Surviving As The 5Th Prince Of Hellman Kingdom [EN]: Chapter 104

104

It wasn’t long after Lucas began a serious conversation with Milroa when the sound of footsteps approaching the cabin made them pause.

It was obvious who it was.

Knock, knock.

“Your Highness, it’s Alfonso.”

Alfonso had been managing the crew in the situation room with Adol, Vernon, and Berok, ensuring no one knew Lucas was on the airship.

“What is it?”

“We’ll be arriving at the royal capital, Barona, soon.”

“Already?”

The average speed of the Black Wyvern is about 100 kilometers per hour. When the boosters are fully engaged, it exceeds 200 kilometers per hour.

Indeed, an airship is the best means of transportation, except for the fuel consumption, which is like burning money in the sky.

“Okay. Tell the captain to dock briefly in a deserted area.”

“Understood.”

Shortly after, the Black Wyvern dropped Lucas and Milroa off on a suitable hillside and landed at the palace’s hangar.

Stepping onto the ground, I checked the time.

‘5 PM.’

I wanted to run to bed and rest immediately because I had overexerted myself sparring with Lucas.

However.

I had asked Genie, the librarian at the [Royal Library], to immediately inform me of any important special information related to the southern rebellion.

「The Runtia Duchy’s knights are scheduled to depart tomorrow to wipe out the rebel forces that have seized Lonswell Castle.」

A notification message appeared in my vision as if asking if I dared to think about going to bed in this situation.

A sigh escaped, and my expression naturally soured.

“Alfonso, tell Clian and Julian to come to my office quickly.”

“Understood!”

***

Southern Lionel Kingdom.

Lonswell, in the Runtia Duchy.

A man guarded the front from the castle walls, holding a bow.

Jubar Hines.

A former hunter rescued by the Tri-Color Cane [a benevolent organization] from the hell created by Radwan Runtia.

He had shot an arrow into the heart of Baron Lirus’s good-for-nothing second son, who was the spark of the southern rebellion, and eventually came to Lonswell seeking a place to die.

Jubar, who had been watching the front, suddenly grinned.

He had survived twice in the Asura field [a battlefield] where he should have died. The scent of death was faintly wafting from beyond the castle walls.

‘Am I finally going to die today?’

The thought made him smile.

“Jubar, why are you suddenly smiling so creepily?”

A colleague who was yawning and standing guard with Jubar was startled by the sight. It was the first time he had seen Jubar smile.

“It’s nothing.”

“You’re being silly.”

Jubar glanced back at him as he turned his gaze back to the front.

He had said that he didn’t have any family like himself.

He had vaguely heard the story of how he lost his wife early and raised his only daughter preciously… but he didn’t ask for details. It was obvious that it would be a question that would dig into his wounds.

About an hour later.

Jubar saw dust rising in the distance. At the same time, a very strong scent of death stimulated his sense of smell.

‘They’ve finally come.’

The mounted knights quickly reached a position where they could be seen with the naked eye.

The knights stopped, maintaining their formation. A middle-aged knight on a white horse approached the castle walls.

It was the commander of the Runtia Knights.

“Open the gates! If you disband now and return to your livelihoods, I will spare the lives of everyone except the leaders! If you refuse, you will all be killed!”

A voice that echoed loudly because he used magic.

Jubar and the rebel army scoffed as soon as they heard his demand for surrender. Those with bows simultaneously placed arrows on their bowstrings.

Everyone here was a leader.

They had resolved to end their lives by being pierced by a knight’s sword and burned by a mage’s flames.

Swish, swish— Swishhhhhh—

The commander of the Runtia Knights, who had ordered the disbandment, hardened his expression as he saw the rain of arrows pouring down on him.

He recalled Duke Moria, who had ordered him before the expedition.

– If they do not surrender, do not leave even an ant alive inside the castle.

– Are you really saying to kill them all?

– They dare to shout slogans demanding my punishment, right? I’m so speechless. If you trample them over and over again, they will realize their place.

Duke Moria, unable to overcome his anger after being thoroughly defeated by the Fifth Prince at the hearing, confined himself to the lord’s castle. Addicted to alcohol and drugs, he did not know the atmosphere of the scene.

