Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 385

“Ian!”

The mages turned around in surprise. Ian’s shoulder was torn, revealing blood, and drops of blood were falling from his sleeve.

After going through a major crisis in the Clifford Kingdom, they had resolved to prevent Ian from shedding blood, but the situation was now the opposite.

As everyone paused in confusion, Ian slightly hid his left arm behind his back and shouted,

“Look ahead! Focus!”

Even as the mages looked at Ian, Idgal arrows poured down relentlessly. Some of the mages’ shields faltered, and soon, some were grazed by arrows, just like Ian.

Ian retracted the magic circle he had been using to attack the necromancers and created a massive shield in the sky.

Zzzing. Zzzing.

Thump! Thump!

The burning golden eyes remained unwavering.

Soon, the shield warmly enveloped the mages. Even if hundreds or thousands of Idgal arrows broke through the shield, the wall that instantly formed could never harm the mages.

A drop of sweat trickled down Ian’s chin. But no one noticed, and neither did Ian. He straightened his subordinates’ minds with a firm voice.

“I have not shed blood, and I will not. So, don’t worry about me and continue what you were doing. If you show your backs, it’s the same as me showing mine.”

Moving with mutual trust was the most important thing. That’s why Ian was asking. To maintain their composure so that he could trust his subordinates and move forward.

“S-Sorry!”

“I will reactivate the shield!”

Zzzing! Zzzing!

The mages, who had been worriedly looking at Ian, were startled and looked ahead. If it hadn’t been for Ian’s shield, their entire bodies would have been pierced by Idgal arrows. They helped maintain the shield in place of Ian and blocked the incoming attacks again.

Ian frowned, trying to ignore the throbbing in his left arm.

There was an unfamiliar magic swirling in the arrows made of Idgal. It must be the mages of Luthweena. If they got closer, more chaos would ensue, and the war would lead to disaster.

“Ian, are you really okay?”

Accorella, who had flown close, asked with her back turned. She was also helping the mages.

Suddenly, Nakina’s incident came to mind. During the previous rebellion, Nakina, who had been hit by an Idgal arrow, had temporarily lost her ability to use magic, hadn’t she?

“It was a graze. My senses are dulled, but I’m fine.”

“Oh, really? Nakina was hit properly, so that’s why. Then, it would be better to finish this quickly, right? Honestly, if you get hurt, Ian, there’s no reason for us to be here, Clifford or not.”

Instead of answering, Ian activated his magic and flew even higher.

「Hoirok」

The flames that extended from his shoulder formed the shape of wings, and then slowly transformed into a human figure, enveloping Ian. The chaotic mix of people and synthetic creatures descended below, and everything came into view.

Thump! Thump!

Following Ian’s gesture, the flame in the shape of a human moved together and punched down at one point.

It was the location of the first necromancer that Hasha had told him. Next was the left point, and then another one at ten o’clock…

Zzzing. Zzzing.

“T-That’s fire! It’s the Fire God!”

“Aaaah! Run! Run away! You’ll be burned in an instant!”

“It’s the one we saw last time!”

The soldiers were in chaos, and the necromancer was also flustered, only looking up at the hand of the Fire God descending upon him. How could they know their location in a forest full of trees?

They moved to use the synthetic creatures as shields to surround themselves, and the general also moved quickly, turning his head left and right.

“They’re targeting the necromancers! Evacuate and protect them!”

“P-Protect them? How?”

“You pathetic fools!”

The general gripped his sword and rushed towards the necromancer, but it was not easy to get through the soldiers. And above all, Ian’s attacks were relentless and decisive.

KWA-A-A-ANG!

Thump!

“Aaaah!”

The Fire God completely crushed the necromancer, and then his entire body was engulfed in flames along with the synthetic creatures. The soldiers threw sand on it, but it was not a fire demon that could be easily extinguished by such things.

