Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 409

The Imperial Army’s forces were divided into three.

Two more legions were added to the north and south. A very large group of five legions advanced towards Kyle Castle through the main road. Although a large army could move along the relatively narrow Northern Hunter’s Path or Southern Adventurer’s Path, most of the soldiers were gathered in the central region with its vast plains.

Of course, the fact that the enemy king was in the center was also important, I imagine.

The sight of the added 250,000 Imperial troops marching in was truly an impressive scene.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

The massive army filled the horizon with darkness as it approached. Luchen Talos swallowed hard, feeling the ground shake with each step of the soldiers coming from far away.

“Indeed……”

This was not a force that could be dealt with simply by having a new Great Swordsman of the Continent. He felt reassured that he had not chosen the wrong side.

‘It was just bad luck.’

Even though he had been promoted, the fact that he had to stand at the very end of the line of commanders welcoming reinforcements was not a matter of choice.

Why was he responsible for the superiors who were executed for ignoring his report?

Since the Emperor’s order had been issued, a total of five nobles, from his direct superiors to the deceased Sword Spirit’s advisor, had lost their lives. Because of that, he had been promoted, but within the staff, he was openly treated like a ghost.

‘The Empire praised skill above all else. But even here, Luchen realized, small-minded cruelty still existed. Just like anywhere else humans gathered, he thought bitterly. Talent doesn’t stop people from being petty.’

If they hadn’t ignored his report in the first place, the situation wouldn’t have unfolded like this.

As he bit his lip and was lost in thought, he noticed late that the reinforcements had come close.

“Salute to His Imperial Majesty!”

At the voice coming from the front, Luchen quickly placed his right hand over his heart and knelt on one knee.

“Long live! Long live! Long live the Emperor!”

The voices echoed loudly everywhere.

After a moment of silence, voices began to be heard from the front, one after another.

The Emperor’s words, heavily guarded in a distant place that couldn’t even be seen, were probably being relayed this way through several people.

‘This isn’t the time for me to be curious about that.’

Luchen Talos, maintaining an uncomfortable posture, thought about his future after the war.

How long had it been?

As all the formalities seemed to be over, the Imperial Army’s command unit split the formation and entered the camp.

“Everyone, step back!”

“I said, step back!”

“Ugh! My foot!”

From a distance, the Imperial Army seemed to retreat in perfect order, but inside, there was bound to be chaos.

A force nearly twice as large was pushing into the middle of the formation they had carefully made. No matter how well-trained they were, it was unavoidable.

Luchen, too, was caught in the middle, struggling to keep his balance.

But then.

“Baron Luchen Talos.”

At the sudden call of his name, he raised his head and saw a mustache looking at him with a frown.

Count Jimi Borja, a key figure in the staff, and someone who had disliked him from the start.

“Yes? Yes! Your Excellency!”

He answered immediately but couldn’t hide his confusion.

Why is this fellow suddenly doing this?

“It’s His Imperial Majesty’s order. You are to participate in the Supreme Council starting this evening.”

“……Yes?”

“Didn’t you hear me?”

“Ah, no! I will obey the order. Loyalty!”

Perhaps his cursed luck might be turning around.

Luchen Talos’s face turned red with great excitement.

Torches filled the night sky, bright enough to light it up.

As Luchen Talos entered the innermost part of the massive army, a dozen pairs of eyes focused on him.

Four mages, including the Frostwind Magician, three key figures from the staff, including Count Jimi Borja, three knights with the highest rank among the commanders of the existing Central Army, and some faces he had never seen before.

Unfortunately, not a single one of them was pleased to see him.

Even Count Jimi Borja, who had summoned him, had a clear look of displeasure on his face.

“The lowest-ranking one is the latest to arrive. I’m just speechless…….”

The atmosphere inside the tent grew even heavier at the voice that seemed meant to be heard.

Even the strangers who seemed close to the commanders, probably other commanders from the Central Army, were now looking at him with angry eyes.

‘He deliberately told me late.’

Luchen couldn’t help but sigh at Jimi Borja’s small trick. It was extremely unfair to him, but it was obvious that any explanation he gave now would sound like an excuse.

“I apologize for being late.”

He had no choice but to bow politely and quietly take a seat in the corner of the tent.

Only after the gazes that had been pouring down on him had passed did he realize something was slightly off.

