Player Who Became A Constellation [EN]: Chapter 167

167

The retreat was grueling.

The mountainous terrain was a treacherous expanse of flowing mud, a consequence of the relentless rain.

Refugees were gripped by anxiety, fearing potential landslides.

“…Your Highness.”

Yo Han turned to the approaching soldier.

“Individuals, seemingly Velette Rangers, have been spotted.”

Suspicious movements were detected within the forest.

“…They appear to be searching for a shortcut to Kanta Fortress.”

Yo Han felt a knot of dread tighten in his stomach.

This meant the fortress’s vulnerability was at risk of exposure.

“You must change course immediately.”

It would take the Velette Rangers a significant amount of time to independently discover the shortcut to Kanta Fortress.

Potentially several days, even months.

However, if they simply tracked Yo Han and the refugees heading towards Kanta Fortress, they could easily discern the route.

‘There are three possible paths to Kanta Fortress.’

If traps were strategically placed along those routes, they could mount some form of defense and buy valuable time.

The moment the enemy became aware of this shortcut, the difficulty of defending the fortress would increase exponentially.

“What are you planning to do?”

Yo Han glanced at the speaker.

Loki, astride his monster horse, had moved closer.

Despite the distance, he seemed to have overheard the conversation between Yo Han and the soldier.

“It’s nothing to divert a small number.”

Yo Han understood Loki’s implication.

He was being presented with a stark choice: abandon the refugees or not.

He found himself at a critical juncture.

Yo Han turned to face the refugees.

Their eyes reflected a profound sense of extinguished hope.

Yet, they stubbornly continued to move forward.

The primal instinct for survival propelled their weary legs.

The child Yo Han had rescued stumbled, cautiously trailing behind him.

He regained his footing, looked up at Yo Han, and offered a shy smile.

Everyone placed their trust solely in him, following his lead.

Could he abandon these people?

“…I will lead them.”

The soldiers closed their eyes, their faces etched with anguish.

Tearing at their hair, they likely resented Yo Han’s perceived indecisiveness.

Conversely, the corners of Loki’s lips curved upward in a subtle smile.

“You’ll regret it?”

“Yes… Maybe… I believe I will.”

Yo Han forced a smile.

The decision he had made could jeopardize not only the refugees under his care but also those who had already sought refuge within Kanta Fortress.

The nobles would undoubtedly hold Yo Han accountable.

But still, he couldn’t bring himself to abandon those who looked to him for salvation.

“Good.”

Loki uttered the word with a hint of satisfaction.

***

Kanta Fortress represented the last bastion of hope.

Yo Han paused on the mountaintop, catching his breath as he surveyed the landscape below.

The river snaking alongside Kanta Fortress was clearly visible.

“Ah….”

Yo Han realized he had kept his mouth shut, but he wondered if he had uttered it without realizing it.

That’s how exhausting the evacuation was.

Moving his body, heavy with mud, and seeking sleep under trees to avoid the rain.

Watching the refugees collapse from exhaustion, he endured and finally reached his destination.

‘Everyone’s eyes are starting to come alive.’

Yo Han observed the refugees.

From their lifeless eyes, the glimmer of hope gradually returned.

“L, let’s go!”

Yo Han shouted, glancing at Loki.

Almost unconsciously, he found himself following Loki’s lead.

Perhaps because Loki was the only one he felt he could truly rely on.

Kankun chuckled at the sight.

“It’s like a nephew following his uncle.”

Kudan nodded in agreement.

“Ouch, now I can finally rest a bit. It’s been a while since I traveled, so I’m a bit tired too.”

Shaman straightened his back, easing the tension.

Yo Han shouted with a hopeful expression.

“Let’s go!”

“Yes, but keep in mind.”

“……?”

“The pursuer behind us has found this shortcut.”

“……!”

“You have opened a path for the enemy army to invade.”

Yo Han’s face grew somber.

As a young leader, he couldn’t help but feel the immense weight on his shoulders.

“Do you regret it?”

“…No. Not yet.”

