Swordmaster of the Great Wall

'Tch, I told them to make the coffin bigger.'

Erich was lying in a cramped and dark space. If he had been of average build, it might have been fine, but since he was always a large man, even now, he twisted his body in pain.

As the coffin jolted, Frederick's lips quivered as he watched.

"... Hey, please stop moving."

Fortunately, all those carrying Erich had received kindness from him, so Frederick's ventriloquism was interpreted less as the ravings of a madman and more as a warning for the sake of success.

Erich muttered inside the coffin.

"Barnes is standing by, as ordered, right?"

"Wouldn't he figure it out by himself? That guy would jump into a pit of fire if you told him to."

Indeed, there was no way Barnes would mess up such a simple instruction.

Anyway, as the transportation into the Great Wall began, Erich shut his mouth and stiffened his body.

If it was revealed that he was alive inside, it wouldn't just end as a laughing matter.

― Bwooooo

Erich could clearly feel it. He couldn't see with his own eyes, but he could sense how majestic the atmosphere outside was.

He could easily guess why he had become so heroized.

'He is indeed a kind-hearted man, but he really makes use of moments like these.'

August certainly cherished Erich. But apart from his expectations, as soon as Erich died, he turned him into a hero, organized a punitive campaign against the barbarians, and mustered troops from the great nobles. This was definitely possible thanks to his swift wit.

Although Erich once thought he had learned everything from his previous life, he realized this was a side he could stand to emulate a bit more.

Anyway.

His coffin rattled and then came to a complete stop somewhere. Erich instinctively realized:

'This is the stage where I will come back to life.'

He could smell the minerals he'd told Barnes to pile up. The sour and pungent odor pricked his nose. Now, as soon as they were set on fire, an unbelievably terrifying blaze would erupt.

August's speech followed. At his speech, the audience fell silent, and the sound of sniffles could be heard.

Erich suddenly recalled an old anecdote—a tale of an old man who, lying in a coffin pretending to be dead, left his inheritance to the child who cried the most mournfully.

The situation wasn't the same, but being trapped here and listening to the sounds of mourning, Erich weirdly felt he could understand what the old man must have felt.

From inside the coffin, the commander's speech sounded quiet but powerful. To Erich, all it did was make him feel embarrassed.

Anyway, after the speech ended, the commander calmly passed the baton.

"There is a knight here holding the banner of the Krupp family, to which he belonged. Sir Milon, please come forward."

A familiar name was heard.

'Should I have given Milon advance notice?'

Milon was the type who wouldn't shed a drop of blood if stabbed, but in any case, he was Heinkel's viscount, who swore fealty to Erich.

So, if he had heard the news of Erich's death, he couldn't have been too pleased...

'Or maybe not? If I die, Heinkel's viscount becomes a count...'

Come to think of it, his death might not have been so bad for Milon. But seeing him show up here, promptly bringing soldiers when he heard the news, struck Erich as admirable.

'Well, probably because of the grand duke's orders.'

The grand duke was likely still keeping an eye on Erich. He might have let him go, but he knew his father too well.

'If he sees a capable man, he just has to keep him under his command—a talent maniac.'

All his actions, both overt and covert, would have reached the grand duke by now. Whatever else might be said, it was his own blood, so the grand duke checking Erich's usefulness made sense.

Meanwhile, Erich had been causing considerable incidents yet achieving significant results each time. No way would the grand duke just sit and watch all this.

When all this was over and news of Erich's resurrection spread, he would surely try to make contact in some way.

'I should think ahead about what to say.'

Anyway.

Milon, who had come forward, seemed to hesitate, torch in hand. Erich could tell without seeing it. The faint tremor transmitted through the air. Milon's hesitation made Erich feel a little less at ease...

And impatient.

'Damn it. It's hot and cramped and it stinks—can't he hurry up?'

Milon kept hesitating. It was probably complex emotions about Erich that made him hesitate, but from Erich's position inside, it was maddening.

'My back is going to break, damn...'

At last, after a long wait, Milon finally set fire to the coffin.

'At last!'

As the surroundings grew hot, Erich slowly began to stir his aura. His whole body glowed faintly golden with aura. That aura was protecting his body from the intense heat.

'What matters is what comes next.'

Erich closed his eyes and focused on the flow of his aura. At the same time, his senses pictured the shape of the fire burning brightly.

No matter how blazing the fire, no matter how much chaos outside, unless Erich controlled his aura correctly, all of this was pointless.

He concentrated all his senses, sensing the situation of the fire burning the coffin and the logs. He wrapped his body in aura and slowly shaped it in the likeness of fire.

'It's harder than I thought.'

If his old blue aura was like water, his new aura was like fire. Holding back aura that kept trying to burst outward was a challenge.

But after some time, Erich's eyes flashed. The flames had reached their peak. Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs novel⚑fire.net

Golden aura entwined with the blaze and soared skyward. At once, a chain reaction of explosions from the now-heated minerals erupted into the air.

At that moment, Erich felt something strange.

'...!'

The fire was merely burning, feeding on fuel as normal, yet when he roused his aura, the flames fluctuated wildly under his control.

Erich thought he might be creating a stage far more magnificent than he had intended.