‘Lord Jerome isn’t here? But why am I……?’

The fact that he was in a place that even the superhuman Jerome Decaide—even though he made mistakes before—couldn’t attend seemed like an opportunity.

‘Perhaps…….’

As Luchen’s mind changed quickly from feeling bad to feeling good, a heavy atmosphere lingered in the tent.

The silence that had been flowing for a while was broken when the back of the tent opened and a group of people began to enter.

“His Imperial Majesty enters!”

Thud thud.

Knights clad in jet-black armor appeared in formation.

‘Black armor? Was there such a group in the Empire?’

The moment Luchen tilted his head in confusion, the Emperor, clad in golden armor, slowly revealed himself among the knights.

“We greet His Imperial Majesty. Long live, long live, long live the Emperor!”

“Long live, long live, long live the Emperor!”

Starting with the Frostwind Magician, Galen Decaide’s chant, everyone present knelt in their places.

The Emperor, looking down at them indifferently, slowly sat on the special high chair.

“Everyone, rise.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“There’s no need to be so polite in every word, Galen. Do you think I have so much time that I came all the way here myself?”

“……I am sorry, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor clicked his tongue briefly at the sight of the flustered Galen, looked around at the assembly, and brought up something unexpected.

“From now on, we will skip any unnecessary greetings and formalities. You here are the brains of this Central Army. Don’t be afraid to speak your mind and tell me how to deal with those insolent kingdom fellows.”

There’s no need to be polite in front of the Emperor. Just tell me the strategy.

The assembly was stunned by the surprising words.

But no one readily stepped forward first.

The Emperor frowned at the sight of them hesitating and looking at each other.

Luchen, who was in the corner, smiled inwardly at the sight.

‘Of course. Who would dare to offer an opinion, trusting those words, and risk seeing what happens?’

Based on Luchen’s experience as a non-Imperial who had at least set foot in the upper echelons of the Empire, the Empire was not such a free society. In particular, the authority of the Imperial Family was so high that even nobles often found themselves in trouble if they angered a royal person by accident.

So who would readily open their mouths in front of the Emperor?

It wasn’t for nothing that the famous state leader known for being strict, Locteus Guesfeldt, was famous.

But perhaps he understood what he was thinking.

The moment Luchen saw the Emperor’s dark eyes fixed on him, he felt his heart sink.

“Since I don’t recognize your face, you must be that advisor from Grandia.”

“Your…….”

Luchen, who was automatically about to shout “Long live, long live, long live the Emperor!” and kneel, barely managed to recall the Emperor’s words from just before and stopped moving.

“Gasp, yes, yes. I am Luchen Talos, an ‘Imperial’ from Grandia.”

Luchen thought he spoke well, even though he was nervous and almost made a mistake.

Of course, his legs were trembling, and cold sweat was breaking out on his forehead.

The Emperor ignored Luchen’s fear. His face showed nothing as he asked, “Very well. You may present your opinion first. A plan to capture that castle, the Kingdom of McLaine, with as little damage as possible.”

Everyone stared at Luchen. But he only saw the Emperor’s dark eyes. They were like magnets, pulling him in.

“You are a strategist, right? You must have thought about this plan?”

The Emperor’s pressure was too much. Without thinking, Luchen blurted out his real thoughts.

“Ah, no, Your Majesty!”

He swallowed hard.

“McLaine’s military power is almost entirely concentrated in its three castles. And as you know, the new weapons and magical formations prepared in those castles have blocked our Imperial Army’s offensive and forced us to endure immense sacrifices.”

“‘We know this already…'” Jimmy Borja mumbled quietly. But when the Emperor looked at him, Jimmy’s face turned white. He quickly looked down.

Luchen felt a strange pleasure seeing Jimmy scared. He licked his dry lips.

“Of course, with our Imperial Army’s current strength, we could crush the enemy and capture the castle despite those factors. But minimizing the damage does not lie in that approach.”

“Then?”

The Emperor sounded interested. This gave Luchen courage.

“The best course of action is not to attack that castle at all.”

Suggesting we don’t attack? After coming all this way to fight?

All eyes turned to Luchen, and an expression of interest appeared on the Emperor’s face.

“Hoo?”

“Let’s ignore those soldiers hiding in the castle, even if they won the first fight. We should attack their mainland instead.”

Some frowned at those words, while others nodded.

