Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 122

“Duke Jordan is no longer a threat, Logan,” Patrick said, his voice tired. “The real fight has begun.”

Logan sneered at his father’s words.

If Duke Jordan could, he would send assassins after us again and again. That’s the kind of man he is.

Three months had passed since the night raid.

It had already been half a year since the civil war began.

The main battle line, stretched long from north to south, was slowly moving towards the center.

“Right. Now that he’s being pushed back, he probably doesn’t have the energy to pay attention to us,” Patrick said.

Anyone could see that the Second Prince’s army was being pushed back a lot.

The Second Prince’s army lost a big battle. They were pushed back on the main battle line. They could barely stop retreating at the Twin Castles. This place was the border between Walterheim and the King’s land.

It was sad to see them barely hold on after retreating almost to their own doorstep.

And that was with one of the Twin Castles already taken.

“Prince Romain and Duke Jordan must want to grind our entire family into dust.”

McLaine now controlled Bifrost Castle and the five surrounding castles.

This was a big problem for the Second Prince. Even if he had strong soldiers, McLaine controlled the roads and supplies. It was like cutting off their food and weapons.

Because of this, the other groups in the Second Prince’s army had to take on the burden to keep Bifrost going.

‘The Second Prince’s side, which was going to lose anyway, is losing even faster now.’

This was going as planned, and Logan no longer worried that things would fall apart before his family was ready.

Recently, the leaders of both sides had started to rest again, partly because the McLaine family had started to work harder after the attack three months ago.

And because of that…

“I shouldn’t say this as a knight, but thanks to the civil war, our family has grown a lot.”

As his father said, the family’s power was growing quickly.

They had recruited knights from small families that had fallen apart, bringing the total to over 170. This was more than before they took Tomodo Castle.

The crossbow cavalry, which had been around 700, had also grown. They now had over 1,500, including trainees, which was more than double the original number.

The number of regular soldiers was also growing steadily, reaching over 3,500.

Of course, the soldiers had different levels of training and skill, but overall, McLaine was much stronger than before.

Also, in ten castles (or eight castles and two towns), almost 10,000 people were volunteering as village soldiers and getting regular training. And that number was still growing.

‘They’re not ready to go on big missions yet, but they’re good enough for defense.’

Moreover…

Whirr.

The Force flowed from Logan’s hand, becoming a shimmering blade of pure energy at his fingertips.

Force Blade. That power, represented by the highest level, did not simply mean a blade of Force.

It was about going beyond amplifying the power of weapons or the body with Force, and exerting physical force with the Force itself.

A level where the Force itself becomes a weapon and armor.

Logan was now completely used to that level.

“Heh heh. You seem to have gotten better than me in that short time.”

“It’s nothing like that.”

Logan replied to his father’s modesty with an awkward smile.

In reality, although he had become used to the level, he couldn’t even grasp the feeling for the 4th form of the Divine Sword Secret, Flame Cleaver (暴炎斬, 폭염참).

‘But even with this much…….’

All the preparations he had planned were happening much faster than he had thought.

He even felt like thanking Duke Jordan for sending those guys.

“So, now we should start using it properly. I wish that thing would come out a little faster.”

“Huh? Use what? Wait… you don’t mean…?” Patrick’s smile vanished, replaced by a look of shock.

Instead of answering, Logan raised his head and looked at the northeastern sky.

“We need to end the civil war.”

“End what?”

“The war.”

“Son. I know you’re excited, but even so, our family’s power is nothing compared to the entire kingdom’s…”

Even as his father spoke urgently, Logan kept smiling. Soon, news came that his last wait had also ended.

“You finished it?!”

“Whoa, it’s not finished, but a prototype came out, Master. It’s not good to put so much pressure on me like that. That’s…….”

“Where are you? Are you at the Magic Tower?!”

Thud.

“What a bad habit…….”

Haa.

Hamarr sighed deeply, looking at the door that had already closed.

“Who am I even talking to right now…….”

“Ugh, ugh…….”

“Are you sick? Stop groaning.”

“So, they get to live even if they mess up, huh? It’s hard to live as a powerless dwarf. Damn it…….”

“Why did you drag me to a place like this, Foreman? Huh?”

“Shut up! I can’t die alone. You helped make that thing too!”

“You didn’t even tell me what it was and just made me manufacture it! But you’re dragging me to a place like this…….”

“Both of you, shut up!”

“Gasp!”

