How should one express this feeling?
“The K’oatl is dead… and the barbarians who occupied the mountain peak have been exterminated.”
Disconcerting.
Well, there’s no better way to express one’s emotions than this.
Mammon, who was reading the situation through Katrina, the prophet of the tribe, furrowed his brow.
“This was unexpected.”
He was already aware that the military power of the Kikollan tribe wasn’t particularly strong.
Naturally, he hadn’t expected much. All Mammon had wanted from them was to clear a path through the mountains.
‘If only we had reached the village below after piercing through the mountains… Hah.’
Though it was a small village, the humans there were sufficient to hold Ian Volkanov’s activity captive.
The plan had been to take them hostage, causing hesitation in Ian, and then swiftly eliminating them.
But all those tactics had failed.
They had seized the mountain peak, yes, but many barbarians, including the Kikollan’s champion K’oatl, had lost their lives.
“The warriors who aimed for the summit with K’oatl have returned to the sky. And it seems the peak of Mount Sisyphus has also been recaptured by the empire’s people.”
“We’ve failed… Mammon, what do we do now? Isn’t the plan a complete failure?”
Beelzebub’s brow furrowed as he heard Katrina’s words.
Having just arrived here from Astelgia, he couldn’t tolerate such a failure as the great demon he was.
“Let me think quietly. I’m pondering my options too.”
Mammon, too, was visibly taken aback.
The Demon King of Greed. Who was he again? The one who had amassed the most wealth in the demon realm. Even known as the Golden Demon in mortal realms.
Always making choices that didn’t lead to failure, Mammon was equally flustered by this unexpected crisis.
‘Hmm…’
Stroking his full beard, Mammon pondered deeply.
Was it thanks to the countless successes he’d achieved?
The paths he’d walked revealed the solution.
“I didn’t want to resort to such methods, but it seems unavoidable.”
“Have you come up with a plan?”
“Yes. It’s somewhat underhanded, but it should salvage the situation.”
As Mammon hesitated, Beelzebub stared intently.
The meaning was simple.
“Haha. I’ll tell you, so don’t look at me like that.”
“Stop dragging it out and tell me quickly… What method are you suggesting?”
“It’s simple. We’ll lure Ian Volkanov here. Right to this place.”
“Lure him here? Are you out of your mind?”
Beelzebub had always known Mammon was peculiar, but he couldn’t understand what he was thinking now.
To lure the enemy here—was that a sensible idea?
“…Mammon, didn’t you establish this as an outpost to avoid Volkanov’s scrutiny?”
The reason they had allowed the Kikollan, those fierce and daunting Knights, to continue their kidnappings and killings was simple.
Despite the treacherous terrain and freezing climate of Mount Sisyphus, the crucial reason was they didn’t know where the Kikollan were hiding.
Not knowing where the enemy was meant some relief from their attacks.
Establishing an outpost at Kikollan’s headquarters was Mammon and Beelzebub’s reasoning.
But to summon Ian Volkanov, who was essentially the leader of their enemies, here? Was that a rational idea?
“Without a reasonable explanation, I can’t entertain such a mad plan.”
“Haha. Don’t rush me; I’ll explain slowly.”
As Mammon began to manipulate magic, an image appeared in the air.
“Isn’t that… the battle between Ian and Lilith?”
The battle where Lilith, Asmodeus’s closest subordinate, would be waiting to be swallowed up by the demon’s mouth.
Even Mammon himself thought it was an impressive battle.
Especially the scene where Lilith deceived her with an illusion, then attacked her side, was impressive.
But why was Mammon showing this scene?
“So what’s the point of all this? Are you trying to show how strong Ian is?”
“I have no reason to show off. What I want to show you are the weaknesses in Ian’s martial arts.”
“Weaknesses?”
As Beelzebub showed interest, Mammon continued his explanation slowly.
“You must know that Ian Volkanov uses a unique martial art. It’s completely different from what human beings have used. Not just in steps, but even in the way he extends his fists.”
“I’m aware of that. It seemed strange, but it was quite powerful, so I was quite intrigued.”
“Do you also know that there’s a fatal flaw in that?”
“A fatal flaw? What’s that?”
“Simply put, it’s difficult to fight multiple enemies. I’ve watched the footage countless times and analyzed it thoroughly. That style is based on dueling.”
