Legend of the Arch Magus: Valor

by M Sisa

  Lancaster glared at Lark, before bowing at the King. “Apologies, Your Majesty.”

  Lark paused momentarily before he continued. “Based on this map, it will take a week for the army to cross over the Yorkshaire Mountain Range by foot. Therefore, this is the same time it will take for the three brigades to respond to an attack at this city of the Empire.”

  There were no other cities near that particular city, and the nearest army was the one battling with the Kingdom.

  “Then, are you suggesting that we launch a direct attack at this city of the Empire?” said General Carlos.

  Lark nodded, “That is right.”

  Laughter echoed in the throne room. Lancaster arrogantly glared at Lark as he chuckled, “Brat, if that was so easy, we would have done it long ago! Launch a direct attack to the city? As if things are that simple!”

  Lark ignored Lancaster. He looked at the King eye to eye, “Your Majesty, have you ever heard of an air strike?”

  The King’s eyes glimmered for a moment. He seemed to have understood what Lark was trying to say. “An air strike. Then, are you saying that it’s possible? For our army to launch an offensive from the sky?”

  “Yes,” said Lark. “This is a project that would require an astronomical amount of funds, thus it’s impossible for the Lord of a small town such as I to pull through. But with the power of a sovereign, it should be possible.”

  Lark pulled out two pieces of parchment from his pocket. “These are the blueprints I drew during our discussion today. The first one is the blueprint for the balloon, a simple vehicle that could fly in the sky. And the second one is the blueprint for a mana bomb.”

  “A mana bomb?!” said General Carlos. Just the name alone sounded dangerous.

  The King looked at the blueprint, and unable to fully understand it, handed it to the General and the Royal Advisors.

  “This…” The hands of one of the Royal Advisors shook. “It will be very expensive Your Majesty, but if this really works…”

  The General and the Royal Advisors understood the implications of this weapon. If they successfully launch this air attack, the three brigades invading the Kingdom would have no choice but to fall back. If the Kingdom successfully destroys this city, it would leave a gaping hole big enough for the Kingdom to launch a frontal attack.

  “Young Man,” General Carlos’ face was grim. “This is a dangerous weapon. How did you come up with this one?”

  Lark did not answer.

  The balloon which could fly in the sky, combined with the mana bombs, could destroy any city in its path. After all, no one could fight them in the sky. Unless, of course, the so-called Witches of Aravark came out.

  “If the reason behind this war is a Holy Crusade, then just this alone wouldn’t be enough to stop this war,” said Lark. “But if the reason is simply just to expand the territory of the Empire, this should suffice. The Empire will have no choice but to halt their attacks once one of their cities is directly attacked.”

  Lark gazed at the King, “You will need to be on equal footing in order to establish a truce, an agreement. Your Majesty, I suggest you use this chance to end the war with the Empire.”

  Even a few years of peace agreement would greatly alleviate the burden on the Kingdom. The King knew this more than anyone.

  “This air strike will kill several thousands of innocent people – men, women, children, and the elderly – none of them will be spared from this wrath.” Lark remained stoic even as he said these words. “I will leave the decision in Your Majesty’s hands.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Two weeks have passed since the King’s birthday.

  [Yorkshaire Mountain Range]

  “Reporting!”

  A soldier entered the tent of Amubal, the commander of the sixth brigade of the Empire.

  “A three thousand strong reinforcement arrived just now! It’s currently clashing against the left wing of the fourteenth brigade, sir!”

  “The flag?”

  “We believe it’s from the House Kelvin, sir.”

  Amubal frowned. One of the Dukes finally sent their army, huh?

  Before attacking this city, he gathered the necessary information about his enemy. He was sure that Duke Kelvin and Duke Drakus were enemies. He had not expected them to come to the aid of each other this soon.

  He looked at the opened map on his table. Numerous wooden pieces were placed on top of it, representing the various armies in this war.

  Amubal fell silent. He quickly analyzed the battlefield based on the reports of his men.

  “Tell the fifteenth brigade to send their central army forward,” he pointed at a place in the map. “Near this border.”

  The place he pointed at was near the eastern gate of Yorkshaire City.

  “And send the Black Order to deal with those newly arrived bastards,” he smirked. “Make sure they suffer enough casualties on the first day of the clash.”

  He planned on showing those bastards the might of the Empire. The might of the nation capable of toppling the surrounding Kingdoms at the same time.

  Amubal looked at the map once again. A smile slowly formed on his scar-ridden face. “Leorith.”

  His adjutant immediately saluted, “General!”

  “Gather the soldiers. We are moving out.”

  “Yes, Sir!”

  A thousand soldiers moved out the moment the General called out. Each of them was mounted on horses, their armors glimmering underneath the sun. Peculiarly, the place they were headed to was not Yorkshaire City. They made a roundabout and headed towards the foot of the mountain.

  Soon, a small village came into their sight.

  “Burn everything down. Kill anyone who resists but make sure to capture the children alive.”

  Leorith roared and issued out the General’s command. The entire army, moving as one, started the massacre of the villagers. Houses started burning down, and corpses littered the ground.