One necromancer was burned to death alive, and at the same time, the synthetic creature lost its power and collapsed. A lump of impurity that should have returned to the earth long ago. It lay sprawled, and Tiefe’s tongue hung limp and motionless.

The general turned around, furious. The main force of Burgos was still not moving. The king must be watching.

‘The mage knows the exact location of the necromancers. How?’

Then, a man with blue hair caught his eye. It was Hasha from Astana. He was controlling the synthetic creatures, but his gaze was fixed on Ian.

A feeling of tension ran through the back of his head. The general instinctively drew his sword and ran towards Hasha, and in the meantime, another necromancer was engulfed in flames and died.

Swish!

The left flank was completely destroyed.

As Beric charged from below and Ian eliminated the necromancers one by one from above, the soldiers stopped advancing, unable to move forward or backward. Unlike the Clifford soldiers who were charging like angry bulls.

“Kill the necromancer from Astana!”

“Huh? Ah, ah!”

The subordinates listened to the general’s command and rushed at Hasha together.

Look at him, not even knowing the attack is coming because he’s giving hand signals. That man is a traitor. I will inform the king of this and completely annihilate Astana.

Ian saw the flow and turned his body. The Fire God also turned its head, following him. Just as he was about to strike down again to protect Hasha.

Thump! Thump!

The Fire God’s hand exploded in the air, emitting tremendous heat along with a loud roar. It was like pouring cold water on oil.

The impact broke the ‘Hoirok’. The Fire God ignited itself and disappeared, and the mages were once again confused, looking only ahead.

They wanted to look back at Ian, but hadn’t he said it? That if they didn’t do it properly, it would be like showing their backs. The mages shouted as they blocked the Idgal arrows.

“Ian! What happened?”

“Are you okay? There are still many synthetic creatures left!”

“Damn it! Stop shooting! You bastards!”

Ian turned his head towards the direction of the attack. It was the mages of Luthweena. It was the first time he had seen mages from another country since his regression, and the timing was terrible.

Led by an old woman, they were flying while maintaining a certain distance. Next to the leader was a child. They looked similar to Jin or a little younger.

Ian sighed, running his hand through his hair with his tingling left hand.

‘…How can they bring such a young child to the battlefield?’

Their movements were stable, as if they were trained. The mages of Luthweena were said to live in seclusion among themselves, not in the royal palace, so their teamwork was probably as good as the magic department.

“Are you Ian?”

A blue light flickered in the old woman’s dry hand.

What kind of magic is that? Is it ‘Cold Block’? It was difficult to identify it right away because he had neither been hit directly nor witnessed it being cast.

“That’s right. I am Ian Hiel, the Minister of Magic of Bariel. You seem to be mages of Luthweena. Are you officially participating in the war between Burgos and Clifford? Do you know the meaning and the price it will bring?”

Ian clearly stated his affiliation. If more attacks were made here, it would be considered an attack on Bariel.

But the old woman glared with golden eyes and rushed at Ian. And the mages of Luthweena who were guarding her.

‘It’s Cold Block.’

“Among those gathered here, who doesn’t know the meaning and price of war?”

Cold Block, as the name suggests, was a magic that fired cold magic spheres to destroy the opponent. As Ian deflected it with his magic-sealing stone sword, cold snowflakes fluttered in the air.

The general of Burgos calmly assessed the situation and ordered.

“Stop the Idgal attacks! The mages of Luthweena are mixed in! Stop! Don’t shoot arrows!”

Good. It was a support force that arrived at a very appropriate time. While the Luthweena mages dealt with the Bariel mage, they could face the Clifford army with the synthetic creatures in the lead.

The Idgal arrows that had been pouring down like rain gradually subsided. The Bariel mages realized that Ian was fighting the Luthweena mages.

“Ian!”

“You bastards! Where did you come from!”

Thump! Thump!

The small mage from Luthweena was dealing with those mages at once. The child’s black hair fluttered, and their eyes sparkled brightly.

“Don’t come near my grandmother!”

