35 – Knights
The knights of the Phibron Empire expressed their anger without reservation. They swung their swords, used magic, and chased those who longed for life as they fled.
It may be a tragedy for some, but for others, this was the realization of justice.
Opinions may differ, but one thing is certain: the knights of the Phibron Empire did not feel ashamed of their actions. It was resistance for life, and it was an act for the crumbling empire and the invaded families.
The screams of the bureaucrats of the Kaorelden Empire filled the battlefield. Macderas merely watched the scene. Until the anger of the invaded was fully unleashed, or until he could find solace in having protected his own country with his own hands.
Phlemea once again took Macderas’ hand from the side. But she was no longer trembling, nor did she avoid looking at the battlefield. She spoke.
“I learned because of what Macderas showed me here. Hoping for salvation with only hopeful thoughts will never yield anything. No matter how hard you try, things that won’t change will never change. So you need strength to protect. The courage to carry it out… Wasn’t Macderas trying to tell me that, even by showing me unnecessary actions that he didn’t have to do?”
“It’s a difference of opinion. Everyone thinks differently. If you think that way, then that’s how it is.”
I didn’t feel the need to give strength to her opinion. I have already fulfilled my role. I created countless justifications for war, showed the true nature of cruel people, and showed at least some mercy to the innocent.
Some will call this enough justification, and others will still remember us as eternal slaughterers despite that. It depends on the person who accepts it.
So this pain of growth was something she had to ponder and overcome on her own. She had to prevent the wounds from reopening and bleeding, and she had to heal her own scars. What she truly believes is the answer.
“I don’t think I can just stand still. I’ll go and help.”
Phlemea ran and treated the people lying on the battlefield. However, this time, those who received her grace were the knights of the Phibron Empire. She did her best to bestow the grace given to her by the gods upon those who suffered, fell, and suffered. It was the only thing she could do.
As I surveyed the battlefield, it was clear that the bureaucrats, who appeared to have never received proper combat training, were overwhelmingly overwhelmed by the knights. Even the escorts they had were insufficient to deal with this absurd force. The tide had completely turned. It was only then that MacDuras, finally relaxing, looked at the red sphere.
After a moment, he reached out his hand, and countless enemy blades flew into the sky. Those blades quickly disappeared from sight.
“What have you done?”
When Princess Braine asked the question, MacDuras replied calmly.
“I killed those who fled.”
“Remarkable ability… We might not have needed our help after all.”
It was true. The massacre magic used the corpses, blood, and vitality of people as an energy source, so once it was cast, it could remain activated until all enemies were killed. However, there was one fatal penalty: the use of massacre magic was restricted for a certain period of time after it was used.
That’s why you had to kill the enemies without fail once it was activated. You had to constantly infuse the enemies with vitality to prevent the sphere from completely disappearing before the battle ended. This could be considered a disadvantage, but the battlefield was already filled with people’s corpses. The more you absorbed, the stronger you became, and the versatility of the power increased. Massacre magic became a more efficient killing tool than any other magic.
If you gave up on being human.
MacDuras looked at Princess Braine of the Fibrone Empire and spoke.
“If it weren’t for the knights of the Fibrone Empire, my battle would have been nothing but senseless slaughter. The reason was for the sake of Phlemea, but that was a personal matter.”
“Reason… In the end, what helped us was something abstract. If you weren’t here, we would have been overwhelmingly defeated in battle. It would have been better if someone like you, not me, had ascended to the throne. Then the people wouldn’t have suffered so much.”
Then MacDuras pointed to the men fighting in front of them and spoke.
“Do you see? Your Majesty’s knights are fighting to protect their homeland. They are advancing without fear of death to end this meaningless war. They fought the same way before I intervened, and even if I hadn’t intervened, they would have fought the same way. So don’t have any unnecessary thoughts. What Your Majesty should think about is becoming a guiding light for these people, leading them on the right path. Don’t worry if you lack strength. As long as the direction is correct, you will eventually reach your destination.”
Princess Braine asked a question. Her tone became a little friendlier.
“Can you tell me where you came from? If there were people like you in the surrounding empires or kingdoms, there’s no way I wouldn’t have heard about it.”
MacDuras was about to make up a lie but stopped. After all, Princess Braine was someone who could tell whether a statement was true or false, just like Choi Ye-bin.
“There is a place called Earth. I will only say that much.”
“No way…”
Princess Braine started to frantically look around. Then she stared blankly at something and soon took my hand and spoke quietly.
“In the novel’s doomed gallery… I’ve seen something just like your magic there. It was a research journal of a seasoned magician posted by someone named Administrator. There, I found something in the exact form of your magic. Do you know about it?”
I didn’t lie. I’m the only one who can use inter-novel warp magic. It’s information I’ve gathered through experience, so there’s no need to hide my identity in another novel.
“I know. I’m also a member of the community.”
‘Was Princess Brani also a possessed person?’
I thought that when using warp magic, the nicknames of the possessed people would all be displayed above their heads, but it seems that’s not the case. It would be more reasonable to assume that it only shows the person linked to the warp target.
“Well, it’s not surprising. From the beginning, she seemed to be confident that I was a possessed person and asked me about it.”
In the novels, there can be hundreds of possessed people, or just one. That was the conclusion I reached after looking at several cases. In the end, Princess Brani was just one of the many people living as a possessed person.
Princess Brani stopped her formal tone and spoke to me.
“I never thought you could be someone from the community. Please feel free to speak. I’m 20 years old, after all.”
“Very well, then.”
“Is it because you’re more used to this way of speaking?”
“Yes, it’s more familiar to me.”
