SWNOVELXO Chapter 524
Chapter 524: I’ve Come to Save You (2)
The soldiers couldn’t quite grasp the meaning. It was all too sudden.
There were also questions lingering in their minds.
‘What is going on? How on earth did they break through that fog?’
‘What happened to the monsters inside?’
‘Did they just barge in?’
When faced with an unbelievable situation, one’s mind tends to freeze. The soldiers of Seiron couldn’t regain their composure easily in the presence of this destructive force that shattered common sense.
The commander of the Seiron army stammered and asked, “W-who are you?”
Though it was the first time seeing this newcomer, the respectful tone slipped out naturally. The fierce momentum of the army behind him was overwhelming.
Just penetrating the fog alone suggested they were no ordinary force.
Ghislaine spoke up clearly once more.
“I am the Duke of Penris from the Ruthania Kingdom.”
He didn’t mention that he was the Grand Duke of the North. That title was still too embarrassing to say out loud.
The commander repeated the name several times to himself.
“Ruthania Kingdom… Penris… Penris… Huh! Count Penris! No, Duke?”
The commander was taken aback. The Count of Penris from the mighty Ruthania Kingdom was quite well-known even in the Seiron Kingdom.
“W-what’s going on? I heard Ruthania is still in a civil war…”
“I’ve sorted it all out. The Ruthania Kingdom has been unified under a new king.”
Ghislaine briefly filled in the situation. It made sense that the news would be slow to reach them, trapped as they were in the Realm of Rift.
The commander asked, his expression filled with joy, “So, you really have come to help us?”
“Yes, I dealt with one rift on my way here. I’ll take care of the rest too.”
“Wowwww!”
The soldiers of Seiron cheered loudly.
They had seen no hope whatsoever. They expected to either starve to death or be devoured by the rift.
They couldn’t even escape. They were terrified to try leaving the strategically placed rift areas.
But with support now pouring in from the Ruthania Kingdom, hope sprang anew.
Ghislaine calmly smiled and said, “Let’s skip the unnecessary formalities. We’ll rest for a day and then move out, so prepare food and stones for the catapults.”
The mobile army always carted around powdered combat food. They needed local supplies to ensure they would eat their fill.
It would be easier to push through the rifts if stones for catapult attacks were airlifted from there.
At Ghislaine’s request, the commander seemed a little uneasy but replied, “Ah, understood. I’ll report right away.”
The stones were no problem. They had piled plenty for a barrier line.
But food was uncertain. He thought it would be hard to procure food for an army of twenty thousand when they themselves were starving.
Not wanting to decide alone, the commander quickly sent a messenger.
A short while later, a group on horseback rushed to find Ghislaine.
“Ah, are you the Duke of Penris? I am Marquis Pereine, the Chief Commander of the Seiron Army.”
“Glad to meet you. I’ve come to assist with clearing the rifts.”
Marquis Pereine flashed a bright smile.
He had heard of Ghislaine’s fame as the strongest in the North long ago. Ruthania Kingdom had historically been a military powerhouse. He had heard that even the mighty Duke Delphine had been defeated.
How could he not be pleased that such a person was offering assistance?
“Thank you so much! Now, let’s head to the castle and meet His Majesty. We’ll hold a grand feast as well.”
He had to show favor to a duke like Ghislaine. So, Marquis Pereine had already sent word to the castle.
Ghislaine frowned as he said, “It seems my message did not get through. We plan to work on eliminating the rifts right after we rest for a day. Are supplies ready?”
“Ah, I’ve been informed. Of course, we must supply you.” But then, Pereine glanced around nervously, aware that many Seiron soldiers were listening.
Ghislaine quickly realized what was happening. It was clear from one look that the soldiers weren’t well-fed.
“Is there a shortage of food?”
Cough cough, “Right now, our food situation isn’t great either, so, Duke, perhaps we should move to a quiet place first…”
Ghislaine ignored Marquis Pereine’s suggestion.
“We clearly supplied you with sufficient food. Why is there a shortage?”
When the rifts opened and the Salvation Society stirred, and when the Allied Forces were formed, Ghislaine had already provided substantial support to the neighboring nations.
Although not to the extent of the nations participating in the Allied Forces, he had also given considerable aid to struggling kingdoms.
There was a reason for that. They had to hold out for the civil war in the Ruthania Kingdom to end swiftly.
So, for there to be a shortage of military supplies in the Seiron Kingdom already made no sense.
Ghislaine pressured Marquis Pereine in front of everyone.
