The Shadowed Legacy of the Soulless Messenger [EN]: Chapter 486

The soldiers’ morale was soaring. They had been on the verge of being separated from their families, but they had been spared, and they had witnessed the Emperor’s miracle firsthand. They had also seen proof that the New Testament the Emperor had promised was not just a lie but a reality. Their morale couldn’t help but rise. Just moments ago, they had felt like they were being led to a slaughterhouse, but now they were all voluntarily praising the Emperor and Empress and willingly heading to the battlefield.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Ismail apologized to Commander Lee Jeon, who had suddenly been cast as the villain.

“No, there’s no need to apologize. But how on earth did the Empress do that?”

“Actually, she wasn’t injured at all from the beginning. The whole thing about being attacked by assassins was a lie.”

“I know that. You deliberately ordered the soldiers to hunt them down like rats.”

Lee Jeon, while conscripting soldiers, had heard the Empress’s orders to intentionally harass people, so he knew this was a deliberate act. But the problem was what happened after that. When the Empress raised her sword, a light of dawn rose, and among the refugees, there were those who genuinely used white magic?

“We planted holy knights among the refugees beforehand to act as shills [people who pretend to be genuine to encourage others]. The light of the miracle is the light of royal authority. That was probably something the Emperor bestowed.”

“Ah, they were planted beforehand. Well, that makes sense. Still, it’s amazing. To pull off such an act so openly.”

Even though he had been fooled, Lee Jeon was rather impressed by Mideiam’s audacity. Azadin also used bluff and deception, but Mideiam was a step ahead of him. In many ways, Azadin was somewhat embarrassed about gaining people’s favor by selling miracles. Even though he knew it worked well, and he had used deception and trickery whenever necessary, there was a part of him that was inwardly reluctant. So, he wouldn’t take the final step. But Mideiam fearlessly took that final step that Azadin couldn’t.

“I wondered why His Majesty, who knows the path of a tyrant, married a woman of the messenger clan. Indeed, it was worth it. If an individual is that outstanding, then lineage doesn’t matter much.”

Ismail was displeased by Lee Jeon’s remark that dismissed Azadin and Mideiam’s marriage as a mistake, but on the other hand, he was also impressed. ‘I thought he was just a mercenary thug, but he’s smart. Well, I can tell by how he trains the soldiers as the commander. This guy is definitely not easy to deal with.’

Lee Jeon continued to ask questions.

“So, what about Asander?”

“We sent a message.”

“What about supplies? Can we feed these refugees?”

“We requested supplies from Asander. And the northern crops planted in Arangi, Banreung, and the Knights of Salvation territory are being harvested. Once that’s harvested, His Majesty will have some leeway.”

Currently, Azadin was expending a great deal of power to withstand the cold until the planted crops were harvested. But once they were harvested and the people were evacuated, he would reduce the area he had to protect from the cold, giving him some breathing room.

“Then we need to quickly defeat the Nagas and end this battle. It’s starting to look like we’re nearing the end, right? We will win.”

“Yes. If we can defeat the Nagas, that is.”

Ismail turned away, watching Lee Jeon, who was speaking with hope. Hope was spreading like wildfire. It was certainly a good thing, but… Could the Emperor and Empress, who had to bear the weight of this hope, really handle it? Ismail wondered about that.

*********

“It’s okay. Everything will be alright.”

Empress Mideiam was reassuring herself as she rode a sled alongside the soldiers. Although it was a staged performance, by proclaiming to the people that the New Testament was truly a genuine teaching and making them believe it, she was able to slightly reduce the burden on Azadin. However, the night was growing longer, and the cold was still fierce. Even now, protected by the light of royal authority, a gale was lashing the earth. Thanks to that, the sled was flying across the ground, but there were also many casualties and stragglers. Some sleds were breaking or overturning, causing people to fall out of formation. But instead of slowing down the march, Mideiam organized a rear guard to pick up those people, and she did not reduce the speed of the main force. Slowing down in this strong wind was actually more dangerous. As a result, the formation was becoming longer. If enemies appeared and launched a surprise attack, they could suffer great losses. It was a risky gamble. Fortunately, they were able to traverse to the trading city of the Chitai nomads, Kaspa, in a week without encountering any enemies. However, just before reaching Kaspa, the wind suddenly disappeared.

“Huh?”

“What is it?”

The wind that had been driving the sleds with such terrifying force suddenly stopped.

“Is the wind only cut off here?”

But it didn’t seem like it. Suddenly, the blizzard stopped, and the clouds disappeared. A clear, transparent sky suddenly spread out over the prairie. And one particularly bright star was shining in the night sky.

“Jupiter?”

Someone recognized the star. And the path that had been revealed by the disappearance of the blizzard was stained with blood. The residents of Kaspa had been massacred and hung on wagon wheels, and in the middle of the path made of their corpses, Sir Soke, the Death Knight, was riding on the back of an undead wyvern.

