We Can Take It Later. (2)
At Ghislain's bold declaration, Alex, Andrew, and Rio pleaded.
"The royal decree forbids any military expedition!"
"Please! Can't we approach this war logically?"
"We've gathered a significant force already. Some should defend the capital, while others protect the fiefs…"
Each of them hurriedly voiced their opinions. Though their words differed, their conclusion was the same—they wanted to consolidate their strength and maintain a tense balance of power.
Ghislain understood their reasoning. Initiating a battle while at a disadvantage was naturally terrifying.
That was how things worked. Knowing there was only one chance made the pressure unbearable.
If they built up their forces and expanded their power, their opponents would also become more cautious.
The three desired that delicate balance.
But Ghislain preferred to simply crush the opposition. He believed that was the safest route.
"Attack is the best defense."
"..."
"Think about it carefully. Right now, Marquis Falkenheim and his vassals don't even know what's happening here."
Ghislain had moved with lightning speed. Even if the marquis had direct informants, it would take days for the news to reach him.
Ghislain pointed that out.
"We're a mess, sure, but so are they. No, they're even worse off. They'll be caught completely unprepared."
"..."
"Why give them time to gather troops and prepare? If we strike faster, we can take out at least one of them before they're ready."
"..."
The three had no response. If victory was assured, Ghislain's argument was flawless.
But saying it was one thing; war was never that simple.
No matter how powerful Ghislain was, Marquis Falkenheim ruled this kingdom. If all his vassals rallied, he could amass an army of hundreds of thousands.
Even the forces under Falkenheim's direct command numbered around a hundred thousand. That was a scale that even several superhumans would struggle to handle.
Moreover, Falkenheim himself commanded powerful warriors and elite knights.
The three knew the enemy's strength well, so they couldn't accept Ghislain's plan—neither in their minds nor in their hearts.
But Ghislain simply shrugged.
"I wasn't asking for permission. Just wanted to make it look good."
"..."
"Now, let's move out!"
Ghislain turned on his heel. He never stopped once he had set something in motion.
This time was no different.
"W-We'll go with you!"
Andrew hurried after him. Rio tried to follow, but Alex grabbed him.
"H-Hey, someone has to stay with me!"
Ghislain nodded.
"Rio, stay here and protect His Majesty. I'll be back soon."
"Aaaargh…"
Rio's face turned pale. Who was supposed to protect whom?
He wasn't much braver than Alex, but since he was told to stay, he had no choice.
And so, the two timid men were left behind in the capital.
Ghislain mounted his horse and shouted boldly,
"Let's go! Straight to Count Volens' territory, as fast as possible!"
Count Volens was a vassal of Marquis Falkenheim and ruled the closest fief to the capital.
From a distance, Ghislain's army appeared formidable, but in reality, it was a chaotic mess.
Their formation was sloppy, their discipline nonexistent. They barely managed to follow Ghislain's lead.
Seeing this ragtag force, the members of the Yulian Mercenary Corps were deeply concerned.
Tyrann, riding close to Ghislain, voiced his worries.
"This is a disaster waiting to happen. How do you plan to fight with an army like this? If we face a proper military force, we'll be annihilated."
"Relax, relax. Just trust me."
"..."
Tyrann wanted to believe in Ghislain's abilities, but the sheer scale of the conflict made it impossible not to worry.
Meanwhile, Kyle turned to Dark, who was perched on his shoulder.
"Hey, is this even a real army? Have you ever seen a battle fought with a force like this?"
Dark hesitated for a moment.
"Hmm… My master has fought many wars, but… has he ever led an army this terrible? I don't think so…"
When Ghislain had obtained Dark, the Fenris Army was already an elite force, strong enough to defeat Desmond's forces and claim dominance in the north.
The allied armies and royal forces he commanded afterward were weaker than Fenris but still far better than this rabble.
Dark spoke solemnly.
"My master always led the finest elite troops. He planned everything meticulously before starting a war, with perfect preparations."
"…Then why is he leading a bunch of amateurs into battle now?"
"Don't try to understand my master. If you try to make sense of a madman, you'll just go mad yourself."
"…Maybe we should all just strongly oppose him. If we all refuse, won't that work?"
Dark closed his eyes and nodded.
"My master respects freedom of speech. He never stops anyone from opposing his decisions. However…"
"However?"
"Freedom after speaking isn't guaranteed. Your soul might end up freed from your body. We've seen plenty of people oppose him only to end up liberated."
"..."
Kyle decided to keep his opinions to himself. He would reconsider his stance on freedom of expression.
