Chapter 574: Act 321 – The Battle of Saintly White V
The azure riders galloped up the slope, Bud gripped the reins tightly with his scaled gauntlet-covered hand and turned his head. To the north of Ampere Seale, several enormous light gates opened on the horizon, and countless armies surged from them, densely packed like a swarm of ants.
“In half an hour, the Black Blade Legion’s full deployment will appear on the battlefield at Ampere Seale, and the Crusian has also intervened.”
“My lord, what shall we do?”
The Highland Knights’ commander looked grimly at the small black dots rising from the horizon—those were the dragons of the Black Blade Legion—momentarily blotting out the sky as they swept towards Ampere Seale.
This number… far exceeds that of the Black Blade Legion, it seems the temple has completely deviated from neutrality. The various northern nobles, along with the temple’s hidden powers in Erluin, have joined forces with Duke Siphai.
The Crusian wants to solve the problem once and for all.
He turned back and looked at his subordinates. “What do you all think?”
“The Highland Knights have been waiting for this day for a long time, my lord.”
“Everything is like that prophecy, my lord; we trust your judgment.”
“The kingdom tries to forget that war, but the veterans have never forgotten even a single day.”
“Because this is a promise.”
…
“Because this is a promise,” Retao gazed over the dark sea outside Duke Toniger’s domain, speaking quietly to Kuran— the situation in the north was tightening day by day; perhaps today, perhaps yesterday, that young lord must be executing his plans in Ampere Seale—he turned back and said:
“On the highlands, knights never forget their promises to others.”
“So you noticed it from the very beginning,” Kuran asked.
“That swordsmanship is unique,” Retao replied. “Moreover, the veterans have their own pride; how could they easily follow the orders of a child—even if the other is a noble…”
“Besides, didn’t you recognize it from the start?”
“Half a century of war,” Kuran replied. “It has brought deep-rooted catastrophe to Erluin, and since the second restoration, the nobles’ complete decline is merely a facade—ultimately, there is no hope…”
“Even someone like Reld is now afraid,” Retao sighed. “His prestige was second only to the Marshal. However, I do not agree with him; merely wanting to preserve Erluin is itself a betrayal of the kingdom’s foundation.”
“Why does Erluin exist?”
“To aspire for glory.”
“So what was that riddle back then?” Kuran asked.
“No one knows,” Retao shook his head. “Those who knew are no longer in this world. Perhaps Lord Turiman knows something, but he also left the kingdom for that reason.”
“I actually have a guess.”
Retao turned back, curious about his former comrade.
“Before his judgment, the Marshal once asked me a question,” Kuran took a deep breath. “What is the truth of history?”
What is the truth of history?
…
“So,” Brendel couldn’t help but look around in confusion and asked, “What exactly is going on?”
“I thought you would ask this question a bit later, my lord,” Charles said with an awkward smile in response. Brendel coldly stared at him, not giving this guy a chance to evade.
“Actually, the answer is quite simple,” Charles glanced at the princess and stammered, “Just like you might have guessed part of the answer, my relationship with you is— the relationship between a Highland Knight and his Mage Servant.”
“Charles.”
“No, my lord, I’m not joking.”
Brendel was momentarily stunned, as if a flash of lightning had pierced through his mind, igniting something in an instant. He lifted his head to see Charles looking at him earnestly.
“Indeed, my lord. You are a true Highland Knight,” Charles smiled slightly, the mischief evident in his expression. “I have never lied; everything is predestined.”
“That’s impossible, Charles, you’re joking,” Brendel felt that something must be wrong here, “We are not…”
He almost wanted to say the words “Mage Traveler,” but found it unexpectedly difficult to speak.
“It seems you understand, my lord. I remember you once asked me what cards are, and I answered you: cards are a manifestation of rules, a collection of concepts; just like how holding the Highland Servant card allows you to summon Charles, and holding the Silver Elf Knight card allows you to summon Medisa, it is because we are all closely connected with you.”
“The world of Mage Travelers is a reflection of the laws of the world. However, history and causality are also a form of laws,” Charles responded in his mind.
“But what does that matter? I can’t possibly be a Highland Knight…” Brendel felt it hard to accept, as if someone told him that a lie repeated many times could eventually become a fact, which turned his worldview upside down. Because more than anyone else, he knew who he was.
He is Sue, he is Brendel; he wasn’t even a noble, he was once a gamer, just a fool with heroic dreams. In his past life, he had no ties to this world, and in this life, he was just the son of a miller.
His only slight connection to the nobility probably came from his mother, who was a descendant of the Cardilego.
He suddenly froze.
How could the Cardilego have left Karasu Highlands? They’ve been nobles on the highlands for generations, marrying the Highland Knights, and how could his mother have married into Bruglas? He had tried hard to avoid thinking about his family, with the most vivid memory being that of his grandfather, who participated in the “November War.”
But after the Golden Tree, all of this was severed, and he deliberately avoided disturbing Brendel’s previously peaceful life.
However, today, all of this seemed to converge once again, forming something he could not ignore.
Charles looked at him, “—From some point on, you became a true Highland Knight, my lord; you should understand this.”
“No,” Brendel shook his head, “I’m still a bit confused. Even if I have some connection to the Highland Knights, the inheritance of the Highland Knights is certainly not like this…”
“Yes,” Charles smiled mysteriously, “My lord, why don’t you think carefully about why you can summon me? And how is the inheritance of the Highland Knights?”
This did not stump Brendel. The maxims of the Highland Knights were inscribed on the ancient stone tablets of Karasu Highlands, recited through generations, and many travelers and poets sang praises of these doctrines. As a player, he remembered clearly— the Highland Knights’ legacy is passed down through an unbreakable bloodline; the moment he takes the sword from his ancestor, he walks this path.