  But the villagers seemed to have known of the arrival of the army beforehand, since the women and the children were nowhere to be found.

  The army searched every nook and cranny, but were unable to find them.

  “Spit it out. Where are the others?!” a soldier interrogated the captured villagers.

  “I… I don’t know, Sir! I s-swear!”

  The soldier looked at adjutant Leorith. The man nodded at him in return.

  “Listen, if you’re not going to talk,” the soldier pulled out his sword. “I’ll just move on to the next person. I’m sure one of you will be willing to negotiate.”

  The villager trembled. He recognized the crest on the armor of these soldiers. These monsters were definitely from the Empire.

  “I r-really have no ide—”

  Before the villager could even finish his words, the soldier’s sword swung down and cut his neck, his head rolling to the ground. Seeing this, the other captured villagers were mortified.

  The soldier moved to the villager beside the corpse. “Next. I’ll only ask once. Tell me where the women and children are.”

  “I don’t know! Damn fucker! Just kill me already!”

  Blood spurted out as the next villager was stabbed in the chest.

  One after another, the villagers were executed. Surprisingly, none of them opened their mouth to speak. The method the soldiers used served to stoke the fire in the villagers’ hearts instead. They knew that the soldiers from the Empire were going to kill them either way. They decided to keep their mouths shut until their dying breaths, protecting the others.

  The execution went on. When the eleventh person was about to be beheaded, a small voice was heard.

  “Stop! Please don’t kill my father!”

  The soldier executing the villagers grinned upon seeing the owner of the voice. It was a child, probably six or seven. Tears flowed down the child’s eyes as his entire body quivered.

  A woman quickly appeared behind the child and covered his mouth.

  But it was too
late. The soldiers of the Empire had already seen them.

  The father of the child turned pallid. He shouted, “Run away! Run!”

  “The other villagers must be hiding over there,” said Leorith. “Capture the children alive.”

  The soldiers unsheathed their weapons and ran towards the place where the child emerged. Soon, they found the place where the women and children were hiding. It was an abandoned well with a small passage inside.

  Following their orders, the soldiers captured the children alive.

  “Sir, that woman over there,” a soldier pointed at a woman tied next to the children. “Can I have her?”

  Leorith looked at Amubal. The General nodded once.

  Leorith said, “Do as you wish, but do not touch the children.”

  The soldiers, upon hearing this, licked their lips. They untied the captured women and began stripping their clothes off.

  “You damn monsters!”

  “Don’t touch my wife, you scum!”

  “Let my mother go!”

  The soldiers feasted on the women of the village. Screams filled with anguish, along with the soldiers’ laughter, reverberated.

  Leorith frowned, “Sir, is this alright?”

  Amubal looked unperturbed despite the sight. “It’s fine. We’ve been fighting against the damn soldiers of the Kingdom for several weeks now. The soldiers need an outlet every now and then.”

  “We’ll be leaving in fifteen minutes. Finish it up,” said the General. “We’re moving to the next village.”

  The captured children were thrown into the carts, while the remaining men and women of the village were slaughtered.

  Following the map made by the scouts of the sixth brigade, Amubal led his army towards the next village. By the end of the day, they have burned down three villages and have captured several dozens of children.

  The next day, the General gathered all of the officials, including those belonging to the fourteenth and fifteenth brigade. The tactics he discussed with them were inhumane, and those who heard it could not help but shudder.

  As expected of General Amubal, the so-called man-eater. The sixth brigade ranked very high among the armies of the Empire because of him. His tactics, although brutal, were always effective.

  Following Amubal’s plan, the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixth brigade all moved out at the same time. A massive sea of soldiers surrounded Yorkshaire City.

  Amubal, mounted on his horse, moved towards the forefront. He gripped the magic stone on his hand, and said with an ear-shattering roar, “Everyone in Yorkshaire City! Listen!”

  The soldiers on top of the city walls looked at the army outside. It was the first time all three brigades combined to launch an attack like this. Inside the city, numerous shouts and orders flew out. All the available soldiers were being mobilized as they prepared for the upcoming clash.

  “Hey, what’s that?”

  The soldiers on top of the walls stared at the large bonfire in front of the Empire’s army. From it, thick, black smoke swirled up into the sky.

  General Amubal’s voice reverberated once again with the help of the magic stone. “The Emperor is a benevolent man! He will spare everyone who submits to him! I, Amubal, swear in the name of the Empire that we will spare the lives of all citizens of Yorkshaire if you open the gates and surrender to us!”

  Veins popped out of the foreheads of the Kingdom soldiers who heard this. It was a preposterous offer. Who would surrender to these barbarians? These monsters came all the way here just to expand their already large territory.

  “Is he crazy? Does he really think we’ll surrender that easily?”

  “Damn bastards! They killed my brother! I’ll make them pay when the time comes!”

  The Kingdom soldiers saw several children being moved towards the front of the army. Each of them were tied with ropes, their mouths gagged.

  The officer in-charge of guarding the top of the walls turned grim. He had received the news several hours ago. The news of several villages being burned down to the ground. There was no doubt that it was the work of the Empire.