A wave of unease spread through the mercenaries. They acknowledged Ghislain's strength but doubted he could handle a large-scale war.
All eyes turned to one man—their captain, Yulian.
As the mercenary captain, Yulian technically outranked Ghislain in their group.
Everyone hoped Yulian would stop him. No matter how they looked at it, this was madness.
Feeling the weight of their stares, Yulian finally spoke.
"I always believe in Ghislain."
Deneb, standing beside him, sighed.
"Yulian… your voice is trembling."
"..."
Yulian gazed into the distance with a melancholy expression, signaling that he was done talking.
In the end, no one could stop Ghislain. Since they couldn't, they had no choice but to follow.
The disorderly army swiftly reached Count Volens' territory. Instead of securing key locations, Ghislain led them straight to the lord's castle.
He ignored any concerns about supply lines or encirclement. His plan was simply to crush the enemy leadership immediately.
The sudden arrival of a massive force left Count Volens in shock.
"W-What?! What's going on? Is this war? Who are they?"
His vassals were equally speechless. They had no idea who the attackers were.
There had been no declaration of war, no warnings, no intelligence reports hinting at a coming conflict.
Yet, a massive army had suddenly appeared and was now demanding Count Volens' surrender.
"Count Volens! Surrender at once! If you do, I will spare you!"
Ghislain stood at the forefront, shouting.
Count Volens demanded,
"Who are you? What is the meaning of this? Launching an attack without warning is outrageous! The other nobles won't stand for this!"
"His Majesty has raised an army to overthrow the traitor, Marquis Falkenheim. You may be his vassal, but I offer you a chance to change allegiance. Resist, and you will be judged for treason."
"You… you lunatics…"
Somehow, the king had gathered an army and marched on him. Count Volens had no confidence in defeating such a force.
Most of his troops were scattered across his territory. Even if he gathered every soldier at the castle, he would have no more than three thousand men.
Raising conscripts would take time.
Though the enemy's force was disorganized, Count Volens didn't know that. All he saw was an overwhelmingly large army.
He had never expected a war. No one had ever attacked before, so he had made no preparations.
'I need to buy time. I have to contact Marquis Falkenheim.'
But that wouldn't be easy. His defenses were weak, and the castle wasn't suited for a prolonged siege.
For the first time, he realized just how unprepared he truly was.
Even if news reached them and reinforcements arrived, it was clear they would fall before that happened.
Moreover, the enemy was using treason as their justification. It wasn't entirely unfair—after all, he had planned to rebel eventually…
The problem was that if he was branded a traitor and lost, his head would roll immediately.
Count Volens pleaded desperately.
"You can't just show up suddenly and accuse me of treason! Give me a little time to assess the situation!"
He was trying to stall for time, hoping to receive reinforcements from nearby territories.
Since the count was begging, Ghislain generously responded.
"Very well! I'll give you time to think!"
"Thank you! I'll assess the situation right away! Just pull back your troops for a mo—"
"I'll give you three seconds! Three! Two!"
"What? Three seconds?! Hey, hey! Is he insane?!"
"One! Time's up!"
Boom!
Ghislain leaped from his horse, soaring high into the sky with magic before crashing onto the castle wall like a meteor.
Kwooooom!
The impact shattered the landing spot, sending out a powerful shockwave.
"Ugh! Aaaaack!"
The soldiers nearby panicked, scrambling backward. Many tripped over themselves in their haste.
Ghislain smirked as he surveyed the scene.
"Hm. I think I can handle this all by myself."
As expected, they were entirely unprepared for war. There were knights, sure, but they could, at best, tire him out a little.
Clank!
A grappling hook latched onto the wall beside him. Moments later, Miles, who had recently been promoted to Royal Knight Commander, climbed up the rope.
Ghislain had dragged him along as an advisor—or rather, as a tool for propaganda.
Standing beside Ghislain, Miles shouted loudly.
"This man stands as the temporary prime minister of the Kingdom and commander-in-chief of the Royal Army, under His Majesty's decree! He has reached the realm of a Superhuman, so do not resist—surrender now!"
"A S-Superhuman?!"
The soldiers' faces turned pale.
They were already outnumbered and unprepared for war. On top of that, they had been conscripted so suddenly that they were still disoriented.
And now they were expected to fight a Superhuman? Of course, they were terrified.
The knights weren't much better. The opponent's movements earlier were clearly beyond what any ordinary knight could achieve.
That meant it was highly likely that he was truly a Superhuman.
