Emperor Of Steel [EN]: Chapter 50

3. Setting Out

In the heart of the Holy Empire’s Imperial Palace stood a pure white rock. Originally located elsewhere, it was moved after the palace’s construction.

This rock, unremarkable save for its stark white color, was a sacred relic said to be the platform where the first saint of the Elkasel Order preached to the people.

Upon this sacred rock sat a woman of ethereal beauty, her eyes filled with an innocent light. She was none other than Veronica III, the Pope of the Holy Empire.

Gazing blankly at the dark night sky, she murmured to herself in a low voice, “Luke de Rakan…”

The platinum-blonde man she had seen in her dream, seated on the throne of a black castle.

At first, she had thought him a stranger. But upon uttering his name, she realized he was someone she had forgotten.

Who exactly was he? What kind of person was he to her?

The more she pondered, the more familiar he felt, and her heart fluttered with an unknown longing.

“Your Holiness, it is time for your doctrinal studies.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Veronica nodded at the words of the escorting paladin and rose from her seat, making her way towards the Imperial Palace library.

Veronica III studied doctrine three times a day unless a special event intervened. Thanks to Constantine’s persistent guidance over the past two years, she had already mastered the basic doctrines and was now progressing to the intermediate level.

“You have arrived, Your Holiness. Let us study diligently today as well,” a kind-faced middle-aged priest greeted her warmly. He had arrived at the library earlier.

This priest, named Osram, was originally a professor at the Imperial Theological Academy. He had temporarily stepped down from his professorship to serve as the Pope’s personal tutor.

“Today, let us study benevolence and tolerance. Turn to page 173 of the Holy Scripture…”

“Osram.”

“Yes, Your Holiness. Please speak.”

“Osram, you know a great deal, don’t you?”

“Well, I have acquired various miscellaneous knowledge besides theology. Is there something you are curious about?”

At those words, Veronica hesitated for a moment before speaking again, “By any chance, do you know who Luke de Rakan is?”

“Luke de Rakan? Hmm, I think I’ve heard that name somewhere…” After pondering for a moment, Osram snapped his fingers as if something had come to mind.

“Ah, Rakan is the name of the hero who defeated the Demon King Seymon. He was a Sword Emperor, an ultimate knight surpassing even the Sword Sage [a legendary swordsman], and it is said that no one has surpassed him since.”

“Seymon… Rakan…” Names she had heard somewhere before.

But when she heard the name Seymon, her eyes inexplicably stung, and her heart ached. He was a vile being called the Demon King, yet she couldn’t understand why she felt such emotions.

“According to one account, Rakan was a member of the Undying Knights. There are rumors that he was the illegitimate child of a high-ranking priest, which is why he was sent to the war against the Demon King as if he was being driven out. The fact that he did not return home after Seymon’s death and settled in the Kingdom of Livia suggests that there may have been some complicated circumstances.”

“Hmm…”

“Anyway, it is said that his descendants still remain… Ah, I see. That must be the person.”

“That person?” At Veronica’s question, Osram shared a rumor he had heard before.

“Luke de Rakan. He is the one who raised the declining Rakan family into the most powerful force in the southern Baroque Empire. He is also actively involved in mining and trade, making him quite famous among merchants.”

Veronica tilted her head. Why would such a person appear in her dreams? Why did she know his name, and why did she feel longing for him?

“But, from whom did you hear his name?”

“Well… someone told me.” It was difficult for Veronica to explain about the other self within her, so she vaguely glossed over it.

However, Osram did not particularly doubt or find it strange. “Did you hear it from the paladins? Well, he is said to be quite skilled as a Rune Knight [a knight who uses magic runes], so it’s understandable that he would be mentioned. Moreover, he is a descendant of the famous Sword Emperor Rakan.”

Osram said with a pleased smile and continued, “Anyway, I am glad that Your Holiness is listening to the words of so many people. You must listen to the words of more of your subjects and see their lives to become a great ruler…”

“So, it was you. You’re the one who has been filling Her Holiness’s ears with useless nonsense!” Someone interrupted Osram’s words from behind. It was none other than Archbishop Constantine, with a grim expression.