He could use mana to create shockwaves with his fists, but most of his attacks were focused on striking one person.
What if he faced countless enemies with such a martial art?
“He’ll just be struggling to fend off the crazily charging enemies. If we time our attacks for those moments, he won’t be able to do anything.”
With continued combat, his steps would gradually become tangled. Once a gap appeared, it would be over.
“How about that? Isn’t it a decent plan?”
“If it turns out like that, he won’t have a way out. But is there a way to lure him? It’s obvious it’s a trap; shouldn’t we consider that?”
Of course, they had already considered that too.
“We have captives, don’t we? If we use them, he’ll definitely come. He can’t afford to abandon knights dedicated to the family while being the family head.”
“Indeed, we can’t afford to involve the knights in a situation like this where the nobles are being targeted.”
Beelzebub smirked at Mammon.
“I’ve always thought this about you. It’s fortunate you’re not like the others.”
“Being called ruthless on the battlefield is practically a compliment. Should I take it as such?”
“Think whatever you like.”
Mammon grinned smugly as he watched Beelzebub turn his head, clicking his tongue.
‘Let’s see you struggle. You inferior mortal.’
The time for these thorns in their sides to disappear was fast approaching, and exhilaration surged within him.
***
As Ian stepped forward onto the battlefield.
Disaster unfolded before the barbarians.
“Eek! Mo-monster!”
Crash!
“Save me! Please, I beg you! Agh!”
Crunch!
They were elite warriors of the Kikollan tribe, but the gap between them and Ian was significant.
It was impossible to evade Ian’s furious punches in response to the attack on his family.
Wham! Crash!
His fists swung relentlessly.
With each blow, blood splattered, and the pristine white snow began to turn crimson.
“Ugh… Die!”
Though occasionally some would charge at him in a daze, it was futile.
“Ether.”
“Kuh!”
Boom!
Without hesitation, Ian attacked those who dared to threaten him.
Ian lightly brushed off the blood of the creature that had disappeared without any form and looked around him indifferently.
“You’re the last one.”
A barbarian cowered in a corner, trembling.
His pupils quivered as if struck by an earthquake, staring at Ian with a small dagger on the ground, clearly indicating a lack of desire to fight.
Although it was clear that he did not want to fight.
‘I don’t plan on saving you because of that.’
Ian had no intention of showing mercy. There was no need for it in the first place.
‘Even if I showed mercy, would these b*stards change?’
Was there any point in sparing them?
‘That’s absurd.’
Ian never thought otherwise.
Those who survived in this hell would harbor resentment towards Volkanov, and that hatred would pass on to their children.
‘And those children will once again attack my family.’
There was no benefit in sparing them. They even tried to manipulate the Northern Winds Lions Knights.
There was no reason to spare those who threatened the knights.
Crack!
“Aaah! Spare me! Spare me!”
The barbarian, sensing death, spoke broken Imperial.
Like a dying insect, he floundered and was thrown towards a tree.
Crunch!
Thud!
With a gruesome sound, he fell to the ground. There was no movement. His skull had been crushed, causing instant death.
“Phew…”
Exhaling a misty breath, Ian looked around.
‘I’ve done quite a lot.’
The stench of blood emanating from the blood-stained ground and corpses tickled his nose.
The Sisyphus Mountains, which boasted a pure white landscape, were stained dark red with blood due to the ice storm.
How should he clean this… It was a moment when his troubled mind continued to worry.
Whoa!
“Hmm… Oh, it’s Eri…”
“There’s too much blood on your hands…. You might get frostbite if you stay outside in this condition.”
Sensation began to return to Ian’s numb hands as a warm sensation spread.
Eri had summoned spirits to cleanse Ian’s hands.
Slosh! Crack!
Using warm water made from a combination of fire and water spirits, she washed his hands, easing her worries.
Her expression relaxed into a smile.
“You must have surprised them running out like that… At least say something.”
“I had no choice. I couldn’t afford to just let the knights scream for help.”
“Still, please say something next time. I worry when you go off alone and something goes wrong.”
‘I’m worried…’
Silently listening to her words, Ian nodded.
Indeed, considering Eri’s position, it must have been a situation that would have driven her mad.
