The 9Th Class Swordmaster: Blade Of Truth [EN]: Chapter 294

199. Istria’s Three Kingdoms (1)

Dusyalla shook her head.

“Really… Are you creating things to surprise me now that there’s nothing left to be surprised about? Did you really cause trouble in Heim [likely referring to a place or organization]?”

Some people were gathered at the estuary of the Fournine River. According to regulations, they should have been blindfolded and guided by priests when leaving Heim, but no one could stop Khalil.

“For someone who caused such a thing, you seem to have a slight smile. Are you secretly enjoying this?”

“Well, I am. I didn’t expect you to strike a blow against not only the Imperial Prince but also the Order.”

“Does that mean it’s better than expected?”

“Yes, very much so.”

At Khalil’s words, Dusyalla chuckled and said,

“Keep an eye on that guy, Joey Johannsel. When I checked through Israfil, he wasn’t in the Order, so he’s probably carrying out other tasks.”

“Understood.”

Dusyalla nodded at his words.

‘It’s a shame the Order couldn’t reveal that Olivern is Wooden Cloud, as it’s a means to ensnare him later. I should have found out about the other person whose identity was unknown in the Crimson Cave.’

Khalil frowned as he thought about the unidentified person among the two Olivern had brought when investigating the cave.

‘I don’t know who that is, but there’s no one I particularly remember in the history I know.’

However, like Wooden Cloud, they were people who existed in the shadows of history, and the fact that Olivern had personally brought them was a concern for Khalil.

“A message has arrived stating that Kayla Chang of the Chang family has arrived in the Duchy.”

“That was fast.”

“Suhan was sailing the ship.”

Dusyalla shrugged, and Suhan, on the ship docked at the pier, let out a low sigh with a dissatisfied expression.

Knowing the meaning of that sigh, Khalil chuckled.

‘It seems like it’s time to send him to the Crimson Cave. It’s not good to deplete too much of our forces without Mikhail and Aidan, but if I delay any longer, Balbont will leave Tramel. I guess I have no choice but to let them meet.’

Since the Fist King Balbont hadn’t been involved in the Holy War in his past life, Khalil only knew one thing about his whereabouts.

That he was staying in Tramel, a ruin near the Crimson Cave.

After that, his whereabouts were unknown, so if he missed this opportunity, there might not be another chance.

“My Lord…”

Suhan Hazar seemed to notice something and stopped talking, closing his mouth.

“Are you tired of sailing the ship?”

“Haa… What’s the point of saying it.”

Seeing him speak as if he was sulking, unlike his large build, Khalil gestured to Israfil behind him.

“Suhan, I’m giving you a mission from now on. Go with Israfil to investigate the Crimson Cave. The timing should be right.”

“Timing?”

“Before going to the cave, if you stop by a place called Tramel, there will be an old man splitting a large rock.”

“An old man splitting a rock…?”

Suhan tilted his head slightly, unable to understand his words. He didn’t know the connection between investigating the cave and the old man.

“Yes, you’ve seen him before. The Fist King Balbont.”

“…?!!”

“Why is he in Tramel? And why is he splitting rocks there?”

Suhan asked back, seemingly surprised by his words.

“You’ll have to ask him that when you go. But you know why I’m sending you there.”

Thump—

Suhan clenched his fists.

“Finally…”

The gauntlet containing the power of the Azure Turtle Kalduan trembled, making a clear sound.

“I will learn all the essence of the Fist King.”

“You’re lucky that you’re not a formal disciple, but you’ve learned the Fist King’s stance. Let me give you some advice: you’re the only one who has mastered his Eight Stances besides the Fist King right now. And will be in the future.”

“Pardon?”

Khalil left behind strange words and patted him on the shoulder, saying,

“Get into his good graces. And in addition to obtaining his essence, it would be good if you could bring him back as well, if possible.”

“Y-You mean the Fist King?”

Suhan could only chuckle at Khalil’s nonchalant and bold words.

“Yes.”

Khalil nodded, seemingly already looking forward to the return of those who would come back changed.

From Aidan, who was sent to Simon Koden of the Eastern Kingdom, to Mikhail, who went to the Dawn Society, to Serica Lauren, who was being trained by the Spear King Dustin Philip, and now Suhan Hazar, who would be entrusted to the Fist King.

He entrusted his subordinates to those who could be said to be the best in their respective fields on the continent.

A preparation he couldn’t do in his past life.

They were strong enough back then, but now they would achieve several times more amazing accomplishments than he remembered.

‘The war with the Empire will definitely be more fierce than any war I’ve experienced so far. But I shouldn’t drag out the war with Olivern for too long.’

That’s why Khalil had been spreading talented individuals here and there like seeds.

Suhan was the same.

