Chapter 474

The refugee city of Raysar was one of the few places where conditions were relatively better during the Age of Calamity. It was the largest among the cities that had managed to survive, and its circumstances were better than most.

It was a city abundant in resources. Most importantly, it had the Guardian of the Azure Sky.

Agon, the Guardian of the Azure Sky, and Aaron's mentor. Before Lysinas, Kyle, and the Great Heroes rose to prominence, he had been the world's last hope.

Agon loved children, so in Raysar, he often took in orphans.

At the very least, while the Guardian of the Azure Sky Agon was alive, Raysar was a place where children with nowhere to go could look forward to tomorrow.

However, after his death, the true tragedy began.

The lord of Raysar trained and indoctrinated the orphans overflowing in the streets, transforming them into mindless tools for battle. And then, they were thrown into the war against Tartaros.

The training process was simple—Endless competition.

Only those who survived extreme training were given food. Stepping on and killing others to win was permitted.

It was a living hell.

They might have produced strong warriors, but it was impossible for them to raise anyone without breaking their minds.

Among them were children of outstanding talent.

Some possessed abilities and strength that could have contributed greatly to the world, but the lord of Raysar saw them only as disposable tools.

The orphans, driven onto the battlefield like mere consumables, perished in vain, consumed by hatred and resentment, and this cycle repeated endlessly until Kyle finally executed the lord of Raysar.¹

He had been colluding with them.

During the execution, Kyle learned who had orchestrated it all.

The Archduke of Mourning, Artkan.

One of the Lich King's most trusted subordinates.

His reason for going through such trouble was simple.

He needed bodies.

The necromancers in the demon army led by the Lich King Hell Kaiser wielded immense power by using corpses, so they were most terrifying in the middle of a battlefield.

After all, no soldier ever truly became accustomed to seeing their fallen comrades rise as undead to attack them.

Their very existence alone was enough to sap morale.

And the stronger a necromancer, the more perfectly they could restore the deceased's original form.

And corpses filled with hatred and resentment were their greatest weapons.

A high-level necromancer could even enhance a corpse beyond its living capabilities similar to how knights and warriors used aura to strengthen their weapons.

Of course, if the corpse had been too powerful in life, it couldn't be fully revived.

There was one more thing.

If corpses filled with resentment, hatred, despair, and envy were a necromancer's best weapons, then the opposite was also true. Corpses that retained nobility could not be controlled. Even if resurrected, they would resist, refusing to obey.

In a sense, they were like blunt weapons—dull, difficult to wield, their power nearly unusable.

When Lysinas became a beacon of light and fought against Erebos and Tartaros, noble heroes emerged.

Drawn to the light and hope that Lysinas promised, countless heroes were born.

That was what made Lysinas special. She deceived people, telling them that light and hope existed even when they did not.

And then she turned that lie into truth, making her quite literally the savior of the world.

If the Brave Hero Aaron was the symbol of courage, then the Wise Queen Lysinas was the symbol of salvation and hope.

That's something I could never do, no matter how hard I tried.

In any case, Lysinas's existence alone had stripped the Lich King's army of one of its most powerful weapons, so the Archduke of Mourning, Artkan, devised a plan—he would use Raysar to produce corpses that they could use.

That was how the orphan soldiers came to be.

And the hatred and resentment they harbored ran deep.

Even though they had to trample each other to survive, even so, the bonds between them were strong.

It was meaningless to die before becoming strong, so Artkan, who had orchestrated the plan, indoctrinated the orphans to rely on each other.

It was common for them to share their food with starving comrades. It was not rare to see them sacrifice themselves during training to save their fellow orphans.

For them, their comrades were the reason they lived.

The more comrades they lost, the stronger their hatred and resentment became.

At first, their blades of vengeance were aimed at Tartaros.

But the moment they were cast onto the battlefield and killed like disposable tools, they realized the truth, that they had only ever been raised to die.

Seeing necromancers harvest their corpses, their hatred and resentment erupted.

It was horrific.

Even after the Age of Calamity ended, one of Kyle's disciples, Bihar was never able to step into the light.

Because she, too, was one of those orphan soldiers.

Kyle had wished for his disciple to live in the light once everything was over. He had told him not to follow the same dark path he had walked.

Yet Bihar ultimately chose to remain in the shadows, becoming part of the Shadows.

She could never be like Velkia in the end.

Under the gray sky, Kyle had two disciples. Velkia had chosen the light, while Bihar had chosen the darkness.

Recalling Bihar left a bitter taste in Leo's mouth.

He turned away from the orphan soldiers and looked back at the prince. "Why are those children under your care, Crown Prince Jeremy? They don't seem ordinary at all."

Their presence was anything but normal.

"I forcibly took them from Duke Dotarn, who was secretly raising them."

"And he handed them over willingly?"

"No. But I couldn't stand by and watch such atrocities."

Leo observed the fury in Jeremy's eyes and asked, "How much do you know about those children?"

"Only that they were raised to be sent to war."

"Their existence is a secret even within the kingdom, isn't it?"