Appearing with a large group of paladins from the Undying Knights, he glared at Osram, who was looking at him with a displeased face, and his thick cheeks trembled. “Arrest that traitor immediately!”

As soon as the order was given, the paladins bound Osram. Startled, Veronica III rushed out and stopped their actions. “Stop! Osram is not a bad person!” At that, the paladins immediately stopped and stepped back.

Seeing that, Constantine frowned in displeasure. It couldn’t be helped. The paladins of the Undying Knights, who guarded the Imperial Palace, were trained to obey the Pope absolutely. They followed Constantine’s orders because he was the regent who acted on behalf of the Pope.

‘Tch, they’re like useless puppets. I’ll have to replace them with my own pawns later,’ he thought inwardly. Constantine approached Veronica, who was standing in front of Osram with her arms spread out.

“Your Holiness, do you remember the incident three days ago when an assassin infiltrated the Imperial Palace?”

“Yes, he was caught trying to attack with a sword.”

The incident had not yet been made public. The priority was to interrogate the assassin and uncover the mastermind. However, a surprising fact was revealed during the investigation.

“The forged Imperial Palace pass that the assassin used belonged to Osram. Furthermore, the poison and dagger he used were smuggled in during the process of bringing books into the library.”

Startled by those words, Veronica turned to look at Osram. “I-Is it true, Osram?”

“It is true, Your Holiness,” Osram confessed readily. However, he revealed another truth. “However, the target of the assassination at that time was not Your Holiness, but this man, Constantine, who was by your side.”

“Hmph! How dare you…!” Whether Constantine trembled or not, Osram poured out everything he wanted to say.

“Constantine! Your sin of going against the will of God and blocking the eyes and ears of Her Holiness, who is His apostle, is not enough even if you die a hundred times! Do not think that your power will last forever! There are many others besides me in this country, in this capital, and in this Imperial Palace who seek your head!”

“Y-You villain!” Constantine, his face flushed red, turned to the paladins who were standing back and yelled, “What are you doing! Drag that man out immediately!”

“B-But…” As the paladins hesitated, Osram stepped forward on his own. Veronica, surprised, tried to stop him, but he shook his head.

“Although it is to eliminate a traitor, I have disturbed the Imperial Palace by breaking the national law. I do not wish to evade responsibility under the pretext of a greater cause.” He spoke as if criticizing Constantine for his abuse of power under the guise of a greater cause, and he was bound with dignity.

Constantine, far from being relieved by that sight, became even more enraged and shouted at the paladins who were dragging Osram away, “Drag him out and behead him immediately!”

“No! Don’t kill him!” When Veronica immediately opposed, Constantine glared and raised his voice. “Your Holiness! This matter is for me, the regent, to handle…”

“I said, don’t kill him!” Constantine flinched involuntarily. The Pope, who had just silenced him with a stern rebuke, showed none of the immature and innocent appearance he had seen until now.

Her clear and intense gaze and her dignified demeanor, like that of a giant, were full of the majesty befitting a ruler of a nation. How could she suddenly show such a side?

“T-This, damn it…” Constantine’s expression hardened. There was no benefit for him in arguing with the Pope here. The moment a rumor spread that the relationship between the Pope and himself had soured, the hyenas who were eyeing the position of regent would bare their teeth and pounce.

“A-Alright, I understand. I will not kill him and will impose a just punishment.”

“I will be watching.” With those last words, the storm that had swept through the Imperial Palace library subsided.

Veronica III, left alone, let out a big sigh of relief and slumped into her seat. “Until now, I never even thought of opposing my grandfather, no, the regent…” Wouldn’t Constantine be very angry later?

Veronica was restless, fearing that something might go wrong. But on the other hand, she also felt relieved.

– You did well. You did what you had to do. The voice she had heard before echoed in her head. At those words, Veronica was able to feel a little relieved. And without realizing it, a small confidence bloomed in her heart.

Early morning. The lodgings near the Imperial City gate were bustling. The mercenary group that had been staying there was moving busily, as they were joining the subjugation army starting today.

The guide from the Mercenary Guild had already arrived and was waiting. “Yawn. Is everyone here?” At Philip’s question, who had come out rubbing his eyes, the Rakan Knights answered loudly.

