My Villains Episode 394
63. Knights of the Silver Prince (1)
It seems like I’m drowning.
My ears are deaf, my eyelids are heavy, my whole body is floating...
“Ah.”
It’s a dream.
It wasn’t hard to realize where this place was. It’s been almost three months since the quasi-dimensional ‘Dream Territory’ was subjugated to me. In my dreams I am like a god.
I was about to immediately dismantle the dream domain that had been arbitrarily constructed based on my unconsciousness, but I suddenly looked around.
A small playground with fine sand.
It is a very pleasant scenery. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a dream, so it wouldn’t be bad to look around for a while...
“Huh?”
shrill.
I turned around and saw a little girl who was about a head taller than me.
“Uh...
innocence overflows from the wide open eyes. Those clear eyes peer into me.
“why?”
“Are you Seung-soo’s brother?”
“...huh.”
I was wearing a gray jumper with a hood. It’s not expensive, but it’s neat without a single wrinkle.
The child wore a white dress with red and blue petals on it. They must have played so hard that the skirt and the back of their hands and knees are covered with sand.
“Yes.”
After tilting her head for a moment, the child smiled brightly.
“Try it too.”
And points to a small sand house.
The landscape of the playground and the gray jumper become the weft, and the child and the sand house become the warp and become intertwined. The colorful cloth woven like that completes a scene from childhood.
I stared down at the sand house and squatted down.
“How are you doing?”
The child smiled and held out his hand.
“Thick, thick, I’ll give you an old house, give me a new one...
I hum a familiar song as I build a dirt house. Then the child stared into my eyes.
“Why are you back?”
” huh’?”
Again, clear eyes peer into me.
“Your brother got a new house, right? But why did you come back to the old house?”
Noticing the implications of the clear voice, I swallowed my breath.
“You never played. Because you can’t bury it in the dirt.”
“.... .I?”
WO” after.
Faint memories come back.
Moam Wang is a fairy. In other words, a child who lives in a local shaman’s house. For some reason, we are familiar, but I have never talked to
her
.
I turned my head to follow the child’s twirling gaze.
“Hey Kim Seung-soo!”
Another girl, about three or four years older than me, approaches, dangling a bag. It was a nostalgic look, so I opened my mouth to hee.
“Are you playing alone again?”
“alone?”
After a brief glance at her sister, Yeo Ja-ai disappeared, leaving only an old sand house.
Goo Goo Palace.
“......uh.”
The land of dreams, which was arbitrarily decorated with the nourishment of the unconscious, collapsed again. The sand house and playground are gone.
“Ah”
The collapse stopped and restoration began with the belated will. However, the seesaw and swing slide that rose again were not the same as before.
As time engulfed the playground, Seung-soo, wearing a gray jumper, became Phoenix with a sword.
I couldn’t help but close my eyes. The gaze directed inward scans the unconscious.
In late February, drizzling rain fell in Obdorf, bordering the Kingdom of Milanol. The wide grasslands unique to the eastern part of the empire were soaked in water and darkened.
It would have been a very peaceful landscape. It would have been if it hadn’t been for the 2,000 large and small military tents spread out around a low hill.
In the deepest part of the countless military tents lined up in rows, stood a majestic tent that could have been as high as 45 meters.
A ferocious shout erupted from the tent boasting a luxurious yellow color.
“These idiots-!”
About twenty men and women, young and old, dressed in fancy clothes and armor, bowed their heads. He looked nervous or frightened, as if the person sitting in the seat of honor was a fire-breathing dragon.
“It wouldn’t be enough to sweep the entire west side right now, but I’m desperately trying to get past that one tiny city!”
The middle-aged man, sitting on a chair with a high back, pounded the table with his words pouring out like a rapid-fire cannon.
“And what now? Is supply at stake? under! It’s amazing how incompetent it is, it’s terrifying! It’s terrifying!”
The tall man wore a long coat with a breastplate that glittered in silver. A total of six jewel rings were worn on both hands, and a belt, boots, and pendants that could be immediately recognized as magical tools by just looking at the subtle glow were worn.
“It has come to this point because there are only incompetent little men around me who cannot handle even a handful of cavalrymen! Didn’t you learn a lesson even though you made salted fish and served the nasty mercenary captains!”
Bang bang bang!
