Translator: Leyy3

  “Y-Your Majesty?” The surprised Lucia carefully asked Kang Chul-In.

  “I don’t understand why you tore……”

  “Security reasons.”

  Kang Chul-In gave her an absurd reason to justify his actions.

  “This may indeed be our own base, but we can never afford to be neglectful of security if we aim to conquer the whole of Pangea!”

  “.……”

  “This applies to all of you as well. Make security protection a daily activity, you hear me?”

  The officers of Laputa were confused, but they replied to him nonetheless.

  “Y-yes, your Majesty……”

  No matter the explanation Kang Chul-In was giving them, for him to tear the message was something out of ordinary.

  Ninetails, at this time…… I shall keep quiet for now.

  Kang Chul-In decided not to reveal the existence of Ninetails, regardless of how confused his subordinates were.

  It was definitely not an act to avoid her.

  He had already made up his mind to have an arranged marriage to achieve his goals. He thus had no intention of avoiding Ninetails.

  However, now was not the time to distract his soldiers with such a topic.

  If this fact somehow happened to leak, then the meeting would deviate from strategizing to win the war and become a discussion on his marriage.

  Therefore, he made a call to keep things hidden until the war was over.

  “Ahem.” Kang Chul-In cleared his throat.

  “In summary, there has been some damage but Arshelly and Mikael have successfully defended Laputa against the enemy forces. Also, they have killed two key generals of Cyamodus, and captured one alive.” He relayed the information to his subordinates, without any mention on Ninetails of course.

  “Moreover…… It seems that Arshelly has managed to destroy four of Rothschild’s clones in a single attack. As proof, Rothschild’s rank has dropped to 44th.”

  The officers were sent into a frenzy.

  “Wah……!”

  “Haha! A befitting end for those losers!”

  “A hefty price to pay for invading Laputa. How dare they!?”

  “Your Majesty, that’s like the 5th time we’ve killed Rothschild!”

  Everyone was delighted.

  The officers were also worried about the situation back at home, hence why they were twice as excited upon hearing this good news.

  “Therefore.” Kang Chul-In spoke, visibly satisfied.

  “Focus solely on the battle laid in front of you. Understood?”

  “Yes, your Majesty!” The officers replied loudly in a simultaneous manner.

  ***

  After the meeting, Kang Chul-In visited Kwak Jung in his tent.

  Kwak Jung was half-dead after using the White Rain Fan.

  The mental and physical stress, along with an extreme loss of mana, have caused him to be sick in bed.

  “Y-You came, your Majesty? Urk……!” Kwak Jung struggled to get up.

  “Lie down.”

  “How could I, your Majesty……”

  “Since when were you so well-behaved towards your superiors?”

  “T-That’s true, but……”

  “I said lie down.” Kang Chul-In pushed Kwak Jung’s forehead down with his finger.

  “T-Thank you, your Majesty……”

  “What kind of leader doesn’t even let his unwell subordinate rest?”

  “Ah, yes……” Kwak Jung answered rather hesitantly. He actually had a different thought in his mind.

  Your Majesty, you ordered me to do it! You are the reason why I’m sick!

  He could not mutter a single word of it of course.

  “How’s your body?”

  “To be honest……I feel like dying…… Urk……”

  “You did well.” Kang Chul-In praised Kwak Jung.

  “We could win the battle at the 3rd peak thanks to you. If it wasn’t for you, I would have had to withdraw my men. You did a fantastic job. I was very surprised and thankful.”

  “.……!”

  “As expected from the man I chose to be my tactician. I’m proud of you.”

  “Y-Your Majesty……!”

  Kwak Jung’s facial expressions changed 180 degrees after listening to Kang Chul-In’s series of praises.

  Kang Chul-In did reward a meritorious service and didn’t let a fault go unpunished normally, but it was unordinary for him to praise someone to this extent. It showed how high Kang Chul-In’s standards were.

  “When this war is over, I plan to reward you.”

  “R-Reward, your Majesty?”

  “That’s right. This time I will get you something you will like.”

  “Hmm…… for instance?”

  “Ferrari.”

  “W-What?!”

  \r \r \r

  “Any model you’ve been eyeing……”

  “Enzo Ferrari!”

  Kwak Jung immediately shouted the name of the legendary supercar, manufactured by Ferrari in 2002 to commemorate its 60th anniversary.

  “.……That was fast.”

