Chapter 252: The Devils Choice (2)

Eliza brought her hands together and recited the spell. From here on out, the magic Eliza was using was so great that she herself didnt know how many more times she would be able to use it in her lifetime.

The conditions that had to be met for it to be used were tricky, but more than that, a large amount of human sacrifice was necessary. It needed at least 10,000 and if she wanted to use it safely, then about 30,000 were needed. But, any random sacrifices werent enough. The sacrifice itself required its own preparation.

Currently, the elixir causing the madness in the berserkers was purely fueled by their souls. They had abandoned all the goodness as a human and were focused only on their slaughtering instincts. The resentful spirits left behind when the berserks died was the perfect offering and Eliza had been steadily collecting their souls throughout the war in order to use them for this magic spells offering.

Having finished reciting the spell, Eliza raised her hand into the air and shouted.

King of the Unblessed! Lord of the savages! Please grace us with your presence and bless us!

Right after she shouted that

H Huh? Whats that?

There somethings coming out of there!

Both the Lester Kingdom and the Republics soldiers were startled.

Even the berserkers, who had lost their volition, ducked and covered their heads as they trembled in fear. It seemed as though they could feel it in their bones just how great Elizas summon was.

What was summoned right in front of the Lester Kingdoms capital was a demon that was more than 10 meters tall. He held a fire whip in his hand and his face was a strange form that humans couldnt recognize.

As soon as he showed up, he spoke to Eliza.

[I have received your sacrifice. What do you want?]

Eliza broke out in a cold sweat just listening to him, but, she gritted her teeth and responded.

Please get rid of the enemies standing before me.

He looked at the Lester Kingdoms walls and spoke with displeasure.

[You called me to intervene in a war between men? You called me, Ballock, someone who sits on the 12th seat of the Zodiac for this?]

When the Republican officers heard this, they were shocked.

Bal Ballock?

The demon in the myths?

Oh my

They were all shocked and simultaneously turned to look at Siegfried. They knew how cruel and unkind their Fuhrer could be if necessary. They followed him even after knowing all that. They believed he would shed light on the Republics future, thats why they were following him.

And yet

Ballock? The demon? What?

Does that mean he sold his soul to the demon?

They couldnt accept this. How could they be happy with a victory when they got it by relying on a demon? No, how could they be happy with a deal with the demon himself...

[I will help you only as much as I have received in sacrifice.]

Ballock spoke with displeasure. Then, he raised the fire whip high into the air.

***

What is that?

What the hell just what the hell are they doing now?

Not yet knowing Ballocks identity, the Lester Kingdoms soldiers were muttering loudly amongst themselves on the walls. And the moment Ballocks whip came down

Your Majesty!

Duke Palan shouted loudly as he yanked Queen Leila away.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

There was a tremendous sound and an explosion big enough to block everyones view.

One blow. Ballock had only struck once with his whip, but the consequences of it were shocking.

The front portion of the Lester Kingdoms castle was completely demolished. Both the thick gates and the solid walls were torn down, leaving only traces of complete destruction. Absolutely destructive power that was beyond human power.

Having done that, Ballock turned to look at Eliza with an unpleasant expression.

[With this, payment is fulfilled.]

Wait wait a minute Just one blow keugh

Eliza planned to say that it wasnt enough, but she couldnt continue. Ballock was staring at her as if he was looking at a bug, but just that was enough to make it difficult for Eliza to breathe.

This is the Zodiacs strength

Keu k keugh

Eliza was suffocating from the pressure he was exuding. Ballock looked at her as he spoke.

[Know your place.]

And with that, the great demon slowly disappeared.

Despite the tens of thousands of sacrifices of the humans who had died as berserkers, it was only enough payment for one strike. For someone as great as Balloc, the war between men was worthless. To begin with, him entering a war between humans was a foul.

And Siegfried who had fouled

Nows our chance! Attack!

Had no intentions of missing this opportunity.

Your Your Excellency. What just

An officer was about to ask for clarification on what had just happened, but

Siegfried looked at him sternly.

