ALL NOVEL Chapter 71
Chapter 71: The Time of Reckoning (2)
Thud! Thud!
Dwarves, standing just over 1 meter tall but with muscular builds, marched in an orderly formation, dragging something behind them.
It was a magic cannon.
The cannon was crafted entirely from special alloys and had a much longer barrel than those commonly used by humans.
Yet, it was surprisingly lighter in weight.
The dwarves skillfully adjusted the cannon’s barrel, aiming all 12 of their magic cannons at the southern wall of Akela City.
“This is the perfect chance to strike the cursed city! Fire at will!”
A shout filled with the ancestral hatred of their race echoed through the air.
Boom! Boom!
With a deafening blast, the cannon barrels recoiled as a barrage of blue light shot forth.
Every shot hit the southern wall of Akela City directly, causing a massive explosion in the area.
Thick, black smoke billowed upward, and fragments of the wall tumbled into the moat below, sending columns of water splashing high into the air.
“What incredible power.”
Philip Alofs, the commander of the Golden Dragon Knights, watched the scene and was genuinely impressed.
“The walls of Akela City are regarded as an impenetrable fortress. Yet, with just a single volley, they’ve taken this much damage.”
“No matter how strong they are, those walls were built by humans centuries ago. If we dwarves couldn’t destroy something like that, we wouldn’t have the right to call ourselves dwarves.”
An elderly dwarf with a white beard and deep wrinkles grinned as he began stretching, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
Philip watched in amazement.
“Are you planning to go out by yourself?”
“Why not? I’m Highsmith, after all. And even though I was forced into this role because of my old age, I still have a duty as an elder to show the younger ones how it’s done.”
Highsmith— a title given to dwarves who have manifested their unique abilities.
Among them, the elderly dwarf Paolo had reached the strength of an 8th-circle mage.
At that moment, an overwhelming aura radiated from his entire body.
“Even if that weren’t the case, any dwarf or elf would love to set fire to that damn fortress. Just as the captain shouted earlier, we’ve finally got the chance, and I’m not about to stand idly by.”
“I see. I look forward to witnessing the power of a Highsmith who’s reached the 8th circle.”
“I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.”
Whirrr.
Having finished his stretches, Paolo manipulated an artifact from his subspace.
From the rift in space, a massive hammer emerged, nearly as tall as he was.
He slung it over his right shoulder and confidently strode forward.
Crash! Boom!
Meanwhile, the other dwarves continued to operate the magic cannons without rest.
Countless beams of light rained down on the walls and gates of Akela City, creating large cracks and causing debris to fall.
Yet, despite all this, the soldiers at the southern gate offered no resistance.
There was no shouting from the commanding officers, either.
‘The commanders and soldiers are utterly incompetent.’
It was understandable that they’d be caught off guard in a surprise attack.
And with their artillery positions lost to the relentless bombardment, it would be difficult to mount a defense.
But even so, the complete lack of resistance was hard to comprehend.
‘I’ll need to suggest to the young master that we inspect the knights and soldiers of our territory.’
The idea of the soldiers from the Adalbert territory showing the same disorganized behavior as those of Akela City was something Philip could not tolerate.
While Philip was fuming with a sense of duty, Paolo finally reached the city gate.
At that moment, the soldiers hastily pulled the trigger on their magic rifles, but it was far too late.
“Hmph!”
With a short grunt, Paolo swung his hammer with all his might toward the city gate.
Simultaneously, a dark blue aura blade enveloped the entire head of the hammer.
Boom!
A thunderous noise reverberated as something extraordinary happened.
A huge crack spread across the entire gate, which then crumbled to the ground.
‘He didn’t even use his unique ability, yet his strength is overwhelming.’
Watching the scene, Philip was genuinely in awe.
Paolo’s raw power was truly astounding.
His physical prowess was comparable to that of Vincent von Igreet, who was considered the strongest in the Empire when it came to raw physical ability.
As Philip marveled, a middle-aged dwarf approached him.
