Chapter 338

Marius, the Black Knight and vice-captain of the Imperial Knights, was the commander-in-chief of the Imperial City’s defenses.

He had ten thousand soldiers under his command.

It might seem like a small number, considering the size of the Imperial City.

But Marius knew,

That ten thousand soldiers were enough to repel any enemy.

“Not a single one of you will cross these walls! Bring it on!”

He shouted from atop the first wall, his voice filled with confidence.

The Imperial City’s triple walls.

Even the first wall was tall and sturdy, with watchtowers strategically placed along its length. Conquering it was an extremely difficult task.

Most enemies had failed to even breach the first wall.

And even if they managed to break through the first wall, the second wall awaited them.

The second wall was just as formidable as the first.

It was enough to crush the spirits of any enemy who had barely managed to survive the first wall.

And if, by some miracle, they managed to break through the second wall?

The third wall awaited them.

The true wall of despair, reinforced with multiple layers of defensive magic circles.

No one had ever crossed the third wall in two thousand years.

And it would be the same this time.

The undefeated Max?

He was the person Marius wanted to kill the most in the world, but he acknowledged his abilities.

But Max had been too successful, his victories fueled by luck that surpassed his abilities. He had become arrogant.

He dared to challenge the Imperial City?

‘This will be the beginning of your downfall.’

The humiliating defeat they had suffered at Celtrine Castle.

This was their chance to avenge that defeat.

“Attack!”

“Even the walls of the Imperial City are nothing but sandcastles before us!”

The Celtrine allied forces attacked the walls, pretending to be confident.

Max and the Turtle Unit were among them.

They were deliberately showing themselves.

They had done the same in the previous attacks.

It was a way to convince the enemy that this was the main attack.

The soldiers attacked the walls with such force that it was hard to believe that it was just a feint.

It looked like a genuine attempt to conquer the city.

“Hmph, try to cross if you can, you bastards!”

Marius scoffed.

The defenders’ faces were also filled with confidence.

They were certain that they could repel the enemy.

The battle raged on.

“Damn it, retreat!”

“Everyone, fall back!”

It was the Celtrine allied forces who retreated.

They had retreated again, having achieved nothing.

The defenders cheered.

“Woooooo!”

“We repelled the enemy!”

“Victory is ours again!”

Their cheers were loud and clear, a testament to their high morale.

They had won again.

Marius clenched his fist.

He looked like a triumphant general.

* * *

“How is the situation, Sir Marius?”

Galbraith, the Sage, was in charge of the Imperial City while the Crown Prince was away.

He was the person the Crown Prince trusted the most, and he was capable of governing the empire in his stead.

The Imperial City was functioning smoothly in the Crown Prince’s absence because of him.

“We repelled the enemy without any problems. You have nothing to worry about, Your Excellency.”

Your Excellency.

It was a title befitting a man who was the nation’s teacher.

It was a fitting title for Galbraith, the Crown Prince’s teacher.

He was effectively the second most powerful person in the empire.

“That’s good to hear. I commend you for your repeated victories, Sir Marius.”

“It’s all thanks to the hard work of our soldiers.”

“You’re also a man of humility. I know that all our soldiers have worked hard. They will be rewarded accordingly.”

“A wise decision. I’ll be sure to convey your gratitude to them.”

Galbraith nodded at Marius, who saluted him.

And then, he said, “But there’s one thing I’d like to warn you about.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t let your guard down. He’s a cunning and resourceful man.”

Galbraith was wary of Max.

It was understandable, considering that Max had repeatedly thwarted the Crown Prince’s plans.

Marius also seemed to understand.

But his confidence remained unshaken.

“I know. That’s why I’ll crush him completely. You have nothing to worry about.”

“I trust you.”

Galbraith turned away.

‘Even he wouldn’t dare to challenge the Imperial City. He must have something else up his sleeve.’

As expected of the Sage, he already had a theory.

That Max’s actions weren’t a military decision, but a political one.

He hadn’t gone to the rescue of Lambert Castle, even though it was clearly the right time to do so.

It wasn’t aimed at the enemy.

It was a deliberate attempt to flaunt his power and influence before the princess and the other lords.

It was a political move.

He was laying the groundwork to become a powerful figure in the new government if the princess’s faction won the civil war and she became the emperor.

He was as ambitious as he was talented.

‘It doesn’t matter.’

It was actually a good thing for them.

The more internal strife there was within the princess’s faction, the better it was for them.

Galbraith smiled.

* * *

“This should be enough.”

Max made his judgment.

He had thrown out enough bait to distract the enemy.

Their attention was now completely focused on the forces outside the city.

“That’s good to hear. I was getting bored out of my mind.”

Duncan’s face brightened.

He wasn’t suited for pretending to attack the walls.

“So when are we moving?”

Gwen asked.

“Today.”

“Today?”

“To be precise, we’ll move tonight, when the enemy is most relaxed.”