Are you planning on disobeying my order?

......

Right now, think only of victory!

What are you doing? Charge! Charge!

Dont stop! Obey his command!

The Republican officers roused the soldiers who were still in a daze. And so, the Republican soldiers began climbing over the fallen walls of the Lester Kingdom.

***

...Retreat! Retreat to the inner city!

Only after hearing Duke Palans urgent voice did Leila come back to her senses.

Duke What just

Are you back with us, Your Majesty?

What happened?

The walls have collapsed and the Republican soldiers are charging towards us, Your Majesty.

What do you Duke! What happened to your body?

Its nothing, Your Majesty.

......

Queen Leila was speechless.

Duke Palan was missing one of his arms now. The blow from Ballock; the moment it had swung down, Duke Palan had quickly yanked her away. He had managed to get her out of range, but one of his arms had been struck.

Your Majesty! You must retreat. You must go back into the inner city and wait for His Highness the Grand Duke to return.

...Alright.

For once, Leila followed Duke Palans suggestion without being stubborn. Even if she stayed, in their current situation, it would be meaningless. Instead, the soldiers morale would fall even more if she was captured.

Retreat! Retreat!

Retreat to the inner city!

The command to retreat to the inner city could be heard all over the walls.

***

Chase after them! The Lester Kingdoms Queen is over there!

Capture her!

Dont let them escape!

The Republican soldiers soon got on the walls and chased after Leila.

Stop them!

The Royal Guards cut them down and escorted Leila into the inner city.

On her way, she was joined by Sophia.

Sophia, what about the children?

Theyre all safe.

Sophia pointed out to Elizabeth and William in the back. When she saw them, Leila let out a sigh of relief.

You managed to get the children.

Yes, Your Majesty. Count Pate helped me.

Count?

Yes, Your Majesty.

Count Pate appeared from behind Sophia to speak to Queen Leila with a sense of urgency.

Your Majesty, if you go into the inner city, your escape will be completely blocked. You still have a chance, you must retreat now.

Its impossible to retreat now

Ive already secured a way out for you, Your Majesty. Duke Palan, if you and the knights will stop the Republican Army, I will guide the royal family out.

Saying that, Count Pate tried to pull Leila by her wrist, however.

No, I will hunker down with the rest of them in the inner city. I will not retreat.

Your Majesty. Do you plan to be stubborn in a time like this? You must retreat as soon as possible, Your Majesty.

......

Leila was silent.

What he was saying was all correct If it was possible for her to retreat, then it would be better to do that than to take shelter in the inner city. At least, if it was truly possible to retreat safely.

Somethings not right.

As Leila looked at Count Pate, she realized something.

Are those your men in the back?

Yes, Your Majesty. They are.

All the soldiers of the nobility should have been conscripted.

......

For a moment, Count Pate was speechless. He had never thought she would reprimand him about that in a situation like this.

So why do you still have men following you? Answer me, Count Pate.

...Well. Manpower was needed to secure your retreat, Your Majesty.

You needed to have me retreat, so you went against a royal command? Why? For what reason?

......

When Count Pate couldnt answer her, Leila was sure and spoke confidently.

Tell me who you are.

At that, Count Pate gritted his teeth.

What a frustrating b*tch. God, that f*cking Milton Forrest bastard was annoying, but damn, the two of you are just so frustrating.

You dare?

Hes dangerous!

The Royal Guards who were escorting Leila drew their swords and pointed them at Count Pate. However

Clang!

They were blocked by men who turned out to be Count Pates soldiers.They were the Royal Guards, but their attack had been blocked so easily by the so-called normal soldiers.

Count Pate began to speak.

You should have just quietly come. Now you made me get all rough with you.

Are you a Republican spy?

At Duke Palans question, Count Pate began to peel off his face. His true face appeared. He was

Im David of the Republic. How wonderful to meet you.

You bastard

David was a spy disguised as Count Pate.

