NOVEL NEXT Chapter 49
The Crown Prince Wishes to Retire
17. Blood Battle at the Volcano (2)
As the Central Army’s entire force led by the Master advanced, the monsters that were about to emerge from the forest hurriedly hid back inside.
These humans, whom they had deemed feeble, turned out to be much stronger than expected.
Realizing after just one battle that they were not the humans they thought they knew, the monsters retreated deeper into the woods.
Then, the Legion Commander called his troops, who were preparing for combat.
“Push forward.”
“Yes!”
Even after a battle, they immediately began preparations for the march without resting.
There should have been complaints, yet not a single soldier voiced any discontent.
“Your Highness.”
Kariel, biting his lips, was looked upon with concern by Talion.
Regardless of that, Kariel appeared visibly anxious, lost in thought.
As he sat on his mount, deep in contemplation, Talion drew closer to support him.
Finally, Kariel emerged from his thoughts and turned to Talion.
“Summon Lord Achelio.”
“Yes.”
After bowing his head, Talion left Kariel’s side and soon returned with Achelio in tow.
“Did you call for me?”
“Do you sense anything unusual?”
“Sense something, you say?”
When Achelio asked with a puzzled expression, Kariel pointed to the forest.
“Something like dark mana.”
“Hmm, I don’t feel anything yet.”
Achelio opened his senses but still sensed nothing.
“Still, that mana storm looks ominous.”
In his heart, even the Master felt fear due to the overwhelming amount of mana coiling together.
It was forming above the volcano.
“What do you think will happen if it erupts?”
“That mana storm, you mean?”
“Yes.”
Achelio, looking up at the sky as if calculating, cautiously replied.
“At least this area will be obliterated.”
“And if a volcano eruption were to coincide?”
“The western and central regions of the Empire will be devastated. The aftermath would reach throughout the Empire.”
Kariel’s expression hardened at Achelio’s response.
If one volcano eruption could cause this much destruction, if the remaining volcano were to erupt in the same manner, the future left for the Empire was nothing but annihilation.
‘Ugh, these crazy fiends.’
The dark mages were carrying out acts that were far more horrific than those of demons.
Those dark mages had killed more humans than demons, who viewed humans as mere playthings.
“Do you sense something amiss?”
At Achelio’s question, Kariel shook his head slightly.
Clearly, the dark mages aimed to cause chaos in the Empire using the volcano’s eruption.
The problem was that he felt something was off.
‘What is it?’
There was undoubtedly something he was missing.
Feeling a nagging sensation that something was on the tip of his tongue, Kariel frowned, but nothing came to mind at that moment.
Eventually, he approached the forest area with lingering unease.
“Indeed, it feels more dangerous up close.”
Achelio gazed at the volcano with a serious expression.
Despite being quite a distance away, the surrounding mana was trembling violently due to the mana storm.
The mages were struggling to wield their powers, forcing the knights to take the lead.
Of course, the knights were also finding it quite tricky to manipulate mana.
“From now on, we commence the breakthrough to the volcano.”
“Yes!”
At the Legion Commander’s command, all troops bowed their heads in unison and responded.
His plan was simple.
1. Use the troops to clear the forest.
2. Only the knights will ascend the volcano.
3. The troops waiting below the volcano will prepare for reinforcements and defend against enemy attacks.
The soldiers could not traverse the raging mana storm near the volcano, thus they could only form a siege team comprised exclusively of knights.
Hence, the Legion Commander planned to ensure that the knights would not exhaust themselves in the forest by pushing the monsters back with regular troops alone.
The strategy seemed solid.
Even any commander would nod in approval of such a conventional operation.
However, the situation refused to flow smoothly.
Not long after entering the forest, the bizarre shrill call of a crow echoed.
“Are those the enemies?”
“Yes, they are presumed to be reinforcements from the Holy Nation.”
In response to Kariel’s question, the crow lowered its head and answered.
“The first wave of reinforcements?”
“Yes.”
“All of them?”
“Not quite. It seems only holy knights and some higher priests are arriving.”
Those who were likely enemies were sprinting towards Kariel’s forces.
It was unlikely they had any idea where they were, but they were perfectly aiming for this direction.
Seeing them coming head-on, it was almost certain they intended to stop them.
“What of the Northern Army?”
“The crows and the Count of the Border are following closely behind them. The remaining forces will hold back the second wave of the Holy Nation’s reinforcements.”
After hearing the crow’s report, Kariel fell into thought.
“What does the Legion Commander think we ought to do?”
“Under normal circumstances, halting would be the best idea….”
The Legion Commander trailed off and looked up at the sky.
The mana storm felt dire.
No one knew what method had been used, but it was clear that they could not allow the volcano to erupt like this.
They needed to reach the volcano and prevent the eruption as quickly as possible.
“Lord.”
“Yes?”
“Take the knight order and ascend.”
At Kariel’s command, Achelio’s expression turned grave.
“Your Highness, I am a palace knight as well.”
Achelio was hinting that the safety of the Crown Prince was paramount.
Nonetheless, Kariel was unwavering.
“If that erupts, the Empire is finished.”
“Your Highness, however….”
“Do you plan to dance to the enemies’ tune?”
At Kariel’s words, Achelio fell silent for a moment before reluctantly nodding.
“I will only take the Central Knight Order.”
“Lord.”
