novelraw Chapter 116 : Chapter 116
Chapter 116 : Chapter 116
Chapter 116: The Overwhelming One, Bakan (2)
Having sent Evan off, Gaiard absorbed the blood scattered across the battlefield, gathering his strength.
I don’t want to admit it as a human, but I can’t help but acknowledge Evan and the Bakan of the Kandahr Tribe.
Conversely, though he had regained some of his power, he was still far from his prime.
The slash from earlier, for instance—he wouldn’t have been able to block it alone.
So I need to absorb as much blood as possible to boost my strength.
Fortunately, thanks to the Fire Dragon’s pillars and the cavalry’s surprise attack, the battlefield was steeped in chaos, awash with the blood of countless warriors.
Having already inflicted significant damage on the barbarians, there was an abundance of power to absorb.
Still, not showing himself after all this… How arrogant.
Since that earlier slash, Bakan had not appeared again.
It was as if a sleeping lion had merely flicked its tail, a casual gesture to shoo away an annoyance.
Naturally, Gaiard’s pride couldn’t tolerate such insolence.
If he won’t come out, I’ll make him.
Gaiard condensed the absorbed blood into a massive spear.
The spear’s aura was comparable to the slash Bakan had unleashed, and seeing it, the barbarian warriors sensed danger, overcoming their fear and charging at Gaiard.
“Stop him! Don’t let that abomination reach Lord Bakan!”
“Take him down!”
The fear they felt moments ago was overshadowed by their loyalty to Bakan.
Of course, that didn’t mean Gaiard would be overwhelmed by such rabble.
“Annoying insects…!”
Just as Gaiard, irritated, raised his other hand to deal with them, a powerful sword aura sliced through the charging warriors in one stroke.
That aura had clearly come from the direction Evan had gone.
Meddling unnecessarily.
With the bothersome warriors cleared, Gaiard no longer hesitated and hurled the massive blood spear toward the source of the earlier slash.
“Hup!”
The blood spear shot from Gaiard’s hand with the force of a tempest.
Each time it pierced a warrior in its path, instead of slowing, it gained even more speed.
Finally, the spear vanished from sight.
…
But no response came.
The spear’s energy dissipated, so it must have hit or been blocked…
Disappointed by the lack of reaction, Gaiard leapt into the air.
He looked down at Bakan’s flag fluttering high in the center of the camp and the tent below.
No sign of the tent being pierced. Did he actually catch that spear?
A spark of interest flared in Gaiard’s heart.
Even if he wasn’t at his peak, few could so effortlessly block a spear he had thrown with such gathered strength.
Of course, the title of Bakan isn’t earned lightly.
For the first time since fighting Evan, a fire of battle lust ignited in his chest.
Like a human gathering Qi, Gaiard rapidly circulated the blood within his body, amplifying his power.
Folding his wings, he plummeted toward the tent.
Like a meteor, Gaiard crashed into Bakan’s tent.
Let’s see that smug face of yours!
Whoosh!
The wind pressure sent Bakan’s flag flapping wildly, and Gaiard entered the tent.
But at that moment, with a tremendous crash, Gaiard was flung back, tearing through the tent and crashing into the camp’s outskirts.
Boom!
Moments later, a massive man slowly emerged from the torn tent.
Even hunched, he was clearly over two meters tall, a muscular colossus.
His sheer size made even the Kandahr warriors seem small, and as he appeared, every warrior around knelt in unison.
“Lord Bakan!”
“Lord Bakan!”
Ignoring their cries, the man called Bakan stretched leisurely.
As he slowly straightened, his physique, revealed in the sunlight, overwhelmed all who saw it.
“Ugh…”
Wearing no armor, not even a simple shirt, his body still seemed harder than any plate mail.
“Alright!”
The young giant, finishing his stretch, finally surveyed his surroundings.
“Hm… Quite a mess. Did the duke show up or something?”
He maintained a nonchalant attitude, as if the chaos around him belonged to another world.
Muttering to himself as he assessed the situation, a nearby warrior hurriedly approached to report.
“No, sir! Not the duke, but likely one of the lords under him.”
“Really? All this chaos from just that?”
Bakan was surprised that Heriel Theron, the man he respected, wasn’t the cause of this upheaval.
At the same time, he felt disappointment that someone else had caused such disorder.
“What are Drenbalk and Morcal doing?”
“They’re currently attacking the castle.”
“Oh, right. I told them to bring me the king within a week. Still, what’s with this mess?”
At Bakan’s questioning, the warrior shrank back.
“Well… A pillar of fire suddenly fell from the sky…”
“A fire pillar? And?”
“It’s because Gaiard Lecan appeared. Hard to believe, but it’s definitely him.”
At those words, a glint of intrigue sparked in Bakan’s eyes.
“Hahaha! Is that true? That monster still exists?”