“Israfil, as you know, thanks to what we did in the Order, Olivern will be moving even faster as Wooden Cloud, even though he’s tied down as an Imperial Prince due to the Emperor’s death. And most of those actions will be aimed at us.”

“Understood.”

“Be careful. Suhan isn’t a Sword Master yet, but he’s capable enough to do his part. But since he’s dedicating time to Balbont, he won’t be able to perfectly protect you.”

“You don’t have to worry too much. I can protect myself.”

Khalil knew Israfil’s skills better than anyone else. He was one of the Ten of the Oracle, after all.

But the problem was his mindset.

The current Israfil didn’t have the sharpness of his past self, and although he had helped Khalil in the Order, he had never killed anyone, so even if he was skilled, he might make some mistakes in personal combat.

“Of course, but just in case, I’ll attach a few more people. Dusyalla, where are Kinu Mukari and Beykan right now?”

“Kinu Mukari has returned to the South with Miliana, but Beykan is still in the Three Kingdoms. He’s helping Princess Viola… no, the Duchess, with the Free Army.”

At Dusyalla’s words, Khalil frowned slightly.

“Are you saying the Three Kingdoms haven’t been sorted out yet?”

“When you went to Heim, Kayla Chang came to Tatur to give her final report before going to the Duchy. Lord Marze, called the Shield of Istan, joined her ranks and absorbed Twin Armor.”

“And? That place is the most important strategic point in the Three Kingdoms, so the outcome should have been decided quickly from the moment she took it.”

Khalil had received a report three months ago, when he lent her troops, that she would absorb Twin Armor.

Since the usefulness of Twin Armor was beyond words, Khalil had approved the plan.

Moreover, she had even added that she could withdraw all the Free Army if she wanted.

‘That must have meant that the balance of power in the Three Kingdoms had tilted that much. Why is it still holding Beykan back?’

Beykan was an excellent warrior.

He was like that in his past life, but he was truly blessed by the Earth Spirit, so Khalil entrusted him with the Free Army.

‘The only knights in the Three Kingdoms who can stand against him are the old veterans of Twin Armor… Moreover, there’s even Grace, who has begun to show signs of becoming a Sword Master.’

Khalil looked at Dusyalla, unable to understand.

“There’s no reason to be pushed back?”

“There hasn’t been a report about that yet. The settlement of the Three Kingdoms is a matter entrusted to Duchess Viola, so I haven’t said anything about it.”

“Hmm.”

He frowned slightly at Dusyalla’s words and said,

“Dusyalla, you know how troublesome this has become, right?”

She shrugged slightly and nodded.

“I was going to call Beykan, who is in the nearby Three Kingdoms… I can’t help it, but contact Kinu and have him escort Israfil. The Black Eyes tribe will be watching the situation in the Crimson Cave, so have them join as well.”

“Understood.”

“I was going to organize the forces in the North in preparation for the war with the Empire… I’ll have to go down there myself to see why it’s dragging on like this.”

The forces in the North were important, but he couldn’t leave the Istrian Three Kingdoms in a divided state.

The barbarians would never lend their strength to the Empire, but the Three Kingdoms were different.

If someone other than Viola took that position, it was obvious whose side they would take.

Khalil had to end the war with the Empire as quickly as possible in preparation for the Holy War.

In that sense, what was urgent was not the barbarians in the North, but the Three Kingdoms, where the war had turned into a protracted one for an unknown reason.

‘While I’m going down there, it wouldn’t be bad to clean up the Eastern Kingdom as well. It’ll also shorten the time to bring Aidan back.’

He twitched his lips as if he had organized his thoughts and nodded.

“Everyone can’t do without me, after all.”

He said, looking south.

* * *

It was night, but the moonlight was bright.

Thud— Thud— Thud—

“It’s been a while since I’ve moved alone.”

Khalil muttered in a low voice as he descended the stairs from the small Magic Association building with the teleportation magic circle.

It was a magic circle at the entrance to Twin Armor, which could be said to be the gateway to the Istrian Three Kingdoms.

“Hmm…”

After receiving Dusyalla’s report, he thought he should first hear about the current situation from the old veterans of Twin Armor.

[Khalil, I sense a large number of magical energies.]

Although he was alone, he had four heterogeneous beings within his mind, so he had forgotten the feeling of loneliness he had felt in his past life.

And as if answering the sentiment just now, Alrune’s voice was heard.

‘Yeah. I felt it too.’

Khalil hid behind a tree.

“Hurry! Hurry!”

“We must open the gates of the fortress by today.”

Although low, the voice was clear.

“…”

Without needing to hesitate, Khalil ran towards the sound.

“Cough…!!!”

Then, he threw a punch, and a suffocating, dull sound rang out.

