Chapter 528 |
C528
The swords of the Imperial Guard lunged at Dante, who stood alone.
The knights of the Hairan assault squad blocked them, but the number of the Imperial Guard was overwhelming.
In addition, the rank-and-file knights continued their assault on Dante.
Every time Dante moved, sharp flashes of light accompanied his actions.
With each move, more than one knight died.
Even though they knew they were no match for him...
Dante couldn't fathom the relentless charge of the infantry soldiers, like moths to a flame.
"I can't afford to go easy on them...!"
On reflex...
Dante turned his head to dodge it, but the blade grazed his forehead, leaving a trail of blood running into his eyes.
As Dante took a moment to wipe the blood away, a gap opened, and the Imperial Guard seized the opportunity.
Dante would have faced a mortal wound if not for the Dragon Sword Armor, another secret technique of the Sword Emperor.
The blue aura band enveloping Dante's body blocked the Imperial Guard's sword.
The aura band didn't stop there but pierced through the chest of the imperial guard like a thorn.
The golden armor was ruthlessly pierced, and blood spurted out.
Three other Imperial Guard knights who had wielded their swords alongside him either suffered mortal wounds or were forced to retreat.
Of course...
The Imperial Guard was composed of individuals of unparalleled talent compared to foot soldiers.
Some had passed the Runcandel cadet exam in their youth and were often assessed as geniuses or prodigies.
However, next to Dante, they seemed like mere foot soldiers.
Talent, effort, the will to overcome one's natural limitations, the determination to stay on the battlefield until now...
Dante surpassed the Imperial Guard knights in every aspect.
"Do you really think you can kill me? Is that why you're rushing at me? You're not even close. At the very least, you should be on the level of the Captain of the Imperial Guard...!"
Dante stopped talking and looked at a man standing in front of a Dragon Spear.
The Captain of the Imperial Guard, Alton Hairan.
He was Dante's uncle and had been the Flagbearer of Hairan before joining the Imperial Guard.
"Stop, Dante."
Dante let out a mocking laugh.
"Alton Hairan, my uncle. Grandfather always found you pitiful, but I tried to understand and respect you. The reason you became a member of the Imperial Guard wasn't because you lacked the qualifications and potential to become the patriarch of Hairan... I thought it was another form of loyalty to the clan and the empire."
Dante slowly advanced towards Alton.
Those who were still alive among the Imperial Guards and the foot soldiers who had rushed in at the beginning continued to extend their swords...
But Dante took their breath away without taking his eyes off Alton.
"Grandfather was right. You're nothing more than garbage who couldn't have anything in Hairan, so you became the lapdog of the Emperor for a meager bit of power."
"If you stop now, everything can go back to normal. Dante."
"Heh, what?"
"A meager bit of power? I am the Captain of the Imperial Guard. If you show your intention to surrender even now and hand over the white stone, Hairan can continue to exist as a pillar of the Empire. I swear by my name. Stop. Stop now. This massacre doesn't suit you. Everything can be forgotten."
"Hahaha...!"
Dante's face contorted.
"You're crazy, Alton Hairan. How many do you think have already lost their lives? If I stop, will they come back to life? Will the fact that the Emperor branded Hairan as a traitor disappear?" Dante shouted with bloodshot eyes.
"The fight won't end until one of the two, Hairan or the Empire, is destroyed."
"Fool... don't you feel any responsibility as the young patriarch? If you don't stop, Hairan will be destroyed! Even its history will be erased without a trace."
Dante lunged, extending his sword.
Alton deflected Dante's sword head-on.
Clang!
A loud noise and a shockwave erupted, and the Imperial Guard knights who were trying to help Alton couldn't approach hurriedly.
Kugh-!
Dante spat out a mouthful of blood.
Blood flowed from his eyes and ears, and the hand holding the entwined swords seemed about to break, as if the bones could shatter at any moment.
"And what do you think you can achieve with that body? What choice have you made as the young patriarch? Aren't you plunging yourself and the clan members into a senseless massacre? Even though the path for everyone to live is right in front of you!"
As if it made no sense to continue responding, Dante silently swung his sword.
As Alton said, it seemed that his weak body had already surpassed its limits.
However...
The fact that he kept moving his shaky body with such roughness implied that Dante was crossing a certain threshold as a martial artist.
Unlike the blood oozing from his body, Dante's sword emitted a stronger and brighter light.
It stabbed into Alton faster and sharper.
The wind let out a shrill cry as the swords collided and cut through the air.
The energy fragments from the swords bounced in all directions, forming a vortex, and the ground beneath them constantly trembled with their footsteps.
The nearby knights kept their distance, waiting for the shockwaves to weaken.
For those who hadn't reached a certain level, it was a battle they dared not approach.
The outcome of the fight soon arrived.
Just as Alton was about to execute the Hairan secret technique, Dante reached him by slashing at his wrist.
Thud-!
Dante's sword, which stabbed Alton in the back and emerged from his chest, was dyed a dark red by the blood.
Dante twisted the sword, and Alton grimaced and shook his head.
The blood flowing from Dante's forehead continued to spread into his eyes.
In an instant, several childhood memories with Alton passed through Dante's mind.
Moments when Dante admired him as his uncle and how he struggled to ward off the inferiority he felt towards his nephew as his uncle.
