The Heavenly Demon Can't Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 101

The grey light of morning finally came. It felt like the sun would never rise after the long, terrible night. Hector’s soldiers couldn’t hide how awful they felt. Their faces were pale and tired.

One soldier mumbled, “Morning already…” His voice was rough.

Another sighed, “Bloody hell.”

They felt many things at once: sadness for their dead friends, anger at the enemy, and a tired relief that the dark night was over.

They were furious that they hadn’t achieved anything all night, yet at the same time, they breathed sighs of relief.

The terror of the dark. They couldn’t let their guard down for a single moment all night.

Knowing that Roman Dmitry might spring out at any moment to deliver death, Hector’s soldiers greeted the rising sun with wide-open eyes.

The battle was over.

From the moment the darkness receded, there were no more attacks, and the Hector Kingdom had lost the strength to pursue them.

“Move the bodies of our comrades. Cremate them to soothe their souls, and then we shall take a good rest.”

“Just a little more strength!”

The orders were given.

Hector’s soldiers followed the orders with strained faces.

There weren’t just one or two bodies.

The bodies were badly hurt, they couldn’t be moved intact, but they salvaged as many of the better-preserved ones as they could.

Even though it was hard, no one complained.

They knew that with a bit of bad luck, they could have been the corpses lying on the ground, so even though they were tired, they didn’t forget to show respect for the dead.

Among those people.

Edwin Hector, too, carried a corpse and descended the mountain.

“Commander, there’s no need for you to move yourself.”

“No. These are people who died because of me. Even if I can’t bring them back to life, I don’t want to leave the task of sending them to the heavens solely to the soldiers.”

Jackson looked down with sympathy for Edwin.

Edwin Hector did his best.

However.

The opponent was simply too strong.

Jackson wanted to offer a word of comfort, but Edwin Hector wasn’t ready to talk right now.

‘This is my defeat.’

He gritted his teeth.

He shed tears of blood inwardly.

When the sun rose and the sight of the corpses was revealed, Edwin Hector couldn’t bear the guilt as he looked at the bodies strewn about without a place to step.

The pieces on the chessboard.

When giving orders, he calmly accepted their sacrifices, but as he confirmed the reality along with the result of defeat, it felt as if his heart was collapsing.

It was sickening.

It was hard to accept the fact that so many people had died due to his lack of ability.

‘I overestimated myself. From the moment I judged that my abilities were enough to handle the problem named Roman Dmitry, the perfect plan began to crumble. His plan, which he thought was okay, turned out to be very bad, and from now on, the Hector Kingdom will have no choice but to face a very bad situation they didn’t expect at all.’

It was the worst.

Leaving Hector.

He vowed to win no matter what.

While checking the plan countless times, Edwin Hector was certain that there was no possibility of failure in his plan.

But this was the reality.

His steps were heavy.

The weight transmitted from the corpse on his back made his feet sink deeper and deeper.

How long had he moved?

Finally, Edwin Hector, who had moved all the bodies down the mountain, set fire to the pile of corpses.

Flames rose.

He didn’t say anything.

Just blankly.

Edwin Hector and his soldiers quietly watched the blazing fire.

The funeral was over.

Edwin Hector summoned the top officials.

Falling into despair was only temporary.

He knew that the reality before his eyes wouldn’t be solved by someone else.

“Report the extent of the damage.”

“It will take more time to grasp the exact figures, but according to a rough estimate, about 700 soldiers have died overnight. On the other hand, the enemy’s casualties are less than 10.”

“Huh.”

“Oh dear.”

A sigh burst out.

It was an overwhelming defeat.

Edwin Hector clenched his trembling hands and lowered his head.

“This defeat is due to my judgment. I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to you for giving you the wrong orders.”

“Your Highness!”

“What on earth are you saying! This is not the commander’s fault!”

The top officials jumped up from their seats.

Among them.

Butler spoke with an angry face.

“None of us blame Your Highness. Roman Dmitry, known as a 3-star aura swordsman, was strong enough to withstand the combined attack of Your Highness and us. Who could have predicted such a problem? The opponent was just too strong. We don’t want to see Your Highness bowing your head.”

“That’s right.”

“Please give us new orders. We are still looking only at the commander.”

Everyone agreed.

The battle on the mountain.

Having faced Roman Dmitry directly, they didn’t think this defeat was Edwin Hector’s fault.

Butler was right.

Roman Dmitry was a monster.

The mobility to break through the encirclement, and the power to take lives with a single blow.

Even when they first entered the mountain, no one in the Hector Kingdom could have predicted such a problem.

Edwin Hector said.

“I am a defeated general. But since no one else will solve the problem we face, I want to give you new orders. If you think my orders are another judgment leading to defeat, I want you to speak up unconditionally, regardless of your position.”

“We obey your command.”

He sat down.

Looking at the blazing fire.

Edwin Hector pondered for a long time.

Now that they were facing the worst situation, a special measure was needed to turn things around.

“We cannot return to the kingdom without any gains. Therefore, we will clear all the forward defense positions that we had postponed attacking before the main force of the Cairo Kingdom arrives on the southern front. The deadline is ten days. Within that time, we must clear out the remnants of Cairo. After that, we will prepare to fight as hard as we can to defend ourselves, using the rear positions as our base.”

