I Planned a Su*cide Mission and Got Kicked Out of the Party

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Alex knelt before Rose, who was busy at her desk, bowing his head. Rose looked down at Alex with a bewildered expression, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The Emperor spoke.

“It was a difficult battle from the start. Am I going to hold you responsible for it? Of course, there were mistakes. But I can’t punish a general like you during such a time. Go back and rest. I’ll call on you when the time is right.”

“Your Highness.”

“Did I not just say to leave, Alex Harker?”

“I want to… stop now.”

At those words, Rose paused her hand, which was writing on the documents. She put down the pen and lifted her gaze.

“What do you mean you want to stop, little brother?”

“I… I don’t have the ability. I can’t be like you, sister. We’re just… too different. I just can’t do it anymore. In the age when you were out winning battles, I’ve done more harm than good by losing. No matter how strong the enemy is, that’s no excuse. I, too, am of the royal family and was the leader of the Royal Knight Order, yet I have faced a humiliating defeat that has never occurred in the history of the order, resulting in many precious young lives in this country… dying. I can’t do it anymore. I’m the worst knight. I’m not like your Highness, the best knight.”

“Draw your weapon.”

Rose stood up abruptly and said. Her red uniform and golden epaulettes appeared threatening to Alex.

“Y-Yes, your Highness?”

“I said to draw your weapon. And follow me to the training ground. Let’s have a spar after a long time.”

Alex tried to refuse, but the Emperor’s order was too firm. Grabbing his sword, Alex followed Rose to the training ground inside the Imperial Palace. It was the very place where Rose had brutally trained Alex before he made his debut as the commander.

Rose arrived early and was waiting for Alex, holding a wooden sword.

“Come at me.”

“Wait a moment, sister. I’m using a real sword now. You being in uniform against my real sword might not be…”

“Enough of that. You do have the confidence to take a round against me, now that I have only my Blessing, right?”

Rose said nonchalantly, provoking him. With resolve, Alex charged at Rose, with his blade drawn. Rose effortlessly blocked Alex’s attack with her wooden sword, then twisted the blade and disarmed him, taking the sword from his hand.

While Alex was losing his sword, the wooden sword slammed hard against his torso. The Duke was knocked back, rolling behind and letting out a painful moan.

“This won’t do. Go again.”

“N-No, sister. I’m no match for you…”

“Come at me again. With the intention to strike me down, for real.”

Alex gritted his teeth. The Emperor’s younger brother picked up the sword he had dropped on the ground and lunged at Rose once more. But despite the second, third, and even fifth attacks, Alex couldn’t even touch a hair on Rose.

Rose moved with only minimal steps, using light motions to toy with Alex. Despite using every skill and technique he knew, Rose read all of his movements with a mere flicker of her eyes, responding appropriately each time.

There was skill, but the difference lay in talent. Despairing, Alex collapsed onto the ground. He shouted in agony.

“I can’t do it anymore. I don’t even have the strength to move my body, your Highness!”

“Yes, that’s the difference between you and me.”

Rose said, tossing the wooden sword onto the floor. Alex nodded.

“Yes, that’s right. I can never catch up to you—”

“My fate is not something a lowly brat like you can even hope to touch, to begin with!”

Rose shouted furiously. Alex lifted his head slightly to look at the Emperor. Rose continued to yell at Alex.

“I never asked you to walk the same path as me, or even a similar one. Such demands are for my own children. That’s not for you, you incompetent fool. I entrusted my order to you, and that is all I have ever asked of you. I entrusted you with the Southern Region of this country, and that too is all I’ve asked of you. A commander of an army, the Emperor’s right hand. That should be enough. I can’t understand why my name keeps coming out of your mouth. I don’t get it!”

“Sister…”

“Weren’t you just whining about a defeat to Jean Helmut?”

Alex nodded. Rose scoffed.

“When Moriarty first rose to power, Helmut managed to hold on for a month relying on his castle, but he cowardly gave up and surrendered. If you had been responsible for that castle, you wouldn’t have acted like that. But do you think you would have been able to last a month against Violet Moriarty, who has mobilized peak forces?”

“I’d struggle to last even a week. No matter how much I relied on the Duke Helmut’s castle.”

“You know yourself well. Yes, that’s the realistic ability gap between you and Jean Helmut. If he had only been loyal, he could have utilized Walter as an outstanding general, but you can’t match his insight or skill. But if I had been entrusted with the defense of Helmut’s castle, I would have driven the Demon King away and defeated him. That’s the gap between me and that Helmut fool. Even if that bug were to come back to life. Even if all Blessings disappear, can you even hope to surpass me, Rose Caprice?”

Though the words were filled with arrogance and confidence, it was understandable because they came from Rose. Alex nodded while still staring at his sister.

“Yes, that’s right. Others could never…”

“Then tell me, little brother. Who you should strive to catch up to: is it this Rose the Emperor, or is it Jean Helmut? When taking common sense steps, is the one you need to catch up to Helmut, who could last a month while you lasted just a week, or is it the one who can completely crush the enemy?”

