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Chapter: 77

In that instant, the fact that a part of the north wall had collapsed flashed through my mind like lightning. That hole, large enough for a monster to pass through without a scratch.

It might be a small crack compared to the entire wall, but being attacked at that crack could be fatal. It was enough to become a passage.

It wasn\'t large enough to allow many to pass through at once, but could it withstand the pressure of a horde of monsters?

No, it wouldn\'t. It was only a matter of time before the crack in the wall grew larger.

"Where\'s the Fortress Lord?"

Did he head to the meeting hall, or to the wall? Judging by his rigid personality, I didn\'t think he would have gone straight to the wall.

"He has called for an emergency meeting."

As expected.

The tense man replied. Now that I looked closer, he seemed to be a soldier. Although he wasn\'t wearing armor.

"Let\'s go now."

I pushed past the soldier blocking the door and stepped out into the hallway. It was still dim as the sun hadn\'t fully risen. I strode down the hallway.

"Your Highness."

My entourage, who were staying in the same pavilion, were all out in the hallway. They wouldn\'t have any experience with a large-scale battle against monsters.

They had spent almost their entire lives in the capital. They might have stabbed people, but it was safe to say they had no experience properly dealing with monsters.

Two people who probably had never been in actual combat stood out among them.

One was Eunuch Han, and the other was Jincheon. But I was only worried about Eunuch Han. As for Jincheon...

He was the kind of guy who would probably come back on his own even if I threw him into the demon world.

And he wouldn\'t just come back; he would come back stronger. Come to think of it, that didn\'t sound like a bad idea.

So the only one in danger was Eunuch Han, but even if Eunuch Han was anxious, the monsters wouldn\'t invade the inner fortress, so I didn\'t need to worry too much.

It was a bit of a shame that Jincheon was still too young to be of use.

"We\'re going to the meeting hall. Wait there."

"Yes, Your Highness."

I noticed Heo Seokgyeom, who had answered, glancing at Yoo Geung.

As the commander, Heo Seokgyeom was in a position to command the other military officials from the capital. So it seemed like he was telling Yoo Geung to follow me.

As I started walking, Yoo Geung naturally followed behind me.

"What\'s the status of the north wall?" I asked, and the soldier who had come to deliver the news flinched. He hadn\'t expected me to speak to him.

"My apologies. I haven\'t been able to confirm it yet."

Indeed, seeing how he wasn\'t even properly armored, it must have been quite urgent.

"I suppose we don\'t know the situation with the commoners\' houses either."

"My apologies. I\'ll find out."

"Just go back to your post. I\'ll take care of it."

I could feel the soldier\'s gaze on me as we headed to the meeting hall. If it weren\'t for this situation, I would have scolded him, but I held back.

When I entered the meeting hall, the Wolhan Fortress Lord was already there. But several seats for the elders and military officials were still empty. Or maybe they hadn\'t gathered as many people as the last meeting.

But that thought was wrong. After a while, more seats were filled.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice."

The Wolhan Fortress Lord approached and greeted me before more people arrived.

His complexion was noticeably worse. He had always been eager to please, but now he seemed even more unwilling to cross me.

It must be because of the troop issue.

I was also troubled. Why hasn\'t the reply from the capital arrived yet?

Without it, it was impossible for me to go to the surrounding fortresses and demand troops, even if I was a prince.

As the empty seats were gradually filled, Son Gye-du appeared as well. He was dressed less extravagantly than usual and, surprisingly, looked quite lively.

He was a stark contrast to the Wolhan Fortress Lord, who looked like he had been woken up from his sleep and hit with a disaster.

The meeting started without any greetings.

"The situation is very serious. We have deployed troops to the north gate, but it will be difficult to hold out for long."

"We are short on troops."

Everyone in this room knew that fact. Including me. That was the very issue I came here to address.

But I wasn\'t being very helpful. At least not so far.

A deep wrinkle formed between the Wolhan Fortress Lord\'s brows.

"For now, do your best. We must prevent the monsters from reaching the commoners\' houses."

"We need more troops."

"We need to reinforce our forces urgently."

"Once they get a taste of human flesh, they won\'t go back. But the wall isn\'t intact..."

The defense captain and vice-captain said with frustration. An elder, long retired from the battlefield, added his experience to the conversation.

I understood their frustration, but even the Wolhan Fortress Lord didn\'t have a clear solution.

Unless he had some ability to double the number of people, how could he solve the lack of manpower?

Of course, that didn\'t mean the Fortress Lord could just sit back and do nothing.

"They\'re right, Fortress Lord. With the lack of troops, it\'s impossible to defend the entire north wall. The situation is urgent, so please request reinforcements from the surrounding fortresses first."

"Rather than dispersing our already insufficient forces to protect the commoners\' houses, we should bring the people into the fortress and prepare for a siege."

