SWNOVELXO Chapter 535
Chapter 535: Shall We Go to Save Them? (1)
The day Ghislaine met Yulien and the necklace shone.
It had been quite a while since Ghislaine had a dream.
“……Got it?”
A voice tickled her ear like a gentle whisper.
The dream world was all blurry and unstable. Ghislaine could only discern the shapes of several people in front of her.
The people were bustling about, each engaged in their own activities. Ghislaine merely observed like a spectator.
But with all the shapes being vague, she couldn’t tell who they were or what they were doing.
In the gray-tinged world, the only sensation was a faint something whizzing past.
Among them, only one person had a faint color.
Ghislaine recognized him well.
‘Ereness?’
Ereness was smiling. Unlike her usual stiff self without a hint of laughter, she looked remarkably lively.
Could she really smile like that?
Moreover, she appeared younger than she did now. Being an elf, her lifespan was long, but her presence didn’t seem as mature as it does now.
However, like most dreams, Ghislaine was not aware that she was dreaming.
She simply accepted this moment as a given.
…In.
Ghislaine stared at the brightly smiling Ereness and the surrounding gray silhouettes for a long while.
It made her feel joyful. For some reason, everyone seemed like friends.
…Master.
Among the gray shapes, one looked at her. While she couldn’t see it clearly, it felt like it was smiling.
Ghislaine smiled back. As soon as she became aware of the other, the surroundings began to clarify.
Just a little longer, and she thought she’d be able to recognize all the shapes.
— Master!!! Wake up!!!
Bang!
Ghislaine’s eyes flew open.
As she awakened, Dark was frantically shouting.
— Master! Are you awake? Are you awake?!
“Yes……. What’s going on?”
— Damn, I don’t know! Something was trying to invade your mind! It was trying to cover your memories! I couldn’t see it either!
“……”
Ghislaine said nothing.
Something was trying to enter her mind?
Once someone reaches a complete world and becomes superhuman, their mind can’t be readily invaded.
Let alone, it wasn’t as if someone was casting magic intentionally.
There was only one reason.
Dark shouted again.
— Throw away that strange necklace! That’s it! That’s the culprit! It’s making me feel weird too!
“Are you feeling weird too?”
— Yeah! Something feels… Anyway, it feels bad!
Ghislaine pinched her temples and fell into thought.
Since reaching a certain realm, she hadn’t had dreams. In fact, she slept for very little time.
During that brief sleeping time, her body was solely dedicated to recovery. From Ghislaine’s perspective, it was like blinking and waking up well-rested.
Yet she had a dream. An ambiguous dream at that.
It wasn’t due to something wrong with her body. It was the influence of an external force.
“Is it really because of this necklace?”
Even though she had been wearing the necklace, nothing like this had happened before. It had begun reacting after meeting Yulien.
Dark urged her once more.
— Yes, throw it away! Why are you still carrying that bad feeling around?
Ghislaine briefly considered that.
She could overlook having dreams and interrupting her sleep, but something trying to forcibly enter her mind was no trivial matter.
Yet she couldn’t shake off what Erlhardt had said.
— After realizing my ‘mission,’ I dreamt of one specific dream every day. It was a very vivid dream. That dream continued every day.
‘What if this dream is of that kind…?’
What if it was a dream meant to reveal something to her?
It didn’t seem like an ordinary dream, so perhaps it would be wise to observe a bit longer.
Who knows, this necklace and the dream might lead her to clues about the Salvation Society’s intentions.
“I won’t throw it away. I’ll keep observing it for a bit longer. If something like today happens again, don’t wake me up, just watch.”
— What? Just watch? Knowing something’s digging into your memories? If we leave it alone, I might not be able to stop it later!
Dark could nullify mental attacks. It seemed he had blocked whatever was trying to infiltrate Ghislaine’s mind with that ability.
Thus, the dream hadn’t been clear.
Ghislaine casually replied.
“It’s fine, just leave it alone unless it’s an external attack. Even if something dangerous comes in, I can block it.”
