Chapter 78: The Day We’ve Been Waiting For (1)
The mercenaries gathered around Ghislaine split left and right.
Revealed beneath them were several Magic Circles that had been hidden.
Surrounding one Magic Circle were six more drawn in a circle.
Vanessa silently nodded and stepped onto the circle in the center.
Not just Vanessa, but Alfoy and the Mages had also been brought here.
And on every Mage’s arm, a Runestone bracelet inscribed with spells was secured.
“What kind of Magic Circle is this? When was it inscribed?” Alfoy asked curiously.
Ghislaine replied with a nonchalant expression.
“Alfoy and the others, step up here as well.”
“No way! We need to know what this is before we decide anything!”
Alfoy had started to drop the formalities, but Ghislaine didn’t care at all.
What mattered now wasn’t his tone.
Instead of convincing the hesitant Mages, Ghislaine decided to demonstrate through action.
“Get them up.”
Upon his gesture, the mercenaries forced Alfoy and the Mages at swordpoint onto the Magic Circle.
“What on earth are you trying to do?” Alfoy grumbled. Ghislaine ignored him and turned to Vanessa.
“Vanessa, you can do this, right?”
She met Ghislaine’s gaze with trembling eyes and swallowed hard.
Though she had made a resolution, her confidence was dwindling as she prepared for action.
“Do, do you think I can do it?”
“You can. You must succeed.”
With his firm response, Vanessa nodded.
With her life at stake, Vanessa closed her eyes and began to draw upon her Magic Power.
Woohhhh!
Vanessa’s body began to rise into the air as Magic Power started to surge towards her.
There was no way she could draw upon Magic Power like this when she couldn’t even use 1st Circle spells properly.
“M-Magic Transfer!” Alfoy screamed in shock. Suddenly, Magic Power began pouring out of him like crazy.
Looking around, the other Mages were also in a flurry, waving their hands in panic.
Alfoy cried out in despair.
“You crazy bastard! Why did you give control to her of all people?!”
Magic Transfer is a spell that amplifies the strength of one person by channeling the Magic Power of others into them.
If the central figure can’t control it properly, all participating Mages could lose not just their Magic but their very life force and perish.
It was a dangerous spell that required intricate control, immense mental strength, and perfect understanding of the spell.
“There’s no way a girl who can’t even use 1st Circle magic will succeed!”
“Don’t worry. Just believe in Vanessa.”
“Believe? What are you talking about, you lunatic!”
As Alfoy and the Mages yelled and attempted to flee, it was too late. They were already caught in the storm of Magic Power.
The Mages couldn’t move at all, drained of all their Magic Power within the circle.
“Ugh… No… I can’t die like this…”
As Alfoy and the Mages suffered in agony, Vanessa gritted her teeth and felt the pain as well.
Blood began to trickle from her nose and ears. The veins all over her body started to rapidly turn a strange black color.
It was a sign that she was struggling to withstand the torrent of Magic Power surging into her.
The body trembling like crazy was a clear indication of how hard she was struggling right now.
“Ugh….”
Finally, a moan escaped her lips. Unable to withstand the pressure of magic, tears of blood leaked from her closed eyes.
As time passed, the surrounding people began to feel the heavy aura of mana surrounding them.
It wasn’t an overwhelming rage, but something that piled up and pressed down on the space.
“Ugh….”
Vanessa could no longer endure it. Her consciousness started to fade.
‘It was indeed too much. I can’t do it. What was I thinking…’
Her life had always been a series of failures.
She had tasted a miracle for just a moment, only to deceive herself into thinking she had abilities.
GoooOOOOO!
This was it; she had reached her limit. She couldn’t hold on any longer. It hurt so much and was so painful.
Could this be how it felt to receive all the pain she had endured throughout her life at once?
Even her firm resolve melted away like snow in the face of pain.
She just wanted to forget everything and give up.
‘…Yeah, I’ll just…’
Vanessa, floating in the air, lowered her head.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound of approaching enemies could be heard. The ground trembled as a great army marched in unison.
The Perdium soldiers began to prepare for their final stand.
Some cried, some prayed to the gods they believed in.
Others ignited their fighting spirits, while some thought of their families.
In contrast, the mercenaries below the castle wall awaited Ghislaine’s command in silence.
His low voice broke the silence.
“Vanessa.”
“…I, I am…”
As if she hadn’t heard Ghislaine call her, she kept muttering with her eyes closed.
— Will I… be of help to the Prince?
— Yes, you’ll be a great help.
“Vanessa.”
— I want to help the Prince.
With great effort, Vanessa slowly lifted her head.
All the mercenaries held their breath, gazing at her.
“Vanessa.”
— You can do it, right?
Ghislaine looked at Vanessa with a mix of concern and encouragement.
Her body, which had been trembling ceaselessly, suddenly stopped.