It was the unit commander who had been leading the attack just moments before.
“Thanks for guiding us. From here on, we’ll handle the rest.”
“I understand. But please make sure to avoid attacking civilians. If things go wrong, it could turn public opinion against us.”
“Don’t worry about that. Our targets have always been the ruling class of this city. Is there anyone else we should avoid?”
“There are knights of the Adalbert family stationed at the city hall. They can be easily identified by the white dragon crest on their chests.”
“Got it.”
The commander’s tone was cold, almost hostile.
Unlike Paolo, this commander harbored a deep hatred for humans, and he showed no warmth toward Philip.
The only reason he cooperated and spoke to Philip was simple.
He was able to attack the city’s ruling class, who had allowed the slave market to exist—the ones he hated most.
“The gate has fallen! Capture the city hall as quickly as possible! But I’ll never forgive anyone who harms civilians!”
“Yeah! Smash it all down!”
“We’ve finally got the chance to kill those damn humans!”
Thud thud!
At the command of their leader, the dwarves, except for the artillery operators, rushed into the city.
Philip watched the scene unfold with a bitter expression.
‘This will take a long time.’
Martin wanted the northern region to coexist peacefully with the elves and dwarves.
But after seeing the dwarves’ attitudes, he realized something.
Properly working together with them would be extremely difficult.
How could they walk the same path together?
Pondering this seriously, Philip moved forward.
—
“…Just how long have you been preparing for this, Young Master?”
“Since the day you fled from the mining city.”
“I see. So, punishing the others along the way was to buy time to bring in the elves and dwarves. And you also intended to draw everyone’s attention to yourself.”
“You’re not wrong. But separate from that, I genuinely wanted to take down those pieces of trash. At least in the north, I didn’t want to see any more filth.”
Martin answered leisurely.
The Dark King shook his head in disbelief.
“Attacking the city as well… So, Jerome Metzelder is involved with Marquis Royce’s house, isn’t he? I don’t know how you found out, but you realized this a long time ago.”
“I’ll leave that to your imagination. Anyway, keep your promise. I’ve got a few things to take care of for now.”
“Are you going after Jerome Metzelder?”
“No. The one I’m after is Heinz Schwarzenbeck.”
“Hmm. I don’t get it. Why would the Elder of the Adventurer’s Guild be involved?”
“You didn’t know? That man is the Dark King.”
“…What?”
“The true ruler of the slave market, the Dark King—that’s Heinz Schwarzenbeck. He’s also the sword Nicholas von Royce prepared to kill me.”
The Dark King’s jaw dropped, and he couldn’t close it.
He had lived in the underworld for decades, half of which he had spent reigning as the Dark King.
Yet even he had no idea of the Dark King’s true identity.
No, it wasn’t just him.
It was certain that none of the other major figures, those with the title of “King,” knew either.
‘And this is something that someone with no ties to the underworld figured out?’
Of course, the Adalbert family surely had its own intelligence-gathering organization.
But even if their network was impressive, this was beyond imagination.
“Are you telling me to believe that the Elder of the Adventurer’s Guild is the head of the slave market? Such a monstrous joke.”
“Believe it or not, it’s up to you. After all, we don’t trust each other enough to share everything, do we? If you don’t want to find out for yourself, then swear allegiance to me. I’ll tell you everything right away.”
“…Information gathering is one of the things we’re best at.”
“You sure have a roundabout way of saying you’ll check it yourself. Anyway, I’ve said all I need to. I’m off now. Once the slave market falls, make sure you take control of the underworld.”
With a parting comment urging him to keep up his end of the deal, Martin exited the restaurant.
“Anyone who doesn’t want to fight, stay inside! We won’t attack you!”
“All those who’ve committed sins for too long, come out now and pay the price!”
The loud voices of the dwarves rang clearly in Martin’s ears.
At that, Martin snapped his fingers using his thumb and middle finger, and his clothes transformed into the uniform of the Adalbert family.
This was to prevent the dwarves from mistakenly attacking him.
