Chapter 221

Running towards the center of the battlefield, I surveyed the situation.

Although it wasn’t as clear as seeing it from 30 meters above, I could roughly grasp what was happening.

The flanks had overwhelmed the enemy, almost crushing them.

The disorganized cavalry of the White Flag Troops were being pierced by lances and falling off their horses in droves.

Those who had stopped in the middle of the formation, swinging their bent swords in desperation, were being skewered by the infantry’s long spears, vomiting blood.

Even those who had drawn their bows to shoot at the heavy cavalry were knocked down by a rain of arrows before they could even pull the string.

The two thousand archers had already dwindled to less than two hundred.

If they had fought outside the range of the barrier, the outcome might have been different. But most of the archers were helplessly wiped out by the barrage of arrows.

It was strange that they still didn’t retreat. But it was already too late to pull back.

Anyway, I didn’t need to worry about the flanks.

—

Meanwhile, the center, which had turned into a chaotic melee, was a living hell.

Eight hundred White Flag infantry, four hundred Landenburg heavy infantry, plus an additional four hundred reinforcements.

About sixteen hundred humans tangled together, screaming and spreading blood and death.

The piled-up corpses rose like countless hills on the flat grassland.

Blood-soaked armor reflected the sunlight, casting a red sheen.

By now, there seemed to be more meaty lumps lying down than those still standing.

‘Should I have cut off Havar’s head…?’

[It’s meaningless. These aren’t the kind of people who would stop just because their commander is dead.]

Shouting for them to surrender would be useless. So what should I do…?

I guess I have no choice but to cut them all down.

Though I don’t know how much longer I can fight with this creaking body.

My lower abdomen, which had taken a hit, kept throbbing, and my cracked wrist felt like it was being stabbed by hundreds of needles.

Whipping my tired legs to keep running, I glanced at my arms.

My left hand, which had taken a lot of impact since jumping off the barrier, was already half-gone, trembling uncontrollably.

The heat in my right wrist, whether from the engraving or the injury, was now indistinguishable.

[Your wrist… Now that I think about it, there was a strange magical engraving. Were you planning to scatter that flame?]

‘It’s impossible. I shouldn’t use it.’

The magic of this engraving wasn’t a power I could freely activate; it was more like accumulated energy bursting out on its own, making it tricky to use.

Besides, I couldn’t use it in this situation.

Starting a fire in the middle of a melee would mean roasting both enemies and allies.

[Hmm… Is it possible…? It might be worth a try…]

‘What are you talking about?’

[Try infusing the engraving with life force. Like waking a sleeper by pounding on them, following the shape of the engraving.]

Infuse it with life force? Well, it’s not impossible.

Following her instructions, I concentrated the life force into my wrist, following the shape of the ‘ᚲ’ engraving.

– Whoosh!

My wrist, filled with life force, glowed with a dark red light.

So bright that it was clearly visible even above the gauntlet.

A wild, irregular pulse thrummed violently.

The heat, as if it would melt everything, seeped in, responding to the life force-

Whoosh!

-Finally, flames erupted.

—

The fire engraving, awakened by the pounding of life force.

The flames, radiating intense heat and flickering wildly, were completely different from before.

Emitting a menacing aura, the flames burned using life force as fuel.

The life force itself had transformed into flames.

Dark red like blood, sticky like tar, and writhing like tentacles following the flow of life force.

Is this what the flames of hell look like?

[Success, it seems. Let’s call it… yes, ‘Up-hwa’.]

Hersela laughed with interest.

Up-hwa. A fitting name.

[All that’s left is to test its performance. Whether these flames will follow your will or indiscriminately devour everything around you… You won’t know until you try.]

I followed her words.

As I moved the life force, the tendrils of flame writhed and changed direction according to my will.

The flames that touched the ground blackened the surface but didn’t spread beyond the range I intended, burning only what I wanted.

Just like the nature of life force, these flames could be controlled entirely by my will, both in direction and range.

It was perfect.

Good. This might work.

[Though relying on magic isn’t very warrior-like… Well, it’s not like I have any honor left to lose at this point.]

Listening to her grumbling with one ear, I threw myself into the heart of the melee.

A blackened mass of fire descended like a meteor.

—

– Kwaaaang!

The dark red flames struck the ground, spewing sticky fire and heavy shockwaves in all directions.

The piled-up corpses turned to ash and disappeared. Broken clumps of dirt spread out like waves.

Wrapped in Up-hwa, I descended, blowing away everything around me with a spectacular landing.

The gazes of the warriors gathered in the center of the battlefield instantly focused on me.

There were about forty of them.

As expected of those with skills rivaling knights, even in the middle of a melee with heavy infantry, less than ten of them had fallen.

In contrast, the bodies of the heavy infantry they had killed were scattered everywhere.

