Chapter 90
Chapter 90
Monsters clad in flames surrounded the eastern region's frontlines.
Under normal circumstances, their entire bodies should have been burnt to ashes, yet enduring that pain, they were reborn as powerful entities.
In short, only monsters that had withstood the dragon's flames were acknowledged as part of the immortal army.
"You fools. Are you telling me you still haven't broken through?"
A profound and intense voice echoed from somewhere.
At that, the five vassals instinctively knelt, unable to utter even an excuse.
Having received magic power directly from the dragon, these five possessed the greatest strength among his armies.
"They're only humans—yet, even with my might at your disposal, you claim you cannot advance?"
"... Did you not perhaps underestimate humans? Time does not always make things weaker, you know."
One among the vassals reluctantly opened his mouth first, and the others were startled by his boldness.
How could anyone dare talk back to the dragon who reigned over this world?
Moreover, this particular fellow had joined last, and yet was acting rather arrogant.
"Has he lost his mind? Did he gain a little power and forget all respect for rank?"
"You impudent wretch! I never liked you to begin with! Should I just crush you right now?"
"Who dares spout such vulgarity before me?"
"...."
At a single word from the dragon, all the vassals fell silent.
No matter how strong they thought themselves, they were no match for the dragon.
And so, blindly submissive, all they could do was hope he would not suddenly become wrathful.
"You... You dare criticize me? Then explain—how are these humans able to hold out for so long?"
Among the Seven Dragons of Hazrodain, benelrode the Incandescent fixed his gaze on that vassal and pressed him fiercely.
If he could not offer a proper answer, punishment would be inevitable for insulting the dragon.
Yet somehow, the dragon found himself intrigued, as none had ever so boldly stepped forward before.
"They're focusing only on defense. They form up and simply hold the line. That's why it's so hard to penetrate."
"Those who survived my flames should be even stronger than the humans. So how is it you cannot break through?"
"It's because they have something to protect. Not everything can be shattered with brute force. Do you truly think destroyers, fixated only on ruin, can overcome such resolve?"
"...."
Benelrode fell into doubt and looked back into the past.
Then, he had single-handedly devastated the humans, and no one had been able to withstand him.
But at the end, a desperate strike force had appeared and ultimately driven him into retreat.
Could it be that mere willpower alone was enough to threaten a being called a dragon like himself?
"You may have your own purposes, but these others don't think for themselves. They just crush and trample. Do you truly believe such brutish means will defeat humanity?"
"You arrogant bastard! Do you think you alone are special?"
"Yeah, let's crush this upstart for good!"
"Silence, all of you! I'm the one asking questions, so why are you butting in?"
Benelrode roared, his voice heightened with agitation.
The vassals bowed their heads, trembling with fear.
Yet, though all but one vassal succumbed to that primal terror, one managed to withstand it and faced Benelrode resolutely.
"You've always done interesting things since the beginning. Still arrogant, but not without reason. I'll ask you again—tell me, what is the method to break through the humans?"
"You need something that can shake their resolve—force them to give up of their own accord."
"And how could we make the humans give up?"
"You yourself must step forward. If you etch the fear of the dragon directly into their hearts, even briefly, a gap will form in their lines."
"... I see. You mean, weaken their will through fear?"
Benelrode, for the first time in a while, became aware of his authority as a mighty being.
He had intentionally veiled himself, refraining from appearing on the front lines for now.
But human lives were so brief that those who had opposed him last time would be gone by now.
If, even for a moment, he were to reveal his true form, surely the humans would falter.
"After that, I'll handle things my way. No doubt, when the time comes, the other side will react as well."
"So you're saying more will appear?"
"There are humans worthy of being called strong among them. If you let down your guard, you'll all end up dead."
"And when that time comes, will you act?"
"Isn't that why you wanted to use me?"
"Haha! You're no different from the rest of us, are you?"
"I've already thrown everything away. I have nothing left to lose; hence, I must make use of whatever remains."
"... Do as you wish. This time, I'll move according to your will."
Finally, benelrode withdrew his gaze and vanished completely.
The vassals, while stealing furtive glances at one another, could do nothing but remain utterly quiet.
After all, not many could persuade a dragon, calmly, without even using honorifics.
'Now, there's no turning back. My only answer is to fight here and die.'
He immediately set out, heading to the battlefield.
Unlike the other vassals, he had not been given an army, but alone, he could display enough force already.
Above all, commanding monsters as subordinates would only wound his pride.
'It matters not who comes—I'll simply cut them all down.'
He was prepared to sever every tie he had ever forged.
Armed from head to toe in armor, he had reached an even higher realm through new power.
No one would recognize him now, and eventually, he would likely be treated as nothing more than a formidable monster.
'Who will be the one to finish me off? If you cut me down... perhaps things will be a little better.'
