Chapter 261
Bloom in Difficulty (7)
Among the troops riding in from all directions, those to the east caught my eye first. While the dust clouds still stretched over the other group, the riders from the east had already reached the fort.
The leading knight among them came out alone from their ranks, riding to face me.
‘Vwaat!’
Without reigning in her horse, she jumped from it, vaulting herself out of the stirrups.
‘Bwak! Kwask Dsheuk!’
After the peculiar noise of a heavily-armored knight landing on the ground came the sound of her sabatons scratching over the soil as she continued to walk. The knight lifted her helm’s visor, and fine dust scattered from it. Her face was also dust-covered after the ride through the wasteland, and her black eyes shone like starlight.
It was Arwen. She made eye contact with me before nodding slightly.
There were no words of greeting upon our reunion, and no explanation of the circumstances that led her to arrive earlier than expected. Even after seeing me and the faeries and the confrontation in front of the fort, Arwen did not say a word.
She merely stood by my side and silently raised her energy. It was weird, but I knew we were simply adding another sword to the battle. The addition of Arwen’s power didn’t mean that beating the monstrous Sigrun would be easy.
Still, the moment I felt her energy, my heart relaxed. While my heart had been beating nervously, Arwen’s energy was sharp and noticeably stable.
I felt like I was complete. Gripping my true body tighter with one hand, I looked at Sigrun and couldn’t help but frown. The elf looked at me, with her hair radiating out from her head as if a flower had blossomed around her eyes.
“Your Highness is one of the few I had seen who has loyal persons that can be counted on.”
Sigrun tilted her head, fixing her gaze on my knights. She looked at Eli, Adelia, Carls, the countless rangers and knights behind me, and Vincent.
“So you say that’s Count Balahard. He looks like an old knight from that time, and so do they.”
Sigrun’s gaze finally settled on Arwen.
“She, too.”
The elf licked her red lips, as if looking at a juicy pomegranate, then turned her head back to me. The ominous glow that had skulked within the depths of her eyes now began overflowing from them.
“A soul that shines so brightly.”
As if she had never been a soulless creature, Sigrun’s face became filled with vitality.
“You… No way… Maybe she is your Highness’s shining star?”
Sigrun’s eyes scrunched up as if she was having a pleasant conversation. The hairs on my neck stood upright, and my hot heart quickly cooled down.
“Sigrun!”
When I came to my senses, I was already moving, shouting fiercely. I gripped my sword with strength, gathering a flash of light to its edge, and stepped out.
My eyes tracked Arwen. A greenish shadow popped up near her, and a silver arc of light slashed out. Without hesitation, I thrust my sword toward Arwen and the green shadow. Before my sword’s arc was complete, I put my other hand upon its hilt. As the heavy metal texture touched my fingertips, I knew there was no time for thoughts.
I instinctively thrust out to protect Arwen. With her arms lifted for a strike, I twisted my body and moved my sword in beneath them.
‘Klang! Klang!’
Two clashes of steel rang out, loud enough that they seemed to tear relentlessly at my ears. I had been in a hurry and couldn’t draw out enough energy, and had barely beaten back the monstrous Elder High Elf’s attack. I raised my head and followed Sigrun’s movement, getting grit into my eyes. There was a lot of dust everywhere, and in the middle of the dust cloud, all I could see was Arwen leaning in my arms.
I looked at her with concern. Her right-hand gauntlet was shifted out of place, and I saw that it was bloody. The iron armor covering her right arm was also crushed and dented, no longer serving its protective purpose.
Arwen frowned and spat out a blob of blood.
“Are-”
“Your Highness.” Although she was pale, she spoke to me, as always, with a strong voice. “The enemy has not withdrawn yet.”
“What?”
“Let me go.”
Arwen pushed me away before I could even respond. Although she staggered once, she took up her usual upright stance. She pulled off her torn gloves and ripped off her vambraces, couters, and pauldrons, which were no longer in a state to protect her. The armor, torn and dented, fell to the ground, exposing Arwen’s bare, bleeding skin.
Her wounds were unsightly, making me frown. But Arwen didn’t care about them; she merely raised her sword as if she didn’t feel any pain. I noticed that there was a small liquid stain on the tip of her sword. It was hard to notice, yet it was obviously blood, though only a few drops. Before I realized whose blood it was, Arwen charged forward.
‘Klang Klang!’
The dust had not yet cleared, and beyond it, a terrible battle was already in full swing. In the hazy air, I saw the light from pale and golden Aura Blades. It was the energy of Eli and Adelia, and Arwen’s light and energy were soon added to the fray.
‘Sasa… Sasasak.’
From above me, I heard the sound of the rangers’ crossbow bolts tearing through the air. I stepped up to join the battle, or at least, I tried to — I couldn’t move a single step.
Rather than drawing out my mana, all I could do was give strength to my bent knees and tolerate the pressure. At that moment, I realized that Sigrun had been playing me from the beginning.
Her targeting of Arwen, forcing me to stop the attack, was merely a tactic she used to easily neutralize me. What Sigrun really wanted was for me to remain as an onlooker.
Me standing here stupidly, watching my dear knights die, and seeing everything I held precious collapse was the final act of this play which the elf has prepared over the years.
