Ray cautiously observed Speira.
Speira, seeing his behavior, felt as if a layer of naivety had peeled off him.
Shaking her head at Ray’s repeated embarrassing actions, Speira suppressed her emotions.
Nonetheless, Ray found himself in trouble due to Speira’s group.
Exercising patience, Speira spoke to Brantley.
“Grandfather saw talent in this country bumpkin and invited him to the mansion. But wouldn’t it be a waste to kill him outright when he might still have some use?”
This was the best Speira could offer under the circumstances.
Brantley smirked before replying to Speira.
“Don’t worry. The place for bloodshed isn’t here.”
Having said that, Brantley ordered his subordinates to take the prisoners along.
Brantley’s forces quickly marched toward the Warp Gate with the prisoners in tow.
Though the pace was too fast for those untrained, everyone kept silent, moving their legs as if between life and death.
No one ignorant enough to not realize that falling behind meant certain death.
Occasionally, even knights would shove the prisoners who were walking well in line.
Alesya, inexplicably targeted, was pushed forward while walking diligently.
Pffk!
“Ouch!”
As Alesya was about to fall flat, Ray swiftly grabbed her with his bound arms.
Being dragged by Ray, Alesya regained her balance and grumbled.
“Such play is not very enjoyable…”
“At least you’re in good spirits to joke around. That’s reassuring.”
“Hmm, my knight.”
Alesya glanced around and subtly tightened her neck muscles.
“Your greed for power has led to this predicament. From now on, don’t look away from me.”
“…Well, I’ll take note of that.”
Ray found it absurd that Alesya was thinking such things amidst all this but thought nodding along was better than appearing deflated.
Continuing her walk beside Ray, Alesya asked,
“My knight, why have the enemies spared us?”
It didn’t seem necessary to Alesya that the enemy would keep Philip Count’s group alive.
While slaying surrendered foes was dishonorable, these rebels didn’t exactly care about honor at this point.
Discussing honor at such a time seemed laughable.
Ray looked around before answering.
“The Warp Gate is located in the Prizzran Clan’s mansion, which is more like a fortress.”
Even with the current strength of the enemy, they could undoubtedly capture the fortress.
However, it was preferable for them to enter without resistance or unnecessary delays.
“Therefore, they will likely threaten to open the fortress by pushing Speira, our hostage.”
“But the defenders aren’t likely to surrender easily, are they?”
“Indeed. If they resist, the enemies can’t afford to kill Speira right away since she’s the most important hostage.”
“Hmm, I see.”
“They might execute us first as a warning, threatening the defenders that they’ll do the same to Speira if the gates aren’t opened. In short, we’re like appetizers.”
“…”
Understanding the explanation, Alesya grew uneasy.
Before being shoved again, Ray pulled Alesya closer and observed the enemy formation.
‘Not bad.’
The enemies were monitoring the prisoners closely and ready to cut throats at any suspicious movement, thus mixing their own ranks with the captives.
This made it harder for allied mages to unleash high-powered spells indiscriminately.
On the other hand, the enemy command was separate and guarded, making them easier targets for magical strikes.
Thud thud
Not long after starting their march, Brantley’s forces and the prisoners entered the city.
The murmurs of the citizens grew louder but were ignored.
Finally, Brantley’s forces and the prisoners arrived at the mansion owned by the Prizzran Clan.
What appeared as a mansion was closer to a fortress built for defense.
Ray heightened his alertness.
The likelihood of the enemies executing prisoners here was high, so he needed to prepare for battle.
‘If that happens…’
Luna would cast magic to instantly attack the command center.
Amidst the ensuing chaos, Ray would use Leaping Sword Energy to push away the enemies near the hostages.
He’d then use Spirits to recover supplies and protect non-combatants with the help of the high-tier Spirit Karga.
Afterward, Ray would infiltrate the surviving enemy command to buy time until reinforcements from the mansion joined the fight.
‘This plan isn’t bad, not bad at all…’
If executed correctly, it was better than being surrounded and bombarded by prepared enemy firepower.
But that didn’t guarantee victory.
The enemy forces were formidable, and the true power of the Demon named ‘Rilrif’ remained uncertain.
Even if they managed a hard-fought victory, completely annihilating the enemy would be impossible.
Ray preferred fighting within the fortress.
But he couldn’t tolerate the loss of lives from Phillip’s County.
As Ray prepared to draw his sword, there was an exchange of shouts between Brantley’s side and the fortress defenders.
The content of the shouting was predictable:
“Open the gate!” “Go away!” “Know your shame!”
After a few more exchanges, Brantley’s side began preparing to torture or execute prisoners in front of the fortress walls.
“…”
Ray exchanged glances with Luna.
However, before Ray and Luna could act,
The gates of the fortress opened.
“…?”
Ray was unsure whether the commander defending the fortress made a quick decision or had anticipated the situation.
In any case, Dillid Prisland, the fortress commander, swiftly opened the gates.
It was a wise judgment considering Speira’s life wasn’t something to be risked.
Rather than delaying just to see Speira’s wrist get chopped off, opening the gates while she was still intact was the better option.
Brantley and his troops entered the fortress.
The heavily armed fortress soldiers exuded a menacing aura; most of them belonged to the Prizzran Clan.
Dillid Prisland glared at Brantley and warned,
“If Speira gets even a scratch, know that we’ll all die together.”
Brantley smirked and turned his head.
