Chapter 48: The Collapse at Linford

There was no time to waste.

Thanks to Jason Klarok, they held a complete informational advantage, but their departure had not been swift.

If they wanted to appear while the two princes were locked in a fierce battle, they had to hurry.

They pressed forward along the wide road, minimizing rest to the barest amount.

Fatigue was bound to accumulate, but the battle itself would likely be anticlimactic.

Everything had gone too smoothly.

Everything was going according to plan.

“No abnormalities.”

The daily reports arriving at the same time indicated that the situation was proceeding without issue.

The two princes were solely focused on each other, and their movements were perfectly normal.

Everything was as expected.

If either of them had even a sliver of interest elsewhere, they might have noticed the suspicious activities unfolding in the East, but they did not.

Jason’s control over the information likely played a large role, and neither side was in a position to divert attention.

Especially the East was likely completely excluded from their considerations.

That explained the unusually smooth progress.

There were three cities they needed to pass through on the way to Widlery.

The first was Cotrin, where their arrival was also smooth.

The city gates quickly opened upon seeing the tens of thousands of troops.

The lord of the city rushed out breathlessly, bowing deeply at the sight of the princess.

“It is an honor to serve you!”

Thanks to the lord’s quick thinking, they were able to rest thoroughly for a day as planned before departing Cotrin.

The next stop was the city of Linford.

Linford was no different from Cotrin—if anything, it was easier and faster.

The gates were wide open even before the legion arrived.

Since it was nearby, they must have quickly responded after hearing the news.

Everything went very smoothly.

They only planned to rest briefly in Linford.

They had taken enough rest in Cotrin, and to stay on schedule, it was time to move fast again.

That was the plan, and nothing existed to interfere with it.

That was certain.

But… how did it come to this?

Teordo stared at the girl lying motionless before him.

“Your Highness.”

Her face was pale and gaunt.

Her eyelids didn’t flutter.

If not for the faint breath escaping her lips, she would have appeared dead.

Sylvia had collapsed suddenly in the second city, Linford, and had yet to regain consciousness.

They had hurriedly procured the largest carriage available and carefully loaded Sylvia onto it to move her, but… was this the right course of action?

Should they not find a physician or a temple immediately?

No one knew.

Though there had been various symptoms before, this was the first time she had lost consciousness completely and remained unconscious for such a long time.

“Deathly energy is starting to creep up to her head.”

At the voice beside him, Teordo turned his head.

Hio, who was tending to Sylvia, spoke quietly to Teordo.

He saw the faintly gray pupils gradually returning to their original color.

“So stay sharp, Teordo. What good does it do if you lose your mind now?”

Hio’s own condition was no better.

He had pushed his body to the limit to raise his Patience.

“Haa…”

Only after seeing Hio in that state did Teordo press his forehead and let out a deep sigh.

It was an uncharacteristic collapse.

He didn’t understand anything anymore—what to do, what was happening—everything was a mess.

At times like this, he hated the stubborn hardness of his own mind.

“Really… is this the way to save Your Highness?”

Even if Hio was a miraculous magician, the method seemed too strange.

To take hits to gather energy?

To gather energy and use a new magic to save the princess?

And they couldn’t use any other magic during this process.

“Yeah. Until then, Sylvia has to hold on.”

Though it sounded absurd, when he recalled Hio’s serious expression and all he had done so far… he wanted to believe it.

He wanted to believe Sylvia could live.

“So, Teordo, don’t waver. Do what you can do. I’ll do what I can.”

“…What I can do.”

“Yes.”

Teordo looked back at Hio.

Though not obvious on the surface, his body was covered in invisible wounds.

“Hio Pavlenko. Why are you going this far?”

Looking back, it had been a trivial connection.

A one-sided request.

No promise of wealth, honor, or power. Nothing was guaranteed—or possible.

Yet over time, Hio did not seem like someone who coveted such things.

Then why?

Why was Hio Pavlenko, a magician with myriad abilities, risking his health to help Sylvia?

At that question, Hio answered as if it were obvious.

“We made a promise.”

Sure, there were various reasons, and the situation had become one where Sylvia had to become Empress—there was no turning back.

But that wasn’t the whole reason.

They made a promise, didn’t they?

“You and Sylvia both. We made a promise.”

To Sylvia, he promised to make her Empress, to struggle alongside her until she died.

To Teordo, he promised to keep Sylvia alive, to help her achieve her goal.

They had made that promise.

That was just one among many reasons why Hio was helping them.

“…A promise.”

Teordo closed his eyes and repeated the word silently.

“So don’t waver. Do what you can do now.”

“…I understand.”

When Teordo opened his eyes, he had returned to his former self.

The stoic, unshakable knight.

The princess’s guardian knight who quietly did what needed to be done.

In his eyes, Hio Pavlenko’s figure was reflected.

“I will do what I must.”

“Good. You thought well. Since you’re tired now, wait until evening and then hit me again…”

“Hio Pavlenko.”

The stoic knight spoke firmly.

“That’s enough now.”

The damage to the body was inevitably cumulative.

This was very different from when the Circle Engraving was etched onto the heart.

When only stamina and mental strength supported it, one could endure endless pain.

But physical damage did not heal quickly.

Naturally, the time spent suffering grew shorter, but the frequency of fainting increased.

Knowing this, Teordo had spoken.

“You must rest. If you push further, you might permanently disable something.”

“…Is that so.”

Even with rest from now on, it was still touch and go.

He might not directly join the war, but he couldn’t afford to be incapacitated if an unforeseen event occurred.

