Chapter 630

Or-han, launched like a catapult projectile, deflected the rain of arrows with his entire body and crashed into the 7th watchtower area where I was.

It was an entrance that could only be described as “crashed.” Perhaps due to the trajectory being altered by Frederick’s last Explosive Throwing Spear, he landed like a human cannonball, smashing the watchtower with his entire body.

“…What a disgrace.”

Or-han muttered softly as he brushed off the debris of the watchtower piled on the city wall, dusting his head and shoulders. Dust and gravel cascaded down.

‘Like dandruff from a homeless man who hasn’t washed in a hundred years.’

[What kind of analogy is that?]

Hersela grumbled as if the mere thought was nauseating. I didn’t respond and instead glared at Or-han, cautiously retreating toward the uneven parts of the barrier to create distance.

“The Kagan has arrived! The Traitor Wolf’s reckless rampage ends here!”

“I’ll chew your flesh and grind your bones to dust!”

The warriors, emboldened by Or-han’s appearance, began spouting nonsense. They already acted as if they’d won. I laughed, removing the cloth covering my mouth and tossing off my robe.

“Insects who can’t even withstand a single strike, barking so loudly. Anyone listening would think you’re the ones fighting.”

The mockery spat in the Eastern Language. The warriors’ faces twisted into ugly expressions, like crumpled rags.

“How dare you, wench…!”

“If you want to refute me, come at me. I’ll make sure even your own children won’t recognize you.”

I stretched out my left hand and wiggled my fingers, further enraging the warriors. None of them charged, though, as if their retirement plans involved being cared for by their children.

“Ha-shal-leur.”

Or-han called out, seemingly to stop my provocation.

He pushed aside the warriors, whose faces now looked like rotten pumpkins, and swung the crimson Slaughter Swords in his hands. With a whooshing sound, the surrounding gravel swirled into a vortex.

Twin blades… no, twin swords that looked like a massive sword split in half. They were the very symbol of death.

“Another sword fight? Didn’t we already confirm it doesn’t work?”

The Blessing of Invulnerability granted by Rotholandus. Its effectiveness had already been proven in the last battle. Even when struck directly by Or-han’s Crescent Moon Blade, it only left superficial cuts and exposed muscles.

“The Crimson Twin Blades weren’t brought to deal with you.”

Or-han answered quietly, gripping the two Slaughter Swords upside down and slamming them into the ground.

– Crrrack!

Gravel split and flew in all directions. The hard rock split like lips, revealing a thick, massive hunk of metal.

“They’re for after I punish you.”

Or-han, using the rocky wall as a temporary scabbard, clenched his fists tightly.

“Oh? Then they’re just decorations. ‘After I punish you’ won’t be happening.”

I smiled confidently, leaning against the uneven part of the wall, and glanced around.

Two Paladins emerging from the siege tower. About a hundred and fifty warriors filling the surroundings. Thousands of soldiers pouring in like customers flocking to a newly opened brothel.

Perfect.

If I had shown my strength from the start, Or-han would have rushed at me immediately, and the enemy soldiers wouldn’t have dared to approach.

But by hiding my strength until the very end, I had managed to gather over a tenth of the enemy’s forces around me.

“What was it called again? Crimson Twin Blades? If you want, I can bury them with you as grave goods.”

“Your arrogance is excessive. You haven’t grown exponentially stronger in just a few days… Let’s see what trap you’ve set up to be so confident.”

As expected, he had noticed the trap. I placed my left hand on the uneven part of the wall, as if preparing to leap over the barrier, and twitched the corner of my mouth. A phrase Ludwig had said while planning this operation flashed through my mind.

– Or-han will notice the trap immediately. But he’ll charge in anyway. He has absolute confidence in his Indestructible Body.

Indeed, it was just as he said.

I wonder whose arrogance is truly excessive. I wanted to retort that he should reflect on his own attitude before pointing out my arrogance. Though, if he did reflect, it would be troublesome for me.

“Well, if you want to see, come and follow me.”

“Are you suggesting we fight while flying through the air again? Fine, that might be more advantageous for you. But nothing will change.”

He wasn’t wrong. Fighting while flying through the air, dodging his punches by throwing my body backward, would make it easier to avoid his strikes and minimize damage even if I got hit.

But, contrary to Or-han’s assumption, my goal wasn’t to engage in aerial combat. That technique was too inefficient.

“Before we fight, let me ask one last time. Are you willing to accept my offer now? If you bring me Ludwig’s head—”

Or-han began walking toward me, loosening his shoulders.

