My Lord Who Is Being Prudent! [EN]: Chapter 279

279. The True Continent’s No. 1 Swordsman (1)

The encroaching darkness swallowed the madness.

Durak’s eyes widened, popping open in disbelief.

“······!!”

Astonishment finally overcame Durak’s face.

This is impossible…

Durak mustered his strength once more and unleashed it.

Kwaaa─! The exploding madness drew a long, inky line, consuming the space.

But it was being swallowed.

No resistance, no rebellion of any kind mattered.

Helplessly, powerlessly.

It was merely being swallowed by that dreadful darkness.

“······!!!”

Shock beyond astonishment descended.

In the midst of it, a man took a step towards Durak.

The man appeared younger than Durak.

And he resembled Durak.

But he was a man with a completely different aura.

Sian was stepping towards Durak.

Durak couldn’t move rashly. No, he couldn’t move at all.

The way Sian was slowly walking now…

It’s not that there were no openings. There were gaps everywhere, enough to exploit right now.

But he couldn’t do it.

It was strange. He didn’t know why.

He couldn’t… he felt like he couldn’t.

He didn’t feel confident that he could cut down Sian.

Durak’s hand, gripping the sword, trembled slightly.

He was feeling fear…

And that wasn’t just Durak’s fear.

Another power inherent within Durak.

The absolute power that had made the whole world tremble in fear.

That power was feeling fear towards the being that was Sian.

“······!!!”

Durak’s astonishment only grew more intense.

His senses swam, and a strange sensation washed over him.

In the midst of it, Sian took another step.

It felt like something out of a dream.

The way Sian was slowly walking…

The appearance he showed was clearly that of a human.

But Durak felt as if he was facing a black lion.

The black lion was quietly silent.

It didn’t even reveal hostility or threat.

But Durak was feeling an indescribable sense of foreboding from that appearance.

A fierce roar felt in the silence.

A savagery that seemed to devour everything in this world.

Durak gripped his sword tightly.

He unleashed his energy, shaking off the encroaching fear.

It was hard to believe, but it was a clear fact.

He had been momentarily overwhelmed by Sian.

But that didn’t mean it was a sign of defeat.

He would never be defeated.

Durak had met countless strong individuals to reach this place.

He reached this place by overcoming all those strong individuals.

Thus, the name he was called: the Continent’s No. 1 Swordsman.

There was no one stronger than him on this continent.

Swaeeek─!

Durak’s sword was swung.

A slash that tore apart the space in all directions.

Kwaaaaaaaang!!!

A chilling roar shook the vision ahead.

#

The sudden clash between Sian and Durak.

It became the fuse that ignited the war.

“All troops!! Prepare for battle!!”

Aaron, the commander of the White Wolf Knights, shouted loudly.

He infused his voice with an excessive amount of mana, blasting the sound into the ears of nearly 300,000 troops.

Durak, the commander-in-chief of Elan Dur, didn’t have the capacity to command the soldiers.

So Aaron quickly made a decision and took over the command himself.

And usually, the victory or defeat of a war is largely determined by two things.

Either the main strongholds of each camp are captured.

Or the commanders-in-chief of each camp are defeated.

However, capturing the main strongholds was quite difficult.

The iron fortress that was Ruben’s barrier.

It was difficult to break through that barrier, which even neutralized magical siege weapons.

So now, this battle…

Kwaaaaaang!

Durak and Sian. Sian and Durak.

This battle where the commanders-in-chief of each camp faced off.

The course of this war would change depending on the outcome of this battle.

“All troops!! Charge towards Ruben!!”

With Aaron’s great cry.

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah─!!

A huge shout shook the heavens and the earth.

The shouts of hundreds of thousands of people became a weapon in themselves.

“Show them who Elan Dur is!”

“Trample the trash of Ruben!!”

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah─!!

With the encouragement of numerous vassals, the shouts only grew louder.

Hundreds of thousands of people advanced towards Ruben.

The footsteps they took greatly shook the ground.

Aaron clenched his sword tightly.

He would surround Ruben and Sian as they were.

No matter how skilled a knight Sian was, there were limits.

He couldn’t be free from the pressure of hundreds of thousands of people.

If they just captured Sian. If they just captured Ruben’s commander-in-chief.

This war would end easily.

“The 1st and 2nd Legions will surround Ruben! Everyone else, protect the Lord!”

Aaron directed the battle situation with quick judgment.

But it wasn’t just Elan Dur who could make judgments.

“All troops! Prepare for battle!! Protect the Lord!”

