Ch.59Carnage

# Empire’s Palace

“Grrrr…”

The gray bear, Andrei, groaned as he pulled out the arrow embedded in his shoulder.

Tufts of fur stuck to the silver-gleaming arrowhead.

Unlike steel arrows, the wound was healing quite slowly.

‘I’ve lasted about 20 minutes. Silver arrows are coming out now…’

Their response was faster than expected.

So this is where the humans’ leaders are located.

To think they could supply silver arrows in just 20 minutes, even in this chaos.

It was an astonishingly quick response, beyond Boris’s predictions.

They couldn’t have imagined that werebeasts would ambush the imperial island.

From now on, he needed to be more cautious.

At first, thanks to the steel swords and arrows flying at him, he could ignore them all and slaughter any humans he encountered…

But fighting that way against silver weapons would lead to his collapse before long.

Throughout the palace, shouts, screams, and explosions echoed.

‘How much longer do I need to hold out?’

Andrei asked himself.

With the initial surprise attack, they had killed the knights on guard duty and destroyed the outer wall of the palace.

Then, he led nine comrades from the suicide squad and two hundred inferior half-breeds in a charge.

‘I wonder if they’re all still alive.’

They had scattered immediately upon entering the palace.

To avoid being suppressed while clustered together, and to buy as much time as possible.

Andrei too focused on destruction while minimizing combat.

Knights were no match for him, but facing masters would pin him down in one place.

If they appeared with silver-infused weapons… he might even be defeated.

Avoiding enemies was humiliating for a warrior.

But this was Boris’s instruction, so he followed it.

There was no doubt it was efficient.

If he had faced them head-on proudly, he wouldn’t have lasted even 20 minutes against the endless waves of knights.

‘Did Natalya and Boris… succeed?’

Andrei glanced briefly outside the palace.

Judging by the burning city, at least Natalya seemed to have successfully completed her mission.

That was enough.

Urgent footsteps sounded from beyond the alley.

He could smell humans.

Time to fight again.

He needed to buy at least an hour.

==================

How many times have I experienced this sensation of dizziness?

No, until now it had always been a physical issue. This time was different.

It was my mind screaming as I faced the worst possible situation.

“You sent first-year students against werebeast warriors? What were those crazy bastards thinking…!”

Is this rising emotion anger, frustration?

Or is it a lament?

Unable to contain my boiling passion, I grabbed the collar of the priest casting healing magic and roared.

The priest’s expression turned bewildered.

“Werebeasts…? From what I heard, they were just vagrants…!”

“What are you talking about? Anyone could tell at a glance! No, more importantly, how long ago were they sent out?”

If it was just now, if I left immediately, I might still save them—

“About 8, 9 minutes ago…”

A groan escaped me involuntarily.

So immediately after the knights left, they sent out students?

Without even knowing who the enemy was?

The response was too quick, while information gathering was strangely slow.

How could this happen?

No, even so, gathering students and sending them out in 1-2 minutes is too fast.

I expected it would take well over 10 minutes to make the decision, gather the students, prepare them, and send them out.

Then, could it be they had prepared the students in advance?

Were they planning to have the students subdue the vagrants alongside the knights from the beginning?

The fire started before the palace collapsed, so if they gathered students from that point, it would make sense.

Then, when the knights headed toward the palace attack, they sent out just the students as planned.

Yes, since they didn’t know the enemy were werebeasts, they thought students would be sufficient!

I released the priest’s collar and gritted my teeth.

Damn it. Goddamn it. Why?

I repeated curses without a target in my mind.

Fate keeps throwing the worst possible developments at me one after another. As if mocking me, as if scolding me.

As if saying this is all the result of my complacency.

“Healing magic! Divine enhancement! Whatever you have, pour it on us now! The ones who set the fires are werebeasts! First-year students won’t stand a chance!”

I shouted loud enough to shake the training ground. Blood trickled from the corner of my mouth.

Given the situation, I needed to go outside immediately.

Fortunately, with the priests gathered here, I could stack their healing and blessings before heading out to fight.

Startled by my sudden shout, the priests turned toward me.

One priest tilted his head in disbelief.

“Werebeasts…? That’s impossible. Werebeasts only exist in the north, they couldn’t appear on the island…”

“There are werebeast corpses scattered in the special building! Go check for yourself!!”

My killing intent burst forth from frustration.

The priest who had been arguing turned pale and collapsed.

I wouldn’t have done this normally.

Creating friction with priests would do me no good.

But time was of the essence now. I had no time to persuade them.

I needed to move right away.

“I guarantee it in the name of Faelrun! Do as this woman says immediately!”

Frider added a word.

Only then did the hesitating priests begin reciting prayers, casting all sorts of blessings upon us.

The pain from my wounds decreased, and injuries across my body gradually healed.

As the effects of the medicine I drank earlier faded, my consciousness and senses became clearer.

Strength returned to my limbs.

Complete recovery was impossible, but this was enough to fight properly.

“Asha, Frider! Let’s go! We need to move quickly!”

“Understood!”

“Don’t order me around, junior!”

I mounted my horse again, spurred it on, and dashed toward the main gate.

Frider and Asha followed, armed with weapons.

Quickly. As fast as possible.

Before it’s too late.

Suppressing the creeping anxiety, ignoring the congealing despair, just desperately.

Two horses galloped across the school grounds.

—-

Even half-blooded werebeasts with diluted blood possess the strength of a quasi-knight.

The harsh northern environment has forged them into powerful beings.

Additionally, they have regenerative abilities that quickly heal slash wounds.