“That is…”

Alex’s expression was as if he had gotten hit over the head with something. Rose lowered her voice slightly and extended a hand towards Alex.

“Get up. I’m sorry if I was a bit rough.”

“No, I am…”

As Alex took the Emperor’s hand and stood up, he shook his head. Rose smiled gently.

“Even Margaret can’t match the Demon King in ability. It was true back then, and it has probably become even more so now. The Archmage is the most powerful being in the world, and even the Grand Lord of Eramenia can’t hold his ground against him. But remember, she has almost killed the Demon King a few times, and she has beaten him multiple times. Fighting isn’t decided solely by skill. If a situation arises where victory can be achieved, someone who seems impossible to beat can be defeated.”

“But Princess Margaret sent me back here herself. She must think I’m useless…”

“Margaret was like that back in the day. Her way of dealing with a disobedient little sister was to beat them up. I took a lot of beatings too. She sees me as her sister, so perhaps there’s a bit of awkwardness, but in her heart, you are her brother too. Do you think she sent you to me for such a reason?”

Alex remained silent. Rose picked up Alex’s sword and returned it to him.

“On the day that the fairy’s blood flowed through the canyons of Eramenia, Margaret trembled in greater shame and fear than you have ever felt, and she is still trapped in that fear. She is too honest a fairy to give others advice about pain she herself has not overcome. But next to her, she has her Hero, and she has her lover. You, however, still lack a fitting counterpart, but this sister can share the minimum answers you need to seek. Do you have a vague idea of what that answer might be, little brother?”

Alex nodded lightly.

“What I need to reach isn’t my sister.”

“Don’t even dream about it. I’m not that weak.”

Rose stuck out her tongue. Clenching the hilt of his sword, Alex sheathed it again.

“Then I will surpass Helmut.”

The Emperor nodded, giving Alex’s back a pat. Perhaps, having accidentally touched where Rose had hit him before, Alex let out a painful groan. Fortunately, the fractures and bruises Alex had sustained on the battlefield were perfectly treated by Jeongjae before he was sent, but the brand new bruise and wounds were shockingly painful even to touch.

“Oh dear, did I touch something wrong? Sorry. I think I mismanaged my strength since it was the first spar after my Blessing weakened.”

“It makes sense you were supposed to weaken, yet you seem even stronger than normal…”

“It seems I’m not as weak as I thought.”

Rose shook her head. Duke Harker, who was soothing the pain in his back, asked Rose.

“Then… when do you plan to return to the battlefield, sister? You’re not staying here until the war ends, are you?”

“Soon. After the siege on the Demon King’s Castle begins.”

“Then it means we have to push as far as the enemy lines to call you back.”

“It won’t take long. Only the best of the best will lead the army. Remember this, Alex. I may have spoken a bit harshly today, but you too, are one of the best. It’s just that I’m too exceptional. That’s not my fault, is it?”

“That’s right. It doesn’t make sense to blame you for that. Agh…”

“Yes, that wound is my fault. I’m sorry again.”

The siblings looked at each other and chuckled. With a determined expression, Alex declared.

“I’ll head back. I will return and take decisive revenge against the betrayer of humanity who slaughtered my subordinates.”

“We all fight for our own revenge, including me. Yes. Go back. Complete your revenge. And pass my regards to everyone. When our Northern Expeditionary Force launches an attack towards the Demon King’s Castle, I will also personally join the campaign with a shield in hand.”

“I will deliver the message clearly. The morale of the Legion is sure to rise.”

Meanwhile, Jeongjae’s Legion was slowly advancing northward, clearing the enemy’s corpses bit by bit.

Even Helmut, who had achieved a significant victory over the Royal Knight Order, could not attain any more meaningful tactical results. The Demon King was unable to devise a plan that could prevent the allied forces from approaching the Demon King’s Castle, other than forcing maximum attrition on the enemy.

Jeongjae charged straightforwardly along the established path without any audacity. Although the attacks proceeded in predictable directions, Jeongjae’s method had no vulnerabilities, as it was as predictable as it was solid.

Ultimately, the Demon King raised the black flag above the castle and issued orders for all legions to converge at the castle. This was, in essence, a declaration of giving up defense in the outer regions of the Demon King’s Castle and enduring the inevitable offensive.

“Let them come. No, make them come. I’m not afraid. The ones who should be afraid are the enemies.”

The Demon King watched as his legions slowly assembled towards the fort from the balcony of the castle. Though he had gathered his powers to the maximum, even the Demon King found it challenging to assemble an army of over 800,000. However, this alone reached six times the forces the allied army would need for a siege, and there were a fair number of Lich units and members of the Shadow Knight Order mixed in the ranks.

If the battle dragged on, there was a reserve force in the eastern region that could reverse the encirclement of the enemies surrounding the Demon King’s Castle at any time. Most of them were spread out in the wild due to the lack of communication, but should the situation turn in their favor, they were troops ready to follow the Demon King once again.

“Our forces are numerous, and our power is superior. Moreover, almost all the machines have been repaired.”

Those machines were the Demon King’s last gambit, his final lifeline.