Side Story Chapter 19
Cain remembered finding a spear, a Deon Ring, and the traces of an intense battle in the ruins of Amon. As soon as he had laid eyes on the scene, he realized that a fight between two god-like people that far surpassed the level of humans had taken place. The rocks in the underground space were crumbling into dust, and only the collapsed pillars of the holy temple, evidence of the structure’s tremendous age, still stood.
Of course, Cain had a theory of what had happened.
‘His Majesty and the Doppelganger—the Demon Spirit—fought to the death in those ruins.’
The only reason why Cain hadn’t told Selim the truth was that Cain was a knight. Whenever he watched Selim fighting, the desire to fight Selim rose from within him.
“I’m less skilled, so I’ll start,” Selim said and then disappeared.
The black spear clashed with Cain’s sword with such strength that Cain was forced to take a couple of steps backward. However, that was it. Cain stopped there and deflected Selim’s barrage of spear attacks without moving a centimeter. A long-range weapon was very destructive, but Cain chose to deal with Selim’s attack head-on. Meanwhile, Cain kept talking casually.
“We can’t afford to waste time during a war, right? Start with your best technique,” Cain provocatively ordered.
In response, Selim swung his spear to distance himself from Cain and straightened his posture.
“I won’t say no to that.”
The black spear danced in the air, and Selim’s mana shook the sky. He moved like a butterfly but his spear stung like a bee. Although he was moving for only a few seconds, he used a multitude of techniques—it was the Modified Magic Spear Art Level 4, Water Wind Spear.
Cain's eyes widened. Selim moved his black spear beautifully, leaving black afterimages in the air that fluttered like the wings of a butterfly, utterly captivating Kireua.
A barrage of attacks poured onto Cain. Without hesitation, Cain infused his mana into his sword, lighting it up with a golden shine.
An ear-splitting bang shook the sky and ground.
“Your Highness!”
The Black Knights had finally returned to the fortress gates. There wasn’t a single enemy left on the battlefield apart from the wounded knights moaning on the ground; all the rest had retreated.
“Speed, accuracy, damage, aura control… You’ve improved in every possible area. On top of that, Modified Magic Spear Art? You created your own unique technique?”
Selim shook his head. “I still have a long way to go.”
“Hahaha, I really enjoy watching my former student improve. I know I’m saying this too late, but I’m not the person behind His Majesty’s disappearance, Your Highness.”
Selim nodded. “I know.”
“…Pardon?”
“I knew you would react like that, Sir Cain,” Selim said, jamming his spear into the ground with a faint smile. “I actually found His Majesty’s traces.”
“What…?! Are you serious?” Cain asked.
“Yes, he’s in the north.”
“No-North?” Cain stuttered. Even he hadn’t expected to hear that answer. It was not the central region where the former Agnus Duchy had been nor was it a foreign country like Reinhardt. On top of that, the northern region of the Avalon Empire was…
“When I was a boy, His Majesty mentioned that he should head to the coldest region in the world someday,” Selim said.
“But the north of the Avalon Empire is…”
“In the northern region’s last village, several hunters remember seeing an outsider wearing a robe ten years ago.”
No one really visited the north of the Avalon Empire. No one was there, apart from the people who were born and raised there; there wasn’t even a single tourist in the region.
“His Majesty went even further north.”
“Wa-Wait—!” Cain stuttered.
“Yes, he headed to Lemegeton, the land of demons where no humans can live.”
After he finished speaking, Selim withdrew his spear. “It’s a shame. If there wasn’t a war on, I wanted to have a proper spar with you, Sir Cain.”
Cain glanced down at his hands, which were still shaking after deflecting Selim’s barrage of attacks. Selim was just twenty years old, but Cain had been forced to take him seriously, if only for a moment.
“…I actually think it’s a shame, too. Why did you accuse me of the crime when you know everything, then?” Cain asked.
“As a student, I wanted to show my teacher how much progress I’ve made.”
“What…? Hahahahahahaha!” Cain burst into laughter. “If you want to know my answer, I give you a passing grade, Your Highness.”
“Thank you.” Selim smiled lightly.
Cain examined the Black Knights. Since it had been ten years since Cain left the palace to locate Joshua, some knights looked familiar while some were strangers.
“Since it was you who asked for reinforcements, Sir Cain, I brought my most elite knights,” Selim explained.
“Yes, I’ve seen them fight. Every one of them was exceptionally skilled,” Cain complimented with honesty. A knight who was as skilled as Cain was, could assess someone’s level only with his eyes.
“I think you already know it, but they’re very skilled and almost at the level of Class A knights.”
If these ten knights were as strong as Masters, then it was safe to assume that Selim’s order was the strongest in the continent.
“Did you train them yourselves?” Cain asked.