Everything.

Unfortunately, this meant the pain-induced increase in Patience ended here.

[Hidden Trait: Violence Is Not Allowed! (Patience 702 / 1000)]

Even after days of enduring beatings until fainting, this was the limit.

Most of the gain happened on the first and second days; afterward, there was little increase.

How could one gain Patience when they collapsed with each blow?

If it weren’t for the Catalog of Endurance, even this amount would have been impossible.

Watching Hio, Teordo asked,

“Hio Pavlenko, you seem quite used to enduring. Have you experienced this often?”

“Well… as you can see.”

Hio answered, turning his head to meet Teordo’s gaze.

Teordo was familiar enough with that stoic expression to read what was behind it.

“I don’t know your circumstances, but don’t hold back too much. Human willpower isn’t infinite.”

“I’ll take your advice to heart.”

In those indifferent eyes was a hidden warm concern.

Sylvia had not regained consciousness even upon arriving at the third city, Adon.

Unless the deathly energy creeping to her head was expelled, she would never wake up—at least not until she died.

Teordo did not tell him this.

After all, Teordo was already showing an uncharacteristically fragile appearance.

What would happen if he learned this might be Sylvia’s last moment?

No matter how futile death might be, parting without even a word was too cruel.

“After passing Adon, it’s just Widlery.”

For now, they had to focus on what was in front of them.

The battlefield was near.

“How’s the time?”

At Hio’s question, Jason shrugged.

“Perfect.”

His hands were full of bundles of reports.

“Second Prince Belloke seems to be setting up camp in Widlery, and First Prince Allenbert should arrive soon too.”

After days of forced marching, the timing was just right.

All that remained was to strike the backs of the two princes.

And to save Sylvia, who was barely holding on by gathering every last bit of Patience.

If they could manage that, a very serious problem looming in the future would be resolved.

Half a day’s walk past the city of Adon was the vast and expansive Widlery Plains.

As they entered the outskirts, Jason checked the final reports.

• First Prince: No abnormalities, bypassing Molder region.
• First Prince: No abnormalities, passing through Maladin domain.
• First Prince: No abnormalities, entering Ostrum.
• First Prince: Entering Widlery, expected to encounter Second Prince soon.

The last report was that they would meet the Second Prince shortly.

Similar reports arrived simultaneously from all sources.

This information was reliable.

Considering the time it took for the messages to arrive, the war should have already started.

That would have been satisfactory, but Jason meticulously verified the Second Prince’s information as well.

• Second Prince: Entering Widlery, no abnormalities.
• Second Prince: Arrived at Widlery, troops widely deployed and waiting.
• Second Prince: Waiting in Widlery, no abnormalities.
• Second Prince: Waiting in Widlery, large number of troops spotted at the front.

The Second Prince’s information matched perfectly.

After checking the final reports, Jason relayed the information to the command.

Yohn Torno halted all troops to rest.

This was the last rest before war and to wait for the advanced scouts.

Some time passed.

A small dust cloud appeared in the distance.

A scouting party galloped in on horseback.

The command eagerly awaited the information they would bring.

Breaking through the masses, the scouting party reached Yohn Torno’s side.

Their faces drenched in sweat and caked in dirt.

But their expressions were so urgent that nothing else registered.

“Th-The enemy is coming!”

The news shocked everyone present.

“All of the Second Prince’s troops are rushing this way!”

The entire command sprang to their feet.

“What is this!”

And as if to prove the scouts’ words, a wavering mass appeared on the far horizon.

Long lines of figures swayed as they approached.

No one needed to be told what those numbers were.

“Why is the Second Prince’s army coming here?!”

“Where is the First Prince’s legion? Why are they the ones heading this way?!”

Tens of thousands of troops were charging toward them.

Something was terribly wrong.

Where had it gone wrong? As expected…

“The information leaked.”

Whether it was the First or Second Prince’s side.

Information had been leaked somewhere.

Hio’s eyes flashed as he turned toward Jason Klarok.

The man most closely connected to the information.

But Jason was the most flustered of all.

“No way…”

He sprang up and frantically grabbed all the documents.

He reviewed the reports again.

• First Prince: No abnormalities, bypassing Molder region.
• Second Prince: No abnormalities, entering Widlery.
• First Prince: No abnormalities, passing through Maladin domain.
• Second Prince: Arrived at Widlery, troops widely deployed and waiting.

It wasn’t just leaked information.

How many informants were on the field?

Fooling all of their eyes was virtually impossible.

• First Prince: No abnormalities, entering Ostrum.
• Second Prince: No abnormalities, waiting in Widlery.

This meant all informants had some problem…

But that didn’t make sense either.

If there had been a capable person on the princes’ side, they wouldn’t have missed this.

Jason’s frantic paper shuffling suddenly stopped.

“I found it.”

There was actually a very slight inconsistency in the report he had thought perfectly fitting.

He had just realized it.

• First Prince: Entering Widlery, expected to encounter Second Prince soon.
• Second Prince: Waiting in Widlery, large number of troops spotted at the front.

According to the report schedule, the Second Prince’s report was delayed.

That meant the Second Prince’s report should not have included ‘large number of troops discovered’—

It should have said they had ‘encountered’ the First Prince.

“A large number of troops discovered…”

Jason gave a hollow laugh and set the report down.

He realized what the ‘discovered’ from the Second Prince’s side meant.

“This was about us.”

All the First Prince’s reports were lies.

They had not yet appeared in Widlery.