The Mad Spearman of the Northern Front - Chapter 297

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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 (297)
The sun was beginning to set.
A crimson glow spread across the massive Castle Wall of the Imperial Capital, slowly painting the entire city in shades of red.
Below the towering wall stretched an endless expanse of rooftops and streets, while far to the south along the Imperial Road, faint traces of dust still lingered in the air.
Though scars of war remained visible, they appeared to have been largely restored already.
And along that road.
The delegation from the Neolth Kingdom that had been present moments before was rapidly departing.
They had formed a long procession leaving the Capital, and now their figures had completely vanished from sight.
Sedrian stood alone atop the Castle Wall, gazing eastward in silence for a long while.
“….”
A white wind swept past, rustling through Sedrian’s hair.
Though spring’s fragrance was said to linger, there remained a certain chill to it.
Sedrian simply watched in silence as the Neolth Kingdom’s delegation disappeared from view.
And then, the sound of quiet footsteps reached his ears.
“Your Majesty.”
Sedrian glanced sideways at the presence he felt approaching.
It was Taifren, the Prime Minister.
He rarely ventured outside the Imperial Palace, but given the current circumstances, his presence seemed entirely understandable.
After all, I felt the same way.
“Would you stand beside me?”
“What occupies your thoughts, Your Majesty?”
Taifren, who had stepped to his side, posed the question.
Yet Sedrian merely pressed his lips together, staring ahead before finally speaking with a slight movement of his mouth.
“…I must confess, I was greatly shocked.”
Taifren exhaled softly and nodded.
He understood the meaning behind those words.
“I share that sentiment entirely.”
Ordinarily, one final war should have been fought to conclude matters.
The Neolth Kingdom had made the foolish choice of provoking the Empire’s borders to aid Belkakrode’s rebellion.
Therefore, they should have followed the same path as the Kaerbaldt Kingdom and Ermatir Kingdom before them.
Yet when the previous war had ended, they made a choice entirely different from those two kingdoms.
Taifren spoke quietly.
“Is this not the blessing bestowed upon the Prince, Your Majesty?”
A faint smile crossed Sedrian’s lips. But it did not linger long.
“…Can such a thing truly be defined by a single word—blessing?”
Sedrian’s gaze wavered momentarily.
What the Neolth Kingdom had brought was not merely a letter of apology.
They had brought the head of the Second Prince, Marcello—a successor to the throne and the principal conspirator who had aided Belkakrode’s rebellion.
They had done so by assembling a delegation and presenting it directly alongside their apologies.
It was far more than a simple apology.
It was a declaration directed at the entire Continent.
A declaration that the Empire had no intention of turning its back on its allies.
It spoke volumes about just how elevated the Empire’s standing had become.
Sedrian murmured quietly to himself.
“The prestige of the army that advanced into the Southern Region must have spread across the entire Continent. Without their exploits, such a thing would never have come to pass.”
Taifren nodded in agreement.
By now, emergency meetings were likely being convened in the royal palaces of both the Seranello Kingdom and the Kalpol Kingdom.
They had ignored our warnings and formed an alliance with the Ermatir Kingdom, drawing their blades against the Empire.
And now, with news of the Neolth Kingdom following suit, their situation must be…
Even a rough imagination would send a chill down their spines with the tension that would grip them.
“….”
Sedrian fell silent.
The situation had unfolded almost too smoothly, and precisely because of that, his mind churned with complexity.
But soon, as if he had reached a decision, Sedrian spoke once more.
“Recall the troops that advanced into the Southern Region.”
Taifren’s eyes widened slightly at this.
Sedrian’s voice was measured but unmistakable.
“Now it is their turn to receive their rewards.”
The war that began in the Northern Region.
And the long expedition that extended all the way to the South.
The army led by Belkain had, in that brief span of time, achieved feats that would be etched into the Empire’s history.
If one were to enumerate those achievements one by one, they would rival the merit the Empire would normally accumulate over twenty years.
Yet concern still lingered in Taifren’s expression.
He opened his mouth carefully.
“It is a sound decision. However….”
“…?”
At Taifren’s words, Sedrian turned his gaze toward him.
Just by looking at his eyes, one could sense what he wished to say.
“That concern again?”
“It is undoubtedly a remarkable achievement, but surely the other Nobles will raise objections.”
The moment those words fell, Sedrian’s gaze slowly hardened.
It was a cold and piercing light.
Sedrian regarded Taifren slowly and spoke.
“I have already accounted for that to some degree. I have no intention of disregarding all the procedures we have followed thus far.”
But his next words were far more resolute.
“However….”
Sedrian’s voice rang out low.
“The ministers must understand that this level of achievement is truly the bare minimum for him.”
Wind swept across the castle wall.
Sedrian turned his gaze once more toward the world beyond the Capital.
“If there are those who cannot accept even this and resist….”
A brief silence fell.
Yet a tension that seemed to press down upon the shoulders settled over the surroundings.
After a moment, Sedrian spoke quietly to Taifren, who waited without a word.
“…they will have to pay an appropriate price for it.”
The meaning contained within Sedrian’s words was unmistakable.
Taifren heard those words and said nothing for a moment.
Soon after, he quietly bowed his head.
“I will bear it in mind, Your Majesty.”
The sunset deepened further over the castle wall.
* * *
After the order to retreat came down, the encampment of the Imperial Army stationed at the Southern Front fell into an atmosphere of relief for the first time in a long while.
It had been a long war.
The fighting that began in the Northern Region extended to the Southern Region, and throughout that time, countless battles and marches repeated endlessly. It was literally a time without a moment to catch one’s breath.
