Ch.699The Red Death

Orhan, who had ambushed the immobilized Joshua to divert Haschal’s attention, used that opportunity to sprint with all his might toward the corner of the inner fortress where Ludwig Wilhelm von Landenburg might be hiding.

Though it appeared like an unsightly retreat showing his back, it was the best choice he could make.

‘Ludwig, at least him… I must kill him without fail…!’

This wasn’t just about satisfying his own vengeance—the future of the steppe people depended on it.

For decades, Ludwig had been the Empire’s unwavering bulwark against the Ka’har. He was a man who wouldn’t hesitate to exterminate all steppe people for the sake of the Empire’s security.

And now, Ludwig possessed the means to make that a reality—transcendent military power.

Ludwig and Haschal. The worst possible combination for the steppe people. Even Orhan himself had been forced to acknowledge defeat, unable to overcome their combined strength.

‘Even… for Haschal, this is the worst outcome.’

Orhan realized it.

Ludwig was a man who would stop at nothing to crush the future of the Ka’har. Just as he had sacrificed tens of thousands of lives as bait to trap him.

That’s why Ludwig had to die. Even for Haschal’s sake.

Unlike Haschal, who would stop once his revenge was achieved, Ludwig’s goal was to scorch the earth so thoroughly that the Ka’har would never again threaten the Empire for all eternity.

To accomplish this, he would rely on Haschal’s power, preventing him from stopping… in other words, he would ensure that even after killing Ka’har after Ka’har, Haschal would never find the true culprit.

Until only ashes floated on a sea of blood.

‘…I cannot allow that to happen.’

Haschal becoming a hero of the Empire… well, it wasn’t what he wanted, but he could somehow accept it. Perhaps that’s what Imelia would have wanted.

But as long as Ludwig lived, that child would not be a hero but a monster, manipulated by the man who indirectly contributed to Imelia’s death, creating endless bloodshed. That’s what Orhan believed.

Though his conclusion was heavily mixed with prejudice and misunderstanding, based on the stories he had heard and his experiences, he couldn’t reach any other conclusion.

—-

The time gained by ambushing Joshua was merely a few fleeting seconds, but it was enough for Orhan to charge into the partially collapsed inner fortress.

– CRASH!

With Unyielding Flesh activated, Orhan smashed through the inner wall, shattering it to pieces as he entered. Into the Empire’s temporary command headquarters inside the inner fortress.

The headquarters was in a state of terrible chaos.

The debris from his spear had swept through part of the headquarters, and the advisors and adjutants crushed beneath it had died instantly with their internal organs completely pulverized.

Between the blood-soaked stones, eyeballs pulled out by pressure dangled from their optic nerves.

Adding to this, now Orhan had burst through the wall. The exploding debris swept through the imperials inside like artillery shells.

Knights in full armor suffered at most broken bones or bruises, but those in uniform had fist-sized holes punched through their bodies.

“Aaah, aaaaargh!”

Those with torn limbs clutched their severed stumps and screamed, with no time to be grateful for their luck.

Bodies with shattered heads convulsed on the ground, leaking crushed brains, while those with holes in their abdomens desperately tried to stuff their spilled intestines back inside, as if doing so would save them.

‘Where are you, Ludwig!’

Orhan paid them no attention, quickly scanning for the gray-haired middle-aged man who deserved death.

“It’s him! Orhan! Orhan is here!”

“Stop him! Somehow stop him! We must buy time until Lord Median arrives!”

The guard knights gritted their teeth and charged at him.

Since all core forces had been deployed to the urban battle, the guard knights were merely below Master level, but they blocked Orhan’s path, throwing away their lives like straw. It was a desperate yet dignified sight.

…But meaningless.

“Get out of my way!”

A storm of destruction swept through. Orhan swung his blade without hesitation, not wanting to waste even a second, and everything in its path was sliced apart, regardless of form.

“Kugh!”

“Aaaaargh!”

Broken swords, shattered shields, and dismembered bodies flew in all directions, transforming the corridor into the depths of hell. The knights couldn’t even slow Orhan down, let alone stop him, and were pathetically cut to pieces, becoming macabre interior decorations.

Such meaningless deaths—no, deaths that ultimately helped Orhan.

Through the knights’ fierce resistance, Orhan realized that Ludwig was still alive and could roughly guess his location.

“Ludwiiiiig!”

A chariot of slaughter, wielding the dragon’s wrath, charged through, destroying the Empire’s command center.

“Orhan…!”

Until at last, he faced his target.

—-

Ludwig’s appearance was completely different from usual.

Dust-covered uniform, disheveled gray hair. His left leg was twisted as if crushed, and he trembled slightly from the intense pain.

Thanks to an adjutant who had sacrificed himself, Ludwig had barely escaped the destruction caused by Orhan’s spear, but he had only saved his life.

One leg, caught in falling rocks, was so damaged he couldn’t even stand, let alone walk.

“So here you are, Ludwig!”

Orhan shouted fiercely. His vision turned red as emotions of joy and rage mixed in his mind.

“Finally, finally this moment has come. The moment I tear apart and kill you, the source of our destruction!”

His blade, filled with the Karma of Murder, emitted a fierce resonance. Orhan approached Ludwig with a madman’s smile.

“Lord, get away!”

Ludwig’s guards desperately blocked his path and charged at Orhan, wielding shields and weapons that emitted a pure white light.

Defensive sacred artifacts gifted by the Church of Elpinel.

A barrier of pure white holy light spread to block Orhan’s path, and a pillar of light erupted from beneath his feet, piercing through the ceiling high into the sky.

“Grrrr….”

Orhan momentarily stopped, feeling as if his entire body was being torn apart.

His Unyielding Flesh remained unscathed, but the light pillar created by the sacred artifacts was attacking his senses rather than his physical body.

“This much…!”

“Not yet!”

As Orhan gritted his teeth and stepped forward through the pain, dozens of restraining spells were cast upon him.

His eyes darkened, his ears lost sound, his legs were bound by chains, and a thousand-pound weight settled on his shoulders.

Dozens of hands emerged from the shadows at his feet to grab him, while an invisible force from the front struck his body, pushing him back.

‘So, you won’t die easily, is that it…!’

Orhan fueled his killing intent even more and channeled strength throughout his body. The veins across his body bulged, and his face turned crimson. A streak of blood flowed from between his clenched teeth.

“Grrrrrr…!”

One step forward. The shadow hands all broke, and the mana chains shattered. Orhan pushed forward on his knees, bearing the thousand-pound weight.

“HAAAAA!”

The moment he escaped the pillar of light, the intense pain subsided. Orhan swung his blood-and-entrail-covered blade toward the astonished mages.

Even with his sight and hearing blocked, his senses could clearly detect the mages’ positions through air vibrations and smell.

A red afterglow rippled through the room.

The holy light barrier shattered like glass, and the mages desperately trying to cast barrier spells were dismembered.

With each mage’s death, the restraining spells holding Orhan weakened and dissolved.

The world brightened again, and sounds returned. The weight pressing down on his body vanished like a mirage.

“I won’t let you escape. I won’t let you go! This place will be your grave, Ludwig!”

Orhan, with his vision now clear, glared at Ludwig who had managed to put some distance between them, and charged with a fierce roar.

The red arc drawn by his blade flew toward Ludwig’s neck. A death sentence that could neither be blocked nor avoided.

And then.

“Finally caught you!”

With a voice full of killing intent, Frosting’s claws pierced through Orhan’s back like a stake, carrying layer upon layer of murderous lightning.

Blood erupted like a fountain.