Max’s eyes were cold and calculating.

He had planned this from the beginning.

They had never attacked twice in one day since the siege began.

And they had never launched a night attack.

So the enemy would assume that nothing would happen tonight.

They would let their guard down.

And that’s when they would strike.

“So make sure you’re all prepared.”

He had already explained the plan to them.

All that was left was to execute it.

“Understood.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Yes, Savior.”

The Turtle Unit’s eyes burned with determination.

* * *

“It’s quiet tonight.”

“They’re probably asleep.”

“Well, they haven’t shown any signs of launching a night attack.”

The night watchmen chatted leisurely.

They were certain that the enemy wouldn’t attack.

And besides,

“Even if they launch a night attack, they’ll just be defeated. Honestly, I wish they would attack.”

“Don’t say that. We need our sleep too.”

“Haha, I’m just kidding.”

They were completely relaxed.

But they didn’t know,

That a small group of people was secretly leaving the enemy camp at that very moment.

*Tap, tap, tap, tap.*

They moved swiftly and silently through the darkness.

It was the Celtrine allied forces’ raiding party.

Max was personally leading the operation.

And Regina was with him.

The core of the raiding party was the three hundred soldiers of the Turtle Unit.

They didn’t need a large force. They needed a small and elite unit.

The path they were taking wasn’t suitable for a large force, and a large force would be easily detected.

Max raised his hand, stopping the group.

There was a well in front of them.

It was a deep well, its bottom shrouded in darkness.

“A-Are you sure this is the way?”

Duncan asked in a low voice, his eyes wide.

Even the red-haired beastman couldn’t help but feel a shiver of fear. It was a long drop, and if they fell, they would surely die.

“I’m sure.”

Max replied immediately.

This was the secret entrance to the Imperial City’s underground tunnels.

It was the only way to infiltrate the city secretly.

Even the princess and the Crown Prince didn’t know about this path.

No one knew about it.

It was a secret entrance that had been discovered by accident and sealed off a few months after the civil war ended.

Max was the only one who knew about it.

“I’ll lead the way. Follow me closely and don’t lose focus. You’ll die if you do.”

*Gulp.*

The Turtle Unit gulped nervously.

But Max wasn’t worried.

They were the survivors of hell.

“Let’s go.”

He jumped into the well without hesitation.

Regina followed him, and then the rest of the Turtle Unit.

* * *

Pitch black darkness.

But Max could see clearly.

He had already cast the “Owl’s Eye” spell using a scroll.

The others had also done the same.

He swam through the water, heading deeper into the well.

And before he ran out of breath,

*Splash!*

He emerged from the water.

It was a narrow space.

But there was a narrow path ahead of him.

*Splash!*

Regina emerged from the water next.

And then the rest of the Turtle Unit.

“Cough! Cough!”

“Pant… Pant…”

“Ugh, I thought I was going to die.”

The Turtle Unit coughed and gasped for air.

But they had survived. Their resilience, honed in hell, wouldn’t be broken by a mere well.

“Good work, everyone. Take a moment to rest.”

Max gave them time to catch their breath.

They had a long way to go.

They had done enough running around outside.

“Where are we…?”

“As I said, this is the path to the Imperial City’s underground tunnels. We’re going to use this path to infiltrate the heart of the enemy’s territory. And then,”

He continued, his voice cold and determined, “we’re going to open all the gates.”

* * *

Invincible walls.

Invincible gates.

There was no way to overcome them from the outside.

Even Max acknowledged that.

But,

The gates were only invincible against attacks from the outside.

What if they were opened from the inside?

They would open easily.

Because no gate was designed to withstand attacks from the inside.

Max’s plan was to exploit that weakness.

And so far, it seemed to be working.

“Quiet.”

“They’re all sound asleep.”

The Turtle Unit whispered to each other.

There wasn’t a single soul in sight.

It was the perfect time.

It was past midnight, and dawn was approaching.

The important thing was to reach the gate without being detected.

“There will be a few guards on the walls.”

Max said.

“But no one will be looking in this direction.”

They weren’t at the outermost wall, but at the innermost wall.

There wouldn’t be many guards at the innermost wall, and they wouldn’t be looking inwards, where there was no chance of an enemy appearing.

“We’ll open the inner gate first.”

The inner gate, the final line of defense, the impenetrable wall of despair.

They would open it by surprise.

But that wasn’t enough.

There were three gates they had to open.

“We’ll definitely be detected.”

Regina said.

They couldn’t open the gate without making a sound.

“Yes, but they’ll be caught off guard. They won’t be able to react in time. We’ll just keep pushing forward.”

“Indeed.”

Regina smiled faintly.

“I’ll lead the way.”

Her sword, which had already become legendary after she single-handedly defeated fifty Cavern Knights, was a source of terror to the enemy and a source of hope to her allies.

“Don’t push yourself too hard. We have other seasoned warriors here.”

Max smiled.

“Let’s go.”