NOVEL NEXT Luke Aip and Mito Posis put on fishy smiles.
Their gazes moved beyond the battlefield.
“Bastards! You will never pass over here!”
From between the two hills.
An old man with a big body that was swinging his sword from the narrow passageway.
It was Io Lancephil that was leading the rearguard.
He blocked the rebel army well with just a small number of knights and soldiers.
But the number of soldiers that remained decreased to the point that he could count them with his eyes thanks to the prolonged battle.
‘Kugh! At least, we have to block this passage.’
If they just blocked here, he would be able to tie down Mito and Luke for a while.
“Leo knights to the front!”
At Io’s orders, the knights that were resting for a moment, stepped up.
Slash! Stab!
The sharp blades split the air and cut down the throats of the enemy soldiers.
A really amazing force.
But the number of the enemies was just too much.
“Kill!”
“Kill! We must catch the prince!”
New soldiers appeared from over the fallen ones.
They swung their spears and blades with all their might.
Slash.
The knights that were exhausted couldn’t completely dodge the enemy attacks.
One spear stabbed the arm of a knight.
“Kugh! Son of a bitch!”
The knight cursed and moved.
He tried to fall back but the enemy soldiers sticked like ants.
“Kugh!”
In the end, one knight finally lost his life.
“Kuk.”
Io saw that scene and ground his teeth.
The soldiers and knights falling one by one.
The defense line blocking the passage was getting sloppier by the time.
Then, the voices of Mito and Luke was heard.
“Hahaha! Io Lancephil! It seems like you are also exhausted now!”
“It’s time to catch the old tiger!”
Cynical voices.
However Io didn’t react.
He just glared at them with cold and fierce eyes.
‘Ugh. What kind of eyes……’
‘A tiger is still a tiger even when old.’
Luke and Mito felt a chill and shrugged.
“Kill!”
“Kill them and chase after the prince!”
They yelled out at the embarrassing feeling.
The two barones that flinched, ran towards Io and the rearguard.
A situation of life and death indeed.
Then.
“Huh?”
“What is it?”
The enemy soldiers that were at the front frowned.
A feeling covering their entire bodies.
Their feet certainly trembled.
Dudududu!
Followed by that, a sound shaking the ground hit their ears.
To the point that now they didn’t even have to tilt their ears.
Everyone’s sights moved behind the rearguard.
From between the two cliffs.
Dust surged up from over the passageway.
‘It’s a troop!’
Io gulped dry saliva.
He wasn’t certain about the identity of the troop running towards them.
Puuuuuuu! Puuuuuuuuuu!
Followed by that, the sound of the horn trumpet was heard.
At the same time, the troop flag that was at the front fluttered by the wind.
It was Roan’s Amaranth troop they griefed in their dreams.
“Ah…..”
Io let out a low exclamation.
His legs gave out.
And that was also the same for the other knights and soldiers.
The rearguard put on touched expressions and moved to the sides.
Roan and Amaranth troop appeared from the open passageway.
Amaranth troop quickly took formations and sealed the passage.
Roan fell back and looked at Io.
“Sir count! Are you okay?”
“I am. I’m fine.”
Io smiled faintly and nodded.
Roan smiled as if he was glad.
“For now, we will catch the rebel army.”
“Their number isn’t that small.”
Io had a worried expression.
Because Amaranth troop had merely 300 soldiers when the rebel army was composed of 4000.
Even when combining the numbers of the surviving rearguard soldiers, they amounted only to 1000.
“It’s fine.”
But even so, Roan was overwhelming with confidence.
He pulled the reins and stood in front of Amaranth troop.
“Luke Aip! Mito Posis!”
A loud voice.
It was an overwhelming look even in front of 4.000 enemy soldiers.
“Oho! I was wondering who it was but it was Roan!”
“The one who pretended to be a general when he is merely a commoner!”
Luke and Mito let out mocking sounds.
Actually, they were greatly nervous at Amaranth troop’s entrance.
But after they realized that their number was only 300 they got cocky again.
“Even if that wasn’t the case, I still wanted to cut your throat!”
