What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 678

Sub Male Lead’s Hiatus – Episode 678 (678/920)

#678

Catacombs (1)

A cardinal attacked a cardinal.

Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a situation like this before.

I was so surprised that I couldn’t even speak.

“Ah… We can’t let those things pass through the Heavenly Road.”

A huge pit formed in the Heavenly Road cliff as if an asteroid had collided, and Adriana was sitting in the middle of it, chuckling.

There was still a thorn in her fading voice, making me feel eerie.

Sharp pebbles and dead plant roots fell from her dry cheekbones.

It was an impact that would have killed an ordinary person like me.

But the cardinal just smiled innocently, despite the blood flowing down her cheeks.

“Wily Count of the Wind. Did you finally decide to take off your mask?”

“······.”

“Oh, I see. You said one of us would betray our lord. It was you after all…”

-Whooooosh…

I slowly rolled my eyes and looked at the man who appeared before her.

A knight in the formal attire of the Divine Kingdom stood at the end of the deeply dug-out dirt floor.

I had met him once in the darkness of the Yeriho black market.

He said he was one of Elysee Venetian’s people.

‘I didn’t know there was a guest already here.’

‘If it’s not too much trouble, may I join you?’

The long eyes narrowed like expensive silk threads when he smiled, and his neatly half-tied ash-purple hair was long enough to reach his lower back.

The golden circlet around his forehead had the effect of making his already inhuman face look even more like a different race.

When he lifted his eyelids for a long time, his ash-violet eyes, which resembled his hair color, appeared…

“It’s been a while. I didn’t expect to meet you again in a place like this.”

‘What’s your name?’

‘Call me ‘Ran.’ That’s enough for tonight.’

…Mr. ‘Ran.’ A strange breeze that brushed past us in the black magician’s mansion.

However, today he had an expression without a smile.

“Cardinal Arno, Count van Roy.”

“…Yes.”

Francois whispered from behind the saddle, and I carefully nodded.

Mr. Ran, or rather, Count Roy, was looking at none other than Sir John.

Cedric was standing right in front, so he probably couldn’t see my face. He didn’t seem to have much interest in my circle either.

Before moving in earnest, he carefully scanned our cavalry.

It was a Venetian infiltration force, nearly half of which was composed of sanctioned criminals.

“I regret that I cannot share the joy of reunion…”

Everyone is a noble of the Divine Kingdom, so there must be faces he knows, but he didn’t look embarrassed at all.

The man elegantly said, pressing his heel back.

“You will secure the escape route yourselves. I will block this side.”

…Huh? What?

*

Hey! This is really crazy!

-Kwa kwa kwa kwang!

“Uwaaaagh!”

-Flapping, flapping!

A terrifying flash of light struck where we had been standing just a moment ago!

Arumhart shook its mane and quickly changed direction, and I screamed as I had Francois tied to my waist instead of a seatbelt (Ugh!).

The Marquis himself put his fingers around my waist and occasionally added strange sound effects.

It was a great relief that only our mouths were unhinged. I faithfully ran in the direction my friends were leading or hurriedly hid in the crevices of the cliff.

No, actually, this was more of Arumi’s great performance than mine!

-Ssaeeeaeek!

-Kwaaaang!

“By the grace of the blessed Arian!”

“I’m telling you!”

Count Roy, with one arm on his chest, spun quickly like a drill in the air, then flew towards Adriana, his long hair fluttering.

No sooner had my mouth dropped open than razor-sharp thorny vines shot out like arrows from the wreckage of the impact. Kwaaak! The Count, whose left arm was caught, immediately grabbed the vines with his bare hands without shaking at all. Even though his side was cut by thorns and blood was flowing from his forearm, he didn’t feel any pain and tightened his grip.

The moment his shoulder muscles swelled as if they were about to burst, whiririk! Kwakwakwakwang! The vines were uprooted, and Adriana’s body, which had been lurking like a snake in the meantime, was thrown to the other side.

Blood poured from her mouth. Kuwoong! The man plunged towards her like a bullet, grabbed the enemy’s neck tightly, and instantly created a large air bubble. Shooooook!

“…My God, he’s trying to suffocate her like that!”

“Your Highness! Your Highness, this way! I see a path here!”

“Yes!”

I was horrified to see Adriana smiling brightly even as she turned blue, but I snapped back to my senses at Gain’s call.

The partisan cavalry was already scattered in units.

It was partly because we could no longer travel together, and it was much more advantageous to spread out in all directions since we had to search for Lilianer Venetian’s ‘underground passage.’

Also, since there were no attacks from above the cliff, most of the troops seemed to be fighting in ‘that valley,’ as Adriana said.

Probably a confrontation between the Crown Princess’s forces and the forces following the Duke—

-Kwaaaaaaa!

“Oh my gosh!”

-Krrrrrrrrr…!

“Oh dear, that’s impossible!”

Where I turned my head in shock, a huge pillar of earth was soaring into the sky.

It was an enormous force and speed that seemed to suck up all the soil of the Heavenly Road.

It was only after I looked up at it for a few seconds that I realized that Count Roy was trapped inside. I felt the blood drain from my head to my toes, and I shuddered at the sight of the sharp stones and rocks, and sharp sand rising from the ground, and what it would do to him.

Francois, Sant, and I couldn’t take our eyes off it in shock. Gain’s chin was about to touch the floor.

-Krrr, krrr, krrrrrr…!

“Hey, that side is okay! He’s protecting himself with an air bubble!”

“Hah.”

I regained my senses a little at Jibril Diop’s sharp cry.

I hurriedly turned my horse’s head again. At that very moment—

[vespíllo, bury him.]

Slowly. An unbelievably affectionate woman’s voice rang out.

Sir John’s mint-colored eyes widened.

