CH 98

“I surrender.” 

“I will follow Your Highness.”

Bahara soldiers recognized it faster than anyone else. Beating Ian was, of course, out of the question. The strongest among them was Yamanta. That’s why he ended up so miserably like that.

As a Bahara person who worshipped the strong, they had no choice but to admit it quickly. 

Quite naturally, Kaistein’s side was also surprised.

Nathan, in particular, looked speechless. 

‘He defeated that Yamanta so easily?’

It wasn’t just because Ian was powerful.

His appearance a moment ago was clearly different from usual. No, Nathan could picture a man on Ian’s back.

‘It was definitely Galon. It was as if he and His Highness had become one.’ 

And at last, a light, resembling the dawn breaking the night, rose from Ian’s body. It was a bright light that was clearly different from the bonfires ignited to light up the surroundings.

Even Galon was surprised and his eyes were wide open. 

What on earth was that prince? 

Naturally, Nathan couldn’t contain his curious gaze. 

On the other hand, Fiosen was speechless in a different sense. 

‘I can’t believe he took over this place so easily.’ 

His eyes were filled with remorse. 

How many soldiers had fallen to take this place thus far.  

In particular, the sacrifice of Lavaltor, whose location was closest to Bahara, was enormous. No matter how excellent Duke Lavaltor was, he was not immortal. 

Countless blood had been spilled here due to its natural terrain and traps.

However, Fiosen had been watching closely from the sidelines.

What kind of “magic” Ian did. 

‘General Yamanta is admittedly strong, but he’s impatient.’

Until now, Yamanta had appropriately taken advantage of the Molar Castle’s location and traps and put good use of his personality to the fullest. Thanks to this, the Molar Castle could boast of an impregnable defense, like a shield against a spear.

But this time, it was different.

It was because he was utterly trampled by Ian’s provocation tactic.

‘Actually, it’s the same for everyone.’ 

A kid who hadn’t even had his coming-of-age ceremony yet.  

What if such a person had a drinking party without any preparation in front of their castle?

It would have felt like an intolerable insult to those who had been on the battlefield all their lives.

What if Yamanta hadn’t heard from Ian that there was a man with such outstanding martial arts as Duke Lavaltor or the Third Prince? 

‘He would have known about it if the rumors of Galon competing with the Guardian had spread.’

However, there was no way that the rumor had already spread in Bahara, which did not have much interaction with Kaistein.

That was why Yamanta and the Molar Castle were taken down helplessly. 

Sure, it might look easy. 

But it was anything but easy. 

‘By pretending to have a drinking party, he put the enemy off guard. Moreover, he thoroughly got rid of the scouts, making it impossible for them to glean the situation on our side.’ 

To top it all off, the Second Princess and Lord Huntill’s skills were excellent. 

They set up such an enormous trap invisible with less than a thousand soldiers, and even then, they only moved in the evening so that the opponent would not notice.

What’s surprising was that Ian already knew their skills and thus entrusted the job to them as if it was the most natural thing to do. 

Fiosen asked why he put so much trust in them, but Ian didn’t give him an answer.  

‘That’s how the fight began, and once again, His Highness won.’ 

And currently, Ian was shouting at the soldiers. 

“Free the captive! Get treatment regardless of who is injured! I will allow it!” 

At his order, the soldiers quickly freed the captured Bahara soldiers.

The prince seemed to have expected this to happen.

Ian had ordered treatment regardless of whether it was Bahara or Kaistein soldiers. Kaistein had no casualties anyway, so the wounded on Bahara’s side were busy thanking Ian for his benevolence.

Ian’s actions didn’t stop at that.

“From now on, those here will unite under my banner! I will not allow any dissatisfaction!”

As a result, in no time, Ian’s troop had more than 15,000 men. 

Not ending with that.  

Ian took out real alcohol from among the items he had been supplied with.

“Everybody, go into the castle! Today is the first day the two countries became one! Drink up and get some rest! It will be tough starting tomorrow.”

“Whooaaahh!” 

Every single one of the soldiers cheered.

Kaistein soldiers, who pretended to be drunk from the watered-down alcohol, hugged the Bahara soldiers next to them.

Ian sent the soldiers to the castle and called the Second Princess. 

“Sister, I have something to tell you.” 

“Say it.” 

She was also astonished by Ian’s performance, but she had cleared up her expression before anyone noticed. 

Ian whispered in her ear. 

“From now on, I want you to make the defense here more thorough. Please reinforce the traps in particular.”

“Haven’t we already occupied this place? We’ll pass this place anyway, so why…”

Ian merely smiled.  

