Chapter 106: Assassins in the Dark

Evan was observing the tides of the battlefield.

‘Overall, the momentum of the Dark Knights has greatly diminished.’

The Union Army, reinforced by the kingdom’s regulars from each domain and the Order’s forces, was truly formidable.

They did not yield an inch to the Dark Knights; instead, after fighting them evenly, they steadily began to push them back.

At a glance, it seemed that continuing the assault would surely lead to victory. However, the Dark Knights who had fallen earlier began to rise again as time passed.

This vividly revealed the characteristic of Living Armor: as long as they are not completely destroyed, they can regenerate at any time.

‘Which means, time is on their side.’

Of course, in terms of overwhelming combat strength, the Union Army would eventually defeat the Dark Knights. But by the time the war finally ended, even in victory, severe losses were inevitable.

It was clear that ending this repetitive war early was the way to minimize casualties.

‘Stopping Elresel’s plan as much as possible, too. This meaningless war must end.’

Thus, the war looked as if it was almost over.

But the tide shifted again in an instant.

As time passed, the Dark Knights who had fallen earlier finished recovering and stood up once more.

It was like staring at undead.

And so, the situation began to look like preparations for a second round.

The battered Dark Knights joined forces with the recovered ones, bringing the battle back to an even match.

Bit by bit, it became increasingly difficult to bring things to a close.

‘Pushing them back means nothing. If I can’t finish it, the battle will just keep dragging on.’

Evan pulled out a stack of mercenary Scrolls he had purchased from the shop.

‘There’s nothing better for these guys.’

Magic Scrolls that summon special mercenaries offered at the shop.

Of course, they were single-use; once used, that was it.

The mercenaries summoned with a Scroll would automatically vanish upon death or after a set time.

That’s why, unless it was a truly critical moment, he would never use them.

‘But the Phoenix died even faster than I expected.’

Evan reacted sensitively to this change.

Elresel had personally intervened to eliminate the Phoenix.

That made it clear that this soul collection was his most important investment yet.

‘He showed his hand too easily. Now I just need to respond accordingly.’

When the enemy exposes a weakness, he strikes at it without mercy.

Now, Evan could move with certainty.

‘It’s a little early, but this is the moment to use them.’

Before the second round began, it was necessary to deal with the Dark Knights who had fallen once already.

The magic Scrolls Evan had purchased amounted to over 300 in total.

It had cost a whopping thirty million Merit Points.

It was quite a large expenditure for Evan, but the Merit Points he had saved up from all his past Quests were substantial as well.

Compared to what he expected to gain today, this much spending was a bargain.

‘Still, this kind of thing burns through Merit Points like crazy. I won’t be able to do it a second time.’

If Elresel were to gain overwhelming power through this opportunity, things would only become more difficult in the future.

He had to interfere here and block him no matter what.

The top priority right now was Elresel’s Soul Collector.

‘Reduce the number of souls he gets from this plan to less than half.’

If Elresel obtained less power than expected, he wouldn’t be able to easily carry out his next plan.

The key was to see how that guy would act moving forward if he failed to collect the souls as intended.

‘If he gets desperate, he’ll get careless. When I see an opening, I’ll move.’

Elresel knew nothing about Evan.

No, to be exact, he hadn’t even figured out if there was an enemy out there.

‘Maybe, if I ruin his plan this time, he’ll start to catch on at least.’

Meanwhile, Evan knew his enemy and had obtained a lot of information.

As long as that information gap remained, Evan was certain the guy would never succeed with his plans.

Evan used the magic Scroll.

• You have summoned Exile Executor (Lesser).
• You have summoned Exile Executor (Lesser).

…….

Around Evan, 300 Exile Executors were summoned. Assassins clad in worn, faded robes, each wielding a hooked blade in one hand. Though their appearance resembled ordinary humans, their abilities were anything but.

‘Exile Executors are effective against those with recovery abilities or persistent vitality.’

Their special skill, Execution, activates when the target’s health drops below 7%.

It instantly kills the enemy.

For the Dark Knights, who could not be finished off easily, these were their worst natural enemies.

Of course, there were downsides.

Their attack power and vitality were low, so they were ill-suited for general combat.

They had a strong supporting role.

On a chaotic battlefield, they could target the rear, deceive the enemy amidst the confusion, or—like now—use their Execution skill to shine on the battlefield.

They moved quietly, their presence as assassins soon to become evident.

“From now on, your targets are……”

Evan explained the characteristics of the Dark Knights to the Exile Executors and gave them their orders.

Delian was fighting the Dark Knights alongside the Knights of Kerten.

He raised his aura to the extreme, enhancing his body.

These foes would not fall easily.

‘Unless it’s Father’s Aura Blade, even piercing their armor is tough.’

Delian, swept up in the madness of the battlefield, fought the ceaselessly attacking enemies.

He swung his sword, again and again, until his foes fell.

But even when they fell, they would soon rise again.

So, he gave up thinking and endured, resolved to fight until the enemies retreated.