Luke raised his right hand after yelling.
It was to lay down the order to charge.
Then, Roan raised Travias spear and looked at the enemy army.
“Listen, soldiers belonging to Aip’s and Posis’s army!”
He put strength in his voice with Flamdor mana technique.
Thanks to that, the normal soldiers felt an overwhelming pressure the instant they heard the voice.
“Luke Aip and Mito Posis raised their blades against the 1st prince of Rinse kingdom and the owner of Regate dagger!”
His mana boiled.
Heat made his voice hot.
“This is a clear rebellion and treason! You have now taken side with the rebels!”
Boom!
The faces of the soldiers of the rebel army became stiff.
It was true that they were chasing after Simon because of Luke’s and Mito’s orders.
Although there were some that had greed to rise to a higher position or for goods among them, most of them moved because they didn’t have any other options.
“A, are were really from the rebel army?”
“I, I just did what I was ordered to?”
The soldiers started to get shaken.
Roan didn’t miss this opportunity.
“The ones that participated in the rebellion will get beheaded and their families will become slaves!”
It was the decisive blow.
“Get our heads cut off? Die?”
“Slaves? Our father, mother will become slaves?”
“My son is only 3 but he will become a slave?”
Several voices could be heard from everywhere.
Luke and Mito realized that things were progressing in a weird way and yelled.
“Don’t get shaken! Our situation is much more favorable! Prince Simon is right in front of our noses!”
“If we just catch the prince, we will be able to live off well!”
The soldiers got shaken once again.
“Right. We are already in this anyways.”
“Prince Simon won’t leave us alone.”
“Now that it turned out like this, we must catch the prince.”
The atmosphere turned in a weird way.
But Roan still had a confident expression.
He pulled out a dagger with fancy symbols from his waist.
“This is the symbol of the 1st prince of Rinse, the Regate dagger! Prince Simon gave me this dagger to me and named me as the responsible for the region of Tale! My orders are the orders of the prince, and my words are the words of the prince!”
Roan looked at the confused soldiers and said.
“The ones that surrender right now won’t be asked of their sins!”
An amazing decision.
“Is, is that true?”
“Are you really forgiving our lives?”
The normal soldiers asked with a nervous expression.
Roan pulled Regate dagger.
Cheng!
A clear sound of metal was spread.
“If i’m lying, I will give up my head!”
Eyes and voice showing his solid resolution.
The rebel soldiers gulped dry saliva.
They looked at each other faces and started to tremble.
‘We are just normal soldiers.’
‘We just want to eat three meals a day and live happily with our families.’
‘I can’t mess with the lives of my family.’
The soldiers were commoners you could see everywhere.
But they were afraid of Luke and Mito and couldn’t move as they wished.
They were still confused and couldn’t bring out the courage.
Then.
PUuuuuuu!
A troop appeared from the plains of the west with the sound of the horn trumpet.
They were members of Amaranth troop that returned to their HQ in Mediasis village to ride on horses and go to battle again.
Their number was close to 1.000.
The rebel army had 4.000, and Amaranth troop combined with the rearguard were 2.000.
The number of soldiers that had an overwhelming difference was now closed quite a lot.
‘They came.’
Roan saw at the friendly troop that appeared and smiled.
He yelled with a calm and composed voice.
“Are you going to die as rebels! Or suppress the rebels and become heroes!”
His voice that was filled with strength rang on the battlefield.
The rebel soldiers that were confused when they saw the new troop that appeared became resolute.
If it was this much of a difference, they couldn’t conclude in a victory against Amaranth troop.
They couldn’t throw away the lives of their families and their own lives on a fight that wasn’t certain.
They weren’t people like Luke or Mito that had a huge ambition.
“I, I will surrender!”
“I will also surrender!”
The normal soldiers came running towards Amaranth troop while raising their arms.
That was the start.
“We just did as we were ordered to!”
“Save us!”
“We didn’t have any other intentions!”
Several soldiers raised their arms and got out of their ranks.
‘Okay!’
Roan cheered up at that sight.
