Ch.263Chapter 263. Reborn as a Monarch (1)

* * *

“We won! We won!”

“We really won!”

When they heard that 200,000 troops were coming, everyone burned with determination, but no one would deny that a sense of despair inevitably bloomed in a corner of their hearts.

In reality, most fought with the mindset that they might die in this war—but if they could add even a little strength to Luna’s footsteps in resisting Vanessa’s tyranny and the Karelia that merely swayed to her whims, perhaps that would fulfill their role as soldiers.

In that battle, they—won. They were victorious. With overwhelmingly unfavorable numbers, they defeated an absurd army of 200,000! The victor’s toast belonged to us!

And at the forefront of this life-or-death battle… the soldiers witnessed with their own eyes Luna’s overwhelmingly powerful presence that yielded to no one.

Despite her status as a ruler, she risked danger and led from the front, literally slaughtering enemy soldiers.

While she must have been like a nightmare to the enemy Karelia forces… it was different for our Lunarian army.

That figure was like—a goddess of the battlefield.

None who fought alongside her from behind would dispute that title.

“Long live Lunarian Ineanne!!!”

“For Lady Lunarian!!!”

Seated on her horse, Luna looked around her.

…We won.

Hearing the soldiers’ cheers, she once again realized that she had defeated the Karelia army.

Having overcome such a difficult battle, she might have been expected to roar loudly with the soldiers in overwhelming emotion—but right now, the soldiers’ energetic cheers weren’t reaching her ears at all.

What Luna heard in her mind now was—only that person’s voice.

“If we go all the way, we will win.”

‘We won…! Swen, I… I did it…!!’

Luna closed her eyes and clasped her hands tightly.

His words alone had been her compass.

Until she made her decision, nothing had influenced her more than his words.

The man who sacrificed his life to save them.

Who told her at the final moment to never give up.

The man who said he would give her the world if she believed in him…

Tears streamed down Luna’s eyes.

The soldiers far away wouldn’t notice. No, that didn’t matter anyway.

More than anything, she was happy to have proven with her own strength that he, Swen, had never been wrong.

I seized the opportunity as you said.

I haven’t forgotten our promise.

I really, really miss you so much, Swen…

She looked up at the sky.

After fighting for a full day, the dark night had passed, and a new sun was rising again.

Now… it was time to move forward.

* * *

After the battle.

The person who received the most attention was General Tifa, who had suddenly awakened to tremendous power.

The usual Tifa would have grabbed people and talked all day about how amazing her performance was, but—

“How are you feeling?”

“Old man Cain is here. Or should I call you Lord Kalle now…?”

“What’s with the ‘Lord’? Call me whatever you want. I’m not used to hearing such formal words from you.”

“Hehe, right. Damn old geezer. Whether you’re Cain or Kalle… to me, you’re just a stuffy old man.”

“That’s right.”

Tifa spoke while lying in bed, sweating profusely.

“You used magic, I hear. You know that, right?”

“Well… it must have been magic, indeed.”

“When did you first become aware of this power?”

Kalle asked in a very serious tone.

“I’m not sure. I thought I felt some kind of energy during training… but this was the first time it flowed through my body.”

“Then was that mana…?”

“It was probably mana indeed.”

Tifa and Kalle turned their heads toward the elderly voice.

Ginor, the current national advisor of the Lunarian army, was walking toward them.

“Because magicians and mana are real.”

“Old advisor…”

“It seems General Tifa has awakened to magic. The proof is that you’re now lying in bed unable to move, isn’t it?”

“What…?”

“When magicians use mana, they consume energy proportional to it.”

“You seem to know something about magicians?”

At Kalle’s question, Ginor fell into thought for a moment.

“…Well, you could say that.”

“You speak as if you’ve actually seen one before?”

“We can discuss details later. What’s important now is General Tifa’s physical condition. When magicians use magic beyond their capacity, they lose that much energy.”

As Ginor said, Tifa lost consciousness as soon as the battle ended and collapsed from her saddle.

Fortunately, despite falling from her horse, she wasn’t seriously injured—and with the soldiers’ support, they somehow managed to bring her to bed, which was the current situation.

“Losing energy… So that’s why I lost consciousness then…”

“That’s how you should see it. To use magic again, you must rest sufficiently.”

Tifa smiled bitterly.

“I thought I had finally become stronger, but I’m back to square one, huh?”

“That’s not true, General Tifa. Without you, we could never have won this battle.”

“Flattery won’t help… the mercenaries joined as reinforcements.”

“Even so, the enemy had an overwhelming numerical advantage. Besides, what would this old man gain from flattering you?”

“Ha! When you put it that way, I can accept it.”

As Tifa smiled bitterly, Ginor spoke in a serious tone without a hint of playfulness.

“General Tifa. What I just said about ‘needing sufficient rest’ wasn’t just empty words. Take rest. If you continue to use magic recklessly… your life will be in danger due to excessive mana activation.”

“…!!!”

Ginor was the most knowledgeable person about magicians throughout the continent.

He had consulted countless documents, collected folk tales that sounded like ancient legends, and investigated all historical records about magicians.

For one reason only. …Because magicians existed.

