Chapter 84

Imperial Capital Fracture (2)

“There’s word from Her Highness. She’s secured the base.”

At those words, Duke Aslan, who had been leaning on his staff with his eyes closed, slowly lifted his eyelids.

‘…That girl.’

It hadn’t been long since she had fallen into beastification and was forcibly brought back.

Both the court physician and Duke Aslan himself had warned her multiple times to stay put due to potential side effects, but Liza ignored every single one of them. It was entirely her own decision.

—I heard the person who saved me is in the capital.

—That’s true.

—Then I’ll go help too. My recovery isn’t what matters now, is it?

—…Are you sure that’s your only reason, Liza?

—…

…He couldn’t quite put a finger on it, but something felt off.

‘Not my daughter, please.’

Well.

Of course, Duke Aslan held Aiden in very high regard. Still, the idea of his daughter getting smitten was a completely different matter.

Everyone in the military knew that the Lionhearted had no notable experience with romance, but only Duke Aslan knew that Liza Aslan wasn’t much different in that regard.

Simply put.

She was a capable warrior, with an overwhelmingly powerful background as the daughter of a ducal house, and yet, there were very few men who could meet her eyes as equals.

And now, the man who had saved her life was right there.

Wasn’t that the perfect backdrop for imagining a knight in shining armor…?

“Sigh—”

A breath escaped him, forming a misty cloud beneath the cold night air. It looked as though he was trying to cool the heat that had risen all the way to his head.

Truthfully, it wasn’t an entirely wrong image. Family was precious, but as a father, it was only natural to be concerned about his daughter’s choices.

“Gentlemen.”

And it was also clear where he could channel that frustration.

Duke Aslan rose to his feet, the cries of beasts erupting from all directions reaching his ears.

“Let’s be honest, this year we’ve had it easy thanks to that guy Aiden, right?”

A short laugh escaped someone’s lips, quickly spreading like a contagion among those nearby.

As chuckles rippled through the group, Duke Aslan flipped his helmet onto his head.

At that moment—

The surrounding black, obsidian-like armor-clad soldiers all stiffened into formation simultaneously.

“Fortunately, it looks like we won’t be short on work.”

An ability flowed through their armor. It wasn’t the pure white qi like the Lionhearted possessed, but Duke Aslan was a seasoned veteran of countless battlefields. Refined qi coursed through his entire body.

“Black Guard, assemble.”

The private army directly under House Aslan.

A force that had greatly contributed to the ducal family’s reputation as the Empire’s greatest martial household.

Commonly known as “the Hunters.”

And then, from the duke’s lips, words as cold as frost poured out toward them.

“We’re cleaning up the capital.”

Hunt. Execute.

▣

“…The chaos is settling down quickly.”

Noel glanced around and spoke those words.

Her tone carried something close to awe.

As a knight who took great pride in her own abilities, Noel was one of the harshest judges when it came to evaluating skill.

For someone like her to express admiration like this meant that the performance of the Aslan family’s “Hunters” currently operating in the capital was nothing short of top-class — the kind you could present anywhere without shame.

They moved in organized teams of three, systematically sweeping through the Empire to eliminate the rampaging beasts, and even as a fellow knight, Noel could do nothing but applaud their prowess.

It was a different kind of battle from what the knight order was used to.

“…Are you telling me Aiden can command people like that?”

“…”

From Aiden’s perspective, having become someone who could move such individuals with a single word, they seemed more like monsters than people.

‘Just how highly does that man think of me?’

He’d heard before that the Aslan family was considered the continent’s greatest martial house, but now that he was seeing firsthand the power of those who made that reputation possible, he felt the weight of the authority he’d been given more than ever.

“If things continue like this, we should be able to subdue it all soon.”

“No, not yet.”

As he said that, he looked around again.

To be honest, his words weren’t quite accurate.

‘…All of this is just bait.’

To put it more precisely, they had barely managed to contain the opening move.

The plan devised by the prince under the banner of “treason” was clearly not all that complicated.

By using beastification potions to stir chaos within the capital and drawing out the Empire’s largest force — the knight order — the prince had already completed more than half of his plan.

Naturally, the longer the chaos lasted, the better. Through successive acts of terror, they’d block communication and response, delaying the knight order’s deployment and in that time, they would reach the “final stage.”

In terms of pure martial prowess, the prince himself was someone that required the full strength of the knight order just to keep up with. Without the knights, there wouldn’t be anyone capable of stopping him.

With that in mind—

“…We need to head there, Dame Noel.”

The core of it all was in there.

This beast rampage and the terror attacks were, relatively speaking, all just a prelude.

With that thought, Aiden fixed his gaze on the towering Central Spire.

The place where the key device of the prince, as revealed by Ganesha, was located.

‘It’s not going to be something ordinary.’

So much of the plot had twisted from the original work that it was hard to guess exactly what that device might be, but it was clear — whatever it was, it would be powerful enough to affect the entire capital.

Ultimately, the goal of this assault on the Imperial Capital was to cement the prince’s  dominion  across the entire Empire. By seizing both the Imperial Palace — the heart of the imperial administration and the high command of the imperial military at once, he’d secure a decisive grip. That was what this “key device” was for.

What was strange, though—

‘This is odd.’

The method didn’t suit the prince.

From the very moment beastified humans began running wild in the heart of the capital, casualties were guaranteed.

