The Youngest Son of the Northern Grand Duke Wants to Break Off the Engagement-Chapter 98

A gale swept all around, with fragments of the castle wall raining down from every direction.
Even amidst the chaos, Brillie slashed every flying stone with fierce precision.
Had she been alone, she might have chosen to evade, but because she had to protect Alter, she opted to confront the threat directly.
'... So it ends up like this, after all.'
Alter remained still for a moment and then, belatedly, began to move.
Brillie followed beside him, constantly scanning their surroundings with vigilance.
Given the current situation, even the Knight of True Flame might intervene, so she had to act with even greater caution.
'The castle wall is still standing, but... it probably doesn't matter now.'
Alter was circling the wall, heading toward the rear gate.
He and Alraune had at least managed to defend a portion of the castle by stepping in.
However, given how debris from the castle wall had erupted in every direction, the front must have been devastated.
'We'll either have to abandon the castle or brace for another defense.'
Whichever choice, the allies could not help but suffer heavy losses.
If they gave up on the siege defense, they would have to close in on the monsters and engage directly.
But staying in a ruined castle would lead to swift encirclement.
He imagined Berhan would soon give the order, but thought it very likely they would prefer the former.
'I don't know if our forces have survived. Though elite, their numbers are few...'
He had prepared escape routes in advance, considering the possibility of a breath attack.
But the timing was so sudden, and with tricks thrown in, the confusion had thrown off the judgment of their allies.
Still, as the rear wall had not collapsed, perhaps the range of the breath attack had been reduced.
'If that's the case, does this make things a little more favorable?'
If exchanging the castle for the dragon's breath, perhaps there was some gain in the trade.
After all, drawing out a breath attack must have cost a considerable amount of magic power.
However, they were still far from Benelrode the Incandescent, so they hadn't even managed a proper attack yet.
'Even if it's weakened, a dragon is still a dragon. How did they defeat such a thing?'
Unconsciously, Alter thought back on the exploits of the suicide squad.
Literally, they had all resolved to face death and had gathered all those known for their strength:
Retired knights, mercenaries turned thieves, mages expelled by the society, priests accused of heresy, sharpshooters ruined by drink, and so on.
They had persuaded and sent out those who had, in effect, been cast out of the Empire—who could have guessed they would accomplish such a feat?
'Originally, they would have been able to subjugate the dragon even without Brillie and me. That means...'
He and Brillie were stepping in in place of the Sword Saint and the next Sword Saint for this war.
Which meant the Sword Saint and his successor were overwhelmingly powerful, and some solution had existed in any case.
Of course, in that timeline the troops had suffered enormous losses, so a high price had surely been paid.
'Does that mean they used a strategy that required sacrificing numerous soldiers? I don't know about that...'
Even in the current situation, there were surely numerous tangled factors at play.
Thus, he could not predict carelessly and could only calculate the gains and losses in the simplest terms.
Slaying the dragon was critical, but the losses among their own could not be ignored.
'We've dug temporary trenches at the rear—but... even those won't hold long.'
Once the front lines were breached, there would be no stopping the monsters' advance.
They could only delay the monsters' march as much as possible through skirmishes.
While most of their forces would be deployed, who would dare confront a dragon?
'Here, we might have to face the dragon directly...'
"They're coming here."
"Looks like you're not injured."
Berhan and Alraune were withdrawing from the castle, leading their troops out.
Guessing their intent, Alter joined them with Brillie.
Brillie moved quietly, keeping an eye on the dragon and the monsters' movements.
"They're withdrawing after all?"
"The wall at the front collapsed. We can't keep up the defense like that."
"Still, no one died. So now we can plan our next move, can't we?"
"I've sent word to the other castles, but... from now on, casualties will rise. I can't even guess how far we'll have to retreat..."
Berhan was in a dilemma but did not lose his resolve.
There was still opportunity, and they were only withdrawing reluctantly.
If the battle continued, eventually they would be able to grasp the dragon's throat.
"Once we reach the first defensive line, we'll reconsider. Nothing concrete can be decided right now."
Alraune, from the moment he had sensed the breath attack, had anticipated this outcome.
The archmages of the past had fought dragons many times, but disabling the breath was impossible.
Thus, among mages, it had become an ironclad rule—never to engage a breath attack.
On the contrary, by sacrificing the castle, they had been able to mitigate the breath's power, so in a way, it was a stroke of fortune.
"... So the Knight of True Flame never appeared."
"Probably couldn't step out—he must still be recovering from his wounds."
"Or maybe he's just scared. No matter how strong he is, he can't withstand the breath, can he?"
"..."
Alter could only keep silent for a moment.
It was unmistakable mockery, and at the same time, the sign of firm anger.
The one Brillie had once admired as a swordsman had fallen into corruption, deepening her enmity even further.