An immense conflagration, tinged with the color of his aura, raged toward the sky as if possessed.

Somewhere, a shout rang out.

"It's Incensus!"

"God has descended!"

Erich's lips curled upward. There were familiar voices—the awkward performances of Barnes and the sentries could be felt.

His charade had reached its climax. At the same time, golden wings unfurled in the air, scattering iridescent light.

― KWANG!

Out of the black smoke arose golden wings. Erich slowly rose from the flames.

And as he brushed through the burning fire and stepped forward, he locked eyes with someone staring at him, his gaze cold as ice.

It was Milon.

Erich wore a faint smile for Milon. Surprisingly, it seemed that Milon had already figured everything out.

'Sorry I couldn't tell you in advance, but just think of it as a good show.'

Led by Milon, countless eyes focused on Erich. Within them: fear, awe, shock—various emotions mingled.

At last the finale of the performance had arrived.

Erich felt now was the time to give them one more surprise.

― Woong.

A yet more dazzling golden radiance blossomed from his scarlet eyes. Those who saw it gasped. The man who defied death within the flames seemed like Incensus's own messenger.

In an awkward tone, he spoke.

"... Where am I?"

At the same time, wrinkles formed at the corners of Milon's eyes.

While you were pulling that fire stunt, you could have practiced your acting.

***

"... So what are you all going to do?"

"What do you mean, what? Now that he's alive, we go home!"

"I swear, you central folks..."

"What? Did you just finish speaking?"

After Erich's show, the knights of the great houses gathered in the clearing. They argued vehemently, all wearing uneasy expressions.

But most were of the opinion—since the original cause for gathering for vengeance had become unclear—it was now right to return to their domains.

"Sir Milon! Can you say something?"

"Hm..."

Milon listened to his subordinates' opinions with a troubled face. He kept fiddling with the Krupp family's heirloom, betraying his conflicted mind.

'So the grand duke's prediction came true.'

The grand duke was a man of not just strength but superhuman insight. That's why Milon had always obeyed his words without a doubt.

But this time felt different.

How could you expect to draw your sword against a man already dead?

Of course, it was impossible, so he had thought perhaps the grand duke finally made a mistake.

Maybe, as is human, his affection for his kin had clouded his eyes.

Yet, a show or not, the man actually came back to life. Did the grand duke foresee this from the start?

If so, it meant he had anticipated this whole event, and there must have been a reason for mustering so many troops. With that, Milon finally reached a decision.

"Krupp grand ducal house will not return. Whether Incensus raised him or not, his Highness ordered us to wipe out whoever dared touch a member of the Krupp house. What about you, sir Abe?"

"We..."

Abe swept his gaze over the others chattering in confusion. Right now, the southerners, who wanted to march, and the centrists, who wanted to retreat, were at odds.

Which would be more advantageous? That was all he cared about.

Then, someone appeared, and the murmuring knights fell silent.

The real protagonist had arrived.

"Thank you all for coming. What were you discussing?"

"Ah, sir Erich."

At his appearance, the knights who'd been fiercely debating fell silent. A living miracle, a man who returned from death, stood before them. A southern knight spoke up.

"Sir Erich! Please say something! Those cowardly centrists just want to go home!"

"Cowards? Things have changed, can't you see? You southerners are impossible..."

Erich gave a slight shake of his head, then spoke with a somber expression.

"You're all free to return whenever you wish. That's not for me to interfere with. I, for one, am already grateful enough that you came here."

"See? Now that he's alive—"

"But."

All eyes turned toward Erich.

"I will head to the middle province, whether with my unit or alone. There, I plan to wipe out the barbarians."

As Erich spoke so firmly, he also cast a covert glance far off to those watching.

The protagonists were none other than Incensus's fanatical swordsmen—the order's paladins.

The paladins, who'd been silent until now, rattled their helmets and then whispered to a young acolyte beside them.

The acolyte nodded several times, then spoke to Erich.

"O one favored by Incensus, I humbly ask: Is this what the god intends you to do?"

"No. Incensus hasn't said a word to me."

I met him just before—a total silence.

"Moreover, I would never presume to guess the will of god. How could I dare do that? But..."

How would I know? But.

"I will simply do what I believe is right. So I hope you will also do what you truly believe is right. That is all I can say to you."

Are they seriously going?

"..."

The knights fell into silence once more. The paladins exchanged a few glances.

― Clatter.

All at once, they knelt. The southern knights hastily followed. Milon too, now wore a meaningful smile as he knelt.

"I obey my lord's command."

Now only the central knights with Leonor at their core remained. Their faces betrayed irritation and embarrassment—the mood had twisted unexpectedly.

If they said, 'This isn't our problem, we're leaving,' how would Incensus's clergy view their house?

"We will follow, sir Erich."

The first to kneel among them was Sir Abe. With the Krupp knights staying behind, he had no choice. Leonor couldn't do otherwise.

They might be annoyed, but what could they do? Otherwise, they'd go home and be branded cowards who'd forever forsaken their honor.

Thus Erich secured the allegiance of the knights. He met each one with a courteous handshake, lauded every last one as a hero, then left the clearing.

When all was finished, his next steps led toward the commander's quarters.

'Now, let's take care of the last remaining matters, shall we?'

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

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