Shadowed Gaze: The Highserk War Saga - Chapter 87

“Charge forward and plant the flag of the Guvier inside the castle!!”

Viscount Barnes Guvier, consumed by impatience and rage, raised his voice in a shout. The tide of battle was significantly turning in favor of the Meizenaf House. The annoying left corner tower had collapsed in a cloud of dust. Moreover, some units had begun their incursion into the castle, making the fall of the supporting castle inevitable.

“Those despicable mercenaries…”

The problem was that the ones who had accomplished this were the arrogant and rude mercenaries led by Giusto. Barnes might have maintained his rationality if it had only been that much. What crossed the line was the massive deployment of magic soldiers in a total offensive. Unbelievably, Barnes, who had been entrusted with the siege, was not informed in advance, and his subordinates at the front lines were also caught up in the mercenaries’ forceful attack. Barnes and his men were used as live bait to distract the enemy. Such deception by crude mercenaries was more than the lenient Barnes could tolerate.

“Lord Barnes, any further and there’s a risk of enemy soldiers infiltrating the formation.”

One of Barnes’ retainers cautiously approached with this concern. Barnes understood the risk, but it was the time to strike. If they missed this opportunity, the mercenaries and the Meizenaf family would completely overshadow them in achievements. It was Barnes who had cut down the enemy soldiers and cleared the obstacles, rendering them powerless. Who could stand idly by while others stole the credit? He had no intention of playing the fool.

“I am aware of the danger. But if we don’t move now, everything will be taken from us!! Don’t falter, storm into the castle.”

Barnes was prepared for a counterattack, keeping a reserve of trusted blood relatives and troops. Even if they were struck from the gate’s side, he was confident they could hold out.

“Advance! Surely there are no cowards lurking behind their lord, right?!”

Usually, Barnes would not make such a decision, but he was determined to directly enter the supporting castle. Considering the wealth brought by the magic silver mines, he had to earn his achievements at all costs.

His subordinates exchanged glances at their master’s reckless behavior, but they had just been spurred on and couldn’t afford to be overtaken without knowing what might be ordered next.

“Advance to the remains of the corner tower. I will take command from there.”

With further explosions inside the castle aiding them, Barnes’ forces quickly overcame the castle walls. Barnes was not reckless. Surrounded by over fifty retainers, they eliminated enemy soldiers, spurring on the demoralized common troops to push the front line forward.

“Hmph, have those magic soldiers been defeated?”

The fireballs that had intermittently danced across the battlefield were now silent. There was no resistance on the castle walls, and they made their way into the castle through a roughly formed path that could hardly be called a road. Barnes glanced at the ruins of the decayed corner tower and caught the sound of clashing metal, focusing his gaze towards its source.

“It seems there’s still sporadic resistance.”

Receiving the report from his retainer, Barnes observed people clashing swords at a distance from the corner tower.

“Just some common soldiers dueling, pretending to be knights?”

Barnes spat out, but he couldn’t take his eyes off the sight. A large mercenary in shabby attire and another man who seemed to be a Highserk soldier were fighting, their skill and the impact of their “Strong Strikes” were tremendous. Though it was a self-taught combat technique specialized in efficiently killing enemies, the functional beauty refined through numerous real battles was indeed admirable.

“What shall we do?”

“Let them fight. The mercenaries and Highserk soldiers are of no concern. But if the Highserk man wins, take him down with numbers.”

“Understood. I will send a 10-man team leader without moving the retainers.”

It wouldn’t be bad for Barnes’ forces to take down someone who had defeated a key mercenary fighter. And though he hated to admit it, they had to be sure to eliminate him. Intuition whispered such to Barnes.

“The Highserk man won?”

The mercenaries, demoralized by the defeat of their key fighter, were just glaring from a distance. At Barnes’ signal, regular troops attacked the exhausted Highserk man. No matter how skilled, the difference in numbers was not easily overcome, especially by someone fatigued.

Barnes then shifted his focus. He wasn’t so narrow-minded or idle to concentrate on just one soldier. Baron Josh’s forces, a senior official of the enemy side, had yet to show themselves. If careless, they could suffer an unexpected blow.

In order to corner the collapsing Dalimarcus troops, Barnes pondered over the floor plan acquired in advance. The supporting castle had three entrances: the front, left side, and rear. If the enemy were to counterattack, the front was unlikely. They had already secured the front gate. That left the left side or the rear, but if they were to strike and escape, it would be the left gate. Exiting from the rear gate would give Barnes the advantage in distance and time.