Perhaps because they were about to go into battle, everyone looked very tense. However, it was not excessive, and it was good to maintain a proper level of tension on the battlefield, so Philip did not particularly point it out.

“We will soon be going to the battlefield. I know your skills well, but if you want to return home alive, never act recklessly, trust your comrades beside you, and absolutely obey orders. Do you understand?”

“We will keep that in mind!” Shortly after, Luke, equipped and dressed, came out and led them. After exiting the city through the east gate, Luke’s group stopped in the wasteland east of Bless.

There, a large army of over 100,000 had already gathered. They were the central army of the Holy Arternia Empire, the territorial armies that had come up from the provinces, and mercenaries hired by Bless and the mercenary guilds of each region, like Luke.

The tents they had set up stretched beyond the horizon, and the Rakan Knights could not help but be amazed by the magnificent sight. “Wow, how much is all of this worth!” “It looks like there are well over a hundred thousand, doesn’t it?” “There must be hundreds of Gigants [large war machines] alone.”

Although the Rakan March had developed and formed a considerable military force, not a single knight had ever seen an army of over 100,000. It was the same for Luke. Even in the numerous wars he had fought during his two years of military service, there had never been a time when a large army of over 100,000 was mobilized on both sides.

“Is this what an empire is like?” There were only two countries in the entire Rodisia continent that could mobilize such a military force in a civil war, not a full-scale war with a neighboring country. They were the Baroque Empire and the Holy Arternia Empire.

One of them was the enemy that Luke had to defeat. ‘The road ahead is long. If the Baroque Imperial Family can also mobilize this kind of force…’ Luke was inwardly making a disgusted expression when the guide, feeling proud, joined in the knights’ conversation.

“Hehehe, you shouldn’t be surprised by this much. I heard that if you include the troops currently rushing to the capital, there will be 150,000.”

“What? 150,000?” “Huh! They’re really determined to crush the rebels!” The knights clicked their tongues and followed the guide. It was breakfast time, and white smoke was rising from various places. Soldiers were dipping hard rye bread into hot soup, and their affiliations could be easily identified by their uniforms.

White tunics with a cross emblem embroidered on their chain mail. These were the central army of the Holy Arternia Empire. Soldiers wearing tunics of different colors and emblems, though their basic uniforms were the same, were the territorial armies that had come up from the provinces.

“Hmm, the uniforms of the Holy Empire’s army haven’t changed much from 500 years ago. Are they emphasizing tradition?” Unlike these regular armies, there were hardly any mercenaries wearing tunics. Most of them were wearing leather armor with iron plates and studs, or thick coats with only breastplates. Wealthy large mercenary groups were armed with plate armor.

Anyway, the mercenaries were wearing various styles of armor and clothing, making it easy to tell that they were mercenaries at a glance. “Huh? Are those priests?” “They look too burly to be priests.” The knights looked puzzled at the sturdy men wearing brown priestly robes mixed among the soldiers.

They had crudely made war hammers and maces hanging from their waists. “Ah! Those are the Monks, the pride of our Holy Arternia Empire.” The guide, having read the knights’ questions, immediately explained.

“Monks?” “Yes, some of the monks who train in the temples learn martial arts and become combat priests.” The true power of the monks was not their physical strength. When they recited sacred prayers, a green barrier formed around them, and it was said that the strength and stamina of the monks, as well as the soldiers nearby, were enhanced to an astonishing degree.

“Moreover, their physical recovery ability also increases, so minor injuries heal on their own.” “Tch, those damn guys gave me a hard time in the past.” Listening to the guide’s words, Luke inwardly gritted his teeth.

In the past, during the time of the Demon King Seymon, the army of the Holy Empire was the most difficult to deal with compared to the armies of other kingdoms. It was easy to avoid the priests, whose physical abilities were inferior to their powerful divine power, but the energetic (?) monks chased him to the end. Moreover, these ignorant fellows had no fear.

They were so fearless that they would charge at a giant battle golem with hammers and clubs, rather than hesitate.

‘That monk is unarmed.’

As Philip pointed to a monk, the guide spoke, as if anticipating the question.

‘He probably went to preach in the Southern Continent and learned martial arts or fighting techniques there. In the Song Empire, even nobles who aren’t soldiers are not allowed to carry weapons, so martial arts and fighting techniques are said to have developed significantly.’

