Ch.195What Are You Thinking, Isabella?

“Kheuk!”

Valenstein, who had spat blood, trembled as if electrocuted.

A single strike had pierced his lower abdomen. The bloodstained blade protruded through his torn uniform.

“Lord Valenstein!”

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

The imperial knights, shocked, rushed toward the assailants.

Two insectoid knights swung their black iron greatswords at the approaching men.

Their strikes carried power rivaling that of a Master.

An imperial knight’s sword was deflected in one blow, followed by an attack that crushed his head.

The next swing cleanly severed the neck of the knight standing beside him.

The head fell limply to the ground, its expression frozen in shock and terror.

– Thwack!

Meanwhile, another insectoid knight pierced the throats of two Royal Guards.

Four knights lost their lives in an instant.

Masters. The word flashed through their minds, causing the charging knights to hesitate.

With most of their comrades already dead, these weren’t opponents they could defeat by simply charging in recklessly.

To make matters worse, the true culprit was still alive and well behind them.

The one who had shattered the Ghost Blade, the monster who devoured people.

Haschal Aishan-Gioro.

The knights gritted their teeth.

The Empire’s First Sword ambushed. Two, perhaps three, new Master-level enemies.

Whether they advanced or retreated, only death awaited them.

In truth, there was no way for them to survive.

So they chose the better death.

“Protect the Lord!”

“Even Masters are still human! If we all charge at once…!”

The knights rushed toward the insectoid monsters.

Though they would likely all die, being cut down was better than becoming chunks of meat.

Watching this, what thoughts must have crossed Valenstein’s mind?

He raised the sword in his right hand.

“Kugh… I don’t know who you are, but if you wanted to kill me… you should have slashed instead of stabbing! Like this!”

Despite bleeding profusely, he shouted valiantly as he swung his silver blade.

The Empire’s First Sword’s blade flew toward the neck of the insect knight who had stabbed him in the stomach.

The severed head soared into the air.

—-

‘What in the world is happening…?’

Even the great Haschal couldn’t hide her confusion at the self-destruction unfolding before her eyes.

The situation had been dire enough with four opponents coordinating against her, yet suddenly they were attacking each other?

‘That old man, wasn’t he working with the Empress…?’

Her head felt heavy.

Her brain, burning with fever and intense pain, robbed her of judgment, slowing her thoughts.

The conclusions drawn by her dizzy mind were incoherent.

Either Valenstein actually knew nothing about Isabella…

Or perhaps he had allied with her, but Isabella abandoned him after seeing the Ghost Blade shattered?

‘No. That doesn’t make sense.’

Haschal immediately rejected her own theory.

If Valenstein and Isabella weren’t on the same side, then this would mean Isabella was protecting Haschal from Valenstein, who was trying to kill or capture her…

That was impossible.

Considering the Usurper’s actions, she and Empress Isabella were clearly enemies.

After all, wasn’t it Isabella who had issued the arrest order?

Moreover, there was no reason to attack Valenstein at this point.

Even if the Empress had decided to abandon the old man, it would have been far more rational to do so after capturing Haschal.

Fighting each other now was essentially helping Haschal…

‘Could it be…!’

Her bloodshot eyes trembled with shock. One possibility that perfectly explained this situation flashed through her mind.

—-

When Haschal was still young, one of the Champions had given her some advice.

One piece of wisdom was that to defeat an enemy, you must understand their habits.

People tend to unconsciously follow certain patterns when devising strategies.

Especially the competent ones.

Therefore, if you understand your enemy’s tendencies, you can anticipate and prepare for the strategies they’re likely to employ.

Haschal agreed with this advice.

Prince Leopold prioritized justification in everything and was obsessed with rational judgment.

It was evident in how he maintained a defensive posture, accepting losses because preparations weren’t complete.

A person who wouldn’t move without sufficient certainty.

He might be able to solidify a stable situation when at an advantage, but when at a disadvantage, he would be dragged along until defeat—like now.

In Orhan’s case, he typically chose strategies that focused most of the enemy’s attention on himself.

Perhaps a manifestation of his desire for recognition, stemming from absolute confidence in his strength.

Haschal herself prioritized controlling the battlefield’s atmosphere.

She would instill fear in enemies through brutal methods, breaking their morale before fighting.

It was the alternative she chose to fight multiple enemies, lacking Orhan’s robustness.

And then, Isabella.

The witch’s schemes, as observed through the Usurper, were consistent.

The annihilation of the Sigmillus family, which she pinned on a woman named Ophelia.