A great shout was heard from inside Ruben.

At the same time, the gates of Ruben burst open, and thousands of soldiers poured out.

“Don’t let them get close to the Lord!”

At the same time, thousands of troops became a single wall.

They were rushing forward as if to push back the onrushing Elan Dur troops.

As a result, they couldn’t approach Durak and Sian.

To approach, they had to break through Ruben’s soldiers.

Aaron’s strategy and judgment had been read.

“Who the hell?”

Sian, Ruben’s commander-in-chief, was fighting Durak.

That meant that this judgment was made by someone other than Sian.

It meant that there was a strategist of considerable skill on Ruben’s side as well.

However.

“How foolish.”

It was a very foolish judgment.

It was good to grasp the intention, but it was too simplistic.

Truly foolish. He could say that with certainty.

“What can you do with just that many troops.”

The difference in power was too extreme.

The troops that poured out of Ruben numbered approximately 2,000 to 3,000.

On the other hand, Elan Dur had as many as 270,000.

A difference of 100 times the strength.

This was not something to be overcome with compatibility or anything else.

The near-impossible feat of one man being worth a hundred had to become a reality to be able to confront them.

But who were Elan Dur’s soldiers?

They were the two pillars that supported the empire.

They were the best elite soldiers on the continent, not just any riffraff.

One man being worth a hundred was something that Elan Dur would be doing.

That’s why the troops that rushed out of the castle gates now…

It would have been a commendable strategy if they had equal strength.

He didn’t know who it was, but they had considerable ability to accurately read the flow of the battlefield.

But this time, it was foolish.

They should never have come out.

The Ruben’s barrier that even magical siege weapons couldn’t penetrate.

They should have held out to the end with that iron fortress.

Of course, the mages were on the barrier.

They were casting spells from behind the barrier.

It was the soldiers and knights who rushed out of the castle gates.

But that didn’t change much.

Perhaps the moment Sian came out of Ruben.

No, the moment Durak threatened Ruben’s barrier.

That was the checkmate that forced Sian to come out of Ruben.

That was the war that had already been decided.

“White Wolf Knights, follow me!”

Aaron summoned all the White Wolf Knights.

The barrier created by the troops that poured out of Ruben.

It was a small number, but it was still necessary to break through it.

“Everyone, in a wedge formation!! I will be the spear that pierces the enemy lines!”

They would break through a single point and collapse the enemy lines.

The remaining troops would then stir up the breached enemy lines.

And the first point to pierce the enemy lines…

The formation of the vanguard was very important in piercing the enemy lines.

If the first point to be pierced was blocked, the formations behind would collapse.

But Aaron was the commander of the White Wolf Knights and a mid-level master knight.

“Charge!!”

There were not many beings on the continent who could withstand Aaron’s power.

Kwaaaaaaa─!!

The White Wolf Knights, led by Aaron, shot out with fierce momentum.

Maintaining a V-shaped formation like a wedge, they rushed in like a spear piercing the enemy lines.

And the moment Aaron’s sword was about to pierce Ruben’s skin.

Kwaaaang─!

A roar erupted.

Aaron was greatly pushed back as his vision was shaken by the impact.

That meant one thing.

“Cough… !”

He couldn’t break through.

As a result, the White Wolf Knights who followed behind collapsed.

The Empire’s No. 1 Knights, the White Wolf Knights.

They weren’t completely swept away, befitting their reputation.

“Cough… !”

“Ugh!”

But they suffered considerable damage.

Aaron’s eyes were momentarily filled with embarrassment.

Who the hell…? Who blocked them?

He regained his senses and corrected his vision.

And what he saw was a man.

A solid impression. An atmosphere like a veteran knight who had rolled around countless battlefields.

“You are…”

A face he remembered.

A man he had even crossed swords with directly in the Beastmen Kingdom last time.

“…Lucas, was it?”

Lucas, the captain of Ruben’s guard.

“It is an honor that the commander of the White Wolf Knights remembers my name.”

Lucas bowed his head lightly.

Aaron stared at Lucas silently.

It seemed that Lucas had blocked him.

And he seemed to have been prepared in advance.

It seemed that Lucas was directing the battle situation.

Just as Aaron was directing Elan Dur in the absence of Durak.

Lucas was directing Ruben in the absence of Sian.

Then all he had to do was get rid of Lucas.

Aaron clenched his sword tightly.

Unfortunately, he failed to break through a single point.

But that was all.

If he couldn’t break through, he would just have to destroy them.

Kwaaaaaaa─!!

