novelraw Chapter 113 : Chapter 113
Chapter 113 : Chapter 113
Chapter 113: Assault on the Capital (2)
Kaien, the capital, with Kaien Castle at its heart.
The castle’s defenses were born from the humiliation of the capital’s fall to barbarians in the past.
The descendants, etching that lesson deep into their hearts, designed the castle to be even sturdier than the capital’s walls.
A deep and wide moat, a constantly maintained powerful barrier, and thick walls that even the strongest siege weapons could barely scratch.
All these defenses embodied the resolve to never again let the capital’s core be violated.
Facing such formidable defenses, Morcal, the chieftain of the Black Snake Tribe, positioned his forces before the castle walls, attempting a siege.
“They went to such lengths to fortify this place. They must’ve been terrified. Bringing that massive siege weapon in here is practically impossible.”
The Kandahr Tribe, accustomed to the vast plains, found the complex urban layout an unforeseen obstacle.
They thought breaching the outer walls would be the end, but the castle was a fortress on another level.
Still, Morcal didn’t give up and issued a command.
“Call the shamans to freeze the moat!”
At his order, the shamans advanced, chanting spells.
Crackle.
The moat began to freeze, but the palace mages atop the walls immediately unleashed fireballs, melting it back.
Sizzle.
The mages relentlessly disrupted the shamans’ spells.
Unlike before, when they had to protect the entire capital, now they only needed to focus on defending the castle.
The mages complemented each other’s spells, layering protective magic around the castle without pause.
At the same time, archers rained arrows, aiming to take down as many shamans as possible.
“Chieftain! They’re preventing the moat from freezing. The shamans alone can’t handle it.”
“Then send workers to fill the moat! And order the remaining Rock Turtle Tribe warriors to shield them!”
“Yes!”
The Kandahr Tribe’s workers began hauling stones and dirt from across the capital to fill the moat.
The archers atop the walls tried desperately to stop them, but the arrows bounced off the Rock Turtle Tribe’s sturdy shields.
Instead, soldiers on the walls were pierced through the head by spears launched by the Black Snake Tribe and fell.
“Don’t falter! If we stop shooting, they’ll overrun us!”
The soldiers gritted their teeth and kept firing arrows.
The mages, too, fiercely countered the enemy shamans in a tense back-and-forth.
But the overwhelming numerical advantage meant the moat was slowly being filled.
Then, a massive bolt of lightning struck from the sky, incinerating the Kandahr workers filling the moat in an instant.
Who’s that?
Frowning at the unexpected lightning, Morcal looked up.
An old man emanating an extraordinary aura stood atop the wall, and as he raised his hand again, the sky roared.
An elderly shaman approached Morcal and said, “That’s Jorzan, the kingdom’s great mage.”
“Jorzan… I’ve heard that name. Can you and the other shamans stop that old man?”
“Impossible. We’re already struggling to break through the other mages’ defensive spells. If we can’t stop him, our workers will keep dying.”
The meaning was clear.
The shamans were too busy, so Morcal needed to find another way.
“Hmm…”
Morcal nodded.
“Understood. I’ll deal with that old man myself. You focus on your task.”
“Yes, Chieftain.”
As the shaman left, Morcal immediately ordered a subordinate.
“Bring me my throwing spears.”
“How many should I bring?”
“Three will suffice.”
“Understood!”
Moments later, the subordinate returned, carefully carrying three black spears.
“Here they are.”
Kneeling respectfully, he offered the spears, and Morcal lightly picked up one.
“Hm…”
He steadied his breathing and slowly assumed a throwing stance.
Then, with immense force, he hurled the spear.
Thud!
The moment the spear left his hand, a shockwave erupted, causing the subordinate to stagger.
Whoosh!
The black spear flew toward Jorzan atop the wall at tremendous speed.
Jorzan hurriedly raised a barrier and dove to the side.
“Ugh!”
But the barrier shattered easily as the spear grazed it, and the spear narrowly missed his body, disappearing into the sky.
Watching closely, Morcal’s lips curled into a smirk.
“I’ve got the feel. Hand me the rest.”
“Yes!”
This time, he gripped both remaining spears at once.
Channeling his Qi evenly into them, he threw them simultaneously.
Boom!
A cloud of dust exploded from the ground, and the two spears, with a slight delay, hurtled toward Jorzan at incredible speed.
Jorzan dodged the first spear by hiding behind the wall, but the second, coming at an unexpected angle, pierced straight through his shoulder.
“Argh!”
The excruciating pain broke Jorzan’s focus, and the magical power he was maintaining began to weaken rapidly.
“Now’s our chance! Their mage leader is down. Everyone, fill the moat!”
At Morcal’s shout, the Black Snake Tribe’s warriors and workers surged forward, filling the moat with even greater ferocity.
Once the moat was filled, ladders appeared from all directions, advancing toward the castle walls.
“Press the attack! We can’t let the Thunderbear Tribe steal our chance!”
“Yes!”
Burning with resolve, the Black Snake Tribe warriors raised ladders to the walls.
The soldiers atop the walls fired arrows frantically, coordinating with the mages to defend desperately.
“We must hold them off at all costs! They cannot breach this point!”
The Executor commanding the battle checked on Jorzan, who had a severe wound in his shoulder.
“Advisor, can you move?”
“Of course. I can’t fall here, can I?”
Jorzan spoke confidently, but the bleeding from his shoulder was severe.
“Escort the advisor to the inner castle!”
“I can still hold on!”
“I know. So please protect His Majesty. We’re about to be overrun here.”
But Jorzan firmly raised his hand in refusal.
“I can’t do that. If I retreat, what happens to those here? I’ll fight alongside them.”
“Lord Jorzan…”
At that moment, a barbarian warrior who had climbed a ladder thrust a spear at his back.