“The Palace Knights must not accompany you.”
At Achelio’s statement, Talion nodded vigorously from the side.
Thus, Kariel took a step back in resignation.
For now, it was vital that Achelio reach the volcano’s summit.
“Legion Commander, find a defensible terrain.”
“Understood.”
In accordance with Kariel’s orders, the entire force moved hastily towards the volcano’s vicinity, breaking through the monsters.
Having already been forced out by the previous Monster Wave, the number of monsters had decreased, and with the Master leading, the human army was nigh on a disaster for the monsters.
Thanks to that, the army penetrated easily and hurried to prepare defenses.
“Advance.”
“Yes, I will complete the mission and return.”
With that, Achelio began his ascent of the volcano, taking the Central Knight Order with him.
As the Palace Knight Commander cut through the tumultuous mana with a single stroke, the knights hastily followed behind.
After sending the knight order and Master upward, it wasn’t long before the holy knights emerged, carrying the banners that symbolized the Holy Nation.
“Stop!”
“We are the Holy Nation’s army! We have come to aid you!”
Despite a holy knight’s shout, the Empire did not lower its guard.
Then the high priest stepped forward.
“We are reinforcements from the Holy Nation! Clear the way!”
“The Master is already climbing the volcano.”
As Kariel stepped forward to speak, the high priest’s eyes shifted.
“Is it true that the Master is climbing the volcano?”
When Kariel nodded in affirmation, the high priest double-checked.
“Are you certain the Master has gone?”
“Indeed?”
“Even so, it is dangerous. The assistance of priests will be needed to capture the dark mages.”
“We don’t need it. The Empire’s elite are heading there.”
At Kariel’s words, the high priest’s gaze sharpened.
With neither the Master present nor the Empire’s elite troops heading up the volcano, the high priest’s mana began to surge.
At the same time, the high priest unleashed a magical attack surreptitiously aimed at Kariel.
Boom!
“I anticipated this.”
Kariel smiled widely as he gazed at the high priest.
As the sudden attack aimed at Kariel struck, Talion jumped forward to block it, causing the high priest to cluck his tongue.
“Did the Palace Knights and attendants remain behind?”
As the high priest muttered with a regretful expression, the holy knights had already drawn their swords.
Every single one of them possessed skills that could rival the Empire’s elite knights.
With the high priest included, it seemed that a difficult battle was ahead with their current strength.
Even so, a smile lingered at the corner of Kariel’s mouth.
“Attack.”
The moment the high priest’s command echoed, the light emanating from the bodies of the holy knights turned murky.
Only those who betrayed the God carried the gray, tainted strength.
Simultaneously, the high priest’s mana also transformed into a murky hue, summoning an enormous spear of mana in the air.
In that moment, Talion stepped forward.
It was intended to subdue the high priest.
“Focus only on the Crown Prince!”
If they could kill the Crown Prince, they would consider it a worthwhile sacrifice, and thus the high priest and holy knights relentlessly targeted Kariel.
Perhaps because their forces consisted entirely of elite holy knights with the high priest included, even the Imperial Guards, comprised of knight commanders, found it challenging to defend.
In contrast, Kariel stood still, trembling as if in fear, yet refusing to retreat.
Seeing this, the high priest and holy knights fixed their eyes on Kariel with burning intensity.
‘If we can breach the Imperial Guard!’
‘We are almost there!’
‘We just need to eliminate the Crown Prince!’
‘All for the Great Plan!’
The Palace Knights, Shadows, and the crows observing from nearby joined in to prevent the enemies from targeting Kariel, but it proved inadequate.
Despite the Legion Commander issuing urgent commands, stopping the holy knights’ charge with regular troops was no easy task.
“Die!”
As comrades from Kariel’s Imperial Guard, all esteemed commanders, fell, a gap was forcefully opened.
A holy knight plunged his sword into that gap.
With serious internal injuries, his blade barely emitted a feeble aura.
While a strike from the Second Prince or Third Prince would have been futile, Kariel was different, so hope flickered.
At that moment, a smile graced Kariel’s lips as he lifted his head.
“Welcome.”
Just as Kariel uttered those words, the holy knight’s sword melted under a colossal fireball.
Though it was a single strike, Surth perfectly countered the holy knight’s attack, ending it right then.
“Crown… Prince.”
The holy knight, who had charged forward with all his might despite the blade embedded in him, coughed up blood and hung his head.
Watching this, Kariel smiled brightly.
“The bait was quite splendid, wasn’t it?”
At Kariel’s words, the holy knights, blocked by the Imperial Guards, revealed expressions of frustration.
In their reckless rush to capture a single Crown Prince, they had ultimately failed.
The toll was harrowing. Before they knew it, they found themselves trapped within the encirclement set by the Legion Commander and began to fall one by one.
Simultaneously, the Shadows attacked the priests.
Moving with blinding speed to make the counterattack difficult, they began to fall one by one as well.
Finally, the high priest fell, a blade lodged in his heart from Talion’s strike.
However, upon witnessing this, Kariel exhibited a puzzled expression.
“Are you smiling even as you die?”
The sight of the high priest dying with a grin on his face baffled Kariel.
Having failed to kill him and to impede the elite force’s ascent to prevent the volcano’s eruption, they were still smiling as they perished.
‘Was the volcano eruption not the end?’
In an instant, something brushed past Kariel’s mind.