His game changer had worked.
Roan had three reasons on why he gave the opportunity to surrender.
The first.
‘If we battle like this, a lot of people will get injured.’
The second.
‘Most of them just moved while following orders.’
The soldiers couldn’t refuse an order by a noble and moved.
The third.
‘I have to absorb these soldiers to become mine.’
The current Amaranth troop had barely 2.000 soldiers.
Although they had clearly increased compared to before, thinking about the future, it was a really regrettable level.
If they were soldiers that already faced several battles, they would be able to become excellent strong soldiers with just a little bit of training.
On top of that.
‘If I can just migrate the families of the soldiers……..’
He would be able to secure quite a lot of residents in an instant.
With these reasons, Roan tried to make them surrender, and it succeeded really well.
“Stop!”
“I will cut down the throats of those who surrender!”
Luke and Mito were greatly agitated and were trying to stop the soldiers trying to leave their ranks.
Thanks to that, the two people that were at the back of the troop ended up coming to the front.
Roan, that was calmly checking on the situation didn’t miss this opportunity.
“Harrison.”
Harrison quickly knocked an arrow at the lowly calling voice.
He was also waiting for Luke and Mito to enter his range.
Sweeeeee!
A sharp sound.
“Everyone hold your places! Don’t get deceived at that cunning ton……..Kuk!”
The arrow pierced Mito’s forehead precisely.
“Hup!”
Luke gulped some air at the sudden situation.
Mito started to tilt down while having his eyes opened up.
Boom!
He rolled on the ground with a heavy sound.
“Damn!”
Luke quickly got down his horse and hid his body.
“Si, sir baron!”
“Baron Posis!”
The soldiers belonging to Posis saw the deceased Mito and yelled.
“It’s the last chance! Is there no one else that will surrender!”
His voice filled with mana rang on the battlefield.
The last note.
It was since then.
The confused soldiers started to leave their ranks just like water.
“No! No! You stupid bastards!”
Luke yelled but he couldn’t stop the soldiers.
In the end the only ones that remained with him were the commanders and adjutants, and only amounted to a hundred.
“Thi, this…….A commoner bastard dares……!”
Luke couldn’t hold down his rage.
Everything had ended anyways.
“I will at least kill you!”
He attacked Roan.
A really ignorant and reckless attack.
Roan spun his spear once and rode on his horse.
“You…..”
A cold voice flowed.
“Aren’t my opponent.”
Right after he said that, Travias spear drew a line of light and moved.
Stab!
The spear moved weirdly and stabbed on his body after fending off his blade.
“Kuhok.”
Luke yelled and collapsed like that.
“The, the road to, to escape was in front of me…….. Grr.”
He couldn’t finish his last words.
Luke ended up dying like that.
“Sir baron!”
“Kugh! Baron Aip!”
The commanders and adjutants following him yelled.
Roan just looked at that silently and then shook his right hand.
A signal that meant charge.
Amaranth troop moved silently and really quickly.
The remaining rebel soldiers couldn’t become their opponents at all.
They left success in front of their eyes and failed.
And the ones that had stopped them was none other than Roan.
*****
Poskein Exodus had ended.
On top of that, the spies that tried to kill Simon were also captured.
But Elton and the spy planted by the 3rd prince Kallum didn’t miss the opportunity and escaped to their own territories when they got the chance.
Simon didn’t order to chase them.
As monsters didn’t appear anymore from the lake, it was just like the subjugation had ended.
Everyone cheered up and were happy but Roan wasn’t like that.
One corner of his heart sunk deeply.
327 deceased soldiers.
He had expected that it wasn’t going to be an easy subjugation.
But even so, his losses were too big.
He remembered Troop commander Gale, Mendel, Keniss, etc. that gave up their lives to rescue corps commander Aaron.
But of course, every time Roan battled he was improving himself.
In spear skills, mana technique, strategies, commanding……
But he felt that everyone and every memory piled up in his heart.
“Troop commander.”
A familiar voice.
As he moved his eyes, he saw Austin.
“The prince is looking for you.”
