The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth-Chapter 344: Imperial War (2)

“All troops!!! Prepare to attack!!”

Their red armor gleamed like the blazing sun, as though to signal the beginning of a fiery onslaught. The army marched in a long line.

“Waaaahhhh...!!”

An army of 300,000 began marching south, led by the Red Knights wielding massive battle axes.

The tall grass of the Southern Great Plains was trampled mercilessly by the hooves of the cavalry, making the wide expanse the perfect battleground for mounted soldiers to display their full strength.

“It’s a direct assault.”

“With no obstacles on the plains, it’s an ideal place for a head-on battle.”

“The old man is pushing himself.”

Despite the tens of thousands of troops lined up before her, Miliana’s expression remained calm.

“Shall we wait for reinforcements from the Twin Armor?”

“Me, waiting for help?” Miliana frowned at her subordinate. “Why would I wait for someone else’s help when the enemy is right before us?”

“...What?”

“Who trained you?”

Startled, the subordinate immediately knelt.

“Whose unit are you from?”

“L-Lady Digg...”

“Ugh, leaving things to a child won’t do any good. Kanotcho, don’t let our younger sister[1] take any troops for a while. Let her go out into the battlefield alone. If her blade goes dull, so will her instincts.”

Hearing that, the subordinate paled.

“Understood. It seems she’s aware of it, as she’s already begun preparing for battle. She’ll probably be at the forefront. It might be a good time to deploy her to the left flank. That’s where the fighting will be fiercest.”

Miliana nodded at Kanotcho, her second-in-command

A head taller than Miliana, Kanotcho had her hair tied back tightly and carried two large crescent-shaped swords on her back. The swords were unusually large and heavy, the blades incredibly thick. Wielding each of them with one hand seemed difficult.

“You.”

“Y-Yes, ma'am!”

“Cover the left flank. If you don’t bring back a hundred heads, you’d better be ready to face the consequences.”

“I’ll remember that!”

At her command, the subordinate quickly bowed and dashed off. As he left the barracks, those inside chuckled, watching his retreating figure with amusement. The atmosphere was so lighthearted that one could almost forget about the massive war about to unfold.

“Heh, you stupid old man... Choosing the Great Plains as the battlefield...” Miliana muttered to herself as she gazed at Jarvant’s massive army ahead of her.

The Digon forces gathered on the Great Plains totaled 100,000 soldiers—an army worthy of an entire nation, though they were still clearly outnumbered by the imperial forces.

“What’s the status of Marquis Vestal’s territory?”

“They still seem to be in battle. Anthem Howard’s forces are struggling more than expected against Bran Gamunt’s forces in the siege of the marquisate.”

“Casualties?"

“Thanks to the dispatched golem units, our military losses appear to be minimal. However, since the golems are magic-operated machines that require mana stones, we estimate that they will remain operational for three more days.”

“That means the battle needs to be decided within that time.”

“Indeed.”

Miliana nodded.

“Even if the sluggish strategist in the marquisate is irrelevant, Karyl won’t remain idle if he knows that 300,000 imperial troops are moving. I wonder what he’s planning.”

“Could it be, as that fool said earlier... that he plans to win at the marquisate and then move south to support us?”

“Well, if I remember correctly, Karyl has put a lot of effort into bringing him under his command. Yet despite that, there’s barely any results. It’s the first battle, but the fact that it still hasn’t been resolved only proves his incompetence.”

“Perhaps the enemy’s strategist is just that skilled.”

“So what? Does that mean it’s acceptable to lose?”

“No, ma’am.”

“Whether the enemy is skilled or not, in the end, war only has two outcomes: victory or defeat. Remember, Digon never stands on the side of the defeated.”

Clack!

As soon as her words fell, the warriors in the barracks placed their hands on their chests and bowed their heads.

“You understand what I’m trying to say.”

“Of course, ma’am.”

Kanotcho drew one of the twin swords strapped to her back, passing by the bowing subordinates, and swung the door open. The assembled warriors all turned toward her.

“Listen up, everyone!! The battle for the Vestal Marquisate will be decided in three days. We still have time to achieve victory.”

Shing!

