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Chapter 123: Southern Dungeon (2)

"Huff..."

His entire body, including the hand gripping the sword, was drenched in sweat as though it were raining. Steam rose from his shoulders, not just a sign of the intense physical exertion, but also hinting at the fire burning fiercely within him.

"Seems like you can move well now, huh?” someone remarked from the darkness, watching him.

"..."

Randol planted the sword, the Liberated Flame, into the ground and looked at Miliana. It had been ten days since she saved him. Most people would still be bedridden, but he was already wielding a sword.

Impressive. Not just his physical abilities, but even the mana he exudes is at a different level. Only a few imperial knights can condense such dense magic.

Even if she didn’t show it, Miliana couldn’t help admiring Randol.

Wasn\'t he adopted by Kuwell MacGovern? Of course... The eyes of a Sword Master don\'t lie. Even without MacGovern blood, his skills are remarkable.

Weapons made from Clear Distilled Water were naturally far superior to those with ordinary enchantments, but they were also much more challenging to wield. The Liberated Flame, a weapon registered in the imperial records, had never been claimed by anyone because of how difficult it was to handle.

Miliana’s eyes sparkled as she watched the sword\'s flames, dancing as though eager to evaporate all of Randol’s sweat.

How could Miliana, a barbarian, sense mana? It was closely related to how Digon had managed to become the rulers of the south. Northern immigrants and southern barbarians couldn’t use mana, but Digon was different from them.

Whoosh—

As Miliana approached, the flames of the Liberated Flame sword intensified as if responding to her presence.

"...!!"

Randol looked at her, slightly startled.

"It\'s a fine sword. The owner who chose it suits it well. With excellent potential and the right weapon, it\'ll be satisfying to see you grow,” she told Randol.

Randol was still shocked by the fact that a sword rejected by all imperial knights responded to a southern barbarian.

However, the reason for that was simple—Digon was a tribe of half-dragons, their ancestors born from the union of dragons with humans. They were most likely the only tribe on the continent whose entire lineage possessed dragon magic.

Though the bloodline had thinned over generations, Miliana, the tribe leader, had retained dragon magic. She had been the owner of the Freezing Talon in the previous timeline, so it was only natural that the Liberated Flame, crafted from the same material, to respond to her.

"Um... Do you know about the person who brought me here?"

"Well, I don\'t know the exact details. He was wearing a mask. But he knew about my dealings with the Empire."

"What?"

"To be precise, it was a non-aggression pact... Your people made things difficult for us by sneaking knights to the Abyssal Rock despite our agreement not to invade each other\'s territories."

For a moment, Randol felt a chill run down his spine from her overwhelming aura.

"But ironically, the person who brought you here used that to threaten me. He said I broke the southern pact by dealing with the empire and insisted I take care of you. Isn\'t it ridiculous?"

Randol couldn’t believe that someone would risk their life by uttering such daring words to the southern ruler.

"Frankly, I should be cutting your head off."

"...I’m sorry.”

Randol bowed his head, unsure of what to say.

"Well, it’s not like it’s your fault. And frankly, your talent has intrigued me."

With that, Miliana handed him a note.

"Because of this incident, the empire has sent out the princes. This is a message from the second prince, saying he’s coming here.”

"The prince...?"

"Though they did something sly under the guise of an alliance, it\'s worth listening to the second prince. It will take at least two months. After meeting the prince, you can decide whether to leave or stay. But until then, you’ll learn my swordsmanship."

Her offer was unexpected.

"...The swordsmanship of Digon?"

Randol didn’t understand why she would offer to teach her swordsmanship to a complete stranger. The offer she had made when he had woken up was also puzzling. Why was she willing to help him without any conditions?

Reading the questions in his eyes, Miliana shrugged lightly.

"There are issues tied to the five tribes, and if you can resolve some of the conflicts, that’s good. Plus, the person who brought you here made me an offer.”

Randol was curious about what this mysterious helper could want from Miliana.

"Well... Once this is resolved, the one who arrogantly threatened me will pay for it," she continued with a smirk.

Randol felt a brief chill from her smile, sensing a deadly intent in it.

"By the way, he left a message for you once you recovered. You seem well enough to hear it now."

