Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 432

“Van Johnny?!”

“Yes. A superhuman with that name killed Balton Krassen and upset the balance of the Western Front. He’s already earned nicknames like the Calamity-Spreading Dwarf and the Evil Sword.”

“Huh, that guy…?”

Damian tilted his head, noticing Logan seemed to know something about the newly emerged superhuman.

“Do you know who he is?”

“No, no. I just heard rumors.”

Heard rumors?

The Empire was also surprised by the sudden appearance of this superhuman.

However, Damian had been surprised by his lord’s intelligence many times, so he no longer questioned it.

He continued with what he wanted to say.

“Because of that, the Imperial Army is recklessly advancing west, without even solving the supply issues for the Ascerian troops.”

“The Empire must be suffering greatly.”

“Yes. It’s a good thing for us.”

“…Indeed.”

Even with Damian’s words, Logan couldn’t easily continue; his expression was complex.

‘Evil Sword Van Johnny. In the previous life’s Grandia War, he was an unaffiliated superhuman who worked for the Imperial Army. But this time, he’s attacking the Empire?’

In his previous life, it wasn’t until long after he became famous that it was revealed he came from the underworld. Therefore, it could be assumed that he, a back-alley dweller hoping for success, offered his loyalty to the Empire as a means to that end.

But why now…?

‘Is it because the Empire looks like it’s going to lose?’

The thought that suddenly occurred to him seemed believable at first, but Logan couldn’t help but shake his head.

No matter what the ten nations of the West thought, the Empire still had the upper hand in terms of military power.

Even though the Imperial Central Army, which had been defeated at McLaine, had lost more than half its soldiers, combining them with the Western Legion would easily surpass the total military strength of the ten Western nations. Moreover, considering the number of superhumans, the quality of equipment, the soldiers’ training level, and supplies, the difference widened even further.

And a criminal thought he’d side with the losing side and become a hero?

“That can’t be…”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

He still remembered the evil deeds the man had committed in his previous life.

A typical petty man who was overly nice to the strong and endlessly cruel to the weak.

He was even a shameless person who didn’t hesitate to show disrespect to corpses in the middle of the battlefield.

Because of that terrible personality and criminal record, he couldn’t receive an official title despite helping the Empire win, and he had to be satisfied with dominating the underworld of the kingdom.

If such a notorious criminal were rampaging on this side, he would catch and kill him on the spot, but if he was an enemy of the Empire…

‘I’ll let you live until you catch my eye, Van Johnny.’

It seemed better not to worry about him for the time being.

“…When would be a good time for our deployment?”

“The best time would be the moment the Imperial Army clashes with the ten nations of the West.”

Damian’s eyes sparkled as he said those words.

The eastern part of the Empire, where the Central Army had disappeared, and the western border of the kingdom.

The existing 8th Eastern Legion of the Empire had its strength reduced to less than half, and most of its legion commanders, who were superhumans, had been lost.

In other words, it was a great opportunity for McLaine.

And Damian was aiming for one more thing.

“The Empire probably can’t even imagine that we would take the initiative to strike them.”

“That’s right.”

That was because the Empire wasn’t the only one that had suffered damage.

As the Empire’s defeat became certain, the allied forces of the small kingdoms were preparing to return, and McLaine’s 5th Legion had also suffered so much damage that it had to be reorganized into almost three legions.

The damage to the Self-Defense Forces was almost the same scale in Kyle Castle alone, so the people who had lost their families must still be shedding tears.

‘It’s just buried in a cheering atmosphere.’

Moreover, that victory was widely known to be due to the effects of equipment and the Great Magic Circle.

In that situation, even the people of McLaine would not expect them to come out of the castle and attack the Empire.

“If we use the Self-Defense Forces, too many people will die.”

“That’s right. Therefore, we must quickly occupy key locations with the elite forces of the legion and capture Lusphelheim and Penna. In the process, we will crush the Eastern Legions as well.”

Damian’s words sounded like an unreasonable order at first glance. It was about attacking a bigger army with a smaller one to take more land.