Maybe it was because of Roan’s sad expression that Austin spoke carefully.
“Austin.”
“Yes, commander.”
“Support the families of the deceased in an abundant manner and take care of their graves.”
Only then could Austin realize.
The reason why Roan was sad.
‘He’s a really good person.’
He felt that he was fortunate to be able to serve an excellent commander.
Austin nodded with a solemn expression.
“Certainly! I will do as you order.”
“Please.”
Roan patted Austin’s shoulders and moved.
A large shadow appeared following his back.
*****
The widest conference room in the HQ of Amaranth troop.
The nobles were taking place with Simon at the center.
There was some internal disturbance because of the spies like Luke, Mito and Elton but just looking at the subjugation itself it was a really amazing success.
Especially when they heard that the 2nd and 3rd princes were having a hard time on the subjugation, the several nobles couldn’t hide the happiness.
Everyone got excited and they each started to boast about their merits.
Now, the merits awards was going to start when they returned to the capital of Miller.
Even if you put behind the competition for the throne of Simon, who they were serving, it was obvious that they themselves were going to get rewarded.
Some nobles may obtain additional territories and some may climb on ranks.
They could obviously feel happy.
Of course, excluding some nobles that raised their blades against Simon. Punishment would come first for them.
Simon was also planning to ask the sins of Tommy and Kallum.
‘But well, they will certainly act innocent.’
Simon thought of his two brothers and put a smile.
Well, even if it was him he would be planning on how to cut their tails.
But Simon still had a method.
‘From the two, i’m catching one first.’
Simon, Tommy and Kallum.
The reason why the competition for the throne wasn’t easy was because the background of the 3 princes was similar.
Because of that, for one person to face 2 princes at the same time was close to impossible.
If they made a mistake, they could be the ones suffering the blow instead.
Because of that, Simon was planning to give up on someone and get rid of another one first.
‘Kukukug.’
Laughter kept coming out.
The moment Simon’s blade went to only one person.
The other person would have to choose.
To grab his hands or stand at the other side.
‘But of course, standing at the other side won’t be easy.’
Solid and scary plans were set up in his head.
Then.
“It’s troop commander Roan.”
One knight that was standing at the entrance notified of Roan’s entrance.
At that moment, the noisy room became quiet in an instant.
The youth that had a confident attitude and was strong willed and also had a soft and prudent spirit.
The troop commander of Amaranth troop and the one that had the commanding and strategizing rights for the region of Tale, Roan, had entered the conference room.
Everyone seated in this place knew.
That if it wasn’t for the youth in front of their eyes, they wouldn’t be able to cheer up like this.
But some nobles were also swept up in another emotion.
Displeaseasure.
Although it was because they had neglected military discipline, Roan had executed a noble while merely being a commoner.
They could only recognize his abilities but he was someone that made you feel bitter.
A person you wanted close, but instinctively made some distance with him.
That was who Roan was.
“Ahem.”
“Hmhm.”
Roan ignored the stifled sights and moved.
“I came by receiving your call.”
He stood in front of Simon and kneeled up.
“Right. I called you because I have something to tell you.”
A soft voice.
Roan bowed.
“But before that…..”
He took out the dagger with fancy symbols from his waist and offered it with his two hands.
“The subjugation has ended. Troop commander Roan of Amaranth, I will be returning Regate dagger to the prince just like I promised.”
“Right. You are returning it to me along with victory, just like you promised.”
Simon put a faint smile.
“Listen well!”
At that moment, Simon yelled in a loud voice and stood up.
At the sudden situation, the many nobles also stood up and bowed.
“This Poskein lake subjugation concluded in an excellent way. Now, I will be asking you. Who’s the one that raised the biggest merits?”
“……..”
At the sudden question, the nobles just looked at each other.
Shaking eyes.
Everyone knew the answer, but no one could open their mouths easily.
Then, viscount Tio Ruin stepped up.
“It’s Roan, troop commander of Amaranth.”
At that moment, a faint smile appeared in Simon’s mouth.
He feigned ignorance and asked again.
“Who?”