Of course, the enemy was madness incarnate.

They showed not the slightest sign of backing down.

They didn’t care if their bodies were ruined; even if they fell, they would get up again after a brief pause and charge once more.

Like killing machines without the fear of death.

Fighting in such pressure, it felt as if he was facing ten, twenty times more enemies than there really were.

He began to feel that toppling them was a meaningless act, repeated endlessly.

But each time, Delian forced his mind blank and kept swinging his sword.

Then, he caught sight of Evan.

Pushing deep into the enemy lines with the knights.

‘Isn’t he going in too far?’

Evan’s actions looked reckless and dangerous.

A mistake typically made by inexperienced knights with no war experience.

Sometimes, thinking they’re pressing the attack, they can end up charging all the way into the middle of enemy lines.

Delian had learned about this in theory and through mock battles.

Seeing Evan in danger, Delian grew anxious.

“Damn it! Some of you, follow me! We’ll support my brother!”

At times like this, he had no choice but to go after Evan.

He had to stop him before he got in too deep.

Delian led a portion of the knights and charged toward Evan.

Pushing through the endless onslaught of Dark Knights, they fought desperately forward.

“Brother! Stop!”

Delian shouted desperately, trying to reach Evan.

But Evan paid him no mind and pushed even deeper into enemy lines.

“Stop, I said!”

Delian, angry, chased after Evan.

“This is dangerous! We can’t go any further!”

Despite the surrounding knights’ warnings, Delian continued his pursuit of Evan.

And the more he did, the fiercer the Dark Knights’ resistance became.

“Alright! I’ve almost caught up! Brother! Can’t you hear me?!”

Before he knew it, Evan had stopped.

Finally catching up, Delian hurried to Evan’s side.

“Fall back now! This is dangerous! Father said we’re pulling the defensive line back soon.”

Evan gave a faint smile and looked around.

“What’s wrong?”

Delian, without thinking, also looked around following Evan’s gaze.

He realized that, in the entire sector they had broken into, the Dark Knights had already been annihilated.

There were still plenty remaining on other fronts, but compared to the struggle so far, it had ended shockingly simply.

“Wh-what just happened?”

Confused by the situation, Delian was flustered.

The knights who had chased in after him were also startled as they realized this only now.

“What are you all doing? Go support the others.”

Evan drew his sword and moved toward the next frontline.

And quietly, the Exile Executors followed after him.

Elresel sat wordlessly on the high balcony railing of the Royal Palace, watching the results of the war unfold.

The power of the Aestia Guild’s forces was weaker than expected.

They were suffering a crushing defeat at the hands of the Union Army, far below his expectations.

He reviewed and revised the information in his mind.

No matter how he thought about it, the plan shouldn’t have failed.

That meant someone had interfered.

“I never thought the margin of error would reach over half. Such an abnormal outcome.”

Hearing this, Alpherion sneered at him.

‘Things aren’t going your way. Don’t underestimate the kingdom’s might.’

Triumphant, he taunted Elresel.

This was the first time Elresel, who had always played the king with rigorous planning, saw one of his schemes crumble so completely.

It proved he could make mistakes and that he was, indeed, human.

But instead of becoming angry at this provocation, Elresel remained calm.

“To overturn a feast so carefully prepared… someone has noticed my presence. It’s just like what happened on the 1,201st occasion.”

He acted as if this was nothing more than a trivial diversion.

‘What do you mean, the 1,201st occasion?’

Alpherion, confused, asked him.

Elresel, enjoying the moment, began to speak slowly.

“Your Majesty, do you know how long I have lived?”

‘……How would I know that?’

Alpherion replied to the random question.

Then Arsella recalled.

“Just from what I can remember, about a hundred times. That’s how often I’ve changed bodies. The average lifespan ranged from 501 to over 800 years.”

Alpherion stammered at Elresel’s shocking confession.

‘……Y-you. What are you, really?’

Having spent so much time with Elresel, he could sense the truth.

Elresel never lied.

His stories may have seemed wild, but he had always made them all come true.

Expressed as a human, it was an extraordinary ability.

There had always been many mysteries about him, but now, it seemed that some of those secrets were being revealed.

Alpherion recalled their first meeting.

Originally, he was just an insignificant member of the Barony of Lahel in the frontier.

But at some point, he acquired outstanding ability and was promoted to chief steward of the Royal Palace.

Then, he approached Alpherion, and eventually, took over his body.

Elresel sneered as he answered Alpherion’s question.

“My identity… Even if I told you in the Third World, would you understand? There are worlds beyond your imagination.”

He fell into brief reminiscence, a fleeting look of longing crossing his face.

“I have crossed many worlds, but none as abhorrent as this one. You people don’t know how terrible this world really is.”

“Abhorrent? What do you mean?”

“You’ll understand when you see it with your own eyes someday. You can look forward to it.”

Elresel climbed down from the railing and entered the Royal Palace.

With a rat spoiling his plans, he would find a way to hunt him down.

He would mobilize every bit of information he had accumulated throughout his long life.