Chapter 104 - In the Name of the Southern Alliance

There were several kinds of energy a Demon King—and a tower—could absorb. The most familiar were negative, intangible emotions such as sorrow, anger, curses, and despair, but those had originally been no more than supplementary sources.

Blood and life. Nothing was finer or more precious than the innate energy of living creatures. In other dimensions, it was common practice to lead humans to their deaths and convert that energy into demonic energy points.

In Arain, however, that was impossible. Spilling blood meant bringing death, and neither humans nor heroes would stand idly by while a Demon King brought death upon them.

In other words, the fact that negative emotions had become the primary source of demonic energy was proof that Demon Kings were the weaker side in Arain. And the fact that this had happened out of necessity meant that other methods were superior.

There had already been three battles. Though none had been a massive war involving thousands or tens of thousands, the involvement of monsters had brought still more deaths. Moreover, most of the combatants were not ordinary humans, but knights and mages who had accumulated mana and aura. The greater a human's caliber, the more life energy could be harvested from them.

That was why the portable miniature towers were so well stocked with negative energy. At least, they had accumulated more than he had expected. It gave him some idea of how fiercely those bastards had fought and cursed one another.

“So the southern alliance currently occupies the cavern containing the deposit?”

“Yes, that's correct.”

“I'll have to take a look.”

Leaving Ernyan, Logger, and the elves in the southern alliance, Berge headed into the Philerium Mountains alone. As he approached the cave leading to the deposit, he sensed quite a few people. They had erected a palisade and established a camp around the cave. There were a good thousand of them. It showed just how much importance the southern alliance placed on the mana stone mine.

'Pablo Barkat isn't here.'

He was probably inside the cave. There was more than one cave leading to the cavern containing the deposit, and ultimately, the cavern was where the Empire and the southern alliance faced each other.

He slipped past the sentries and went inside. From there, it was easy. The cave was dark, and nothing was more familiar to a Demon King than darkness. He raced ahead. The occasional soldiers he passed never noticed his presence.

“Was that the wind?”

When he finally reached the cavern, he found extensive preparations everywhere. They had built defensive walls of timber and stone, dug traps, and installed magic circles. The high ceiling had allowed them to erect watchtowers and station archers atop them. They even had a few mana cannons. They had truly committed everything they could.

'The future has changed.'

Before, the Empire had been the defending side. This time, it was the southern alliance. Could the Empire really reclaim this place?

Berge knocked out a knight standing guard on the perimeter and changed into his clothes. He buried the unconscious knight in the ground, put on the helmet to conceal his face completely, and suppressed his energy as much as possible.

“Hey, time to change shifts.”

After he had waited a little while, another knight arrived.

“Right.”

“Damn it. A highly skilled man like me, stuck standing guard. Don't you agree?”

“They brought mostly knights rather than soldiers. It can't be helped.”

“You have an unusual accent.”

The knight checked the emblem engraved on his armor.

“Are you from Torkan?”

“Yes.”

“I hear you have a lot of dealings with other countries over there?”

“Maritime trade is certainly active.”

After playing along with the conversation for a little while, Berge left the watchtower. He passed countless knights and mages, but none paid him any attention.

“Hm?”

Except one.

“You there.”

Berge held his breath and took even greater care to keep his energy concealed.

“That energy feels familiar somehow. Unusually pure...”

Pablo Barkat frowned.

“Are you with the Kingdom of Torkan?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Your voice, too, somehow... Take off your helmet.”

“Pardon?”

“I said take off your helmet.”

'What the fuck?'

He had infiltrated the place to get a closer look, but he had never imagined he would be discovered so quickly.

'Should I just run?'

Then wouldn't they merely suspect him of being an imperial spy? Just as he was weighing his options—

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The alarm sounded.

“Enemies!”

“Imperial troops!”

“Those damned bastards, again.”

The camp erupted into activity. Pablo Barkat ran off, spitting curses, and Berge let out a sigh of relief.

'That was lucky.'