“The one that raised the biggest merits is troop commander Roan.”
As Tio replied, Simon looked at the other nobles that were standing as if they were chicks that just ate honey.
“Do you think differently?”
Right after he said that, Io stepped up.
“The answer viscount Tio Ruin gave is correct. The person at the top of the rank of merits for this subjugation is troop commander Roan.”
Followed by TIo, Io also stepped up.
By now the nobles that recognized Roan’s abilities like Ralph, Rael, etc. also added.
“It’s Roan.”
“Troop commander of Amaranth.”
The atmosphere flowed in a weird way.
The nobles that felt displeased at Roan just had their mouths shut.
They couldn’t speak badly at Roan’s merits as they wished.
How could they when he saved Simon’s life!
“I think it is Roan.”
In the end Roan became at the top of the ranking for the merits.
Simon put a smile and pulled out the dagger in his waist.
Srung!
The sound of metal rang pleasantly.
“I Simon Rinse, the 1st prince of Rinse kingdom and the owner of Regate dagger, invest Roan with the title of nobility of a baron instead of his majesty.”
“……..!”
While everyone was surprised, Simon hit Roan’s head and shoulders with the side of his dagger and then put it back.
Until then, the room was filled with silence.
Also for Roan.
Of course, Rinse kingdom had more cases compared to the other kingdoms where commoners became nobles.
If you raised big merits several times and had the help of someone you could become a noble.
But taking into account that Roan was a sinner until now, they thought that even if he was given a title, it would be a barone.
A barone and a baron was like the sky and the earth.
A barone was a rank that was impossible to get hereded.
But it was different for the baron.
If you just had a territory, you could say that you were a genuine noble.
Roan felt being moved in a deep part of his heart.
He remembered the looks of his allies that left his side as they died in the battlefield.
But the merit rewards still didn’t end.
“Also, I won’t retrieve Regate dagger.”
Boom!
Everyone put surprised expressions once again.
Regate dagger was no different from the symbol of the 1st prince.
Giving it with the condition of returning it after the subjugation ended and not taking it back at all had completely different meanings.
And this was.
‘Roan is my person.’
Similar to that.
For Roan, that just became a noble, it was the biggest strength.
But of course because he was labeled as being of the 1st prince, he was becoming enemies with the 2nd and 3rd princes. But there were more good points than bad ones.
Regardless of the surprise of the nobles, Simon had a really comfortable expression.
He touched his chin and said nonsense words.
“The unfortunate word is that I don’t have any territory to give with the title of baron…… His merits are too precious to just give him the title and not a territory.”
“Hahaha!”
At that moment, a big laughter came out.
Simon and the other nobles moved their heads to find the owner of the voice.
“Count Lancephil. Why are you laughing like that?”
Simon tilted his head.
The owner of the voice was none other than Io.
Io smiled brightly and pointed at the map that was spread in the table.
“I want to give the southern part of Lancephil’s territory with the region of Tale included to baron Roan.”
It wasn’t surprising anymore.
It was like approaching the climax.
It was rumored that the territory of Lancephil was spacious.
But just because of that, it didn’t mean that it lost worth.
The nobles were also like this, but the most surprised person was Roan himself.
‘Regate dagger, the title of baron, and on top of that a territory? Just what……’
A lot of things were happening in an instant.
He did think that he would become a noble some day.
To be a monarch, to be a great commander, it was something he would automatically gain when he worked hard.
But he didn’t expect that this sudden situation would happen.
“Hahaha! Is that fine?”
“Yes. Roan is also a benefactor in my life. I also want to…….”
Io thought of the battle a few days ago and a faint light appeared in his eyes.
That light was as dense and deep as the eyes of a father.
“Pay him back.”
His voice rang in the air.
And also rang in Roan’s heart.
‘Count Lancephil.’
He felt stunned.
Then, a hand appeared in front of his eyes.
As he raised his head, he saw Simon smiling.
“Let’s go to the royal palace with me and have an audience with his majesty. Roan……”
A soft voice.
The smile in his face became denser.
“Baron Roan Tale.”