Jorzan, using his uninjured arm, repelled the warrior with telekinesis.
“There’s no time to hesitate! Go help the soldiers hold the enemy!”
The situation allowed no further delay.
Moments after the first barbarian reached the wall, more ladders were secured, and despite the soldiers’ efforts to push them back, they wouldn’t budge.
“Ugh! These monstrous bastards—how strong are they?!”
Soon, barbarian warriors began flooding the walls via the ladders.
As one section of the defense collapsed, the barbarians quickly seized multiple points, pushing the soldiers back.
“Hold them! No matter what, we must hold!”
Despite the Executor’s desperate cries, the soldiers were overwhelmed by the barbarians’ momentum, helpless to resist.
Just then, someone appeared, knocking barbarians off the wall with powerful punches.
“Dean Duke!”
“I’m here to lend my strength!”
It was Dean Duke Valendo, joined by the instructors and cadets of Lansed Academy to defend the wall.
“Why are you here? I told you to prioritize helping the refugees in the city!”
“It looked like you were struggling here. What, are we unwelcome?”
“Unwelcome? You’re a godsend!”
“Damn right we are!”
Duke used his massive arms to shove the barbarians’ ladders off the wall one by one.
Following his lead, the cadets joined forces with the soldiers, fighting the barbarians who had reached the top.
Despite it being their first real combat, the cadets skillfully subdued the enemy, and the Executor watched in awe.
The Vaberin family’s daughter lives up to her reputation. But the other cadets are already at knight-level skill…
The cadets, training to become Executors, inspired the soldiers with their mere presence.
Especially that cadet fighting with fists—must be Duke’s personal disciple.
But there was no time to linger in awe, as the barbarians kept pressing forward.
Clang!
Despite the academy’s efforts, as time passed, soldiers fell one by one, and the wall was increasingly dominated by the barbarians.
Is this it? Do we have to retreat…?
As despair began to weigh on everyone atop the wall, the attack suddenly stopped.
Looking down in surprise, they saw the Black Snake Tribe retreating for no apparent reason.
“What are they doing?”
“What trick are they pulling now?”
The soldiers remained vigilant, watching below, but the Black Snake Tribe truly withdrew without any sign of deceit.
Taking their place was an entirely different presence—
Drenbalk, wielding a massive axe, leading the Thunderbear Tribe.
“Are those bastards betting on us or something?”
“That’s absurd…”
But their guess was correct.
At the exact agreed-upon time, Morcal halted his attack, and Drenbalk stepped forward.
“What did I tell you, Morcal? If you’d listened to me from the start, we’d have breached the castle by now.”
“Shut up…!”
“Well, you saved me the trouble of getting here, so I’ll thank you for that. Now sit back and watch how I take the castle.”
At Drenbalk’s taunts, Morcal gritted his teeth and ordered his tribe to stand down.
Drenbalk took the forefront but didn’t attack immediately, instead lining his warriors before the wall.
The soldiers atop the wall murmured in confusion.
“What are they planning?”
“I don’t know, but strengthen the defenses and stay alert.”
But soon, they fell silent in shock.
Among the Thunderbear Tribe warriors, unexpected prisoners were dragged forward.
“What…?”
“Everhart!”
Duke, too, was stunned to see the prisoners.
He had assumed the academy’s instructors and cadets were safe, given the lack of news,
but now they were being paraded before him, bound in chains.
“You bastards! What are you doing?!”
Ignoring Duke’s furious outburst, the Thunderbear Tribe forced the prisoners to kneel in a line before the wall.
At the front was a battered Everhart, and Drenbalk, holding a massive axe, slowly approached him.
“Listen! If you don’t open the gates now, I’ll start cutting off their heads one by one!”
At this cruel declaration, Duke and the soldiers turned pale, as if their blood had drained.
Jack and Jaina, in particular, muttered in shock.
“No…!”
“Those insane bastards…”
The soldiers and the Executor gritted their teeth in rage.
“You filthy dogs.”
They wanted to open the gates and rescue the prisoners, but the reality that they couldn’t left them trembling with helpless fury.
Only Duke seemed ready to leap down, and those around him desperately held him back.
“Let me go! The kids are down there!”
“Dean! This is exactly what they want!”
“I know! That’s why I’m giving them what they want!”
“You can’t!”
Those who wanted to act and those who restrained them felt the same pain.
Watching the prisoners face death without being able to act tore at their hearts.
But nothing changed.
“As expected, I didn’t think you’d listen right away. Fine, I’ll start with this one as an example.”
Losing patience, Drenbalk raised his massive axe.
Everhart, beneath it, gazed up with unwavering calm, slowly closing his eyes as if to say not to worry about him.
At that moment—
“Chieftain! Look behind you! Where Bakan is!”
“What’s the commotion?!”
With his axe raised, Drenbalk turned and froze.
“What… is that…?”
The clear blue sky outside the capital turned blood-red in an instant, and a massive storm of flames surged like a tempest, engulfing the battlefield.
The fire swept through the Kandahr’s main camp, consuming everything in its path.
This shocking sight was witnessed by those holding the castle walls as well.
“What in the world…”
Great Mage Jorzan muttered with a hardened face.
“No mage in the kingdom can wield magic of that magnitude. Could it be… the Fire Dragon Orb? But that should be sealed deep in the Lafard Family’s vault…”
Hearing Jorzan’s words, Duke’s eyes widened, and he shouted without thinking.
“Evan Lafard!”
Evan Lafard.
The name alone stirred the hearts of the academy’s people.
Jaina and the cadets, who had bowed their heads in the face of defeat, slowly looked up at one another.
Eyes once sunken with despair and fear began to burn with fierce conviction and resolve.
“Evan… he’s back.”
The hero they thought was dead was once again making their hearts race.