The timing was perfect. He had wanted to watch the two sides fight as well. Blending in with the other knights, Berge headed toward the defensive wall.

* * *

CLICK!

Pablo Barkat lowered his visor.

RUMBLE!

The ground shook. The caves and cavern amplified the vibrations.

“Surely those aren't horses?”

“In here?”

Horses were fast and powerful creatures, but they needed space. All the more so in a narrow, damp cave and a cavern that, though somewhat larger, was practically enclosed. Horses were sensitive creatures. Riding them in a place like this was decidedly not a wise choice.

Pablo thought so too. That was why he assumed there could be no more than one or two. The thunderous noise and vibrations were simply a result of the cave's acoustics.

But—

“That's insane!”

“Those crazy fuckers are charging in here?”

A knight order nearly fifty strong rounded the corner. Every rider was fully armed, and they were charging while maintaining formation.

'That horsemanship is almost miraculous.'

Pablo marveled at their ability to bring horses all the way in here, let alone gallop on them. But he soon faced the reality that the threat was almost upon him.

“Open the gate!”

“Your Highness!”

“Those hastily assembled logs won't stop their charge. I'll stop them myself!”

The gate opened. Pablo hurried to the front. His personal guard, the Black Wing Knights, joined him with shields in hand.

“Your Highness.”

“Stay sharp. Those are...”

Pablo clenched his teeth.

The charging lances leveled. Aura surged forth. Some fifty auras resonated in unison, gathering and merging into a single form.

The knights rapidly drew closer. Magical traps activated. Soldiers atop the palisade loosed arrows. But nothing could penetrate that resonating aura.

“...the Red Dragon Knights.”

“M-my God!”

As they drew closer, the emblems engraved on their armor became visible. A dragon so lifelike it seemed ready to roar at any moment, rendered in red. The dragon crest that symbolized the Jespine Empire.

“Those sons of bitches...!”

Pablo drew out as much aura as he could. The alliance troops cheered at the enormous sword that rose nearly five meters high.

“Your Highness!”

“That's right! We have His Highness!”

The alliance troops, cowed by the enemy's imposing presence, regained their morale.

Pablo extended his sword and stepped forward at the same time. The knights reached him.

BOOOOM!

The ground heaved. Horses screamed. The palisade collapsed, and people toppled over.

And Pablo Barkat was pushed backward.

“Ggh...!”

His aura shattered. His muscles tore. His eyes became bloodshot. Even so, Pablo held firm. His men did not. Black wings could not contend with a red dragon.

“Aaaagh!”

“Gah!”

The Black Wing Knights were hurled away, screaming. Their formation disintegrated. Hundreds of imperial troops poured in behind the attackers.

“You sons of bitches...!”

Pablo swung his sword at an enemy knight.

CLAAANG!

Red aura blocked him.

“So you are the famous Pablo Barkat. It is an honor to cross swords with you. I am Halo, commander of the Red Dragon Knights—”

“I don't care what a corpse's name is. Shut up!”

He could not suffer a second defeat. Pablo roared. The battle for the deposit began in earnest.

* * *

'The Red Dragon Knights...'

The Empire had made an extraordinarily aggressive move. The dragon was the symbol of the Jespine imperial family—the highest emblem, permitted to only five knight orders. Those orders served directly under the imperial family and were the mightiest fighting forces in the vast Empire.

They were ferocious, powerful, and superior. With the Red Dragon Knights deliberately mounting a lance charge, the breaking of the wings and the dragon's victorious roar had perhaps been all but foreordained.

'It's decided.'

Pablo Barkat fought valiantly, but the commander of the Red Dragon Knights was not far beneath him. With its formation shattered from the outset, the southern alliance was overwhelmed by the Red Dragon Knights' fearsome reputation. The overall disparity in ability was also considerable.

Why was the Empire called an empire? How had it become an empire, and how did it remain one? Before its overwhelming military might, the alliance rapidly fell apart.

