WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Oblivious
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◈ Prince of Rage ◈
Chapter 96
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It was not a good time for travel. The wind was cold, food was scarce, and so was firewood.
Rather than traveling, this was the time to make every possible preparation and huddle down before winter truly arrived.
Even with every possible preparation, however, not everyone could be fully ready. Winter was the season when people starved or froze to death here and there. That was simply accepted as normal.
Life was suffering. For every last person. So there was no point in complaining about why life was so hard.
Third Prince Ivar did not whine or complain at all. However, his frail body seemed hard-pressed to endure the chilly wind.
He even lost consciousness from time to time while riding, so their journey north was painfully slow.
Wrapped tightly in blankets, the Third Prince would occasionally begin to slump.
Eldwin walked beside him with the reins in hand, always watching the prince. Whenever he seemed about to fall, she hurriedly alerted the group.
“Wait!”
At Eldwin’s shout, Yorick and Brynhildr quickly rushed over, caught the Third Prince, slowly lowered him from his horse, and laid him on the ground. This was already the third time, so no one panicked.
They laid him down and supported his head, while Ivy hurried over with more blankets and covered him.
He had not completely lost consciousness, but his gaze was unfocused, and his breathing was so weak it seemed it might stop at any moment.
Valerie had been riding Snow and surveying the area when he spotted the Third Prince collapsed again and returned.
After dismounting and checking on him, Valerie saw Ivar smile faintly.
“Isn’t it cruel? It keeps going, even when it seems about to break.”
“It seems they do not know yet. Once we reach Hayden Crossroads, you will be able to breathe easier.”
“Yes...”
“Rest as long as you need. We can leave again once you are ready.”
Ivar nodded.
Valerie rose and mounted Snow again. He watched the rear while Knut watched the road ahead, so he quickly rode off to find him. The cold wind lashed his face.
Knut had left the road and was mounted on slightly higher ground, surveying the surroundings.
As Valerie approached, Knut did not even turn around. He pointed into the distance.
“I think we’ve been found. I don’t know whether they have already sent word.”
Several mounted figures in the distance were staring at them. They did not look like knights.
They might have been travelers, but Valerie seemed to remember passing them earlier. The fact that they were still visible meant they had followed.
They had passed Tusk Village, and Giant Bridge, also called the Giant’s Bridge, was not far ahead. Once they crossed it, they could guarantee some measure of safety. But not yet.
Valerie’s final destination was the headquarters of the Lokir Merchant Company, but for the Third Prince’s health, they first needed to get inside any building at all.
And a bridge was an easier place to drive off pursuers.
“It would be better to carry him.”
“Hm?”
“Yorick, Brynhildr, and Eldwin can take turns carrying him. You clear the road ahead, just in case.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll guard the rear.”
There was probably no one blocking the way ahead, but someone still needed to watch it. And the rear, where they would have to face the pursuers, was the most dangerous.
“Go tell them. We might not have much time. They may only be waiting for orders.”
After saying that, Valerie suddenly rode toward the people staring at them, intending to drive them away. They calmly turned their horses and fled into the distance.
When Valerie slowly reduced his speed, they did the same, keeping their distance as they continued to watch him. They did not fight. They were focused solely on scouting.
It was like having irritating insects buzzing around them.
If one or two people were watching them, many more had to be busily traveling back and forth, communicating with the command. Reports were probably being sent and orders issued in near real time.
From experience, Valerie inferred even what he could not see, and his deductions were largely correct. Would riders come? How many? That much, he could not know.
Valerie turned back the way he had come. Knut had arrived by the time he returned, and Yorick was carrying the Third Prince along the road.
Their eyes met, but Valerie did not stop. He galloped down the road, and his friends quickly receded behind him.
He continued south until they vanished from sight. Only then did he stop Snow.
He looked over the desolate field as winter drew near, then patted Snow’s neck.
“Do you remember when we first met? It snowed. It was early spring. This is much the same.”
For a brief moment, it felt as though only Valerie and Snow existed in that cold world.
Valerie headed north at a slow walk. He had not intended it, but it almost felt as though the two of them were enjoying time alone for the first time in a while.