"Oh, what is it?"

“‘If you have the courage to abandon your imperial identity, learn Digon\'s swordsmanship. And even if you master it, never return to the empire. If you seek revenge, find me in Tatur.’”

"Tatur..." Randol’s expression stiffened slightly at her words. "It seems that he’s trying to prevent me from returning because he doesn’t want to reveal his identity to the empire."

"Well, I see it differently,” Miliana argued.

"What do you mean?"

"If he wanted to hide his identity, would he have risked threatening Digon to save you? He could have just left you to die."

"Then..."

"It might be the other way around. It’s probably just about you not returning to the empire, unrelated to protecting his identity.”

Randol looked at her with slight confusion.

"The issue with the empire might be more about you than him."

He still looked puzzled.

"The nation you trust might not be as trustworthy as you think,” she explained in an enigmatic tone.

***

“Shieldbearers, to the front!”

At the centurion\'s shout, the soldiers holding leather shields made from thick scales took their positions in the forefront.

Interestingly, the shields had sharp spikes, crafted from the skin of a lizard-like monster called Parul, which was native to the south. Though they appeared primitive, they were actually lightweight and sturdier than most types of steel.

“Spearmen!”

At Beikan\'s command, the soldiers behind thrust their spears between the shield bearers toward the Lizardmen.

[Krrk...! Krrrrk...!]

Dozens of Lizardmen were ahead, but they couldn’t charge confidently against the hundreds of sharp spears pointed at them.

“Advance!”

Conversely, the shieldbearers and spearmen pushed forward, pushing back the monsters. The spearheads, protruding between the shields, pierced the Lizardmen. The swordsmen also slashed at the enemy, their blades mixed with Clear Distilled Water slicing through the Lizardmen like butter.

[Kaaagh! Kaaaagh!]

The Lizardmen shrieked in pain, and the more they did so, the fiercer the assault of the subjugation army became. Among them, Beikan stood out the most, his two axes gleaming as he swung them fiercely to dismember monsters left and right.

“Hiyaaah!”

A Lizardman lunged at him, but Beikan cut its arms off clean with an X-shaped swing of his axes. Then, he kicked the writhing Lizardman, launching it like a bullet into a wall, where it embedded itself with a loud crack.

He stood at the forefront, clearing the path for the subjugation force.

Swish! Swish—!

Beikan charged ahead, slaughtering Lizardmen without wearing much armor. Several monsters lunged at him from behind, but they fell like puppets with their strings cut, never reaching him.

Thud—

Each time Kinu Mukari\'s bowstring twanged, three or four Lizardmen’s heads were precisely pierced. Beikan nodded at the arrows embedded in the ground. He could focus solely on attacking thanks to Kinu Mukari having his back.

Being from the same Great Plains tribe, Kinu and Beikan have excellent synergy. In the past, they only pointed swords at each other, so I never imagined they could be this perfect together.

Karyl watched the two with a satisfied look.

“It’s a formation devised by Kayla,” Kinu explained.

Karyl nodded, having anticipated this much. The Spear tribe was certainly adept with formations.

As the soldiers in the first and second rows attacked and then stepped back, archers from the Flying Bow tribe filled the gap. As the monsters got disoriented by the hail of arrows and faltered, the third row of swordsmen stepped in to decapitate them.

Watching the coordination between the Flying Bow and Tu tribes, Karyl thought to himself, I need to integrate the remaining Great Plains tribes and the five families to form a proper unit.

The Flying Bow tribe excelled in archery but were weak in close combat. The Tu tribe compensated for that weakness. In the past, the four tribes had been too busy keeping each other in check to address their shortcomings.

Ironically, it was because they knew each other’s weaknesses so well that they could complement one another so efficiently.

Each tribe had its own specialties. The Spear tribe was known for its swordsmanship, the Tashai tribe were masters of ax techniques, and the Risu tribe was renowned for their throwing skills, managing to hit flying birds even with their eyes closed.

Karyl was eager to see what impact the Spear tribe’s Fierce Fire Formation would have, given that it was one of the best combat formations out there.

“The tribesmen are eagerly awaiting the central expansion, as ordered by the Horned King. In fact, other tribes have already provided support for this subjugation.”