  “Hehe…… I’ve actually wanted to own it since before……”

  “Don’t tell me, did the previous reckless driving incident happen due to your jealousy towards the Ferrari owner?”

  “Ahem……”

  “Seems like you really have been longing to have one.”

  “Isn’t it a man’s dream?”

  “You are right.” Kang Chul-In agreed with Kwak Jung and nodded his head.

  Enzo Ferrari!

  Any man would want to have that hot-red supercar at least once in his lifetime.

  “Alright. I will get you the Enzo Ferrari as your reward.”

  “T-Thank you!”

  “No problem.” Kang Chul-In chuckled.

  “Oh right, I had some matters to discuss with you.”

  “Like what, your Majesty?”

  “A message arrived from Laputa.”

  “Is that so?”

  “In summary……”

  Kang Chul-In told him the details of the report, excluding the part about Ninetails, then asked for his opinion.

  “What do you think? Can Rothschild’s sudden downfall become a huge factor in this war?”

  “Hmm…… If that’s the case…… Err…… So……”

  Kwak Jung frowned and sank into deep thought.

  Then out of the blue, he suddenly congratulated Kang Chul-In.

  “It looks like even the Gods are on your side, your Majesty. You are in luck!”

  “In luck? Me?”

  “Yes. Very lucky indeed.”

  “Why is that so?”

  “Take a look at the map here.” Kwak Jung pointed at the map and explained.

  “By the time the ranking page refreshed and Rothschild’s downfall became known to everyone, Vilhelm’s army would have likely been crossing this region.”

  “.……!”

  “If Vilhelm’s army was marching slightly faster, then the timing’s just right.” Kwak Jung’s finger landed exactly on the land of Esmeralda, the heart of Pangea, on the map.

  “Vilhelm would have been stuck in a dilemma between saving Aleister from your Majesty and conquering Esmeralda.”

  “You are saying, Vilhelm will choose to take over Esmeralda over stopping me?”

  “Don’t you think so? Vilhelm definitely has to choose between the two options. Since Rothschild has fallen, it’s much easier and beneficial for him to take over Esmeralda now.” Kwak Jung’s words were persuasive.

  “It’s also possible for Rothschild to have burned away all of Esmeralda’s infrastructures and ran away the moment his plan to attack Laputa’s backdoor had failed. Actually, it’s 100% possible. I’ll bet my life on it.”

  “In that case……”

  “There will be no reinforcements for Aleister.”

  “.……!”

  “Aleister would have no doubt that Vilhelm’s reinforcements would arrive, but there’s no way that that cunning Vilhelm would have been honest with him. He probably made up some lie that reinforcements were on the way.”

  Incredible insight…… Kwak Jung understood the politics in Pangea like the back of his hand. It indicated that his insight was sharpening every moment.

  “Now it’s just a 1v1. Ao Xin probably sent some reinforcements too, but the army would likely have retreated to acquire a share of the pie with Vilhelm.”

  “You are right.” Kang Chul-In nodded.

  Atal Ramanujan’s forces were wiped out. Rothschild suffered from a massive downfall, and Vilhelm and Ao Xin betrayed Aleister for Esmeralda.

  There were no Lords left to help Aleister. Just like what Kwak Jung said, it was now a 1v1 between Laputa and Deathwin.

  “Excellent. Insight to be expected from my tactician.”

  “Hehe…… it was nothing…… hehe……”

  “Rest well.”

  “Yes, your Majesty.”

  Kang Chul-In praised Kwak Jung once again and left his tent.

  A 1v1…… victory’s mine as long as I look out for Death Calling.

  Kang Chul-In’s eyes gleamed.

  ***

  The next morning.

  “This place is the key location that determines the fate of this war.”

  Kang Chul-In pointed at a point on the map with his baton.

  It was where Overlord Aleister was sending his entire army to.

  “It’s the 18th peak. Aleister is definitely stationing his troops here to defend against our soldiers. He will struggle to defend this place with all of his men, waiting for reinforcements to arrive. However, there will not be any reinforcements. That’s because……”

  Kang Chul-In briefly told his officers the conversation he held with Kwak Jung. The Laputan generals nodded their heads and admired Kwak Jung’s insight.

  “Therefore, for us……”

  “How about we surround the peak to cut off the enemy’s supply?” Drakan spoke hastily.

