Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 134

A porter walking behind Hamar moved strangely first.

He had been walking normally, but then he suddenly stumbled, dropping the bundle of straw he was carrying towards Hamar.

“Eek…!”

Scritch.

Thud.

Hamar’s surprised shout, a flash of light, and Ronian’s fist all happened at the same time.

Almost instantly, the light disappeared from the porter’s eyes as he tried to stab a dagger through the falling straw.

Plop.

“Ugh, ptooey, ptooey. What is this? Can’t you watch where you’re… huh?”

“He looks sick! Let’s get him to the inn.”

Ronian, younger than the porter, grabbed him by the neck and lifted him.

Hamar’s eyes were unfocused. He felt something was wrong.

“The young master is…”

“Such a noble person doing that…”

“He will be blessed.”

The people around them watched and admired Ronian. This was very different from the first day they found out he was the second son. Back then, the market had stopped as everyone bowed to him.

Ronian smiled slightly, sensing that ‘those guys’ were watching him.

The hidden attackers who were about to attack stopped when their friend was captured.

‘They seem nervous.’

A strongman at the knight-level or higher was hiding his power to attack. This tactic could beat someone even stronger.

So they must have been confident, which made their surprise even bigger.

‘But they have to move.’

Because he had already caught one of them.

Ronian started walking away with his prisoner. Then, the hidden attackers began to move again.

“Young master, that guy from earlier, something felt off about him…”

“It’s your imagination.”

Hamar tilted his head.

“No, really, something felt strange.”

Hamar grumbled, “Something felt strange about that man.” Ronian wasn’t sure if Hamar was just slow or if he really noticed something. Ronian only half-listened. He was watching for the hidden attackers.

If they didn’t want him to return to the Lord’s manor, they would keep attacking.

‘They dare to do this in our territory. I won’t let it go.’

Even if the others ran away, he had captured one, so he could find out where they came from.

That would be enough, but more prisoners would be better.

So, moving so openly like this…

“Huh?!”

“Hey! Who are you!”

“Watch where you’re going!”

Sudden movements caught everyone’s attention in the market.

The newcomers were bolder than the first one.

A giant, taller than Ronian, stepped up and stood between Ronian and Hamar, blocking their view.

At the same time, a street vendor selling skewers twisted the skewer he was handing to Hamar and stabbed it at his neck.

Suddenly, light flashed from Ronian’s hand. A beam of light shot out.

The beam of light made a coin-sized hole in the back of the giant who was blocking Ronian. It also hit the skewer aimed at Hamar and went through the street vendor’s right shoulder.

This was Iron Cutting, a move Ronian had just learned.

“Aaaargh!”

“Kyaaah!”

“Murder!”

The market became chaotic.

‘No one’s dead yet.’

Ronian watched the people run away. He smiled sadly. Then, he hit the giant on the back of the neck. The giant had fallen because of the light.

Thud.

Behind the giant, Ronian saw the street vendor pulling out a dagger and running towards Hamar.

He rushed forward, knocked the knife away, and slapped the vendor’s jaw to knock him out.

At that moment, two Force users with daggers that glowed red charged at Hamar from the front and back.

‘Intermediate!’

They were clearly trying to kill him and didn’t even try to hide who they were.

Hamar’s face was pale with fear.

He couldn’t try to capture two enemies of the same level without killing them.

“Taa!”

Ronian’s sword, Mane, released four waves of orange Force.

Kawaaaang!

“Aack!”

He tried to control the attack so it wouldn’t hurt Hamar, but Ronian couldn’t perfectly control the Divine Sword’s power.

Hamar was passed out and foaming at the mouth from the Wave Split. Ronian didn’t pay attention to him.

The other guys were more important right now.

“White-clothed peddler! Gray staff! Chase them!”

He shouted at the McLaine knights who had already surrounded the area.

Kawaaaang!

The explosion that came from far away made Ronian worried.

“The workshop!? Bloody hell!”

Ronian put the unconscious Hamar over his shoulder and ran towards the explosion.