The massive flow of magic building up and the blood trickling down came to a halt as if nothing had ever happened.
Then, Ghislaine gritted his teeth so hard it felt like they might shatter, and he turned his head.
“Open the castle gate. Skoban.”
“Y-Your Highness? What are you thinking right now…?”
“Open it.”
Skoban swallowed hard.
He understood what Ghislaine was thinking.
If things continued as they were, they would undoubtedly lose. The only hope left was the charge of Ghislaine and the mercenaries.
‘If I’m going to die anyway… it’s better to go out swinging like last time.’
It might be better than dying meaningless atop the castle wall.
Of course, the enemies wouldn’t let them off like before…
If Ghislaine could just break the enemy’s formation, all the troops inside could rush out to find an escape.
With a resolute decision, Skoban slowly opened the castle gate with his soldiers.
Creeeak.
As the castle gate began to open, the people on the wall gasped.
Especially Zvalter and Randolf quickly caught onto Ghislaine’s intentions.
Having experienced it once, how could they not know?
“No! Ghislaine! What are you doing?!”
“Have you lost your mind, Grand Duke! Stop it right now!”
They had been watching how exceptional Ghislaine’s mercenary corps was all this time.
But that only worked if the opponent wasn’t overwhelming in numbers.
Zvalter shouted again.
“Such things don’t work twice! How many times did I tell you to be careful?!”
The enemies wouldn’t be caught off guard like before.
Looking at the enemy’s formation, shield soldiers were already filling the front.
It was clear they intended to minimize damage by preparing for the mercenaries to charge out.
“Close the castle gate! I said close the gate!”
“Run away instead! At least you run and survive! You foolish idiot!”
Zvalter and Randolf shouted at the top of their lungs, but Ghislaine pretended not to hear them.
Even Skoban stayed silent, ignoring the Lord’s command with his head bowed.
“You! Do you really want to throw your life away like this until the end?!”
Zvalter trembled with rage and tried to head down the wall, but Randolf grabbed his arm and shook his head.
He tried to go down through the door. However, Randolf grabbed his arm and shook his head.
“It’s too late, brother.”
If the Lord left his seat in a situation like this, it would be over in an instant.
Zvalter took a moment to catch his breath as he glared at Ghislaine in the distance and said,
“Alright. The castle gate is open anyway. We will fight together as one.”
There were no arrows or supplies for defense. Even on the castle wall, there was no means to hold off the approaching enemy.
If they had to face the enemy head-on, it might be better for everyone to fight together.
Ghislaine’s and the mercenaries’ charge would not be an easy task either.
“All troops! Abandon the castle walls and gather around the castle gates!”
Following the Lord’s command, soldiers of the Perdium army started to gather one by one in front of the castle gate.
But the space was so cramped that they could only stand behind the mercenaries.
As Zvalter, Randolf, and the knights moved the remaining troops on the castle wall, Ghislaine told the mercenaries,
“Get ready. We’ll finish this before our allies all gather.”
The mercenaries, their bodies fired up, prepared to bolt out with their weapons drawn.
They were tense but not scared.
As always, they believed they could win if they followed their leader’s orders.
Kaor simply relaxed his mind.
‘If I die fighting, so be it; if I live, that’s fine too. Well, there are some things I would miss… But dying in this war isn’t so bad. At least it would feel refreshing.’
Belinda, who usually fussed to stop Ghislaine every time he went into battle, was unusually quiet.
After all, whether they fought with the castle gate open or closed, the danger was the same.
‘I’m sorry, my Lord. I’ll do whatever it takes to bring the young master back alive. If possible, the young lady too.’
Ghislaine planned to find a way to faint and escape the battlefield when he got tired. By any means necessary.
Gillian had a hunch about what Belinda was thinking but silently checked his weapon.
He had heard that the mages were preparing traps. But looking at Ghislaine’s expression now, it seemed something had gone wrong.
Though he hadn’t known Ghislaine for long, Gillian knew his young lord would never run away.
He had already decided to devote his remaining life to him. He planned to die here alongside Ghislaine.
‘Rachel, if things go wrong, escape with Lady Elena.’
Meanwhile, hearing that the castle gate was open, Viktor grinned widely.
“It’s really time to finish this.”
As expected, the enemy was preparing for a final charge.
They seemed to be gathering all their forces toward the castle gate.
“Fools. If they all rush in at once, it will just make it easier for us.”
As Viktor raised his hand, the cavalry, which had been waiting in the back, positioned themselves on either side of the central troops.
They would be targeting the flanks of the Perdium army.
“When the enemy starts to rout, cavalry, immediately pursue and wipe them out.”
A cruel smile spread across Viktor’s lips.
Finally, the time had come to repay the debt.
“Everyone, move slowly in a tight formation!”
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The enemy’s formation became denser and more reinforced.
