Chapter 5

The carriages rolled on, without pause, for half the day.

The sun, racing alongside us, crested the horizon, slowly allowing the moonlight and starlight to begin painting the sky with their ethereal hues.

Even the horses seemed weary; the carriage’s speed was now a snail’s pace compared to when we first left the city.

“It’s about time we looked for a place to camp.”

The hero-orc, Rex, directing the troops from the head of the column, decided it was necessary to rest the exhausted horses and allow the men at least a short respite. He halted the column where he stood.

Even riding day and night, it takes three days to get from Stradas to the capital.

Rex’s men, well-trained elite soldiers, wouldn’t suffer too much loss of combat effectiveness from three days without sleep, but their horses couldn’t run properly without regular rest and sleep.

“Feed the horses and give them rest.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Understood!”

Sensing the growing disarray around him, Valder, the masked bandit, stepped down from the carriage without a word.

“……”

“You, scout ahead and see if there’s a place nearby suitable for making camp.”

Balder, upon hearing Rex’s words, gave a slight nod, then scattered his form like mist, vanishing from the spot in an instant.

The party was currently situated in the heart of a dense forest.

Giant, thick trees stood packed together on all sides; carelessly making camp here would leave them vulnerable to attacks from those who could climb the trees and undergrowth unseen.

Because of this, the soldiers dismounted from their horses, drawing their weapons and vigilantly watching their surroundings.

From inside the carriage, the boy felt a sense of security as he watched their sharpened blades and gleaming armor, reflecting the moonlight with a faint shimmer.

These men were not like the city guards stationed in Straderus; these were genuine elite operatives, dispatched from the capital.

Each and every one of them was easily above level 20, and Rex, the Orc hero leading this squad, was a staggering level 40.

The monsters that appeared along this road were nothing more than various mutated creatures abandoned by the demonic forces as “failures,” or perhaps a few stray wild dogs.

It was a place where only level 1 or 2 monsters appeared; there wasn’t a single enemy that could pose a threat to this squad.

‘If we continue like this for just two more days, we should arrive at the capital…’

The boy idly watched Rex gently stroking his Komodo, contemplating the events ahead with a sense of ease.

‘We’ve overcome the most problematic section with no difficulty, thanks to the high-level escorts. It seems we’ll arrive at the capital without incident. And the first place I need to visit upon arrival is…’

*Crack!*

In the corner of the boy’s vision, where he was leisurely sorting out his plans, a splash of crimson liquid bloomed like flower petals.

His focus, which had been on the Komodo as it acted endearingly toward Rex, wobbled.

The boy’s eyes refocused on the droplets of blood blooming in the corner of his vision, and there, a soldier, an arrow piercing his neck, was slowly collapsing to the ground.

“…….”

Time slows to a crawl.

A heavy silence descended among the soldiers for a breath.

The cloying stench of blood, so familiar from Strader’s, pricked at the nostrils once more.

The corpse, blossomed with crimson, finally collapsed to the ground.

Clang!

Steel armor crashed against steel, a sound that threatened to shatter eardrums. In concert with the noise, the voices of soldiers erupted from every corner.

“A-, ambush from the east!!!”

“Magical arrows!”

“Enemy location unknown! We can’t determine their numbers!”

Despite the suddenness of the assault, the well-trained soldiers conveyed the fragments of information they’d gleaned to their commander with terse efficiency.

“Damn it, Balder! Where is Balder!”

Rex bellowed the name of Balder, the rogue cloaked entirely in a mask.

“…Here, I am.”

Balder appeared behind Rex, axe clutched in hand, his entire body drenched in blood.

Three gashes marred his abdomen, and a large spear jutted from his back.

The wounds, as if ordained, were infected with a virulent venom.

His skin had turned a sickening green and blue, and tears of blood streamed from his eyes.

“A demonkin assault. The number of Variants is approximately a hundred, not a great host but…”

“…What in hell. Medic! Get a medic here now…!”

Rex spun his massive frame around to face the ranks, roaring at the top of his lungs.

But Balder, with a trembling arm, grasped Rex’s arm and cried out.

Blood sprayed forth, but Balder didn’t cease speaking.

“Don’t cut me off, Rex…! It is paramount that the information is delivered.”

Balder paused mid-sentence and flung away the blood-soaked mask that clung to his face. His tongue was already numbing, and the bloodied mask only hindered the precise relaying of information.

As the mask fell away, it revealed a face marred by ancient scars and skin consumed by burns.

“All the Variants… not only possessed intellect, but knew how to wield weapons. Not merely swinging them… precise archery and spearmanship…”

Balder’s voice slowly faded.

Life hung by a thread, but to Balder, it seemed more important to impart as much information as possible to Rex than to worry about his own demise.

“Weapons…?”

Rex’s expression twisted in disbelief at Balder’s words.

Variants retaining intelligence were occasionally encountered. The demonic hordes would deliberately leave remnants of it to instill hesitation in warriors facing them.

However, those Variants mostly regurgitated similar phrases in a mechanical fashion, unable to perform the deep thinking of other intelligent beings.