In fact, David had infiltrated the royal palace with Ghost Groups 11 and 12 and had been looking for an opportunity to capture the royal family while carrying out his duties as a spy. The original plan had been to capture Queen Leila, or report to Siegfried, when she was retreating when Siegfried attacked the capital.

However, that plan had fallen through when Queen Leila remained inside the walls, insisting on fighting back. And even after that, he had sought numerous opportunities to kidnap her, but he had never found a chance because Duke Palan stuck closer to her side as he was a sucker on a tentacle.[1]

He had constantly been looking for an opportunity and had decided this was his last chance to kidnap Queen Leila and the royal family by saying he had secured a retreat for them. However, that had failed.

You dare

Duke Palan bared his teeth as he stalked forward. He might have lost an arm, but he was still a Master. However

Dont move!

Having said that, David looked towards the Ghosts and gave them an order. Before they knew it, the Ghosts held Elizabeth and William hostage.

You dont need me to tell you what happens if you move, right?

You bastard

Duke Palan glared at David with bloodshot eyes.

If the queen follows me calmly, Ill preserve the lives of the royal family. How about I put my honor on the line and promise you this?

I dont trust you!

At Duke Palans words, David thought, of course, to himself.

However

Then what shall we do? Shall we keep fighting like this? In this situation, who do you think will have the advantage as time goes by?

Guh...

The gates had already collapsed and the Republican soldiers were storming inside. They had to quickly retreat to the inner city, but if they couldnt

Its over.

No matter how hard he thought about it, time was against them. Duke Palan looked at Queen Leila. If she made the tough decision to abandon her children, he would accept it and follow her. However

......

She had the most agonized expression on her face; he had never seen it before.

Even when she had lost her mother and brother when she was young and could only trust him, she had never looked this weak.

Perhaps it cant be helped.

Even if she was Queen Leila, she couldnt let go of her feelings as a mother.

Hohoho Choose. Will you follow me? Or do you want to see your children die before your eyes?

......

Ill tell you in advance. I have two hostages. It doesnt matter if I kill one of them

Ack!

With a shout and a bloodbath, Davids speech was interrupted.

Nows our chance! Secure the princess and the young lord!

Marquis Catel!

Duke Palan was so happy to see Marquis Catel suddenly appear. And then

You f*cking son of a b*tch! How dare you take them as hostages!

Ill kill you!

Rick and Tommy were alive as well.

Duke Palan had thought most of the troops who had been stationed in front of the gates had been killed by Ballocks attack. But they were alive. In fact, at that moment in time, they hadn't been waiting in front of the gate. They had been at a different location to check on the troops arrangement. Thanks to that, they luckily survived.

They had rushed to join their fellow soldiers when they discovered Davids hostage situation and had ambushed him.

Attack!

Having recovered the hostages, Duke Palan ordered the Royal Knights to attack the Ghosts. And they did, aggressively.

Die!

Guuhhhh!

The Ghosts Groups 11 and 12 who had been dispatched alongside David were skilled in infiltration and disturbing public sentiment, so they were the weakest out of all the Ghosts.

They might have been stronger than regular knights, but when compared to theRoyal Guards, they were severely lacking and collapsed.

They drank the elixir and tried their best to fight back, but in the end, it was too much.

Damn it.

David tried to escape before things got worse. But

At the very least, I wont let you escape.

Duke Palan blocked Davids way. He held his sword in his arming hand and stared at him with a killers glare.

He had failed to protect Leilas mother, Queen Irene. She had been the woman he loved, but he hadnt been able to protect nor was he able to stay by her side. And so, he had vowed to do his best to protect her daughter. But, he almost hadnt been able to protect Leilas family.

I will never forgive you.

Damn it. Dont f*ck with me! You old

Slash!

Before David could finish spouting his vitriol, Duke Palans cut off his head.

David, he was one of Siegfrieds hidden aides and alongside Eliza, had played on the dirtiest and shadiest of roles.

Having killed him, Duke Palan spat on his head as he spoke.

Go to hell.

1. Added the tentacle bit so theres no misunderstanding that he isnt a sucker-fool