What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 673

The Sub-Male Lead Goes on Strike – Episode 673 (673/920)

#673

The Pilgrim’s Journey (2)

Ten minutes prior, at the Puppeteer’s Pilgrim’s Journey.

Atop a certain watchtower.

-Whooooosh······

-Kugugugung······

‘Clang, clang, clang, clang······’ The resolute footsteps of tens of thousands of soldiers gradually echoed at the entrance to the Pilgrim’s Journey.

Dead grass and shallow ponds trembled, turning completely blue.

The dark clouds hanging in the canyon sky seemed unable to bear their weight and had already dispersed. Lifeless, greenish lightning occasionally grazed the ground before disappearing.

Between the rough cliffs, where light and warmth couldn’t reach, thick snow remained frozen in patches.

The ancient stone mountains were extremely sharp and steep, making them impossible to climb with bare hands.

‘The Forge Forsaken by God.’ This place was a land of shade and shadow.

-Step, step, step, step······!

“······.”

Right at that apex, Elysee Venetian, concealing her shining golden hair beneath a low hood, was looking down at the ground.

Soldiers with frostbitten hands gathered around her in small groups, seeking warmth.

In the distance, the flags of the Liester Empire and the blood-red imperial crest fluttered like warnings.

-Thud, thud, thud······

Following them, the figures of the Emperor and the commanders assisting her were spotted.

The watchtower was excessively high, and due to the wind blowing from above, it was difficult to sense the enemy’s presence.

However, Elysee knew that this ominous tremor was the most certain sign of battle.

‘Squeak.’ Her grip tightened on the golden spear.

Kim, Kuman, and the common soldiers following her were mostly hidden in the lower cliffs, preparing for ground warfare.

Everyone was holding their breath, waiting for the Crown Princess’s signal. It was truly imminent.

If only the Imperial Army would enter the heart of the Pilgrim’s Journey as they were······.

“What will Your Highness do when the war is over?”

Flinch.

“······What?”

Elysee, who had been melting into the shadows, sharply raised her blue eyes.

Her keen gaze turned to the woman nearby.

A figure wearing a flower crown on her head, not even wearing armor, sitting barefoot, came into view.

Adriana Albina, the Margrave of Venetian Theocracy, and the Cardinal of Earth Attribute [a high-ranking religious figure associated with earth magic]······.

“I’m thinking of seriously taking up farming. I’ll make a garden in the castle and plant some flowers and saplings in the spare land. I don’t intend to use the power given by the Lord God at all.”

“······I see.”

She was the one who betrayed her longtime friend, King Christan, and was publicly known to be a follower of Wilhelmina Schneider.

However, no one could read her true intentions due to her innocent tone and somewhat eerie expression.

No one knew why she had turned her back on the King or why she followed Duke Schneider.

Even in Elysee’s childhood memories, she was ‘an adult who suddenly disappeared.’

The Margrave was an opponent with surprisingly little information.

“Easy things aren’t fun, right? It’s better to see and taste what I cultivate with my own hands. When the war is over, I have to start a new life.”

“······.”

“Ah, Your Highness should too, of course.”

Adriana turned to the Crown Princess with her uniquely clear eyes.

Elysee frowned, but the Margrave continued to speak.

The young knights blinked, watching the middle-aged woman’s theatrical gestures.

“You have to throw away old cards, cards that are too worn to use, don’t you think?”

“······What do you mean by that?”

“The Church of the Lord God is outdated, Your Highness. Venetian needs new beliefs and new ideas. You know that very well, yet you ask.”

In a battlefield on the verge of explosion, it was an inappropriate remark to make to the supreme leader leading the national army.

As Elysee stared at her expressionlessly, Adriana wiggled her toes and smiled.

‘Clang, clang, clang······!’ It was a scene that didn’t match the increasingly close sound of the Imperial Army’s swords and spears.

The Crown Princess felt a strange chill as she looked down at the enemies surging like waves.

······What is it?

‘This Wilhelmina Schneider will offer the victory of the Pilgrim’s Journey to Your Noble Highness.’

What on earth is this premonition?

“How far can an old religion go? Or is it not so?”

Where is the source of this lingering ember that hasn’t died down for days?