Aaron’s momentum exploded.

The White Wolf Knights, who had regained their senses, also raised their momentum and raised their swords.

The White Wolf Knights, called the Empire’s No. 1 Knights.

The wolves who bared their teeth possessed a different level of ferocity.

And Lucas took a step forward in front of the pack of wolves.

Behind Lucas, Ruben’s knights raised their swords.

“You’re going to stop me?”

Aaron gave a cold smile.

He admitted that the blocked attack just now was unexpected.

But it was only once.

He hadn’t assumed the existence of Lucas.

He also didn’t expect that his strategy would be read.

That’s why there wouldn’t be a second time.

Above all, Lucas was a level below him.

Not only Lucas, but also Ruben’s knights were a level below the White Wolf Knights.

There would be no surprises.

He was sure of it because he had crossed swords directly in the Beastmen Kingdom.

Lucas said nothing.

He didn’t react to Aaron’s provocative words.

He just gripped his sword tightly, determined not to let anyone go back.

Aaron also didn’t say anything more.

The conversation between knights wasn’t done with words.

The two eyes met.

In an instant, Lucas and Aaron’s figures disappeared from sight.

The distance between Lucas and Aaron narrowed in an instant.

At the same time as the narrowing, Kwakwang! Lucas and Aaron’s swords exploded.

“······!”

And Aaron’s eyes widened.

It was just a single clash, but he could realize it immediately.

It was different. It was different from the Lucas in his memory.

It was completely different from when he crossed swords in the Beastmen Kingdom.

One or two levels.

He was showing a level difference that was unbelievable from that time.

He was not someone to be placed below Aaron.

No, not only below, but he couldn’t even predict the outcome even if he gave it his all.

It was impossible…

How much time had passed, and now…!?

Lucas raised his momentum and swung his sword.

Aaron hurriedly raised his sword to block it.

A chilling explosion erupted from the swinging sword. Kwaaaang!

The tip of Lucas’s sword, which was lunging and rushing in, was sharp.

However, the power he encountered was definitely not the power of cutting.

To be exact, Lucas’s sword made it that way.

Lucas’s sword was not an ordinary sword.

He could feel the power of some absolute being in the sword itself.

A silent power that nothing in the world could dare to approach.

‘That’s…!’

Kwang─! Kwakwang─!

Aaron’s thoughts were cut off.

Lucas’s sword didn’t allow him to think.

Each time the swords met, Aaron’s sword shook little by little.

His mind and posture were disturbed by panic and surprise.

Aaron’s shaken sword slashed through the air for a moment. Swaeeek!

At that moment, Lucas’s posture was lowered.

Lucas’s eyes flashed. His lowered body shot towards Aaron.

A baby black lion opening its mouth.

That was not a being that a wolf could dare to do anything about.

“Cough… !”

Aaron’s body staggered and retreated.

Aaron gripped his sword in reverse as blood spurted out, Chwahak.

But it didn’t have much meaning.

Because Lucas didn’t get greedy.

If he had been greedy and dug in, he could have seized the opportunity to counterattack.

However, Lucas didn’t show any further movement, as if he had expected it.

Both the strategy and the current battle.

Lucas was perfectly reading Aaron’s moves.

“Cough… !”

A lump of blood poured out of Aaron’s mouth.

His mind became complicated and confused.

And in the tangled and confused mind…

A blurry view of the battle situation.

“······!”

Aaron couldn’t help but be astonished soon.

Puhwahak!

Kwajik.

The White Wolf Knights…

Those who were called the Empire’s No. 1 Knights…

“Kkuaaak… !”

“Keuheok… !”

Were being swept away…

The White Wolf Knights were being swept away by Ruben’s knights.

Even helplessly. Without being able to exert any power.

Even… not only the White Wolf Knights.

The Elan Dur troops numbered as many as 270,000.

A war with a difference of 100 times the strength.

Pshushushushuk!!

Shushushushuk!!

The volley of arrows that blackened the sky, and Kwakwakwang!

Thousands of soldiers were swept away as the earth shook.

“Let’s go Happy, Merry, Monggu, Jong!!”

Keong! Keongkeong!

The demonic beasts with strange names barked fiercely.

As a result, strange chariots stirred up the battlefield.

And that power was very strange.

Kwang! Kwakwang!

The battlefield was swept away by the demonic beasts and chariots with strange names.

The number of troops didn’t mean much in front of that overwhelming weapon, Oryonggeo [Five Dragon Cart].

“It’s magic! Everyone, dodge!!”