He called to mind a certain person, then realized it was meaningless.
She would uphold the imperial command and come to the eastern front herself.
If he were to face her, he would have to meet her with full strength.
'Her fiancé will surely accompany her. I'll be able to see just how strong he really is.'
He bore no particular grudge against her fiancé.
He simply wished to know why he had been chosen as her partner.
He was already a fallen enemy of the Agnes Empire, so what more was there to hesitate about?
'I'll be waiting. Unless you defeat me, you'll never reach Benelrode the Incandescent....'
* * *
Alter, together with Brillie, was reviewing correspondence sent from the imperial palace.
Since it contained orders handed down by the emperor, it could not be refused lightly.
With the worst kind of monster now on the field, it was clear they intended to deploy the strongest they had at any cost.
"So, we're supposed to head for the eastern region just like this?"
"For now, it seems so."
"I guess we can go fight if that's what's called for... but then what happens to our wedding?"
"...."
Alter lost his words and looked cautiously at Brillie.
Even now, many nobles within and outside the capital had been unable to even hold minor events, busy unrest in the capital.
They had been waiting for the right moment for their ceremony, but because of a single dragon, all those plans had gone awry.
"We have to delay it again, don't we? Is this really how things should be?"
"We can always marry later, after all...."
"Can we just keep putting it off? What if something else happens and we end up unable to do it again?"
"Uh... it probably won't go that far. Things just got complicated, that's all."
Of course, Alter had anticipated that Benelrode the Incandescent would appear.
But the Sword Saint had been temporarily assigned to guard the emperor, and the next Sword Saint had vanished without a trace.
Thus, as neither of the two strongest could be dispatched, the intention clearly was to send himself and Brillie instead.
"Haa... Listen to this. We decided to marry, right? But then suddenly, you collapsed."
"Yes, that happened."
"Then you recovered, and we went up north to greet the grand duke, but we wound up embroiled in a war there, right?"
"Uh... yes."
"And after barely resolving that and returning, the capital was thrown into chaos by a rebellion, right?"
"Yes...."
"And now, we're being told to fight a dragon... Does this make any sense?"
"It isn't exactly normal, I'll admit."
"So, what exactly are we supposed to do here...?"
Brillie let out a deep sigh, unable to continue.
It was all so coincidental that she couldn't even bring herself to blame anyone.
And yet, just enduring it all in silence felt a bit too unfair.
How many more setbacks would they have to face before they could finally wed?
"If we'd been holding steady, but now a flank has collapsed... it must be that morale dropped because of the dragon."
"It's only natural it would—it's a mighty monster, after all. They say an entire country was once destroyed by a dragon..."
"I can't say if that's true, but it's certainly dangerous. That's why the imperial command came down."
Alter was acutely aware that the only solution was for them to step forward themselves.
Benelrode was conserving his strength behind the lines, commanding his vassal and monsters.
Even a single vassal would be difficult enough to face; only the strongest could stand a chance and would have to annihilate him.
"Wouldn't it be best if just the two of us went? Taking troops along wouldn't make much difference, right?"
"I'm sure forces are being mustered. Stopping the dragon and the powerful monsters is what matters."
"Are you sure about this? It'll be quite different from the northern region, you know."
"So long as you're by my side, Brillie, I'll have nothing to worry about."
"...."
Brillie started to reply, but then fell silent.
If her fiancé trusted her, she would naturally have to meet his expectations.
Besides, her talent as a mage was nothing to scoff at, so perhaps she could feel reassured.
'We probably won't have to fight the dragon immediately. He hasn't yet fully recovered his power.'
Alter was actually more wary of Benelrode's vassals than Benelrode himself.
If they were assigned to the eastern front as things stood, they would end up fighting the vassals first.
It would only be after defeating them that Benelrode would finally show himself.
'There should be four vassals in total... Why are there now five?'
That detail left Alter perplexed.
Though the future he had foreseen had twisted in various ways, it shouldn't have affected the eastern region much.
Yet, not only had Benelrode moved up his threat to the eastern army, but now, out of nowhere, a fifth vassal had appeared.
'They say it's a knight clad in burning armor, but I guess I'll have to see him myself.'
Judging from the fact that even the imperial palace was paying special attention to this vassal, he must be extremely powerful.
On top of that, he was acting alone, wreaking havoc across the battlefield, so Alter knew he must steel himself.
'He's probably the strongest monster of the lot. If I kill him, the dragon will appear.'
Ultimately, only by defeating Benelrode could the war in the eastern region come to an end.
Though he'd become weaker than before, his presence would have lost none of its weight.
It might be necessary, not just for himself and Brillie, but for all the strongest champions to gather.
'With the power I possess, maybe I can do something. Even if our powers are opposites...'
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
The Northern Grand Duke's Youngest Son Has to Delay his Wedding...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】