The Overlord of Blood and Iron (WN)
chapter-210

Chapter 210: The Counterattack (3)

Translator: Leyy3

Swish~!

Heavy rain continued to fall.

Raindrops the size of an adult’s finger fell relentlessly, almost like a squall in a tropical region.

Chik, Chik!

With a sizzling sound, white steam arose from the Igniters’ bodies. The raindrops were turning into steam due to the heat.

Soon, the whole battlefield was covered in white.

It was hence very difficult to see far, with over three thousand Igniters steaming away.

“Proud soldiers of Laputa! Retreat!” Lucia immediately ordered the troops to retreat.

This tremendous rain would render the Igniters useless anyway, so there was no reason to fight in a place with limited vision.

The Laputan soldiers began to back off instantly.

“Nice!” Nilus, who was leading the magic troop on the frontline, exclaimed in joy.

It wasn’t easy to extinguish the Igniters’ fire, but Kwak Jung essentially solved his problem by summoning rain.

“Men of the magic troop, listen!” Nilus roared.

“Yes, sir!”

“Install an ice wall at the front to obstruct the enemy’s path!”

Making an ice wall required quite some mana, but it wasn’t the time to dilly dally. Delaying the enemy’s advancement for even one or two minutes was good enough for them.

That was because the Laputan soldiers would be capable of finishing up the fire-less Igniters. There was no reason to save mana!

Chuk, Chuk!

Ten ice walls that were four meters in height erupted from the ground, obstructing the Igniters.

Next was Nilus’ turn.

“ ???? ??? ???? ????? ???? ,??????? ????? ????? ???? ?????...?? ??? ?? ???????? ?”

The child-looking old magician chanted the most powerful ice-element spell he knew: Arctic Blizzard, a magic that could simulate the brutal coldness of the North Pole!

-Roarrr...!

Ten arkellons were also firing water cannons over the ice wall.

Chiiiik!

The sizzling sound filled up the entire region and steam rose in large quantities.

Kwak Jung’s rain.

Nilus’ Arctic Blizzard.

The ten arkellons’ water cannon.

These three things produced a fantastic combination play to extinguish the flames of the Igniters.

Crack, Crack!

The battlefield started to freeze.

“C-Cold...!”

“What the hell...? It was hot moments ago, but now it’s cold... ha...”

“Argh... feels like I’m doing winter military drills...”

The sudden change in temperature caused the Laputan soldiers to grumble. They could even see their breath.

A while later, the curtain of steam dissipated.

No response could be detected from over the ice wall.

Only the sound of Kang Chul-In battling with the Immortal Cavalry could be heard from afar.

“I will go and check!” Lucia headed towards the wall.

Klang!

Aegis, the Shield of God, was slammed heavily against the wall.

Crack, crack, crack!

The ice wall was fractured into pieces and fell, revealing the Igniters beyond it.

“...!”

Those who witnessed the scene froze in place.

“I-Incredible!” Drakan was surprised.

“All frozen? Those flaming Undead Monsters...?”

It was indeed hard to believe.

Just five minutes ago, two thousand Igniters were flaming brightly. Now they were frozen in place, unable to make a single move.

Lucia walked forward and inspected one of the frozen Igniters carefully.

The Igniter showed no signs of movement, even as its enemy approached it.

“Is it really... frozen?” Lucia, half skeptical, smashed the frozen Igniter with her shield.

Craaackk!

The Igniter broke down into a hundred pieces.

“I-It broke...!”

“A fire-type Undead in just one shot?”

“Frozen to the core?”

The soldiers of Laputa found it hard to believe what had happened before their very eyes. They were dumbfounded to see those horrifying Igniters become completely powerless.

Now!

Only Lucia was alert.

“Men!” Lucia held Zenith, the Sky Sword, high up in the air.

“Charge! The enemy is nothing but a scarecrow!”

If they attacked now, they could annihilate the enemy without shedding a single drop of blood.

“Waaahh!”

“Let’s destroy the enemy!”

“Destroy everything!”

The Laputan soldiers charged.

Bang! Crack!

The Igniters were wiped out without a trace. They were no longer the undead monsters to be feared!

***

“T-This is a lie. It’s a lie...!”

Quidor suffered in agony as he tried to deny the reality laid in front of him.

From far away, he could see the Igniters exploding into pieces.

These Igniters were made with expensive firestones, along with Aleister’s blood, tears and sweat. Now they were being helplessly destroyed.

That wasn’t all.

Neigghhh!

The spectre knights, now riding on the backs of the phantom steeds, were bringing chaos upon the Immortal Cavalry’s base.

Moreover, Chararak!

The great Overlord Kang Chul-In was swinging Mitra around, slicing the soldiers of the Immortal Cavalry apart.

Kang Chul-In, though surrounded by enemy soldiers, showed no sign of fear. His courage and power were indeed that of a one-man army.

We have to retreat!

Only now then did Quidor realize that there was no chance of victory.

Not only were his Igniters completely destroyed, but he also would have to face Kang Chul-In, his Spectre Knights and the well-trained soldiers of Laputa.

For any possibility of future revenge, retreat was the only option.

“Retreat, I said retreat!”

Quidor steered his phantom steed away without hesitation. He was the first to run.

That was a good call.

He may lose the Immortal Cavalry, but wasn’t that still better than losing himself, its commander-in-chief?

It would be troublesome if you lived.

Kang Chul-In, however, had no intention of letting Quidor escape.

According to his memory, Quidor was an SSS-rank soldier who had enormous potential to even become a Death Lord, the commander of the undead, in the future.

Kang Chul-In wanted to kill Quidor no matter what, just like how he eliminated Minerva, a potential source of danger.

“Let’s go!”

-Roar!

Kang Chul-In steered the Altaica and chased after Quidor.