However, neither Damian, who was speaking, nor Logan, who was listening, thought it was impossible.

“It would be possible after I and Master have fully recovered.”

“Yes. I will also prevent the withdrawal of the Kingdom Alliance by making another excuse. However, the concern is that the time it will take for the Imperial Central Army to participate in the Western Front will be within a month at the latest…”

Damian’s worried gaze turned to Logan’s white hair and pale face. He was worried that this side’s leader would not fully recover by then.

“…There’s nothing to worry about. I’ll recover by then. No, I must recover.”

Logan stroked his hair, which was slowly regaining its red color, and his eyes gleamed.

It wasn’t an exaggeration.

For some reason, many of the cracks that had formed in the Force Core had healed while treating his master, so the recovery speed was faster than expected. Perhaps, in the process of taking risks to treat his master, he had unknowingly glimpsed even a little of the realm beyond.

‘If I could only feel that sensation again…’

He felt like he could gain power that would make even the Emperor no longer fearful. He felt like he could also heal Clayton, who seemed like he would never open his eyes again.

Of course, it was still vague, but it wasn’t entirely impossible. The only problem was that he couldn’t take such a risk right now.

‘Someday…’

Logan sighed softly, thinking of his friend who was still unconscious.

“Then, are the only variables the Cassel Magic Tower and the Holy Kingdom?”

“Yes. Judging from the rumors, it seems that Lord Harman and Lord Viktor have handled things properly.”

Could they have handled it more than properly?

Not only was the Saintess missing, but rumors had spread that the Black Serpent was behind it. It was truly an unexpected gain.

“Because of that, it seems that the two variables are intertwined and will not affect the war.”

The Holy Kingdom chasing the Black Serpent, and the Cassel Magic Tower, which had to avoid the Holy Kingdom’s pursuers while being wanted on the continent.

It was something that McLaine could only welcome.

“Right. If I had known things would turn out this way, I would have told them to blame it on the Empire instead.”

“…That would be too much. No one would have believed it.”

“I’m just kidding, kidding. I’m just saying that things might have been easier if that had happened.”

Damian chuckled at Logan’s joke.

In the first place, it was a near miracle that the mission was carried out safely. But on top of that, there were even rumors that the Black Serpent was involved.

Wishing for more than that could be said to be greedy.

“There hasn’t been any particular contact yet, but Lord Viktor, if not Lord Harman, will be on his way back. Let’s wait a little longer. Isn’t he the ‘Immortal Knight’?”

“They also call him the Slaughterer. Well, a knight who kills well and never dies can’t be bad. Viktor, that nickname is quite enviable.”

Logan also laughed and responded to Damian’s joke.

A few days later.

That Immortal Knight appeared in Kyle Castle, carrying a woman on his back, nearly dead.

– Lord Viktor! You can’t do this……!

– St, stop him!

– How can we stop him!

Logan frowned. Loud noise from outside his office broke the quiet. It was rare for such a disturbance to reach him. He was the king, a hero of war, and people almost treated him like a god. This constant praise was not just annoying, it was too much to handle. In a strange way, he was almost glad for the noise.

Besides, he recognized the voice in the commotion. It was Viktor.

Why was Viktor here? He should have been back at the southern fortress after his mission.

As Logan wondered this, the door crashed open.

A very thin figure stumbled in, carrying someone on his back and swaying with each step.

“Y-Your Majesty… Please, save this person! I beg you!”

The thin figure almost fell, but he held onto the woman he carried.

Hearing the desperate voice, Logan realized who it was.

“Ha!? Viktor!? What on earth happened!?”

The knights who rushed in after him stood awkwardly, unsure what to do. Viktor looked like he was made of skin stretched over bones and seemed out of his mind, repeating the same words.

“P-Please, save her, Your Majesty… Please…”

Logan looked at the brown-haired woman on Viktor’s back, and his face grew serious.

‘…A corpse? No, not quite. There’s still a faint trace of a soul. But this is…’

The woman wore simple clothes.

She was quite beautiful, but her brown hair didn’t make her stand out too much.