But according to the original story, the prince was someone who valued the lives of the Empire’s citizens dearly. And this felt like a distortion of that trait.

As if… the capital and the people in it weren’t all that “important” to him—

“…Huh?”

Before Aiden could pursue that thought further, he heard Noel let out a baffled exclamation beside him.

He didn’t even need to ask why.

Even with his own eyes, Aiden could clearly see the cause.

-!

-!!

Dots swarmed across the sky, blotting it out at terrifying speed. There were so many that they momentarily eclipsed the sun, plunging the area into darkness.

Almost immediately, a skill activated and brought information about the approaching threat into view.

⊙ Swarm

A flock of wild birds has been beastified. They attack any living thing in sight.

“…Flying beasts? Just how far has that bastard gone with his tricks?!”

Noel’s outburst was completely understandable.

Beastifying that many creatures was no ordinary feat. Individually, each would be weaker, sure but they were still beasts. Strong enough to tear ordinary civilians to shreds.

When those things gathered in such numbers, they undeniably became a massive threat.

“…We can’t move out in the open with those things around. We’ll need to move from cover to cover—!”

“No. That’ll be too slow.”

Those things were clearly meant to prevent anyone from approaching the Central Spire quickly. Slowing down would be playing right into their hands.

And the possibility of such interference — Aiden had anticipated it from the start.

‘…Well then.’

He looked up at the sky.

Each one might’ve been birdlike, but when that many moved together, they looked less like birds and more like an insect swarm. They reminded him of those irritating clouds of gnats in summer, or those plague-like locust swarms.

And with that association in mind—

The “means” he had prepared ahead of time was bound to be a perfect counter.

‘I really did suffer a lot because of bugs back when I lived in the slums.’

Aiden let out a short laugh as the memory came to him.

And every time he’d suffered because of those damn bugs—

There had always been one  very  effective remedy.

▣

[Magician. What's the status so far?]

“Well, everything’s still within expectations, I guess.”

The masked woman answered lazily through the communicator.

[For the resurrection of our beloved god, the soul and flesh of the Lionhearted are absolutely necessary. Make sure nothing disrupts the plan.]

“Yeah, yeah. Not like I can go out there myself anyway, but sure.”

Honestly, she would’ve loved to go down there and cause some chaos herself, but the name  “demonkind”  still couldn’t be revealed to the public.

They were the enemies of the entire continent. The world must not know of their existence until it was too late for anyone to stop them.

—And that day wasn’t all that far off.

What lay before her now was the first step.

Before her eyes, the burning capital was unfolding in real time.

Everything was going according to the prince’s plan. All communication within the capital had been completely severed, leaving the knight order and the security forces in complete disarray.

There wasn’t a single individual capable of responding properly. They’d bought more than enough time to proceed to the final phase.

Even if there were some annoyances, she had to admit—she respected the prince’s ability.

Clever, quick-witted, and precise. He had fine-tuned every piece needed to execute the plan. That wasn’t something just any ordinary human could do.

‘…Although, for someone like that, things are fizzling out a bit.’

The unexpected variable had come in the form of the Aslan family’s Hunters.

She didn’t need to guess whose orders had brought them into play.

Aiden Kellermain.

…What an irritating bastard.

Until recently, his name hadn’t even crossed her radar  but now, it had rapidly become a serious headache for her and her kind.

‘…Still, that guy—’

He wouldn’t be able to break through  that.

She looked up lazily at the swarm of beasts blackening the sky and let out a yawn.

Sheer numbers were violence in itself. No matter how powerful someone was, charging through  that  many was pure suicide.

She had even prepared a count that felt excessive, even to her. She had put great care into it.

Dangling her legs off the edge of the rooftop she was perched on, she casually wondered if  she  could get through them.

‘…Maybe if I used my true name?’

If only she could utter her glorious name — not the ridiculous nickname “Magician,” but the one bestowed upon her by the God of Devouring — it might actually be possible.

But with the god currently sealed, that was out of the question.

At any rate, what that meant was—

No supernatural being of standard post-human caliber would ever be able to break through. Which meant the Central Spire was effectively secure.

All she had to do now was sit tight and pass the time until the prince devoured the capital.

That was what she thought—

“…Hm?”

Until something caught her eye.

A woman was rising into the sky.

Mounted atop a wolf the size of a house, her appearance was nothing short of majestic — like a figure torn straight from the pages of myth.

-!

-!!

Naturally, something that conspicuous would quickly be noticed by the beastified birds drifting across the sky. And with the sky seeming to collapse, they began pouring down toward her.

It looked like a starving swarm of locusts sweeping across the earth. No superpowered being could survive an onslaught like that.

But the woman’s movements were… strange.

She didn’t even seem to be  considering  survival.

With utter calm, she and the wolf charged straight into the heart of the swarm.

And then, from the woman’s body—

Flames burst forth — torrents of fire so hot, the heat was palpable even from this distance.

Moments later—

A towering column of fire shot into the sky, painting the heavens red and completely engulfing the Magician’s field of vision.

“…”

The Magician stared in disbelief at the countless beastified creatures reduced to ashes without so much as a scream.

It was an appropriate reaction to the gaping hole now burned through the swarm she had thought no one — not even herself — could break through.

One single thought popped into her mind.

“…Flamethrower?”

She muttered the name of the ultimate pest extermination weapon in a daze.

…Aiden Kellermain, that damned bastard.

He sure had picked one  hell  of a counter.