<strong>Chapter 98: The Battle of Hisfil Castle (8)</strong>
What just happened?
The guards standing behind Reika and me were the first to grasp the situation.
“This is unbelievable…!”
And with the guard’s exclamation, it was as if Reika and I were snapped out of Medusa’s curse, slowly coming back to our senses.
“This is…”
“Swen… what just happened???”
The first thought that came to my clear mind wasn’t about why this happened or why the rapier shimmered. It was that we needed to leave this place immediately.
Only one thought dominated my mind: “Let’s get out of here!”
“Reika, let’s go back!”
“Yes, yes…? Eh? But-”
“We don’t have time. Come on!”
Reika barely managed to respond, her eyes trembling, clearly in shock, but she promptly grabbed my outstretched hand. I was grateful she didn’t waste any time.
I shouted to the guards, “Prepare the carriage! Forget the plan. We need to return to Balhart Castle immediately!”
The bewildered guards nodded at my command.
“Understood!”
After calming the spooked horses, the guard helped Reika and me into the carriage. The guards assigned for infiltration hastily joined us in fleeing.
The thought of “We must escape” so dominated my mind that I failed to notice someone standing beyond the cleanly pierced hole in the wall.
—
“What was that sound?!”
The eastern wall of Hisfil Castle had collapsed with a loud noise.
This news spread quickly among all the key figures within the castle. It was impossible not to hear the tremendous noise or see the smoke billowing into the castle from the destroyed wall.
Serpina, who was there to oversee the operation, quickly received the news and, along with Lord Yuan and a commander, rushed to the scene.
“This way, Lady Serpina…!!”
Following the soldier to the site, they found an unbelievable sight.
“This can’t be…!”
The hole was so large it was more akin to a passage than a hole.
“What happened here?”
“We don’t know! Suddenly there was a loud noise, and the wall was just… gone!”
Destroying a wall like that would normally require siege engines, although it was unclear what kind of engine could make such a clean circular hole. But that was a secondary concern since there was nothing beyond the wall.
If there had been siege engines, they would have been noticed.
“Didn’t anyone see who did this? What were the watchtower guards doing?!”
As Lord Yuan scolded, a soldier stammered in response.
“That area… wasn’t in the watchtower’s line of sight… I’m sorry!”
“Hold on.”
Serpina intervened, stopping Yuan’s rebuke. He immediately closed his mouth.
She checked the watchtower’s location. Indeed, it was difficult to see what happened here from there. Plus, there was only a forest beyond the hole, a place not worth guarding.
She wasn’t one to blame her subordinates for something she herself wouldn’t have considered important. What’s done is done.
“Was there no trace of anyone around?”
“Nothing, ma’am! We searched but found nothing. It’s as if a ghost did this…!”
This was an unprecedented event.
But once it happened, there had to be a cause and effect.
Was it an earthquake? No, that would have caused wider damage.
Was it poor construction? That seemed unlikely.
The more she thought, the clearer it became that none of her theories added up.
“Yuan.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
“Order our troops to retreat immediately.”
“Retreat, ma’am?”
“Yes. We’ll postpone the assault on Aeshers Army.”
“Understood!”
After Yuan left, Serpina pondered alone, unflustered by the chaos. She knew what demeanor a leader should maintain. Showing anxiety was forbidden.
Clearly, “someone” did “something,” and there was no guarantee it wouldn’t happen again.
This wasn’t a supernatural event. Something done caused this situation, meaning they needed to prepare for further incidents.
“It’s as if magic was used…”
Indeed, if one were to realistically explain it, magic was the only answer. And with magic comes the thought of “that man.”
“So… maybe that man really is a magician.”
“Evidence?”
“Well, it’s a more plausible theory than attributing it to divine intervention.”
“Magic…”
Gina had mentioned the high likelihood of a magician’s involvement. Could it really have been magic?
As improbable as it seemed, considering a giant rock falling from the sky and a hole suddenly appearing in the wall, magic seemed the most likely explanation.
And one more thing. Serpina had just ordered a retreat from a favorable battle.
Given the circumstances, retreating to defend the castle was logical.
Who benefits most from that action?
“Aeshers Army.”
And where is the white-haired man currently stationed?
As she reached this conclusion,
“Lord, Lord!”
A soldier hurriedly approached Serpina with a middle-aged man in tow.
“What is it?”
“We’ve brought a villager who was near here when the hole appeared!”
“What?”
Fortunately, there was a witness.
The man, who introduced himself as a simple farmer, recounted everything he saw without omitting a detail.
“I couldn’t see well because of the smoke… but I clearly saw a man and a woman in hoods running away!”
“Can you remember any specific details about their appearance?”
“That, well… because of the smoke… I couldn’t see clearly. I’m sorry!”