The commander of the Runtia Knights gritted his teeth and drew his sword, drawing a circle towards the rain of arrows pouring down on him.

Woong— Woong—

Strands of mana intertwined to create a large shield.

Thud— Thud thud— Crack.

Not a single arrow could penetrate the shield.

‘In the end, it’s come to this.’

The commander of the Runtia Knights, raising his magic power.

Gooooooo.

A translucent gray aura bloomed on his sword.

“Aura!”

“A 6-star knight!”

“Is that the commander of the Runtia Knights!”

The rebel army on the castle walls stirred.

However, that was all.

No one surrendered or trembled. Most of them bared their teeth and laughed, saying that it was finally time to die.

“Runtia Knights! Charge!”

The commander of the Runtia Knights, shouting loudly, spurred his horse towards the castle gates. He intended to break down the gates at once using his aura.

Castle gates that had not been reinforced by the magic of mages were like paper doors in front of a knight’s charge wrapped in aura.

“Chaaaaaarge!”

The knights who shouted slogans following him spurred their horses all at once.

A single 5-star knight could massacre 1,000 ordinary people alone. Moreover, the commander of the Runtia Knights was a 6-star knight.

The only ending for the rebel army trapped inside the walls of Lonswell was death.

Doo-doo-doo-doo.

The ground rumbled as if there was an earthquake.

The scene of the castle gates being shattered into pieces was conjured in Jubar’s mind as he watched the spectacle.

At that moment!

Shwaaaang— Kwaaaang!

A magic cannon, threatening even to a 6-star knight, fell on the path of the Runtia Knights commander at the very front.

“Stop immediately!”

And someone’s voice, like thunder, pierced everyone’s ears.

“An airship!!”

“That, that’s!”

“The Golden Dragon!”

The Lionel Kingdom’s only large airship, the Golden Dragon, which scattered brilliant gold in the sunlight, revealed its appearance.

“There’s another one!”

Someone shouted, discovering Evan’s personal airship, the Black Wyvern, hidden in the shadow of the Golden Dragon.

“It’s real!”

“Black?”

The knights charging towards the castle gates and the rebel army firing arrows from the castle walls all stopped their actions.

The Golden Dragon, lowering its altitude in the center of both sides.

Swoosh—

One person jumped from a height that would be suicidal for ordinary people.

The eyes of the Runtia Knights commander widened as he confirmed his face.

“The First Prince?”

It was Lucas.

“I am! The kingdom’s First Prince, Lucas Lionel! I ask that both sides listen to me for a moment!”

***

The Black Wyvern alone boasts fuel consumption that burns money in the sky. What about the Golden Dragon, which is five times its size?

It would be accurate to describe it as flying around scattering gold bars. It’s not for nothing that it only flies for a very short time during national events.

Bringing such a Golden Dragon down to Lonswell was easier than I thought.

All it took was the king’s urgent approval.

Lucas and I simultaneously requested permission to use the Golden Dragon, and there was no way he could refuse.

He even said he would come along.

I naturally refused.

“Hmm… Fortunately, there are no idiots doing useless things.”

Fran muttered from the deck of the Black Wyvern, next to me, looking at the rebel army on the castle walls.

If there were any rebels firing arrows at Lucas’s request to listen to him for a moment, she was planning to take action.

“Wouldn’t they be curious? The kingdom’s First Prince suddenly appears on an airship and says he has something to say.”

“That’s true.”

“Still, just in case, I’m counting on you.”

This time, I relied on Fran’s recognition and asked her to accompany me.

She was capable of constructing a mental landscape that enforced her established laws over a wide area, not limited to a single individual.

Whether my sincerity in reducing the sacrifice of meaningless people worked, she came along without much complaint.

“Ah! Fran, please make sure that the conversations taking place around Lucas can be heard by everyone.”

“You always ask for so much.”

I slyly avoided Fran’s glare and glanced at the person watching Lucas from the deck of the Golden Dragon.

‘Gallard Lyon.’

The commander of the Azure Lion Knights. The 7-star knight was watching Lucas intently with his arms crossed. He felt my gaze and looked at me briefly.

I nodded slightly in greeting.