“Who…!! Who is it!!”

“I want to ask you that.”

Khalil, who had suddenly appeared, struck the head of the soldier at the front.

Thwack—!!

The soldier slammed his face into the ground and lost consciousness without moving.

“That crazy bastard…!! Shoot!!”

The archers aimed their bows.

‘Hmm?’

Khalil felt that the bows they were holding were a bit unfamiliar. Not just simple bows, but crossbows. But not just any crossbows, he could feel magic power in the bowstrings.

They were magical tools that had once been sold to the Istrian Three Kingdoms.

‘Tsk, to think that the things I gave them to use in the Holy War later are being used like this.’

It was bait to win over the Three Kingdoms, but Khalil was dumbfounded that important resources were being consumed in this way.

‘What is Baron Beryl doing?’

Khalil had secretly ordered him to help Viola, as he had entrusted him with the coordination of the Three Kingdoms in the early stages along with the development of the Magic Mine.

Frankly speaking, without the attribute stones and magical tools provided by Baron Beryl, the power of the Three Kingdoms, which were weak countries in the first place, would have fallen to a negligible level.

Swish! Swish swish!!!

The arrows poured sharply towards Khalil.

But to him, who had crossed swords with the greatest swordsman on the continent just a few days ago, the arrows of mere soldiers were nothing more than a yawn.

Ting…! Tingting! Tingting!

Without even looking, Khalil waved his hand and caught all the incoming arrows.

“…!!!”

“You guys. Which affiliation are you from?”

“Cough…!! Ugh…!!”

Khalil strode over and grabbed the face of the nearest soldier.

“Ah, right.”

Looking at the soldier struggling without being able to answer, Khalil released the chin of the fallen soldier he had been holding.

“Ugh… Ughhh…”

But as if his jaw had already been shattered, he moved his mouth as if trying to answer while shedding tears, then crawled on the ground as if writhing in pain.

“Huff… Huff…”

At the sight of that, the remaining soldiers collapsed as if their legs had given out.

Some of them wet their pants, but they didn’t even notice it, trembling.

Khalil glanced at the soldiers and grabbed the crown of the head of the soldier who had fallen to the ground and gathered magic power.

Then, a faint light enveloped the soldier’s head, and his shattered jaw was completely healed.

“Answer the question quickly. Otherwise, I’ll not only break your jaw this time, but I’ll cut you in half so you can never speak again.”

“P-Please save me!!”

Clang—

Khalil grabbed an arrow that had fallen on the ground and stabbed it into the back of the soldier’s hand.

“Answer the question.”

“Aaaagh!!”

“I told you to answer first.”

Khalil was about to grab another arrow and stab it into the back of the soldier’s other hand.

Seeing that, the remaining soldiers thought that the reason he had healed his jaw was to make him scream on purpose.

“I-I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you everything!”

The soldier started to speak, trembling, with his face buried in the ground.

“W-We belong to the Three Kingdoms Alliance. Among them, we are the magic combat soldiers of Lord Hesser Mile, the eldest son of the Mile family. We are currently trying to recover Twin Armor…”

He said all the useful information he knew before Khalil even asked.

“Wait, the Three Kingdoms Alliance? What’s that?”

“Y-Yes, yes… It’s an alliance of the Istrian Three Kingdoms to strike the Viola Duchy.”

“This is driving me crazy…”

Khalil had expected it, but he didn’t think that he would join hands with the other two kingdoms to strike his own daughter, Viola.

‘What a moronic king. He’s clinging to others to survive and striking his daughter? It’s no wonder the Fenria Kingdom was the first to disappear in my past life.’

Khalil wondered if Viola was still dragging out the war because she couldn’t strike the King of Fenria due to her blood ties.

‘If that’s the case, she’s not a gem, but just a stone rolling on the street.’

Khalil clicked his tongue and said,

“Magic combat soldiers? They don’t seem to be worth the fancy name they’ve been given. Who’s leading the alliance right now? Is it the Mile family?”

“That’s…”

The soldier hesitated for a moment.

But when Khalil threw away the arrow he was holding and took out the Ice Claw from his waist, he widened his eyes so much that they almost popped out and shouted.

“I-It’s Lord Beryl!!”

“…What?”

At that moment,

Khalil doubted his ears.

“Did I hear wrong?”

“N-No! How dare I lie about something like that…!!”

The soldier trembled, looking at the blade of the Ice Claw that seemed about to fall towards his neck, and shouted in a trembling voice.

“Has this old man gone senile…”

Khalil rubbed his forehead.

“Haa, now I know why the war has been dragging on for so long. He may be rotten, but he’s still a genius of war?”

He coldly raised the corners of his lips.

“Rotten things must be removed.”