When Ronian and the knights arrived at the workshop, it was all over.

“Sir… I’m sorry. Iere, Namore, and Tevn… they’re gone. Kidnapped. We saved the materials, but… the attacker was strong. Very strong.”

Cough.

Knight Thompson coughed up blood, his face pale.

“I-I’m sorry.”

“No. It’s fine. It’s a relief it ended here.”

“We were attacked with repeating crossbows without armor. He won’t be unharmed either.”

“Yeah.”

Ronian looked grim. Knight Thompson couldn’t say that he thought he had seen the attacker’s face before he took off his mask.

‘It’s not certain, after all.’

He needed to remember where he had seen him before he could say anything.

Thompson bowed his head and tried to remember.

A subordinate spoke for his superior.

“Lord Logan ordered us to protect Liberatio’s material warehouse first. It’s not Sir Thompson’s fault.”

“I know.”

Ronian was cold. The knights all became silent.

“The problem is that we expected it and prepared for it, but we still got attacked. Ha… how pathetic. What am I going to tell my brother…”

Ronian bit his lip and paced back and forth. He was angry and quiet, which was more frightening than yelling. Ronian was always polite, even to his servants.

“Can the three kidnapped dwarves make things?”

Temar was surprised by Ronian’s question.

“If you’re talking about the repeating crossbows, they might be able to. But if it’s Liberatio, they might have noticed some of the materials, but they’ll never know how to mix them.”

“Are you sure?”

“Y-yes, I’m sure!”

Temar swallowed hard, seeing the anger in Ronian’s eyes.

Ronian remembered his brother’s words and bit his lip tightly. “Repeating crossbows are weapons that will spread someday. But Liberatio is not. Never! Got it? Keep that in mind.”

“Good. It’s still okay. Double the security at the workshop. It’s okay to give up some security in other castles. Put all the soldiers and knights in the town, especially here.”

“Yes!”

“Interrogate them! Find out who they are and who sent them. Make them regret attacking us. They will pay for this!”

Everyone listening shivered. Ronian’s order was cold.

Temar remembered Hamar’s words: ‘They’re servants of the devil, so never let your guard down.’ He decided to never cut corners or resist.

Unfortunately for Ronian, there was no time to interrogate the captured assassins.

The entire McLaine Town was put on alert because of a message from the main force on the battlefield.

[The armies of Viscount Grey and Viscount Morgan under the Marquis of Kalia are advancing towards McLaine Castle.]

This information was delivered by soldiers scouting east of McLaine Castle.

“Attacks from both inside and out, huh? These bastards…”

Ronian’s eyes burned with fury.

Sound the horns! Call every knight! Gather the militia! We must stop the invaders at McLaine Castle!

Everywhere in the land, people were told it was an emergency.

War had reached McLaine. This land was now in danger because its best soldiers were fighting far away on the main battle front.

Heeheeing!

“They said there wouldn’t be many knights here. This will be easy,” Joe Gray said, smiling confidently.

“Yes,” Chris Morgan agreed eagerly. “Imagine us winning here! It just shows you how things can change…”

The soldiers from two areas, baronies, were facing Count Erssen’s army. Count Erssen was working for Duke Valterheim, who supported the Second Prince. They were all on the road leading to the main battle front.

These lands, a barony and a viscounty, were supposed to have strong armies because of their names, but they didn’t have many soldiers.

They were not the main army going to the big battle. The leaders just wanted them to guard the north and south parts of the land.

But then, suddenly, an unexpected order arrived.

The order said: ‘Stop fighting there. Go attack McLaine instead.’

The order had more details, but they could worry about those after they took over McLaine.

They were even promised that Count Erssen’s army wouldn’t attack them from behind while they were gone.

So, they happily rushed south towards McLaine.

Even though they didn’t have as many soldiers as they should for their titles, they still had about eighty knights and almost two thousand other soldiers together.

They thought McLaine, just a viscounty and with its main army away, would be easy to defeat.

They had also made plans to deal with the new weapons that were causing problems on the main battle front.

