novelraw Chapter 97 : Chapter 97
Chapter 97 : Chapter 97
Chapter 97. Evan Has Returned (3)
“Finally out of the Coast of the Dead, and now another ship. Boring.”
Gaiard, perched on the mast, grumbled in boredom.
But I, Evan, leaned against the railing, lost in deep thought.
Gaiard, watching me for a while, climbed down.
“What’s got you thinking so much?”
“I was thinking if I’d come back a bit sooner, the Academy might’ve been fine.”
“Nonsense.”
Gaiard snorted lightly and continued.
“There’s no such thing as ‘what if.’ Regretting things you can’t control is meaningless.”
I let out a short sigh.
“You’re right. With nothing to do, I’m just overthinking. Maybe meditating would be better.”
I decided not to regret the past.
Instead, planning for the future before reaching the mainland was more important.
“By the way, your infamous Red Count title seems underwhelming. No one recognizes you?”
“That’s because those guys are weaklings. At least the higher-ups will know me. Or, by those brutes’ standards, the strong ones.”
Gaiard Lecan, who once struck fear into the Kandahr.
So far, there hadn’t been a situation to feel his infamy.
At least not yet.
“Can I look forward to your old glory again?”
“Of course. Their blood is quite nourishing. I plan to absorb plenty.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
No single individual could control every situation on the battlefield.
Thus, a variable like Gaiard was a welcome factor.
If I had the detachment, it would’ve been much easier, but that’s not an option now.
To disrupt the Kandahr’s massive army, I needed more strength.
And at the same time, I had to ensure those who chose to follow me didn’t die in vain.
So, I used this brief respite to achieve at least the latter goal.
“Everyone, to the deck!”
The cadets, already asleep in the deep night, rubbed their sleepy eyes and trickled onto the deck.
Standing before them, I scowled and spoke roughly.
“We’re going to die.”
Instantly, the cadets’ faces stiffened.
My words were too blunt.
“Probably nine out of ten of you here will die. And the one who survives… you all know who that’ll be.”
No one spoke, waiting for my next words.
“So, you need to build enough skill to at least have a chance to survive.”
They swallowed hard.
I was cold, but I wasn’t wrong.
“We don’t have time. At the earliest, we’ll reach the mainland before the next sunset.”
In this short time, making the cadets meaningfully stronger was impossible.
So, the one thing I could give them wasn’t strength but something more valuable.
“In this short time, I’ll teach you ways to increase your chances of surviving at the crossroads of life and death.”
“What’s that?”
Gamel asked, representing the others.
“How to sharpen your senses. How to find your own path to survival in a place surrounded by death.”
The cadets looked puzzled at my words.
“Close your eyes.”
“Why?”
“From now on, you’ll dodge my attacks with your eyes closed.”
The cadets murmured at this.
“No way. We can’t even dodge when we see it, so how do we dodge blind?”
“That’s why you sharpen your instincts. Do you think enemies on the battlefield will only attack you head-on?”
“No, but…”
“If you get it, close them.”
Though hesitant about my absurd training method, the cadets began closing their eyes one by one.
“Then, let’s start. Dodge or block my attacks, and survive even one.”
No sooner had I spoken than the cadets instinctively spread out.
In the process, they stumbled over each other or tripped over their own feet.
Gaiard, watching, burst into loud laughter.
“Hahaha!”
An unexpected spectacle had appeared during the boring time on the ship.
As Gaiard watched with interest, I quietly slipped among the cadets.
Lightly tapping their vital points with my fist, as if placing it gently.
“Ugh!”
Gamel, hit precisely in the liver, let out a low groan.
“Don’t whine. I’m hitting as softly as I can.”
My words were firm, but they carried clear consideration.
It was to prevent unnecessary injuries during training.
But the gap between me and the cadets was already vast.
Even my lightest hits were painful enough for them.
I heard Evan’s training was harsh, but this is beyond reason.
Gamel had often heard about me from his lover, Elliott, who was in the Executor program.
