Chapter 450 The War Begins (End)

Spurt!

Blood churned out of August's mouth as he held onto the grey short sword piercing his chest. Trying his best to pull it out of his chest, he noticed how weak he had become. He couldn't muster up Mana any longer, which means his Magic Circles were already destroyed. It was shocking for him, yet his shock didn't last long since he knew he was going to die.

Thud!

He dropped to his knees. His blood splattered to the ground, tainting it with red. Looking at the drop of blood that was slowly falling to the ground made him think about his choices. He was presented with two major choices in the past: perish with his brother or betray his brother to prosper. He chose the latter and he wondered now if that was a good choice.

He knew he regretted the decision as soon as he made it, yet he only felt that it would be good if he could turn back time at this moment. He was only made aware of how much he wanted to right the wrong when he was already in front of the death's door.

"This is his ash…isn't it?" he asked softly.

"Indeed."

"Who cremated him—you?"

"Who else would it be?"

"Indeed…"

August looked up at Basil, wondering what the Fated Child would do. It seemed to him that what Basil saw in his memories had affected Basil greatly since the way Basil looked at him was different. He could now see the hatred in Basil's eyes. It was strange, yet he felt disappointed that it wasn't directed at him.

Looking at Basil with a 'kill me' look, August urged Basil to end his pathetic life. It was extremely shocking for him that the Fated Child ignored him and walked away. He wanted to call Basil, yet he could only cough up the blood clogging up his throat. He wanted to stand and run after Basil, yet he had lost so much blood that he could barely move.

With his hand extended to the front, trying to grasp Basil's figure, August gradually lost his vision. The world darkened as everything blurred. He felt lightheaded and soon lost control of his body. When he completely lost his vision, his surroundings became quiet. Thus, August Rancuser parted from the world.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Basil stopped in his tracks to look at the body of the pathetic Rancuser for the last time. The Rancuser didn't know what he was doing in the past and Basil abhorred people like him most.

"At least, if you want to be a villain, commit to it. There is no one more disdainful than he who puts his feet on two different sides," he stated as if the dead Rancuser could hear him.

Shaking his head faintly as he turned his head back to the front, he snapped his fingers. Dantalion appeared on his side in the blink of an eye. He glanced at her once and she immediately knew what she wanted her to do. Looking at August's body with a smirk, she stored it and then left with Basil.

As the two were rushing into Grittenhein to find the leader of the army—Gerhard and Archibald—on a certain part of Grittenhein, Anthony, Ordella and her squad stood silently before a three-storey building. Standing before them was Gerhard, who was choking a little girl with his left hand.

"You have become soft, Anthony. If it were the previous you, I am sure you wouldn't hesitate to cut me along with this girl," the King of Vallienda remarked. "Has properly becoming a father made you more in touch with your humanity?"

"You bastard…. I wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone from this Kingdom if it was still in the past. Everything has changed now. Grittenhein is my ally, so Manfred's people are my people too. I can't let my urge to kill you end the lives of the girl and the elders in the building."

"Hoh? You know me well, don't you?"

Anthony couldn't help gritting his teeth upon seeing Gerhard's provocative smirk. Gerhard had a [Teleportation] Circle ready yet he didn't use it; instead, he held the girl and the elders in the building behind him hostage. It was clear that he was stalling for time, yet Anthony couldn't know what for.

"You know…it was pretty rough gathering these elderly people. The citizens prioritized them so much that I wish I was an elderly person in this Kingdom."

"Every elderly person in Grittenhein has done their best for the Kingdom. It is the least courtesy to treat them with respect and let them have a peaceful right," Anthony replied, telling Gerhard about the custom of Grittenhein.

"Hoh? You have learnt your lesson well, haven't you?" Gerhard smirked. "I wonder what kind of people you would prioritize should you still have your Kingdom."

Anthony clicked his tongue when a group of Paladins surrounded him, Ordella and her squad. He instantly knew Gerhard wouldn't let them attack the Paladins.

"Ah, please tell the beautiful Elves that they are not allowed to harm the Paladins," Gerhard remarked, true to Anthony's expectation. "If you insist, these useless lumps of meat will die."

Ordella, who was about to draw her dagger, stopped herself. She frowned heavily as she turned to Anthony, asking how they should proceed with her eyes.

Gesturing for her to stay put, for the time being, Anthony turned to Gerhard and said, "What do you want, Gerhard?"

"Oh, you finally asked the question! I have been dying to hear it." Gerhard hummed to himself for a few seconds before continuing, "You know, I am quite curious how it feels to mingle with an Elf. My Paladin friends are too, I believe, so will you be kind enough to…you know?"

