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Chapter: 81

The sun was soon to set. And in Wolhan Fortress, the battle would begin. Anxiety gnawed at me.

The Lord of Misa, who seemed like he would hold out for a long time without yielding his troops, unexpectedly made a swift decision. He provided the 1,000 soldiers I had requested.

I didn\'t know what had caused this sudden change of heart. I wondered if he had included non-combatants to preserve his own forces, but upon checking, it didn\'t seem to be the case.

I also inspected their weapons for any defects, but there were none.

Well, he must have made his own judgment.

After all, if Wolhan Fortress fell, Misa Fortress would be next. Fortunately, he didn\'t seem to be a fool who would make short-sighted decisions for immediate gains.

As soon as I received the troops, I departed from Misa Fortress. I was in such a hurry that I even declined the Lord of Misa\'s offer to rest for a day or two at his fortress, which was currently free from battles.

Upon arriving at Yeoan Fortress, I instructed the gatekeeper to announce my arrival. As the gates of Yeoan Fortress slowly opened, I rode my horse into the fortress.

Yeoan Fortress was quieter than Misa Fortress. And like Misa Fortress, it seemed oblivious to the ongoing war.

"I am the Lord of Yeoan Fortress. I greet His Highness, Prince Ikwon."

Like the Lord of Misa, the Lord of Yeoan showed clear signs of not welcoming me. His forced smile looked awkward.

"Welcome. You have come a long way. We are deeply honored that you have graced our Yeoan Fortress with your presence," the Lord of Yeoan said. However, his voice conveyed discomfort rather than delight.

I pretended not to notice his discomfort and dismounted my horse.

"Thank you for your hospitality. But I haven\'t come here for leisurely greetings."

At my words, the Lord of Yeoan stopped speaking and simply smiled.

"...First, it would be best to go inside."

"Alright. Let\'s go in."

Like the Lord of Misa when I first met him, the Lord of Yeoan seemed to intend to stall for time and wear me down. As soon as we were seated, I spoke directly.

"As you know, I have come to request military support again. You must have rejected the previous request because you didn\'t realize the gravity of the situation. I thought it would be better to meet and speak in person rather than sending a letter."

The Lord of Yeoan gave an awkward laugh. I didn\'t smile.

"We need additional troops for the battle at Wolhan Fortress. Provide us with soldiers."

The Lord of Yeoan was silent for a moment. His next words were clearly hesitant.

"How many soldiers do you require?"

"One thousand," I spoke in a firm tone, showing no room for compromise.

Lord of Yeoan\'s expression became troubled.

"I can provide a smaller number, but 1,000..."

"You need to be specific about what you mean by a smaller number so that I can understand that your intentions are to uphold the esteemed royal family and the well-being of the people."

The Lord of Yeoan hesitated, then avoided my gaze as he answered.

"I will provide 200 soldiers."

Only 200? The number of troops he offered was woefully insufficient.

"Is that all you can offer? You\'ve been authorized a far greater number of troops than other fortresses in the central and southern regions, so why are you only prepared to offer this much?"

"I apologize."

"Instead of apologizing, answer my question. Don\'t you feel sorry for the people of Wolhan Fortress who are dying? You must know that I\'m not requesting troops for personal gain."

"How could I doubt Your Highness\'s sincerity? However, sending troops to other fortresses is not a simple matter."

His excuse was even less convincing than the Lord of Misa\'s. I couldn\'t speak kindly to him like this. I smiled and spoke sarcastically.

"It seems the soldiers of Yeoan Fortress are truly elite. The Lord of Misa provided 1,000 troops, but you offer only 200... Are 200 soldiers from Yeoan Fortress equivalent to 1,000 from Misa Fortress? How impressive."

Even though he must have noticed my sarcasm, the Lord of Yeoan remained silent. Did he think he had made a mistake?

"Can I see them for myself?"

"...Yes, Your Highness."

His answer was an agreement, but his expression already conveyed a refusal. But I didn\'t care.

We left the reception hall and headed for the training grounds. As the Lord and I appeared, the commander and soldiers came out and formed neat rows.

"Your Lord seems very proud of you all, and I\'d like to see the reason for that."

At my words, the commander looked puzzled.

The Lord of Yeoan interjected.

"Your Highness, that\'s not..."

"Didn\'t you say that 200 soldiers from Yeoan Fortress are equal to 1,000 from Misa Fortress? Although you didn\'t explicitly state it, you offered 200 soldiers after the Lord of Misa offered 1,000. So, isn\'t that what you implied?"

The commander spoke up.

"If you wish to see proof, what exactly are you suggesting?"

"I want you to show me how formidable your forces are."

As soon as I finished speaking, I drew the sword from my waist. The guards of Yeoan Fortress were momentarily startled and tensed up.

Without warning, I swung my sword at the commander standing next to the Lord. It might seem absurd, but I was a scoundrel anyway, so it didn\'t matter.