From the moment he met young Reika who could summon flames from her hands, hadn’t he secluded himself and filled his head with countless knowledge, convinced that with this power, one could shake the continent in turmoil?

“But—”

“Nothing more to say. If you truly want to help your lord, don’t overexert yourself. Because you are, more than anything, necessary to your lord.”

“Necessary…”

Have I become someone necessary to Lunarian?

In truth, Tifa knew. She couldn’t match Lunarian as a warrior. It was only because Lunarian was the ruler that Tifa often took the lead.

But now that she had magical power—if she could become someone who could contribute to the Lunarian army, to Luna…

“…Alright. I won’t be stubborn unnecessarily, and I’ll just slack off as the old advisor tells me to.”

“Well, the guilt will only last a day or two. Doing nothing and playing around is quite enjoyable.”

At Kalle’s joke, Tifa also seemed to relax a bit and said.

“Old advisor, did you hear that? This man is so pathetic, I wonder if he’s really from the imperial family. I heard you were some kind of chancellor or something? Let me ask. Is this old man really a high-ranking—”

Tifa couldn’t finish her sentence and stared blankly at empty space for a moment.

“…He’s gone.”

She realized that Ginor had already left the room.

“He’s like a ghost, that Ginor. He’s always appeared without a word since the old days.”

“…Was he always like that?”

It seemed she had no choice but to change the subject of her inquiry.

* * *

General Tifa was a magician.

No, to be precise—General Tifa had awakened to magical power.

Ginor, who had left the room, reorganized the current situation once more.

Someone who had just awakened to magical power—unlike Reika who wasn’t much at first—if Tifa could use magic with that level of destructive power from the beginning, there was a very high possibility she would lose her life if she continued to use magic recklessly without proper knowledge.

Of course, if there was someone who could advise her that ‘handling magic carelessly is dangerous,’ her survival rate would increase exponentially. Just like himself right now.

‘…Ha.’

Truly, it seemed like everything was turning in Lunarian’s favor.

It was beyond fear, almost to the point of reverence.

Anyway, we defeated the Karelia army’s 200,000 troops.

This wasn’t just a simple battle. The Karelia army mobilized most of their available forces, betting on the fate of their nation, and our army was also desperate because defeat would mean immediate execution for everyone.

And the fact that our Lunarian army won here—

simultaneously meant the end of the Karelia army’s era.

What remained was just cleaning up the Karelia army’s territories, which were ‘essentially’ as good as empty.

‘It’s going to be busy for a while.’

Ginor sighed softly and asked a question to someone who couldn’t hear.

‘Swen, is all of this part of the picture you painted?’

If so, then I…

* * *

The royal castle of Tepel.

Before Luna’s eyes, four people were kneeling, looking up at her.

“Gustav, Aron. And Kalle and Yona too… I’m truly glad to see all of you again.”

Gustav, the leader of the Raven Mercenary Group, and Kalle, his deputy.

Aron, the leader of the Chilean Mercenary Group, and Yona, his deputy.

Those who had promised to rejoin when the Lunarian army reappeared in history—they had truly returned.

“We’ve been waiting for this moment, Lady Luna.”

“We will definitely repay the favor we received back then.”

The ‘favor received’ must refer to the free transfer of troops.

The lifeblood of mercenary groups was how many troops they could operate, and well-trained troops belonging to a nation must have seemed quite valuable to them.

“Without your help, we couldn’t have won that battle. Thank you very much.”

Luna said this, then approached them.

“But, despite my shamelessness… I have something I must tell you.”

“Please command us freely.”

“It seems you’ll need to continue fighting for a while. I understand you’re busy with your mercenary work… but I’ll make sure to provide compensation accordingly.”

Gustav and Aron nodded as if they understood what Luna meant.

The task of cleaning up the Karelia army’s territories. Not a difficult job, but one that would require bloodshed over a long period to resolve.

They looked at each other’s faces for a moment.

And then… both simultaneously looked at Luna’s face and said.

“Lady Luna. Please—”

“Formally incorporate us into the Lunarian army.”

“…What?”

Unlike Luna, who was surprised by the unexpected words, the two men spoke in a calm tone, seemingly not flustered.

“Being a mercenary is ultimately a profession that can make a living because the continent is in chaos. If Lady Luna can set the continent right… we would gladly entrust ourselves to Lady Luna’s cause.”

“This is a decision both of us made after much deliberation. Please grant us this favor. We won’t hold you back, Lady Luna.”

“Hold me back? Of course, it would be most reassuring for our army if you joined us… but are you really sure about this?”

“All of our mercenary members are thinking positively about joining the Lunarian army.”

“…”

She thought about declining once more, but—

…No. If this is also an opportunity that has come, I shouldn’t miss it. Because I promised him.

I need to become stronger quickly and overthrow Serpina who is constraining him… With that determination.

“…Thank you. Then, I’ll be counting on you.”

At those words, Aron and Gustav, along with the two deputies, knelt again and paid their respects.

“Yes! My lord!”

“We will serve our lord with utmost loyalty from now on!”

We won the battle and incorporated the mercenary groups.

Then what needs to be done now is… just to move forward.

And the path laid out before her—

was to remove the “Karelia Army” from the map.