“It seems our administrators have not been handling matters properly. I apologize for this. However, I can’t check on everything one by one.”
“N-no, that’s not it.”
“Please state how much you’ve received here. If it did not come as I ordered, I would have to hold the administrators accountable.”
“Ah, um, th-that… Duke, you see…”
Marquis Pereine was sweating profusely.
The Seiron Kingdom had managed to endure despite all production stopping because of the massive food supplies provided by Penris and Perdium.
So, he couldn’t lie about not receiving enough here. Ghislaine was someone who knew exactly how much was given.
‘No, of course there was something, but why here of all places…’
However, they had reduced rations, claiming food was scarce, and how could they say that openly in front of everyone?
To the hesitating Marquis Pereine, Ghislaine coldly asked, “So, what about the food?”
“Th-that is… suff-sufficient. We’ve been keeping stock… well.”
At that statement, the Seiron soldiers began to stir.
Given the situation where the kingdom was embroiled in the rift, they understood that the rations would have been reduced to some extent.
Though they grumbled that the nobles were well-fed, nobles were fewer in number, so they thought they could afford some leniency. But they believed it would be insufficient to feed the soldiers and refugees.
The nobles had always complained that the kingdom’s finances were running dry.
But to think they had received a colossal amount of food and were hoarding it? Betrayal began to fester in everyone’s hearts.
Ghislaine gave a thin smile and said openly, “Are you out of your mind?”
“…”
“I told you not to hold back. The state of the soldiers looks quite dire.”
Though it was rude, Marquis Pereine couldn’t counter. It was true they had deliberately withheld supplies.
Yet he also felt a bit aggrieved.
“Duke, our kingdom’s production base is already ruined. We had no choice but to hoard supplies.”
“By all means, hoarding is good. But what do you plan to do next?”
“…”
What did he mean by next? He was thinking of abandoning the kingdom and running away before resources ran out. Losing the kingdom was better than dying, after all.
Ghislaine looked at Marquis Pereine with pitying eyes.
“Since you’re planning a feast, it seems your superiors are well-fed?”
“…”
Ghislaine clicked his tongue. It was perplexing how nobles could all be so similar.
‘A kingdom doomed is beyond help. Claude will take care of it.’
It wasn’t that he didn’t understand. They probably didn’t have the courage to openly fight the rifts, nor did they want to give up on their kingdom.
Yet that they would hoard the food meant for soldiers was shameful. They were only clinging to life with bare minimum resources.
It would have been better to eat well and run away to another country.
“Bring the food right now. We’ll deal with the rifts. And as promised, distribute it properly to the soldiers. Once again, I must emphasize, that all of this is my property.”
With the civil war over, there was no longer a need to consider the situation of surrounding nobles. He was determined to cut out anything that wouldn’t help crush the Salvation Society.
Marquis Pereine replied with a sulky expression, “Understood…”
The Seiron soldiers bit their lips, holding back their anger. They had fought hard to protect their capital’s barrier line, even if they had given up on other areas.
But in truth, they were being made to suffer, and their food resources were abundant, yet they weren’t being adequately distributed.
The more they learned, the more their resentment grew.
‘If it’s going to be like this, may it all perish.’
‘I’d rather be occupied by the Ruthania Kingdom.’
‘At least they would feed us well.’
Sensing the chill in the soldiers’ eyes, Marquis Pereine hurriedly fled the scene. It was enough to make him think a rebellion was on the horizon.
‘Damn it! That damned bastard! Rude bastard! Can’t he at least show understanding since we’re both nobles? Is he looking down on us just because we’re a smaller nation?’
It wasn’t that he was looking down because they were a weak nation; it was because he was foolish, but he wouldn’t understand that.
The next day, vast amounts of food were delivered to the fortress. The Penris Mobile Army ate their fill and prepared for battle again.
The soldiers of Seiron also participated in the fight but played a role in moving stones and supplies rather than fighting directly.
They followed Ghislaine but couldn’t hide the fear lingering in their faces. They had only ever fought off cracked beings from a distance, and now they were entering head-on for the first time.
Soon, they witnessed an astonishing spectacle.
Cawww!
Bang! Bang! Baaang!
A massive spell swept away the cracked beings. While the wizards cleared the front lines of the rift, the mobile army didn’t sit idle.
Whoooosh!
Arrows rained down on the cracked beings like a downpour. Simultaneously, hundreds of catapults were set up.
“Bring the stones!”