But before he could finish this thought, he suddenly froze.
His face turned pale.
The sword in his hand clanged to the ground.
Charles smiled silently.
“Moreover, my swordsmanship is quite good; I’m not boasting; that old officer praised me personally, saying I was the best in this cohort of trainees.”
“I’m not far from my bedroom door; thanks to Lady Martha, I only need to rush out a few steps to see my sword lying quietly there.”
“That sword is also one of my family heirlooms. My grandfather once used it in battle; it is said that he served as a retainer to a knight for a while, and that sword was gifted to him by that knight lord—”
“That sword should be of the 32-year standard; it bears the ivy emblem, commemorating the victory of the Golan-Elsen Plateau battle.”
“I remember that year, His Majesty changed the standard for cavalry long swords, shortening the sword from the original two-arms-long to one-and-a-half arms, and the copper decoration on the guard was replaced with regular iron flowers to reduce costs to accommodate the protracted ‘November War.'”
Brendel couldn’t hear anything clearly anymore; he only felt a ringing in his head. It was as if something had exploded. He closed his eyes, feeling like he was a thorough idiot.
What 32-year standard sword, what commemorating the victory of the Golan-Elsen Plateau battle; he truly was a fool. Wasn’t it the Highland Knights who participated in the Golan-Elsen Plateau battle? He clearly should have remembered all of this; yet due to his deliberate neglect and being misled by Brendel’s memories, he forgot this most crucial point.
Brendel was dazed for a long while before he finally regained his senses. Fortunately, there was another half of his soul within him, preventing him from being unable to accept this reality; in fact, it was just the opposite—he quickly calmed down. After cursing Brendel as a big idiot, he viewed the whole matter with Sue’s perspective, and then everything became simple and clear.
He raised his head and looked at Charles, Overwell, Nemeses, and the princess. It seemed that among those present, only these four understood the truth.
But why these four? That was a bit intriguing. Brendel slightly organized his thoughts before asking, “So, my grandfather clearly can’t be merely the nameless veteran of the November War as he said?”
Brendel wasn’t foolish enough to believe that the princess would know every veteran of the November War. Moreover, judging by her and Overwell’s previous reactions, it was likely that his grandfather had a significant background. Connecting that with the words of the Highland Knights’ commander Bud, Charles’s identity was also extremely suspicious.
Brendel suddenly felt angry; it seemed the whole matter had been hidden from him alone. Although this child had indeed been adorably foolish over the past twenty years, the plot still made him feel a bit clichéd.
So now, he needed an answer.
“You didn’t know?” Princess Grifian was slightly taken aback, but then she quickly realized, “Marshal did indeed honor the promise, not revealing a word to outsiders.”
She looked at Charles by her side. “Mr. Charles?”
Charles couldn’t help but smile wryly, “Actually, this is a misunderstanding. But in fact, ever since that day I returned to this world, I understood that the Twin Goddess’s Alice is truly weaving the fate of this world with lines—”
“Just as I said, everything is predestined.”
“Marshal?” Brendel seemed to have heard a nonsensical term. As far as he knew, Erluin had never had such a military rank, position, title, or nobility. “What on earth is going on?”
“My lord, actually, just as you guessed, your grandfather was never a nameless person,” Charles sighed and finally responded.
Brendel fell silent. He actually anticipated this; his grandfather’s swordsmanship was extraordinary. How could it belong to an ordinary veteran? While Retao was also a veteran of the November War, he was worlds apart from his grandfather.
Ridiculously, Brendel had thought for nineteen years that his grandfather was merely slightly better than average in swordsmanship, which left him slightly amused.
The most ridiculous thing was, Brendel didn’t even know his grandfather’s name; back when the old man was alive, people called him “Old Tobes.” But that was clearly a pseudonym; Brendel never had a famous name overlapping with that one in his memories.
Sure enough, he heard Charles continuing, “In fact, all of this starts with the Highland Knights, just as you anticipated—your grandfather was a real Highland Knight in his youth, and the blood of the Highland Knights flows through your veins.”
“And at that time, he had a Mage Servant named Charles Palosh.”
“Ah—” The young people around seemed to hear a bizarre tale and stared in shock at the young mage recounting it. Although Brendel had long anticipated this, he couldn’t help but take a soft breath, “Charles Palosh… Charles, you are the mage of the Palosh family?”
Charles nodded.
“Palosh is the most distinguished title among the tower wizards. Their bloodline is closest to the People of Silver; having you as a servant means you can’t be telling me that my grandfather or rather I should bear the surname Cardiloso, right?”
Princess Grifian interjected, “Mr. Charles isn’t lying. Brendel, your grandfather is indeed a descendant of the most illustrious family among the Highland Knights—his true name should be Darus Cardiloso, commonly known as… the Earth Sword Saint Darus…”
At that moment, Brendel felt as if he were listening to a legendary story, but this time he was experiencing it himself. In the distant memory, when the kingdom was at its peak during the Second Restoration, Erluin had three supreme powerhouses—the Earth Sword Saint Darus, the ancient Gurekas of the Foreseen Nation, and the scholar Turiman of the Mithril Fortress.
But Brendel never dreamed that the most famous among these three was actually his grandfather.
He stared blankly at Princess Grifian and Charles.
Charles couldn’t help but smile again, “My lord, but your grandfather also had another name—he gained glory because of this name, and he fell because of this name—Harasgue’s Dragon, the Marshal of the Temple of Fire Coalition in the last Holy War…”
…
“So,” in the end, Kuran asked, “Did you write a letter to Bud? What did you tell him in the letter?”
Retao nodded, looking towards the sea, after a while, he finally answered, “I simply asked him if he still remembered Harasgue’s Dragon.”
“Haha,” Kuran suddenly laughed heartily. “Of course, I remember.”
“How could one forget?”