Charging alone into a horde of enemies to save one knight, even in a situation where savages had hostages. It was natural for her to worry.
Yet Ian had his own thoughts.
‘Now that Neltalion has regained his divinity, it doesn’t matter how many barbarians gather.’
In previous cases, it ended with ‘growth’, but this time was different.
If the system was making such a fuss, there had to be a reason for it. Ian thought so.
Ian had wanted to test this power against the barbarians.
‘I performed quite well in the mock combat, after all.’
The power that had allowed him to fight on par with a Master like Alex, despite being only an Expert.
Ian recalled the moment during the mock combat.
‘It was incredible. It felt like a bombardment.’
Even using only a fraction of Neltalion’s newfound power, he had wreaked havoc all around.
‘I wanted to see if this could be possible in reality.”
Unfortunately, using the newly acquired power was out of the question this time.
It was regrettable, but what could be done? He couldn’t just unleash his power in the middle of the mountains.
He would have to settle for testing Lo Aias’s attack reflection.
Just then, as he was thinking this:
“Squad Commander. Vice Commander Ulken has just been transferred below the mountain. There are additional matters that need to be reported.”
Eri, who had been surveying the area, approached.
After taking a deep breath, she cautiously spoke.
“There’s no damage reported to the village as you feared. Knight Ferando, who was on border duty, quickly requested reinforcements, and thanks to Ulken’s control, rapid deployment was possible.”
“That’s fortunate. Ferando… he was one of the knights killed by the barbarians. Find out about his parents. I’ll personally go thank them later.”
“Understood. Also, Ariel Volkanov’s party has been assigned to the area where the barbarians are most concentrated.”
“The most concentrated area?”
Ian asked, and Eri nodded.
“Yes. It was judged that using the Holy Sword’s onslaught could decimate the enemy.”
“I see.”
Certainly, using Ariel to minimize knight casualties while dealing with the savages would be the best option.
Most of the barbarians would be swept away by the onslaught, and the remaining ones wouldn’t escape her party’s bombardment.
‘And she happens to be in a situation where she is feeling a sense of crisis. She will work hard.’
She’s staking her life to become the head of the family, isn’t she? She must work hard to ensure her success and repel the barbarians.
“Understood. Now, let’s gather the bodies of the fallen soldiers and descend from the mountain.”
“Squad Commander… there’s another matter I haven’t mentioned yet.”
“What is it?”
“… According to Ulken, there’s also an outpost near this area.”
“That’s likely. One outpost alone wouldn’t be enough to guard the entire mountain range.”
There were probably outposts placed at regular intervals.
“Is there a problem with the outpost?”
“Yes. Based on the latest information, about 20 knights assigned to border duty have gone missing. Judging from the signs of intense resistance, we should consider the possibility of abduction.”
“Abduction…”
Of course, being captured as prisoners of war was common in war.
However, the reason Eri reacted so seriously was simple.
‘Kikollan barbarians cruelly sacrifice living humans.’
Those who believed demons were their gods had long been known to hunt hunters or villagers below the mountains, kidnapping and murdering them.
‘And those who capture prisoners quickly sacrifice them as offerings.’
If they didn’t quickly identify their headquarters, the knights who fought for their own sake might end up as corpses.
To save the prisoners, they needed to locate the enemy’s headquarters.
Ian was thinking about this when suddenly:
Shi-ick! Pook!
An arrow flew towards his feet.
For a moment, he thought it was an enemy attack, but that thought disappeared when he saw the note tied to the arrow.
“Squad Commander! Are you alright?”
“Don’t worry. It wasn’t aimed at me.”
Considering the circumstances, it was likely that the enemy had shot the arrow to communicate.
Was Ian’s cautious thinking correct?
He carefully unfolded the note and saw a map.
In the center of the map of the Sisyphus Mountain Range was a red circle.
Below it were a few words:
“If you want to save the knights, come here alone… If you bring anyone else, I’ll kill all the hostages.”
After reading the note, Ian calmly folded the map and tucked it into his chest.
Receiving such a note would normally make one’s heart race… but why?
‘If they’re willing to reveal their location themselves…’
It would be best to destroy them.
Upon seeing the enemy reveal their location, Ian couldn’t help but smirk.
