A Mage Reborn: Legacy of the Fallen Emperor
Chapter 39. The Beginning of Battle

Chapter 39: Chapter 39. The Beginning of Battle

"Ugh...blegh!"

Beric, startled awake, retched violently. Ian, who had been reading nearby, watched him, handing him a cup of water.

When they had returned to the barracks, Beric was, as the healer had put it, barely clinging to consciousness. Considering the hole punched through his body, even that was a miracle.

"Are you alright?"

"My stomach’s churning..."

"But why?"

"I don’t know. Did the healer slip something in the medicine?"

With each passing hour, Beric’s condition improved at an astonishing rate. He still couldn’t get out of bed, but judging by his tone and attitude, it seemed he was out of the woods.

"Can you straighten your back?"

"Can’t even feel it. Should I try?"

"No. You might tear your wound."

"Ugh. What kind of herbs did they stuff in here?" Beric grumbled, disgusted by the feel of the plant residue on his fingertips.

Ian studied him carefully, holding the empty cup. He knew that magic swordsmen had superior combat prowess and regenerative abilities compared to ordinary humans. He knew that, but...

’Was it always this extreme?’

The speed of his recovery was beyond surprising; it was downright miraculous. Even the healer seemed shocked, so this couldn’t be normal, even for the Cheonryeo tribe.

"Beric, do you remember your parents’ faces?"

"Huh? Yeah, I do. They’re all dead, but I remember them."

He wasn’t a foundling from birth, so he clearly remembered his mother and father’s faces. He also vividly retained the more unsavory memories that could hardly be called ’reminiscences.’

Beric’s answer further plunged Ian into a state of confusion. If he had said he didn’t know, Ian could at least suspect that he had some non-human blood mixed in.

"...I did," Beric muttered while Ian was lost in thought.

"Should’ve stabbed him in both sides. Fucking bastard, putting a hole in my side and then dying peacefully. What was his name? Bel?"

Beric seemed resentful that they had only managed to trade blows. Bel was dead, and he was alive, so why was he so upset? When Ian nodded slightly, Beric ground his teeth even harder.

"Those knight bastards, never around when you need them. I guess they did train, though. Anyway, when are we going back to Bratz?"

"Soon. It could be as early as tomorrow."

"Huh. Now that’s some welcome news."

"The Central Army is on its way, and we’ve received intelligence that Derga has rallied his troops. Ssu sends us information from the borderlands, but it’s not in real-time, so we don’t have the full picture. That’s why we’re leaving as soon as possible."

"Good, good. It’s too damn hot here."

"Beric, I don’t think we can take you."

"What?! Why?!"

Beric whipped his head around, then instinctively clutched his side. That was precisely why. It was a wound deep enough to be fatal for an ordinary person.

"You can’t even walk."

"I’ll probably be able to walk by tomorrow."

"Walking isn’t enough. You need to be able to wield a sword. Stay here and focus on your recovery until things in Bratz are settled."

"No!"

Beric shouted as soon as Ian finished, but then immediately curled up in pain.

"Ah, shit..."

"It’s not up for debate."

"What the? You’re just using me and throwing me away. Shameless, traitor, piece of shit."

Ian smiled faintly as Beric bit his lip, looking exactly like a stubborn child.

"If you’re worried about the owner of the tavern you frequented, I can look into it separately."

He had told them to quit their jobs at the estate before leaving, but he didn’t know if Hannah and the other servants had actually done so. When the fighting started, they would probably seek refuge near the bank, an implicitly neutral zone. At Ian’s reassurance, Beric scoffed.

"It’s not that."

"Then what is it?"

"The Central Army! The Count’s private soldiers! And even the Cheonryeo are getting involved in a proper battle, and you want me to just sit here and suck my thumb? Come on, that’s not fair!"

The war cries on the battlefield, the satisfying feel of his sword slicing through flesh, the thrill of dancing on the edge of life and death — he had been waiting for all of it.

"Absolutely not. No arguments. Carry me if you have to. Honestly, you and I, huh? Aren’t we like master and disciple? How can a teacher abandon his student!"

"Beric, this is quite surprising. Treating your teacher like this. Strictly speaking, it’s a master-servant relationship... but that’s equally surprising."

"You said you’d let me use magic! Every day is precious!"

"Don’t you remember?"

"Remember what? If you’re going to change the subject..."

"When you fought Bel, you used magic on your own."

"...Who did?"

"You did."

Beric just blinked at Ian’s words. Judging by the look of utter disbelief on his face, it was clear he had blacked out during parts of the fight.

Ian smiled and straightened his blanket, then noticed Nehr-Sahrn entering the tent.

"Lord Ian."

"Lord Nehr-Sahrn."

"Outside, for a moment."

They hurried outside, where Kakantir was burying his face in a hawk’s neck. He took a deep breath, and the pungent smell of blood filled the air.

"The timing is perfect."

"Lord Kakantir?"

"Lord Ian, Derga has successfully surrounded the estate with his private soldiers. The investigation team seems to be holding out, probably waiting for the Central Army and looking for an opportunity."

"The investigation team is just an advance party sent ahead for reconnaissance. They wouldn’t be able to handle a full-scale assault. The Central Army should be arriving soon, too."

