I play a Evil God in Otome Game

Chapter 85: Chapter 84: Doing evil for the greater good?(2/2)

"Hey! What's going on over there?"

The shout startled everyone, and the smoke rising into the sky caught the attention of all the border garrison soldiers. Confused, the soldiers quickly wanted to inform the Border Commander.

With a warning from the sentry tower, the armored soldiers swiftly went on high alert. One soldier rushed to report to the Border Commander, arriving shortly at a small building.

The building was plain, with stone and wooden architecture. The soldier entered, quickly saluted, and looked at the Border Commander, Gerhard.

Gerhard, the 50-year-old Border Commander, was a broad-shouldered man with graying hair and blue eyes. His attention shifted from paperwork to the soldier who had just entered. The Commander frowned and looked calmly at the soldier.

"What happened, soldier?"

"Sir, there was an explosion over there!" the soldier, whose face was covered by his helmet, responded quickly. Gerhard's eyes widened, and as he noticed the smoke rising even through the clouds, he began to lose his calm.

"Damn it! What's happening over there?" Considering that the incident was so close to the border, Gerhard grew anxious. It could be something bad enough to provoke a war.

There were no villages nearby, and one of the largest warehouses of Erntestadt was close to this area. What if the explosion had happened at the warehouse? Naturally, they would be the prime suspects.

Gerhard quickly grasped the gravity of the situation and turned his gaze to the sentry. "Increase the patrol. We'll find out what's going on as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir!" The sentry swiftly left, but Gerhard's focus was suddenly interrupted by a sound he heard. As he turned around, he saw a shadowy figure and tried to draw his sword, but it was immediately ensnared by shadowy tendrils.

"What–" Gerhard attempted to escape, but it was too late. Shadows engulfed his entire body, and as they rushed into his eyes, ears, and mouth, his consciousness began to fade.

"Ahhh!" As Gerhard's awareness rapidly faded, Seth filled his body with shadows and took control of it. The last thing Gerhard saw was a pair of glowing red eyes.

"Huh..."

Seth gained complete control over the body. Shadows leaked from Gerhard's eyes, turning them pitch black. Gerhard's expression became emotionless.

Seth sighed in relief. Even though he had taken over Gerhard's body, this control was physical. Gerhard's entire body was under the manipulation of shadows, making it more challenging than it appeared.

"Th-th-th..."

A robotic voice escaped from Gerhard's mouth as Seth controlled him. The voice didn't quite match Gerhard's calm tone, but Seth didn't need it to.

Seth, controlling Gerhard's body, stepped outside and looked up at the sky where dark clouds loomed. He then turned to the soldier standing nearby.

"Sol-soldier," Gerhard's voice quivered. The soldier didn't dare question why his commander was stuttering. Gerhard moved awkwardly and looked at the soldier haltingly.

"Soldier, assemble the army." Gerhard said in a flat tone. The soldier looked confused. "Eh?"

"Assemble the soldiers!"

This time, Seth, deepening Gerhard's voice, invoked a divine aura to intimidate the soldier, who shivered and quickly obeyed.

"Yes, sir!"

One soldier left while another remained. Unfazed by the soldiers' thoughts, Gerhard marched forward to the area where the border guards were stationed.

Sometimes his steps seemed odd, but he moved among the saluting soldiers unnoticed. After a short two-minute walk, Gerhard reached the gathering spot for the patrolling soldiers.

Around 100 soldiers had already gathered. Some looked confused. Due to the night shift, a few were exhausted and cursed inwardly, but everyone fell into formation as Gerhard's figure appeared.

Seth brought Gerhard's body forward. Feeling the soldiers' gazes on him, he manipulated Gerhard's vocal cords.

With the shadows aiding his lungs, Seth sensed that the air passing through his vocal cords was clear enough for a normal human and decided to start speaking.

"Soldiers!"

Although the soldiers in the front row could hear him, Seth raised Gerhard's voice to ensure those in the back could also hear.

"Today, we are going to war! By the order of Lord Holger, today will be a glorious day for us all!"

"Th-this–" Not only the soldiers, but even the lieutenants froze in disbelief. There had been no messenger today, and they were not part of the main army.

As border guards, they weren't capable of conducting a full-scale war. One lieutenant hesitantly spoke up, "Commander, we haven't made any preparations today. I fear–"

"It's forbidden to question the Lord's command. Lieutenant Albert, are you seeking death?"

Upon hearing Gerhard's open threat, Albert gulped and wished he could disappear. Fearfully, he lowered his head. "I apologize, Commander. That was a foolish mistake."

"Don't let it happen again," Seth, controlling Gerhard, didn't want to wait any longer. After surveying the soldiers, he issued a swift command. "Go and prepare your gear! The armies are already on the move. We will simply make a formal display. Rest easy."

Despite sensing something odd about this display, they had no choice but to obey. Just yesterday, Lord Holger had called for peace, so how could they be going to war so soon?

The crazy thoughts in everyone's minds were left unanswered. Not wanting to further anger their commander, they quickly departed.

The lieutenants still opposed the decision, but after witnessing the open threat to Lieutenant Albert, they chose to stay silent.

Within a short time, the soldiers were ready. The four lieutenants, each leading 25 men, prepared for the operation. If this could even be called an operation – with a force of only 100 soldiers, they could capture only a short stretch of land, about 200 meters.

Once that land was captured, what could they do if they faced a counterattack? Their ammunition wasn't unlimited, and they didn't have sufficient reserves. If their arrows ran out, they would be as good as prey to the enemy.

Swords could only be effective up to a point. If the enemy had enough archers, the soldiers would all die quickly, and the captured land would be meaningless.

These were the thoughts of not just the lieutenants but also the soldiers. What was Border Commander Gerhard thinking? What could he accomplish with 100 border guards?