*********

While Emperor Azadin was leading the campaign against Chitai, the Southern Expeditionary Force led by Sir Ject and Sir Astader succeeded in destroying the floating islands of the mermen, collapsing the foundation for the mermen’s appearance in the southern sea routes. Having secured the southern sea routes, they were able to receive reinforcements and supplies from various places and focus all their efforts on the Nagas. The Nagas, descendants of the Naga Empire that once enslaved humanity, possessed overwhelming power and magic, so ordinary humans could not dare to be their rivals, and even veterans who had gained combat experience in battles with the mermen fell like autumn leaves before the Nagas. But Ject relentlessly sacrificed the lives of his soldiers. At the same time, he also used dark arts such as necromancy and Nether magic, so no matter how great the Nagas were, they had no choice but to continue strategic retreats. Moreover, the holy knights of the New Testament were beginning to stand out more and more. As those who believed in Azadin’s New Testament and used white magic appeared, many of the refugee soldiers who had been thrown into battle with the resolve to be sacrificed were returning alive. Eventually, the Nagas gave up the old Butuma territory and retreated into their old cities located in the jungle: Nagasra, Nagasrin, and Nagabandu. They relied on the walls of these three cities for defense. Ject and Astader were using the restored Butuma Palace as their headquarters, receiving supplies through the port and reorganizing their forces. The victory of humanity was near.

*********

“Ah, yes. Amazing. Indeed, His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress, very excellent.”

Sir Ject, who was in charge of the southern front, clapped his hands absentmindedly when he heard the rumors that Empress Mideiam had appointed refugees as holy knights of the New Testament and performed miracles.

“It’s a winning battle. Long live the new Emperor…”

Ject’s eyes were not smiling at all as he said that. Ject was currently requisitioning one of the wealthy merchant mansions in Butuma as his residence. It was a residence where he would stay while resting the soldiers and reorganizing the units after the continuous battles. By Ject taking over the merchant mansion and Astader taking over the Butuma Palace, the positions of Ject and Astader were implicitly revealed. No matter how much Ject had contributed on the battlefield, he could not be made the commander-in-chief of the army because he used dark arts. The commander-in-chief was Astader, the King of Tarasar, and Ject received a separate residence as his adjutant. And inside that temporary residence, a group of elves had entered.

“We heard that the General… was promised the throne of Butuma by His Majesty.”

Those who called themselves elven merchants had come to see Ject. Half of these elves had sharp vertical pupils, and Ject knew that they were not real elves but Nagas disguised as elves.

“Hmm? Where did you hear that? That sounds like a rather blasphemous statement?”

“We apologize. We overstepped our bounds.”

“And it’s not Butuma, it’s Korasar.”

“Ah, was it Korasar?”

“Yes.”

“Then the General will soon be crowned King of Korasar. Congratulations in advance.”

“……”

“Among the soldiers, those with the right faith are awakening as holy knights, and all the kingdoms of humanity have been unified into one, so His Majesty the Emperor’s achievements will truly be remembered in history, and Your Excellency, who is a meritorious subject, will become the King of Korasar, so there will be endless joy.”

“I suppose so.”

Ject’s face was not smiling at all as he answered.

“So, why did you come? Traitors? If you’re hoping for a petition from me, you’ll have to bring something more valuable than common flattery.”

Ject turned a smiling face towards the elves. His face was smiling, but a chilling coldness made it seem like he would cut the elves down at any moment.

“General. The Nagas are considering surrender.”

“Surrender?”

Ject was startled when the unexpected word came from the elves’ mouths.

“Yes. In this state, they cannot guarantee the survival of their race. Hoping for the mercy of His Majesty the Emperor, they wish to offer Nagasrin and Nagabandu, two of their cities, to His Majesty and be granted autonomy for only Nagasra. They wish to surrender under those conditions.”

“…………”

Ject was shocked by those words. The Nagas had been pushed out of the Butuma territory and into the jungle, but the Nagas who remained now were mostly the truly powerful Naga nobles. They were definitely not easy enemies. But those guys were giving up the fight and surrendering? It was surprising, even if it was to maintain the Naga race. A race that once raised humans as food was bowing its head to humans and surrendering? Of course, hardliners might still insist on annihilating the Nagas at this opportunity, but… the Emperor would probably accept the Nagas’ surrender. The war would end. Azadin would achieve an eternal feat on this land as Emperor, and Ject, if he was not betrayed, would become the King of Korasar and be rewarded for his past hardships. It was definitely good news, but… Ject felt like there was a hole in the middle of his chest. Was this how it was going to end? The era of chaos would end with that messenger clan youth, the one called a soulless blasphemer, becoming Emperor, and Ject, who had submitted to him, would become the King of Korasar. That was certainly a happy ending enough to decorate the end of a children’s storybook, but. Ject was not happy at all. Or, come to think of it, had he ever been happy? Ject suddenly asked the elves.

“What if, despite all that, the surrender is not accepted? Do you have a plan?”

“Then the Nagas will use this sword, which they obtained from the Nether gods by sacrificing 10,000 of their lives.”

The elves said that and showed a sword. It was a strange object to call a sword. A black liquid was forming the shape of a sword and rippling.