“You crazy bastard! Where are we supposed to dodge!!”

And thousands of spells were being cast from above Ruben’s barrier.

Unknown siege weapons were flying from behind Ruben’s barrier.

They couldn’t break through…

They should have broken through Ruben’s formation long ago.

The 270,000 troops should have destroyed Ruben’s castle gates right away.

But… but…

“How can this be…!!”

“No way! It can’t be!!”

Kwakwakwakwang!!!

They couldn’t break through.

Far from breaking through, they were being swept away as they were.

An absolute difference in level.

The difference in the number of 100 times didn’t mean much.

It was just listing the fact that there were many numbers.

“······!!”

Aaron’s astonishment only grew more intense.

And Aaron finally froze in that spot.

“Keuheok… !”

Some painful groan was heard through the noise of the battlefield.

Red blood was spewing out, filling his vision.

The commander-in-chief of Elan Dur and the Continent’s No. 1 Swordsman.

The absolute powerhouse of this continent.

“Cough… !”

Durak… was staggering.

#

It was impossible…

Durak’s thoughts, coughing up blood, flowed in only one direction.

No other stream of thought came to mind.

Kwaaaang!

That overwhelming strength.

It was on a different level from the Beastmen Kingdom last time.

He didn’t know how that could be, but it was an undeniable reality.

That’s why it didn’t make sense at all.

The power inherent in Durak now.

Although he hadn’t fully controlled this power.

But because he knew the identity of this power.

And because he was directly using this power.

“Keuheok… !”

How absurd the current situation was.

Durak could feel and recognize it to the bone.

Kwaaaaaang!

The wave of power that erupted. Durak hurriedly swung his sword.

The vibrating space tore apart, and the encroaching darkness disappeared.

A power that could not be opposed.

He couldn’t believe that this was the only way he could respond.

Paabababak!

Sian’s swordsmanship was swung over the canceled space.

The afterimages of numerous swords dazzled his eyes.

He couldn’t even guess which one was real.

No, were all of those real?

Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands… Keueuk.

Durak shut down his thoughts at the pain that seemed to squeeze his head.

The swordsmanship containing extreme speed did not allow the process of recognition.

Just trying to guess seemed to tear apart his optic nerves and brain cells.

And more.

Paabababak!

Sian’s sword was swung without even leaving an afterimage.

The astonishment that rose on Durak’s face deepened.

Wasn’t the speed just now the maximum…?!

Sian’s sword was getting faster and faster.

Even the concept of limit couldn’t keep up with that speed.

Seogeok─! Kwajik─!

Durak couldn’t do anything to respond to the dizzying speed.

“Keuheok… !”

Red blood poured out of his mouth.

In the meantime, he felt something like a lump.

Sian’s posture lowered in an instant. Sian’s glittering eyes were dyed with deep darkness.

A ferocious black lion opening its mouth towards its prey.

Durak briefly glimpsed that shape in Sian’s appearance.

“······ I admit it.”

Durak muttered quietly. Sian rushed in, surpassing his senses.

Kwaaang!

Durak’s body staggered once again at the erupting roar.

However, Durak calmly composed his expression.

It was an unexpected situation. He didn’t know it would come to this.

It was hard to believe. Even at this moment, he was constantly denying his thoughts.

But now it was time to admit it.

The Continent’s No. 1 Swordsman.

The position he had maintained for so long.

But not anymore.

The Continent’s No. 1 Swordsman was no longer himself.

He never thought it would come to this.

And he never thought he would have to do this.

But, there was no way now.

An uncontrollable power. A power that was not yet complete.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaa─!!

The space around Durak rippled.

The space around Durak, not Durak’s sword, began to ripple violently.

Sian’s movements stopped at Durak’s sudden change.

But he didn’t stop. He gripped the sword of annihilation and unleashed a hideous darkness.

Durak’s momentum was swallowed once again by the erupting dark magic.

But it didn’t matter.

What Durak was trying to cast now…

A secret technique passed down through the Elan Dur family.

But there was one truth hidden in this secret technique.

The Elan Dur’s secret technique was not actually the Elan Dur’s secret technique.

An absolute knight who had reached the realm of Exceed a thousand years ago.

A power that even the evil power inherent in Durak was afraid of.

Arnaise Charlotte’s sword, Zodiac Sword.

That’s why this is not the kind of thing you can stop even if you know it.

It’s not a power that the Continent’s No. 1 Swordsman can dare to do anything about.

But… why?

Sian’s eyes, looking at Durak, were calmly sinking.