Chapter 333: 333

I don’t want to die.

I don’t want to be weak.

I want to be stronger.

I can’t stand the reality of growing weaker day by day.

The Lord Protector said.

The hero who saved the kingdom from the empire had abandoned everything in favor of his own desire – no, his desperate longing.

He betrayed his country, abandoned the child-like king, and threw away all the fame he had built up in the past.

First Sword nodded at the words of the Lord Protector.

Instead of ridiculing or criticizing it, he agreed that it could end up that way.

Lord Protector was a human being.

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He was pushing himself to say that he had already made a decision, but there was still a corner of his mind that was shaking.

It was not difficult to betray a country.

He could also massacre the royal family.

However.

However.

The Lord Protector held his breath. He also knowingly cut off his thoughts.

He had already decided.

His work had begun.

There was no turning back now.

That was why he saw First Sword.

He thought as he looked at the person who made the same choice as him.

‘For what?’

First Sword was one of the Ten Great Swordmasters just like him.

No, in a sense, First Sword was greater than him.

A person who became a Sword Saint at the age of 30.

Even if one looked back on the entire history of the kingdom – no, the continent, those who had such brilliant talents could only be counted in one hand.

First Sword was still young.

He was not old enough to feel the signs of death like the Lord Protector.

Nevertheless, First Sword chose the path of becoming a demonic human.

For what?

If it was honor, he already enjoyed enough of it.

Money? Status? Authority?

It was not those.

The Lord Protector knew.

He, who did not simply stay in the position of swordsman but even rose to the top of the royalists faction, had seen many people.

First Sword was not the kind of person to dwell on such things.

Or rather, it was questionable whether he had a sincere desire for such things.

He was a playboy on the outside.

He always had a laidback attitude.

He was a man who liked alcohol and women.

All of that were true. It was not wrong.

But the moment he actually faced First Sword, the Lord Protector knew.

For First Sword, alcohol, women, wealth, power, and honor – those things did not mean much to him.

If one had to compare it, those things only had the same worth to him as that of his favorite side dish or color.

He could endure having any amount.

It was good for him if he had it, and also good if he did not have it.

The only thing that First Sword valued was the Sword School and Duke Spencer.

But in order to become a demonic human, First Sword forsook those two.

Why?

Why did First Sword decide to become a demonic human?

He would not have been curious normally.

He did not care what First Sword was thinking.

But he wanted to know now.

Once he knew the desire of First Sword who was a person with similar thoughts as him, he thought that he would be able to condone himself for betraying the Sälen Kingdom – no, for betraying Henry.

But the Lord Protector could not open his mouth in the end.

In the end, he could not ask First Sword aloud why he wanted to become a demonic human or if he was obsessed with eternal life like himself.

It was already an awkward situation, but he did not want it to get more awkward.

First Sword was the same as the Lord Protector himself.

The young genius made the same choice as the Lord Protector did.

So it was all right.

No one else could make a similar choice.

He reasoned.

His pathetic self relied on such things.

So in the end, he could not say anything.

He did not ask why First Sword wanted to become a demonic human, whether he wanted to live an eternal life like himself, or if he struggled because he did not want to die.

First Sword saw such a Lord Protector.

He understood what the Lord Protector wanted to say, and what he was holding back.

But he did not give an answer for the sake of the Lord Protector. He just put down the wine glass he was holding and then left his seat with the Lord Protector.

It was a moonlit night.

There were only a few days left until the founding celebration.

First Sword left the detached palace and crossed the garden before suddenly raising his head and looking up the sky. Then he turned his gaze again and looked towards the far west.

Lord Protector’s thoughts were not wrong.

First Sword was not so attached to those worldly things.

He was not detached to it.

Neither was he greedy for it.

It was simply because First Sword was different from ordinary people.

“I’ve seen it since I was young.”

That distant horizon.

The path to that source that he questioned if he could reach it.

Alcohol and women were good.

There was nothing bad about having wealth and honor.

But everything was insignificant in front of that.

The road to the horizon.

He liked the sword.

He liked the time he swung his sword.

He found it quite pleasant to fight in a life-and-death battle with his sword.

Because he felt that he was moving towards the horizon.

It was actually his process of taking steps towards the horizon.

That was why he very much liked Jude and Cordelia.

Because he was able to see the horizon more clearly through the two. Because on the day he would fight the two who would have grown stronger, he would become closer to the horizon.

“I’m the same as you.”

The reason why he wanted to become a demonic human.

The reason why he longed for an eternal life.

“Because I… haven’t reached it yet.”

It might take him a long time to reach it.

The sword horizon.

The road to the sword’s inner essence.

First Sword looked to the west again.

He silently gazed at the distant horizon that seemed reachable, yet he could not reach.

***

After sharing a few more drinks, Jude and Cordelia sneaked out of the banquet.

Because it was unreasonable to talk to the people here about the two cutting off their ill-fated relationship with First Sword or helping Elune.

‘There will be more people trying to stop us.’

It was still unknown when the battle between the elves of the Shadow Forest and the chancellor’s army would begin and how it would unfold.

Moreover, there was a considerable distance to the Shadow Forest.

Even after crossing the borders of the empire, it was a place that could only be reached by running for a long time in the area controlled by the chancellor, so it was normal for people to try to stop them.

‘Rather than forcibly intervening in that way, it would be better to destroy the main forces of the chancellor with us and move northward to pressure the chancellor’s entire forces.’

Ian McCline, the Golden Sword Saint, would probably say that.