“Hey, you-!”

“What do we do? It’s a kid?”

“That kid is trying to kill us, you idiot!”

Thump! Thump!

As the magic collided, colorful lights burst in the sky, and on the ground, the bloody battle between the Burgos and Clifford soldiers continued. And once again, a golden arrow aimed at Ian’s heart.

Swish!

Ian felt the arrow barely graze past him and looked towards Eriphony.

She was standing on a hill, gracefully drawing her bow. As if she were on a hunting ground she had always enjoyed.

“Oh, too bad. Next.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Arrows imbued with the mages’ magic were fully prepared. At Eriphony’s gesture, Eldert handed her an arrow, and she closed one eye and aimed at Ian.

“Be careful of the Luthweena mages, Your Majesty.”

“She’s an old woman, so she feels a bit weak. If Ian could hold her down, I could pierce them together.”

Eriphony’s muttering was lost in the war. It was fortunate. Nothing made the soldiers more miserable than the king’s cruel nature.

At Eldert’s gesture, the Luthweena soldiers also joined the ground battle. Clifford continued to die while fighting against the Burgos army, Luthweena, and the synthetic creatures.

Clang! Clang!

“Aaaah!”

“Prince Noah! They’re coming from the side too! At this rate, we’ll be surrounded! Please order a retreat!”

Swish!

Noah, who had beheaded a Burgos soldier, looked at the charging Luthweena army.

The sky was chaotic, making it impossible to tell if it was day or night, and the number of enemies had increased. It was clear that just a while ago, the left flank of Burgos was a mess and seemed beyond recovery.

The appearance of reinforcements, especially mages, gave the feeling that the balance of power had been restored.

“Damn it.”

Thud.

A drop of blood fell on Noah’s cheek as he looked up at Ian. He didn’t know if it had flowed from Ian’s arm, but Noah was somehow filled with an ominous feeling, and it felt like time had stopped.

Did he entrust Clifford’s autonomy too easily to Bariel? Had he relied too much on foreign powers?

He belatedly realized that he could become so easily helpless when Ian and the mages were struggling. Noah gritted his teeth and cut down the soldiers rushing at him, and then he was about to order a retreat.

Thump!

Ian, who had blocked the old woman’s magic, rummaged through his inner pocket with his right hand.

Soon, a very small pill appeared in his hand. His physical condition had almost recovered, but even that was not complete, and his left hand was starting to become numb. He judged that it was necessary to draw strength from the bottom up.

“An amplifier!”

Accorella shouted when she saw it.

“Everyone, take out the amplifier!”

The Bariel mages followed Ian and bit into the pills at the same time, and then their golden eyes became even darker.

Noah, who had noticed that the opponent’s energy flow was strange, urgently gathered his magic and unleashed attacks. The child next to him did the same.

Soon, a waterfall of cold air swept through, and the soldiers had no choice but to stop fighting and lie flat on the ground.

Swish!

“… !”

But the revived Ian’s ‘Hoirok’.

The flame wings lightly brushed off the cold air, and then an even larger Fire God appeared. The extreme heat made it seem like everything in the world would burn.

Ian felt his left hand become lighter and his golden eyes flashed. The glare was like seeing the wrath of a god.

“Everyone knows the meaning and price of war. But to realize it, you can only die. Look closely. This is your choice.”

The advent and punishment of a god.

Everyone who witnessed it was filled with fear.

Ian bit his lip and rushed at the Luthweena mages, and the mages also followed him, shouting.

“Arrows, arrows!”

Eriphony’s expression hardened, and she shouted urgently. The moment she aimed her bow at Ian.

Swish!

Barsabe, stained with blood, jumped up and cut her bowstring. The arrow that had lost its trajectory pierced Barsabe’s side, but her momentum was still there.

Eriphony, startled, swung her bow at her.

“You…”

Bariel and Luthweena.

It was the beginning of a full-scale clash between the two countries.