“······It doesn’t seem like an appropriate topic to discuss now. And you’ve chosen the wrong opponent.”

“I heard that most of Your Highness the Crown Princess’s connections in the Papal States have cut off contact. Those nasty people who turned to the Empire without knowing gratitude.”

“Margrave Albina.”

“The old holiness has been defiled for a long time, Your Highness. So what good are their sermons? They’re filthy and outrageous······.”

“The enemies are entering the operation zone. You go to the Duke of the right watchtower. You deliver the message to Count Roy.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

Several knights followed Elysee’s orders and dashed down the narrow, steep cliff.

Since this side was backlit to the Imperial Army entering the mouth of the Pilgrim’s Journey, most of the cardinals were stationed on one slope.

In the vast battlefield, Adriana’s ankles fluttered as she wore a dress alone.

The conversation from a few days ago kept stirring in the Crown Princess’s mind.

‘If you have nothing to report to me regarding the utility of the soldiers, what about the reconnaissance aircraft?’

‘Ah. That’s right. I sent several to observe the recent situation of the Imperial Army.’

······She gritted her teeth and shook her head. The Margrave hummed to herself as if singing a song.

“Now we must welcome a new god suitable for the new era. Or is it not so?”

“Venetian―!”

Finally, the voices of the two cardinals crossed, and Elysee’s shout overwhelmed and tore through the air.

At the same time as her golden holy spear pierced the sky, thousands and tens of thousands of shouts poured into the canyon like a burst dam.

Far away, the soldiers ambushing on the ground grabbed their old weapons and rushed out like a tide.

The Imperial Army’s ranks quickly pointed their weapons forward and assumed a defensive posture.

Elysee’s blue eyes engraved the point of their collision in her mind like the eyes of a raptor. Three, two ahead······.

“Waaaaaaa······!”

“Yaaaaaaa······!”

One―

-Kwaaaaaang!

“Kuh!”

The Crown Princess’s body swayed greatly from the unexpected impact.

Then, the watchtower roof vibrated as if it would collapse, and the floor shook madly from side to side.

It was truly an enormous force and a perfect unexpected situation.

Sharp screams also erupted from the ground.

-Kugugugu······!

“Uhhh! Is it an earthquake?!”

“Uwaaaa······!”

“Be careful! Everyone grab the ropes! The ground is shaking!”

Elysee immediately raised her voice and stood her ground.

At that moment, Adriana’s gentle voice pierced through the chaos and stabbed into her ears.

Before she knew it, she was holding a jet-black dahlia flower in her hand.

“The children who believe in Your Highness are also behind the times. The Lord God only gives us pain, doesn’t he?”

“······.”

It felt like time was flowing very slowly.

Even though the real battle hadn’t even started, she felt cold sweat running down her neck.

She couldn’t tell if it was the watchtower swaying or her own vision.

Elysee’s lips moved slightly. Then, a chilling certainty scratched down her spine.

“So it’s right to make them the key to the new era.”

‘The cause of this situation is not the Imperial Army.’

-Kugugugung······!

“Heuaaaa······!”

She hurriedly scanned the ground.

The soldiers who had their feet on the constantly shaking dry ground were panicking in fear. The young knights leading them were in a similar situation.

The ground hadn’t yet cracked or torn, but the vibration alone was threatening enough. The Imperial Army also seemed disorganized, and even the Emperor and commanders showed awkward movements.

The Crown Princess immediately prepared to jump down. After all, everyone knew about the watchtower operation, and Duke was here.

However, the ground mainly consisted of commoner infantry and―

-Grasp!

“You fiend. Can’t you let go right now.”

Right then, a thick vine grabbed the Crown Princess’s ankle as she was about to leap.

It was practically about to break it. Her fierce eyes glared at Adriana as if to crush her.

Then, the cardinal holding the flower smiled brightly. Against the backdrop of the distant chaos and screams on the ground······.

“Help me! I can’t breathe! Heoeok······!”

“Please save us, Your Highness Elysee! Please!”

-Crack······

“I’m doing this to save Your Highness. Still, there’s old friendship.”

As if her prayers had finally been answered.

-Spot―

-Kuuuuuung!

In an instant, the huge canyon became muffled as if it had fallen into a vacuum, then shuddered as it unleashed an enormous compression wave.

