Ch.257Conjecture

Small-scale ambushes repeated every few hours.

As Hersella had pointed out, Isabella must have had a reason for dragging things out with such petty tactics.

Some speculated it was to wear down the soldiers with fatigue and tension to reduce their fighting strength… but that explanation alone seemed insufficient for the effort involved.

What could be the reason?

Leaving Nigel and Renault to resume their private conversation, I pondered until I could find an answer.

I had plenty of time. Due to my incomplete recovery, my daily routine consisted of nothing more than sitting in bed and talking.

I needed to figure this out. Among all the people gathered in this camp, I probably knew Isabella best.

Leonore—Renault—might know more about her personal life, character, and preferences, but even Renault couldn’t precisely understand Isabella’s objectives or course of action.

…Not that I knew everything perfectly either.

Unlike novels, games rarely provide detailed stories about enemies.

At best, I only knew her identity, the techniques she used, and her ultimate fate.

Still, I needed to think as hard as I could.

—-

Let me think.

Isabella, the boss of Episode 4.

What kind of woman was she in the original work?

A witch who stained her body and soul with dark mana, offering sacrifices to evil gods in exchange for all kinds of powers.

The only priestess serving the evil goddess Lilith. In essence, she was virtually Lilith’s proxy.

What had such a woman done?

After rising to the position of Empress Dowager and weakening the Empire, she revived the skeletal remains of Nidhogg, turning the imperial territory into a land of death, corrupting and slaughtering countless lives before finally being subjugated.

So her purpose in trying to become Empress Dowager must have been one of four things.

Either to resurrect Nidhogg, to offer numerous sacrifices to Lilith… or perhaps destroying the Empire itself was the goal.

Maybe she simply wanted to enjoy luxury and pleasure from a high position while toying with those beneath her.

Anyway, what about now?

Since her identity as a witch has been publicly revealed, even if she somehow wins now, becoming Empress Dowager would be impossible.

Unless the Empire and the Holy State completely collapse, everyone would try to kill her until the very end. Luxury and pleasure were out of the question.

Bringing down the Empire wouldn’t be easy either.

Her plan to draw in other races to attack the Empire would have been extremely dangerous if it had succeeded, but Leopold somehow blocked the northern and western fronts, and the eastern front was also somehow salvaged thanks to Amin, who wiped out five thousand troops in a single day.

Thank you, Amin. You’re the Empire’s hero…!

Though I don’t know if you’re alive or dead. Probably beaten to death by Orhan?

Of course, if Orhan’s main force reaches the wall, the situation in the east might change, but there was still time before then.

Winning the civil war with Isabella’s power alone, or holding out until Orhan arrives… was nearly impossible now that her ambitiously prepared army had collapsed so pathetically.

How long could she buy time with these ambushes? A few days at most.

Besides, while we predicted she would fill the Benes territory with monsters and hold out, was that really possible?

It seemed too passive an approach for someone like her, and she wouldn’t dare attempt it without certainty. If those monsters were annihilated and she was left alone, that would be the end.

Twenty Masters. One warrior who had stepped into the realm of Heroes. Plus hundreds of knights and tens of thousands of soldiers.

No matter how skilled she might be, there was no way she could face this army head-on and win.

Even if she could resurrect from death, that power wasn’t truly infinite.

She would eventually be beaten to death.

In short, choosing a defensive battle as things stood offered Isabella little chance of survival.

The only way to counter all these forces—at least as far as I knew—was one thing.

A dragon.

The Worm Dragon, Nidhogg. If she could resurrect it, it would be possible.

I wasn’t sure if that was feasible at this point… but if successful, it could reverse the situation in one stroke.

A dragon’s power easily surpasses even most Heroes.

Yes. That had to be it.

I couldn’t be certain, but my intuition was telling me so.

If Isabella Benes had no intention of dying and was aiming for a reversal, the answer could only be Nidhogg.

And… that meant…

“Ah,”

A sigh-like utterance.

At the groan that escaped instead of a scream, Nigel and Renault turned their attention to me.

