Milton moved immediately to seize the rare opportunity in front of him.
âI have to kill him.â
Now that Siegfried fell for the trap, Milton had the chance to completely kill him. If he missed this chance, heâll most likely deeply regret and resent the missed opportunity for eternity.[1]
âAs long as he dies, we can deal with the rest of the Republic slowly.â
Even if they couldnât protect the Meichi Castle, it was fine. No, even if they werenât able to annex the western regions of the Valence Kingdom, it would be fine. As long as he could cut off Siegfriedâs head, it would be considered winning.
Milton swung his sword wildly around him as he went to attack Siegfried. Jerome cooperated from next to him as he simultaneously attacked Siegfried.
âKeughâŚâ
Even if Siegfried was a Master, that didnât mean he was good enough to win against two Masters. Not to mention, even if Milton wasnât, Jerome was stronger than Siegfried in terms of pure skills. Somehow, Siegfried had managed to continue defending himself, but he was slowly getting pushed into a corner.
âProtect the Commander-in-Chief!â
âWaaaaah!!â
The Republican soldiers in the vicinity tried to help him, but it was impossible. They were being blocked by a group of Iron Wall soldiers that Shawn had sent out to cover Milton and Jeromeâs backs.
âDie!â
Wheee!
Jeromeâs attack flew towards Siegfried.
âGuhâŚâ
âCanât block it.â
Siegfried barely avoided the blow that was aimed at his waist, but he had moved too far and Milton took the chance to attack him next.
âWhy donât you die!â
Milton roared at him as he tried to strike Siegfriedâs head.
âHup!â
Even with his lower back in pain, Siegfried gathered all his strength to strike away Miltonâs sword. No, he tried to strike it away. ButâŚ
Whoosh!
Just as Siegfried was about to strike away Miltonâs sword, it cut through the air instead. Milton had smoothly moved out of the way just before their swords had collided. By this time, Miltonâs face had smoothed out the harsh lines and became calm and composed instead.
âI lost.â
Siegfried saw Miltonâs cold expression and realized that he had been caught but by then, it was too late. One step quicker than himself, Milton shoulder checked him in the chest.
Bang!
âKeugh!â
A scream escaped Siegfriedâs mouth. For a second, the sounds of his ribs breaking could be clearly heard. He had collapsed after being pushed back a couple of meters, but now, he staggered up after spitting out blood.
âCough⌠damn itâŚâ
âAre my lungs pierced? DamnâŚâ
Even breathing was difficult for Siegfried after Miltonâs attack. The wound on his leg wouldnât stop bleeding and he had minor injuries all over his body. He had also consumed a large amount of Aura and the blow he had just received was fatal. In other words, things were getting desperate for him.
In this situation, it seemed like no one would be able to save Siegfried.
âBut you never know with that bastard.â
Milton rushed straight towards Siegfried without letting down his guard. He wasnât nice enough to let Siegfried leave behind his dying words or will. From Miltonâs point of view, Siegfried was a monster of their era. What kind of mercy was necessary for a monster like that? It would be more troublesome if that monster came back to life because he wasted time with nonsense like mercy.
âDie.â
Milton swung his sword, preparing to kill Siegfried with one blow.
âW⌠waitâŚâ
Siegfried tried to say something, but Milton didnât see any reason to stop his sword.
Skruk.
A clean blow. With a flash of light, Siegfriedâs head fell cleanly to the floor.
âAh⌠finally.â
Milton let out a sigh as he felt both relief and satisfaction at the same time. He finally did it. For Milton, Siegfriedâs mere existence was like a wall that stood blocking his way of life and he had finally dealt with that existence.
âBye, if thereâs a next life, letâs never meet each other.â
Milton sighed in relief as he said a brief prayer for Siegfriedâs soul. But thenâŚ
âMy Lord, itâs dangerous.â
Just as Jerome was calling out to him urgently, Milton felt a shockwave exploding beside him.
