Became The Son Of The Final Boss [EN]: Chapter 228

228.

Kwaaaang-!

Ifrit’s body shook violently from Karen’s direct hit with her Aura Blade.

The shock Ifrit received was directly transmitted to me.

I barely managed to suppress a groan.

My screaming would have a significant negative impact on the morale of the surrounding soldiers.

Aura Blades poured out of Karen’s sword without pause.

‘Even if a Supreme-grade Spirit takes a hit, it doesn’t affect the Spirit Master much. The fact that I’m feeling this much strain means Karen’s Aura Blade is exceptionally powerful compared to other Sword Masters.’

I bit my lip.

Unlike me, who is using spirits and skills from atop the castle walls, Karen is swinging her sword from below.

Even though I’m clearly in a more advantageous position, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was being pushed back.

“Gale! Olivia!”

At my call, the two leaped down from the castle walls.

Abandoning the advantageous position on the walls to go into a place swarming with enemies was an extremely dangerous act.

Of course, that was for ordinary people.

The two Sword Masters unleashed their auras as they descended.

Swish-! Swish-!

The soldiers fell powerlessly to the aura.

The sight of blood splattering, flesh being crushed, and bones breaking was something I never got used to.

I suppressed my nausea and used Ifrit and Sylphid to keep Karen in check.

Gale and Olivia also began launching Aura Blades from beside Karen.

‘There’s no such thing as cowardice in war.’

This wasn’t a one-on-one duel, and there was no reason to fight while adhering to rules.

If I was being pushed back by Karen, I could just receive help from others.

With Gale and Olivia joining the attack, Karen’s swordsmanship gradually became more erratic.

With some breathing room, I redirected Noah and Ifrit to use their skills against the Royal Allied Forces.

At that moment, Karen’s movements changed.

I felt a sense of unease.

“Gale, Olivia!”

Hearing my voice, the two immediately retreated.

Karen swung his sword mightily, and a red Aura Blade covered the sky.

‘This is insane!’

Aura Blades were a symbol of Sword Masters, but there was a limit to the number of Aura Blades that could be created at once.

Even for a Sword Master, mana wasn’t infinite, and above all, creating multiple Aura Blades simultaneously inevitably came with physical strain.

‘An Aura Blade is the embodiment of intangible mana through a sword. So, creating multiple ones at the same time is impossible. The reason multiple Sword Masters appear to create multiple Aura Blades simultaneously is not because they are emitting them at the same time, but because the intervals are extremely short, creating an illusion that they are being emitted simultaneously.’

But there was someone who broke that mold for the first time: Karen.

The protagonist I wrote.

A person whose talent for swordsmanship already far surpassed human limits. A monster who grew stronger with every battle.

Kwaaaang-! Bang-! Bang-!

The Aura Blades that Karen unleashed simultaneously swept away not only the castle walls but also the soldiers on them.

Of course, many Aura Blades rained down on me as well.

I immediately countered with Sylphid.

Bang-!

Gale and Olivia’s expressions turned serious as they realized the significance of the technique Karen had just displayed.

‘It’s become impossible to kill Karen. He’s already surpassed the limits of a Sword Master.’

He hadn’t completely mastered that realm yet.

‘Similar to Lilian’s state.’

Lilian had definitely surpassed the 8th Circle [of magic], but she hadn’t fully reached the 9th Circle. That was her current state.

Like Lilian, Karen had definitely surpassed the Sword Master level, but he hadn’t reached the realm called Grand Sword Master.

‘That’s why I’m able to hold out this much.’

I changed my strategy.

Even if I couldn’t kill Karen, there was a way to stop the enemy.

“Gale, Olivia, keep Karen in check. It’s dangerous to confront him head-on, so just keep him in check.”

The two nodded.

I had Sylphid attack Karen alone, then immediately sent the spirits to the Royal Allied Forces’ advancing lines.

The massive water storm created by Undine struck the enemies.

At the same time, hundreds of soldiers disappeared into the fissures created by Noah.

Kwaaaang-! Bang-!

I was feeling firsthand how effective a Spirit Master was in war.

I was wiping out soldiers so easily that I didn’t even feel like I was killing people.

Karen leaped towards me, who was using skills with an expressionless face.

Like a spring, Karen suddenly bounced up, and no one could stop him.

“Indeed, as befits a spawn of evil, you kill soldiers without a moment’s hesitation.”

“Are you killing my soldiers while feeling guilty?”

This was the first conversation I had with Karen.

I didn’t care much about how he misunderstood me.

I was just doing my job, and the man pointing his sword at me wasn’t the protagonist in my novel.

My novel was just a novel, and this place, where blood splattered and flesh tore, was a real battlefield.

Gooooooo-!

Sylphid aimed for Karen’s back.

Karen lightly turned his body and swung his sword.

Bang-!

Sylphid’s body shook.

I trembled at Karen’s aura, which instantly extinguished the wind blade.

‘The difference is on another level.’

I revised my assessment of Karen.

He was currently much stronger than me.

Gale and Olivia stepped forward again.

And Duke James was already running from afar.