After an hour or two, the sun had passed its zenith. Around then, the time shared by man and horse came to an end. Faint hoofbeats came from the south.
Valerie immediately pulled the reins and turned around. Before long, several riders appeared, leading spare horses. They seemed to have been changing mounts in their haste.
They were likely the vanguard. Their role was to get there as quickly as possible and hold him in place. More would be coming behind them. And judging by their heavy armament, their intentions were obvious.
But they were not the only ones heavily armed. Valerie wore Fire Dragon Scale Armor, a black battle robe embroidered in elaborate patterns, and the sword that had killed a dragon.
When Valerie blocked the road, the riders, wearing helmets and carrying spears, slowed and came to a stop.
The moment they saw Valerie, they recognized him. His handsome appearance, unusual attire, and scale armor that gleamed like rubies told them he was the dragon-slayer.
“Are you the dragon-slayer?”
“I am.”
“Why are you abducting His Highness? Who is behind this?”
“This is not an abduction. He wished to come of his own accord.”
“Then we shall escort His Highness first, and determine the truth afterward.”
“No. I can’t allow that.”
“We are only the vanguard. Twenty heavily armed riders and fifty cavalry riders are following behind us. You will regret this.”
“It seems further conversation is unnecessary.”
Valerie spoke firmly. The riders studied him for a moment, then suddenly veered off the road and scattered to either side. They did not intend to attack Valerie. It seemed they meant to ignore him and go around.
Without panic, Valerie charged after the group on the right. Snow powerfully struck the ground, as if freed from restraint for the first time and savoring freedom.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
He caught the enemy horse in an instant. They had been riding spare mounts and conserving their horses’ strength.
Startled by the unexpected speed, the rider hesitated. That brief opening decided the fight. The rider hurriedly threw away the spear, drew a sword, and swung at Valerie as though trying to shake him off.
Valerie immediately drew his own sword and thrust it straight forward. He split the other rider’s sword in two and carved a deep wound into their chest.
Clang!
“Urgh!”
It took almost no effort to cut through chain mail, flesh, and bone.
After effectively killing the man, Valerie immediately sheathed his sword. As he turned his horse and rode back, he snatched up the spear the knight had dropped.
Then he rode straight toward his friends. Snow pressed forward more powerfully than ever.
The rider who had gone around the other side was visible in the distance. They too were circling back toward the road to catch the Third Prince. Valerie could see his friends ahead now as well.
Then someone with long golden hair streaming behind them charged at the enemy. It was Brynhildr. She lowered a long spear and rushed forward, while the enemy also lowered a spear and charged to meet her.
Brynhildr was clearly more skilled. Her battlefield spear, not a jousting lance, pierced the opponent’s chest. Their body twisted violently as they fell from their horse.
At the same time, Valerie and Brynhildr’s eyes met across the distance. Their friends turned around as well. Valerie raised his thumb high, then turned back and rode off again.
If the fallen vanguard rider had spoken the truth, the thunderous sound of hooves was drawing closer. A distant thud-thud-thud rose from afar.
There was no holding back now. Valerie gripped the spear and raced south.
Before long, the enemy came into view. Perhaps because they had come in such haste, their armor was mismatched.
Their numbers were one thing, but the sound was overwhelming. There seemed to be at least twenty or thirty of them, all mounted.
But Valerie also held an advantage. He already knew the fighting had begun, while they did not know their vanguard had died.
So when Valerie suddenly charged at them with his spear lowered, they could not respond at once.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Thud!
Valerie pierced the foremost rider with his spear. As the rider fell, they violently pulled the reins, causing their horse to collapse. It became an obstacle, and the riders behind tumbled down in a chain.
Neigh!
Thud! Thump! Thud!
“Arghhh!”
The sudden crash sent some riders flying far away. One flailed helplessly in the air.
Valerie broke through the enemy and turned his horse again. Four or five had fallen, while the rest either continued forward or hurried to stop their mounts. They seemed thrown into confusion by the sudden situation.
“What happened!?”
“What is this!?”
“It’s the kidnapper! That bastard is the kidnapper!”
Regardless, Valerie ignored them and raced back toward his friends. An ordinary horse would have been exhausted long ago, but Snow was overflowing with even more strength, as though he meant to run until the first snow fell.