“Where do you think you’re going!?” Kang Chul-In, who were already only inches away from Quidor, shouted voluminously.

“Run faster, faster!” Quidor kept running without looking back.

He instinctively knew that words were no use to Kang Chul-In.

You think I will let you go?

Kang Chul-In clenched his teeth as his eyes focused intently on Quidor’s back.

Swish!

Mitra changed its form to a whip.

Swirl!

The whip stretched at an astonishing speed, wrapping itself around Quidor’s upper body.

-Kuhuk!

Quidor let out a scream in pain.

What followed was his fall off the phantom steed.

Quidor’s body started to swerve and disengaged from the phantom steed, crashing onto the ground.

“Didn’t I ask?” Kang Chul-In grinned cunningly as he circled the fallen Quidor.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“...!”

“Trash like you can never escape from my grasp. Isn’t that obvious?”

“P-Please don’t kill me!”

“...Don’t kill you?” Kang Chul-In frowned, as if he heard something he shouldn’t have heard.

An undead asking for mercy?

What was that even?

“That’s right!” Quidor replied.

“I’m one of the most valued subjects of his Majesty Aleister. If you hold me hostage to negotiate with him...”

“Why should I?”

“...!”

“Just die.”

Mitra’s blade swung.

Thump.

Quidor was sliced into eight pieces, which rolled onto the ground.

“I guess I managed to get rid of Aleister’s right-hand man.”

Kang Chul-In turned around.

Yes! Go, please! Get lost already, you vicious bastard!

Quidor, or more precisely his head lying next to his right stomach, glanced at Kang Chul-In, praying for him to leave the scene.

He was a dullahan.

Being sliced to even ten pieces did not kill Quidor. As long as the head, which served as a sort of life vessel, was in one piece, he could reincarnate at any time.

“Ah?” Kang Chul-In suddenly remembered something and turned around again.

“Playing dead, aren’t we?”

-...!

“Well then, return to where you’re supposed to belong.”

For the undead Quidor, the only place he was supposed to belong to was none other than the underworld or hell.

“N-No way!”

“Yes, way.” Kang Chul-In smashed down Quidor’s head with his feet without mercy.

Puk!

The Dullahan’s life vessel shattered into pieces. As the old saying went - better safe than sorry.

***

Vilhelm seemed to be lost in deep thought.

The reason was simple.

-Rank 44th Alex Rothschild (-33)

Rothschild, the current ruler of Esmeralda, suddenly dropped in rank by a huge margin.

Why?

There was no question as to why Vilhem was this confused.

For an Overlord previously on a roll to suddenly come crashing down the ranks, it signaled either a critical problem within his territory, or a danger to his life. In other words, Rothschild was weakened in some sort of manner, which revealed truthfully on the ranking page.

“Your Majesty, a dispatch has arrived. Esmeralda is currently in flames.” Yulrgent, the director of the Intelligence Bureau of Bifrost, approached Vilhelm and whispered into his ear.

“Esmeralda?”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

“The cause?”

“As for that... according to our intelligence, it seems that Rothschild himself is setting fire to his own territory.”

“...!”

“And seeing that he’s preparing to withdraw his army, I believe he’s burning off the infrastructure to leave Esmeralda.”

“Why in the world? There’s no reason to abandon that strategic location...” At that moment, Vilhelm recalled what he saw previously.

The drop in ranks?

If that was the reason, Rothschild’s actions were understandable.

Since the ranking page would sooner or later reveal that he had weakened, there was no reason for him to put on a full swagger and remain in Esmeralda.

Something detrimental must have happened to Rothschild!

At this point it was no longer a deduction, but almost a fact. Vilhelm started to put on his thinking cap.

He could be the biggest beneficiary from this turn of events!

“Yulrgent.” Vilhelm spoke.

“Yes, your Majesty.”

“Between Deathwin and Esmeralda, which one is more important to conquer?”

“Regarding that...”

It was an unnecessary question.

Deathwin was a barrier to stop Kang Chul-In, but Esmeralda was none other than Pangaea’s core. When compared, Esmeralda obviously had greater importance.

“Isn’t our army’s 9th division about to pass through Esmeralda now?”

“...!”

“How does it sound if we merge the frontline forces with the 9th division, which is heading to Deathwin?”

“In that case... Your Majesty would be able to conquer Esmeralda before the other Overlords do. However, the situation at Deathwin would be unfavorable...”

“So, I have to choose one.”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

It would be perfect to stop Kang Chul-In and also take control of Esmeralda, but things were never so easy. Vilhelm had to make a tough decision. It was a dilemma between aiding Aleister and conquering Esmeralda.

“Your Majesty!”

Vilhelm was still in the middle of his thought.

“There’s a call from the Overlord Aleister of Deathwin.”

“Accept it.”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

The call connected.

-Overlord Vilhelm!

Aleister anxiously exclaimed.

“What’s wrong, Overlord Aleister?”

-Emergency! Our army got destroyed by Kang Chul-In’s army! Send help immediately!

“Damn!”

-When will the reinforcements arrive? Things are looking rough...

“Latest by next week, so don’t worry too much.”

-I-Is that so?

“Trust me. Our army’s 9th division is now heading towards Deathwin to aid you. It may be tough but endure for a while more and victory shall be ours.”

-A-Alright... I will hold somehow!

“Oh, and excuse me, can I call you back in an hour? I have an urgent matter to address.”

-Will do. I’m under your care.

“Fret not.”

Vilhelm calmed Aleister down, then pretended to be busy and ended the call. He started to hand out commands.

“Signaller.”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

“Make a call to the 9th division, and tell them to join the frontline troop. Instruct them to take over Esmeralda.”

“Your Majesty?”

“We are abandoning Deathwin.”

Vilhelm was about to stab Aleister in the back.