“What do you intend to do about Roman Dmitry? He will surely interfere with our plans.”

Roman Dmitry.

The expressions of the top officials hardened at the mere mention of his name.

He was a dangerous enemy.

They didn’t know what problems he might create, but they couldn’t do nothing just because of one person.

“I admit that Roman Dmitry is a dangerous enemy. But if he tries to interfere with our plans, we can actually get a chance to take revenge. The battle in the mountains, which utilized darkness and geographical advantages, is completely different from a battle fought on the plains. The forward defense positions, which the Cairo Kingdom cannot give up, will become bait to lure Roman Dmitry.”

It was a change of perspective.

The southern positions.

They were planning to use them as bait to lure Roman out.

Once the main force arrived, they wouldn’t be able to handle Roman Dmitry’s presence.

Ten days.

It was a gamble.

If they could either deal with Roman Dmitry or capture all the southern positions, they could say that they had secured the minimum conditions to proceed with a desperate resistance.

However.

“It will be difficult to get what they want from Cairo with just a desperate resistance. We have already lost nearly a thousand soldiers to Roman Dmitry, and the Cairo Kingdom will have figured out our intentions. In the long term, we will inevitably be at a disadvantage. What are you planning to do then?”

It was the most important issue.

The purpose of the war.

In order to receive compensation, simply holding out wouldn’t provide an answer.

And.

After much deliberation, Edwin Hector found an answer.

“We don’t necessarily have to get paid by Cairo. The moment we completely seize the southern front, I, as the prince of the Hector Kingdom, plan to propose a deal to the Cronos Empire.”

He thought.

The war was not over yet.

At that time.

The Cairo Kingdom was busily preparing for negotiations with the Hector Kingdom.

The person in charge of managing the nation’s treasury.

Count Ayer spoke with a stern face.

“Cairo’s financial situation cannot accommodate all of the Hector Kingdom’s conditions. In the past year, we have invested a significant budget in the western front due to Cronos’ frequent provocations. As a result, we don’t have much financial leeway, and if we grant Hector’s demands, Cairo’s treasury will inevitably be depleted.”

“What about raising taxes further?”

“Impossible. We already raised taxes once half a year ago. Even when we raised taxes for the purpose of national security, the backlash was significant, and if we say we’re going to raise them again in just half a year, a riot might break out.”

It was a desperate report.

Daniel Cairo, the king, sighed at Count Ayer’s firm stance.

“What are we going to do?”

He was at a loss.

As the king, he had a duty to solve the problem, but no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t find an answer.

‘The only way to solve the problem is to use the assets of the nobles. But that method can never be approved by the central government. The nobles of Cairo. They are not people who will dedicate themselves to the country.’

Cairo was a funny country.

It seemed like the royal authority was strong against foreign invasions, but that only applied to the local nobles, and the central government was different.

Marquis Benedict.

Count Denver.

Count Gregory.

Their power was beyond discussion.

Even if the Cairo Kingdom was completely destroyed, they would surely take care of their own interests first.

“There’s no other way.”

In the end.

They had no choice but to accept the negotiations.

Depleting the national treasury was a problem to be solved later.

No matter how difficult the situation was, they couldn’t hand over the southern front to the Hector Kingdom.

The last meeting.

Due to Count Denver’s insistence, they decided to trust Roman Dmitry and wait for 3 days.

But that was it.

Daniel Cairo and the nobles of the central government didn’t expect a miracle.

They were waiting because they had 3 days of leeway, but they didn’t really think Roman Dmitry would accomplish anything.

He rose from his seat.

With the date notified by Hector approaching, the negotiation issue couldn’t be solved by his power alone.

“Contact the nobles of the central government. Tell them that we will hold a meeting regarding the negotiation issue.”

“Understood.”

At that moment.

The door to the conference room burst open.

A knight of the Royal Knights raised his voice with a flushed face.

“Your Majesty King Daniel! A message has arrived that we have defeated the enemy on the southern front!”

Victory report.

At the unexpected news, Daniel Cairo’s eyes widened.

The nobles of the central government were summoned.

Conference room.

The nobles gathered there reacted with disbelief to the news from the royal family.

“Is it really true that Roman Dmitry defeated the Hector Kingdom?”

“I don’t know yet either. The Hector Kingdom mobilized as many as ten thousand troops to attack the southern front. That’s an overwhelming force that the southern front can never handle, but I don’t know how Roman Dmitry defeated the Hector Kingdom. We’ll know for sure once we confirm it. If Roman Dmitry really did report a victory, it’s as good as us finding a way out.”

It was a conversation between Count Gregory and Marquis Benedict.

In fact.

They still couldn’t believe it.

Especially Count Denver, who had said to trust Roman Dmitry, was just bewildered by the situation that had become a reality.

‘Roman Dmitry. Did he really overcome that difficult situation?’

It was amazing.

He knew that Roman was no ordinary person since he defeated Barco with Lawrence, but this achievement was a different matter than before.

Roman Dmitry is not someone to be dismissed as just a 4-star swordsman.

It would be even more shocking to those who knew him as a 3-star swordsman.

If he had the ability to turn around a war that was likely to be lost, he must have been born with considerable talent as a commander as well.

The atmosphere was chaotic.

Finally.