‘Still, going to the battlefield unarmed is a bit…’

After a while, Luke’s group, having passed through the soldiers, arrived at the 4th Army’s encampment.

There, Luke met Aldorf again.

Aldorf assigned them a place to set up their tents and then took Luke aside.

‘By any chance, do you have a Gigant [a large, humanoid war machine]?’

‘Gigant?’

‘Count Marques said he would pay more to mercenary groups that have Gigants. If you have one, bring it right away.’

Aldorf assumed that Luke’s group was a knight order disguised as mercenaries.

Although they weren’t affiliated with his mercenary guild, he gave them this information because he would earn more brokerage fees based on how much Luke’s group earned.

‘Actually, I have five Gigants. I’ll have them brought over.’

Luke already had several Gigants, including Kratos, in his subspace bracelet [a magical storage device].

He was planning to use them on the battlefield while assessing the situation, but Count Marques had provided an opportunity.

‘But what about supplies and repairs? Do we have to handle that here?’

‘No, unlike the initial plan, His Excellency the Count has promised to provide parts and Iron Mages [mages specializing in metalworking and golem maintenance]. They will also provide military rations and weapons if requested.’

‘Really?’

‘Yes. Count Marques is a cousin of Regent Archbishop Constantine and the richest man in this country. It seems he’s planning to spend a lot of money this time.’

‘No wonder the 4th Army mercenaries are so excited.’

Anyway, it was a good deal since there was nothing to lose.

Luke signaled to Philip, who was listening to the conversation nearby. Philip, understanding his thoughts, left with a few knights.

‘I’ll let you know the details of the mission and unit assignments after lunch.’

As Aldorf was about to leave after finishing his business, Luke grabbed his arm and asked.

‘Will His Holiness the Pope be present at the send-off ceremony?’

‘Why do you ask?’

‘I heard he performed a miracle in Bless Central Square. I was wondering if he might be there. If I receive His Holiness’s blessing, maybe the arrows aimed at me will fly somewhere else.’

Even mercenaries who are used to war die if they are hit by a stray arrow or sword. That’s why there isn’t a mercenary who doesn’t carry one or two amulets in their pocket.

‘Unfortunately, it seems he won’t be moving. According to Count Marques, His Holiness the Pope is saddened by the fact that the people of the same empire are fighting each other and has been fasting. Instead, the regent, Archbishop Constantine, will lead the send-off mass.’

Luke looked inwardly disappointed.

The reason he participated in the civil war, which was not originally in his plan, was because he might be able to see the face of the new Pope at the send-off ceremony.

However, it was too early to be completely disappointed.

If he made a contribution in this civil war, he would be able to see him.

‘Wait, I will definitely go to see you!’

Luke, recalling Reina’s face, clenched his fists and swore in his heart.

Three days later, when all the troops of the subjugation army had gathered, a grand send-off ceremony was held in the wasteland outside the East Gate.

Archbishop Constantine, along with high-ranking priests and nobles of the empire, attended the send-off mass, and the people of the capital gathered in droves.

However, the faces of the people watching the mass were full of disappointment. Like Luke, they also wanted to see the Pope’s face and witness a miracle.

Unaware of the people’s feelings, Archbishop Constantine, after finishing the send-off mass, vehemently criticized the rebel forces.

‘Those ignorant and power-hungry people do not recognize the apostle of the main god and are inciting the innocent people. How can we not punish them!’

‘Punish the infidels!’

‘Punish them! Punish them!’

Perhaps because they had been told in advance, the central army at the front raised their voices in response to Constantine’s speech.

Then, the territorial armies and mercenaries behind them also chanted along.

As the atmosphere heated up, Constantine, along with other high-ranking priests, used divine power to give a small blessing to the soldiers.

The soldiers and mercenaries who received the blessing cheered even louder, but Luke just wore a nonchalant expression.

‘How boring. I wish it would end soon…’

Contrary to Luke’s wishes, the send-off ceremony continued for more than three hours.

The send-off ceremony ended only after Luke was completely exhausted. And the total of 150,000 troops, consisting of four armies, began to march towards the Conrad region.

Elbera is the third-largest city in the Holy Arternia Empire and the capital of the Conrad region.