Her mind had become harder than anything else due to death and reincarnation. Therefore, she felt confident.
Dark clicked his tongue.
— Why go that far? Why jump headfirst into danger?
“Isn’t it understandable to be curious? If it’s frustrating, you have to confront it directly.”
Ghislaine always had a hobby of risking her life while training.
She couldn’t just leave a curiosity itching at her mind. It had to be scratched for relief.
Knowing her personality, Dark refrained from arguing further. He simply resolved to prepare for the worst.
Honestly, he was also curious about the nature of this strange feeling.
Having caused a ruckus, Ghislaine fell asleep again. But this time, she didn’t dream.
It seemed not every situation led to that happening.
So, she’d have to wait until that dream comes back again.
*
Ruthania and Turian decided to make the Sardina Kingdom the center of the Allied Forces.
The Sardina Kingdom had no say in the matter. This was because Ruthania and Turian helped organize the civil war and rift. They were simply not strong enough to compete.
Thanks to Ghislaine and Yulien, several kingdoms ended their civil wars quickly.
It was easier since some of the Salvation Society and the rebels had fled.
The kingdoms that finished their civil wars could send some of their troops to the Allies.
The resulting Allied Forces numbered around 200,000. Including the forces fighting at other locations, the total exceeded 300,000.
The key figures of the Allied Forces assembled from each kingdom were finally able to breathe a little easier.
“Ah, at this level, the Salvation Society won’t stand a chance.”
“Word is that the rebels are retreating from all fronts?”
“It’s all thanks to Ruthania and Duke Penris, isn’t it? Ha ha ha.”
Everyone cast sidelong glances at Ghislaine and offered their praise. Ultimately, the diminishing power of the Salvation Society was thanks to her.
If things continued like this, the Salvation Society would ultimately be eradicated and the Allied Forces would claim victory. With hope on the horizon, the mood grew increasingly positive.
“But… how do we get rid of the rift?”
“Hmm, maybe we’ll find a way while eliminating the Salvation Society?”
The size of the rift that had been stopped from expanding hadn’t increased. This was because it had been blocked by a magic circle preventing it from absorbing surrounding energy.
However, the very existence of the rift was a source of anxiety. It was a tedious task to keep an eye on it without being able to construct anything nearby.
Even if they wanted to handle it, everyone was at a loss for how to do so, so leaving it alone was all they could do.
Ghislaine didn’t say much about it. She didn’t know of any method to safely close it either.
‘If we can just deal with the Salvation Society, we’ll surely find a way.’
For now, they only needed to keep the colossal monsters dubbed the ‘Lords of the Rift’ from emerging. Once the war was over, the wizards would certainly find a way to close it.
From what she knew, considerable research had already been conducted in her previous life.
To do that, the Salvation Society needed to be eliminated quickly. She also had to find the escaped Erlhardt, but for now, that was the most urgent goal.
As the strategy meeting began, Marquis Gideon spread a large map. He was currently serving as an aide to the Allied Forces along with Claude.
“Just as Duke Penris said, it’s certain that the gathering place for the Salvation Society is in the Kingdom of Atrode.”
“How’s the civil war over there?”
“The Duke of Leinster won. The rebel forces from the surrounding kingdoms are gathering in the Kingdom of Atrode.”
“Hm…”
“They seem likely to regroup their forces and plan a counterattack.”
Listening silently, Ghislaine inquired.
“What does the command staff think?”
“Expanding the front line won’t do us any good. It would lead to a back-and-forth scenario. Pushing through all at once when we have the chance seems to be the way to go.”
Ghislaine nodded. The reason the war had dragged on was that the Salvation Society had spread rebellion across the land.
If the other side reorganized their forces and spread out again, they would have to split their army to pursue them.
It would be better to finish it all at once when they were gathered.
An aristocrat listening to the discussion spoke up.
“Ahem, opting for a short decisive battle is the fastest and most advantageous method, but… doesn’t that come with considerable risks?”
What made the Salvation Society so terrifying? Superhumans seemed to pop out like bread.
