Surprisingly, the Marshal was a young man, and he talked down to General Effenberg as if it were the most natural thing to do. General Effenberg felt a twinge of discomfort at the informality. ‘Did he get his position from connections?’ he wondered. It was not unheard of, as it did happen quite frequently, especially in some powerful nations. A prince would suddenly show up with stars on his shoulders and throw his weight around, pretending to be a master strategist of some sort. These fresh academy graduates, who did not even know the basics of tactics or strategy, would boss around veteran generals with decades of real combat experience, just because of their bloodline. However, General Effenberg found that scenario to be unlikely. Even though princes were notorious for flaunting their stars, it was quite rare for them to be directly awarded four stars, let alone five. ‘Just who in the world is he?’ General Effenberg was by no means a low-ranking officer. As a high-ranking general, he was well-informed about the most prominent figures within the Holy Alliance. Yet among all the princes he could think of, not a single one matched this young man. ‘Let’s not act rash and make a mistake,’ General Effenberg decided to focus on the rank, not the man. After all, there was a saying in the military that salutes were given not to people but to the rank. “Sir! Commander of the expeditionary forces, Effenberg, reporting for duty! No irregularities to report!” Once again, Effenberg saluted the youth, this time with even more enthusiasm. Then, he discreetly stepped aside to yield the main seat, the seat of the Supreme Commander. The young man took his place with grace, as if he were long accustomed to being the man in charge. He sat at the very heart of the command tent, right where the seat of the Supreme Commander was located. ‘Who is this young man?’ General Effenberg wondered, staring closely at the youth with the rank of Marshal. He combed through his memory for an answer, trying to remember if there was anyone young man who could be carrying that rank, but... ‘None of the greenhorns I know could possibly be a Marshal...’ General Effenberg racked his brains but couldn’t come up with an answer. It did not take long for the young man’s identity to be revealed. The young man introduced himself, saying, “I am Cassius de Blackcrow[1].” “Did he just say... Blackcrow?” Several high-ranking officers seated in the war council tilted their heads in confusion. The House of Blackcrow was one of the most renowned military families across the continent, a lineage that had produced countless generals and knights of legend. But that was all in the past... The House of Blackcrow had fallen alongside its homeland, the Offenbach Kingdom, decades ago. “W-Wait! Cassius de Blackcrow...! Could it be?!” General Effenberg exclaimed in shock. “Do you remember me?” Cassius asked. “My god...” General Effenberg gasped, feeling like his soul had fled his body. Cassius de Blackcrow was the patriarch of the House of Blackcrow at the time of its fall, and his infamous title of Dark Sky Lord struck fear in the hearts of those who came across him. Back then, he was in his mid-seventies and was rumored to have ascended to the exalted rank of Grandmaster. According to the records, however, the Dark Sky Lord perished defending his homeland, unable to withstand the overwhelming assault of surrounding great powers. It was said that in the battle to bring him down, hundreds of thousands of soldiers were lost, and thousands of knights perished. The tale of his demise had become a legend, an enduring historical example of just how powerful a Grandmaster was, and how hundreds of thousands had to be sacrificed just to bring one down. And yet, that man was now standing before them... “But... the Dark Sky Lord was reported to have died in that battle...” General Effenberg muttered. The young man—no, the one claiming to be the Dark Sky Lord, Cassius de Blackcrow, turned to General Effenberg and asked, “Was my body ever found?” “I... I suppose not...” General Effenber stammered in response. At that time, the Dark Sky Lord’s body was so badly damaged that it was never identified with accuracy. “I didn’t die that day. Which is why I now stand before you, alive.” “But... At the time, the Dark Sky Lord was already in his seventies. So how–” “When one ascends to the level of a Grandmaster, it becomes possible to slow the aging process. And once enough mana is gathered, even a full reconstruction of the body is achievable.” The Dark Sky Lord looked around the room and declared, “I, Cassius de Blackcrow, have returned. And I will be leading