“Really?”

"The perceptive chief must have realized that this order from the master wasn\'t simply about subjugating the dungeon."

Karyl chuckled at Kinu\'s words.

The experienced chiefs seemed to have understood his intentions.

“Master, do you remember when you first told the chiefs of the four tribes to gather in Tatur two months after unifying the five families?”

“Yeah, but unfortunately, I couldn’t meet them in Tatur because I had to go to the Church.”

Kinu nodded.

"Yes, but thanks to that, we were able to equip the soldiers with weapons made from the Clear Distilled Water recovered from the Spring of Vision. The chiefs probably found it beneficial as well, as they could show results to the Master despite the passage of time."

“How many soldiers with weapons made from Clear Distilled Water are there in the south?”

“Apart from the thousand we’ve brought here, we have about three thousand more equipped with Clear Distilled Water weapons. Additionally, there are seventy thousand troops ready to be deployed at any time, and when combined with the five families, we have a total of one hundred twenty thousand troops.”

“Four thousand soldiers with Clear Distilled Water... More than I expected. Good preparation.”

“Luckily, there was no interference from Digon. Master, did you perhaps take any action at the Abyssal Rock?”

“Not particularly. Digon also finds it difficult to move hastily given the circumstances.”

“Understood.”

Compared to the tens of thousands of troops in the empire or the principality, four thousand seemed insignificant, but the variable of Clear Distilled Water could make them as strong as forty thousand troops.

Moreover, Clear Distilled Water was still being extracted.

Since the Ryeo Knights were annihilated, the Empire hasn’t confirmed if they can still obtain Clear Distilled Water from the Spring of Vision. If they knew, they wouldn’t have given us this much time.

“If the chiefs were impatient, it was because they knew the Master would reward them with central regions after securing the Great Plains.”

Karyl thought of the robust chief, who was older than he looked, and chuckled softly.

“Yes. After we’re done here, I’ll first address the Tu tribe. I’ll give them the land I promised.”

“Does that mean... we are finally advancing?” Kinu asked as he drew his bow. His disposition seems to improve as his pace quickened. His arrows made from Clear Distilled Water tore through the air with a sharp sound, swiftly piercing Lizardmen in the head.

“...”

Even to Viola, who was unfamiliar with battle, the way in which Karyl’s Free Army fought the monsters was remarkable. The difference in experience was evident. While the knights she brought struggled, the Free Army hunted the Lizardmen as though this were a leisurely pastime.

Of course, the knights wouldn’t be defeated by mere Lizardmen. However, Viola had expected the Sword Experts to dominate the monsters, but she was bewildered by the unexpected outcome.

Despite their advantage in numbers, Karyl’s soldiers were individually inferior to the knights. But despite that, they were significantly more efficient in fighting the monsters.

“Amazing...” Viola muttered under her breath.

Indeed, the Free Army appeared impressive to her, but Karyl had one concern.

The reason the knights of the Fanpinel family are struggling is obvious.

The knights\' swordsmanship was designed not for monsters but for war, to efficiently kill and defeat humans, not monsters. In contrast, the tactics of Kayla Spear’s Free Army were solely for hunting.

A concerning factor arose from this.

"Kinu, let me ask you something,” said Karyl. “The southern tribes have had their share of small and large skirmishes, but due to their pact, they\'ve never truly fought for their lives. You\'re skilled at hunting, but you\'ve never experienced real war.”

Viola looked at Karyl.

"And the enemies we’ll be fighting from now on are humans, not monsters. We’ll be at war, not hunting.”

"Master."

At that moment, Kinu holstered his bow and drew a small dagger from the sheath on his chest.

[Karrrrk...!!]

Then, Kinu jumped into the front line, dodging a spear and plunging the dagger into a Lizardman\'s neck. Slashing with all his might, he tore through the tough skin, greed blood spurting out.

“We are warriors!”

Kinu\'s response was resolute, dismissing Karyl\'s question instantly.

Viola instinctively touched her own neck, feeling as if she herself had been stabbed.

Crack—

Without hesitation, Kinu crushed the Lizardman\'s head with his foot. It was enough of a response.

For a moment, Karyl thought that his worries were unfounded.