“Lord Haschal…? Is something wrong? Your complexion…!”

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Are you alright?”

Nigel and Renault asked with concern after seeing my expression, but I was in no state to answer their worries.

Though it was just speculation, I had realized why Isabella was buying time.

Nidhogg.

One of the evil dragons vanquished long ago by Carlos the Great, with only bones remaining.

And the place where its remains were located…!

=====[Benes Territory, Four Days Ago]=====

After the humiliating defeat at Zeren Plains, the nobles and imperial guards who had been in command returned to Benes territory.

In a state too shameful to even call them defeated soldiers.

None had any fighting spirit left after witnessing an army of thirty thousand crumble before a single person, but they had no other choice.

Already branded as the witch’s minions, even if they gave up resistance and scattered, they would eventually be captured and executed after terrible torture unless they hid in some remote mountain valley.

Besides, as nobles accustomed to lives of privilege, they lacked the ability to survive alone in the deep mountains.

“Rather than fighting that monster again, wouldn’t it be better to just run…?”

“Right. We couldn’t win with thirty thousand, and now we don’t even have three thousand left. It doesn’t look like we’ll get paid either. Why should we risk our lives for the nobles’ fight?”

“Run? Where do you think you can escape to without getting caught? You fools, we’re already finished…!”

The archers, mere ordinary soldiers, wanted to desert at the first opportunity… but it was impossible.

Prince Ernst and the two Masters of the Royal Guard were watching them day and night, seemingly without sleep.

In fact, several soldiers who had attempted to desert were caught before they could get far and had their skin flayed while still alive.

“Even if you’re lucky enough to escape, the Church won’t leave you alone. It would be less painful to die fighting.”

True. Even for them, there was no future in fleeing.

The opportunity to surrender had already vanished, and the Church’s paladins wouldn’t spare those who fought under the witch just because they were soldiers.

They would hunt down every last one and drag them to the purification chambers.

Their only remaining path was to hope that Isabella had some means to counter their opponents.

Honestly, it seemed impossible to defeat that monster, Aishan-Gioro Haschal, by any method.

But… upon arrival, they found she did have a means.

It was a sight they had never even imagined.

—-

“W-what in the world is this…!”

“My God, this is truly a scene from hell!”

The nobles recoiled in shock at the state of Benes territory. Some were so startled they nearly fell from their horses.

And with good reason. The territory before them had lost all its former prosperity, transformed into what looked like a piece of hell transplanted to earth.

Dense dark mana shrouded the air, making everything dark and gloomy despite it being afternoon before sunset.

A city covered in premature night shadows. Every visible surface was crawling with insects.

Thousands upon thousands of centipedes writhed on building walls, with winged insects covering them like roofs, squirming.

Rivers with black gleaming surfaces crawled across the ground, and swarms of flying insects buzzed through alleys like sandstorms, spreading black powder.

The buzzing sounds mixed and merged, echoing throughout.

Just looking at it made one’s skin crawl with itchiness and horror.

Whenever giant insects stomped through the streets, the fluids from crushed bugs pooled like puddles, emitting a foul stench.

“Ugh, ugghhh…”

“Gods above… how could this…”

The soldiers too wore expressions of utter shock.

Despite all priests having turned against them, they instinctively called upon the gods’ names and made the sign of the holy cross.

“UWEEEEEK!”

Those with weak stomachs couldn’t hold back their nausea, covering the ground with vomit.

They had eaten little on their way back, so it was mostly clear liquid, but the sour smell triggered others to retch as well.

Only one thought crossed their minds.

They should have fled earlier.

No, they should never have participated in this civil war in the first place. Even if it meant deserting and becoming fugitives.

When they first heard their commander was a witch, it seemed like a joke to be laughed off, but now they found themselves facing what was essentially a demonic legion crawled up from the depths of hell.

Besides the insects, there were no living creatures.

All livestock had been devoured without even bones remaining, and the tens of thousands of hostages who should have been there were nowhere to be seen.

There were only insects.