-Kwaaaang!

The watchtower, which had barely been holding on, was blown away. The knights tumbled down the cliff like scarecrows.

The sound of rocks breaking and falling, the sound of someone groaning and coughing, irregularly struck her ears.

‘Beeeeee―’ The piercing tinnitus immediately covered the aftermath like a tomb.

Elysee was tied to Adriana’s vines and didn’t bounce anywhere, but she couldn’t avoid rolling on the floor.

The fierce impact she received with her whole body made her feel nauseous.

“······Keuheok, ptoo!”

There was no time to lie down.

With her scarred hands, she grabbed her golden spear and spat out the stomach acid rising up her throat.

The vision she barely secured was so clear without a single speck of dust that it didn’t feel real.

Above all, it was too quiet around her. It didn’t feel like a battlefield.

“Heok, cough. Heoeok······.”

Elysee, crawling on the floor, looked around beyond the cliff.

But there was no one there.

-Whoooooosh······

“What, what······.”

To be exact, there were no soldiers alive.

The Crown Princess only opened her mouth without forming any sentences.

“Why······. How······.”

Until a moment ago, everyone was vividly alive and moving, but now they had all dropped their weapons and collapsed.

A pile of corpses. Or corpses lying alone here and there.

All were soldiers of the Theocracy.

“······.”

The wind was now blowing upwards from below the Pilgrim’s Journey.

The thick smell of blood, the scent of desperate tears, and despair were carried in the air, paralyzing Elysee’s sense of smell.

In fact, a sensation close to terror began to dominate her body.

No, no. It was impossible. The Crown Princess groped through her dizzying vision.

“Ha······.”

In the place where the Emperor and the Imperial Army had been, there were countless glittering stones scattered.

Only then did Elysee realize that the entire army she had witnessed so far was all magic of the wizards.

Those were all magic stones. But this side was different.

Here, those who collapsed while holding the Venetian flag and spitting blood······.

Those who couldn’t even close their eyes at the sudden death.

-Whooosh, whooosh, whooooosh······

“······Kim. Kuman······.”

All were real. Hot drops fell on her frozen cheeks.

At the same time, a warm gale blew from above her head.

Elysee looked up at the empty sky with vacant eyes. In the place where even the dark clouds had fled······.

-Dududududu―!

-Kwakwakkwa!-

A very large airship was floating.

From the magic engine resembling the mouth of a dragon, it was constantly spraying green mana that had stolen someone’s life force.

She finally felt like vomiting. Adriana’s laughter echoed away.

*

······What’s going on? Was that just now an earthquake?

-Kuuuuuung!

Heoeok!

-Heeheeheeing!

“Fall back! All troops, fall back thirty paces!”

“Retreat thirty paces! Retreat thirty paces―!”

Sreung, sreungsreung! The sound of swords being drawn echoed from all directions, and the chief commanders in the front gave urgent orders at the top of their lungs.

It was a retreat signal given right in front of the Pilgrim’s Journey. The surprised horses lifted their front legs and hurriedly changed direction.

I stretched my neck and tried my best to grasp the situation in front.

I couldn’t tell if the ‘shadows’ that had entered the canyon, that is, the illusions of the combat mages, had worked properly.

However, I could see His Majesty holding Durandal [a legendary sword] and commanding from afar. Feeling uneasy, I spoke to Cedrick.

“Did we fail? Was our army’s mana too strong and noticeable?”

“······No. It’s not that.”

“We cast a triple spell to hide the wizards’ mana. The mana consumption would have been extreme, but the effect would have been certain.”

Jibril Diop added an explanation.

However, for some reason, I couldn’t shake off the fearful premonition.

Areum busily moved her hooves, following the movements of the infantry.

Just as my gaze, fixed on the Pilgrim’s Journey, barely managed to fall―

“Good Lord, what is that!”

“Uwaaaak······!”

“Flying, it’s flying! A ship flying in the sky has appeared!”

“······What?”

Like a lie, my head slowly turned.

I swear on the Empire’s sun, there were only two ‘airships’ I knew.

And among them, the one that could shock everyone was only in the ground.

-Dudududada!

“Oh, Emperor Valery······.”

At least until yesterday, that was the case.

The Liester army fell into panic.