This city, where the lord’s castle of the Perriad Duchy is located, has now become the base of the rebel forces calling themselves the ‘Kingdom of Conrad’.

The lord’s castle, which the rebels call the royal palace, was located on a hill overlooking the city.

In the archery range in the backyard of this lord’s castle, a middle-aged man with graying hair was drawing a bow.

He was Duke Perriad, the leader of the rebels and the self-proclaimed king of the Kingdom of Conrad.

Duke Perriad, who was a great lord who had conquered the area and also held the position of archbishop, had a hobby of archery.

Thud, thud, thud!

As the Duke pulled the bow, the horsehair bowstring stretched, and the bow began to bend.

When the bow was completely bent into a crescent shape, Duke Perriad released his hand.

Whoosh! Thud!

The arrow, which had been on the string, flew like a flash towards the target and stuck into the red dot in the center.

It was a bullseye.

However, Duke Perriad’s expression was not bright.

What he was aiming for was an apple placed in the very center of the target. Considering that the target was 200 steps away, it was not an easy target to aim at, but he had often hit it in the past.

But today, he had not hit a single one yet.

‘Hmm, the arrows are dancing on their own.’

The Duke, frowning, reached out to the side, and a guard next to him quickly offered a new arrow. But this time too, he failed to hit the apple.

‘It’s no good today. The wind is not good.’

Annoyed, Perriad threw the bow down, and the guard hurriedly caught it.

He blamed the wind, but in reality, the Duke’s mind was troubled, so the arrows did not fly properly.

There was a reason why Perriad was troubled.

It was good that he had declared independence from the Holy Empire and defeated the first subjugation army.

But the problem was after that.

Although it was said to be rotten, the power of the Holy Empire, which had lasted for over a thousand years, was immense.

According to reconnaissance, the size and quality of the second subjugation army were incomparable to the first. Moreover, the commanders were said to be quite capable.

‘The number of Gigants to be deployed on the front lines is at least three times more…’

Because of this, some of the lords under the Duke were frightened or were watching the situation.

This could be seen in their less active behavior compared to the early days of the uprising.

‘I need to strengthen our forces to reassure those idiots, but the guys who promised to support us are nowhere to be seen…’

Perriad was grumbling as he was heading to his office.

At that moment, a young man wearing splendid golden armor ran from the other side and delivered a message to him.

‘Father, they say they will arrive soon.’

‘Oh, is that so?’

The face of Duke Perriad, which had been frowning, brightened up. The guys who had been nowhere to be seen had finally appeared.

‘When do they say they will arrive?’

‘They said by this afternoon at the latest.’

As his son said, that afternoon, a group of ships appeared on the Rio River that flowed through Elbera.

All the ships were paddle steamers equipped with magic steam engines, and flags with a dragon soaring were fluttering on the masts.

Duke Perriad, who had come out to the port to wait in advance, smiled when he saw the flag.

Flying Dragon.

It was the best war merchant association on the continent that sold various weapons and military supplies, including Gigants and cannons.

In addition, they had their own mercenary unit, and their power was evaluated to be equal to or greater than the knight orders of small and medium-sized countries.

The reason why they could have such a scale and power was because they had a huge force behind them.

That force was the Baroque Empire’s imperial family.

It was a fact that people who knew about the political world of the continent knew.

The Baroque imperial family had been raising secret funds through Flying Dragon and intervening in small and large disputes on the continent.

The reason why it had not been officially revealed was that other countries were also operating similar organizations, and what they were doing was similar.

Moreover, the Baroque Empire also knew the reality of other kingdoms, so there was nothing to gain by making it public.

Anyway, Flying Dragon, which had been inactive for the past few years due to the internal situation of the empire, had reappeared this time.

‘And on my side!’

While Duke Perriad was smirking, the Flying Dragon fleet began to enter the port.

From the largest ship, a young man with beady eyes, followed by a middle-aged giant with a jagged beard like a mountain bandit and a black-haired girl with a halberd, led mercenaries wearing gray armor and stepped onto the pier.

‘Welcome, Lazuli.’

At Duke Perriad’s greeting, the young man with beady eyes, called Lazuli, bowed politely.

