Chapter 106: Collapsing Balrog

The first thing the First Princess did at Ian’s order was to capture the Fourth Prince. It was not difficult to catch him because he was hidden in the forest, which was visible from the castle.

“Arrest him!”

At the First Princess’s command, the soldiers tied the Fourth Prince tightly. The Fourth Prince screamed unjustly at this.

“Sister! Are you really doing this?”

“Shut up, you sinner! What excuse does a person who violated military orders have!”

The eyes of the First Princess and other soldiers were chilly.

It was understandable.

The Fourth Prince and his troops must have arrived a long time ago at her request for help. But he chose to merely watch to test the waters because the monsters were too strong. Therefore, they couldn’t look favorably upon those who didn’t help when they were truly in danger.

However, the Fourth Prince began to make excuses, feeling terribly wronged.

“It’s a misunderstanding! I was preparing to help you. Look, we’re assembling a siege weapon, see?”

“Ha? Misunderstanding?”

“That’s right. I am also working hard to help my sister…”

Right then, a voice rang behind the First Princess.

“Really? I don’t think it’s properly assembled for that kind of weapon, though.”

It was Ian.

Unbeknownst to anyone, he had arrived and was now checking the Fourth Prince’s weapons.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

All these were the things in Ian’s memory. Things that would be renowned for their destructive power in his previous life.

That’s why Ian could tell for sure.

That the weapons in front of him were not even correctly assembled.

“You put everything on a wagon to make it possible to escape. You are prepared to abandon your allies and run away anytime.”

“Youngest! You misunderstood. It, it is just that as a commanding officer, I have to maintain the troops—”

“For a misunderstanding, the soldiers look so fine. They don’t even look like they’re preparing for a war, let alone a fight.”

“…”

It was true.

The Fourth Prince’s soldiers were armed to escape at any time. Only then did the Fourth Prince’s face turn ashen. He realized that the youngest’s sharp eyes were able to grasp everything. Ian said with a cold look on his face.

“And, Brother, I’m the supreme commander now. I don’t know which country’s army drops their honorifics when speaking to their supreme commander.”

Before he knew it, Ian had the epaulets of the supreme commander on his uniform.

The Fourth Prince exclaimed in surprise.

“Th, that’s!”

When on earth did he become supreme commander?

‘No, more than that, the First Princess’s position is now…’

However, Ian raised a hand and stopped the Fourth Prince from speaking.

“That’s enough. That’s not what’s important right now.”

Then he shouted loudly so everyone could hear him.

“The crime of ignoring the request for help from the former supreme commander and just watching in hiding! The crime of aiding and abetting the danger of our troops! In addition, the crime of not telling the truth even after all that was revealed!”

The Fourth Prince and the soldiers lowered their heads. They were ashamed of themselves. Their heads dropped so low they could touch the ground.

Everyone else held their breath.

Gulp.

Ian’s first trial against another heir.

All were nervous about how it would turn out. And at that very moment, Ian declared solemnly.

“Those are crimes that shall never be forgiven. Therefore, as supreme commander, I will command you. From this moment on, the Fourth Prince will be stripped of all positions. In addition, he will enlist as a general soldier.”

“Y-Youngest!”

“The Fourth Prince will henceforth have to fight as a common soldier until he regains his lost honor! In addition, all the troops and supplies of the Fourth Prince will be requisitioned and joined the main army. I will not take any objection.”

Ian shook off the Fourth Prince clinging to him with cold eyes. Then the soldiers rushed and seized the Fourth Prince’s mantle and epaulets. In an instant, he was demoted from a commanding officer to a common soldier.

The Fourth Prince tried to resist, but it didn’t work.

“Youngest, no, Supreme Commander. How can you do this? I’m sure you, no, we join hands…”

When he was about to mention their cooperation.

Ian approached quietly and whispered in his ear.

“Sorry, Brother. It is a threat to show the solemnity of military law. If I don’t punish you here, I’m sure there will be problems later. I’ll give you a chance to restore your honor later. Until then, keep your head down.”

“…”

“Otherwise, I have no choice but to forgive the Third Prince, Louis. Would you prefer that?”

“…”

The Fourth Prince could not readily answer.

He was obviously the one who joined hands with Ian, the youngest, to fight against the First Princess and the Third Prince.

‘But now you’re more of a problem than they are.’

However, he didn’t have the guts to reject Ian’s words. Because his own soldiers also seemed to welcome joining the main force. Moreover, Kaistein’s soldiers were not the only ones by Ian’s side.

