Chapter 525
Episode 144. For a Friend (3)
“…What’s the size of the Emperor’s vanguard?”
“A thousand knights, a hundred mages, five dragons. The commander is Kevin Perrell of the Dragon King Knights. Key knights include Scott Hollow of the Central Knights, Marvin Fan, and Gloria Chandler of the White Spear Knights. The mages are led by Roya Lillistago, mostly composed of the second division of the Lillista Mage Corps.”
“We’ve confirmed war artifacts as well: fifty siege cannons of lion-class caliber, three enemy-dragon-class cannons, and numerous barrier amplification artifacts.”
Even at that scale, there were few nations in the world that could withstand such a force. Aside from the great powers, no single country or clan could handle this alone.
And that was just the vanguard. The main force arriving afterward would be on an entirely different level.
“We haven’t yet determined the size of the main force, but it’s estimated to be at least ten times larger.”
A heavy silence fell over the war room.
Those who had been bracing themselves for Ron’s condition steeled their resolve once more, while others couldn’t help but think of the White Stone.
“Three hours, huh? That’s faster than expected. The Emperor must know Sir Ron can’t fight. That’s why they’re rushing like this. The main force will probably arrive within a couple of hours after the vanguard.”
Just as Shuras had said.
Suddenly, Shuras cracked the long conference table in half and strode through the gap to stand before Dante.
Then, lowering himself to one knee, he bowed deeply.
“I am Shuras Helter, head of the Helter family. I and the knights under my command who have not strayed from my control will share fate with Hiran.”
As Shuras swore his oath, the other knights followed suit, kneeling alongside him.
“The Sellington family will fight alongside Hiran!”
“Without Hiran, the Ropermo family would have been wiped out long ago. We may be weak, but we will do our part.”
“Traga will stand by Hiran’s side.”
“The Aclik family as well…”
One by one, thirty representatives of the noble houses in the room pledged their loyalty to Dante and Hiran.
Seven remained. These were the ones most shaken by the news that Ron had lost consciousness.
Dante placed his sword on the shoulders of those who had sworn their oaths, then fixed his gaze on the seven.
“Kingzel, Felisi, Metin, Baizerin, Pane, Mitro, and Jinion.”
“Sir Dante, we…”
“You have betrayed your oath to Hiran. You have forgotten that my family, my grandfather, and our ancestors fought for your safety.”
The seven representatives lowered their heads, unable to meet Dante’s eyes.
The knights still kneeling looked ready to behead them on Dante’s command.
“But I do not believe you abandoned your loyalty to Hiran out of mere fear for your own lives or your family’s survival. I will assume you chose loyalty to the Empire over your oath to Hiran. Therefore, before you leave, there is one task you must complete for the Empire.”
“Please… speak.”
“Assist in evacuating the people of Sword Emperor City. If you refuse even that, then you have chosen no loyalty at all, and I will have no reason to spare your lives.”
The seven knights who refused to swear the oath bowed their heads and left the room.
“Sir Golo.”
“Yes, Lord Helmsman!”
“Evacuate all retainers and civilians, not just the combatants. If those seven families refuse to help, you have my permission to execute them immediately.”
“As you command.”
“Also, all common soldiers must be evacuated.”
In battle, common soldiers mainly handle equipment operation, supply, watch duty, and post-battle control.
Without them, lower-ranked knights would have to operate siege weapons themselves, causing some loss of combat effectiveness. But Dante did not want them to bear such harsh responsibility.
If they lost the war, simply standing on the walls would mean their entire families would be wiped out.
Once evacuation was complete, only three thousand foot soldiers, one thousand elite knights, and fifty commander-level knights including Dante would remain inside the city.
That was enough to handle the vanguard, but utterly insufficient against the entire Empire.
Dante and the commanders ascended the city walls.
Though repairs had been ongoing since the last terror attack, Sword Emperor City had yet to fully recover its former glory.
Cracks marred the walls, and some sections were completely missing.
But this wasn’t a battle to hold the city. The common soldiers had all been sent out, and more than half the war equipment had been destroyed in the terror attack. They couldn’t hold out long.
Regardless of the war’s outcome, today marked the end of Sword Emperor City.
Dante climbed the wall simply to imprint this final scene in his memory.
—“I understand what you mean, but what if the Imperial Court chooses Ziphl and decides to finish off Hiran with us?”
—“That’s for you to stop.”
—“I’m not the head of Ziphl, just the heir. Do I have that kind of authority?”
—“I’m joking. At that time, Runcandel will join Hiran.”
Following the commanders’ orders, the tents below the walls were taken down, and watching the people evacuate, Dante’s thoughts drifted to his friends.
When he and Jin had asked Veradin to pressure Ziphl to tighten the noose on Hiran, they had at least considered the possibility of a full-scale war like this.
But no one had anticipated Ron losing consciousness completely, or the Emperor exposing Hiran’s secrets to the world.
Who could have imagined Ron becoming unable to fight?