“Yes, the journey to find His Majesty was also a valuable way for me and my comrades to gain actual experience.”
Cain gave him a blank look. “You mean…?”
Selim readily nodded. “Yes, I was also on the journey.”
* * *
When Selim entered Fortress Raymond, he immediately visited Charles’s room.
Selim bowed. “Greetings to Her Majesty Charles.”
“Selim!” Charles beamed and hugged him. “How have you been?”
“I’ve been too well,” Selim answered amicably.
“It looks like you became more handsome. My, I think you’re old enough to get married now. How is your mother?”
“She actually asked me to say hello on her behalf,” Selim said.
“It’s a bummer. If it hadn’t been for the rebellion, I would have had a tea party with her.” Charles smiled bitterly.
Kireua watched the conversation uneasily for a moment before clearing his throat. “Mother, Dargo rane Suspen was decapitated just now thanks to Selim.”
“I-Is that true?” Charles’s eyes instantly became as big as a rabbit’s.
“Yes, but I’m still worried,” Kireua said.
“Worried…?” Charles trailed off.
“Since the head of the southern rebel army is dead, everyone would think the rebellion in the southern region has been suppressed, but I think it’s the opposite.”
Among Dargo and his one hundred elite knights, Dargo and thirty of his knights had died, and twenty of them had been taken prisoner. Half of the knights had survived and returned to their camp. It was certainly a good result given that it had only taken ten knights to achieve, drastically increasing the national army’s morale, but…
“I’m guessing the rebel leaders must have heard the news by now and were also shocked by Dargo rane Suspen’s death,” Kireua said.
“…Are you worried that those rebels will decide to fight until the end?” Charles guessed.
A little stone in the road could overturn a large wagon, and a rat could bite a cat when cornered. It needn’t be said what a grand army of a hundred thousand soldiers could do under duress.
“The north, east, and west… If any of the remnants in the south decide to join any of the rebel armies, they’ll become a big problem in the future. Ah, of course, Selim said he suppressed the rebellion in the north…” Kireua trailed off dramatically.
“He su-suppressed the rebellion in the north?” Charles's eyes widened once again.
Kireua intentionally mentioned it because he knew Selim wasn’t going to answer the question if he asked it. On the other hand, his mother held a higher status and was older than Selim, so he couldn’t evade answering her.
“To be precise, they voluntarily withdrew their troops,” Selim immediately replied, just as expected.
“...They voluntarily withdrew?”
“Up until two weeks ago, the national army and the northern rebel army were at a stalemate,” the elder prince informed her.
Charles’s expression turned serious. “Well, I did hear that the commander of the northern rebel army is Carmen von Agnus, so I really can’t imagine them withdrawing voluntarily…”
Among the collateral members of the Agnus line, Carmen von Agnus was known to be the noblest and most skilled Superhuman. For a long time, the Agnus family was famous for their exceptional swordcraft. Although Aden von Agnus had overshadowed her in the past, Carmen had been the second strongest person in the entire family even before the Dark God’s death.
“What? Then that basically means the war in the northern region isn’t over yet. I thought you won by a mile or something,” Kireua grumbled.
Charles frowned. “Kireua! Don’t speak sarcastically to your brother.”
“I didn’t mean it. Hey, Selim, go back to the north. I’ll do the clean up in the south.”
Selim tilted his head. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay? Just like you said, the war here isn’t over yet. The rebel army’s leader died, but at least a hundred thousand rebel soldiers remain. In the worst case scenario, the east and west rebel armies may unite and attack the southern region.”
“In that case, it won’t really be different even if you stay.” Kireua shrugged.
“I—no, we—will strand them.”
“What?” Kireua had definitely not expected him to propose something like that.
“The first prince of the Avalon Empire is good bait, isn’t he?” Selim smiled thinly.
Kireua 's eyes widened as he understood what Selim was saying.
“So a hundred of you will become bait?” he surmised.
Selim nodded. “Yeah, my knights and I will strike them from behind.”
“…It’s not even ten people versus one hundred people anymore. It’s one hundred people versus ten thousand people, and you’re desperate to do it. Gosh.” Kireua shook his head sardonically.
“A hundred of my knights are enough if we use guerilla tactics rather than fighting them head-on,” Selim replied with confidence.
Kireua, unable to find anything else to object to, just pouted. “Do you think you’re His Majesty or something?”
“Kireua, I’m seri—”
“No, don’t try to do everything on your own. Let’s use our heads and fight this war properly,” Kireua interrupted.
“…What?”
“The Heaven’s Mind Military Tactics, Chapter 1: Winning Without Fighting,” Kireua said dramatically.
Selim was still confused.
Kireua looked at him and grinned. “Starting now, I’ll show you what I’ve learned.”
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