The Emperor chuckled, “Haha, the mainland…” He stroked his chin, thinking hard.

Seeing that, Luchen gathered his courage and added, “If we burn their land, they will have to come out of the castle. Then we won’t need to worry about their magic or weapons from the castle as much.”

Suddenly, everyone in the tent looked interested. Their eyes gleamed.

A small, mysterious smile touched the Emperor’s lips.

“…Very well. That is a good idea. The central army has enough leeway to do so.”

The central army was different from the armies in the north and south. They had a clear path to attack. The other armies were blocked by forests and mountains. So, the central army could easily attack the mainland.

However, there was one problem.

“But that will take too long. Have you heard about the problems in the west?”

“Even if other countries join together, they won’t attack us quickly.”

“But if the war with McLaine takes too long, other countries will try to see if we are weak.”

It’s better to agree to that plan.

As Luchen was about to argue that point, he saw the Emperor’s gaze and immediately shut his mouth.

A gaze filled with displeasure.

The Emperor didn’t care about the best plan. He just hated the idea that someone might attack his Empire first.

“Then, what is the fastest way to crush the enemy?”

“The only way is to use more soldiers and attack from all sides.”

Jimmy Borja interrupted again, “Everyone knows that!”

Luchen looked at him, surprised and confused. *Was Jimmy always this stupid?* he thought.

The Emperor’s gaze turned to the black knights lined up behind, and some of them moved.

“P-Please forgive my mistake, Your Majesty!”

Jimmy Borja, his face pale, cried out hastily, but the black knights paid no heed and grabbed his arms, dragging him away.

A scream came from outside the tent, then stopped suddenly. It was a scream of someone dying.

“…It seems we still have people who are not useful in the strategy group.”

As if he had merely removed some trash, the Emperor’s gaze turned back to Luchen.

Cold sweat ran down Luchen’s back. The Emperor acted like nothing had happened. It was scary.

The Emperor asked again.

“What is the expected damage if we push forward as is?”

“If we can’t stop their powerful warriors, like Logan McLaine, and their magic defenses, we will lose at least 30% of our soldiers, maybe more.”

Fearing that he would end up like Jimmy if he answered too late, Luchen answered as quickly as lightning. He didn’t even have time to worry that the Emperor might not be satisfied with his answer.

But the Emperor’s reaction was unexpected.

“You do not need to worry about those problems.”

“Your Majesty?”

“The preparations are sufficient.”

Everyone looked confused, but the Emperor looked around and made an unexpected statement.

“Tomorrow, erase the golden dragon crests engraved on the armor of all knights and soldiers.”

“Yes!?”

Erase the golden dragon? It’s our symbol of the Empire!

Everyone in the tent was shocked. Only Galen, the Frostwind Magician, said, “Ah!” The Emperor looked at Galen, then spoke again.

“Do I have to say it twice? Execute it.”

“Yes!”

Everyone, even Galen, said ‘Yes!’ together.

The Emperor’s gaze turned back to Luchen.

“You are called Luchen?”

“Yes, yes, Your Majesty.”

“Your plan to burn their land was useful. You are a true Imperial.”

Luchen trembled all over at those words.

Luchen didn’t know the plan, but he knew the Emperor had one. This meeting was just to check if Luchen’s idea fit the plan.

*What if I said the wrong thing?* Luchen bowed quickly. He put his hand on his chest, feeling scared.

“D-It is an honor, Your Majesty.”

“Do you have any idea why I told you to erase the golden dragon crests?”

Luchen thought fast. The Emperor’s words, what he knew, and how Galen reacted – it all pointed to one thing. He wasn’t sure, but he quickly said the answer he thought was right.

“I-I think it’s a way to stop their magic defenses.”

“…Intelligent. And quick-witted.”

“T-Thank you, Your Majesty! But… what about stopping their powerful warriors?”

Luchen gasped. He realized he had questioned the Emperor! He quickly covered his mouth. Luckily, the Emperor seemed to like it.

The Emperor smiled.

“You have guts too.”

The Emperor, looking at the black knights lined up around him, had a smile on his face for the first time since entering the tent.

Luchen bowed, his face red. He guessed the black knights were the way to stop the powerful warriors.

“I will be watching you.”

One sentence from the Emperor made Luchen’s heart beat fast. It echoed in the tent.