“I, I’m quiet…… Gasp!”

Where did he pick up another one just like him?

Ah, did I buy him?

Logan sighed softly, looking back and forth between Hamarr and the one-armed dwarf who acted just like Hamarr.

However, even if he wanted to scold them, the timing and situation were not good, so he decided to just give them a scary look to shut them up for now.

Clayton, who had been looking around, ignoring the scene, suddenly stopped and then signaled to Logan.

“I found them. Goblins.”

“Everyone, be quiet.”

At that one word, the group hiding in the trees stopped even the smallest movements as much as possible.

Far below the trees, in the direction Clayton was pointing, a group of goblins was walking towards them.

Just six goblins, the weakest monsters, could be killed with a single move if Clayton or Logan stepped forward. But the problem was where they were now.

“M-Master. Do we really have to do the experiment here? If those things die and the sound spreads, a whole swarm will come out, you know?” Hamarr was trembling because of where they were.

“That’s right! Why did we have to come to the Southern Mountain Range!” Tamer’s voice, very small but filled with emotion, was also terrified.

They had cut down all the forests below the mountain range to build McLaine Town.

They pushed deeper into the trees, reaching the edge of the Southern Mountain Range. The air grew colder, and the sunlight struggled to reach through the thick, twisted branches overhead. This place was known as the Demon Realm, and even the air felt different – heavy with a sense of ancient danger. The shadows seemed to deepen and move on their own.

Just to find the weakest monsters.

“I heard the monsters living here are stronger than usual…….”

“Why specifically…….”

“Do you want to do it?”

“…….”

The dwarves finally shut up.

He had brought them along because the developer had to see and feel the flaws in the ‘prototype’ himself, but now it was becoming annoying.

“If you make any more noise, I’ll let you test the product and point out its flaws from the closest possible spot. In a special seat where you can feel the monsters’ breath.”

Only after seeing the dwarves turn pale did Logan nod towards Clayton.

Then.

Whirr.

Clayton’s mana moved, and soon a golem about the size of a person appeared from the ground slightly below the tree they were in.

It was a very small and weak golem compared to Clayton’s level.

So, even if it was destroyed, it wouldn’t affect him much. The golem, containing only a little mana, stood up, holding blue stones in both hands.

“Kyarat!”

“Kyarararak!”

As the goblins saw the golem, they began to jump up all at once. A slight force was applied to the golem’s grip holding the blue stones.

Then, he threw one of the blue stones, which had turned red, towards the running goblins.

Logan and his group watched the scene, holding their breath.

Logan watched as the red stone slowly left the golem’s hand and flew towards the goblins. Every second felt like forever.

And then…

Thwack!

The goblin, having dodged the red stone, pointed at the golem and howled with laughter, causing everyone to frown and sigh.

But in an instant…

KABOOM!

With an earth-shattering roar, the space within nearly five square meters of the red stone burst into flames, sending out a powerful shockwave.

A high-pitched scream of pain.

Five goblins were instantly killed by the shockwave. Another, slightly further away, avoided immediate death but screamed in agony, engulfed in flames.

“Kya…reu.”

Even that one couldn’t manage more than a few steps before collapsing, feebly reaching towards the sky before finally dropping its head.

Watching the dying goblins made some feel a little guilty, even though they were monsters.

The biggest culprit of all clenched his fist and cheered.

“Nice!”

“”

“”

“”

“What? Why?”

When the group stared at him with grimaces, Logan glared back.

The battle-hardened mercenary from his past felt no pity for monsters.

Rather, he was pleased with the power of Liberatio, the bomb that burned away even the monsters’ evil.

“Ah, never mind.”

“Just need to reduce the activation time a bit. Maybe by 0.5 seconds?”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“The goblins will be drawn here by the noise. You’ve prepared enough, haven’t you?”

“Yes.”

At their slightly delayed response, Logan sighed and glared coldly at the group.

“Every monster eliminated is a benefit to the world. Don’t entertain useless thoughts. That goes for you too, Clayton. You should know better…”

“Of course, Logan.”

Ahem.

Just as Clayton belatedly cleared his throat in agreement.

– Kira-ryak! Kira-ryak!

A familiar noise began to grow louder from not far off in the forest.

The power of a single blast had already been confirmed in the earlier experiment.

Now, what needed to be verified was the increase or decrease in power due to the interaction when multiple blasts were used in succession or simultaneously across a wide area.

And the results were, indeed, satisfactory.