BOOM!
âKeughâŚâ
Milton could feel his ears ringing from the sudden shockwave.
âWhat on earth⌠huh?â
Milton was shocked. Right in front of his eyes was Siegfried looking at him with a very regretful expression on his face.
âWhat? How?â
How was Siegfried still alive when he had just cut off his head?
Jerome shouted at Milton when he realized Milton was just standing there staring blankly in confusion.
âMy Lord! What are you doing! How can you stand there dazed in the middle of a battle?â
âIâm standing here dazed?â
Milton couldnât understand the situation. Looking at Jeromeâs urgent expression, it really seemed like he had lost his mind. But how could that be?
âHow could I suddenly lose my⌠huh?â
For a moment, he could feel himself getting muddled again. He consciously spread out his Aura throughout his entire body to clear his mind.
âHap!â
Milton felt his head clearing up as something treacly wrapped around him falling apart.
âTsk, guess it wonât work twice?â
At a Republican base a bit further away, Eliza clicked her tongue in regret. She had seen from afar that Siegfried was in danger and so had used a special magic spell to help him out.
Usually, it was difficult to cast a spell on a strong person without proper preparation, especially if that person was a master. But at that time, Milton had been so excited at the thought of killing a great monster like Siegfried that he had completely lost his cool.
Thanks to that, Eliza had been able to cast a simple magic spell.
âIâll give you what you wish for. Come to the world of sweet dreams.â
Because of her magic, Milton believed the illusion of him cutting off Siegfriedâs head with his sword was real. But the reality was different. He had suddenly stopped attacking and stood there dazed.
Taking advantage of his befuddlement, Siegfried had tried to aim for Miltonâs neck, but Jerome had thankfully blocked it.
âNo matter how I look at it, twice is impossible. Heâs just gonna have to escape on his ownâŚâ
This was all that Eliza could do. From here on out, whether he lived or died depended entirely on Siegfried.
***
âDamn it, Siegfried. Is this one of your subordinateâs work?â
Having broken the illusion, Milton gritted his teeth. Siegfried replied while breathing heavily.
âWho knows. I certainly donât.â
Of course, Siegfried knew. But he was speaking nonsense in order to buy a little bit of time.
âF*cking bastardâŚâ
Siegfriedâs bluff worked on Milton.
âIs it a Magician? Did someone like Bianca play a trick?â
Milton began making guesses. If you looked closely at the elixir the Ghosts used and the traces left behind in the previous battle, there were definitely signs of Magicians around Siegfried. And Milton knew very well that the mere existence of a Magician was a scary thing since you never knew what they would do.
âMaybe that Magician will try that illusion again on me? How should I respond?â
While being cautious was one of Miltonâs strengths, being too cautious could be a weakness at times.
Currently, Siegfried was such a mess that it looked like he would collapse at any second. With his injuries, there was no way he would be able to run away, let alone attacking Milton first.
That was why he was currently trying to stop Milton with a relaxed smile and pithy remarks. At that moment, Jerome rushed forward from his position by Miltonâs side.
âShut up and die, Siegfried.â
âDamnâŚâ
While it might have worked on Milton, the bluff didnât work on Jerome. Siegfried could only clench his teeth and quickly raise his sword to block Jeromeâs attack, but his sword didnât have any Aura left.
âIs this the end?â
Even if he was the one and only Siegfried, he couldnât help but wonder whether he was going to die. But then...
âJerome Taker!â
A giant fell from the air.
That giant was Jake. He had jumped off the Meichi Castle walls with his massive 2 meters long two-handed sword.
âGuhâŚâ
CLANG!
Jerome could have taken Siegfriedâs head, but Jakeâs murderous aura was so intense that he unknowingly retreated. The exact spot Jerome had retreated from now had a large crater as if a boulder had just fallen.