the Holy Alliance in this war.” “If it’s the Dark Sky Lord, then... even Siegfried van Proa can be defeated!” The high-ranking officers erupted in cheers. Their morale, which had plummeted after their disastrous defeat at the hands of a single man, Siegfried van Proa, soared again. Now that a Grandmaster was among them, everything has changed. They would no longer be forced to flee despite their numerical superiority just because of a single man. However, that surge of morale did not last long. “Urgent report, sir! The 2nd Corps on the northern front is engaged in battle! They have sustained heavy casualties!” “Grave news, sir! The 3rd Corps on the southern front is under attack! The situation is looking bad! They have been engaged by the 8th Corps of the Marchioni Empire!” Messengers bringing grim news burst into the war council tent... The original strategy had been to surround and annihilate the forces of the Kiev Kingdom the moment they stepped out of Odessa to stop the massacre. Instead, the Holy Alliance’s forces were being picked off one by one by the enemies. Meanwhile, Siegfried rampaged across the battlefield uncontested and absorbed the souls of those he had slaughtered. [Alert: You have absorbed an Ordinary Soldier’s Soul!] [Alert: You have absorbed a Slightly Strong Soldier’s Soul!] [Alert: You have absorbed an Ordinary Soldier’s Soul!] [Alert: You have absorbed a Low-Ranking Fallen Angel’s Soul!] [Alert: You have absorbed a Low-Ranking Fallen Angel’s Soul!] No one in the ranks of the Holy Alliance was capable of stopping him. He fearlessly dove behind enemy lines, activating Green Hell Magno to unleash a catastrophe right at the heart of the enemy. Just being inside that green fog meant instant death for the Holy Alliance troops, as even those with high poison resistance couldn’t last more than a minute. Their bodies exposed to devastating levels of radiation for a minute was more than enough to kill the strongest of them. [Soul Energy: 5,011.21] Thanks to that, Siegfried managed to rapidly gather the minimum soul energy required to activate the skill, Demon Lord’s Descent. In less than an hour since the battle began, he had already slaughtered over four thousand enemies and absorbed their souls. At that point, the battle was practically over. While Siegfried was on a spree of mass slaughter, the Proatine Forces—bolstered by buffs and debuffs—utterly annihilated the rest of the Holy Alliance’s 2nd Corps. “Commander of the 2nd Corps of the Holy Alliance, Fenril. You are hereby arrested as a war criminal.” “Noble Knight... Oscar...” “I will not permit you to take your own life.” After those words, Oscar had the knights accompanying her gag and restrain Fenril. With that, the battle came to an end. Out of the one hundred thousand soldiers, a staggering seventy thousand were killed in this battle alone, while the remaining thirty thousand surrendered. In contrast, the Proatine Forces suffered minimal casualties at less than one thousand. And among the casualties, only three died in this battle... Several hundred had sustained serious injuries, but all in all, it was the best case scenario for them. This was truly an overwhelming victory, one so decisive that calling it a one-sided victory would not do it justice. “Long live the Proatine Kingdom!” “Long live His Majesty, King Siegfried van Proa!” “Glory to His Majesty!” “Glory to the Proatine Kingdom!” Siegfried marched into the city like a hero under the praises of the soldiers. “Tsk... I should’ve killed at least one more,” Siegfried grumbled, clicking his tongue. He wanted to gather as much soul energy as he could in this battle, and he couldn’t help but regret not gathering more. “Kyuuuu! You need to learn when to be satisfied, owner punk!” “You’re gonna get hit with severe penalties someday if you keep killing like that! Kyuuu!” “What are you talking about?” “Kyuuu! If you slaughter too many people, you will start building up karma! Even if they’re enemies, killing too many is bad! When your karma stacks up, it will come back to bite you in the ass later!” “It’s the law of the universe! Don’t go ignoring the law of the universe, owner punk! Kyuuu!” Taking Hamchi’s advice to heart, Siegfried decided he would refrain from causing mass slaughter just to collect soul energy from now on. Of course, he would not be holding back during battles, but he was not going to deliberately kill those who surrendered or commit atrocities just to farm more souls. Not that he had done that before anyway. “Allow me to congratulate you on your victory, sire!” Oscar exclaimed, kneeling on one knee and giving a formal salute. “You’ve