‘In the future, this stronghold will become more important, not just for the Northern Expedition.’ 

It’s a must for Ian. 

This would be the greatest first step to living on his own initiative, unlike his previous life. 

Thus, he calmly spoke to the Second Princess. 

“It is absolutely necessary. Oh! And with the addition of troops, we also need more supplies. Here are the new items to order.” 

The Second Princess broke out in a cold sweat after seeing the new list. 

It listed dozens of items, not just one or two. In addition, there were a lot of items that even she could not supply.

A grunt naturally escaped her lips. 

“Do you think I only work here? You seem to have forgotten that I’m in charge of the supply of the entire army. Even if I manage to get all these items…”

“Still, please hurry up, Sister.” 

“It’s not enough for you to make this sister work all night, and you’re trying to make her work again.” 

“Isn’t that a natural virtue as a monarch?” 

“Virtue as a monarch?” 

“To trust and entrust his subject. Since my sister wants to become a chancellor in the future, I will treat you as such.”

“…” 

The Second Princess was at a loss for words. 

But she had no choice but to do what Ian wanted. It was clear that she would have to hurry a bit to meet his desired date.

“You keep overworking me after baiting me with the chancellor’s seat.”

“Doesn’t that show how much I trust your skills?” 

“Some trust…” 

The Second Princess shook her head and called Lord Huntill. 

“Sir Huntill, we must hurry.” 

“We will get ready right away, Your Highness.” 

The Second Princess, who did a perfect job as the next chancellor, and the rugged officer Huntill strangely matched well. Ian was just curious. 

‘Who the hell is Zabeth Huntill?’ 

Could it be that the two were actually getting married?

No wonder Ian was intrigued. There was a vast difference in status between Sir Huntill, who rose to the knight position after enlisting as a soldier from a commoner background, and the Second Princess.  

It was a relationship that could not be attained simply by love. 

But now he had more important work left to do. 

Woong! 

After defeating Yamanta, Faith was blazing up in his body. Ian felt like his body was really on fire, along with the sensation of molting and evolving to the next stage.

Ian hurriedly entered the castle.

To entrust himself to this blossoming Faith. 

Unlike his previous life, he would be reborn anew. 

*** 

“Congratulations, Your Highness.” 

“What’s the congratulation for? You’ve been through a lot too, Marquis.”

The First Princess and Marquis Adelas were complimenting each other. It was because she fought against Bahara’s troops and achieved quite good results.

She succeeded in capturing a small fortress in a valley.

“We suffered some casualties, but that’s a modest loss compared to Your Highness’s performance. If we keep this up, the competition will end with the victory of the First Princess.”

It was no wonder the two were having a toast.

They had heard that the Third Prince, whom they needed to keep in check the most, retreated without fighting due to a sudden ambush on the plains. They hadn’t heard anything from Ian yet.

“There is nothing he can do against the Molar Castle guarded by Yamanta.”

“That’s a very unjust thing to say. Compared to Your Highness, the Seventh Prince is still a child. He may have made a mistake due to his inexperience. Hahaha!”

As they were having a pleasant laugh. 

“Your Highness! It’s a messenger! An urgent dispatch has come!” 

Upon hearing the sudden news, the First Princess could hardly believe her ears. No, she shook Marquis Adelas’ body next to her. She was surprised, asking if she had heard it right.

“What? What did you say just now! Marquis Adelas, say it again!”

“Th-that is…” 

But it sounded as ridiculous to Marquis Adelas as well. 

“It is reported that the Seventh Prince has taken over the Molar Castle.” 

“Is… is that a place you can seize just because you want to?”

If it had been that easy, she would have gone herself.

However, because of its characteristic as a natural fortress and the traps, it was a place she did not dare to venture out.

Furthermore, even if they forcibly occupied it, it meant nothing if they lost most of their troops. 

Only superficial merit would they get, and all capabilities for the succession war would be lost.

But what had the youngest done? 

“He’s said to have accomplished the difficulty.” 

“…” 

The First Princess squeezed her hands so hard that color drained off her skin. 

“Ha… So, what about the damage to our allies?”

She cast a look hoping that everyone was dead. 

‘He’s too good. I should get him eliminated here at least.’

Driving someone with no troops into a trap and sending him to death was nothing short of a piece of cake. But even so, the truth had not changed.

“Not a single person was injured, Your Highness…” 

“!?” 

She thought it was a joke at first. 

However, such thoughts only lasted a few seconds after seeing Adelas’ serious expression, which practically confirmed that it was indeed the truth.

The First Princess rose from her seat with determined eyes. 

“I will have to check with my own eyes.” 

