Vol 3. Chapter 81: The Black Rose Family’s Second-in-Command
“You’re saying the city walls were built with assistance from the Black Rose Family?”
Upon hearing his subordinate’s words, Pabala immediately revealed an incredulous expression.
After a brief moment of astonishment, however—
The surviving squad captain suddenly looked as though he had realized something.
Wait?
I... I think I know what happened?!
Recalling the strange explosion of the city walls and the chain reaction that had shattered them, Pabala, who held a doctorate in mana explosion studies, finally realized something was wrong after calming down.
The way the walls had shattered, and the trajectories of the flying stones—it was obvious that they had not been blasted apart by the Abyss Demons from the outside!
The explosion had erupted from within the city walls!
Moreover, the time-bomb-like power concealed inside the walls had been guided by chain magic after detonating, directly blowing apart all the surrounding walls as well and forcibly tearing an enormous breach through the Snow Night Empire’s northern defensive line...
Although His Majesty had said that the Duke Family was colluding with the Abyss Demons, Pabala did not believe that the Marquis Family’s soldiers would be stupid enough to plant such terrifying weapons inside the very fortress where they themselves lived.
This power had undoubtedly been secretly hidden inside the walls by another faction.
And—
The only ones capable of doing such a thing were the Black Rose Family!
After all, they had both the opportunity and the motive!
They were people of the Sadik Empire. It was entirely possible that they would sabotage the Snow Night Empire’s defenses in order to weaken the empire’s national strength.
“So that’s how it was...”
Seeing their captain wearing an expression that practically screamed ‘I’ve uncovered the truth,’ the other survivors beside him asked in confusion,
“Captain? What do you mean... ‘so that’s how it was’...?”
“I mean! I suspect that the sudden collapse of our defensive line this time was the Black Rose Family’s doing! They were the ones who secretly buried massive amounts of explosives inside the walls! Along with the magic used to guide the explosions!”
“Is... is that really true?”
“Why would I need to fool you?!”
“But why... would the Black Rose Family do something like that?”
His subordinates still looked doubtful.
After all, although the Black Rose Family—or rather, the Sadik Empire—did not have particularly good relations with the Snow Night Empire, they were ultimately still companions belonging to the human camp.
Surely they would not go so far as to sabotage one another like this?
Hearing this, Pabala sighed helplessly.
“Forget it. It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe me. In the end, we’ll leave the judgment to His Majesty! Anyway, first search around and see whether there are any communication magic stones left! We have to establish contact with the other troops as quickly as possible, and we must report what happened here to His Majesty immediately!”
With that, Pabala stopped explaining himself to his subordinates.
After confirming that there were no Abyss Demons nearby, he slowly pushed open the underground shelter’s door.
However—
The instant he opened the door and raised his head to look ahead, Pabala’s pupils abruptly contracted, and unprecedented shock appeared on his face.
??!!
“W-Who are you?!”
At this very moment, in the brief instant between Pabala opening the door and raising his head, a black figure had suddenly appeared in the previously empty space before him.
Looking at the man who had appeared without the slightest warning, Pabala froze in place as though a bolt of lightning had struck his brain.
The man before him had silver hair that reached his ears and a clean yet slightly rugged face, its sharply defined features exuding a cold handsomeness. His deep eyes gleamed like black crystals, bright and piercing. The somewhat ferocious scar over his right eye did not make him unpleasant to look at. Instead, it gave him an intensely murderous air.
A dazzling ruby earring gleamed on his left ear, adding another trace of unruly wildness to his arrogant and ferociously handsome face.
His handsome, upright figure, robust physique, and developed muscles—especially his block-like pectorals and abdominal muscles—gave anyone who saw him an immediate impression of solidity, towering strength, and overwhelming power!
The black metal vest covering the man’s upper body and the two black-gold bracers that looked exceptionally heavy displayed that strength to its fullest...
Combined with the suffocatingly dense battle aura surrounding him—
The instant Pabala saw the man, he realized just how powerful the other party was.
And when he noticed the black rose emblem on the man’s chest, Pabala’s expression suddenly changed as intense terror uncontrollably surged into his heart.
The Black Rose Family.
Short silver hair.
A tall man with powerful muscles.
The identity of the man before him was practically obvious.
Even though this was Pabala’s first time seeing him in person, he instantly realized who he was.
This uninvited guest was none other than the Black Rose Family’s second-in-command, the commander of the Black Rose Knights...