Count Volens, drenched in cold sweat, turned to his bodyguard and whispered,
"Is he… really a Superhuman?"
"It appears so. A normal knight wouldn't be able to move like that."
Ghislain pointed his staff at Count Volens and spoke.
"Your time is up. Decide now. If you choose to fight, you'll be the first to die."
"..."
Count Volens swallowed hard.
Even though he was a fair distance away from the so-called commander-in-chief and had knights guarding him, he felt no sense of safety. He truly believed he would be killed first.
Had he known in advance that the enemy had a Superhuman, he would never have shown himself. That was the basic rule of survival.
But this attack had been so absurdly unexpected that he hadn't even considered the possibility.
Count Volens squeezed his eyes shut.
'W-What do I do? They have a Superhuman, and their army is far larger than ours. We can't possibly win. Should I surrender?'
Surrendering would mean betraying Marquis Falkenheim. Eventually, there would be consequences.
There was no way the king would actually defeat Falkenheim.
But if he died here, it would be a meaningless death. He didn't want to die for nothing.
'Ugh, how do I get out of this insane situation?'
As his hesitation dragged on, Ghislain pulled his staff back and said,
"Still thinking? Fine, I'll give you another three seconds. Three, two…"
"I-I don't know what's going on, but I surrender! I surrender unconditionally!"
Count Volens shot his hands up in defeat before he even realized what he was doing.
After all, survival came first. He needed to live to even have a chance to scheme later.
'I-I'll surrender for now… and betray them when the opportunity arises.'
For him, this was the only viable option.
"Good. Smart choice."
Ghislain slung his staff over his shoulder and grinned.
With this kind of overwhelming difference in power, surrender was the natural course. Marquis Falkenheim was never a lord worthy of true loyalty from his vassals.
Soon, the castle gates opened, and Ghislain's army poured in. He immediately issued orders.
"Loot all the supplies in this castle."
The military provisions Count Volens had stocked up were swiftly confiscated. The count clutched his head in despair as he watched.
'Argh! What the hell?! I surrendered! Why are they taking everything?!'
Despite screaming internally, he forced an awkward smile, fearing he'd be beaten to death by the Superhuman if he resisted.
Ghislain, maintaining a solemn expression, turned to Count Volens and commanded,
"As commander-in-chief of the Royal Army, I decree that Count Volens' forces will join the campaign against the traitors. Gather all your troops and follow me."
"Y-You're conscripting my forces too? W-Wait, at least give me some time to prepare…"
"Oh, you don't have to come. You might try something later. Just send your unit commanders."
"..."
And just like that, Count Volens lost all his troops and supplies. His territory was stripped bare in an instant.
The Volens army, still confused about the situation, was forcibly absorbed into the royal forces. The army remained as uncoordinated as ever, but now their numbers had swelled to 18,000.
Ghislain unfolded a map and asked Miles,
"Between these two, which has the weaker forces?"
"Uh… That would be Count Lauf's territory. He has around 5,000 troops, fewer than Count Torner."
"Great! Move out! We're marching to Count Lauf's territory next! Our next rest stop is there!"
"Woooooahhh!"
The 18,000-strong army began moving once more. Their formation remained a chaotic mess, but Ghislain paid no attention. His priority was speed.
The goal was to pillage as many territories as possible before the other lords could properly prepare.
Once Ghislain's army had vanished, Count Volens numbly surveyed his empty castle.
Seeing the desolation, a lump rose in his throat.
"What… was that…? What just happened to me…?"
It was as if a swarm of locusts had swept through and devoured everything in sight.
The most frustrating part was that he still didn't understand what was happening or why it had happened to him.
Slumping against the castle wall, Count Volens muttered in a daze,
"…I'm finished."
There was no need to plot betrayal anymore—he had no troops and no supplies left. What could he possibly do?
Perhaps he could lodge a formal complaint with the royal court later, but for now, there was nothing he could do.
All he could do was pray that this bizarre civil war would end soon.
Count Volens rubbed his swollen eyes, trying to hold back the tears welling up. Eventually, overwhelmed with despair, he fell sick and remained bedridden for days.
Meanwhile, Ghislain…
"I'll give you three seconds! Surrender now!"
…was already doing the same thing in the next territory.
[Notice: Thank you for supporting my translations! I've launched a new website to host all my novels in one place. I will continue posting chapters here until I can update the links on Novel Updates. In the meantime, visit my new website "https://revengernovel.com/" and enjoy 5 extra chapters for free! Buy and Read all available chapters of the novel: https://payhip.com/revengerscans ]