"Do so. Also, issue a conscription order and replenish our forces within the main fortress first."

The defense captain nodded. But the problem still wasn\'t solved.

"Do you have any further plans?"

A clear annoyance appeared on the Wolhan Fortress Lord\'s face. It seemed he couldn\'t stand being attacked even in this situation.

"...I do."

Of course, he couldn\'t say he didn\'t. Then the Wolhan Fortress Lord\'s gaze shifted to me. Just for a fleeting moment.

"When we receive contact from the capital, I will request reinforcements from each of the seven fortresses in the Northern Region."

I knew that. This was my problem to solve, but...

Perhaps the King was deliberately delaying his reply to the letter.

If I made a contribution, wouldn\'t my dear half-brother be further away from the throne?

Even though I didn\'t even know if I could make a contribution in this situation.

"So the rest depends on time? Alright, good. For now, let\'s do our best with the task at hand," Son Gye-du said with a slight smile.

The Wolhan Fortress Lord\'s face hardened.

Seeing as I couldn\'t bring myself to smile, it was clear whose side I had to be on.

* * *

The good-for-nothing prince, upon leaving the meeting hall, immediately went up to the north wall.

The prince\'s subordinates, the Fortress Lord, and even some of the elders tried to dissuade him. But the prince was as stubborn as the rumors said.

When the prince remained adamant, no one could stop him. They didn\'t have the time to try and stop him either.

Bu Seop, the soldier who had been tasked with informing the good-for-nothing prince of the attack at dawn, took his position on the wall and drew his bow.

He pulled the string taut and released it, the arrow flying in a parabola and hitting its target. The arrow pierced the monster\'s back.

He was used to fighting monsters.

\'Even though the sun is rising...\'

Bu Seop looked at the battlefield below the wall. Several corpses were already strewn about gruesomely.

As an archer, he had the highest vantage point of the battlefield, excluding the commander.

Thanks to this, he could grasp the entire war situation at a glance, but it wasn\'t a good thing.

While having a clear view of victory or defeat could be a good thing, it also carried the possibility of an equally large misfortune.

Normally, monsters would return to the mountains of the demon world around sunrise.

Born in the thick Yin energy, they rarely strayed far from their birthplace.

Unless they had tasted human flesh and were driven by hunger to descend from the mountains.

Surely not all of those monsters had tasted human flesh. He would have known if so many people had died in the jaws of monsters.

\'This is unusual.\'

That\'s what Bu Seop thought. And the other soldiers were thinking the same thing.

It was strange that so many monsters would suddenly appear without any warning. It was also strange that they weren\'t retreating even as the sun rose.

He was getting tired. There seemed to be no end to the monsters.

Those thick-skinned monsters often shrugged off the arrows shot by the archers with a mere shake of their bodies.

Just then, a resounding voice echoed.

"What are we doing!"

It was that good-for-nothing prince.

"This is a battle to protect our home and families! Is there any place to retreat? No, there isn\'t!"

At his voice, Bu Seop recalled going to the prince\'s quarters.

He had been terrified at the thought of having to wake the prince, but the prince had already been up early and properly dressed.

And now, this sight.

\'The good-for-nothing prince...\'

He hadn\'t seen everything, but at least the prince didn\'t seem like a bad person.

If someone like him was called a good-for-nothing, how terrible must he have been at other times? Was that even possible?

He couldn\'t understand why the word \'good-for-nothing\' was attached to him at all.

\'Why does he look so experienced?\'

Battles with monsters weren\'t common. A prince born and raised in the capital, especially within the palace, would have had little chance to see even wild animals, let alone monsters.

Was it just seeing monsters that was difficult?

The prince was someone who couldn\'t possibly be accustomed to the brutal atmosphere of the battlefield. He would be more familiar with the political strife between civil officials.

Those without a single sword at their waist, hands clasped together, backs straight, tearing each other down with their sharp tongues.

But the good-for-nothing prince was leading the soldiers, thrusting his sword at the monsters without blinking an eye.

\'It\'s strange to say, but he looks like he\'s at home.\'

As if he had stood on such a battlefield countless times before.

While Bu Seop was lost in thought, the prince, who had been on the wall, disappeared. But Bu Seop soon found him again.

The prince had descended the wall, passed through the north gate, and was fighting the monsters alongside the other soldiers.

A person of such high status as a prince.

Bu Seop thought, if he were the prince, would he be among the other soldiers, covered in monster blood like that?

No, he wouldn\'t. He wouldn\'t be crazy enough to risk his life.

That meant that the prince truly considered him and the other soldiers his comrades.

Bu Seop felt a lump in his throat. It was an emotion he had never felt before any of his superiors.

\'...Why is someone like that called a good-for-nothing?\'

The sight of the good-for-nothing prince was enough to make a mere archer question everything.