But as they rode into the fields in front of McLaine Castle, they stopped in shock. A huge army stood before them, so many soldiers it seemed to go on forever.

“What is that?!” Joe Gray gasped, his eyes wide.

“It… it looks like more than ten thousand soldiers,” Chris Morgan whispered, his voice shaking.

Ten thousand soldiers? In McLaine? They were supposed to have sent most of their soldiers to the main war!

The two leaders almost panicked. But then they looked closer at the soldiers coming towards them. They saw their weapons and armor and sighed in relief.

The soldiers wore old, worn armor. Each one carried a small crossbow at their side.

That was all most of these soldiers had for weapons and protection.

“Levies!” Joe Gray scoffed. “Unbelievable. McLaine must be desperate. Get ready to fight! Don’t be scared! They are just untrained farmers!”

Joe Gray shouted to encourage his soldiers. But even as he spoke, a feeling of unease grew in his stomach.

Chris Morgan, standing next to him, looked worried too. He seemed to feel the same strange fear.

“Those crossbows… they’re not all ‘those special weapons,’ are they?” Chris Morgan asked, his voice quiet.

“If McLaine is thinking clearly, it’s impossible,” Joe Gray replied, trying to sound confident. “Giving untrained farmers weapons that can kill knights? And crossbows are hard to use. They’re just trying to scare us.”

“Y-yes, of course,” Chris Morgan stammered, but he didn’t sound convinced.

The two leaders tried to reassure each other with sensible words, but they couldn’t ignore the fear growing inside them.

But the bad feeling wouldn’t go away. So, they decided to use their secret weapon, the one they had prepared.

“Knights! Raise your shields! The special shields we prepared!” Joe Gray yelled.

“They are just farmers! Don’t be afraid! Charge and crush them!” Chris Morgan shouted.

The two leaders pointed to the real soldiers in the enemy army. They saw hundreds with good armor and dozens of knights in shining armor with flames painted on them, mixed in with the thousands of farmers.

They thought they knew exactly what to do: defeat the real soldiers and knights, and the rest of the army would run away. Victory would be easy.

But then, the moment their knights started to move forward…

Suddenly, a storm of black bolts flew towards them. They rained down so thickly it was like the sky turned dark. The bolts crashed into their knights, destroying everything they thought they knew about war.

The sound of the bolts hitting the shields was like a fast drumbeat: tap tap tap!

A knight cried out, ‘Ugh!’ as a bolt hit his shield.

The storm of bolts, so many they seemed to darken the sky for a moment, kept coming without stopping.

The knights had strong iron shields, shaped like kites, that covered their whole front. But even these shields could barely stop the force of the bolts. They had to turn back.

Their horses, however, were already falling. They were covered in bolts, sticking out like spikes on a hedgehog.

The attack from ten thousand soldiers using crossbows that could fire again and again was even more frightening than they had imagined.

“Hold your shields high! Keep moving forward!” Joe Gray yelled, his voice strained.

What kind of madman… ‘This is crazy!’ Joe Gray thought, his mind racing.

Jayden, the knight in charge for the Gray family, clenched his teeth. He glanced back at his lord.

He saw that the order to advance was really coming from his lord, Joe Gray. Jayden had no choice. He bit his lip in frustration and turned back to face the enemy.

“Advance!” Jayden shouted, his voice tight with fear.

Jayden gave the order, even though he didn’t want to. He took the first step forward himself, leading the way.

And as he moved forward, a small hope flickered in his mind. ‘Maybe… maybe we can still do this?’

If knights like him, strong but not the strongest, used their inner power, their ‘Force,’ to strengthen their shields, and led the charge, maybe they could get through the storm of bolts.

Maybe all their planning and preparation wouldn’t be wasted after all.

Just as they moved forward, a tiny spark of hope in their hearts… The sound of crossbow bolts stopped: tap tap tap!

The storm of bolts seemed to slow down, then stop completely. And then, he heard a new sound: the thunder of horses’ hooves, cavalry charging towards them!