Logan was sure the woman’s eyes were also brown. He felt a strong, familiar magical aura.

A woman Viktor might bring at this time.

And if she needed a disguise?

‘Could it be…?’

Logan grimaced, his head suddenly throbbing, and he gestured behind Viktor.

“That’s enough. Leave us.”

“Y-Yes!?”

“A-Alright.”

The knights exchanged glances, bowed quickly, and left. The large door scraped as it closed.

Whoosh.

At Logan’s gesture, an artifact, small and silver, like the royal badges worn by messengers, floated out of the woman’s grasp. At the same time, her features changed, and her brown hair turned bright silver.

Watching this, Logan gritted his teeth.

“Indeed… Bloody hell.”

Logan pushed aside his own feelings about Ilia. The situation was very serious.

The missing Pope is in Maclane. And she’s almost dead.

If such rumors got out, the Empire couldn’t be conquered, and the Holy State would be furious.

‘No, it would be a blessing if only the Holy State attacked. The Empire, and even the small kingdom alliance, might turn against us too…’

The thought made his headache worse.

“Damn it, what were you thinking…?”

Viktor just kept repeating the same words with a crazy look, even though Logan scolded him.

“Y-Your Majesty… Save her, please save her.”

What had happened in the Holy State?

Why would someone as smart and realistic as Viktor do something so reckless?

Many questions popped up, but he couldn’t leave Viktor, who looked like he was about to cry—no, whose tears had already dried—to deal with it alone.

“Your Majesty, please…”

“Haa… Alright, Viktor. Get some rest.”

“Yes… Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you…”

Viktor collapsed, finally looking relieved.

But even unconscious, he still looked worried.

“Until your life force is depleted… You fool, why…?”

Logan sighed without thinking, but he knew why Viktor was in such bad shape.

‘He must have been constantly giving his Force to Ilia’s body. And considering how far it is from Noviens to here…’

He must have run non-stop, without any sleep.

It was a miracle. No, it was impossible for anyone but Viktor.

But that still didn’t explain why he had brought the Saintess, in such a state, all the way to him.

“…I believe there must be a reason, Viktor.”

If not, he’d better be ready to be half-dead when he woke up.

Logan muttered to himself and started to use his Force.

Whoosh.

Ilia’s life force was fading because she was losing her soul. If she didn’t get more life force soon, she would die.

But he wasn’t fully healed yet, and it would be too much for him to keep giving her his power…

[To the office, immediately.]

He told his wife and Victoria to come. They could adjust the soul’s resonance and help her.

It was now easy to send his thoughts to those within 500 meters of his office. He understood why people said Aura Masters were tactical geniuses.

If he could spread such soul resonance to allies without wasting power…

‘He could move a large army like his own limbs, without needing flags, magic, or words.’

That’s why he was confident he could fix the Imperial Army even with a small force.

Logan imagined these hopeful things and put the disguise artifact back in Ilia’s hand.

Whoosh.

She soon looked like she did when she arrived.

It was a secret that Saintess and Pope Ilia Gabonn was here. He had to keep the transformation magic on her.

A little later.

Eileen and Victoria rushed over and were shocked to see Viktor collapsed.

“Logan! What happened?!”

“…Sir Viktor… is he alright?”

“Viktor is fine. He’s just exhausted. The problem is her.”

The two women looked at the unfamiliar woman next to Viktor.

They still looked confused.

He couldn’t tell anyone, but Ilia needed them to know so she could recover.

Logan sighed and took out the badge again to undo the magic.

“Saintess Ilia!?”

Seeing their shock, Logan explained Viktor’s mission and what had happened.

Luckily, they weren’t too surprised that the gods and the Apostle were against him.

Was it because he had told them about Jibrik Cassel and the Nine Gods? Or did they just trust him that much?

‘…Probably both.”

Logan felt proud, even though it wasn’t the right time. The two women quickly reacted to the Saintess.

“But why…?”

Eileen looked confused, like Logan, but Victoria was different.

“…Logan must have had his reasons. If we can save her…”

Logan sighed again.