His pure white hair changed direction and fluttered.

Where I blankly followed his gaze, I saw hundreds of blood-red Rafflesia [a genus of parasitic plants known for their enormous flowers] blooming on the pillar of earth.

“······.”

We shuddered in the narrow alleyway.

-Kwaaaaang!

“Serenite!”

“Juliette!”

It was a shock that would have cut off my tongue if I had bitten it.

The pillar of earth that had shot up with the power of the earth fell vertically as it could not overcome the overwhelming gravity of the stigmata [marks resembling the wounds on the crucified body of Christ].

At the same time, the Rafflesia swarm, revealing its black teeth, began to smack its lips as if to devour the cardinal’s air bubble. Kuwoong! Kuwoong! Kuwoooong…! Their rake-like leaves frantically dug into the ground, dragging the man underground.

It was a literal ‘live burial’ with no corner to escape and no room to breathe.

A vibration so strong that my whole body trembled was shaking everyone’s vision. Even after a hellish black cavity formed in the Heavenly Road, the power of the stigmata did not stop. Even Cedric and Diop, who had called me, froze for a moment.

It was then.

-Ahem! Can’t you move your legs!

“Heok!”

Finally, a breath burst out at Hanan’s scolding, and the dizzying sight in front of me cleared up.

I grabbed Sant’s shoulder, who was about to fall off the saddle, and hurried to move.

The holy ground was still deployed and Francois’s mana was sufficient, but that didn’t mean we could waste time here.

As quickly as possible while the Count was diverting Adriana’s attention…!

“Ah…”

And I faced an endless pile of corpses. Like a lie.

In an instant, all the strength in my body drained away and my heart tightened.

“Ha… Haa…”

The entrance to the heart of the Heavenly Road was completely blocked from view by the pile of stones that His Majesty Hanan had broken.

Moreover, the Count and Adriana’s duel took place in front of the pile of stones, so we had no choice but to sneak back into the path we had come to avoid them.

So, it was really the first time we had come this way, leaving the two people’s fight behind.

The Divine Kingdom soldiers were lying haphazardly in the dry, wide valley…

“Cough, cough…”

It was terrible. I smelled blood again. My stomach churned and I felt nauseous.

“…Nim! Yeseo! Yeseo!”

I flinched!

“We’ll pay them back later! We’ll close the eyes of those who couldn’t close them! So hurry now!”

“Ugh—”

“Your Highness!”

I barely suppressed my nausea and nodded like crazy.

With the single thought of not wanting to be a burden to my friends, I firmly held on to my collapsing mind and body.

I’m really sorry, but I didn’t have the mental capacity to check on Francois and Sant’s condition.

My head kept dropping, and my cool, cold forehead was dizzy.

I just ran and ran along the side path next to the canyon.

-Kugugugugu…!

-Clatter, clatter, clatter, clatter!

-Kuuuung! Kuuung! Kugugung!

While all the land of the Heavenly Road shuddered and screamed, we disappeared like that.

To carry out the mission.

*

I don’t know how many tens of minutes have passed since then.

No, actually, have we been wandering for more than three or four hours? Maybe we have.

-Clatter, clatter, clatter…

“Hoo, I think we’ve come quite deep…”

I muttered to myself, looking around.

My other friends had similar troubled expressions.

The cliffs of the Heavenly Road, which were already dizzying, became higher and higher, and the side paths felt even more complicated due to the streams and coniferous forests that appeared randomly from time to time.

But for now, since we have no information, we have no choice but to wander around aimlessly and look for the underground passage.

We are the first imperial army to have come this far in history.

“I really can’t hear the sound of fighting anymore, now. That’s good.”

-Heeheeing

“Yes. It seems the battlefield is quite far away. The Heavenly Road is definitely a key point. Such a scale and area…”

Gain and Doria were cheering me up with bright voices, so I tried to make a passable expression as much as possible.

As she said, the terrifying battleground of the Divine Kingdom cardinals was long gone.

Occasionally, the earth trembled strangely, or a sound similar to the magic engine noise of an airship was faintly heard, but now it was all out of our hands.

I wonder if the other cavalry are all right, if His Majesty and our friends are safe.

Such worries also scattered away without finding a place to reach.

…Actually, we met several hostile Divine Kingdom soldiers on the way here.

Sir John and Young Master Diop stepped forward without anyone saying anything.

“······.”

-Clatter, clatter, clatter…

“······.”

We once again matched our formation to the silence.

I quietly glanced at the group and suggested this.

“Shall we take a break?”

“······.”

“If we get off the horses, we might see something we couldn’t see from the saddle… It would be good for the children to rest their legs and quench their thirst for a while. Of course, for us too.”

Then everyone looked back at Cedric.

The Crown Prince scanned me from head to toe and nodded coolly.

So we hid in a corner of the path that was as inconspicuous as possible, or rather, in the shade of a thin coniferous forest.

I shared a canteen with Cedric and said.

“I’m sure they pushed a rock at the entrance of this side path, but there are no traces of the Divine Kingdom army having entered deeply. I didn’t see any hoofprints or wagon wheel tracks on the way here either. Does that mean there’s no underground passage on this side?”

“…They wouldn’t have told the general soldiers about the existence of the passage itself. If it’s Duke Sneider.”

“Ah. I guess so.”

“Rather than that.”

…Rather than that? I blinked my eyes as I stopped drinking water. The man was staring down at me.

What, what’s wrong? I didn’t drink from your mouth.

“Your Highness! There’s someone here!”

I flinched! I hurriedly took the canteen away at Gain’s loud shout.

Water dripped down from my mouth in a sloppy manner. A person?!

“Coward! What kind of scaredy-cat is sitting here alone!”

“Heok…”

Gain, there are three of them here too…