âThat primitive bastard. Did he really jump off the wall?â
The stairs leading from inside the walls were blocked by Shawnâs Iron Wall troops. Milton wouldâve known if Jake approached head-on, but seeing how he suddenly appeared, it could only mean that he had recklessly jumped off the walls. It wasnât completely impossible with his Masterâs physical abilities, but how could he just throw himself into the middle of the enemy camp? From Miltonâs point of view, nothing could be more annoying and frustrating.
âWhat motherf*ing bastards are theseâŚâ[2]
Miltonâs blood pressure rose and it felt like his blood vessels were going burst. In order to utilize Jeromeâs powerful abilities like a Joker card, he had just barely managed to create a trap that was completely separated from the battle. Thanks to that, an opportunity to take Siegfriedâs head plopped right into his lap. But for there to be another interruption at this time?
âDamn it! Do you really think Iâll give up!?â
Milton was desperate and determined to use this opportunity to take Siegfriedâs head and rushed forward once more. Jerome rushed forward with him.
âMy Lord is too stimulated but itâs too good of a chance to stop him.â
Jerome was more level-headed than Milton and because he didnât feel the same sense of urgency Milton felt towards Siegfried, he continued to remain relatively composed.
âSince itâs already like this, itâll be better if we can take Jakeâs head at least.â
With that in mind, Jerome and Milton tried to attack Jake. Since Siegfried was incapacitated, they had a 2:1 numerical advantage. But thenâŚ
âSave the Commander-in-Chief!â
âLong live the Republic!â
It started raining over Milton and Jeromeâs heads. To be more precise, it started raining people. Disregarding their own lives, the Republican soldiers and the Ghosts were throwing themselves over the walls onto Milton and Jerome.
âPsychotic bastards.â
Milton was momentarily stunned. Since Jake had a Masterâs physical abilities, Milton was willing to gamble. But what was he to do about them?
âTheyâre not even Japanâs Kamikaze unitâŚâ
Seeing the Republican soldiers falling towards him with their arms wide open, Milton hurriedly swung his sword up towards the sky.
CLANG!
âKeugh!â
âGah!â
The Republican soldiers and the Ghosts let out screams of agony, but they didnât give up. They continued to jump down onto Milton and Jerome and hindered their movements. Using that time, Jake left the front line with Siegfried. Once that happened, a trumpet played the sound for retreat. Siegfried was severely wounded, but in all other aspects, the Republicans were undoubtedly winning. However, they had given up their victory to give priority to Siegfriedâs safety and had retreated.
âDonât let them escape! Chase after the enemy!â
Milton climbed up onto Leonardâs back and led his entire army in pursuing the Republican Army. Truthfully, he wasnât chasing after the Republican soldiers; he was trying to capture Siegfried.
However, in order to save Siegfried, the Republican soldiers and the Ghosts continued to hinder his movements.
âLong live the Republic!â
âSee you in paradise, brothers!â
Milton swung his sword at the soldiers in front of him without hesitation.
âMove you, bastards! Move!â
Milton and Jerome worked as one to break through the enemies with their unstoppable power, but perhaps the Republican soldiersâ tenacity was greater than Milton and Jeromeâs?
In the end, the Lester Kingdomâs army took on a lot of damage and had to stop pursuing the Republican soldiers. Siegfried had escaped.
âWe won!â
âWaaaaaah!â
âNever come back, you Republican fanatics!â
From the top of the Meichi Castle walls, the Lester Kingdomâs army shouted in victory. Since they had won the siege, the Lester Kingdom had won the battle. Despite such cheers, Milton couldnât hide his disappointment.
âI donât know when such an opportunity like that will come againâŚâ
Milton found it really regrettable.
1. íěźëĄ ë¨ě ę˛ě´ë¤. Here, í is the Chinese wordÂ ć¨ for hate and regret. Itâs used when you regret or resent something with all your heart
2. ě´ë° ěŠě ěëźë¤ě´ ě§ě§ DT would be more along the lines of what kind of rotten bastards, but I thought this was more fitting
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