“Y-You’re Kairode?! Why are you here?!”
After freezing for a moment, Pabala could not help crying out in alarm.
Recalling the conclusion he had just reached, combined with the suspicious timing of this man’s appearance, Pabala immediately sensed that something was terribly wrong. He hurriedly picked up a fallen firearm beside him, and the other survivors did the same.
At that moment, an indifferent, emotionless voice suddenly entered Pabala’s ears.
“Mm. Your... guess was pretty accurate. So... don’t guess anymore.”
“Wh... what did you—”
However, before Pabala could finish speaking, the silver-haired man’s iron fist rapidly enlarged in his vision.
“Boom~”
Accompanied by a crisp, thunderous impact and the explosive eruption of terrifying silver battle aura, Pabala’s head was directly smashed into meat paste by the silver-haired man’s punch under the horrified gazes of the other survivors.
Blood and brain matter immediately splattered across the ground.
Incomparable terror spread wildly through the survivors’ minds like a virus.
However, before any of them could react, the silver-haired man’s iron fists struck once again...
...
Several seconds later—
Accompanied by several miserable screams, the last survivors of Garos Fortress unsurprisingly went to meet their ancestral spirits.
After dealing with them, the silver-haired man, Kairode, continued strolling leisurely across the ruins and chunks of flesh.
At that moment, another black-armored knight covered in blood suddenly descended from the sky amid a violent gust of wind and landed beside Kairode before respectfully kneeling on one knee.
“Commander, the cleanup mission is basically complete. All survivors have been eliminated. From now on, no one will ever know about the city walls suddenly exploding. Combined with the blizzard, the mana interference is also foolproof. For the time being, Sky Dome won’t know exactly what happened on the northern border either.”
“Mm. You did well.”
Kairode’s words were filled with praise.
Hearing this, the young Black Rose Knight became extremely excited.
The Black Rose Family had ‘four’ major components within its organization:
‘Ceremony,’ led by Saiboke-Baniya, which managed etiquette, daily affairs, and finances;
‘Nightingale,’ managed by Zhong Xizhi, which was responsible for intelligence gathering and assassination;
the ‘Autumnfall Legion,’ commanded by Qiu Mingtong, which possessed the greatest military strength;
‘Mercy,’ the diplomatic organization managed by Ba'erl uo;
and the Black Rose Knights, composed of the family’s most elite members.
Kairode, commander of the Black Rose Knights, was an Eighth-Tier powerhouse and the Black Rose Family’s second-in-command, his status surpassed only by the Duke.
For a young man who had only recently joined the Knights to receive praise from such an important figure was naturally an immense source of joy.
After secretly delighting in it for a moment—
As though suddenly remembering something, the Black Rose Knight hurriedly raised his head.
“Oh, right, Commander. The former Blizzard Knights inside Wind Facing City and the surrounding areas have begun gathering. It looks like they intend to launch an attack against the Abyss Demon horde. What should we do? Do we need to deal with them in advance?”
“Hmm?”
Hearing this, Kairode slightly raised an eyebrow.
After twisting his neck, he spoke indifferently.
“Leave them alone. The Duke said that during this attack, we’re to avoid Wind Facing City and the other cities of the northern border. Have some of the Abyss Demons wander around near those cities to keep them occupied and make them obediently hide inside. Anyway, there’s no need to pay too much attention to them.”
As he spoke—
Kairode playfully picked up a barbell and began exercising while thoughtfully gazing toward the south, in the direction of the Snow Night Empire’s capital.
“There is only one place... that we need to care about.”
...
...
Meanwhile, in Sky Dome—
Inside the Dragon Dance Hall, after hearing the Royal Knight’s report, Xue Tianao’s face had become so cold that it could hardly grow any colder.
After hesitating for a moment, the knight gathered his courage and slowly spoke, breaking the bizarre and suffocating atmosphere.
“Your Majesty, th-then... what should we do now?”
“Hmm? What should we do?”
Xue Tianao’s expression gradually became somewhat ferocious.
His azure eyes swept disdainfully over the people gathered in Dragon Dance Square.
The sudden Abyss Demon alarm, together with the violent booming sounds coming from outside the city, relentlessly assaulted the nerves of the civilians, causing fear to spread throughout the crowd.
Even the envoys from foreign powers could not help revealing uneasy expressions.
Taking all of these scenes into his eyes, Xue Tianao sneered coldly.
“Obviously, we annihilate every last one of those beasts that dared invade our territory!!”