It was the twisted way in which the Elder High Elf enjoyed her dinner, and it was the tragic end to countless young heroes. I clenched my teeth and drew out my energy.
However, my current ability was not enough to dispel Sigrun’s energy that had infiltrated me. I breathed wildly, stimulating my frozen mana heart.
The dust clouds were blown away by the wind, and I could finally see the battlefield. Eli wielded his sword, constantly repeating poems. Adelia struck her blade down, a brilliant light shining all over her body. Arwen joined in late and was dishing out attacks like a meteor shower.
They were severe foes to face, with Aura Blades that could tear opponents apart in an instant. However, Sigrun wasn’t quite on their level. She had been born with the characteristics of a Mistletoe Clan hero.
Even the Dragon Slayer, which had already gained karma by slaying a true dragon four hundred years ago, had its energies easily scattered by such a monster, and I could not guarantee our victory.
Bernardo Eli hit the ground. Adelia was battered back, vomiting blood.
Arwen quickly became bloodier— but no one withdrew.
Eli, after rolling over the ground, jumped up and ran at Sigrun. Adelia, who had been bounced some distance away, charged back. Bloody Arwen spearheaded the attack against Sigrun. They must have already felt it: how strong Sigrun is, and the fact that the swords they had honed all their lives were vain implements against her transcendental powers. Every one of them must be feeling this fact painfully.
Nevertheless, their energy had not been dull from the beginning of the battle, and their actions of risking their lives against a great foe were majestic rather than desperate.
The knights were aided by Jordan and other veteran rangers.
‘Sassasak!’
Amidst the chaos of the champions and Sigrun facing off, with none of the combatants standing still for a second, the rangers fired their crossbows, aiming only at Sigrun with surprising sophistication. Although none of the bolts touched Sigrun’s body, they were enough to bother her. The fact that Sigrun had lived for a long while after crossing the threshold of transcendence didn’t mean that bolts could not pierce her flesh.
The northern knights clashed against the sentinels without stopping. Two or three of the royal family’s erstwhile secret knights, Gwain included, gathered and slowly slew the sentinels one by one.
‘Dukudukuduku!’
And then, the kingdom’s knights and troops who were riding toward the fort came onto the battlefield.
“Take them out! Join up with the defenders!”
Without any hesitation, they struck the sentinels through the clouds of dust their galloping horses were throwing up.
‘Bwang!’
There came a heavy noise and the bodies of sentinels were thrown in all directions. The knights broke through the swirling dust.
“Don’t let a single elf live!”
At their forefront were old knights, their blades shining with sword auras. And so, Leonberg’s knights completely annihilated the sentinels, and the play prepared by the evil elves came to an end.
“I’ll never get tired of seeing it anytime soon.” An eerie voice broke into my ears. “The sight of humans overcoming difficulties by throwing away their lives is a most magnificent and beautiful sight.”
The wailing of dying horses that had rung out all over the battlefield died down. The sounds of weapons clashing, which had continued without halt, stopped.
On that battlefield, where all fighting had stopped, everyone looked in one direction at once. Their gazes were fixed upon Sigrun.
“But, unfortunately, my preference is not to see how humans face adversity, but rather seeing how their vain hopes can be shattered.”
Sigrun threw off the mask of the good elf, and her face now looked as dry as sand grains in a desert.
“Like now.”
‘Hwaak!’
A tremendous energy was aroused in her body.
“Rotate your rings to resist!”
“Unleash your energy and protect yourselves!”
Northern knights and commanders, veterans of war, as well as Count Brandenburg’s knights cried out their orders urgently. However, since Sigrun was incomparable to the Warlord, the resonance of a thousand rings was insignificant and fleeting in the face of her natural presence.
The existence of the monstrous elf, who had lived for a thousand years and always desired to reach the highest place, was enough to tear the souls from those who had not achieved great feats and karma.
The soldiers fell to the ground, clutching their necks.
Blood spilled from the eyes, noses, ears, and mouths of the rangers who were holding on, gritting their teeth. Knights groaned, their bloodshot eyes trembling. Probably, if they endured longer, the soldiers would die where they were and the strong rangers would have their souls damaged, becoming gibbering idiots.
Knights would also be ruined, with their mana hearts and rings destroyed.
And the same would happen across the whole kingdom. I studied Sigrun’s power, and finally, I was able to gauge her strength.
“It doesn’t seem to be worth half her lifespan,” I muttered bluntly.
The screening was complicated, so I quickly closed my eyes. Countless thoughts came and went through my head. So many emotions bloomed within my heart and were lost again. When I opened my eyes, all that remained within me was a little regret and sorrow.
“Vincent,” I called to him on the wall.
While desperately trying to resist Sigrun’s energy, Vincent and others turned to me, hearing my voice.
“Arwen, Adelia.”
Carls, Jordan; I called the names of those dear to me in turn. Each one of their face was captured within my gaze, and the knights widened their eyes when they met mine.
Looking at them where they stood, I said, “Thanks, I had a pleasant dream.”
I could only laugh, and it was probably one of the greatest smiles I had ever smiled. It must have been a truly bright smile. I turned around.
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Hearing Arwen and Adelia’s screams behind me-
‘Fuwook’
I shoved my sword into my chest; my body, my other half — precisely towards my heart.
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