Although the fortress defenders surrounded Brantley’s troops, Brantley remained calm.
His forces were still strong enough to overpower them.
Entering a massive tunnel leading underground, Brantley mocked Dillid.
“Aren’t you coming?”
“…The Prizzran Clan won’t forget today’s insult.”
The fortress defenders followed Brantley into the underground area.
*
The Warp Gate existed in an underground plaza.
The plaza was enormous, even larger than the fortress visible from the outside.
At the center of the underground mana vein stood the Warp Gate.
Despite its considerable size, the entrance for supplies was relatively small.
Brantley’s forces reached the Warp Gate, and the fortress defenders surrounded them from a distance, preparing for a surprise attack.
Tensions ran high as Dillid’s adjutant asked,
“Is it alright to hand over the Warp Gate like this?”
“It takes a long time to activate it without royal permission. By then, reinforcements will arrive, and the imperial court will surely take action.”
That was correct.
The Warp Gate, being a crucial strategic asset, wasn’t something that could be activated merely by touching it.
Even Brantley watched Rilrif approach the Warp Gate with slight apprehension.
If the activation took too long, the operation would need adjustment.
However, Rilrif, aided by other mages, quickly began activating the Warp Gate.
Witnessing Rilrif’s skill firsthand, the mages were amazed.
Brantley smiled, while the fortress defenders were perplexed.
As time passed and the space around the Warp Gate began to distort, Rilrif, keeping his eyes on the gate, reported to Brantley,
“Complete activation will take about 20 minutes. Since it’s a forced start, it’s unstable, so we can’t bring all the prisoners through.”
Important prisoners needed to be released or dealt with.
Brantley laughed.
“Kill them.”
Brantley intended to shed blood while the defenders watched—a clear provocation against the Prizzran Clan.
The fortress defenders were angered and agitated by the announcement of prisoner executions but did not actively respond.
To them, what mattered was Speira Prizzran, not unheard-of villagers.
It seemed the standoff would continue regardless of whether the valueless prisoners’ heads were cut off.
Suddenly, a sound of wind swept past everyone’s ears.
Chack!
From a cart where cheap weapons confiscated from prisoners were stored, a single sword flew out.
The airborne sword was drawn into Ray’s grasp.
“…!”
Among Brantley’s forces, someone voiced frustration.
How had they missed identifying an artifact capable of self-propulsion? Something along those lines.
Five knights assigned to guard the prisoners surrounded Ray.
Given his youthful appearance, Ray wasn’t intimidating enough to cause concern.
Just a boy breaking free of his bonds and wielding an incongruous artifact—nothing significant.
An easy situation to handle immediately.
Ray took a deep breath as the knights approached.
“Huff…”
This was the crossroads.
Right now, this moment would decide the unity or division of the Empire.
Ray had been pondering continuously.
If he focused solely on protecting his people and retreated, they might use the Warp Gate to reach the frontier lord, potentially splitting the empire.
It could lead to a period of chaos and civil war.
“…”
But Ray chose not to take that path.
Facing global calamity with only a few heroes would be incredibly arduous.
Therefore, Ray decided to prevent the empire’s division and support a united one.
Under the authority of the empire, humanity would provide the strength needed to overcome the disaster. It had to be this way.
‘Dear heavens…’
Ray hoped.
That this choice would save not the world, but his people.
Praying silently to himself, Ray spoke.
“Eridanus.”
“…”
Rilrif, who had been concentrating on the Warp Gate, abruptly halted his movements.
Hearing a name used six hundred years ago, even a cunning demon couldn’t completely conceal his astonishment.
Ray chuckled briefly.
People from Phillip’s County, the Prizzran Clan, and everyone guarding the fortress had to burn their lives fighting against unholy beings.
Even if human heads exploded and unknown demonic powers swept past, they had to wield swords and charge into the battlefield.
Though inciting allies and confusing enemies wasn’t Ray’s forte,
Ray missed Ropheiren’s absence but had no choice but to speak himself.
“Eridanus, crawling out of the Demonic Realm after six hundred years to pull such stunts again?”
Everyone disregarded Ray’s nonsense except ‘Rilrif,’ who paused the gate connecting to the southeastern region and locked it so only he could operate it.
Ray took a step toward Rilrif.
“Six hundred years ago, the hero let you escape, but I won’t.”
Ray’s voice echoed in the underground chamber.
Most people thought Ray had lost his mind.
The knights surrounding Ray chuckled and lunged at him with their swords.
Or rather, attempted to—but soon froze in place.
“…?”
An eerie chill spread across the ground, swallowing everything around.
The knights’ honed instincts screamed warnings, stiffening their bodies.
Amidst the hesitant knights,
Ray’s momentum, amplified by Core and Circle, surged outward.
“Raise your swords, all of you.”
Ray recited verbatim a phrase from a fairy tale he once read.
In the story, Harshia led an endless army to the horizon and declared:
“This is an order. Raise your swords and slay the minions of evil and traitors.”
Even young children and white-haired elders knew the next words.
“Under the grace of His Majesty the Emperor, fulfill your duty. Prove that the oath you knelt to make in your youth was not false.”
Now everyone stared at Ray.
With disbelief and shock etched on their faces, they gripped their weapons tightly while staring at him.
Ray smiled under everyone’s gaze.
As the rising tension threatened to explode,
“For the Empire.”
A legendary divine sword, lost with the end of a myth six hundred years ago, emerged from the distorted space.
“To glory.”