"If everyone is ready, mount your horses!"

Following Gerhard's command, the soldiers quickly mounted their horses. According to Gerhard, the armies had already crossed the border, and they would merely cross the land as a show of force.

******

Thrown to the ground by the impact of the explosion, Sir Nicolas fell. Not only him, but everyone else barely managed to save their lives. As the flames destroyed the grain carts, the fire quickly consumed all the grain and spread to the nearby grass.

As the fire spread to the grass, the rain, which was gradually intensifying, prevented the flames from spreading further.

While lightning continued to strike, Sir Nicolas quickly got back on his feet, and as the retreating Knights and drivers fled, carrying Arnold, Sir Nicolas quickly caught up with them.

Although most of the drivers didn't experience the explosion up close, they were still thrown off, and since they didn't have the heavy armor like the Knights, some of them had broken legs or arms. Some were covered in blood, but their condition wasn't too bad.

"Everyone! Listen to me!" Sir Nicolas quickly got the attention of the drivers and Knights, who were beginning to calm down.

"There is a village 1-2 kilometers away from here! If we can reach it, we'll be safe!"

Before Sir Nicolas could continue his words, the cry of a man interrupted him. The man appeared to be quite old and had a frail body. Judging by the way he held his foot, it seemed his foot was broken.

"I-I can't go any further… Please, Sir Nicolas, help me. I have grandchildren to take care of."

The elderly man was almost begging. At the same time, other drivers began pleading for help. Sir Nicolas narrowed his eyes and sighed. Though his heart didn't want to, there was nothing he could do.

"All we can do is have patience. We'll get you to a doctor as soon as possible! But before that, we need to get back safely!"

As people's complaints began to subside, Sir Nicolas ordered the Knights to carry the wounded. As the Knights began quickly carrying the injured, Sir Nicolas worried about Arnold, who had fainted.

Fortunately, it was only temporary. As Arnold opened his eyes and saw Sir Nicolas carrying him on his back, he became frightened and wanted to get down. But suddenly, when he felt a sharp pain in his back and hips, a painful groan escaped his lips.

"Don't move," Sir Nicolas said calmly. Then, he gently warned Arnold. "You fell hard. If you're feeling pain somewhere, it means something is broken or injured. So bear with it and try to stay calm until we reach the village."

The unit, which began moving through the uniquely beautiful, clean countryside of Drachenreich, had covered more than 200 meters in a short time, while the weather worsened, causing many of the Knights to fall into despair.

As people shivered under the cold, Sir Nicolas quickened his pace. He wanted to reach a settlement as soon as possible. At the very least, he wanted to get there without further losses.

Biting his lip, thinking that everything had gone terribly wrong, Sir Nicolas's thoughts were interrupted when Arnold, who sensed his frustration, began massaging the captain's shoulder.

"Master, if you're tired, I can walk?"

"Fool," Sir Nicolas scolded him. Despite his harsh words, a smile formed on his lips. "Do you think I'm a 60-year-old man?"

Arnold sighed and smiled. "Master, when you frown like an old man, you really look older than your age."

"Do you want to polish my armor again when we get back to the camp?"

Arnold's face paled, and he suddenly bent his waist. Groaning in pain again, Arnold froze when he heard his master, Nicolas, laughing bitterly. Enjoy new chapters from M-V-L

"Master, is it really okay to be this cruel? Your armor is already as good as new, so why are you making me do this?"

"When I was being squire, I spent all my time polishing armor. Even if my master didn't wear it, I would clean it. Do you know why?" Sir Nicolas smiled mysteriously. Arnold shrugged, signaling that he didn't know.

"The purpose of polishing armor is to make it shinier," Sir Nicolas said seriously. Arnold furrowed his brow. "I don't understand. Why is it good for the armor to be shiny? Doesn't it attract too much attention in battle?"

"We are Knights, Arnold," Sir Nicolas maintained his seriousness. His tone unintentionally made Arnold pay more attention. Nicolas continued, "We are not archers, cavalry, or spearmen. We are strong Knights that every lord spends gold to hire for protection. Our goal is to stand out and destroy the enemy as magnificently as we can."

"We always fight at the front lines, we're always the main target, and we're always the main force of the army," Sir Nicolas said proudly. "If our armor is not shiny enough to blind the enemy, then we are no different than a common militia."

"A militia is made up of regular soldiers in every battle, but we are not. We are the ones who polish our armor to make it shine even more, and we are the ones who fight courageously at the front lines."

The other Knights nodded with approval, and the people listening applauded. It was, at least for a brief moment, an inspiring speech. Meanwhile, Arnold's eyes sparkled.

"I didn't know polishing armor was so important." Sir Nicolas laughed, but Arnold's eyes suddenly locked onto something. He squinted.

"Sir Nicolas, do you hear that?"

"The only sound I hear is the rain, my son," Sir Nicolas replied, confused. Arnold turned his head and looked up at the hill behind them.

When the sound of hooves coming from the hill became audible to everyone, everyone stopped and turned toward the hill. As two banners came into Sir Nicolas's line of sight, his eyes widened in anger.

"That banner," Nicolas muttered, his eyes narrowing as he recognized the banner. "That banner belongs to Lord Holger!"

Around a hundred mounted soldiers stopped abruptly, with Gerhard at the forefront. Gerhard's eyes were emotionless, and as the body of the shadows seemed to rot, his skin slowly turned pale.

His lungs were struggling to work, and his heartbeat was slowly slowing down. As Gerhard's end approached, Seth quickly wanted to end this game.

He raised his sword and turned to the soldiers behind him. "Charge!!"

Hearing Gerhard's scream from the top of his lungs, the soldiers prepared their spears. Then, they quickly spurred their horses down the hill.