Most of it was about my brutal training methods and ruthlessness during the Executor course, and even Elliott had been fed up with my training.
But one thing was certain.
The gap between Gamel and Elliott, once equals, had widened significantly since then.
So I don’t think Evan’s just trying to torment us… Ugh!
While lost in thought, another of my strikes came.
This unknown, mysterious pain gradually turned into fear.
With eyes closed, unable to predict the attacks, the cadets instinctively curled up.
“If you just cower like that, how will you dodge?”
I relentlessly struck the cadets without mercy.
Nell, watching, shook his head.
“Making them do something so absurd, isn’t this just draining their strength…?”
At that moment, Gaiard, who had approached unnoticed, said in a flat voice, “It’s not pointless. It’ll have an effect. Whether those kids can handle it is another matter.”
“What do you mean?”
Nell instinctively grew wary of Gaiard.
But his expression held no emotion.
He merely leaned against the railing, watching me with interest.
“When that guy trained, he didn’t just close his eyes—he didn’t use one hand either. And it wasn’t like now, where he’s going easy. He fought on the edge of death.”
“How is that possible?”
“Have you been to the afterlife? If not, don’t question it. That place is beyond imagination.”
Now Nell began to understand why I had become so strong.
“Then how long did Evan train like that?”
“From what I know, about a year. Though, in actual time, it might differ.”
“What?”
Gaiard added with a bored expression, “He honed his skills by efficiently channeling his innate energy that way. Of course, he’s not expecting that from these cadets.”
Nell looked at me again.
If Gaiard’s words were true, how strong was my true power?
This fight, initially thought to be a journey toward a glorious death, now sparked a new thought in Nell’s mind.
Perhaps I could completely change the Kingdom’s tide.
***
Exactly 24 hours later, the ship I was on reached the waters where the southern harbor of the mainland was visible.
After grueling training, the cadets, exhausted, sprawled on the deck.
The intense sunlight beat down, but they were too drained to care.
But I stood at the bow, gazing at the faintly visible mainland.
Nell, watching, quietly approached and spoke.
“Evan, why not rest a bit more?”
“I’m fine. I’ve rested enough. And our destination is right ahead.”
In about an hour, the ship would reach the harbor.
But there was no way the harbor was safe.
It was likely occupied by the barbarians.
This ship was a supply vessel.
That meant the enemy almost certainly controlled the area.
“We should turn the ship around now. That harbor’s bound to have those guys.”
“That’s why we’re going. If their supply ship doesn’t arrive, they’ll send another.”
“Are you worried about the people on the island?”
“That, and… I don’t want to leave a single barbarian who dared invade the Kingdom.”
Nell and I had different goals.
Nell focused on rescuing the captured children.
But I planned to annihilate every barbarian I encountered along the way.
If it’s Evan, he has the power to do it… And with a vampire on our side.
But Nell doubted whether he and the cadets could keep up with that journey.
He thought it’d be a miracle if they didn’t hold me back.
“You can do it. But me and the kids aren’t as strong as you.”
Nell voiced his honest concern.
“I know. I have a separate request for you and the kids. I won’t ask you to fight on the front lines with me.”
“What request?”
“I’ll tell you when we disembark.”
Meanwhile, the ship reached the harbor.
As expected, it was occupied by the barbarians. When no one disembarked, two nearby barbarian warriors approached, puzzled.
“What’s the hold-up? Get off!”
“Slowpokes! Drunk or what?”
They laughed, waiting for the crew to appear.
But what emerged from the deck was an unexpected presence.
A towering shadow.
Gaiard shot into the air like an arrow.
His sudden appearance drew the warriors’ gazes skyward.
In that brief moment, I didn’t miss my chance.
Silently descending, I thrust my sharp sword into the neck of the nearest enemy.
At the same time, a dagger in my other hand flew like lightning, piercing the other’s throat.
“Guh!”
The two warriors collapsed without time to react.
Having taken them down, I was already assessing the surroundings.