Therefore, Jude chose to sneak away with Cordelia instead of uselessly revealing their thoughts.

“Huaa… that’s a relief. I was worried if I could fool my unnie.”

Because she could not deceive the eyes of Adelia.

She was a woman who could see what Cordelia was thinking by just looking at Cordelia’s back.

“Well… our older siblings seems to have ‘disappeared’ first before us.”

“Ha, seriously. After she said those things to me.”

Cordelia grumbled and Jude silently smiled again.

After all, one could not just ignore one’s bloodlines.

‘Aren’t we all just beasts?’

“W-what were you thinking?”

“Beautiful and sweet thoughts.”

At Jude’s mischievous smile, Cordelia frowned but did not press further.

“Anyway, are we going to leave now?”

“We should. Why? Are you worried?”

“Of course. As soon as we opened our eyes, we had to defeat a 7,000-strong army. After that, we drank potions and rested a bit, but we didn’t get enough rest.”

Although Jude’s stamina recovered fast, that did not mean that Jude’s stamina was endless.

But Jude shrugged as though there was no problem, and said as he touched Cordelia’s cheek.

“I’m more worried about my princess. Are you all right?”

“I just need to be on your back. And carefully think about things more than usual.”

“Since when did you usually think though?”

Cordelia pouted instead of answering Jude’s question, and Jude had a sly smile as he felt her cheek touching the palm of his hand heating up.

“Now then, shall we go together, my princess?”

“Yes, my prince. Please carry me on your back.”

As soon as Jude turned around, Cordelia jumped up and tightly hugged his neck.

“Once we get out of here, let’s switch to the Phantom Steed.”

It would seriously stand out if they rode the Phantom Steed from the beginning.

“Okay, let’s hurry up and go. Giddyap! Giddyap!”

“Neeeeigh.”

At Cordelia’s urging, Jude neighed like a horse and used Black Wind’s Advent. But soon after, Jude asked as he fixed Cordelia’s position on his back instead of kicking the ground right away.

“By the way, Cordelia.”

“Yes, Jude.”

“Did you leave a letter?”

“Yes, I left one.”

Even if they disappeared secretly, they had to at least tell the others where they were headed.

Jude said with a cackle.

“I can’t believe the day has come when Cordelia leaves a letter of love on her own. It really touches my heart.”

“Hmph, I’ve left one once before, okay?”

Like that time when they left the Forest of Eternity.

“Oh, that’s even better then. Will you show me the contents next time?”

“Well… perhaps in the future?”

Jude happily smiled again at Cordelia’s coy answer.

“Let’s go then.”

“Yes, let’s go.”

Towards the west.

The black wind was accompanied by a golden gale.

***

Time had passed.

One day had passed.

When the morning sun that rose to end the night was now setting down with the twilight, night returned.

Elune sat down on top of the Red Gate and looked at the white round moon.

Urgent news was continuously being delivered.

The chancellor’s army led by First Sword was approaching the Red Gate without stopping.

The size of the army was at least 40,000.

Considering that the total number of elves living in the empire was less than tens of thousands, it was a truly huge army.

Would they be able to stop it?

The leader of the elves, Vincenzo Lombardi, decided to rally all the troops in the Shadow Forest at the Red Gate.

Their number was a little over 5,000 when all were gathered, but they would be able to survive somehow if they defended the Red Gate.

‘The emperor’s army will move.’

In the northern part of the empire, the emperor’s army was continuing to confront the chancellor’s army.

If the Shadow Forest falls, the structure of the civil war itself could be overturned, so the emperor would not be just watching the current crisis.

So they had to hold on for now.

They had to somehow persevere and buy time.

The fact that a huge army of close to 40,000 was sent to this side meant that the other side had fewer troops, so the emperor’s side would also have room to send reinforcements.

Elune turned her head.

She looked at the foreign beings on the wall of the Red Gate who were humans and not elves.

Jude’s friends.

The kind and honest Lucas, the playful and cheerful Kajsa, and the coy and cute Scarlet.

All three had serious expressions on their faces. So Elune also made a firm face. Thinking of the fairies who hid because they were scared, a corner of her heart felt heavy.

The wind blew.

It blew from the east to the west.

It was mixed with a different smell than usual.

That was why Elune stood up. Standing tall on the Red Gate, she looked east.

“What a sight.”

Said the one standing in the east.

The chancellor’s army was still half a day away.

Since it was deep at night, there was a high chance that they would set up camp and attack at dawn rather than attacking right away.

But there was a person right in front of her now.

He arrived at the Red Gate earlier than the chancellor’s army.

“I wanted to try it at least once. To capture a fortress alone.”

He slowly drew his sword.

Now, not only Elune but also all the elves on the wall saw him. There was only one person, but the elves realized it the moment he pulled out his sword. They hurriedly blew a trumpet and prepared for battle.

Only one person.

But Elune felt her mouth dry up.

It was a completely different feeling from when she was fighting against Jude.

Instead of heating up with excitement, her hands and feet turned cold.

Sword monster.

Sword demon.

First Sword laughed. He caught in his gaze Elune who was standing on the Red Gate and staring at him.

The Elf Sword that defended the Shadow Forest.

The one who inherited the legendary swordsmanship of Valencia.

His fight with her would surely help First Sword move forward.

“But it’s still far away. It’s too far away.”

First Sword muttered as if complaining, and looked at Elune again.

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He overlapped her with the horizon beyond her.

“Let’s go.”

First Sword spoke to himself. He whispered to Elune on the wall.

He lightly swung his sword.

A huge aura blade engulfed the Red Gate.