But it had gone too far for his sorrow.
Dante wasn't truly sad about the thought that floated like a bubble bursting on the water's surface for a moment.
"Alton Hairan, Hairan never abandoned you, but you abandoned Hairan. Hairan never betrayed you, but you betrayed Hairan more than anyone. Even this death is not enough to pay for that sin."
"Tch..."
Alton was also recalling something similar to what Dante was thinking.
He wasn't as strong and resilient as Dante.
That's why he left Hairan, suggested saving Hairan a moment ago, and now said his last words.
"Stop..."
Swiish!
Dante unsheathed his sword, and Alton fell forward, convulsing.
Enough, Zipple is coming...
Dante...
The voice of his imminent death was so weak that he could barely open his mouth.
Dante hadn't heard that Zipple was approaching.
Even if he had heard, it wouldn't have changed his determination.
When Alton found death, the Emperor's army had no choice but to suffer a great shock.
No one expected the captain of the Imperial Guard to be killed like this.
The one currently making his way through the battlefield was not Ron but Dante.
"Assault squad! Continue supporting the young patriarch!"
Like a ghost, Dante started running towards the Dragon Spear again.
At that moment, nearby common soldiers regained the fear wrapped in madness.
They didn't dare to face the young patriarch of Hairan.
Hundreds of common soldiers waiting alongside the Dragon Spear took a step back, and only high-ranking knights, including the Imperial Guard, barely pointed their swords at Dante.
The dragons behind the Dragon Spear roared.
The dragons unleashed their breaths simultaneously, and at that moment, knights from another assault squad that had just arrived shielded Dante with sword shields.
"Come on, young patriarch!"
Hairan's knights were not all monsters like Dante.
The assault squad held their breath.
The situation was complicated, as Red Dragon and Yellow Dragon class cannons aimed at Dante were flying from all directions.
When the Dragon Spear is destroyed, and the Sword Saints arrive...
Hairan's knights shot their sword energies at the dragons.
Dante closed the distance with the Dragon Spear by cutting the remaining fire from the dragons.
While Dante and the assault squad cleared the path, the Dragon Spear fired two more projectiles at the Sword Emperor Castle.
The castle's wall where Dante was located had collapsed completely, exposing the inside of the castle.
Dante wasn't fighting with the goal of defending the castle, but Ron, who had lost consciousness, was present in the deepest part of the castle.
As a member of Hairan and as the grandson of the Sword Emperor.
Ron remained Dante's greatest hope.
Ron still couldn't regain consciousness, as the Sword Emperor Castle was being destroyed...
But Dante believed that Ron would awaken before the end of the war.
When he wakes up, he will show the weight that the name Sword Emperor carries for Hairan's enemies...
Dante believed so.
If there wasn't even that hope, his tired and battered body would have collapsed on the cold ground long ago.
"Hoo, hoo...!"
Dante exhaled heavily, gripping his sword.
The Dragon Spear was right in front of his eyes.
Seeing it up close, the Dragon Spear seemed enormous and emitted an indescribably ominous aura.
He cut it with a single sword.
The Sword Emperor's secret technique, Divine Radiance, pierced the center of the Dragon Spear, leaving a bright afterimage.
The Dragon Spear, split in half, collapsed on both sides and crushed the common soldiers and magicians who couldn't escape.
Dante kneeled for a moment, hiding his body amid the dust and smoke that spread when the Dragon Spear fell.
Then, before the enemies could see his state, he stood up again, stabilizing his trembling body.
It was the moment when Hairan achieved a small victory in this war.
"The young patriarch has defeated the captain of the Imperial Guard and the Dragon Spear!"
"The Emperor's Dragon Spear has collapsed...!"
But at that moment...
Kwaaa-!
Kwaaaaa...!
Somewhere, the sound of an explosion resonated.
Although the distance was far, it was exactly the same sound as when the Dragon Spear fired cannonballs.
When he turned around, he saw the protective shield of the Sword Emperor Castle and the outer wall collapsing.
'Is there... another Dragon Spear?'
There was only one Dragon Spear in the Empire.
However, in preparation for such a moment, the Emperor had replicated the Dragon Spear using Zipple's ability.
"Kuugh!"
"Ha, ha... The second Dragon Spear has been confirmed at the back gate!"
"The Hensick Magic Corps, the Lilitha Magic Corps are operating the Dragon Spear! At least the 4th, no, 7th, 9th...!"
Dante was too far for the urgent voices of the vigilant knights to reach.
However, even without hearing their reports, he could tell that the situation was not just bad but much worse.
"Should I keep advancing and aim at the Emperor, no, at the Sword Emperor Castle, at the Hairan knights, at my grandfather...!
Nausea overcame him.
He had to somehow pull himself together and face the situation.
It couldn't end like this, so futilely.
Dante was plunged into despair, and the Emperor smiled.
However, both Dante's despair and the Emperor's smile...
It was only for a fleeting moment...
From beyond the rear of the Sword Emperor Castle, a massive stream of shining swords fiercely cut through the dark night sky.
A unique blue color created by the combination of lightning energy and aura.
There was only one person in the world who wielded a sword like that.
That's why everyone on the battlefield who witnessed the sword was able to understand it in an instant.
Jin Runcandel had arrived.
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