“What, what is that?!”

“It’s Ha-shal-leur! The Blood Wolf, Ai-shan Gi-or Ha-shal-leur!”

What’s this ‘Blood Wolf’? A nickname from the Ka`har side?

Well, it sounds cool.

“That’s right, the Blood Wolf. The Empire’s knight, Ha-shal-leur, is here!”

Wrapped in a whirlwind of dark red flames, I raised my voice.

He shouted.

“Your commander, the great warrior Havar, is already dead! His body is torn to pieces and buried in the mud! So, what are you going to do now?”

“Havar was defeated? By a warrior who wasn’t even on horseback?!”

“That flame…! It’s sorcery! He must have used sorcery!”

Their panic was palpable.

Yes. Even if they don’t fear death, they can’t escape the shock.

“I’ll ask one last time. Will you fight, or will you surrender?”

It was essentially an ultimatum.

I had no intention of sparing them if they surrendered, but if they fell for the trick and surrendered, things would end easily.

Of course, such a shallow trick never works.

A man who seemed to be the deputy of the warriors gritted his teeth and raised his sword.

“A traitorous wench who even betrayed her own father, now using sorcery…! Just like the daughter of a whore, you have no honor!”

[You dare call me that, you dog?! Tear him apart! No, chop him into pieces and burn him! Absolutely, absolutely! Do you understand?!]

A mad rage erupted all at once.

The crimson hatred wasn’t just ringing in my head—it spread throughout my entire body, boiling over.

The flames of Up-hwa rose like pillars.

“Strike! Show this shameless wench who knows no shame the law of warriors!”

“Death to the traitor!”

[Yes, I’ll kill them all!]

Hersela fiercely shouted.

What a dutiful daughter. What a dutiful daughter.

I’m the one who has to fight, so why are you yelling?

“Kill them all!”

With a scream-like battle cry, the warriors holding curved swords charged all at once.

Like moths flying into the fire, knowing they’ll die. Fierce yet desperate.

Crimson flames greeted them.

—-

“Gyaaaaah!”

The warriors who charged in with great momentum screamed as they were engulfed.

Like flames spewed by a dragon, the tendrils of Up-hwa melted flesh and bone like snow, evaporating them as they passed.

Crimson flames that spread across the body with just a touch.

The tendrils of Up-hwa, which had lost their sharpness but gained heat, instantly created thirty torches.

Black smoke filled the air as it rose.

“Gaaaah! The fire, the fire won’t go out…!”

Some rolled in blood, trying to extinguish the flames, but once Up-hwa ignited, it wouldn’t go out even with water—instead, it evaporated the blood and burned even fiercer.

“Kaaaaaah!”

A warrior turned into a fireball screamed as he charged.

His skin was completely burned black, and even as his muscles melted from the heat, his determination to swing his sword was impressive, but…

-Slice!

A blue flash cut through his neck.

The severed head rolled like a flaming ball.

Maintaining Up-hwa was more draining than I thought…

But I’m not going to fall to the attack of a mere warrior, especially one who’s already dying.

I didn’t even need to run.

I just walked slowly, swinging the tendrils of fire in all directions.

Durandal’s blade lightly severed the necks of the charging enemies, and the icy scales wrapped around my left arm deflected the incoming blades.

Pitiful screams, scorching heat, and the smell of burning squid filled the air.

The smoke made my eyes sting a little. A tear streamed down my cheek before drying up.

Just ten steps.

Before I knew it, there were forty-nine bonfires and one warrior left around me.

“Y-you demon…!”

The deputy of the White Flag Troops, the one who called me a whore. I had spared him specifically.

Since I’ve received quite a bit of help from Hersela, I could grant a small request like this.

“You shouldn’t have spouted nonsense. You could’ve died peacefully.”

That was my thought. A warrior of Ka`har. Not someone worth pitying.

I swung my sword.

A blue afterimage split into dozens of strands, finely chopping his limbs.

“Aaaaah!”

The warrior, now just a torso, fell into the boiling sea of blood.

With a sizzling sound, crimson steam rose.

His flailing figure looked like a fish on a cutting board.

As a finishing touch, I placed a nearly exhausted fragment of Up-hwa on his stomach.

So it would burn slowly, agonizingly.

He screamed like a pig.

—-

Once the warriors were annihilated, the rest was easy.

Even if the White Flag Troops fought to the death, their morale was bound to drop. And when I joined the battle after wiping out their main force, our side’s momentum soared to the skies.

I had exhausted all my Life Force maintaining Up-hwa, but my power wasn’t limited to just Life Force.

After annihilating the enemy’s flanks and the counterattacking heavy cavalry crushed the White Flag Troops’ rear, the battle outside the barrier finally came to an end.