"The problem is the sentiment of the local populace."

"The populace?"

Kakantir nodded briefly at Ian’s question.

"They’ve gathered around the center of the province and taken up arms."

"Ah. That’s because the bank is there."

"The bank?"

Ian, who had tensed up, let out a sigh of relief. If there was internal strife among them, it would be difficult to read the situation. A three-way battle was one thing, but a four-way battle would increase the uncertainty exponentially.

"It’s the Hyman Bank, which handles Barielle’s financial infrastructure. There’s at least one branch in every region. It’s probably the Dion branch."

"We’re not familiar with the areas behind Bratz."

"There was a rebellion in Dion once, and the bank was completely destroyed in the chaos. As a result, Hyman Bank refused to do business with anyone involved in the Dion rebellion."

The rebels were forced to conduct all their economic activities in cash, even for the assets they had deposited. They had to carry hundreds of kilograms of coins or face the risk of losing everything without a trace.

"Hyman is the only banking family in Barielle. The rebels had no other options. This caused the rebellion to lose steam within a few years, and Barielle successfully suppressed it."

"So the bank is considered a sanctuary."

"That’s right. Along with the temple, it’s an inviolable territory. That’s why the locals have flocked there."

This meant that the bloodshed in Bratz was going to be significant. Ian continued gravely.

"We need to hurry. The locals who aren’t under the bank’s protection will eventually side with Derga."

The heart of Barielle was the Imperial Palace, but the heart of Bratz was Derga. The Count’s private soldiers were their families, neighbors, and friends. As their home was destroyed, their desire to return to their former lives would only grow stronger.

"We’re entering Barielle."

"We’re going back to Barielle."

Kakantir and Ian spoke simultaneously, and their subordinates, including Nehr-Sahrn, burst into laughter. The two men exchanged glances again and repeated the same words.

"Tomorrow."

"What about Merelophe?"

"They refused to even accept our letter."

"Those bastards. This is why you can’t trust merchants."

Derga ground his teeth, thinking of Count Merelophe, his neighbor. Like Derga, who was responsible for the border, Merelophe also had a role to play.

However, unlike Bratz, which was in conflict with the Cheonryeo tribe, Merelophe served as a trading post with the foreign kingdom of Hawan.

"Their soldiers are worthless anyway. They’re all involved in commerce, so their workers are useless, too. Once we crush the Central Army and declare independence, we should just take them over."

Deo muttered as he wiped the blood from his sword. Once they declared independence, they would inevitably have to absorb neighboring territories to expand their domain. Count Merelophe’s choice was understandable, but Derga felt a sense of betrayal.

Even if he didn’t send troops, he could have at least tried to mediate, but Merelophe was pretending not to notice, not even glancing in their direction, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire.

"Break it down! Bring a bigger tree!"

"Soak the arrowheads in oil! Light them!"

"Fire! Keep firing!"

"Come out, you bastards!"

"Advance! Keep advancing!"

"Argh!"

Thud! Thud!

He had only ever thought about fighting the Cheonryeo tribe, not about having to besiege his own estate. Derga was furious at the lack of siege weapons, but he kept ordering his men to fire flaming arrows.

Boooom. Boooom.

Then, a deep horn blast echoed through Bratz. Everyone froze and turned around. On the distant horizon, something was swarming like ants. It was the Central Army, carrying the Imperial banner. Derga frowned and urged his soldiers even more fiercely.

"Hurry! Hurry!"

"Dig the trenches deeper, from one end to the other!"

"Block the bridges leading this way!"

"Faster, faster!"

The people inside the estate must have realized that the Central Army had arrived, because they finally reacted. The Bratz banner was lowered, and the Imperial Investigation Team’s banner was raised.

"Those bastards..."

Derga felt like his reason was about to snap from the boiling rage. He would kill them all. He would burn alive every outsider who had dared to invade his territory.

"Let’s go! Kill them all!"

"Stay close to the high ground!"

"Kill them all!"

They had lived here their entire lives. They knew the terrain like the back of their hand. Even against the Central Army, this knowledge gave them a significant advantage in battle.

Whoooosh.

Giant hawks circled high above the Bratz territory. But the soldiers were too busy looking at the enemy soldiers to notice them, and only the locals who were looking up at the sky saw the hawks.

"Let us in! Open the bank doors!"

"Stop pushing!"

"Hey! I work here! You bastards!"

"What are you talking about, you’re just a cleaner? Get lost!"

"Help! They say the Central Army killed everyone at the estate! They burned them alive! They said they’d tear us limb from limb when the army arrived!"

"Aaaah! Don’t step on me!"

The desperate cries of the locals trying to enter the inviolable sanctuary of the Hyman Bank echoed throughout Portroga. Those who couldn’t leave their homes could only lock their doors and pray.

"Sister."

"Yes?"

Hannah, who had been praying with her hands clasped together, opened her eyes at her younger sibling’s call. A ray of light streamed in through a tiny gap. Her innocent younger sibling muttered in wonder.

"It’s a really big bird."

"A bird..."

Hannah also looked up at the sky. The sense of familiarity. Hannah soon realized that it was the same Cheonryeo bird she had seen at the estate.