To the warriors, Gaiard Lecan was a source of fear, but to Bakan, he was merely fascinating.
“Alright. Since I’m awake, I might as well meet him. Let’s see the face of the one who humiliated my predecessor.”
The leader of the Kandahr Tribe, Bakan, finally began to move.
As he turned back to the tent to retrieve his weapon, he suddenly asked the warrior, “By the way, where is he?”
“Well, that’s…”
The warrior hesitated, glancing toward where Gaiard had been flung.
He felt awe that their leader had so easily dispatched such a fearsome figure, but also feared dampening Bakan’s interest.
“Why can’t you speak? Where’s this Gaiard?”
“He disappeared.”
“Disappeared?”
“Yes, but he won’t retreat like this. He might reappear on this battlefield soon.”
The warrior mixed in a slight lie to keep Bakan’s interest alive.
If the opponent Bakan was eager to face had been defeated so easily, his excitement might wane.
“Really? Then I’ll wait.”
Fortunately, Bakan, still intrigued, reentered the tent.
He soon emerged, casually holding a massive greatsword, as large as his colossal frame, in one hand.
Thud!
Bakan planted the greatsword into the ground, sat down slowly, and yawned.
“Come on, hurry up.”
The chaotic battlefield around him didn’t matter to him.
His focus was solely on Gaiard, the only opponent who piqued his interest.
He was confident that his mere presence would shift the tide of the war, even without his direct involvement.
Indeed, Bakan’s appearance instantly transformed the battlefield’s atmosphere.
The warriors, previously in disarray, regained sky-high morale just by seeing their leader.
“For Bakan!”
“For the Kandahr!”
His mere presence inspired strength in all.
The man at the pinnacle of the Kandahr, his name was Hardan.
“Yawn~ I hope he’s not too late.”
The meaning of his name: The Overwhelming One.
The mightiest warrior.
***
With Gaiard left behind, Evan’s mind was a tangle of thoughts as he headed toward the capital.
He’ll be fine, right? It’s Gaiard, after all.
But the worry was fleeting.
He quickly recalled Gaiard’s resilience and steeled himself.
Now was the time to focus solely on what he had to do.
Thud, thud, thud!
Evan raced across the chaotic battlefield, where enemy arrows rained down, and joined Viscount Argon’s cavalry.
“Viscount!”
“Young Count! Well done! Thanks to you, the enemy’s in disarray! But that monstrous figure earlier… Never mind, I’ll ask later!”
Viscount Argon was suspicious of Gaiard’s identity but decided it wasn’t the priority.
“Your plan worked perfectly. What’s next? I’ll follow your lead completely.”
“We need to pull back now! The enemy’s starting to regroup.”
“Got it. We can’t die pointlessly here. So, what’s the next strategy after retreating?”
The surroundings were already filled with the clamor of war.
Arrows flew, and enemy warriors hurled spears at the cavalry’s horses from all directions.
The initial momentum was strong, but the Kandahr Tribe was steadily reorganizing their main force, tightening their encirclement.
If surrounded like this, the cavalry could be annihilated in moments.
“We need to enter the capital before the cavalry is fully encircled!”
“You mean to aid those at the castle?”
“Exactly! If we linger here any longer, we’ll all be wiped out! We’ve already caused enough chaos in their rear!”
“Understood! Let’s do it!”
Viscount Argon immediately raised his sword, signaling.
“All forces, retreat! Advance to the capital!”
The cavalry, which had been wreaking havoc in the enemy camp, heard the signal and quickly turned their horses, shouting to one another.
“Retreat! To the capital!”
“Retreat! To the capital!”
Seeing the cavalry disengage, the enemy roared and began their pursuit, plunging the battlefield into further chaos.
“Don’t let them escape! Stop them!”
“Get those bastards!”
Amid the fray, Evan urgently made one more request to Viscount Argon.
“Viscount, give me 500 cavalry!”
“What’s your plan? You’re not heading to the south gate with us?”
“That’s right! I’ll target the north gate to split the enemy’s pursuing forces. You head to the south gate and support the castle directly!”
“Hmm, divide and conquer, eh? Fine, we need to break through somewhere. I’ll entrust the entire left wing to you!”
“Thank you!”
With Argon’s approval, Evan took command of the left wing cavalry, and the cavalry split into two groups on the spot.
“Follow me!”
“Follow Young Count Evan Lafard!”
Evan led the left wing toward the north, while Viscount Argon headed south to secure a path into the capital—a hastily devised strategy.
Is Gaiard really okay?
As he rode toward the north gate, Gaiard crossed his mind again, but Evan didn’t look back.
Even if he’s not, there’s nothing I can do. I’ll just trust him. He won’t die easily.
All that was permitted to him now was the relentless reality of the urgent battlefield.
Amid the chaos of arrows, spears, shouts, and screams, Evan desperately spurred his horse toward the capital.