"A commander should be more skilled than even the most exceptional soldier, shouldn\'t they? Then the strongest person here must be the commander."

The commander reflexively drew his sword to block, but he was caught off guard and his reaction was slow and weak.

I could excuse the first clash, attributing it to his surprise rather than lack of skill, but even in the second clash, the commander failed to regain his composure and showed visible panic.

Only in the third clash did the commander finally display his true abilities. However, would an enemy determined to kill wait for their opponent to regain their composure and fight at full strength?

I thrust my sword forward. The commander\'s sword met mine head-on. With a twist of my wrist, my blade slid along his and continued its advance.

As my sword closed in, the commander hastily retreated.

"How dare you!" the Lord of Yeoan shouted.

Was he seriously asking that?

Ignoring him, I kicked off the ground towards the commander. With a long sweep of my sword, I closed the distance between us.

After only a few exchanges, the commander fell to the ground.

I held the tip of my sword to his neck. Even though the blade didn\'t touch his skin, the commander tensed up, his neck stiff with fear.

I sneered and said, "It\'s only been a few months since I picked up a sword again. Seeing this result, is your commander particularly weak in one-on-one combat? Moreover, I haven\'t had a moment\'s rest since finishing the dawn battle at Wolhan Fortress."

My words chilled the air on the training grounds.

In other words, this commander had been so easily defeated by a prince who had only been wielding a sword for a few months and had far less experience.

However, we were on the verge of battle. I couldn\'t push the commander\'s pride too far, as it wouldn\'t do for him to lose face completely.

"It seems to me that the strength of the north lies not in individual skill, but in the number of troops..."

I deliberately provoked them one last time, hoping to draw out any truly elite soldiers they might have.

But even after a long pause, there was no reaction. It seemed they truly had no elite forces.

"Are you serious with this 200?"

The Lord of Yeoan stared at me with a flustered expression. In his eyes, I could see the anger of being humiliated and bewilderment. He finally nodded and said, "...I will send more troops."

"One thousand."

I sheathed my sword and helped the fallen commander to his feet. The commander bowed deeply, as if overwhelmed with gratitude.

"I cannot compromise on that number."

They were not in a position to refuse such a number of troops. The Lord of Yeoan\'s face contorted as if he was about to complain.

"...Yes. As you wish."

"That\'s a wise choice. Prepare the troops, as I will be leaving immediately."

The Lord of Yeoan wiped the sweat from his brow with a trembling hand and bowed his head.

"You\'re leaving right away? How can you leave without staying..."

"I told you. There\'s no time."

I smiled at the Lord of Yeoan, though it wasn\'t a genuine smile.

"Then I will wait here for the troops to be prepared."

"Ah, wouldn\'t it be better to go inside..."

"Is there a problem with me being here?"

"Not at all, but..."

"There\'s no time to waste on trivial matters. Focus on my request and hurry."

Hearing my words, the Lord of Yeoan hastily ordered the preparation of the troops. I observed the reactions of the soldiers and the commander.

Wolhan Fortress originally had a little over 3,000 troops. With the addition of 2,000 more, the total was now 5,000.

I wondered if that would be enough to provide some breathing room in the battle, but then I recalled the endless waves of monstrous beasts, and worry crept in.

Even with 5,000 troops, it wouldn\'t be enough to exterminate the beasts and resolve the situation.

The current forces at Wolhan Fortress hadn\'t had a proper rest in far too long.

I was a prince, so I at least had some opportunity to rest, but the others were in a far worse state than me.

It was crucial to reinforce the troops and secure rest time for them first. No matter how large the army, it would be meaningless if it was entirely composed of exhausted soldiers.

I needed to suggest increasing the number of scouts as well. There would likely be another meeting once I returned to Wolhan Fortress.

While watching the soldiers prepare, I leaned against a nearby wall. Someone spotted me, gasped in surprise, and rushed over to offer me a chair.

I sat down reluctantly and almost dozed off.

"Captain Yoo, are the preparations complete?"

I asked Yoo Geung, rubbing my eyes. He replied that they weren\'t yet.

The soldiers of Yeoan Fortress were hastily arming themselves and getting ready. I watched them from atop the wall, recalling the battle at Wolhan Fortress.

Then I stood up again. To make sure they weren\'t trying to slip in any fake soldiers, I went to the barracks and wandered among the soldiers, checking the condition of the troops preparing for deployment.

The Lord of Yeoan still had a tense expression, but he was doing his best to prepare according to my demands. At least, that\'s how it appeared to me.

"They will be ready soon."

Perhaps unable to bear watching me wander around, the Lord of Yeoan spoke.

"I\'ll have a seat prepared for you. Please don\'t stand..."

"I can\'t sit down, I\'ll fall asleep. It\'s fine."

The Lord of Yeoan\'s voice still held tension, but there was also a hint of resignation. A quick surrender. Not bad.

After a while, the Yeoan Fortress troops were ready. I led the soldiers towards Wolhan Fortress. My steps were heavy.