Bang!

KABOOM!

“Kyaraaaak!!”

The three hundred or so goblins who rushed out upon hearing the news of their brethren’s demise were all killed by a mere hundred or so bombs.

Among them were even hobgoblins, classified as lower-grade monsters, but even they couldn’t withstand the chain reaction of two bombs.

The time it took to defeat all the goblins in the village was a mere hour or so.

Most of that time was spent waiting for them to gather.

Of course, there were some small problems in the process.

“Lord. The forest is catching fire.”

“Good. Let all the monsters burn to death… though that’s unlikely, isn’t it?”

“The monsters who lost their homes will come down to the foot of the mountain.”

“Put it out! Put the fire out quickly!”

The unexpected firefighting was only the beginning.

[Kyaaaaaa!]

A strange roar echoed from deeper within the southern mountain range, not just the foothills.

The commotion at the entrance to the mountain range seemed to have awakened some predator lurking deep within.

It made the faces of Logan and Clayton, who had been smiling after dealing with the goblins, freeze.

“Run!”

But the dwarves, with blank expressions, were frozen in place, their faces pale.

“Bloody hell!”

A monster whose roar alone, from a distance, could make even Logan, a top-tier Force user, and Clayton, a mage of equal caliber, pale and terrify ordinary people.

He didn’t want to bother confirming what kind of monster it was.

Logan hurriedly lifted the dwarves quickly onto his shoulders and began to run, and Clayton, using his maximum speed land sliding magic, quickly followed behind.

Only after they had escaped the Southern Mountain Range like lightning did the roar cease, and the group could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“Whew. Thank you for your hard work, Clayton. Good job, Hamarr.”

Logan’s praise was sincere.

The bomb, created with only materials and stories without any specific information, seemed to be even more effective than the ones Logan had used in his previous life.

‘It feels more than 30% better.’

Another new weapon to overcome the Empire’s threat had been created.

“I’m realizing it again, but the efficiency is just ridiculous. This is really…”

Clayton, despite having created the item himself, was simply amazed, wearing a dazed expression.

The power of the bomb, Liberatio, was at the level of a 2nd class spell.

Yet, its cost was only about 50 gold, roughly 1/20th of a 1st class scroll.

The biggest reason most countries couldn’t use scrolls in war.

It was an amazing new invention that eliminated that fundamental problem.

“But why do you look like that?”

“Just… greed, I suppose. I was just wondering what it would be like if this item was created entirely from my own skill. Haha, just an old man’s rambling.”

Clayton couldn’t fully rejoice because the origin of the item was someone else’s experience and data.

“Haha. To be honest, I was expecting it from the start, but an even more wonderful item came out than I expected. It’s much better than anything I’ve ever used. You’ve created a masterpiece. Clayton, be proud.”

“Master. I also…”

“No. Rather, I received a lot of help from looking at that data. What I’ve put into this item is only a small part of that knowledge. If I can properly understand that data, I’ll be able to create not only this item but also many magical items much more cheaply.”

Logan’s eyes lit up at Clayton’s words.

He couldn’t say it outright, but that was exactly what Logan truly wanted.

Liberatio had great combat utility, but it was, in a way, only a small branch.

“You’ll be able to do it. This alone will completely change how wars will be fought in the future.”

“Thank you for the encouragement.”

“Master. My skills too…”

“Then, how long will it take to fix the flaws and start full-scale production?”

“Hey!”

“It’ll be enough to just adjust the material content, so a week should be enough.”

“Hey! You guys! What about me?! How much I suffered…”

“Hamarr, you did well too.”

“Master Hamarr, you’ve worked hard.”

“Huh, heuh…”

Hamarr’s face turned red and blue with resentment.

“I did…!”

“If you achieve the target quantity, I’ll give you a month’s vacation as a reward.”

“I’ll work hard and try to finish it as quickly as possible. Master.”

A sudden change of attitude.

Temar, who had been watching him from the beginning, snorted as if he was dumbfounded, but Hamarr simply smiled, knowing that.

‘You don’t know yet, you little brat.’

A 20-year slave contract.

Only three years had passed, but it felt like 30 years had gone by.

So, when the devil master offered a vacation, he had to grab it quickly.

If he threw an angry outburst there, even that vacation could turn into a time of labor disguised as dwarven romance.

‘And that’s a whole month!’

To a worker suffering from working hard all year without rest, a vacation was much more precious than pride.