Chapter 59

“Ugh…”

Andrei, the gray bear, groaned as he pulled an arrow from his shoulder. The arrowhead, shining silver, had tufts of fur stuck to it. Unlike steel arrows, these silver ones were slower.

‘About 20 minutes in. They’re already bringing out the silver arrows…’

The response was faster than expected. Of course, this is the place where the human leaders are. Who would’ve thought they’d supply silver arrows in just 20 minutes amidst this chaos? It was a surprisingly quick reaction, beyond Boris’s predictions. The beastmen attacking the capital? They probably never saw it coming.

From now on, he’d have to be more careful. At first, he could ignore the steel swords and arrows, slaughtering the humans head-on. But against silver weapons? He’d be down in no time.

Screams, cries, and explosions echoed throughout the Imperial Palace.

‘How much longer do I have to hold out?’

Andrei asked himself. The initial ambush had taken out the knights on guard and brought down the palace walls. Then, he and his nine comrades, along with 200 mixed-blood warriors, charged in.

‘Are they still alive?’

They had scattered as soon as they entered the palace. To avoid being cornered and to buy as much time as possible. Andrei had focused on destruction, minimizing direct combat.

Knights weren’t a threat, but facing masters would tie him down. If they showed up with silver or jin-infused weapons… he might even lose.

Avoiding enemies was humiliating for a warrior. But this was Boris’s order, and it was undeniably efficient. If they had fought head-on, they wouldn’t have lasted even 20 minutes against the endless waves of knights.

‘Did Natalia and Boris succeed?’

Andrei glanced outside the palace. The burning city suggested Natalia had done her part. That was enough.

From the alley, hurried footsteps approached. The scent of humans. Time to fight again. He needed to buy at least an hour.

—

How many times had he felt this dizzying sensation? No, before it was always physical. This time was different. His mind was screaming in the face of the worst situation.

“You sent first-years against beastmen warriors? What the hell were you thinking?!”

Was this anger, frustration, or despair? Unable to contain his rage, he grabbed the priest by the collar and roared.

The priest looked bewildered. “Beastmen? I heard they were just vagrants…!”

“What are you talking about? You can tell just by looking! No, more importantly, how long ago did you send them out?!”

If it was just now, maybe they could still be saved—

“About 8, 9 minutes…”

A groan escaped him. So, they sent the students out almost immediately after the knights left? Without even knowing who the enemy was?

The response was too fast, but the information gathering was absurdly slow. How could this happen?

No, even so, gathering and preparing the students would take at least 10 minutes. Unless… they had the students ready beforehand.

Were they planning to have the students help the knights suppress the vagrants from the start? The fire broke out before the palace fell, so if they gathered the students then, it made sense.

Then, when the palace was attacked, the knights went there, and they sent the students alone. Right. They didn’t know the enemy was beastmen, so they thought the students would be enough!

He released the priest’s collar and clenched his teeth.

Damn it. Damn it all. Why?!

In his heart, he cursed endlessly. Fate seemed to mock him, throwing the worst possible scenarios at him one after another. As if to say, “This is the result of your complacency.”

“Healing spells! Divine enhancements! Whatever you’ve got, pour it on us now! The ones who set the fire are beastmen! First-years can’t handle this!”

He shouted, blood dripping from his mouth. In this situation, they had to move out immediately. With the priests gathered, layering their healing and blessings, they might stand a chance.

The sudden shout startled the priests, who turned to look at him. One priest tilted his head in disbelief.

“Beastmen? That can’t be. Beastmen from the north, appearing in the capital…?”

“The special quarters are littered with beastmen corpses! Go check if you don’t believe me!!”

Frustration boiled over. The priest who had been arguing turned pale and slumped down.

Normally, he wouldn’t have done this. Clashing with the priests wouldn’t do him any good. But time was critical. There was no time to convince them. They had to move now.

“I swear on the name of Faelun! Do as she says, now!”

Freide chimed in. Finally, the hesitant priests began chanting prayers, showering them with blessings.

The pain from his wounds lessened, and his injuries began to heal. The effects of the potion he’d taken earlier faded, and his senses sharpened.