“Hold them back! Don’t let those damned dwarves reach the city hall!”
“They’re only 50 men! Don’t be afraid, fight back!”
The knights of Akela City shouted at the top of their lungs, but their words did little to restore the morale of the soldiers.
The dwarves, who had long been seething with rage, were truly terrifying, and the soldiers were utterly overwhelmed.
In fact, with every clash, the soldiers of Akela City were completely torn apart.
The knights’ heads didn’t even leave a trace.
“Jerome Metzelder should be handled by them.”
The enemy had also manifested his unique ability, but Martin didn’t have time to indulge his desire for a direct confrontation now.
He swiftly turned and looked at a building in the 11 o’clock direction.
His sight told him there was no one there, but the detection barrier he had spread over the ground told him otherwise.
He had clearly picked up one person.
“Once I take you down, everything will be settled, Crimson Reaper.”
“So, it’s true—stealth doesn’t work in front of a spatial ability user.”
Step, step.
From within the building, Heinz Schwarzenbeck revealed himself.
As the Dark King, his physique had been larger, but now he had returned to his original, slightly smaller frame.
His aura had changed as well.
Previously, it had felt rough, but now it was as sharp as a blade.
‘8th circle is still the 8th circle.’
Though his old age left him somewhat lacking compared to those in their prime who had reached the 8th circle, he was still undeniably stronger than Martin.
Yet, Martin felt no fear.
He continued to observe his opponent with a composed attitude.
“So, how does it feel to be deceived by someone so much younger than you, Crimson Reaper? Or should I call you Dark King? I’m not sure which title you prefer.”
“…Honestly, I have to admit it. You got me good, Young Master. I didn’t expect you to be so talented at acting.”
“Well, it’s not so much that I’m a great actor, but rather that you were overly cautious. If I were in your shoes, I would have smashed the guy in front of me before even stopping to think. That’s how you get things done.”
“I’ve been trying to fix that for years, but I just can’t seem to.”
“Guess the saying’s true: childhood habits stick with you even into old age.”
“You’ll understand when you get older too. But there’s something I want to ask. Judging by your reaction when we first met, it seems like you knew my identity from the start, right?”
“As you’ve guessed. Oh, and I also know about your connection to Nicholas von Royce.”
“Whew. I just can’t understand. How did you find out something that only the current and previous heads of the Marquis Royce family knew? I can’t imagine the former head of the Adalbert family had that kind of capability.”
This secret had been guarded for decades.
For an 18-year-old like Martin to discover it seemed impossible.
Naturally, the only other candidate was the former head of the Adalbert family, but even that made little sense.
The idea that someone who couldn’t even properly manage his own family would have the means to uncover such a secret was hard to believe.
“Well, that’s the difference between the top three noble houses and the Marquis Royce family, isn’t it? If the Klaus family and the Ferdinand family had shown interest, they could’ve found it out too.”
“…Now I understand why so many people hate you. You’ve got a natural gift for making enemies with that mouth of yours.”
“The truth is often bitter.”
Heinz’s expression grew colder.
Though he had never officially acted in that capacity, he had lived his entire life as a member of the Royce family.
He had also watched the current head’s relentless efforts to surpass the stronghold of the three great noble families.
For someone like him, Martin’s words were unforgivable.
“No matter what you say, the Marquis Royce family will disappear into history. I’ll make sure of it. And yes, you’ll be paying for your sins too.”
“Shut your mouth!”
Rumble!
Heinz’s aura surged forward, crashing directly into Martin.
“You won’t get away with it this time.”
Before he even finished speaking, Martin raised his aura to clash against Heinz’s.
The ground split beneath them, and dust fell from the surrounding buildings.
“Martin Adalbert!”
The most powerful figure in the underworld bellowed as he charged forward.
“Calling my name won’t change a thing, you filthy piece of trash!”
Hum.
Not backing down, Martin drew the holy sword Karadyl from his subspace and swung it with all his strength toward his opponent.
TL Note: Rate us on NOVEL UPDATES