‘No. Why are those Bahara men next to him?’

The Bahara general and chieftains were by his side. The sight of those rough men’s muscles was enough to send him shivers.

They clearly didn’t conceal their vicious killing intent, seemingly ready to lunge at him with just one word from Ian.

‘Even more so, he is the one who killed the monster himself. If I make a mistake, my head will roll first.’

The Fourth Prince soon hung his head. He seemed to have completely resigned himself to his fate.

Thanks to this, Ian was able to easily obtain the Fourth Prince’s weapons.

‘This will be of great help in attacking Balrog.’

Ian guessed it would be completed at this time of year, but he didn’t expect the Fourth Prince to finish it and bring it.

Now, he had a secret weapon to break down Balrog’s castle walls.

Besides, most of the soldiers of the Fourth Prince were skilled workers who could handle these weapons.

‘Of course, his soldiers might disobey me.’

Under normal circumstances, they would have rebelled against Ian, who relieved their lord, the Fourth Prince, of his command.

But Ian didn’t have to worry.

The First Princess and her soldiers had already looked at the Fourth Prince with resentment.

“Our prince was just hiding in the rear.”

“No matter what, he’s still a Kaistein. To only watch while our own kind is dying…”

Everyone had seen Ian’s performance.

Rather, they only sighed at the Fourth Prince, so they had no reason not to listen to Ian’s orders until he regained his honor.

After taking everything away, Ian shouted at the soldiers.

“From now on, we will resume the Northern Expedition. Conquer Bahara! Let’s bring this land together!”

“Whoaaah!”

The soldiers responded to Ian’s voice.

Not to mention the military strength so far, with the newly added troops of the First Princess and the Fourth Prince, they made for a truly staggering number of troops.

Kaistein’s army began its march with crushing force.

However, Ian was in no hurry.

“Send a messenger in the name of Ian Kaistein to the castles and villages near Balrog. Tell them not to shed meaningless blood and that those who surrender will be gladly accepted.”

With troops from other regions combined, Bahara’s side would have a bigger chance to unite. They honestly thought that the Bahara warriors, driven to a dead end, would risk their lives.

Yet no one chose to fight.

“We surrender.”

“I surrender.”

It was a vain surrender uncharacteristic of Bahara, known as the land of warriors. But they couldn’t help it either. The Kaistein in front of them was so powerful.

“Since the change of the king of Bahara, the country has been in turmoil.”

“It is the sudden disappearance of the five chieftains, but there are also many missing people in the village.”

In particular, the messengers sent by the king turned into black monsters and ate people.

In this case, they had no choice but to fight to survive.

“Besides, if it is you, we can trust you.”

“Yes. Be it Bahara or Kaistein, all are being treated equally.”

“Please accept us. We wish to go under the Great Warrior banner.”

In fact, Ian did not discriminate against Bahara’s soldiers. Not only did he give the injured the same treatment as Kaistein’s soldiers, but he also treated them equally.

The result was apparent now.

Of course, that was not their only reason to surrender.

‘Prince Olak, the rightful heir to the throne, is here.’

In addition, there was Yamanta, the respected general of Bahara, and the five chieftains. This made it very smooth for Ian to head to Balrog and bring all the tribes under his feet.

Of course, it wasn’t that there were no people who were not frustrated.

“But you didn’t have to do this, did you?”

“We better advance to Balrog now.”

“By now, the Third Prince may have taken over Balrog.”

They were worried about the Third Prince who set off first.

If he seized Balrog, everything they did would all be for naught. In fact, corpses of the black monsters were strewn all around along every road leading to Balrog.

Judging from the ruthless stabbing marks, the Third Prince’s knights seemed to have dealt with them.

‘Brother himself is a well-seasoned knight. He would have been able to finish off a monster like this with his own power.’

But Ian shook his head.

“When dealing with an unknown enemy, we need to make everyone on our side.”

“However, Your Highness…”

“Trust me, Sir Fiosen. In this situation, you have to be even more careful.”

In fact, Ian was a little uneasy.

Faith’s thumping in his heart felt like he was going to meet an enemy that would decide his life and death.

‘It’s strangely sinister. I’ve never felt like this before.’

Even when he underwent the trial.

Even when he was against the dragon.

Even when he fought the monsters with black eyes.

Ian had always fought with his Faith.

But why this time?