done well, Oscar.” “Not at all, Your Majesty. It was an easy battle.” “I’m just relieved that our losses were minimal.” “All thanks to Your Majesty, without a doubt.” “Hahaha...” Siegfried gave a sheepish laugh in response. Then, he issued new orders, saying, “First, inspect those who surrendered and determine whether they committed any war crimes. Anyone found guilty of severe offenses is to be executed.” “As you command, sire.” “But do not execute the high-ranking officers who are guilty of war crimes. Keep them alive.” “Pardon me, sire...? You will not be executing them?” Oscar asked, looking surprised. “I’m thinking of turning them into slaves,” Siegfried replied with a nod. He planned to turn the high-ranking officers into Irradiators, which were people enslaved by his radioactive energy. The Irradiators were basically walking nuclear bombs he could detonate at the heart of the enemy’s camp if he wanted to. New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡•𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢•𝕟𝕖𝕥 Siegfried wanted to create a specialized unit composed entirely of Irradiators, and with so many prisoners, he had more than enough materials to work with. “As you command, sire. I shall proceed accordingly.” “Then, I will leave that in your hands for now. Also, we will now begin the campaign for the southern front.” Siegfried had no intention of letting this opportunity slip by. It was practically guaranteed that the 8th Corps of the Marchioni Empire would emerge victorious in the southern front. And as the saying went, "strike while the iron is hot!" Siegfried was planning to coordinate with the 8th Corps of the Marchioni Empire and completely surround the soon-to-be last standing army of the Holy Alliance on this front. The 1st Corps of the Holy Alliance... The grim news of the demise of both the 2nd Corps and the 3rd Corps was soon relayed to the Holy Alliance’s command. “The 2nd Corps in the northern front... has been annihilated.” “It is the same situation in the southern front, sir. The 3rd Corps... is gone.” As a result, the command center of the 1st Corps of the Holy Alliance fell into a state of panic in an instant. What started as a scorched-earth operation meant to drag out the Kiev Kingdom’s troops stationed in Odessa had completely gone awry. Now, with the 2nd Corps and the 3rd Corps wiped out, the entire Holy Alliance in this region was practically doomed. They were outnumbered, and the enemy was significantly stronger than them. In other words, the situation had a complete reversal, with them on the back foot now. “A-All forces! Abandon the encampment and relocate immediately!” General Effenberg gave the command the moment he received the report. If they stayed here any longer, then it was obvious that they would be surrounded and annihilated. “All troops! Halt all tasks and prepare to retreat at once—” “There will be no retreat,” Cassius said firmly, interrupting them. “I am the commander.” “Send an emergency request for reinforcements to High Command. And tell the men to be prepared for battle at all times. There will be no retreat.” Despite the fact that the entire unit was on the verge of being swallowed whole, the Dark Sky Lord, Cassius de Blackcrow, made it clear that they would be continuing the war on this front. However, this was not an entirely baseless decision that stemmed from arrogance or pride. It was possible for the Holy Alliance’s High Command to dispatch around one hundred thousand troops to reinforce this front, and Cassius de Blackcrow was a Grandmaster. In other words, he had absolute confidence in his own strength. “Was it their king, Siegfried van Proa? The strongest one among the enemy ranks?” Cassius asked. “Y-Yes, Your Excellency. The combat prowess he displayed during the battle was that of a Grandmaster without a doubt! I witnessed it with my own—” General Effenberg hurriedly replied. Cassius cut him off and said confidently, “The balance of power will collapse when I kill him. That’s when you will annihilate the enemy.” What he meant was simple. Once the battle commenced, he would kill Siegfried and take control of the battlefield. Once he killed Siegfried, the enemy would have no way to contend with a Grandmaster, making it inevitable for the Holy Alliance to triumph. “This meeting is over. All forces, prepare for combat and stand by at your respective posts.” Leaving those words behind, the Dark Sky Lord, Cassius de Blackcrow, exited the war council tent. 1. This household was previously translated as Black Crow, but it’s weird to see a space in surnames, so I’ll be writing it as Blackcrow from now on. ☜