Night of the Soulless Heathens – 417



#417. Tempest 6

As Prince Sram said Azadin needed the throne of Arangi.

If Azadin can also display the light of the King’s Flower on Arangi’s throne Azadin’s fame will rise even higher and the other kings will lose their justification.

Even if that weren’t the case if Azadin were to subjugate Saint Mallory the Arangi Kingdom which was connected by land would be a very important route of attack.

But it’s not something that can be easily obtained just because you want it.

Above all he had to focus on subduing Bisen a vassal of the Kingdom of Banreung.

It is reckless and foolish to go on an expedition abroad when you can’t even take care of your own household.

“Who is the crown prince first in line to the throne?”

“I am Grixval the de facto leader of the Arangian Guard…”

“What is Grixval doing now? As the leader of the Arangian Guard it would have been easy for him to take control of the castle.”

If the prince in first line of succession to the throne controls the Arangian Guards there would be no war of succession.

If the Arangian Guard the best royal guard in the capital city and famous not only in the Arangian Kingdom but also throughout the entire continent of Hybris had moved the capital city would have been reorganized and internal affairs would have been stabilized in an instant.

But what he said next was shocking.

“He fled with the queen. He disappeared on the same day as the queen and his luggage property and loyal vassals disappeared with him so it is highly likely that this was a premeditated murder. If he had been assassinated or kidnapped his vassals would not have disappeared on the same day.”

“….”

Azadin looked at Prince Sram absentmindedly.

Prince Sram smiled bitterly knowing the meaning of Azadin’s gaze.

He too was entangled in a political relationship with his father King Carnatus IV and fell from power.

“It’s a tradition in Aranggi for father and son to fight over love. But I never thought that Brother Grixbal would be in such a relationship with the Queen.”

“It’s a really hot tradition but there are too many questions to dismiss it as just a tradition. Did the current queen really run away with him? They say there are traces of the Spider Queen Atra on her body? And Grixval or something he was the captain of the Arangian Guard. It’s unlikely that the first in line for the throne would suddenly run away with love. If he really wanted to share a love wouldn’t it be much easier to become king himself and imprison her as a prisoner?”

If he had been in control of the Arangian Guard the royal guard and elite unit of the Arangian Kingdom he would have gained an advantageous position in the future battle for the throne.

Rather than letting the queen who is the murderer of the king escape we can capture her as if we had secured her body but instead of executing her we can confine her.

Because you can enjoy secret meetings as much as you want while locked up.

“If we investigate that and sort out the situation we will have a stronger case for claiming the throne. What do you think? Should we go to Aranggi right now?”

“It’s nonsense to go on an expedition and then turn back without achieving your goal.”

Jecht raised an objection. Jecht wanted to subdue Bisen so he naturally opposed it and what he said was also the standard of military strategy.

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“Now that we’ve come this far let’s start by subduing Bisen. If we turn back our troops now not only will we be wasting supplies but our soldiers’ stamina will also be depleted.”

Everything costs money in times of war: food clothing firewood fodder for horses even wood for repairing carts and wool oil for lubrication of axles.

It was not an easy decision to turn back the expeditionary force. If they entered Aranggi now they would not be given the throne right away so Bisen’s rebellion had to be suppressed first.

“all right.”

Prince Sram was also well aware of these circumstances so he no longer insisted on going on an Arang journey.

*********

Bisen was informed that their mountain fortress had been defeated without much resistance.

After confirming that the direction of Azadin’s army was not by water but by land through the mountainous region Bisen immediately adjusted the placement of the fortress’ cannons.

They were preparing to turn the cannons positioned toward the waterway toward the land route.

It was time to move ammunition for the artillery battle.

An arrow filled with fire magic flew in and hit the gunpowder keg.

The explosion swept away many nearby soldiers and destroyed cannons and ammunition.

It was the messenger clan that had infiltrated Bisen that carried out the sabotage.

“Don’t push yourself too hard and aim for the gunpowder.”

“This is true. If we occupy this place won’t those supplies be ours? Gunpowder is expensive… It would be a waste to burn it now.”

Indim was sorry to see the gunpowder burning in vain but Seraph spoke firmly.

“If we don’t burn it now we’ll have to pay for that gunpowder with the blood of our soldiers. It’s a shame but it’s better to burn it here.”

“Friendly soldiers. Do you think they think of us as allies?”

“King Azadin’s army sees us as allies.”

“But what about the other Whibris?”

“If we give the position of Herald to someone else as King Azadin says our identity as a Herald Clan will be diluted.”

“So what do you get?”

“The magic books of Hwaljaeju and Hwajopungwol are not going anywhere. We will still be strong and we have the capital we have accumulated over time so we will prosper among the Hybris people.”

“That’s even worse. A person with a good family background and a lot of wealth like Sion Etar can run a company and become even more wealthy but what about us? Won’t we be blocked from becoming a messenger and advancing in the world through our skills?”