As the knights shouted, the Seiron soldiers hurriedly carried stones. They were so busy that they couldn’t even see how the battle was unfolding before them.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The hundreds of catapults launched an unending barrage of stones. The cracked beings couldn’t even get close.
It was truly overwhelming firepower. By the time the soldiers of Seiron regained their senses, most of the approaching cracked beings had already been annihilated.
“W-whoa…”
“Are we really capturing all those guys this easily?”
“Impressive. Just how powerful are they?”
Fear had dissipated from the faces of the Seiron soldiers, replaced by admiration. They had never seen such a strong army.
“Let’s go!”
At Ghislaine’s shout, the army moved again.
The first day of combat against the rifts was the fiercest. Beings from all directions were pouring in.
Once that first day was overcome, the rest was not difficult. Most of the cracked beings would perish on the first day. In fact, it took longer to reach the area where Equidema was located.
When it came to capturing Equidema, the army didn’t even need to be involved. Just Ghislaine and the superhumans, wizards, and priests would suffice.
Kaaaang!
Just their presence could rival a nation’s military power. No matter how powerful Equidema might be, it couldn’t withstand that force.
In just a few days, when all the rifts were eradicated, the Seiron soldiers erupted in cheers.
“Wowww!”
“We actually cleared the rifts!”
“We survived! We made it!”
They had thought they would surely die without a way out, so to have things resolved so easily filled them with joy.
It was possible since there were no forces of the Salvation Society here. All of the nearby Salvation Society forces had concentrated on the Ruthania Kingdom.
Receiving the cheers of the soldiers and people, Ghislaine and his party returned to the capital of Seiron. By then, the Northern Army led by Claude, numbering 100,000, had also arrived.
The people of Seiron, seeing such a large army for the first time, were astonished at its scale.
All the high-ranking nobles of Seiron came out to greet Ghislaine.
“Indeed, it is the Ruthania Kingdom.”
“I’ve heard of the Duke of Penris’s renown for a long time.”
“On behalf of His Majesty, I’d like to express my gratitude.”
“Now, let’s head to the castle. Enjoy the feast and relieve yourselves of the fatigue you’ve endured.”
The nobles showered flattery upon Ghislaine, trying to make a good impression. It was evident they aimed to build connections with someone of high status like Ghislaine.
Opportunities to forge ties with a grand noble from the military powerhouse that is Ruthania were rare.
There was also considerable anxiety regarding Ghislaine, who arrived commanding such a massive army of 100,000.
However, Ghislaine flatly rejected the nobles’ suggestions.
“I have matters to attend to; I must depart first. I need to head to the next kingdom.”
Pereine, the representative noble, grasped Ghislaine in surprise.
“Who would send off a benefactor like this? Don’t you think you should rest for a few days before leaving?”
“No, I need to reduce their numbers before the forces of the Salvation Society regroup.”
“Hmph, then I can’t argue with that. I wish you good fortune.”
Marquis Pereine thought it might have turned out well and did not hold on any longer. With the expansion of the rift halted for now, it was better not to have someone like Ghislaine around.
But then came a bolt from the blue.
“The Chief Officer will remain to investigate the usage of this support supply. Keep that in mind.”
“W-What?”
“If you’ve broken your promise, you should take responsibility.”
“Uh, no…”
Pereine and the nobles were flustered. They had promised to distribute the supplies to the soldiers and people, but who would actually investigate?
Even they felt it was too far even for nobles to do this to one another.
Before Pereine and the nobles could muster any excuses, Ghislaine turned to leave.
As they stood there just licking their lips, Claude, with a blank expression, said, “I’ll need to meet with His Majesty and conduct an investigation.”
“Ahem, ahem. You are the Chief Officer of Penris?”
“Yes, that’s right. I hail from the Seiron Kingdom. I have studied at the Seiron Academy.”
Claude cracked a subtle smile.
His mentor had been involved with a revolutionary group in this kingdom and was framed for treason and executed.
The king and nobles knew he was innocent but still had him killed. Merely because he belonged to an opposing faction.
Also, his mentor’s daughter, Anna, who had been Claude’s fiancée, was sold off to another noble because the ransom could not be paid.
He lived as a broken man until Ghislaine appeared and rescued him.
The revolutionaries and the Seiron Kingdom had become the object of his hatred. He had carried that pain in his heart for his whole life.
Finally, Claude had returned to the Seiron Kingdom.
With the full authority given to him by Ghislaine, he returned with the enormous army of 100,000.