Yo Han raised his head, his gaze resolute.

“I saved more people, so that’s enough.”

“More could die, though.”

“I have to try to prevent that from happening.”

After all, Velette soldiers have no intention of saving the refugees.

Rather, it would be better to have a little hope and gather strength to fight back.

Loki’s group, Yo Han, and the refugees descended the mountain in a long line.

In response, Kanta Fortress was placed on high alert.

Ding-! Ding-! Ding-!

The alarm bell echoed, and archers took their positions along the walls.

Soldiers manned the siege weapons, and guards scaled ladders to reinforce the walls.

Yo Han paused.

Despite recognizing the refugees’ bedraggled appearance from the watchtower, they had initiated a full-scale alert.

This indicated the precarious state of Kanta Fortress.

“E, everyone, please step back.”

Yo Han directed Loki’s group to retreat slightly.

Then, he raised both hands in a gesture of peace and stepped forward.

In response, an arrow thudded into the ground directly in front of Yo Han.

“……!”

Good heavens, they shot an arrow at him!?

It was a shocking display of desperation.

How dire must the situation be for them to not even recognize him and resort to such measures!

“Who are you!? State your name and affiliation!”

A guard shouted from the wall.

“I, I am Yo Han Kartal. The king of Kartal!”

Yo Han raised his voice, projecting his words.

Even so, he felt a pang of embarrassment.

Nowhere else on the continent would you find a king shouting like this.

Normally, he would have dispatched an envoy in advance and entered without incident.

But Yo Han no longer had such resources.

It would be difficult to verify their identity if he sent soldiers, leaving him with no choice but to present himself.

“…J, just wait a moment!”

The guard’s flustered voice reached him.

Firing an arrow at royalty, especially a king, was tantamount to sealing their own fate.

After a brief delay, a ladder was lowered from the wall.

“Climb up!”

Yo Han wore a dumbfounded expression.

“What?”

A man who appeared to be a knight looked down and repeated the order.

“Climb up!”

“…….”

Loki, observing the scene from a distance, frowned.

Perhaps due to the knight’s raised voice, Kankun inquired with a questioning tone.

“Usually, wouldn’t the knight come down in situations like this?”

“That’s right.”

“Then why…?”

“It’s a show of dominance.”

“Yes?”

They are nobles cornered.

For them, the goal would be to trample on the proud royalty once and make them obedient.

Yo Han climbed the ladder, and Loki watched the scene.

The knight confirms Yo Han and kneels.

The nobles faced Yo Han on the wall.

A conversation ensues.

After a while, Yo Han’s emotions became intense, and he was seen shouting.

“What are they saying?”

In response to Kankun’s words, Loki focused on the lip movements of Yo Han and the nobles and said.

“‘We cannot open the gates’… is what they’re saying.”

***

“I, I’m sorry.”

The refugees’ faces turned ashen.

Yo Han bowed his head, apologizing to the assembled refugees.

“They say… ‘they cannot accept you into the fortress.’”

“…They treated the refugees like baggage.”

Yo Han turned his head, his gaze meeting Loki’s.

“They abandoned the country. What are you going to do?”

Yo Han displayed a surprised expression at Loki’s words.

“H, how did you know?”

“I saw your lip movements.”

“Y, you saw that from that far away?”

“Yes.”

“…….”

Yo Han gritted his teeth.

‘How could you bring the refugees now!?’

Helter, the lord of the castle, bellowed.

He was a powerfully built man with curly hair and a crescent-shaped mustache.

As a lord leading the army, he was fully armored and looked down at Yo Han with his imposing frame.

When he frowned, he resembled a horned wild boar, and Yo Han couldn’t help but flinch.

‘We don’t even have enough soldiers, and you bring refugees who can’t fight?’

The food supplies within the castle were already dwindling.

Although they were receiving food aid from neighboring countries via the river around Kanta Fortress, there were limitations.

‘They can’t even be used as meat shields! What do you think neighboring countries will think if they die off?’

Helter had already resigned himself to the fate of the Kartal Kingdom.