Merely puppets that moved as the demons commanded, fitted with the function of speech.

Thus, most Variants could not wield weapons. They could barely clench and release their hands at will, let alone display refined swordsmanship or spearmanship.

“Run, Rex…”

Yet Balder insisted the Variants could use weapons, and even at Rex’s disbelieving face, he did not retract his words.

And with that final plea to flee, the rogue with the face etched with old burns and scars, Balder, collapsed to the ground, exhaling his last breath.

“…”

The chilling corpse of his comrade, sprawled lifeless on the ground. A mana-infused arrow, aimed at his men.

It did not take Rex long to process the situation and make a decision.

“Every soldier! Mount your horses immediately! We advance north as is, and break free of this forest!”

“……What in the world.”

The boy, who had been admiring the scenery outside from atop the carriage, couldn’t hide his bewilderment as he watched the battlefield suddenly reek of blood.

Mutants wielding weapons? Arrows imbued with magic?

Something was clearly wrong.

Mutants using weapons were the higher-tier monsters you’d only see in the game’s final stages, in battles against the overlords of each region. They weren’t the kind of enemies you should encounter on this forest path leading to the capital, a very early-game area.

“Get down!”

Herion, grabbing the boy’s shoulder as he desperately wracked his brain to understand the situation, pulled him down to the floor of the carriage.

Whoosh—!

An arrow embedded itself in the carriage wall. Of course, every arrow tip was coated in a deadly poison.

The dread of death.

It flew in with the countless arrows, but the boy’s mind didn’t stop thinking.

His breath didn’t quicken, his senses didn’t blur.

He simply coolly assessed the situation, his mind racing to find the optimal decision.

“Mage! Contact the capital, now! An overlord has appeared!”

“What… Over-what?!”

Herion, still flattened against the floor of the carriage, echoed back.

It seemed he wasn’t assessing the situation as calmly as the boy.

“An overlord has appeared! The only demons who can create mutants capable of wielding weapons are the overlords! We can’t handle this on our own. Hurry! Time is of the essence!”

“aaagh!”

While the boy was explaining the situation to Herion, another scream filled the surrounding air.

The horse, carrying a soldier, buckled beneath a volley of arrows erupting from the woods.

The armored soldier spun dozens of times, tumbling out of formation.

“Wait, wait!”

The soldier, flung from his horse, shouted desperately toward his retreating comrades.

“Captain, Felix…!”

Someone in the formation spotted the fallen comrade and began to speak to Rex at the front, but in that instant…

*Whoosh!*

A humanoid mutant wielding a massive, obsidian blade neatly severed Felix’s head.

“…”

The soldier, witnessing his comrade’s demise, remained silent.

*Rattle, rattle!*

The horses pulling the wagon, seized by primal fear, began to pound their legs with frantic urgency.

The boy gripped the wagon’s edge with his one unbroken arm, fighting to stay inside.

Beside him, the mage Herion, sprawled on the wagon floor, held a crystal orb hidden beneath her robes and began to chant.

Herion’s small incantation was drowned out by the rattling of the wagon and the soldiers’ desperate curses, unheard by the boy.

“I can’t reach headquarters! It seems a magic-blocking signal is blanketing the area…!”

After wrestling with the orb for some time, Herion spoke, her voice trembling with terror. A profound despair seemed to be spreading through her mind, just as it was for the other soldiers.

“Son of a b*tch…”

The curse escaped involuntarily.

For reasons unknown, the Archduke seemed to be enacting a meticulously planned slaughter in this place.

“To say he’s an enemy that can be handled with mere Awakening is wrong. A Grand Warlord’s level, even at the lowest estimate, is around eighty.”

Even Rex, the Orc hero currently at the forefront of the battlefield, carving a path for retreat, cannot contend with a Grand Warlord. Their levels differ by more than double.

Furthermore, the difference in their actual power wasn’t merely doubled, but multiplied exponentially. Even ten Rexes couldn’t inflict a scratch on a Grand Warlord.

The boy gritted his teeth, finishing his thought.

“If it’s a magic-nullifying wave, I’ll do what I can! So…”

*Crash!*

Before he could even finish his sentence, the carriage carrying myself and Herion was flung high into the air.

The world’s time began to slow once more.

The leg of the horse that had been pulling the carriage, now crushed beneath it after being felled by an arrow, flashed in the corner of the boy’s vision.

Following it, the faint moonlight reflected off the countless arrowheads hurtling towards him illuminated his face.

Herion, who had also been flung skyward with the boy, hastily began deploying a shield using his crystal orb.

*Death.*

Those chilling two syllables flashed through the boy’s mind once again.

The boy’s body boasted a fragility so acute that merely tripping on the street could result in a broken arm.

What would happen if a boy with such a delicate body was flung from a speeding carriage, suffering a major traffic accident?

Naturally, every bone in his body would shatter, and his organs would all rupture.

The boy could sense the Grim Reaper’s scythe resting on his shoulder without needing to ponder it deeply.