“That’s fine. Just one more thing. About physical characteristics.”
“Physical characteristics?”
“Like, an unusual hair color.”
The man pondered Serpina’s question, then nodded as if he remembered something.
“Now that you mention it…”
“…!”
If he said the man had white hair, it would confirm the use of magic.
However,
“The woman running away had pink hair, a color I’ve never seen around here.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. That’s all I can remember… I’m sorry.”
A woman with pink hair?
While not as conclusive as a young man with white hair, it was still a noteworthy piece of information, though not the decisive evidence Serpina hoped for.
“Understood. Thank you for your cooperation.”
After sending the man away, Serpina delved back into her thoughts.
If his account was true, the hooded pair responsible had fled… but why?
Pondering the pieces of information, Serpina sighed lightly.
Worrying further wouldn’t solve anything.
As long as there was a chance they might use “magic” again, focusing on defending the castle was paramount.
“Hasla.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
The commander, who had been silently following the situation, was startled by her call.
“Organize troops to defend this spot immediately. Treat it like guarding the gate.”
“Understood!”
“With that, I’m counting on you.”
As Serpina walked away, the armed man watched her, thinking,
“She knew my name…”
Remembering a commander’s name, even if he was deemed insignificant, was part of her character, solidifying her overwhelming leadership.
—
The carriage ride back to Balhart Castle was silent.
Neither Reika nor I initiated conversation. We were too shocked to speak.
“My rapier suddenly started glowing… and Reika’s fireball was drawn to it, as if it was a magnet.”
Then, the
fireball at the rapier’s tip grew unnaturally large, and when I shook the rapier, it flew in the blade’s direction.
Objectively, it seemed my rapier amplified her magic.
The problem was I had no prior knowledge of this ability.
“Did this ceremonial item have such power?”
I’ve invested 10,000 hours into this game.
10,000 hours!
It’s an insane amount of time. I was confident I knew everything about this game. My confidence in navigating any situation with my intelligence of 100 stemmed from believing there was nothing about the game I didn’t know.
But now…
I’ve just learned this ceremonial item can amplify magic.
Remembering when I obtained the item, Jinor’s advice to “explore the surroundings” seemed like the best action.
My prediction matched. The optimal action for our forces was to scout.
Just scouting. And what did I find? A mere ceremonial weapon.
Could intelligence of 100 really determine a mere ceremonial weapon as the best action?
Back then, I simply accepted it because it was an item, but this world, while based on a game, wasn’t the game itself.
Just like when I earned gold in the Luna army, it wasn’t just about the gold. It led to recruiting two mercenary groups.
It started with gold, but the outcome wasn’t just about acquiring gold.
Considering this, it wasn’t strange that an item capable of amplifying magic was found in a country affiliated with Jinor, who has an adopted daughter like Reika.
“How many steps ahead are you expecting me to see?”
Should reaching an intelligence of 100 allow one to foresee several steps ahead?
Though absurd, I had fulfilled the given mission.
Regardless of subterfuge, with such destruction, any sensible lord would withdraw their forces. With that level of power, they could risk losing the castle.
They might waste time deducing it was magic, but that, too, wasn’t necessarily bad for us.
“Whatever happens, act as if I knew all along.”
With that thought, my mind cleared.
Seeing Reika trembling, I addressed her gently.
“Reika.”
“Yes…!”
“Don’t worry too much. You did well.”
“…That…”
“Though the outcome was different from what we expected, we succeeded because of you.”
Reika didn’t respond, but I didn’t press her. She needed time to process the event.
Her magic had demonstrated destructive power enough to be considered a weapon of war.
“…We’ve arrived.”
As the carriage stopped,
I slowly helped Reika out, reminded of the time I visited Lynn Brans as an envoy from Lunarien.
Just like then, let’s try once more.
I headed towards Balhart Castle, acting as if everything was proceeding according to my plan.
—
“Swen, you’re back safe! How did it go?”
I responded to Yuri’s greeting with the calmest expression I could muster.
“…We’re not too late.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Smiling, I acted as if I knew everything.
“Don’t worry. Serpina’s forces will retreat.”
“Really? Did your plan work?”
“Yes.”
“Phew…”
Yuri sighed in relief.
“Actually, while you were away… a messenger came. Anima was in trouble. Everything you said was right.”
So, it proceeded as I predicted.
I had prepared an excuse if a natural disaster occurred, but it seems it was unnecessary.
After all, what were the chances of a meteorite falling from the sky again?
“Anima urgently requested reinforcements. Thanks to your warning, we had already sent them, but I was really, really worried…”
She thanked me sincerely, her voice trembling slightly.
“Thank you so much… Swen.”
A close call, wasn’t it?
I bowed my head in response.
“If it helped you, that’s all that matters.”
Hoping this concludes well, I thought.
*