Perhaps because of this, the soldiers’ faces were deeply marked by exhaustion, yet at the same time, there was also a sense of lightness mixed within.
“Ah… we’re finally heading back.”
A soldier in the marching column muttered in a grumbling tone.
“Maybe we can rest once we get back.”
“Rest? What rest?”
A soldier beside him let out a scoff.
“Once we reach the Capital, it’s training again.”
At that moment, an officer riding up from behind heard their conversation and chuckled.
“You lot, you’ll be even busier once you get back to the Capital.”
At those words, the soldiers all turned their heads at once.
“Sir?”
“Why is that?”
The officer shrugged and spoke.
“You’ll probably be swamped with the Merit Evaluation and Rewards once you get back. After all, we’ve been fighting continuously without rest this whole time.”
The moment those words fell, the soldiers’ eyes widened.
“Merit Evaluation and Rewards?”
“Seriously?”
“It’s quite likely.”
The officer continued.
“Think about how many merits we’ve accumulated under the Commander. There’s been talk that they’re preparing an enormous Merit Evaluation and Rewards ceremony once this Southern War ends.”
The moment the soldiers heard those words, the atmosphere shifted dramatically.
“Ohhh….”
“So we’ll get something too?”
“At least a few Silver Coins should come our way, right?”
Laughter-tinged remarks burst out here and there.
At that moment, similar conversations were also taking place among the Silent Spear Battalion.
A squad member quietly approached Arteon.
“Captain, have you heard anything?”
Arteon glanced at him.
“About what?”
“The Merit Evaluation and Rewards.”
The squad member grinned as he spoke.
“This time, you’re bound to receive a noble title. What do you think?”
At those words, the other squad members began gathering around.
“That’s right.”
“With this achievement, surely you’ll at least get a title, won’t you?”
Arteon watched them for a moment, then shook his head.
“I don’t know.”
His voice was calm and measured.
“I’m not particularly interested.”
“Come on.”
The squad member waved his hand dismissively.
“At minimum, you’ll receive a Baron’s title this time.”
Then Bartell, standing nearby, immediately interjected.
“Baron? That’s ridiculous.”
He let out a hollow laugh.
“For our Captain, one of only two 8th Star warriors on the entire Continent? You should receive at least a Count’s title.”
But before that statement could even finish—
“…If you keep spouting such foolish nonsense, you’ll face punishment.”
Kailun said quietly.
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
Kailun continued slowly.
“In the entire history of the Empire, no commoner has ever received a Count’s title.”
He tilted his head slightly to the side as he rode.
Though he didn’t know much about nobility, he had heard plenty of stories about it while living with Leonhardt.
Kailun continued.
“Viscount, Baron, Earl, and then Count. That’s four ranks to jump in a single leap…”
As Kailun fell silent for a moment, all eyes turned toward him.
He shook his head.
“…Hah. If such a thing were to happen by some miracle, the existing nobility would never sit idle. They’d certainly do everything in their power to protest.”
The squad members listening to this all swallowed hard in unison.
On the battlefield, they had fought countless times and cut down countless enemies.
But nobility was a fearsome entity in an entirely different sense.
Bartell, who had brought up the subject earlier, scratched his head and spoke.
“Well… I was just speaking hypothetically. It’s not like that would actually happen.”
But then it happened.
Kailun shrugged as he spoke.
“Still, I’ll climb to the rank of Count before long.”
The squad members all turned to look at him simultaneously.
Kailun continued his words.
If the Empire doesn’t treat someone with this much ability well… then the Empire itself has reached its end.”
At those words, Arteon glanced back at Kailun.
“You’re chattering away like that, so it seems your injuries have healed completely. How’s your arm?”
Kailun nodded.
“Thanks to you.”
His left arm was still wrapped in bandages.
It had been a severe wound from his fight with Belotian—one that had nearly severed it entirely.
Had he left it untreated, the wound would have festered and forced amputation, but thanks to the potion Arteon possessed, he had managed to pull through.
Kailun lifted his left arm slightly as he spoke.
“Well… for the next three months, I won’t be able to move my fingers at all.”
Kailun, who had been in tremendous pain at first, now seemed considerably improved.
Arteon drew a faint smile at the corners of his mouth as he addressed the squad members.
“Forget about the Merit Evaluation and Rewards—to celebrate this victory… when we return, I’ll treat everyone properly. Drink and revel to your hearts’ content.”
The squad members all lifted their heads at once.
“Really?!”
“To satisfy all of us, I don’t think ordinary money will be enough, hehehehe.”
At Bartell’s words, Arteon chuckled.
“You drink right next to me so I can see just how much you put away.”
Bartell laughed loudly.
“Ahahaha! Look forward to it!”
In an instant, the atmosphere became lively and boisterous.
The tension that had accumulated for so long on the battlefield seemed to dissolve all at once.
And how much time had passed.
Throughout the retreat, the soldiers’ morale remained high. And with the officers’ stories drifting through here and there, anticipation only grew stronger.
Shortly after, a shout erupted from the front.
“The Capital is coming into view!”
In an instant, every soldier’s head lifted in unison.
Beyond the distant horizon, a massive castle wall was beginning to reveal itself.
The Imperial Capital.
Flags above the city gate fluttered in the wind, and beneath them, countless people waved their hands and cheered.
“…Huh?”
One soldier spoke in a dazed voice.
Cheers were echoing from afar.
As if the entire city itself was coming out to welcome them.
And when that massive city gate opened and they entered the Capital.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”
The citizens’ cheers erupted skyward, and with the falling petals came a torrent of admiration and encouragement in their gazes.
Only then could I understand it.
At last… the war had ended.
The soldiers entering the Capital began to cry out in response to those cheers, waving their hands enthusiastically.

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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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