'It's too dangerous here. How long will we have to keep fighting?'
Brillie looked at Alter, concern in her eyes.
When she'd first joined a monster subjugation, she'd at least felt able to withstand it.
But now, even hanging on was hard, and she wasn't even sure she could trust in victory.
Above all, with something precious by her side, her anxiety only grew.
'If Alter gets hurt... then I...'
* * *
Benelrode the Incandescent exhaled slowly after unleashing his breath.
The castle's entire front was scorched; the humans had already fled.
Now, he could advance unimpeded, without interference from anyone.
"Haah... To think I'd waste a breath on something like this..."
Benelrode the Incandescent was visibly displeased but commanded the monsters to advance first.
He had meant to finish this quietly, but these humans had withstood even his flame.
Too vexing, he had let his true feelings show, and then, with that, released his breath.
'If I do this, they won't dare challenge me further.'
Surely the humans knew something about dragons.
After all, he himself and a few other dragons had clashed with them throughout the ages.
Of those, he had suffered the greatest losses, but he could not reveal weakness before humans.
'Is Tiksa the Frostbane not countering my breath?'
Benelrode the Incandescent still kept Tiksa the Frostbane in mind.
If both had unleashed their breath, they might have canceled each other out to a degree.
But Tiksa the Frostbane had not responded, and instead, concealed his presence completely.
'Is he weaker than I am? Or does he have some underhanded scheme?'
Of course, either way, it didn't particularly matter.
If restrictions bound him, perhaps he cooperated with humans out of necessity.
In the end, the humans had to win, one way or another; they would use whatever means necessary.
'I don't know about the other dragons, but I won't remain in this worthless world. I can't keep running forever.'
Ru the Luminescent insisted on seclusion to preserve balance in this world.
Most dragons resented it, and only Tiksa the Frostbane had settled in the northern region alone.
Meanwhile, some dragons invaded human territory, experienced unexpected resistance, and had no choice but to retreat.
'Grafden of the Deep must be somewhere leeching the earth's nutrients. Mwin the Thunder of Ruin... might have ascended to the sky.'
The other dragons were likely each seeking survival in their own ways.
Meanwhile, frost Tiksa had been suppressed by a seal, and Ekezax of the Gale had met death.
Had they all joined forces, they could have easily slaughtered humankind, but dragon pride would not permit such savagery.
'Lailnetia the Devouring—he's the most vicious, which is why Ru personally keeps watch over him.'
Lailnetia was more warped than any other dragon, craving nothing but pure annihilation.
Even before he was expelled from Hazrodain's world, he never let go of his desire for the end.
Even Benelrode found it repulsive, so it was impossible to consider him a true kin.
'By that standard, maybe Tiksa the Frostbane is the preferable one. At least he's integrating with humans.'
It may have been pure self-interest, but whatever the case, he was interacting with humans.
Even Ru, who always demanded neutrality, never approached humans so carelessly.
Perhaps it was Tiksa the Frostbane who had perfectly adapted to the laws of this world.
'If that's your way, I won't meddle—but our clash is inevitable.'
Their aims diverged, so collision was unavoidable.
Some dragons opposed humans, others insisted on neutrality, some begrudgingly sought rapport.
Thus, whenever clash occurred, their opposition only sharpened.
'Only when one of us dies will it end. Tiksa the Frostbane...'
* * *
After arriving at the first defense line, Alter took a brief moment to rest.
The soldiers lying in ambush joined them one by one and deployed to adjacent areas on new orders.
The marquis of the East proposed striking at the enemy's rear, and the capital had sent word that additional reinforcements were on the way.
'If we spread our forces wide, they won't be able to use their breath.'
Benelrode the Incandescent would likely only unleash his breath in truly dire circumstances.
But as long as they held firm within the castle, they needed to break that pattern somehow.
They had repelled the eastern troops but, as the breath's range was limited, it couldn't cover all the vast lines of defense.
'He'll have to conserve his magic power. Otherwise, we'll have to clash even if it's with our bare hands.'
Even if accompanied by monsters, it was no easy thing to face so many soldiers at once.
If Benelrode only aimed to defend his line, he would have to eliminate every last soldier himself.
They had shaped the situation so that Benelrode would have to act on his own initiative.
'We need to strike at an opening. If we can prevent him from using his breath, we can push hard.'
There were already second and third lines of defense prepared, but they could retreat no further.
While the soldiers bought them time, he and Brillie, the Saint, and the great mage had to eliminate the dragon.
Of course, the Knight of True Flame might interfere, but with elite troops on alert, he wouldn't be able to run amok as before.
In the end, only those four strong ones would stand against Benelrode the Incandescent.
'If I had a dragon's magic power, things would change. Mother must have foreseen things at least this far...'