved road, racing forward.
With each rotation of the wheels, the hoofbeats rang out dryly, and that rhythm lingered in his ears like an echo from the Battlefield.
Once they left Robeltia behind, the landscape transformed rapidly.
Fields untouched by war stretched briefly before them, then collapsed farmhouses and charred grasslands came into view.
Arteon gazed out the window in silence.
It was a familiar sight on the Battlefield.
Yet what lay before his eyes now was not soldiers, but the trampled remnants of ordinary lives.
When they arrived at Balteron, the sun was already tilting westward.
The outer Warehouses of Balteron, once called the Granary City, were half-collapsed, and the acrid smell of burnt grain hung in the air.
The survivors dragged sacks of rice from the Ruins, but their movements held no vitality.
They moved their bodies only to survive.
Sedrian, descending from the Carriage, remained silent for a time.
His gaze drifted slowly between the Ruins and the people.
“Release Food Supplies and medicine to the Reinforcements immediately. Place temporary roofs on the collapsed Warehouses, and strengthen nighttime patrols for the guard Troops.”
Sedrian’s Command carried no hesitation.
The experience he had gained on the Northern Front Battlefield proved invaluable to him now.
As the Reinforcement Soldiers began moving busily, Sedrian glanced back briefly.
Arteon was already helping an Old Man carrying a child, moving the Wounded alongside two Soldiers.
Watching this, Sedrian’s eyes wavered for a moment.
“….”
Warriors of Arteon’s caliber typically carried themselves with visible pride.
No—they should, by all rights.
Were they not individuals whose martial power alone could constitute an entire Legion?
Yet in Sedrian’s eyes, Arteon always presented the same unwavering demeanor.
“…Quickly gather the wounded and prepare a place for treatment.”
“Understood!”
At Sedrian’s command, the soldiers began moving about with purpose.
And after one day in Balteron.
Once Sedrian had completed the minimum necessary arrangements, he led the soldiers and supply-laden carriages toward Drament.
Drament, true to its nature as a mining city, had relatively intact castle walls, but the interior was devastated.
The mine entrance had collapsed from explosions, and black smoke still rose faintly into the air.
Workers searched through the rubble for their comrades, while corpses were carried out instead of ore.
A week after departing Robeltia, we arrived at Sheriol.
Upon reaching Sheriol, both Sedrian and Arteon gasped at the horrific scene before them.
“…It’s appalling.”
Sedrian did not respond.
A moment later, his voice emerged low, almost a whisper.
“What wrong could all these people have committed to deserve such suffering?”
His words carried anger and resentment, but what lay heaviest beneath them was helplessness.
Soldiers exist to fight.
Thus they may be wounded in battle, and sometimes they may die.
But these civilians are different.
Had Belkakrode not staged his rebellion and forcibly brought troops from the south, such horrors would never have occurred.
None of this.
“It is my inadequacy… that brought this about.”
Sedrian reproached himself.
But then….
“Arteon, might we speak for a moment?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Arteon nodded and followed him up onto the partially destroyed city’s castle wall.
Standing there, Sedrian gazed upon the ruins of Sheriol and spoke softly.
“Do you understand how the kingdoms and the Empire maintain their balance on this continent?”
“…I do not, Your Highness.”
At Arteon’s response, Sedrian nodded and continued.
“Despite the existence of Carbain, the continent’s mightiest warrior, the Empire ceased its conquest wars entirely about twelve years ago.”
There was but one reason.
It was because Carbain, an 8th Star warrior, had appeared, making the Empire’s military power overwhelmingly dominant beyond measure.
“Consequently, all the kingdoms to the south and east of the Empire began to form alliances. Eight kingdoms united, and now the Empire faces a coalition of allied kingdoms.”
The Empire, positioned in the northwestern reaches of the continent, was inherently a threat to every other kingdom.
Yet there was no discontent from halting the conquest wars.
“Rather, it was beneficial.”
External warfare ceased, and we gained time to strengthen our internal foundations.
Of course, it was possible that the hardliners who desired the Empire’s expansion had turned to my younger brother Belkakrode because of this.
That….
“I never imagined it would return as such a grave matter.”
His eyes held a bitter light.
Arteon fixed his gaze upon the ruins of Sheriol alongside Sedrian.
But….
A soft rustle.
Sedrian turned his gaze to meet Arteon’s.
By now, resolve had kindled within his eyes.
“I intend to exact the price of this sin from all those who committed this deed.”
Even a hint of killing intent flickered across his expression.
Sedrian spoke to Arteon.
“Will you aid me, Arteon?”
Those steps that had remained frozen for twelve years.
Now was the time to draw his blade once more, to collect the blood price owed by the Imperial Citizens he cherished.
And to Sedrian’s words,
Thump!
Arteon clenched his right fist and struck his left chest.
My past life and now.
I had always fought only upon the desolate battlefields of the Northern Region, yet I possessed a vision for the future.
To build a home with a good person, to live happily with those I love.
For that to come to pass, I required an Empire under a virtuous sovereign.
I could understand because I had experienced it.
I could comprehend how this situation had come to be.
‘Prince Sedrian Your Highness….’
Would become a good sovereign.
A virtuous ruler who cherished his Imperial Citizens and could grant them happiness.
Soon after, Arteon spoke with unwavering conviction.
“Should Your Highness command it, I shall stand at the vanguard, wherever that may be.”
I will follow this man.
I will build a greater Empire, a stronger Empire where I and all those I love can live in happiness.
I made this vow.
And to Arteon’s words,
“Thank you.”
Sedrian likewise.
A soft tap.
He placed his right fist against his left chest, expressing his gratitude in his own manner.

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