This chilling sensation which made him feel like he would be in trouble if he didn’t gather enough soldiers. It felt like he was going to face an existence he could never face with his own power.

And finally.

“That’s Balrog.”

When they arrived at the last battlefield.

“Cough…”

Ian could see the Third Prince lying on the ground, bleeding. No, that’s not all.

“Medics!”

“Get the medics right now. Hurry!”

What greeted them was the scene of thousands, tens of thousands of soldiers fallen under a massacre.

***

“Ceres!!”

A gruff voice shook the palace of Bahara. No, not simply that, but the wind pressure bursting from the voice was literally enough to shake the whole palace.

The black-eyed man was really angry.

“Can’t you come out now?!”

Bang!

When the man stomped the floor, the palace rumbled as if it would split in half.

Seeing this, Duke Garcia’s eldest son, Ceres, appeared.

“What is it?”

“What? Is the word ‘what’ coming out of your mouth?!”

The man growled like a beast.

Then black monsters appeared one after another behind him. They were all sharing their owner’s feelings, exuding violent killing intent.

But Ceres merely shrugged his shoulders.

“If you don’t tell me what’s going on, I won’t know.”

Grit.

The man gnashed his teeth as if to chew Ceres right away.

“You! What the hell have you done to this body?!”

“What do you mean?”

“I couldn’t catch him because of what you did! When I tried to go out, this body melted down!”

“What?”

Ceres tilted his head. Then he clapped his hands and said.

“Did you try to go outside the capital?”

“Yes! I tried to catch another guy who smelled similar to him! But I had to miss him right before my eyes because of what you did!”

Ceres sighed at the man’s words.

Then he shook his head.

“Didn’t I tell you before? The adjustment is not finished yet.”

“Don’t make me laugh! How dare you!”

“No! I mean, I’ve warned you over and over again that you won’t be able to get out of here before you fully absorb the fragment of the Seven Virtues left in the royal castle of Bahara!”

“…”

The man closed his eyes for a moment.

Did he say that to him?

The adjustment hadn’t been fully completed yet, so the man who could not properly assimilate Arak’s memory was confused.

But he learned an important fact anyway.

“So, when is the adjustment over? We must catch him before he can run away.”

“It won’t take long. The Bahara people’s life force is better than I thought. Please lie down for a moment. It’ll be done in a minute.”

“Hurry up.”

The man calmed down.

He wanted to kill Ceres right before him, but his power was still unstable. Of course, Ceres wouldn’t be easy to deal with.

Still, the man prepared for one thing.

“If he comes, wake me up. No one can deal with him except me.”

“I will keep that in mind, O’ Seven Sins.”

When the man was about to fall into a slumber.

Bang!

A deafening sound hit the palace.

No, it wasn’t just the sound.

Rumble—!

“T-the ceiling!”

With Ceres’ scream, the great palace began to collapse.

***

“It’s a hit, Your Highness!”

Ian smiled at Fiosen’s shout. Right now, he had just fired a siege weapon from a position where he could see Bahara’s royal palace. Although some knights called it dishonorable.

“The only thing that matters to me is the safety of my soldiers! I cannot force the soldiers into a situation where the enemy’s strength is uncertain!”

Furthermore, the Third Prince and his soldiers finally found out the enemy’s weakness as they were on the brink of death.

“What? If the enemy leaves the palace, they will melt?”

“Yes… Other attacks didn’t work. Please avenge my knights.”

If the enemy couldn’t move, they could just attack from afar.

This was why Ian was bombarding now. Then, the Fourth Prince opened his mouth, his face looking smug ever since.

“Look, I’m right, aren’t I? This is the perfect angle for this weather and wind.”

“I never knew you had this talent.”

“This is basic for a mathematician like me. Basic!”

Ian neatly ignored his plea to return to his commanding officer position. Then he looked at the Bahara palace with cold eyes.

‘He’s still alive. Is this not enough?’

He gave the order again.

“Relay the current trajectory and power to the artillerymen.”

“Aye—no, yes, Supreme Commander, sir!”

After that, the siege weapons Ian took from the crown prince of Cantum and the Fourth Prince were lined up one after another. Hundreds of rocks were hoisted by tens of thousands of them.

Ian immediately shouted in a sharp voice.

“Fire!”

Bang!

The rocks headed for the great palace of Bahara.

That’s where the Seven Sins and Ceres were. And in a matter of seconds, the palace was destroyed.