Even if it was only half-baked, a superhuman was still a superhuman. They had sent out double or triple the number of superhumans, which were rare in kingdoms.
Thus, most kingdoms had fallen to the rebels.
Currently, a large army was gathering in the Kingdom of Atrode, and they likely had many superhumans. If they faced off and lost, it would truly be the end.
Marquis Gideon puffed out his chest.
“Well, we just have to win.”
“……”
He slightly turned his head to look at Ghislaine and smiled.
“Isn’t that right?”
Gideon’s gaze shifted to Yulien. As long as he was with her, he felt unlikely to lose.
Ghislaine let out a hearty laugh in response.
“Well, it doesn’t seem like we’ll lose.”
There were a total of three of the continent’s seven strongest from her previous life gathered there. If Ereness returned as well, they would number four.
On top of that, there were outstanding superhumans and knights within each kingdom.
‘And there’s another one that’s likely to join us.’
Ghislaine recalled her friend from her previous life. It was about time for that friend to make an appearance and shine.
She expected he would join once he heard news of the Allied Forces. He’d done so in her previous life too.
It was unreasonable to think they might lose with such an army.
Rather, the situation was better than in her previous life. Back then, they had been distracted by fighting the monsters from the rift and hadn’t paid any attention to the Salvation Society.
Ghislaine continued to smile while asking Yulien.
“What do you think? Should we overwhelm the Duke of Leinster in the Kingdom of Atrode right away?”
“Not a bad idea.”
There were still kingdoms suffering from the rift and the rebels. But if they annihilated the Salvation Society’s base, they would quickly be able to help the others.
There was no need to turn down a method to end the war as swiftly as possible.
In the first place, Yulien felt no fear and thus had no worries regarding the enemy’s strength.
Seeing her like this made Ghislaine smile.
‘There’s nobody more reassuring than him in war.’
Yulien grew stronger the more he fought. Even though he was already impressive, it would still take a while to reach his abilities from his previous life.
However, Ghislaine was different from before. She was progressing toward a higher realm faster and growing stronger.
‘Once the war’s over, let’s have a good match.’
This lifetime, she had no intention of yielding the title of the continent’s greatest sword. In truth, she hadn’t yielded that title in her previous life either.
Thus, the strategy meeting came to a close. After all, the others had no say in the matter. Whatever Ghislaine and Yulien decided was how it would be.
Preparations for war among the Allied Forces proceeded swiftly. Although some kingdoms joined midway, the initial 200,000 remained the core.
The rest were assigned to support kingdoms in difficult situations or to prepare for possible ambushes.
With the preparations for departure completed, the marching route and supply path had also been decided. Now, the only thing left was to set off.
At that moment, a messenger covered in dust rushed in, exclaiming.
“T-the Parsali Kingdom is under attack! Currently, the Parsali Kingdom’s forces are being pushed back on the front!”
“What?”
Ghislaine furrowed her brows. The Parsali Kingdom had been doing well against the rebellion, so she hadn’t worried much. Recently, they even contacted her to say they’d send troops to the Allied Forces.
“What happened? Explain!”
“A 200,000 strong army has launched a surprise invasion. The forces gathered in the Kingdom of Atrode moved quickly.”
With 200,000, it would be tough for the Parsali Kingdom to hold on. The members of the Salvation Society had clearly devised a strategy.
But the fact that the Parsali Kingdom’s forces were already being pushed back was odd. The larger the army, the more time it took for marching and supply logistics.
Only a few days had passed since they had been in contact, saying they would join from the Parsali Kingdom.
It felt too easy for them to fall, considering they had successfully dealt with the rift and rebels until now.
Before Ghislaine could inquire for further details, the messenger, looking terrified, spoke.
“Um, an enormous legion of corpses is on the move. No matter how many we fight back, they just keep increasing.”
At those words, Ghislaine paused for a moment but soon smirked crookedly.
“Looks like that bastard has joined the Salvation Society.”
She felt she might know the identity of the enemy.