He harbored only one thought.

‘Instead of being helpful, you’re ruining our plans! You’ve inherited the blood of the late King!’

His plan was to seek asylum in a neighboring country, earning recognition for his loyalty and contributions as a hero who defended the nobles and the king to the bitter end, and for his achievements in repelling the Velette Kingdom army.

‘We cannot accept refugees! Besides, you brought barbarians as escorts? Ha, accepting those cultists….’

Even if foreign countries were willing to accept a small number of nobles and soldiers, they would never take in troublesome refugees.

Moreover, Helter was a soldier who actively participated in the subjugation of the Nordics [people from the northern regions].

He looked at Yo Han, who had sought protection from the Nordics, with disdain, as if he were a mere insect.

‘I can only help you, Your Highness, if you meet one condition! Abandon the refugees. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to drive you out of this fortress!’

Helter pointed at Yo Han, exerting pressure.

He was barely restrained by the other nobles.

Witnessing the scene, Yo Han realized.

‘Lord Helter and the nobles have given up on this country.’

It was a natural conclusion.

The fall of the capital was akin to announcing the end of the kingdom.

Only one fortress remained, and the nobles of other territories were also preparing to flee.

Even if they managed to repel the Velette Kingdom army, there was little chance of the country’s resurgence.

Ultimately, the only viable path to seeking asylum in another country was to support the last general, Lord Helter.

Foreign countries had also sensed the impending collapse of the Kartal Kingdom.

Rather than useless nobles, they would readily accept an army with proven combat experience and Lord Helter, who commanded it.

Yo Han’s fist clenched.

There were no loyal subjects for a ruined country.

“B, but with two days’ worth of food, they said they would invite those who saved me to the fortress! We can’t hold a banquet, but we can arrange a simple meal.”

The nobles who genuinely served Yo Han came to his aid.

They arranged a simple meal to express their gratitude to him and those who had saved him.

Two days’ worth of food was allocated to the refugees.

“First, let’s go inside. After that, let’s discuss the price of hiring you.”

Given the gravity of the matter, he couldn’t make any decisions unilaterally.

At Yo Han’s words, Loki nodded.

The gate slowly creaked open.

“I, it’s open!”

The refugees surged towards the gate of Kanta Fortress, but the soldiers raised their shields and spears, forming an impenetrable barrier.

“Everyone, step back!”

“Step back!”

The soldiers of Kartal forcefully pushed the refugees back.

“Your Highness! Your Highness! Is Your Highness abandoning us!?”

The refugees cried out, watching Yo Han, Loki, Kankun, Kudan, and Shaman walk towards the fortress gate.

They felt abandoned, despite having placed their trust in him and followed him this far.

“Please save us! Your Highness!”

Yo Han turned to the refugees and said.

“I, I’m not abandoning you! I’m going to have a meeting with the nobles to save you….”

“Shouldn’t you take care of us first, rather than those Nordics!?”

Yo Han faltered.

“Please save us rather than the Nordics!”

Yo Han quickly bowed his head, apologizing to Loki’s group.

“I, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

Loki dismissed it.

He had learned about Kartal to some extent from Aum [a character mentioned earlier in the story].

He had anticipated such an attitude.

Kankun, Kudan, and Shaman also wore bitter expressions.

“I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”

Kankun whispered to Loki.

“Is that so?”

“Yes….”

They had remained silent throughout the march to the fortress, but now they seemed to have lost their composure, gripped by the fear of abandonment.

‘Still… that’s too much….’

When they were being rescued, they hadn’t even offered a word of thanks, only wary glances.

Now, such animosity.

It was as Kankun was sighing deeply.

Thud-.

“……?”

Kankun looked at Loki.

A stone had struck his body.

“Get lost!”

“Dirty Nordic!”

Kankun turned her head.

The refugees were picking up stones.

In response, Kankun’s expression twisted.

Her eyes blazed with anger, and a palpable murderous aura emanated from her body.

“I’ll kill you.”

She gripped the Holy Sword Brutgang and swung it towards the refugees.