“Lord Barnes.”

Barnes, who had been surveying the battlefield, was brought back to reality.

“What is it?”

“The mercenaries are acting suspiciously.”

His retainer pointed out with undisguised disgust, where Giusto was giving orders to his subordinates, clearly targeting the regular Highserk troops.

“Giusto, what are you doing?!”

Barnes shouted, and Giusto approached him.

“Well, well, Viscount Barnes, to think you’d come to the front lines like this. Your beautiful armor might get dirty.”

“Shut your filthy mouth, you war-mad fool who knows nothing but killing,” came the scornful accusation. “Besides, you tried to bury him along with my soldiers, didn’t you?”

Giusto spread his arms wide, looking utterly baffled as if he was being unfairly accused of something he had no knowledge of.

“No, that’s impossible. I was merely trying to assist the viscount’s soldiers.”

As Giusto continued to approach, a horseman, serving as the lord’s guard, interjected himself between them in a show of intimidation.

“Don’t talk nonsense. Even if they were commoners, you involved my soldiers in a surprise attack on the corner tower.”

With a stronger tone, Viscount Barnes Guvier rebuked him.

“Ah, that was an unfortunate accident.”

“An accident, you say? How dare yo—”

Just at the moment when Barnes’s anger reached its peak, a female subordinate of Giusto unleashed a spell. The magic projectile hit the exact spot where Barnes’s soldiers were deployed against the Highserk people. It was a clear declaration of war.

“So you wish to die that badly?”

Before Barnes could give an order, his horsemen readied their weapons all at once and lunged at Giusto. The mercenaries, on the other side, faced the horsemen with contemptuous laughter.

“Fighting in the heart of enemy territory? Calm down. We wouldn’t do something so foolish in the presence of Viscount Barnes. We made sure all those 10-man team leaders were slain before launching the magic attacks. Someone must have seen it. If not, inspect the corpses.”

“Did anyone see it?”

A soldier among the horsemen hesitantly came forward.

“It’s regrettable, but what he says is true. The soldiers we sent were all killed.”

Upon receiving this report, Barnes gritted his teeth in frustration.

“Unbelievable, to be depleted by mere mercenaries.”

He glanced briefly at the place where the flames danced wildly. The regular soldiers who had killed his troops were now submerged in fire. Barnes’s gaze returned to the mercenaries’ heads. He wanted to kill them amidst the chaos of the battle, but he couldn’t act on his emotions, as they were incorporated into the forces of Count Meizenaf, his Lord. If he acted rashly, it would certainly be conveyed by the soldiers behind him, and Barnes could not escape punishment.

“Either way, securing the castle and dealing with Josh comes first… What are you looking at?”

Giusto, who had been so brazen in front of Barnes, now clenched his teeth and continued to stare into the flames. Something in the fiery blaze caught Barnes’s attention.

“Could that be… a person?”

There were those who possessed fire attribute magic or various skills to reduce burns from flames. Yet, in a fire intense enough to scorch the ground, it was extraordinary for someone to stand unfazed, without making a sound. Even with high resistance, over time the skin would burn and the body would succumb to the heat.

“Ugh, What?!”

Even though the figure’s outline was distorted by the flames and hard to discern, the eyes were clearly visible. They should have been gold, but they seemed dark, terribly clouded. Incredibly, those eyes were fixed on Barnes and Giusto as if sizing them up.

“That magic soldier is still alive.”

Giusto’s face twisted, a smirk no longer gracing his features. Barnes wore a similar expression. The figure had continued to cast magic in both the primary and secondary attacks and had slain dozens in close combat, now standing calmly amidst the flames. It was hard to admit, but the being before them was undoubtedly akin to a hero, a legend, or a monster.

“Viscount, it seems we should kill that one. Don’t worry, I’ll help. But I’ll take the corpse.”

A magic soldier of such caliber was valuable – to be used by a necromancer, as a catalyst, or for medicinal purposes. Their dead body could be said to be filled with gold coins. However, as something beneath a viscount like Barnes, he had little interest in dealing with corpses. Still, for the first time, Barnes agreed with Giusto.

“Take the body. Just kill him, quickly and surely.”

There was no one around to object.

Translator – Lyxxna