Kanotcho drew her second sword, crossing both blades. The swords crackled with flames and let out a sharp, ringing sound.

“As always, we will deliver the first strike, and victory will be ours to claim first.”

“Waaaaahhhhh...!!”

“Yeaaaahhh...!!”

In response to her declaration, the Digon warriors all raised their weapons and shouted in unison.

Outnumbered three to one, the battle would be far from easy, but if the Great Plains were breached, the empire would begin its march through the south. In other words, Digon absolutely needed to defend, or rather, annihilate the enemy here.

“Enemy forces! Advancing within range!”

At the scout’s shout, Miliana drew her sword.

“The commander’s skill can close the gap in numbers. They only have 200,000 more troops, and I’m enough to compensate for that.”

Then, she shouted, “Listen up! There is no need for doubt or fear. Just follow behind me!”

Thwack!

As she reined in her Cargon, the desert horse reared up, striking the air with its front hooves and snorting sharply.

“Follow me, and victory shall be yours.”

“Waaaaaahhhh...!!”

The fighting spirit of the Digons instantly surged, as though they didn’t even care about the numerical advantage.

Since the Civil War, Lady Miliana's leadership has grown even stronger. She truly deserves to be called a conqueror.

Kanotcho felt an electric thrill course through her, gripping her weapon tightly. At the same time, she couldn’t help but marvel at how great the man who had recruited such a powerful woman really was.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud...!!

“Hunt them down!” shouted Digg, the youngest of Miliana’s two sisters, wielding two short blades in a reverse grip.

Both forces advanced in sharp wedge formations, a maneuver that demanded absolute confidence from the vanguard.

Whoosh...!

Jarvant Redak drew the Burning Punishment as he watched Digg charge at him, perched on the massive Cargon. She seemed to still be in her teens.

“How barbaric... Have they sunk so low as to throw kids onto the battlefield as cannon fodder?”

“Quit the nonsense. The only fodder is you, old man.”

Just then, Digg closed the distance in the blink of an eye. Her daggers flashed toward Jarvant, and he barely managed to intercept her strike with his chakram.

“Ugh?!”

Being one of the five legendary Blader weapons, the Burning Punishment possessed immense power. Unfortunately for Jarvant, the chakram wasn’t his primary weapon, making it awkward in his hands. And in a fight where technique mattered more than brute force, using an unfamiliar weapon could prove fatal.

What the... How can she fight so well at such a young age...?

He suddenly realized that Dig’s every single strike targeted his vital points with incredible precision.

Digon Twin Blade Technique - First Form: Crimson Moon Wind.

Digg leaped from the Cargon’s head, spinning through the air to strike at Jarvant’s back with a fluid arc of her daggers.

Clang!

After barely blocking the attack, Jarvant quickly channeled mana into the Burning Punishment. Flames burst from the chakram’s curved blade as he swung it fiercely to drive her back.

Despite his fierce counterattack, Digg leapt back smoothly and gently landed on the Cargon once more. She then jumped high into the air and unleashed her Third Form: Soaring Bird Wave.

“You arrogant brat!”

Whoosh...!

Jarvant threw the chakram with all his might. It spun like a massive, fiery wheel, gathering momentum as it blazed through the air, the flames threatening to engulf Digg.

“Ugh?!”

Compared to the overwhelming power of the flame wheel, Digg’s mana was insignificant. Realizing the fire would soon swallow her whole, she quickly retreated.

Seizing the opening, Jarvant grabbed the massive axe strapped to his back and swung it with one hand.

Boom!!

“Lady Digg!”

One of the subordinates who had rushed out of the command barracks earlier threw himself in front of her, taking the brunt of Jarvant’s blow.

“It’s not just the weapon’s power that counts. The skill of the wielder is just as, if not more important. He’s compensating for his lack of familiarity with the weapon by forcing his mana into it,” Kanotcho muttered as she observed the battle.

The clash of blades echoed all around them, the air thick with the scent of blood.

“For him to lead the frontlines at that age... He must have some kind of backup.”

“Should I step in?”

“No. It seems someone else has already done it.”

“What...?”

Kanotcho pointed ahead.

“...”