“No, all I want is your head.”

I spun Durandal once and aimed it at Or-han, rejecting his offer. He was persistent about preserving my strength, but his offer held no value to me.

Becoming allies with those who want to chew my flesh? I’d have to be insane.

[You could return to Ai-shan with Ludwig’s head and then assassinate him when the time comes?]

Hersela offered a joke disguised as advice. Her tone was quite excited, as if she couldn’t contain her anticipation for what was about to happen.

– Crack.

“A pity. Then I’ll smash your limbs and drag you to Ordos before asking again.”

Crack.

“Well, that won’t happen.”

I chuckled as I looked at Or-han, who was beginning to show his hostility.

The reason I engaged in conversation with him was simply to buy time, and thanks to his reluctance to kill me, I had managed to stall long enough.

Crack.

Just as I expected. This guy has no mana detection ability. If he could sense the flow of mana, he would have realized what was happening by now.

Well, it’s too late now.

Thud—

The vibrations that started dozens of meters below finally reached my feet. Subtle, like the heartbeat of a sleeping old man. Quiet, like the calm before a storm.

“Hmm…?”

Did he feel the same sensation? Or-han tilted his head for a moment. I pulled the corner of my mouth up to my ear and sheathed Durandal, which I had been holding.

And then.

– Kugugugung!

With a roar like a giant’s struggle, the barrier shook violently.

—

Thunder roared. Like thousands of lightning bolts striking simultaneously. Like the peaks of a mountain range collapsing all at once. The deafening noise rose from beneath my feet.

“Wha—!”

My vision spun wildly, as if my eyeballs had been shaken in a jar. The violent tremors, like an earthquake, caused soldiers to lose their balance and fall.

“An earthquake?! Is it an earthquake?!”

Warriors clinging to the uneven parts of the wall turned their heads in all directions. Their faces were filled with confusion. They hadn’t yet realized what was happening.

Or perhaps they had realized but were desperately denying it.

“Ha-shal-leur…! You bastard, don’t tell me…!”

Even Or-han lost his composure. For a Ka`har, he’s quite sharp, so he must have understood what was happening.

The ground beneath his feet—no, the ground all around him—began to crack.

[Behold! This is the Thousandfold Catastrophe!]

Hersela burst into maniacal laughter.

Though I was the only one who could hear her voice.

“I’ll gift you the finest tomb. Consider it my final act of filial piety.”

I laughed, releasing my grip on the barrier.

Hagalaz.

The left hand imbued with the Power of Ruin.

The next moment, the world collapsed.

—

======[ Ka`har ]=======

“The Ka`har are coming! Hold them back! Soak the barrier with their blood!”

The battlefield was in the midst of chaos.

“Fight until you die. Fight even after you die!”

“The time has come to put an end to the long-standing humiliation. Today, the Western Barrier will finally fall!”

Ka`har soldiers, desperately climbing the rope ladders and sprinting up the siege tower’s steps, reached the top of the wall. They blocked and deflected the spears and swords of the Imperial soldiers, fighting like rabid dogs.

“Tear those white bastards to pieces!”

A White Armies soldier swung his halberd with great momentum, only to be blocked by the Imperial soldiers’ shield wall. A spear thrust through the gaps in the shields, piercing the White Armies soldier’s abdomen.

“Grah! You bastard!”

Enraged by the pain of his guts being torn, the White Armies soldier grabbed the spear lodged in his stomach and pulled, causing the Imperial soldier to lose balance. He then drove his blade into the Imperial soldier’s face.

“Guh…!”

The Imperial soldier, who had blocked the blade with his face, convulsed and wet himself. The White Armies soldier, laughing savagely, pulled out his halberd, only to be impaled by the spears of other Imperial soldiers.

The screams of the Imperials and the death cries of the Ka`har mingled as corpses piled up on the wall.

It was right after that the deafening roar, like the heavens screaming, echoed.

“What, what is that noise?! Did lightning strike?!”

“Is that Sir Frederick…? No, Sir Frederick is over there…?”

The men, swinging their blades with twisted faces, turned their heads in shock at the sudden noise and vibrations, reflexively looking in the direction of the sound.

And then they forgot how to speak.

“Wh-what…! Wh-what is this?!”

“Ughhh…!”

Imperials and Easterners alike stopped fighting, their faces pale with terror as they stared at the source of the noise. Even if they had seen their wife and father-in-law sharing a bed, they couldn’t have been more shocked than they were now.

The barrier was collapsing.

Swallowing thousands of lives.