“It’s been quite a long time since you were possessed…”
Princess Brani nodded, then approached me and expressed her concern.
“McDuras, if you’ve seen the community, you must know that there’s someone leaking your records of massacre magic on the Doomed Gallery. At first, I didn’t think much of it… but seeing it firsthand, it’s an incredibly dangerous magic. It’s risky for someone strange to have that kind of magic research journal. Do you know this person called Administrator?”
The research journal of a seasoned magician that the Doomed Gallery administrator uploaded.
Princess Brani also thought that Administrator had obtained and leaked it. McDuras clarified to dispel any misunderstandings.
“I am the Administrator. I uploaded it for a good reason, and besides, there is no one who can follow that information, so don’t worry.”
“Just a moment… You’re saying you’re Administrator, McDuras…? That can’t be…”
In Princess Brani’s mind, numerous exploits of the Doomed Gallery administrator began to surface. McDuras seemed to be aware of the confusion and briefly spoke for himself.
“Because it’s a place where you can’t survive if you’re not insane.”
Princess Brainy looked at MacDeras as if she pitied him and spoke.
“…That’s true. If you had this much power, you must have endured and endured many things on your own.”
Princess Brainy nodded as if she understood and added.
“Let’s save the rest of the story for after the war. Now that it seems like everything around us has been sorted out.”
“As you wish.”
As she said, there were no more living beings around the imperial palace of the Kaorelden Empire. The knights shouted that they had won and rejoiced in their victory. MacDeras walked towards the palace silently.
“Did you kill the emperor?”
He asked T’keloman, and he answered.
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“We couldn’t find him. It seems like he escaped.”
“I see.”
MacDeras did not agree with T’keloman’s opinion. If this place were not a world where magic existed, he might not have known, but he thought that abandoning his nest and fleeing in a world with various magic was an impossible thing.
Well, if he had enough time, he could create an impregnable fortress that would never be penetrated by overlapping countless magic circles.
Emperor Lurkan considered his own safety as the top priority, believed that he was a god without any doubt, and had the power of invading and winning many empires. He would never have considered the option of “escape” from this place.
So, there was only one place where the emperor could be.
“The palace… The palace doors won’t open!”
Sure enough, the people who were trying to enter the palace to search were blocked by a suspicious magic and couldn’t enter. Moreover.
“aaah!”
The man’s body burned and disappeared in an instant. It must have been one of the defensive magic circles created by the emperor through the palace wizards.
MacDeras walked forward. Countless magic circles were shaking like crazy, but he didn’t care. The attacks that piled up were all repelled, and the endless defensive magic circles disappeared as soon as they touched MacDeras’ hands.
“The understanding of the structure is sufficient at this point.”
As Macderrath raised his hand to the red sphere, the sphere began to tremble and soon unleashed a massive lightning bolt in the imperial palace.
The mesmerizing red lightning struck dozens of times in an instant, and the previously sealed doors of the palace opened.
Kiiiiing.
Macderrath opened the door and walked slowly. He immediately moved to where he could feel the presence of a living being. As if intending to use them as prey, dozens of holy maidens trembled inside the room.
“Get out.”
When Macderrath commanded, the maidens hesitated for a moment, but then screamed again and started to flee outside. Finally, Macderrath swung his sword towards the empty space.
Clang!
With the sound of the sword clashing, two hidden beings revealed themselves.
Briphen, the captain of the Imperial Knights of the Kaorelden Empire. And behind him stood Emperor Lukan.
While Macderrath was facing Briphen and his sword, he looked into the eyes of Emperor Lukan, who was standing behind him.
Macderrath spoke to him.
“Do you want to live?”
Of course, the Emperor did not respond. However, Macderrath poured his sharp mana into his sword and said.
“If you kill me, spare me.”
Soon after, the knights of Phlemea and the Phebron Empire, as well as Princess Breini, entered the room. Macderrath reaffirmed.
“If you or your knights can kill me in a duel, spare me. Those behind you will also keep their promise.”
Emperor Lukan opened his eyes wide and said.
“How can I believe that…?”
“Do you have a choice?”
The Emperor Lukan burst into laughter.
“You insolent fool! You dare to mock me until the end. Even if I die, I will make sure to kill you just as well. Bripen, standing before you, is the epitome of swordsmanship. Do you think you can defeat him in a duel?”
The Emperor Lukan commanded the Bripen Royal Knight Commander.
“Kill him!”
In an instant, Bripen, the Royal Knight Commander of the Kaorelden Empire, shouted with a battle cry and swung his sword at Macderras. But it was Teckeloman who blocked it.
“…?”
As Macderras looked at him with a puzzled expression, Teckeloman, the Knight Commander, trembled and clenched his fists, gritting his teeth as he spoke.
“A person who couldn’t be saved has died. I had to lose cherished comrades, and the knights who believed in me had to suffer meaningless deaths. I had to go to the families who lost their fathers and kneel down to apologize… I had to witness their tears right before my eyes.”
Teckeloman, overwhelmed with strength, tightened his grip on the sword with both hands and continued speaking to Macderras until the end.
“I want to take revenge for them, with my own hands.”
Macderras, looking at him, said.
“The difference in skill between you and the author is immense. You won’t last a few moves before dying.”
“I know…”
“If you step back, I can kill both of you within seconds.”
“That… I know as well.”
“Is honor or revenge for your comrades more important than your life? Why engage in such an inefficient task?”
Macderras sincerely questioned, seemingly unable to understand the reason, and Teckeloman, with blood dripping from his tightly clenched hand holding the sword, replied.
“Because that’s what it means to be a knight.”
Macderras stepped back without saying a word. At the same time,
The final battle of this war began.