‘Have you been well, Your Excellency the Duke? No, I should call you His Majesty the King now.’

‘Hahaha, do you know how long I’ve been waiting?’

‘I apologize for causing you concern. It took longer than expected to reorganize the mercenary unit.’

‘Reorganize… Can I assume that you put a lot of effort into it?’

‘Of course, Your Majesty.’

Lazuli, slightly raising his eyes, gave a confident smile.

Lazuli de Voltaire.

He was the eldest son of Count Voltaire, Rudolf’s right-hand man, and was not only the head of the Flying Dragon merchant association but also a secret agent of the Baroque Empire’s intelligence agency.

Lazuli was not good at physical work, but instead, he had a broad perspective and was good at speaking.

It was he who instigated Duke Perriad to revolt.

In other words, the rebellion in the Conrad region this time was virtually Lazuli’s work.

‘This is the new commander of our mercenary unit.’

‘I’m Sancho.’

At Lazuli’s introduction, the giant with a mountain bandit-like appearance reached out his hand with a blunt face.

The guards were furious at his rude behavior and tried to step forward, but Perriad stopped them.

‘If he’s Count Ferrero, the deputy commander of the Baroque Empire’s Imperial Guard, I can tolerate his rudeness.’

Although it was not comparable to the Empire’s intelligence agency, Perriad also had people who acted as his eyes and ears.

So he was able to recognize Count Ferrero at a glance.

However, he knew nothing about the small black-haired girl next to Ferrero.

‘But who is this young lady…’

‘Heeheehee, hello. I’m Shirley. I’m a lovely sixteen-year-old girl!’

Shirley, who introduced herself, smiled brightly and made a V sign with her fingers.

‘What is this tomboy?’

‘Sixteen? I thought she was about twelve…’

‘Is she really a mercenary?’

While Duke Perriad’s group watched with suspicious eyes, Lazuli formally introduced Shirley.

‘Ahem, this is Miss Shirley, the assault commander of our mercenary unit.’

‘Assault commander?’

‘Yes, she’s quite strong, contrary to her appearance.’

‘Is that so?’

However, Duke Perriad, knowing that Lazuli was not the type to do anything absurd, did not say anything, and the others also remained silent.

But there was one person who spoke up.

‘Come on, you have to say something that makes sense.’

It was Aslan, Duke Perriad’s son.

In fact, he was just muttering because he didn’t want to say it out loud, but because the surroundings were quiet, Shirley heard it.

Shirley, tilting her head, approached Aslan and spoke to him.

‘Why do you think it doesn’t make sense?’

‘That’s because…’

‘Here, take this.’

Suddenly, Shirley handed the halberd she was holding to Aslan.

Aslan, tilting his head and receiving the spear, was startled and fell backward.

‘Oh, Prince!’

‘What, what is this spear? It’s so unbelievably heavy!!’

It felt as if he had been crushed by a Gigant’s foot.

Aslan, who was a mid-level expert knight and had a high level of pride in his skills, could not help but be flustered.

Even when he strengthened his muscles with aura [a magical energy], and the surrounding knights rushed in, the halberd did not even budge.

‘It’s made of an alloy of Adamant [an extremely hard metal] and Gigantium [a metal used in Gigant construction]. It’s good at splitting and piercing, but it’s incredibly heavy.’

Shirley said that and picked up the halberd that was pressing down on Aslan. Then, she twirled it over her head as if she were handling a toothpick.

At that sight, Aslan’s face turned pale.

‘Good heavens!’

Adamant and Gigantium were metals known for being sturdy but heavy.

They were mainly used to make the frames and armor of Gigants, but to think that someone would make a weapon out of an alloy and carry it around!

And that someone was a sixteen-year-old girl who looked about twelve years old!

‘Although she is still young, Miss Shirley’s skills are outstanding. Her Gigant piloting skills are also quite high.’

At Lazuli’s explanation, Duke Perriad’s group just nodded silently.

Lazuli, slightly curling his lips at their reaction, pointed to the transport ships entering the port.

‘I think you’ll be more interested in the things over there. They are valuable cargo to protect the Kingdom of Conrad.’

With that, Lazuli looked at Duke Perriad, who was sparkling with curiosity, and continued.

‘Would you like to see it for yourself?’