"Of course. If I had known about these horrors, I wouldn't have let them continue."

Leo glanced back at the orphan soldiers. Neither Jeremy nor the duke seemed to have realized the truth.

Well, if that Duke Dotarn bastard truly knew what these kids were… he never would have handed them over. Each of those orphans is stronger than an average knight. They've all already begun training in aura. Two or three of them are already skilled enough to enter Lumene.

For a small kingdom like Carnel, they were more than enough to start a rebellion.

If that wasn't bad enough, the northeastern continent was a land of unending war, which meant an abundant supply of orphans.

"What kind of life do you wish for those children to live, Crown Prince?"

"I know it will be difficult, but I hope they can live a life far from war."

The prince's gaze was filled with pity. The children had lost their parents to war and been subjected to brutal training. He genuinely mourned for them.

At least the crown prince still has his humanity.

Compared to his decadent father and the corrupt officials, he was a far better ruler.

"Are you truly willing to hand over the Nether Knight's legacy to Lumene?" Leo asked.

"Of course. To be honest, even if our kingdom keeps it, we wouldn't be able to use it properly. No matter how great a legacy is, if it isn't utilized, it's worthless." Jeremy crossed his arms and grinned. "Having Lumene manage our kingdom's relics wouldn't be bad. Besides, I need to become king to hand over the key. Maintaining a relationship with the Hero Leo Plov would be beneficial, wouldn't it?"

Lily widened her eyes. "You've thought this through."

Jeremy smiled. "These children don't even know what a hero is. I want them to meet a real hero."

With a solemn expression, Jeremy bowed to Leo. "Please, Leo Plov. Help these children live normal lives."

Leo looked at him and nodded. "Understood."

Jeremy beamed.

"…Now that I know about them, there's no way I can just leave them be," Leo muttered.

sep

The orphan soldiers stood in disciplined formation, waiting for Leo and Lily. Their gazes were fixed on Leo.

Scars marked their faces. Their eyes were sharp, without exception.

Their average age is around 13 to 14.

They were still very young. Among them, a few were just barely at the level needed to enter Lumene.

The others could reach that level depending on how they develop. Though their temperament doesn't match Lumene at all.

Just being strong alone wasn't enough to enter Lumene.

"Do you want to go to the battlefield?" Leo asked.

A boy at the front replied, "Yes. Are you the one who will send us to war?"

Leo smirked. "No."

The boy's eyes twitched.

"Why exactly do you all want to go to war?" Leo asked again.

"To get revenge on the ones who made us like this!"

"They said the people who killed our parents are on the battlefield!"

"We killed our own friends just to get here because of those bastards!"

"We'll kill them all!"

Voices filled with hatred erupted.

Seeing that, Lily raised her hand. "Alright, alright, calm down, everyone."

"This isn't something pampered nobles like you should be interfering with!"

A girl beside the boy shouted viciously. "If we snap the enemies' necks, isn't that good for you too?"

The girl, who spoke particularly harshly, even directed killing intent toward Leo and Lily.

As Lily hesitated awkwardly, Leo suddenly smirked. "Alright, if you want it that badly, I'll send you there."

"Master!" Lily called out in shock.

Leo pulled her forward and pushed her toward the orphan soldiers. "But only if you can defeat her."

At his words, the orphan soldiers' fierce gazes turned to Lily. Her expression became flustered.

"Master, what do you mean by suddenly making me fight?"

"This is my first command as your master."

"Uh?!"

"Make them submit."

Lily nodded at Leo's words. With a determined expression, she stepped forward in front of the orphan soldiers. "Come at me."

The boy and girl at the front exchanged glances before nodding. The girl stepped forward first.

Spinning the dagger in her hands with impressive skill, she spoke in a menacing tone. "You'd better be ready, noble lady."

Lily looked at her and spoke. "Who said you should fight alone?"

"What, you think you can handle both of us by yourself…?"

"Everyone here, come at me all at once."

"What?"

The orphan soldiers all wore stunned expressions.

Lily spoke with a blank face. "I'll show you all just how powerless you really are."

sep

Leo smirked as he turned away from Lily.

I told her to make them submit, but she's taking on all of them at once? She acts timid, but she's got a surprising sense of scale.

The reason he left the orphan soldiers to her was simple.

It's best for them to fight someone just a few years older than them.

No matter how they looked on the outside, the mental gap between Leo and the orphan soldiers was far too great.

It's better to leave communication to someone their age. Besides, in many ways, Lily's values are completely different from theirs.

Those who know darkness can understand darkness, but those who have lived in the light struggle to comprehend it.

It's better for kids like them to clash head-on with a completely different ideology and break apart from it.

More importantly, Leo had something else to do. His red eyes gleamed.

If orphan soldiers raised like this exist in this country, then the Archduke of Mourning must be hiding somewhere within it.

A chilling killing intent flickered in his eyes.

Time to start the hunt.

Footnotes:

TL Note: This is the reason why Kyle was missing during the Giant King Giath/Dweno's World arc around chapter 300. ↩