Unlike humans who weaken rapidly with each injury, they fight fiercely without fearing swords and spears.

To overcome this gap, one must prepare means to suppress their regeneration.

Either by brutally tearing wounds to slow healing, neutralizing regeneration with silver and true silver,

or ending their lives in a single blow, leaving no chance for recovery.

In other words, without such means, they are impossible to face.

The result was right before my eyes.

I felt a sense of déjà vu.

Hell was dancing before my eyes.

With people’s screams as companions, against a backdrop of burning buildings.

A familiar smell wafted through the air. The pungent stench of blood, a fishy odor like grilled squid.

The smell of burning human flesh.

Ah.

Aah.

My vision blurred, and I swayed atop my horse.

I knew it all along.

Yes. Damn it, I knew it very well!

My fingernails dug through my gloves into my palms as I clenched my fists.

Blood dripped down the sword hilt.

With each hoofbeat striking the ground, my fractured skull throbbed as if about to shatter. Perhaps what was inside too.

Twelve swords protecting humanity.

The phrase engraved on the blade seemed to burn into my mind like a branding iron.

I was complacent. Far too complacent.

I should have considered more carefully how drastically the variable of my existence in the west would twist the original story.

I had declared before that man, before Knut,

that I would survive to the end, protect people, and save them.

With such arrogance, as if I were a savior, a prophet who knew everything about the world!

It was a terrible delusion.

I was not their savior.

I couldn’t even pretend to be one. I was never such a being to begin with.

Look at this catastrophe.

How reality has twisted so severely just because I came to the Empire!

What would have ended with the deaths of a dozen or so students in the worst case of the original story had transformed into a scene of flames and massacre consuming the entire island.

That werebeast, Boris, said earlier. The reason why they, the Militchiya, committed such a sudden, large-scale terror attack was because they felt threatened by the peace agreement between the Empire and their enemy, the Ka’har.

Yes. This catastrophe occurred because of a few careless remarks I made to cross over to the west.

The culprit who twisted a predetermined future and caused disasters that would never have happened otherwise.

That was who I was now.

—-

I gallop through the hell I created.

Heat-filled wind.

Flames that brush past leave deep burn marks on my face. Like a brand seared onto a criminal.

The air I breathed in was so hot it felt like my chest would burn up.

Like having a fireball lodged in my lungs.

Black smoke filled the world, and the air I inhaled and the heat warming my body stirred my head into chaos.

A sensation like my brain was boiling. I couldn’t even string thoughts together properly.

Still, I had to save people.

Save them? No, that’s wrong.

I was in no position to utter such arrogant words. Not me.

I needed to reduce them. Those sacrificed to my foolishness, my complacency.

Even one more.

– Wooong!

The true silver longsword vibrated once more.

I chase after the screams.

In the distance, I could see beasts swinging spears at students.

“Aaaaaaaaahhh!”

With a cry like a wail, I drew my bow and pulled.

The silver arrow I shot pierced through the werebeasts’ heads.

Kill them before they regenerate. If one shot isn’t enough, then two, three.

Like a machine, I fire arrows repeatedly.

The werebeasts dance. As if joyful, waving their limbs.

Soon they lie down as if tired.

I approached the students who had collapsed.

They were faces I seemed to have seen once or twice during lectures.

Fortunately, I was able to prevent their deaths.

The jury for my trial increased. Only to pronounce me guilty.

“S-special student…?”

“The enemies are werebeasts! Don’t engage them, avoid them as much as possible and return to the academy!”

I left those words and dashed off again.

I couldn’t guide them.

Death was still overflowing, so I had to keep running.

I heighten my senses. Enduring the burning smell, ignoring the smell of blood, searching for beasts.

Frider was right. I too smelled like a beast.

Gritting my teeth, I run through the city. Not yet.

It wasn’t time to stop yet.

—-

“What, a Ka’har…?!”

“Since you recognize me, die—!”

I charge at the werebeast who looks at me in shock.

A member of the Militchiya perhaps, not a pureblood but clearly with a face closer to beast than human.

On its left claw, it had impaled a woman.

A familiar uniform. An academy student perhaps.

With only a headless torso, I couldn’t tell who it was.

The mashed face was being chewed in the beast’s maw.

My gritted molars nearly shattered.

“Kyaaaaaaaa!”

I charged forward on horseback with a roar, swinging my sword.

The priests’ blessings dwelling in my body translated into destructive power beyond limits.

The werebeast’s arm exploded off.

From the screaming creature’s mouth, a pinkish lump of flesh, mashed like clay, flew out.

My passion exceeded its limits.

Leaping from the horse, my outstretched left hand grabbed the werebeast’s head and pushed it down.

As the head burrowed into the neck, going lower and lower.

Spraying blood like a waterfall, the werebeast’s body was crushed vertically.

Through the split groin, crushed intestines scattered on the ground.

What remained in my hand was nothing but a piece of meat.

—-

How many had I protected? How many had I killed?

At some point, my completely exhausted horse collapsed from fatigue.

I fell from the horse and rolled on the ground.

Thanks to that, I regained some clarity.

How were Frider and Asha doing?

Millia must be alive.

And Demian.

Yes. I needed to find Demian.

I had to protect him.

Until now, I had been somewhat reassured in my heart.

That he would grow stronger because he was the protagonist.

That he would ultimately survive because he was the protagonist.

Even if he faced danger… he wouldn’t die.

But now, I couldn’t trust the original story anymore.

Everything was already twisted just by my presence here.

So I had to protect him by any means necessary.

If the owner of the holy sword died because of the variable that was me, it would mean I had destroyed the world.