episode_0109

109. The Gate of Misfortune from the Mouth

口禍之門: The mouth is the gate of calamity.

Erica, currently attacking Ternova.

Yet, her expression was far from pleasant to anyone who saw it.

Arms crossed, she made no effort to hide her discomfort.

Beside her, riding a horse, was the Grand General, Luna.

Amidst busily commanding a million-strong army by her lord’s side,

she quickly picked up on the sudden shift in mood.

“Is something troubling you, my lord?”

“No, it’s just… I feel as though I’ve been haunted by a specter.”

Having been ordered not to pry further, Luna immediately returned to her duties.

Erica clenched her eyes shut, arms still folded.

Lately, her dreams had been disturbingly chaotic.

It was as if fate itself kept forcing unpleasant visions upon her.

The dreams were simple in content.

Erica was a blue dragon.

And before her stood a fox, wagging its tail playfully.

A bewitching creature, bringing expensive treasures and food while acting coy.

Yet, whenever she tried to pet it, the fox would dart away.

Had it ended there, she might have dismissed it as just a strange dream…

But then, her three younger siblings—blue imoogis—freely petted the fox to their hearts’ content.

Even the clever humans who served her were allowed to stroke it.

After being doted on by everyone, the fox finally came to her…

“What nonsense. My beloved siblings would never betray me.”

“Hic—!!”

Had Luna choked on a snack while commanding?

Her face turned pale as she hiccuped violently, startled.

Leaning back in the carriage seat, I pondered.

“A white and green dragon stealing the fox at the end… That could never happen.”

I couldn’t even begin to guess who that last dragon was.

If only the dream had been absurd enough to dismiss outright…

With the war becoming too easy, it seemed my tension was slipping.

Ternova’s key stronghold—

A granary city producing vast quantities of wheat and rice, capable of feeding a territory as large as Redmain.

We had been observing the siege of Crimonar.

“Yawn… Not done yet?”

Erica yawned lazily, even in the midst of war.

The reason for her relaxed demeanor was simple.

Beyond the vast but otherwise ordinary 4-meter-tall walls,

over 500,000 soldiers of Crimonar fought bravely.

Yet high above them floated hot air balloons.

Grace Army’s finest snipers, firing down from those balloons.

A shout from one of them echoed.

“I’ve sniped what appears to be their commander!”

“Well done. Once confirmed, you’ll be rewarded with 1 gold coin.”

“Thank you!”

A full 1 gold coin—

equivalent to 10 million won in modern value.

From an absurdly high vantage point, they shamelessly sniped over the walls.

Succeeding meant receiving a medieval commoner’s lifetime fortune as a reward.

Thirteen hot air balloons hovered near the walls.

And passing by Erica was a formidable siege weapon—

a cannon with a sleek, black luster, beautiful in its deadly design.

“Ready—!!”

“This moment is the best.”

Cain’s cannon.

Erica plugged her ears with her fingers, bracing for the noise.

As the well-trained artillery adjusted the angle and lit the fuse…

—KABOOOM—!!

A thunderous roar shook the air.

A steel projectile, faster than the eye could follow,

collided with the poorly constructed first wall—wider than Seoul—

reducing it to rubble like a sandcastle.

“Retreat—!!!”

“Advance—!!!”

Ternova’s soldiers, witnessing their wall’s collapse.

Their tenacity was admirable, but sometimes surrender is a virtue.

They tried to counterattack through the gaps as Redmain’s forces pushed in.

A clever tactic, with good intentions.

Yes, intentions…

“Fire arrows ready!!”

Slaughter in confined spaces was our specialty.

A merciless barrage of explosive arrows rained into the gaps.

Ternova’s soldiers, once surging forward, were reduced to pulp.

Though their tactic was unexpected, we outmatched them in strategy.

Aris, Isobel, Lukarion, and Amela eliminated any variables.

“The fox’s weapons do have one weakness, though…”

Namely, they lacked tools to counter elite generals.

Hot air balloons, cannons, and fire arrows excelled in sieges and attrition.

Meaning, Erica’s overwhelming combat prowess diminished in open battle…

“Hey, Jet! Wanna bet who kills more?”

“With that jiggly pig fat, you think you can beat me?”

“You little bastard.”

“Your mom’s my mom too, stupid sister!”