“This is our chance!” Jayden roared, ready to charge. But then, right in front of him…

At the front of the charging enemy knights, he saw something strange. Red-hot stones were flying towards them, thrown by a young man. The young man had bright red hair and red eyes and looked almost like a boy.

‘What are those things…? I think I’ve heard of them before…’ Jayden thought, his mind struggling to remember.

Jayden’s mind was still reeling from the crossbow attack. He couldn’t quite remember what those red-hot stones were.

Then, with a deafening roar – KABOOM!

Only as fire and explosion swallowed him whole did he finally understand. ‘Magic… explo…’

“Magic explosion…!!” he gasped, but it was too late.

But it was too late. Much too late.

A sharp sound – *scritch*.

The young man with red hair was suddenly there. His sword glowed with a sunset-red light, the same color as his hair. In a flash, the sword sliced through Jayden’s neck.

And then, a powerful voice roared across the battlefield: “Destroy them all! Leave no one alive!” This cry would decide the battle.

* * *

Then, a voice came from a small device: “[We have destroyed all the enemy invaders, brother.]”

“…Good work, Lonian,” Logan replied, his voice calm.

“[But… the dwarves being taken… it was all my fault…]” Lonian’s voice sounded heavy with guilt.

“No, Lonian. Don’t worry. Just make sure our defenses are strong now. They won’t attack again soon. What about the soldiers we captured?”

Logan couldn’t see Lonian, but he could imagine his brother lowering his head, his face even more serious than before.

“[…All the enemy soldiers we captured… they killed themselves. It’s my fault. I didn’t watch them closely enough.]” Lonian’s voice was even darker.

Logan could feel his brother’s sadness even through the device. He wanted to talk about something else.

“How are the local soldiers doing? The militia? Any problems with them?” Logan asked, changing the subject.

“[Some of them were scared, but they are all feeling good now because no one died. Actually, more people want to join the training after this battle!]” Lonian said, sounding a little happier.

“Really? That’s good news. Train them well, Lonian. Because if things get really bad…”

Logan lowered his voice, speaking quietly into the device. Logan could imagine Lonian’s face becoming serious as he listened.

“[Is it really possible… that it will come to that?]” Lonian asked, his voice worried.

“…It could happen, Lonian. We have to be ready,” Logan said, his voice firm.

“[I will prepare everything perfectly. So that you won’t be disappointed in me again,]” Lonian promised, his voice determined.

“You’ve never disappointed me, Lonian. Don’t talk like that,” Logan said gently.

“[No. I will prepare perfectly this time so *I* can be proud of myself,]” Lonian repeated, his voice stronger now.

“Good grief…” Logan sighed, shaking his head slightly. Padraig, his father, looked at him and said gently, “That’s enough, Logan.”

“…Yes, Father. Well, at least we got through this one problem safely,” Logan said, sounding a little tired.

“[Please come home safely. Father. Brother,]” Lonian said, his voice softer now.

“Don’t say silly things like that,” Padraig chuckled. “Of course we’ll come back safely.”

Logan smiled a little at his father’s words. The communication device went silent as the call ended between his brother and father.

But Padraig still looked at Logan, his face showing worry.

“Are you really going to go through with that plan?” Padraig asked, his voice serious.

“Yes, Father. Because I don’t know how much longer this war will drag on if we don’t do something big,” Logan replied, his voice firm.

“Isn’t it too risky? Too much of a gamble?” Padraig pressed, his brow furrowed.

“It’s necessary, Father. We have to take this risk,” Logan said, his eyes determined.

“The Duke won’t just let you leave, Logan. You know that,” Padraig said, his voice warning.

“I’ll make sure he has no choice. He *will* have to let me go,” Logan said, a hint of steel in his voice.

“Alright,” Padraig sighed. “If you’re sure, then so be it. But be careful, Logan.”

After talking to his father, Logan turned and looked at the large, decorated tent in the middle of the camp.

This was the meeting tent for the leaders of the Second Prince’s group. They had been meeting here almost every day lately.

The time was coming for Logan to make his big suggestion. A suggestion that could change the whole war, even though they seemed to be winning.