  He stared at the children tied by ropes. They were probably the villagers the Empire’s soldiers captured.

  And General Amubal’s next words proved him right.

  “We will give the officials of the city an hour to decide whether to surrender or not! If we do not receive a positive response by that time, we will execute these children one by one, and their blood will be on your hands.”

  Those words stirred the soldiers of the Kingdom. There were several dozens of children held hostage by the Empire. Everyone was filled with rage by this underhanded trick of their enemies. They wanted to open the gates, rush out, and crush the damn bastards, but just by looking at the sea of soldiers outside the walls, they knew they wouldn’t stand a chance. If they opened the gates now, it would only be a matter of time before the enemies manage to swarm in.

  They could probably survive a siege, but they could not see a way for them to save the children. The hostages were next to the massive army, after all.

  Inside the city, the officers of the army and the City Lord held an emergency meeting. Lui Marcus, Sword Saint Alexander, Lord Argus, and Lancaster Kelvin discussed possible ways to save the children.

  But an hour was not enough for them to come up with a concrete plan. Even the Sword Saint would be unable to win against the massive army outside.

  An hour quickly passed, and true to his words, General Amubal started the execution.

  “We have given the city enough time to decide!” Amubal said with a straight face, his voice echoing through the magic stone. “But it seems that the officials of Yorkshaire have chosen to forsake the lives of these children!”

  A soldier dragged out one of the children. He removed the gag and the child started screaming out.

  “Save me! Please, save me!”

  Even from the distance, the soldiers could hear the shouts. They could not clearly see the face of the child from afar, but everyone was sure that he was probably pallid, snot-filled, and panic-stricken right now.

  “Every half an hour, we will kill one of these children!” said Amubal. “Remember this! It was your decision that took away their lives!”

  With those words as the cue, the soldier threw the child into the bonfire. The child screamed as his entire body was engulfed by flames. His skin melted and his hair turned to crisp and dust. After a few seconds, the screams died out and only the smell of burnt flesh remained.

  The soldiers of the city trembled in rage. Some of them had the urge to charge right at the enemies and cut the damnable Amubal’s head.

  The commanding officers of Yorkshaire were on top of the walls as they watched everything that transpired.

  Lord Argus, the Lord of the City, quivered, his hands curled into fists. He said through gnashed teeth, “Commander Lui. You said that those bastards would retreat soon. Isn’t that right?”

  Lui Marcus remained calm despite the abhorrent sight. “That’s right. So please endure, Lord Argus.”

  A half-hour passed, and another child was thrown into the bonfire. The child’s screams echoed. Each of her words as she burned to her death pierced the heart of the Kingdom’s soldiers. They could not even shoot arrows since the Empire kept a safe distance.

  This same sight continued until the next day. By now, more than a dozen children had been burned to their deaths.

  And to the Kingdom soldiers’ horror, a small army came and delivered a fresh batch of captives. They were probably from the remaining villages at the foot of the mountain. With the amount of children they captured, they could continue the execution for several days.

  The news of the Empire’s brutality quickly spread inside the city. Even the soldiers started to feel anxiety and fear as time went by. The foolish ones even started suggesting that they open the gates and surrender the city to the Empire. Maybe that way, they would get to keep their lives.

  Fear was contagious.
And this simple feat bore seeds of fear within the hearts of the soldiers. Every half hour, screams would echo as a child burned to death.

  On the third day of execution, a different scenario occurred.

  The Empire was about to throw another child into the fire when shadows were cast from the sky. Looking up, they saw numerous round things flying above. Those with very good eyes noticed that there were people inside.

  “Balloons?” General Amubal frowned. He ordered his men to unsheathe their weapons – to get ready for a fight — just in case.

  The dozens of balloons showed no signs of stopping.

  “Archers,” said Amubal. “Shoot them down.”

  The archers nocked their arrows and tried shooting those things above, but the wind and the distance made the balloons impossible to hit.

  “Magicians.”

  Amubal decided to use the magicians.

  But before the magicians could even prepare their magic to shoot the balloons down, the sound of drums echoed from inside the city. The horn was blown and the northern gate started to open. Soldiers poured out of the city in droves.

  Seeing this, Amubal broadly grinned. The foolish soldiers of the Kingdom had finally decided to confront them.

  “The army is ready to move at any time, General,” said Leorith.

  Amubal heartily laughed, “Those bastards are nothing without the protection of the mountain! And they actually dared to fight us on flat land! The Kingdom’s soldiers are truly a bunch of morons!”

  The soldiers around the General snickered.

  “Everyone! Ready to—”

  His words were cut when a deafening boom suddenly resounded around them, making the earth tremble and the horses neigh. Amubal looked to see the origin of the sound and was stunned to see several of his soldiers dead, their bodies scorched from the attack.

  “Above us!” one of the soldiers shouted.

  Amubal looked up and saw the balloons up above. The sudden opening of the gate and pouring out of the Kingdom’s soldiers made him momentarily forget about those peculiar things. But to think that those were the source of the explosion? Amubal’s hair stood on their edges as he realized their predicament.