Bickering but dominating the battlefield—Vivian and Jet.

“This sector’s clear!”

“Good. We’ve got a decent replacement here.”

A skilled defensive general, capable of holding or counterattacking if invaded—

Newcomers Lien and Adel stood firm with the main force.

Penrose led small detachments, chipping away at the enemy…

And Luna freely commanded over 2 million troops like extensions of herself.

One might even question if this was truly a weakened state.

Erica’s expertise had always been open battle, not sieges.

Having easily overcome her sole weakness, the outcome was inevitable.

The overwhelming disparity made Erica half-close her eyes.

The situation was relaxed enough to dwell on that unsettling dream.

But she slapped her cheeks and snapped back to focus.

“Still, I must command.”

On the battlefield, one must always stay sharp.

She had to crush Ternova and take another step toward her grand ambition.

And…

“I already miss that fox.”

Only victory would let her see Cain again.

With that thought, she continued the fight.

Yet, exhausted by the near-massacre, Erica drifted into sleep.

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After Erica left, I immediately went to sleep.

Filling the hours lost to Vivian, Adel, and Luna’s relentless pestering.

Well-rested and refreshed, I stretched upon waking.

From this moment, I was determined to enjoy myself to the fullest.

Anyone trying to make me work from now on would be treated as an enemy.

If they stood in my way, I’d destroy them by any means necessary!

With such chuunibyou-esque resolve, I stepped outside.

Adela, seated in a chair by my newly assigned room, was reading a book—as if waiting.

She flicked ash into an ashtray she’d brought and greeted me.

“Sleep well, genius?”

“Adela? Why were you waiting here?”

Judging by the pile of cigarette butts, she’d waited at least six hours.

Couldn’t she have knocked earlier or just come back in the afternoon?

As these doubts arose, she smirked—

not kindly, but mockingly.

“Well, someone dirtied my bed.”

“Ah…”

“Wow, so sticky…”

“I’m sorry!”

I bowed deeply as Adela chuckled.

But, mischievously, she refused to accept the apology.

“You’re sorry?”

“Huh?”

“The smell from the bed… like squid…”

“Of course I’m sorry!”

Pressing me further, Adela finally relented with a grin.

Then, she revealed her real purpose.

“Then, come meet someone with me.”

“…Someone to meet?”

“Yeah.”

Closing her book, Adela nodded.

She wiggled her fingers, signaling me to follow.

A blatantly evil scheme to make me work!

I wanted to refuse, but…

‘So… what now?’

I realized I had no plans even if I refused.

This world, aside from magic, was practically medieval 800s.

No video games, not even sports like soccer or basketball.

I could read… except the books were useless too.

‘Mix urine, stone, and lime to make gold…?!’

Even books on “science” were just cheap alchemy.

Gold isn’t made that way, obviously.

Their methods—no, even their understanding of its origin—were completely wrong.

Even modern science hasn’t fully unraveled it, but…

“Neutron stars or supernova explosions…”

“Huh, what?”

“Nothing.”

“That sounded dangerously specific.”

Muttering to myself in frustration, Adela latched onto it like a curious predator.

She seemed intrigued by my ramblings.

Come to think of it, Adela was a strategist—sharp-minded.

Curious, I asked her:

“Do you know about alchemy?”

“Alchemy? Hmm…”

Crossing her arms, Adela pondered briefly.

But not for long.

“Well, it’s a plausible field. Not my expertise, though.”

Thank goodness.

At least she hadn’t wasted time on that dead-end pursuit.

Of course, I know such “foolish” endeavors contributed to scientific progress…

But with modern knowledge, it was just frustrating to see.

“It’s complete nonsense.”

“Oh? Our genius is an alchemy expert too?”

“Not exactly, but gold from urine and lime? Give me a break.”

My pent-up frustration burst out.

I ranted to Adela about how gold and gems aren’t made that way.

“Hmm… Really?”

Adela listened intently, genuinely interested.

I should’ve found it odd—even Erica and the others avoided my science rants.

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Now, I cursed my past self for muttering those words.

Because now, I stood before a gathering of scholars—

mages called intellectuals, dwarves who handled gems and ores.

A prestigious academic hall, like a science seminar.

And there I was, on stage…

“How did this happen…?”

Someone, please explain…

Anyone…