Although the selection of messengers put the lives of children at risk through excessive training it was also the ladder to success.

Even if one’s family was poor if one was selected as a messenger one could receive a good marriage partner and become a member of one of the five great families.

However if the position of the Emperor’s messenger is given to someone else the customs of the clan will change and that will not only have positive effects.

“Even after facing such hardship you still worry about what will happen after you survive.”

“This isn’t just cooperation it’s also something that sometimes requires risking your life so of course you have to worry about what happens next. I’m sick of doing good things for others and then getting left behind.”

Indim had a point. It’s foolish to worry about the distant future but what if you have to shed blood now for that distant future?

Only by clearly confirming the vision of the distant future can one decide whether to shed blood or not.

“Azadin is trustworthy. Not because he inherited Arael’s life but because he is a trustworthy human being.”

“Yeah. He’s trustworthy.”

Although Indim had always been ticked off by Azadin he also agreed that Azadin was trustworthy.

“But I’m not sure if the vision he puts forth is even credible. Perhaps he himself doesn’t completely believe in it.”

“Let’s not worry about that… let’s think about the fall of Bisen first.”

Seraph also sympathized with Indim’s complaints to some extent. Is it possible for the Herald Clan and the Hybris people to be united as Azadin suggests? Azadin himself probably doesn’t think it will be easy.

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*********

Bisen was in a state of confusion due to the sabotage of the messenger clan.

While moving gunpowder and firearms a gunpowder keg caught fire and exploded causing the wall to collapse.

Although it did not completely collapse the gallery section on top of the wall that allowed defensive battles to be fought collapsed.

It has become a simple stone wall that cannot be hit with bows or guns from above.

There is no way a stone wall like this could withstand the battlefield. However before the repair work could begin Azadin’s army appeared on the mountain path.

There were only about a hundred people. They were just a bunch of refugees who were not well-armed but they had already defeated Vissen’s elite pike musketeers without any losses so Vissen’s soldiers were terrified.

‘Surely they won’t attack us right now just because we’ve crossed the mountain path?’

‘But our gunpowder went off and the wall collapsed so instead of waiting for it to be repaired aren’t you going to attack right away?’

Bissen’s soldiers trembled in fear that Azadin’s army would attack immediately.

Then Azadin rode in front of the soldiers on top of a Kerim goat covered in mist.

“I recommend this to the soldiers and officers of Bissen.”

When he stood up and opened his mouth his voice though it seemed to be speaking softly resonated far and wide.

It was the magic of the message.

“If you surrender now your rebellion will be ignored and your position will remain intact. As a king you should punish rebellion severely but I feel that my lack of virtue has failed to inspire your trust so I urge you to surrender. Is there no need to shed blood for no reason?”

Azadin’s offer of surrender was met with a loud refusal from those who had been waiting in anticipation.

“Don’t make me laugh! You dirty messenger bastard!”

“You soulless blasphemer! You are a vampire who sucks the blood of the new kings! You usurp the throne and dare to act like a king. May you be punished by heaven!”

“You set fire to the gunpowder while it was being transported and now you are urging us to surrender as if something is wrong. How shameless and dirty!”

From the soldiers’ perspective Azadin’s words that he had been planning a sabotage operation against them and now did not want to shed blood for nothing felt like hypocrisy.

“No those?”

“Are you crazy because you want to die?”

From the perspective of Azadin’s men it seemed like the traitors who had rebelled against the king were repeating the same words and actions as if they had jumped out of a boat without even thinking about their own mistakes.

But Azadin himself remained calm.

“That’s actually good. It seems that even the lowest-ranking soldiers aren’t contaminated. They’re just humans aren’t they?”

To Azadin the soldiers’ shouts were actually a good sign.

Isn’t it true that not everyone is affected by the blood of the tainted Celestial Angels?

“Listen up soldiers and officers of Bisen. How pathetic is the rebellion you have raised!? When the vampires took over the royal family of Banreung and abused the people you obediently complied but now that they are trying to subdue the vampires and collect the people you have revolted. How will you justify your actions this time?”

“…….”

The people of Bissen began to become agitated.

As Azadin said.

It was Azadin who pacified the night in Banreung where vampires were rampant.

But now those who were as obedient as rats when vampires were rampant are rebelling.

It’s not like the opponent is easy.

It is not in their right mind for those who were too scared of vampires to move to now challenge the one who defeated vampires.

Even though there is an underlying hatred and loathing for the Herald Clan that alone will not be enough to rebel against Azadin.

“We have an angel! An angel proves our righteousness!”

What a lame excuse.

Instead of answering Azadin gestured to Karna and Ismila.

A pair of Celestials Karna and Izmila revealed their angelic wings.

The sight was so elegant and majestic that Bisen’s feeble excuses were reduced.

It goes without saying who looks more good and upright: the Celestials of Vissen dyed crimson with blood or the officers of the Celestial Fire Knights with pure white wings brought by Azadin.