Disguising Matthias’s death as the work of monsters, while arranging evidence to make it appear as Prince Leopold’s doing.

And now, the plot to blame the palace collapse on Haschal.

Her method was always the same: staging incidents and shifting blame.

Yes.

Staged incidents.

“Kiiiieeeek!”

From the severed neck of the insect knight, a parasitic monster emerged with a sharp cry.

“This is…!”

“Monsters! The insect monsters that attacked the main palace!”

As the knights recoiled in shock, the two insectoid Masters turned toward Haschal.

They stopped about seven paces from her, then turned their backs to face the imperial knights, raising their swords.

As if protecting Haschal from the knights.

‘So this was their plan…!’

Haschal gritted her teeth.

They maintained an awkward distance, just beyond her attack range.

Even if she approached to attack them, they could simply charge at the knights again and swing their swords.

Once the battle devolved into chaos, Haschal would be blocked by other enemies and unable to reach them.

Instead, she would appear to be slaughtering the knights alongside the monsters.

“Ophelia’s parasitic monsters…! So you were in league with the witch after all, Leopold! Kheuk…!”

Valenstein, who had cut down the emerging insect with one stroke, glared at Leopold and roared in apparent anger, then bent over and vomited blood.

A pool of blood, enough to fill a bowl, splashed at his feet as he lowered his head.

“My Lord! You must retreat for now! Your wounds…!”

“Kugh… You expect me to shamefully withdraw with such monsters before me?!”

Just as Valenstein angrily tried to push away the knight’s arm,

– BOOM! BOOM!

Two loud explosions echoed from somewhere in the palace sky.

The knights’ gazes turned toward the source of the blasts.

—-

Spheres of flame shot into the air, bursting brilliantly and illuminating the night sky.

“A call for reinforcements?!”

“That’s definitely from Prince Ernst’s palace…!”

The knights’ expressions changed drastically as they looked at Valenstein.

Two flares rising from the Third Prince’s palace—an urgent request for assistance.

In other words, the Empire’s Empress and Prince were currently under attack… and in an extremely disadvantageous position.

“A diversion?!”

Valenstein ground his teeth in apparent anguish.

“Lord Valenstein! Empress Isabella is surely there…!”

“Kugh, Imperial Knights, full retreat! Head to the Third Prince’s palace! I’ll cover the rear!”

Valenstein, standing upright with sword in hand, shouted to the knights.

The insect knights began approaching him.

“With those injuries, it’s too risky! Let me instead…!”

Indeed, Valenstein’s blood-soaked condition looked quite serious.

Both the diagonal slash across his chest and the stab wound in his abdomen with the sword still embedded would be difficult for an elderly body to endure.

But Valenstein’s expression was resolute.

“If not me, who else could hold them back? Go without worry! Even with the Ghost Blade shattered, I am still the Empire’s First Sword!”

The insect knights’ black iron swords shot toward the wounded old man.

Gripping his pale silver blade, Valenstein parried their attacks.

“Go now! Would you leave the Empress in danger?!”

His attitude made it clear he would not tolerate insubordination.

The hesitating knights finally turned to leave.

“…We pray for your safe return! Everyone move! We must save Her Majesty!”

The knights rushed en masse toward the Third Prince’s palace.

—-

‘Damn! I need to stop them…!’

Leopold gritted his teeth.

If those knights were allowed to leave, this catastrophe would surely become known.

Along with the false accusation that the First Prince had allied with the witch.

So he had to stop them somehow.

However, Leopold ultimately couldn’t utter a word.

Though he needed to stop them, no words would come out of his mouth.

This was because he couldn’t be certain if it was safe to make a sound now.

The horrific slaughter Haschal had unleashed after regaining consciousness.

It wasn’t just the knights who were terrified.

Leopold too felt as if a man-eating monster was prowling before his eyes.

He couldn’t tell if Haschal still possessed any rationality in her current state.

‘If I call out rashly and she lunges at me?’

He could clearly envision himself being torn apart.

For his own sake, Sir Percival’s, and the Aishan-Gioro princess who had regained her senses, Leopold maintained his silence.

Haschal also didn’t pursue the knights. She lacked the strength to chase them all.

She had already expended considerable power, and stanching her wounds was becoming increasingly difficult.

Letting them go would make the aftermath troublesome…

‘The Usurper and the Prince will handle it.’

…But that wasn’t her concern anymore.

—-

Finally, when the knights’ presence had completely vanished,

Valenstein and the insect knights stopped their performance.