Strength returned to his limbs. It wasn’t a full recovery, but it was enough to fight.

“Asha, Freide! Let’s go! We need to move fast!”

“Understood!”

“Don’t order me around, junior!”

He mounted his horse and spurred it toward the main gate. Freide and Asha, armed, followed closely.

Faster. Just a little faster. Before it’s too late.

Suppressing the creeping anxiety, ignoring the weight of despair, they rode desperately.

Two horses galloped across the campus.

—

Beastmen, even the mixed-bloods with diluted blood, possess strength comparable to knights. The harsh northern environment has tempered them.

On top of that, their regenerative abilities allow them to recover from wounds quickly. Unlike humans, who weaken with each injury, they fight fiercely without fear of blades.

To bridge that gap, you must have a way to suppress their regeneration. Tear their wounds open to slow healing, use silver or jin to nullify their regeneration, or deliver a fatal blow that leaves no room for recovery.

In other words, without such means, they are an enemy you cannot face. The result was right before his eyes.

A sense of déjà vu washed over him. Hell danced before his eyes, with burning buildings as the backdrop and the screams of people as its soundtrack.

A familiar stench filled the air—the metallic tang of blood, the acrid smell of burning flesh. The stench of death.

Ah. Ahh.

His vision swam, and he swayed on his horse.

He knew. Damn it, he knew all too well!

His clenched fists tore through his gloves, nails digging into his palms. Blood dripped down the hilt of his sword.

The truth he had been forcing himself to ignore surfaced. Here.

**Beastmen. Hate. Humans.**

Countless people, dismembered and burning. Not students. Ordinary people. The residents of this city, who had been living their peaceful lives, were now turning into charred meat.

A man without limbs burned. A woman, torn to shreds, crumbled into ash. A headless child curled up in flames.

Hooded rioters waved skewered meat, laughing as they bit into it. They feasted as if at a festival, savoring the delicacy.

They were eating people.

This shouldn’t have happened. Why… why did this happen?

**- Because you’re here.**

Yes. This shouldn’t have happened.

If you hadn’t come here…

A distant sense of falling gripped my body.

I wanted to scream.

But I didn’t have the right to.

Not even the right to be angry.

My hand, clutching the sword, trembled weakly.

I barely managed to hold onto the hilt that was slipping from my fingertips.

“These… beastly brats…!”

Friede, grinding her teeth, yanked the reins.

Her horse galloped like thunder.

The moment the beasts turned, the saw-toothed spear tore through their necks.

Hoods ripped off, severed heads flew up.

Like lighting a row of fireworks, one after another.

Blood gushed like fountains from the severed necks, and the beasts staggered like puppets before being sucked into the flames.

The smell of burning was just like that of humans.

Friede spat as she picked up one of the heads.

The severed head was no different from a human’s, except for the sharp teeth.

Is this why they thought the rioters were human?

But how? Even if they were mixed-blood Suin, there should still be traces of beasts, right?

Friede ruffled the hair of the head she was holding.

Where the ears should have been, there was nothing.

Instead, there were scars on both sides of the skull, as if they had been cut off.

“Just as I thought, inferior mixed-bloods… The North warned us not to use Suin as slaves, but…!”

She ground her teeth and threw the head.

So, these mixed-blood slaves with very diluted blood, they cut off their ears and disguised themselves as humans?

This wasn’t in the original story.

Twenty warriors were enough to ambush the scattered freshmen.

I wondered how they managed to set the entire city on fire, but this too was because of the changes I had caused.

…I felt nauseous.

“What are you doing! Don’t just stand there, both of you scatter! We don’t know how many enemies there are, so kill anyone you see as you run through the city!”

Friede urged us and turned her horse to gallop away.

“I-I’ll go too! Be careful, Hashal!”

Asha flew off into the opposite alley.

Suppressing the rising bile and the horrifying screams pounding in my heart, I yanked the reins.

Blood dripped from my bitten lip.

With every hoofbeat, my cracked skull throbbed as if it would shatter. Maybe even the inside.

The twelve swords that protect humanity.

The inscriptions on the blades seemed to burn into my mind like brands.

I was careless. Too careless.

I should have thought more carefully about how much my presence would twist the original story.