Each time a pot lid-like hand struck the table, those who bowed their heads shook their shoulders. The red-faced middle-aged man continued to swear.
“I couldn’t catch ‘Red Knight’, I couldn’t catch ‘Giant Knight’, I couldn’t catch ‘Red Bear’, and I couldn’t even catch ‘Wanger’! What the heck are imperial knights supposed to do!”
Few of those gathered at the tent were non-noble, but none had the courage to speak back to the middle-aged man’s rants.
“Please someone tell me what is the problem! Was your mother raped by a goblin? Or is your head full of shit instead of brains? Tell me, you assholes, maggots!” The lord of the five provinces, including Topal, is the head of the Strom family with a history of 400 years, and the anger of the middle-aged man, who is called the most powerful elector of the empire, was just as frightening.
“Yes, he must be full of thoughts of going back to his house as soon as possible and sucking on his concubines! You guys are wives, concubines, and all of them don’t even know that you’re playing with goblin bastards who look just like you!”
The Duke of Avillambus began to catch his breath only after being in a frenzy for a long time.
“Whoa Whoa Whoa!”
As soon as he showed signs of calming down, the man sitting in the front row among the commanders who had been keeping a side eye on him quickly opened his mouth.
“I apologize.”
“...Sorry? apologize?”
“Yes, Your Highness. Feeling responsible, I would even offer the head of this incompetent person if you would allow it. In this way, please establish strict military discipline and prepare the battle lines.”
“...the words are always smooth. Then, do you think it wouldn’t be a dog’s death if the head was really cut off?” Although it was sarcastic, the duke did not order the commander, who finally spoke out, to be truthful. This is because ‘Captain Buakan’ is a vassal who has served the Strom family for the fifth generation, and the Duke regards him as a friend.
“To alleviate your concern,”
the duke seemed to have softened a little, as if a boiling kettle cooled down. Then Captain Buakan kept his head down and continued.
“For now, the cavalrymen engaging in guerrilla warfare in the rear will be cleared sooner or later
.”
“The Dragon Knights should be ashamed. The self-proclaimed ‘knights of the sky who rule the sky’ couldn’t catch a single cavalryman who crawled on the ground.”
“The giant knight is going through the swamps and forests and is struggling with the cavalry, but eventually his strength will run out. As you said, there are only a handful of troops, so leave the tracking to the Dragon Knights and secure the supply route, but this will naturally be resolved.”
The duke crossed his arms without speaking, and the captain continued his speech.
“Although our troops have been damaged in the battles, our army still has well over 10,000 and our morale is strong. On the other hand, the enemy lost 20% there while the troops were already insignificant, and the castle was also seriously damaged-” “Are you
kidding me right now? Are you bragging that you caused only that much damage while losing more than 3,000 troops?”
Just as the Duke’s voice was about to rise again, Captain Buakan lowered his head even deeper.
“Apart from troops and fortresses, haven’t our troops reaped great results by relying on His Majesty the Duke’s strategy?”
“...the silver prince?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Duke Avillambus leaned his chin crookedly and narrowed his brows.
“Isn’t the blood of the tyrannical wretch of the Zeore family flowing in him? He’s not the kind of guy who’s going to get knocked over by a mere fling.”
“I also don’t think Prince Eun is very dead. However, there are intelligence reports that not only the enemy’s military spirit is shaken, but even Prince Eun’s aides are shaken.”
“Do you believe that?”
“Since the four Sejak who entered High Castle through different routes are saying the same thing, I don’t think it is baseless spying. At least, it is certain that something has happened to the silver prince.”
Duke Avillambus clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“A writer who has been in the military all his life is naive and falls for it. The silver prince is a con artist who is good at all sorts of tricks. He must be hiding in the depths of the city by now, plotting dirty tricks.”
“Of course it could be, but there are other sources of information that are quite reliable besides the Sejaks.”
“A reliable source?”
“I gave you a report a few days ago, do you remember? A young guy carrying a blind old man on his back and surrendering.”
“...that’s what happened.”
“I found out who they are.”
As the duke raised one of his eyebrows, Captain Buakan smiled.
“You’re so confident. Who the hell are you?”
“The old man’s name is Ariad.”
“...Ariad?”
“The silver prince’s viper.”
The dull peacock’s eyes widened in an instant.