She was supposed to visit in a few days to inspect the supplies anyway.

She should be able to pull some strings a little bit.

“Who’s out there?! Get ready to leave now.” 

“Your Highness!” 

“The marquis will be in charge of this place for the time being. The battle is in a lull anyway, but unless a major problem comes up, you can maintain this situation.” 

Bahara’s counterattack was fiercer than she expected. Although she succeeded in occupying the fortress, they threatened to make another raid any minute. It was unsure how the marquis would fare in offense, but he should be capable enough in defense. 

What mattered to the First Princess now was the truthfulness of the messenger, not her scores. 

Were there even a hint of lies mixed in, she would slash his neck without hesitation. 

And so, she hurriedly mounted her horse. 

“Let’s go!” 

But something unexpected happened. 

Du du du du du— 

The First Princess, who had been running for a while, spotted a group of cavalrymen heading somewhere like her.

That was Louis, the Third Prince. 

The First Princess hid her surprise and opened her mouth. 

“Where are you going in such a hurry?” 

“And how about you, Sister, where are you going?” 

The Third Prince looked wary. But after noticing that the First Princess’s troop was light, he flashed a fishy smile. 

“Are you going to the youngest, too?” 

“…” 

Unlike the First Princess who had the pretext of visiting a military base, the Third Prince had no particular reason to be there. So, the First Princess gave Louis a slightly suspicious look.

“You, on the other hand, are leaving your post during a war. Even if you are my own younger brother, you must be strictly disciplined according to military law.”

“Don’t be like that, Sister. I am also visiting for official business.”

“What? I never gave you such an order…” 

“You may be the supreme commander, but do we need to take your orders to move between ourselves?” 

Between fellow successors eyeing the same throne? 

At Louis’ words, the First Princess pressed her lips tight. Unlike other younger siblings, the Third Prince was always difficult to handle. No, she had to be sharp. 

She should never have made that slip of the tongue. 

It was like that just now. 

If she didn’t acknowledge his words, she had to take responsibility for all that happened to him.  

‘If I admit that, it will be like giving him the green light to operate independently.’

So, the First Princess couldn’t come up with any reply.

It would not work in her favor. Then, there was only one thing she could do in this situation.

“That mountain is where the youngest is.” 

“Are you changing the subject, Sister?”

“Didn’t you come to see the youngest too? Hurry up. We’re still at war, you know? Do you want to be struck by a blind arrow?”

“I’m afraid I will get stabbed in the back before that.”

“…” 

The First Princess did not reply again this time. 

It was when the two people and their respective troops arrived at the Molar Castle. 

“No, this!” 

“Don’t tell me… It’s a trap!” 

Their expressions changed drastically. 

It was inevitable. Obviously, they did not see any reconnaissance troops or traps until they reached the Molar Castle. 

However, an unbelievable situation was now unfolding at the Molar Castle.

Guarding the castle were Bahara soldiers clad in leather outfits. 

They were aiming their bows at the two. 

“Enemies!”

“Everyone, raise your bow! Kill the enemy!” 

The First Princess and Louis were unaware of it because there was no trap. Sweating bullets, the two prepared to make their escape.

‘I should have gotten out of here a little sooner.’ 

‘Shit. Could it be that he lost the castle again in the meantime? Then, where is the youngest now?’

But it was then. 

“What are you all doing! Put down your bows!”

“But the enemy…” 

“Who is the enemy to whom! Have you forgotten that now you follow Kaistein’s His Highness Ian!”

“We… we apologize.” 

One of Kaistein’s knights was rebuking Bahara soldiers in anger.

It was Nathan.

For a moment, the First Princess was glad to see him. But first, a question popped up in her mind. 

‘I heard they took over the Molar Castle, but I can’t believe they left the castle gate to the Bahara soldiers.’

Wasn’t that like entrusting fish to a cat?

But that was just the beginning.

“His Highness is here.”

The moment she saw Ian sitting on the seat of the lord of the Molar Castle, she couldn’t help getting more shocked. 

It was no wonder.

‘Th… that guy?’ 

Galon wasn’t the only one guarding Ian’s side. The man following behind him was none other than Bahara’s Bulwark, Yamanta. 

“How dare you come with a weapon in front of my lord! Throw it away at once!”

He pressured the two of them with a glare as ferocious as a volcano.

No, he sent a glare overflowing with bloodthirst to everyone who followed the First Princess and the Third Prince. 

Ian was seated on the chair, his figure imposing as if he was his real master.

“Welcome, Sister. And Brother.” 

Ian greeted them with a relaxed smile, rendering the two at a loss for words.