Gerhard knew what he was doing from the way he smirked. Anthony didn't need to think twice about whom he should side with; for him, the dignity of the Elves, his ally, was more important than the lives of the civilians of Grittenhein.

He looked into the building and saw the faces of the elderly people in it. All of them were frowning, yet none of them was worried about their lives. They were looking at the girl, hoping that someone would save her from her misery. Then, their heads turned to Anthony. When their gaze met, they nodded their heads with a smile.

Anthony bit his lower lip and clenched his fists tightly. Exhaling softly afterwards, he drew his sword.

When he was about to kick the ground, someone stopped him. "He will win no matter what we choose. Therefore, let us choose the one that saves a lot of people." Turning his head, he found out it was Ordella with her hood pulled down, showcasing her extraordinary beauty.

Phew…

One of the Paladins whistled, intensifying Anthony's urge to cut Gerhard's neck. He put his sword down and gazed silently at Ordella. She was older than him, yet she looked just as young as his daughter whom he hadn't met for decades. Imagining what the Paladins and Gerhard would do to her, his fatherly instinct was provoked.

"Fuck it! I will—"

"You seem to have a great show here."

Anthony was interrupted by a familiar cold voice. Everyone instinctively turned to the person who just spoke and found Basil with the bloodied Archibald in his grasp and the alluring Dantalion hovering above him.

Thud!

He threw the barely conscious Archibald on the ground before Gerhard. He then swung Durendal without hesitation, bisecting the Paladins even before they could blink their eyes. Anthony's eyes widened and Gerhard's grip on the little girl's neck tightened. Both of them wondered if Basil understood the situation at all.

"You shouldn't hide behind a piece of meat if you don't want to die," Basil remarked as twenty swords floated behind him.

"W-Wait! Don't you understand what is going on here!?"

"Do I look like I care?"

"Madness! You are going to kill the thousands of people hiding in the bunker below if you remain acting recklessly!" Gerhard shouted, bewildered.

Basil quirked his eyebrow and hummed to himself for a few seconds. "So, be it." He shrugged. "They won't help me much even if they are alive either way." Smirking, he added, "Besides, their deaths will reduce the number of food we should waste. It is a good thing to happen."

"D-Don't you care about your alliance with Grittenhein?" Gerhard spouted as he took a step back.

"Do you think I can't do anything without its help? I can erase this place off the map right here right now by myself."

After saying this, Basil's Pacifer Seal glowed brightly. Gerhard didn't dilly-dally any longer; he stopped playing and decided to teleport out of the Kingdom. He was soon horrified, however, since he found he couldn't use the [Teleportation] Circle that he had carved. As he looked down, he found Archibald's body faintly emitting golden light.

His expression darkened and he immediately tested the Rune that he had carved to blow up the building behind him and the bunker below. When he found it no longer active, he immediately understood what happened.

Using Archibald's body as a medium, Basil carved a [Neutralizing] Rune on Archibald's body. It was an unthinkably brilliant and cruel method that he had never expected to see.

"In that case, I will just—"

"Next time, don't hold people hostage. It doesn't work on people like me who are stronger than you."

Gerhard was stunned silence when his deed was interrupted by Basil. Glancing briefly at his hand before looking up at Basil, he found the girl no longer in his grasp. Smiling stupidly in disbelief, he half-heartedly cast [Teleportation]. He didn't wish for him to succeed since it wouldn't take him far away from Basil, yet he was disappointed that he failed.

"Heuk!"

Basil's fist passed through his chest, causing him to groan in pain. Being a Mage, he had an extremely low pain tolerance. The sheer pain almost made him lose consciousness; he wondered how he could even stay alive.

Splatter!

Coughing up a mouthful of blood, he asked, "What are you?"

"I wonder about that too," Basil answered with a slightly tilted head.

"Who are you?"

Pausing for a few seconds, Basil answered, "A vengeful spirit."

Finding the answer equally terrifying and amusing, Gerhard chuckled. He coughed up more blood as the result; he keeled over and then died due to blood loss.

Ignoring the body afterwards, Basil walked at Archibald. Without hesitation, he stomped on Archibald's head, turning it into a mix of red paste and white powder. He then took out his Transmission Talisman and informed his Shadows that it was time. No one dared to make a noise as he did all of this.

"It has finally ended, huh?" Anthony remarked to break the ice.

Turning to Anthony, without skipping a beat, Basil retorted, "No. It has just finally begun—our war against the world."

This was the moment when they knew that they would see far crazier things in the future.