There was a vast difference between Snow and the enemy horses. Speed, turning, courage, strength, endurance. Snow surpassed them in every way.
A few tried to catch Valerie, but in the blink of an eye, whoosh, Valerie was already far away.
Dozens of riders and dozens of blades appeared, their points seeming to converge on Valerie like grass bent by the wind.
When he reached his friends again, Giant Bridge was visible in the distance. And remarkably, Knut had placed Ivar on his own horse and was racing toward the bridge.
“We’re all right!” Yorick shouted from afar.
“Go, quickly!” Valerie shouted back, more urgently than reassured.
Then he turned the reins again. As he charged along the flank, several spearpoints reached within arm’s length in an instant.
“Who do you think you’re going to kill with that pathetic spearmanship!?”
Valerie shouted and swung his sword as though casting it aside. At last, thunder burst from the sword strike.
Krrrra-boom!
Spear shafts and spearheads alike were cut apart. The horses, startled, fell or reared wildly, throwing riders from their saddles in confusion.
He defeated five or six riders in an instant, but the danger was not over. Some ignored Valerie and continued relentlessly pursuing the Third Prince.
Without looking back, they surged toward the bridge. Brynhildr tried to stop them, but she could only bring down one. The rest slipped past her like sand through her fingers.
Valerie charged once more. As though inheriting Valerie’s strength, Snow burst forward with the force of an erupting volcano.
Everyone converged on the bridge, as though gathering from different directions toward a single point.
Though he had started later, Valerie caught up in an instant and reached the bridge almost at the same time. Passing through the enemy like a ray of light, he rapidly swung his sword left and right.
Rather than aiming precisely, he simply swung wildly, and it did not matter. He cut down everything. Heads, arms, weapons, helmets, armor, anything.
Krrrumble! Kaboom!
The sound alone was overwhelming to the enemy. Why did a sword strike sound like thunder?
With a shhk!, blood sprayed behind Valerie as he sped past, and severed pieces rained down.
“Hild!”
Valerie urgently called to his sister. Brynhildr understood at once and hurried across the bridge.
Valerie then blocked the front of the bridge. Blood had splattered across his face and battle robe, but it was not especially noticeable against the black fabric. It merely fluttered in the wind.
Mounted on a black horse and holding a sword, Valerie glared at the remaining enemies with wide eyes. To them, it seemed as though they could practically see a blazing aura around him.
By then, they did not dare approach him.
They trembled, as though Valerie himself, rather than any other creature, were the dragon. They were utterly overwhelmed, their spirits broken and their will to fight gone.
He does not seem human. It seems his dragon-slaying was no fluke.
They had forgotten their mission to capture the Third Prince and even their thoughts of fighting. It was closer to simply watching the dragon-slayer.
The enemies had been excited after riding so hard for so long, but reality had finally caught up with them.
The area was littered with riderless horses running wildly, fallen riders groaning, and corpses.
And the dragon-slayer standing before the bridge.
More reinforcements arrived later, but they did not dare attack either. They merely watched from afar, realizing that man was the dragon-slayer. The people of Hayden Crossroads across the bridge also poured out to watch.
Around the time Valerie’s friends had erected barricades on the far side of the bridge and completed their preparations, Valerie suddenly approached the enemy instead of crossing at once.
It was late afternoon, before the sun set. His friends and the people of Hayden were startled, wondering what he was doing.
Valerie paid them no mind. With dignified authority, he surveyed the enemy at close range, then shouted loudly. His clear cry rang out as though piercing the cold air.
“Who will come forth and face me!”
The enemy reinforcements kept arriving. With infantry included, there were nearly a hundred of them, yet no one stepped forward.
“Is there no one!? Are all southerners cowards!? You pathetic weaklings! Ptui!”
Valerie spat on the ground, crushing the enemy’s spirit once more. Only then did he cross the bridge and enter Hayden Crossroads.
The barricades were removed to welcome Valerie, but the faces of the people at Hayden Crossroads were not much different from those of the enemy.
They showed fear, respect, and awe. It was as though they had witnessed something they had only heard of in legends.
To the enemy and ordinary people alike, the dragon-slayer they had known only through rumors was even greater than the rumors said.
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