Scoban and the soldiers waiting nearby wore expressions of fear at the intimidation.
Ricardo, standing next to Scoban, suddenly realized something strange.
“But why isn’t the Grand Duke riding his horse? What about the mercenaries too?”
There were no horses to be seen around Ghislaine and the mercenaries.
‘Are they charging without riding?’
Of course, they could rush out like they did at first, but the situation was a bit different now.
The horses used by the mercenaries were stabled near the castle gate, so there was plenty of time to prepare.
Ricardo hesitated to ask Ghislaine if he wasn’t going to ready his horse.
No matter how foolish someone might be, they wouldn’t forget to ride their horse.
Could it be that Ghislaine, who knew this, didn’t know it as well?
He scrutinized Ghislaine once more.
His gaze was that of someone ready to seize an opportunity he had patiently awaited, rather than that of someone making a last struggle.
In that moment, chills ran down Ricardo’s spine.
Ghislaine always produced incredible results with actions that defied common sense without a care.
‘Yeah, let’s trust him. He’s not someone who would just give up.’
For the first time in Perdium, someone began to trust the Grand Duke.
Someone has started to believe in the Grand Duke.
Ricardo’s prediction wasn’t that wrong.
Ghislaine narrowed his eyes and glared at the approaching enemy outside the castle gate. His face was filled with confidence in victory.
“You guys must have held back a lot.”
If he were an ordinary commander, he would have already replenished the troops as soon as the supplies were cut off.
But Viktor moved cautiously, thoroughly exploiting their weaknesses. He was indeed no ordinary foe.
“You weren’t the only one waiting for this moment.”
Ghislaine too was holding onto his bursting heart, waiting for the right time.
Every day, he fought the impulse to charge out and smash the enemy’s heads.
To eliminate every single one of them without leaving any behind.
Crunch.
Ghislaine unknowingly gritted his teeth.
“I have never forgotten, not even once.”
Right in this castle wall, the heads of his father and retainers were impaled on pikes, rotting in misery.
That scene haunted Ghislaine for a lifetime. He writhes in pain every day.
Thump.
As he recalled that sight, blood rushed to his head, and the mana within him began to writhe violently.
“Not a single one of you will return alive.”
Ghislaine prepared as best as he could.
It wasn’t perfection. Just one mistake could lead to the destruction of his territory and death for everyone.
Before the vast army that had appeared, who could confidently assure victory?
But…
“I will not give up.”
Ghislaine took a deep breath.
He had stopped the war right after returning. The first battle caused by Elena.
Time had bought him a little, but eventually, the war broke out anyway.
In fact, it was on a scale that was incomparable to that time.
The more they tried to block it, the greater the danger grew.
As if the sky desperately wanted the downfall of Perdium.
“Perhaps this fate that binds this territory is unavoidable.”
Ghislaine shook off the pessimistic thoughts that arose in his mind and smiled fiercely.
“Don’t kid around. There will be no second chances.”
Clank!
As Ghislaine lowered his helmet’s faceguard, all the mercenaries adjusted their helmets in unison.
Huff, huff, huff.
The tense breaths of the mercenaries resonated.
Skoban and the soldiers waiting by the castle gate stepped back, feeling the bizarre momentum.
Only Ghislaine and the mercenaries stood firm in front of the castle gate, burning with fighting spirit.
Ghislaine slowly extended his arm to the side and spoke to the mercenaries.
“Wait.”
Everyone’s tension peaked.
Hearts felt like they would burst, muscles strained painfully, and bodies stiffened.
The blood rushed to his head, making him dizzy. He was almost unaware of how he was even standing.
“Not yet.”
Just as the mercenaries focused so intensely they forgot the passage of time.
Ghislaine turned his head and shouted.
“Vanessa!”
Vanessa opened her closed eyes wide.
Golden magic circles were etched in her pupils.
Her small lips murmured something, fluttering as if reciting.
Her wishes and understanding pierced through the world and reached a singular principle.
It summoned a power that transcended the limits and crossed the circle.
GooOOOOO!
Immense magic energy surged forth in all directions. The magic quickly took shape and began to swirl around Vanessa.
The flaming magical letters soon turned into red dots, scattering everywhere and melting back into the world, disappearing.
GooOOOOO!
In an instant, everyone present stopped moving, regardless of friend or foe.
The same vision reflected in their eyes.
A red barrier, constantly rippling like a sunset, rising between the castle wall and the enemy.
Zvalter dropped his sword in shock. Randolf, too, forgot his dignity and gaped.
GooOOOOO!
The enemy could no longer approach the castle of Perdium. Viktor also hurriedly halted his horse.
Among the frozen people, only one moved.
His eyes glowed red like the rippling flames.
Rumble!
The ground began to tremble violently.
“I’ve been waiting for this day.”
It was a voice as if lava was boiling over.
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