I immediately used the flow of wind and earth to descend from the castle walls.

Karen chased after me, but he was held back by the three Sword Masters.

I poured all my mana into the spirits.

The only way to make Karen retreat now was to annihilate the soldiers following him.

Kwaaaaaang-!

Along with the earth-shattering shockwave, the sound of trumpets signaling a retreat echoed throughout the battlefield.

* * *

The Royal Alliance was determined to capture Grenian and launched attacks several times.

Each attack resulted in the sacrifice of at least ten thousand soldiers, but they never gave up.

“It feels like there are more soldiers being replenished than killed.”

I said, catching my breath on the castle walls.

Duke James also nodded, wiping the blood from his sword.

“This is the most brutal war I’ve ever experienced.”

Gale agreed with Duke James.

“The battle has been going on for four days already.”

I looked at the enemy’s camp far from the castle walls.

My heart grew heavy at the sight of countless soldiers.

“Lilian and Ken?”

“They haven’t returned yet.”

Ken had secretly gone outside the castle with Lilian.

To carry out the plan he had established, to set up traps.

Thinking about the two of them, I’d rather the enemies continue their relentless offensive.

They wouldn’t be able to think about the rear.

“Your Highness! Military Advisor Ken has returned!”

As soon as the words were spoken, a soldier who had climbed onto the castle walls reported, and I hurriedly went down.

Hamilton, who was in charge of guiding them, and Lilian and Ken bowed their heads to me.

“You’ve returned safely!”

I welcomed the three with all my heart.

Ken smiled and replied.

“We’ve finished setting up the magic traps.”

Ken continued.

“I think it’s time to start attacking the enemy’s supply lines.”

I nodded.

“Good. Is it time for a counterattack?”

“Yes.”

Soon, I took the three, Gale, Olivia, and Duke James, to the office inside the castle.

As soon as we arrived at the office, Ken went to the map and drew a route.

“I not only set up magic traps but also scouted the enemy’s supply lines. This is currently the Royal Alliance’s supply line.”

Ken’s expression turned slightly serious.

“Their supply is smoother than I expected. I thought they would be running out of food by now, but when I looked at the supply line, they were carrying a tremendous amount of food down to Grenian.”

Ken marked a point on one of the routes.

“Let’s attack this place. If we start a full-scale guerrilla war in the enemy’s rear, they will have no choice but to put more effort into the supply lines.”

Duke James asked Ken.

“Do we have enough leeway to wage a guerrilla war right now? If we wage a guerrilla war, one of us—me, Gale, or Olivia—must lead the unit. Then the balance of power will be broken, and we may fail to defend Grenian.”

Karen could only be stopped by combining the power of two Sword Masters and me.

Rumors about Karen were spreading not only among the Royal Alliance but also among our soldiers and even the Empire.

The first in human history to surpass the realm of Sword Master!

Needless to say, the morale of the Royal Alliance soldiers had risen.

Since Father’s appearance, the position of the continent’s strongest had always been Father, but recently, with Karen’s rapid rise, there were even those who compared Father and Karen.

That’s how outstanding Karen’s performance on the battlefield was.

Our two Sword Masters had to stop only Karen.

If I didn’t attach two or more Supreme-grade Spirits to Karen, even two Sword Masters would likely be defeated by Karen.

That’s how shocking Karen’s achievement was.

“I am well aware of Karen’s strength. And I have someone in mind to command the guerrilla unit.”

I hadn’t heard anything from Ken, so I immediately asked.

“Who are you going to entrust it to?”

“I’m thinking of entrusting it to Duke Beregon.”

The office was momentarily filled with silence.

Everyone knew about Ted’s death.

But Duke Beregon?

He would have gone down to the South, and even if he hadn’t, wouldn’t he be in a mental state that made it difficult for him to participate in the war against the Royal Alliance right now?

No matter how much he bowed his head to me, it seemed difficult for him to forget Ted’s death and become my subordinate to fight the war.

“I know what you’re worried about, Your Highness.”

Hamilton opened his mouth.

“When Your Highness entrusted me with the intelligence organization, I dispatched members throughout the continent, and some of them were monitoring the southern barbarians.”

I was surprised and widened my eyes.

“You dispatched members to the South?”

“Yes.”

I couldn’t help but admire Hamilton’s skills.

“Amazing. In such a short time, you’ve secured such a wide range of activities.”

“I thought it would be helpful to Your Highness’s position to not only monitor Your Highness’s political enemies within the Empire but also external enemies.”
Hamilton got to the point.

“Recently, as the barbarians started a war, some members returned to the capital, and one of the news they brought was that Prince Ted was alive.”

Duke James jumped up.

“The Second Prince is alive?”

“Yes. The problem is… His Highness Ted has become a black magician.”

Once again, silence fell in the office.

No one could easily open their mouth.

I thought, ‘Could it be?’ but I asked to be sure.

“Was Ted brainwashed by the enemies?”

“It seems so.”

I muttered to myself.

“The southern barbarians are hastening their own destruction. If they had executed him, at least some of them could have survived.”

I could almost see Father’s anger.