“Awakening.”

Therefore, there was no hesitation.

With a single, simple word, a colossal bolt of lightning crashed down beneath the clear moonlight.

The rain of arrows, mid-flight, met a thunderbolt and turned to ashen dust on the spot, a raging inferno erupting amongst the thick trees surrounding them.

“…”

Herion, barely shielding himself from the shock, stared blankly at the colossal lightning strike before him and the boy who, unscathed, still stood.

*Whoosh!*

The sound of tearing wind sliced coldly against the boy’s eardrums.

As if awaiting this very moment, countless arrows, their sharp points aimed solely at the boy, began to fly in unison.

*Pshhh…*!

But they failed to so much as graze his skin, vanishing altogether.

The current surging from the boy’s body turned them all into a white powder.

White dust swirled around him, obscuring the view.

“…Try contacting the homeland again. The interference magic must have broken with the first lightning strike.”

“Ah… Y-yes!”

The magician in the crimson robe, Herion, hurriedly poured mana into his crystal orb.

Thankfully, it was functioning. The mud-caked orb glowed red, relaying the voice of a communication mage from the allied forces headquarters.

—Ah, ah. Secure line. Secure li—…

“Capital Garrison, 1st Infantry Division, 6th Squad, 4th Circle Magician Herion Creetias! Requesting immediate support! Current location, coordinates 07–11.36!”

Herion’s voice was nearly a scream as he called for reinforcements. There was no time for trivial procedures like secure lines.

—Uh… What seems to be the problem? Briefly explain the situation…

“A weapon-wielding mutant has appeared! I don’t know why, but it’s as if an Archon has manifested! We urgently need…”

Herion cut off the support soldier, hurriedly explaining the situation.

*Whoosh!*

Spitting onto his crystal orb as he screamed, a mana-infused arrow hurtled toward Herion’s flank.

Having confirmed arrows were useless against the boy, it seemed the Variants had changed their strategy to eliminating the comms officer requesting reinforcements.

*Thwack!*

Seeing this, the boy flicked his fingers in the direction the arrow came from, unleashing a thin bolt of lightning.

Traveling at a speed of 100,000 kilometers per second, the electric strike met the arrow mid-flight toward the mage, instantly becoming a massive surge that incinerated the surrounding forest.

“I’ve reached HQ! Reinforcements are inbound to our location!”

Herion, having finished his communication in the meantime, shouted at the top of his lungs. It was a voice so thunderous, one wouldn’t believe it came from so frail a throat.

“HQ is how far away? We’ll all be dead before the reinforcements arrive! Get up, quick, and hop onto my mount!”

At Herion’s bellow, a soldier clad in silver armor came running, shouting.

“Did you relay the situation accurately?”

Unlike the soldier who was yelling, Rex asked Herion calmly.

“Yes! I told them there are weapon-wielding Variants… I clearly stated that a Grand Lord has appeared!”

“What… a Grand Lord? That it’s appeared?”

Belatedly organizing the formation and grasping the specifics of the situation, the soldiers turned pale, each looking around with fear-stricken eyes. The despair and dread residing in their gazes deepened further.

“Damn it… why now of all times, that monster we haven’t had a single clue about for three years…!”

“Estellacia, look down upon us. Please!”

Toward his despairing comrades, Herion shouted loudly once more.

“It’s the Grand Lord, appearing after three years…! He absolutely won’t miss this opportunity! We just need to stall for time. I’ve left ‘Him’ the coordinates for this place, so you must not stray too far from this location, Rex!”

Stopping his Komodo, Rex furrowed his brow, his mind rapidly calculating within his massive skull.

‘Surely, once word reaches the Citadel that a Grand Overlord has appeared, ‘He’ will undoubtedly send support here.’

The question was whether his squad could endure these variants until ‘He’ arrived.

To fight those monsters here, or to keep moving on horseback and Komodo.

Which offered the higher chance of survival, Rex endlessly weighed in his mind.

‘Even if He rushes here as fast as possible, it will take at least three minutes from the capital.’

Could they hold out?

Three minutes?

In the current state of their squad?

Rex’s squad was well-trained, more than capable of handling ordinary demons and their variants, but against a Grand Overlord and its own, they were woefully insufficient.

These were monsters of a different caliber.

He could risk his life and barely manage to defeat a single variant of the Grand Overlord, but what about his squadmates?

They would surely be swept away like leaves in the wind, utterly crushed.

‘…But.’

*Thoom!*

Another massive lightning strike descended behind Herrion, who was sprawled flat on the ground, cloaked in a crimson robe.

The white-haired boy, as if it were nothing at all, was setting the entire surrounding forest ablaze, his expression unchanged.

In the sight of the white-haired boy burning the forest to the ground, Rex saw a glimmer of hope.

A light that shone exceedingly bright. Like lightning itself.

‘…If that boy fights alongside us, it isn’t entirely impossible.’

“Everyone, prepare for battle!”

Rex descended from the Komodo, hefting his heavy battle-axe.

Now was the time for resistance.