The southern alliance's fatal mistake was that even against a formidable enemy like the Empire, its member nations had kept one another in check instead of sending their finest troops. They had also been intimidated by the Red Dragon Knights' reputation. The Empire, meanwhile, had exploited that weakness by sending one of its best fighting forces.

Of course, this was only a small battle. For the southern alliance, it was merely one defeat after several victories, and there would be plenty of chances to reclaim the mine.

'Surely they won't give up just like this.'

Yet a small seed of unease was taking root. Before his regression, the conflict had ended with the Empire occupying the deposit. Perhaps this incident would set events on the same course as before. Sending the Red Dragon Knights meant the Empire was that determined, and had no intention of backing down. If the alliance kept suffering defeats, it would eventually give up. Just as it had in the past.

'That...' was not what Berge wanted.

The war had to continue. It had to grow larger and fiercer. The more it did, the more he would gain.

'The smell of this battlefield.'

The anger, resentment, and curses directed at one another. The screams of pain. The overflowing blood. The fading life force. Everything was beautiful.

To preserve this beauty, he had to restore the balance. And right now, Berge was wearing the armor of a southern alliance knight. He drew the knight's sword. Suppressing his presence, he slipped into the chaotic battlefield and headed for the fiercest fighting.

“Die!”

A flash of light cleaved the air. The commander of the Red Dragon Knights staggered. Pablo advanced as far as his opponent retreated and unleashed an even stronger slash. But other swords darted into the openings on either side of him. In the meantime, the commander regained his balance.

“You cowardly bastards!”

“What place does cowardice have in war?”

“Aren't you ashamed to call yourselves the Red Dragon Knights?”

“Well, I never expected you to concern yourself with our reputation. But don't worry. No one will criticize us for joining forces against the hero of the south.”

Objectively, Pablo's individual strength surpassed that of the Red Dragon Knights' commander. But the Red Dragon Knights were not fighting alone, and Pablo had no choice but to keep letting crucial opportunities slip away.

“Shut up!”

Pablo grew furious. He made a show of that fury.

'Sacrifice flesh to take bone.'

He charged like a bull gone mad.

BOOM!

Overpowered, the Red Dragon Knights' commander stepped back. As always, the other knights' swords darted toward Pablo's blind spots. Pablo twisted his body while putting still more strength into his sword hand.

SCREEECH!

Red aura cut through his armor and bit into his flesh. Dizzying pain assailed him.

But the wounds were not fatal. Gritting his teeth, he drove himself forward. His sword's tip collided once more with his opponent's blade.

CLAAANG!

This time, however, it was different. The blow into which he had poured everything knocked aside the hastily raised sword. His opponent's chest was exposed. Pablo's eyes flashed.

'Thrust.'

Then kill him. Even if he survived, leave him mortally wounded. And turn the tide of battle.

“Not so fast!”

But another sword appeared. It belonged to a Red Dragon knight, and it collided with Pablo's blade. Even a Red Dragon knight was still an ordinary knight whose sword could not stop Pablo. Yet the impact produced a slight recoil and cost him a brief moment. That moment was enough for the Red Dragon Knights' commander to recover his stance.

“You fucking bastards...!”

Pablo's eyes became bloodshot. Losing the chance of a lifetime right before his eyes left him wanting to vomit blood.

At that instant—

CRUNCH!

A gleaming white blade burst through the Red Dragon Knights' commander's chest.

“... Huh?”

“... Huh?”

Pablo's pupils widened. Red blood ran down the blade.

“Long live the southern alliance! Long live His Highness Pablo Barkat!”

The knight who had ambushed the commander from behind shouted.

His gaze turned toward Pablo. Their eyes met.

'Red?'

The eyes glimpsed through the visor were red and resolute. Had there been a knight like that among them?

“Dogs of the Empire! Whose territory do you dare covet? This place is a divine gift of the southern alliance, by the southern alliance, for the southern alliance!”

The knight roared.

'Divine?'

WAAAAAH!

The southern alliance soldiers who had witnessed his feat erupted in cheers.