I declared in front of that man, in front of Knut.

That I would survive to the end, protect and save the people.

With the arrogance of a savior, a prophet who knew everything about the world!

What a terrible delusion.

I was not their savior.

I couldn’t even pretend to be one. I was never meant to be.

Look at this disaster.

Just my coming to the Empire has twisted reality so much!

In the original story, even in the worst case, only a dozen students would have died.

But now, the entire capital is engulfed in flames and slaughter.

That Suin, Boris, said it. The reason Militia acted so suddenly, on such a large scale, was because they felt threatened by the peace treaty between the Empire and Ka`har.

Yes. This disaster happened because of a few careless words I spat out to cross over to the West.

Twisting a predetermined future, causing a calamity that should never have happened.

That’s who I am now.

—

Galloping through the hell I created.

The scorching wind.

The passing flames left deep burns on my face, like brands on a criminal.

The air I breathed was so hot it felt like my chest would burn.

As if a fireball had been shoved into my lungs.

Black smoke filled the world, and the heat searing my body scrambled my brain.

It felt like my brain was boiling. I couldn’t even think straight.

Still, I had to save people.

Save them? No, that’s wrong.

I wasn’t in a position to arrogantly spout such words.

I had to reduce the number of sacrifices caused by my foolishness, my carelessness.

Even one more.

– Whoosh!

Jin’s longsword vibrated again.

Chasing the screams, I galloped.

In the distance, I saw beasts swinging spears at students.

“Ahhhhhhh!”

With a scream-like roar, I drew my bow and fired.

The silver arrow pierced the Suin’s head.

Kill them before they regenerate. If one shot isn’t enough, then two, three.

Mechanically, I fired arrow after arrow.

The Suin danced. Joyfully, flailing their limbs.

Then, as if exhausted, they collapsed.

I approached the fallen students.

Their faces were familiar, like I’d seen them in class once.

Fortunately, I managed to stop them from dying.

The jury for my trial had grown. Solely to deliver a guilty verdict.

“T-the special student…?”

“The enemies are Suin! Don’t engage, avoid them and return to the academy!”

With those words, I galloped off again.

I couldn’t guide them.

Death was still overflowing. I had to keep running.

I heightened my senses. Enduring the smell of burning, ignoring the stench of blood, I searched for the beasts.

Friede was right. I smelled like a beast too.

Gritting my teeth, I ran through the city. It wasn’t over yet.

It wasn’t time to stop.

—

“What the… Ka`har…?!”

“Recognize me, then die—!”

I charged at the Suin who looked at me in shock.

A member of Militia, perhaps? Not a pureblood, but clearly more beast than human.

In its left claw, it had impaled a woman.

A familiar uniform. An academy student, perhaps.

Only the headless torso remained, so I couldn’t tell who it was.

The mangled face was being chewed in the Suin’s maw.

Its fangs shattered.

“Kyaaaaah!”

Roaring from horseback, I swung my sword.

The blessings of the priests within me unleashed destructive power beyond limits.

The Suin’s arm exploded.

From its screaming mouth, a pink lump of flesh, like clay, splattered out.

My emotions had crossed the limit.

Leaping from the horse, my left hand grabbed the Suin’s head and slammed it down.

The head sank into its neck, further and further down.

Blood sprayed like a waterfall as the Suin’s body was crushed vertically.

Its entrails spilled from the split torso, scattering on the ground.

What I held in my hand was now just a piece of meat.

—

How many had I saved? How many had I killed?

Before I knew it, my exhausted horse collapsed from fatigue.

I fell from the horse and rolled on the ground.

That brought me back to my senses a bit.

Is Friede doing okay? What about Asha?

Is Milia still alive?

Damien.

Yes. I had to find Damien.

I had to protect him.

Until now, I had been somewhat reassured in my heart.

Because he’s the protagonist, he’ll grow stronger.

Because he’s the protagonist, he’ll survive.

Even if he’s in danger… he won’t die.

But now, I couldn’t trust the original story.

My presence here had already twisted everything.

So, no matter what, I had to protect him.

If the wielder of the holy sword died because of me, it would be as if I had doomed the world.