The injuries Ron sustained during the terror attack on Sword Emperor City were never supposed to be this severe. Normally, he should have fully recovered within a week or at most a month.
Dante didn’t know why Ron’s condition had worsened so drastically.
‘Grandfather remains unconscious. Even if you come, Jin, I don’t think we can win this war.’
Accepting Jin’s help felt like dragging his friend into a quagmire.
Jin was not yet head of Runcandel. And objectively, without Ron, Hiran wasn’t worth Runcandel risking open conflict with the Empire.
Dante took paper and pen from a nearby commander to write a letter forbidding Jin’s support.
“Send this to Tikan immediately.”
The commander took the letter and descended the wall.
If Jin came, Dante had a high chance of survival. As Jin had said when talking with Veradin, even if he couldn’t bring all of Runcandel, he would surely bring enough troops to save Dante alone.
But Dante was certain that dying fighting alongside his comrades was better than escaping alone.
Thousands of warriors had risked their lives to stand with Hiran. As the rightful heir of Sword Emperor City, it was unthinkable to prioritize his own survival over theirs.
Following Dante and the commanders’ orders, knights were deployed throughout the city. Their eyes burned with the resolve to fight to the death.
Now, all that remained was to wait for the enemy’s arrival.
“The White Stone? They intend to destroy Sword Emperor City under that pretext?”
Rosa frowned as she reviewed the report.
“We’ve never obtained any information about this White Stone. It could be a fabricated excuse.”
“It might be true. But that doesn’t matter. The Emperor’s move means he’s confident he can defeat Ron’s Sword Emperor City.”
“Since the terror attack, Ron Hiran has almost ceased all public activity. And for the past two weeks, there’s been no sign of him at all.”
“Just as we suspected—he may be unable to fight. The Emperor raised his army, yet there’s no response. It’s almost certain.”
“There’s no full-scale movement yet, but Ziphl might be backing the Emperor.”
“If the White Stone is as valuable as the Emperor claims, they definitely would.”
“Should we prepare the knights?”
Rosa didn’t answer immediately, instead thinking of her youngest son.
“What about the 12th Squadron?”
“They’re definitely inside Tikan, but due to the head’s orders, we don’t have detailed intel.”
“That boy will go to Sword Emperor City. The sudden leave request from the 4th Squadron is probably related.”
“Leading Runcandel’s knights to support Sword Emperor City without the acting head’s permission…”
“That’s nothing new. When has the youngest ever cared about such formalities? Besides, he has his own solid power base even without the family’s knights.”
The scholar bowed his head.
‘We don’t know exactly what the White Stone is, but if the Emperor is this desperate, it can’t be worthless.’
Still, acting without any information or justification was risky. If the White Stone turned out to be worthless, Runcandel would be meddling in the Empire’s civil war for no gain.
“Let’s watch how the youngest handles this first. But if we detect Ziphl or Kingzel taking active steps, we’ll respond accordingly. Keep monitoring their movements. Also, issue a statement that Runcandel has no involvement in this Hiran civil war.”
That way, if Jin’s actions ended badly, it wouldn’t reflect on Runcandel as a whole.
If it ended well, it would only highlight the skill and determination of Runcandel’s 12th Squadron.
“Yes, Acting Head.”
The Emperor’s vanguard arrived on the plains before Sword Emperor City.
Dante stood at the center of the main gate, watching them.
Five dragons, a thousand knights, a hundred mages, fifty-three cannons, and barrier equipment all pointed at the city’s main gate.
They paid no mind to the rear or side gates, knowing the main force would encircle those anyway.
“I am Kevin Farrell, vanguard commander of the Imperial Civil War Suppression Forces, serving His Majesty Amir Bimont, Emperor of the Great Empire! Ron Hailan, the Sword Sovereign Lord, come forth at once, receive the Emperor’s decree, and obey!”
Kevin Farrell shouted from atop his red dragon, looking down upon Sword Sovereign Castle.
Dante and the other commanders remained silent. Fueled by their silence, Kevin’s pride swelled, and he raised his voice even higher. Though he had been told beforehand that Ron could not fight, now he had just seen it with his own eyes.
“Is Ron Hailan absent? Then, Sogaju Dante Hailan, receive the Emperor’s decree and obey! This is your final warning—!”
He was about to shout it, but suddenly, a chilling sensation like a gust of wind pierced straight through his chest.
“Huh…?”
A hole had been made in Kevin’s chest.
At that moment, Kevin was completely unaware of what had happened. It occurred just after a flash of light on the castle wall.
That light was from Dante drawing his sword and releasing a blade spirit. The sword that pierced Kevin’s chest had already been sheathed again, and only a few had even noticed the speed of the strike.
As Kevin began to fall from the dragon’s back, Dante spoke calmly:
“No one dares look down upon Sword Sovereign Castle—not even the Emperor himself. So if anyone wishes to deliver the Emperor’s will, they must first defeat me.”