Gaiard, overlooking the harbor from above, quickly scanned the area, then descended quietly to exchange brief words with me.
“I looked around, and there’s only about a hundred here. Likely a transport unit.”
“Really? That’s good news.”
“What’s the plan?”
“Take out all but three or four.”
“Why? You want the rest?”
“No.”
I glanced at the cadets disembarking, staying alert.
“They’ve sharpened their senses, so now it’s time to learn through real combat.”
“That’s pushing it, isn’t it?”
“Doesn’t matter. Feeling what death is like is enough.”
I lightly twirled the dagger in my hand.
“If they’re about to die, I’ll step in.”
“Hm… Got it.”
Shortly after, Gaiard, as ordered, wiped out all but four barbarian warriors.
The warriors, fleeing in the direction he guided, naturally faced the cadets.
“Get out of the way!”
“Blood still wet behind the ears!”
With fierce shouts, the barbarians charged at the cadets, wielding brutal weapons.
“Ugh!”
The cadets instinctively raised their weapons.
But victory wasn’t expected from the start.
Their attacks lacked strength, barely tickling the barbarian warriors.
In the end, there was only one thing they could do:
dodge the barbarians’ ferocious attacks.
But that alone was enough.
“Argh!”
“Ugh!”
The cadets felt the barbarians’ blades grazing past them.
Attacks they would’ve been hit by before were now narrowly dodged.
Even if it was luck, in that moment, their instinct to survive awakened.
“You grasshoppers!”
A barbarian warrior sped up, trying to grab a cadet.
But at that moment, Gamel, seizing the chance from the side, thrust his sword.
The sharp blade narrowly grazed the warrior’s neck.
“You little—!”
Enraged at being wounded by rookies, the warrior swung a massive fist at Gamel.
Just before it connected, a dagger I threw lodged precisely into the warrior’s temple.
Thud.
The massive barbarian collapsed.
At the same time, the other warriors were swiftly dealt with by my hand, ending the situation.
The fight was chaotic and strenuous.
But unlike before, it wasn’t a battle of mere fleeing.
The cadets held their ground against the barbarians.
“Well done.”
At my brief praise, the cadets, breathing heavily, looked at each other.
“Haa…”
They had only taken down four, but sweat poured from them like rain.
Yet none wore expressions of fear.
Instead, there was relief at surviving and the small joy of achieving something with their own strength.
Seeing this, Gaiard sneered and said, “Pathetic. Needing his help to take down just that.”
At his jab, the cadets hurriedly composed themselves.
“The area’s cleared. They had plenty of horses ready for transporting supplies.”
“Perfect. We can reach our destination faster on those.”
Nell approached and asked me, “Heading to the capital?”
“That’s the final destination.”
Thus, they mounted the horses the barbarians had tethered and galloped north.
Cutting through the fierce wind, forests and fields flashed by.
After riding for a while, seeing a fork in the road, I shouted to Nell, “Gaiard and I will take the right path.”
“Why? The capital’s this way.”
“There’s something I need to retrieve. Go to the capital first, and I’ll join you later.”
I intended to retrieve the Fire Dragon Orb hidden in my family’s underground vault.
Before knowing the Kingdom’s situation, it was for personal greed;
now, it was for a greater cause.
“So go and help hold out until I arrive!”
This was what I wanted to ask of Nell and the cadets.
Nell hesitated briefly but nodded.
“Got it! You must have a reason. See you later!”
At the fork, my group and Nell’s parted ways.
“So where are you going now?”
Gaiard, who hadn’t been told, asked.
“My home.”
Unaware of the context, he grimaced.
“You’re checking on your house in this situation?”
“Yes. Going home now is also for the Kingdom. So we ride at full speed from here.”
“What are you talking about…”
Like a butterfly’s wings stirring a storm,
the ripples these few would create
would become a dark cloud swallowing the blue sky, a tempest shaking everything.
If my calculations are right, the barrier might already be gone. I need to hurry!
No one realized.
The day the world would turn upside down, and history rewritten, was approaching.