He flinched for a moment, reluctantly returned the greeting, and immediately turned his head back towards Lucas.

Even if it wasn’t Fran, as long as Gallard was there, nothing dangerous would happen to Lucas’s safety.

‘By someone else’s hand, that is.’

I watched Lucas’s performance with my magic-enhanced vision.

***

The commander of the Runtia Knights opened his mouth towards Lucas, who was standing alone between the rebel army and the knights.

“How did the First Prince, who should be in the royal palace, come to be here?”

“I heard that you received orders to annihilate those in Lonswell Castle.”

“How did you know that!”

“I know that there are hardly any magic awakeners beyond those castle walls. Nearly 10,000 of the kingdom’s people are about to lose their lives in vain, so how could I idly confine myself to the royal palace? Turn your horses around.”

The commander of the Runtia Knights was perplexed as to how to accept this situation. He frowned deeply and was lost in thought before he soon opened his mouth.

“Wait, just wait a moment. Adjutant!”

A knight approached the commander of the Runtia Knights as he called for his adjutant.

“Bring the mage.”

“Understood.”

The adjutant turned his horse and rode away.

The commander of the Runtia Knights turned his gaze to the two airships floating in the sky. He saw what he had missed because his mind was focused on the First Prince.

‘The Fifth Prince? Fran? And even Commander Gallard…’

It was clear that they had come to prevent the massacre of the rebel army. If the magic cannons of the two airships were to fire, the Runtia Knights would be annihilated.

While he was sweating as he imagined such a situation, the adjutant returned with the mage.

“Commander! I’ve brought the mage.”

“Mage, is it possible to communicate with the Duke from here?”

“I will try.”

The mage placed a magic tool about the size of a child and began to operate it.

And after a while.

“Commander! It’s connected!”

「…Chzz… Chzz… What’s going on that you’re contacting me with an emergency code, Knight Commander?」

Moria Runtia’s voice, like scraping metal, flowed from the magic tool.

Before the commander of the Runtia Knights could open his mouth, Lucas preempted him.

“Let me tell you, Duke Moria.”

His voice, amplified as if speaking into a megaphone thanks to the magic Fran had manifested.

「…Prince Lucas? What brings you there?」

It was naturally safely transmitted to Moria through the communication magic tool.

“Please withdraw the Runtia Knights who were dispatched to Lonswell.”

「…This is a problem that occurred within the Runtia Duchy. Even if it is His Majesty the King, he does not have the authority to restrict military activities within my territory. Frankly, I am a little displeased.」

“If you suppress the people of Lonswell with force, it will be irreversible. Moreover, Evan, the 8-star mage Fran, and I, along with Commander Gallard of the Azure Lion Knights, are here to prevent the massacre. Withdraw the Runtia Knights.”

「Ha… Irreversible, you say! Those bug-like things dare to try to bite their master! Kill them, kill them! And kill them again so that they can never rebel again!」

As Moria’s remarks became increasingly intense, the commander of the Runtia Knights intervened.

“Duke! The Fifth Prince’s side has amplified the conversation so that everyone can hear it. Please moderate your tone a little…”

「Knight Commander, do you think I wouldn’t have guessed that? There will be no withdrawal. As I said before, military activities within the territory are the inherent authority of the lord that even His Majesty the King cannot infringe upon. Finish what you were told to do and come back. I’ll end the communication now…」

“The lords! Will never turn their backs on Evan!”

Lucas shouted, interrupting Moria’s words.

「…What does that mean?」

“I understand now. As long as I! As long as I exist, the suffering of the kingdom’s people will only fester more and more!”

「Prince Lucas?」

Moria’s voice was filled with anxiety.

Lucas turned his back and looked at the castle walls of Lonswell.

“Beloved people of the kingdom. Please disband. I! Lucas Lionel, from this day forward, renounce my succession to the throne! And I promise to hand over everything I can give to my brother Evan Lionel!”

「Prince Lucas!!」

It was a moment.

Sreung-

Lucas drew his sword.

Puk—

The white blade pierced through his back.

“Cough, cough!”

A silence flowed as if time had stopped.

“He stabbed himself?”

“I, is it real?”

“Your Highness!!”

Soon, the people began to stir in shock.