Jarvant’s axe was stopped dead in its tracks, blocked by a black puppet standing firmly in front of Dig.

“What the... who are you?”

The fallen subordinate looked around in confusion. Digg gave him a smack on the back of his head and yanked him upright by the collar.

“Hehehe...”

A strange, inhuman chuckle came from the puppet’s mouth.

“Reinforcements.”

Miliana turned her head slightly toward the voice coming from nearby.

“What about Karyl? Why are you here, Kay Rothschild?”

“He’s busy elsewhere. He has a message for you—eliminate Jarvant and keep moving north. Apparently, he’s already caused a commotion in the empire.”

“Hmm?” Miliana raised an eyebrow.

“He couldn’t take the emperor’s head, but he did behead the commander-in-chief—a guy named Cam Gray or something like that.”

“...!?!”

Jarvant’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Fuck off with this!!”

Blinded by rage, he tried to pull his axe free, but the puppet, Zarka Hochi, held it firmly, not yielding an inch.

“And you’re the only reinforcement?” Miliana scoffed.

At that moment, the desert sand slowly rose—dozens, or rather, hundreds of small, pillar-like structures sprouted from the ground.

Rumble... Rrrrrumble...

Kay Rothschild shot a quick glance at Miliana before turning her head back and weaving her hand signs with the precision of a maestro performing a symphony. The sand cascaded down from the pillars like grains slipping through an hourglass.

More and more pillars rose from the ground, multiplying at an exponential rate. The Digons frantically looked around themselves, trying to make sense of the spectacle.

The pillars finally stopped rising once they reached about the height of a person.

Ssss...

As the sand covering the pillars quickly slid down like water, it revealed what had really risen—skeletons, thousands of them.

“This... can’t be real...”

“Where did these come from...?”

“How many are there?”

Grrrr...

Those weren’t the only undead. After all the human skeletons had risen, the beasts that had been slain on these grounds emerged one by one, digging their way up from underneath the ground.

For generations, the tribes of the Great Plains had sustained themselves by hunting monsters from the surrounding dungeons, selling their hides and flesh to survive. Occasionally, they would sell entire carcasses to the imperial nobles with a macabre taste for taxidermy, but even then, they tried to uphold the hunter’s code.

For decades, or rather, for centuries, they had been taking life with their own hands—a harsh yet necessary practice to ensure their survival. Out of respect for the prey, the Great Plains tribes always buried their bones here, in this land, after stripping the meat from their carcasses.

Perhaps it was those remains that allowed the prairie grass to grow so thick and tall.

“This is how much death has been dealt in these lands.”

“It’s been a while... this familiar scent. She’s no dragon—at best, just a whelp, little more than a hatchling. The commander is the one supposed to turn the tide of the battle, right? Well, if that’s the case, let me show you what real command looks like.”

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“Lead them, Zarka.”

Zarka Hochi straightened his chest as if taking a deep breath and murmured, “By your command.”

Creak... Creak...

“Grrr...”

Thud! Boom...!

Undead beasts emerged alongside the skeletal soldiers behind him—wolves, basilisks, War Bears. Every creature that had once roamed the plains now returned as part of the undead legion.

Boom!

Zarka Hochi pushed back against Jarvant’s axe with all his strength, retreating a step.

“I’ve heard that pup Nain Darhon claims to have created an immortal army. Bold talk for a brat who hasn’t even lived a few decades.”

He knelt and stretched out his hand, and Kay Rothschild, as if accustomed to this, stepped onto his arm and perched on his shoulder.

Shing!

With one arm dangling loosely at her side, she flicked her other hand, and a sharp blade sprang from the back of it.

Zarka Hochi glanced at the clashing soldiers, his voice low and sinister. “Time to show them who the true king of the dead really is.”

1. Although Chapter 207 may have given the impression that there are four sisters in total, it has become clear that Digon has only three sisters: Miliana herself, Kanotcho, and Digg. Now that this is clearly established, it no longer makes sense to call this trio “the Queen’s Blades” with the queen herself part of it. Thus, the term will be changed to Digon’s Blades going forward, and we have revised chapter 207 so that it correctly portrays the trio of sisters. We apologize for the confusion. ☜