  “The 18th peak is too high and steep. It’s difficult to obtain water, so won’t it be a good plan? There’s no reason for our soldiers to rush if there are no reinforcements……”

  “Drakan.” Kang Chul-In cut Drakan off.

  “Yes, your Majesty!”

  “Cutting off supplies for an undead army is meaningless.”

  “Oh shit!”

  “Seems like a good plan, but maybe for another time.”

  “Y-Yes, your Majesty.” Drakan’s red face turned even redder.

  Kang Chul-In was right.

  The enemy they were facing was an undead army.

  Its soldiers did not require any food or water.

  Dragging the battle on was only disadvantageous for the Laputan army, as the undead monsters had almost infinite stamina.

  “Exactly 8 days from now, I plan to launch an all-out attack.” Kang Chul-In explained his strategy.

  “Can I ask why 8 days from now, your Majesty?” Lucia questioned.

  “The enemy soldiers do not tire. On the other hand, our soldiers are considerably fatigued. How about we launch an all-out attack just two days from now?”

  “Your logic is right, but we won’t attack so soon.”

  “Are you planning to request for reinforcements from Laputa?”

  “No.” Kang Chul-In shook his head.

  “I won’t be needing reinforcements for this war.”

  “If that’s the case, what’s the reason……”

  “According to my spies, Overlord Aleister has a scary weapon that even I may need to risk my life to fight against. In order to avoid dying instantly, I need a solution.”

  “I-Is that really true?”

  Lucia was shocked.

  “Positive.”

  “.……”

  “Aleister owns a powerful, single-target item called Death Calling.”

  Death Calling was used in the past to hunt down even a blue dragon, the mightiest of monsters. It was Aleister’s ultimate move that even Kang Chun-In could not simply ignore.

  “Ha……!”

  “What kind of item is that……!”

  “For even his Majesty to risk his life……”

  Everyone was shocked.

  For Kang Chul-In, the unbeatable icon, to say that he himself may die instantly against this weapon…… It must be an incredible item beyond imagination.

  “However, there are solutions. I always emphasize this, but a threat already established can no longer be a threat. For the remaining 8 days, we shall prepare to face Aleister’s Death Calling, and finally emerge from this war as victors.”

  Kang Chul-In displayed strong confidence.

  Since he already knew what Death Calling was, he was cautious but not intimidated.

  “Signaller!”

  “Yes, your Majesty!”

  “Relay this message to Laputa.”

  Kang Chul-In tossed him a parchment with some sort of instructions written on it, then faced the generals.

  “The all-out attack will be launched 8 days from now, when the full moon rises!”

  Kang Chul-In’s eyes shone brightly with anger towards the man who betrayed the Ishtar Coalition and sucked up to Rothschild in the past.

  Revenge.

  Aleister was his first target.

  ***

  Laputa’s hangar.

  “Listen everyone! His Majesty has relayed some special instructions!” Previously a genius magic-technician of Mechan Dome and now Laputa’s chief magic-technician, Randolph Von Stroheim, read out Kang Chul-In’s message.

  “His Majesty wishes for the completion of the Full Metal Project in exactly 197 hours and 32 minutes!”

  The magic engineers and technicians were astonished.

  That was just too insane a task.

  The Full Metal Project required the full use of Laputa’s magic engineering technology. Completing it within 197 hours and 32 minutes was almost impossible.

  “I know it seems impossible! His Majesty also knows!” Randolph Von Stroheim shouted.

  “But now is war time! Our soldiers are battling every day on the harsh terrains of the 18th peak! Risking their lives! How can we just relax? His Majesty needs our help urgently!”

  His speech had some impact.

  Just two days ago, Rothschild’s special forces created havoc on Laputa’s land. The magic engineers and technicians could not hide at the back anymore.

  It was time for them to contribute back to the nation.

  “And…… His Majesty also promised a 500% bonus and two weeks of leave to all engineers and technicians if we successfully pull it off!”

  Having heard this,

  “We can do it!”

  “Let’s even have second shifts!”

  “I will do it!”

  “Waaahh!”

  The people went crazy.

  Not only did they feel responsible to make a contribution to this war, but they were also promised a huge reward. This motivated the engineers and technicians greatly.

  “Excellent!” Randolph Von Stroheim nodded his head.

  “We shall start right now!”

  “Yes, chief!” Laputa’s magic technicians and engineers responded in a loud voice.

  Behind them, a monstrous silhouette of the framework of the Full Metal Project was drawn out.