Past Life Returner

Side Story Chapter 33

Matters on the battlefield were quickly wrapped up thanks to Cain. Whenever he swung his greatsword, at least two of those traitors’ lives came to an end.

“Your Highness! I don’t know what your plan is, but you better do it quickly! I’m almost at my limit!” Anna shouted.

“I know.” Kireua got to the next phase of his plan after slaying dozens of his enemies on his own, that being to extinguish the fire that Anna was desperately trying to contain.

“Magic Sword Arts Level 2, Absorption Sword,” Kireua muttered.

After learning the principles of the Magic Spear Art from the Emperor of Avalon, Kireua had reinterpreted them and made them into his own unique sword technique. That was what Kireua was using now.

-Ahhhhhhhh!

Just in time, Coal opened its mouth wide to accelerate the speed that the sword absorbed everything nearby. The results were surprising. The fire trapped by Anna’s wall of wind was immediately absorbed into Kireua’s sword.

“Huh…?” Even Cain stopped what he was doing when he saw what had happened. The knights that had been scattering in all directions to escape from the fire responded the same.

“Wh-What kind of phenomenon is that?”

However, something more surprising happened immediately afterward.

“Hup! The Pri-Prince’s sword is…?!”

The sword that absorbed the fire burned fiercely. It became so red that it almost seemed that it was going to burn up the sky. A scarlet line of fire soared into the air and grew as more fire was consumed.

Anna's eyes widened. “That doesn’t make any sense…!”

She had lived for quite a long time, but she hadn’t seen anything like this. This was not something that could ever be done with just aura.

“Does he… have an authority?” Anna murmured.

She had no reason to maintain her walls of wind now because the fire had been completely extinguished. The knights far away forgot all about their job of bringing water and stared blankly at Kireua direction with their jaws dangling on the ground. No one there had ever seen an authority that could absorb fire.

Kireua, on the other hand, was actually going through hell right now.

-Urrrghh! Urrgggh!

‘No, don’t do it. If you vomit now, it’ll be a literal catastrophe,’ Kireua snapped..

-Urgggghh! Ughhhhhh….!

Kireua quickly put his hand on his shoulder to block Coal’s mouth. Coal jumped up and down as if that was stomping, although only Kireua could see him.

‘Just a little more! One more minute!’ Kireua desperately told Coal.

Kireua took off.

“Sir Cain! I’ll leave you in charge!” he yelled.

“You-Your Highness!” Cain stammered after finally coming to his senses. Kireua was already far past the reed forest by the time Cain had gathered himself enough to stop the Prince.

“What in the world…?” Cain blankly murmured.

* * *

Meanwhile, the scouting party that had departed from the western rebel army’s headquarters arrived at the proximity of the reed forest.

“We’re near our destination. Stay on alert from now on.”

“Yes, sir!”

All fifty members of their party were wearing robes that were long enough to conceal their entire body. Although the leader wanted more men, the people in the national army wouldn’t sit by; the leader knew that because he had fought against them for several years.

Even though the leader hated to admit it, Ranger, one of the vice commanders of the Imperial Knights, was a force to be reckoned with. In other words, the scouting party had to minimize its numbers to avoid detection by the enemy. Of course, every one of the party members was so skilled that the entire group knew how to use their mana. On top of that, their main mission today was strictly reconnaissance.

“We can’t just rely on external information, so we’ll quickly determine who is here and return to the headquarters,” the leader said.

“But can we really trust the words of those guys in the south?”

“It doesn’t matter whether or not they betrayed them. We’ll just get our jobs done—but if they’re really planning to betray the Prince, then there is no place better than the reed forest in the west.” The leader nodded.

Just a day ago, the people in the south had secretly contacted the rebels in the west and told them that most of the knights with the Second Prince were going to betray him. However, the rebels in the west thought that it would be great if those knights could just reduce the number of people in the Second Prince’s party—although the best scenario would be for the Second Prince to sustain a critical injury.

“What would you do if we get a chance?”

“A chance?” the leader asked.

“We might have a chance to cut off the head of the Prince while he’s in danger.”

“That’s highly unlikely,” Baron Yobson, the leader, firmly said. From what he had heard, the Combat Emperor Star was with the Second Prince, and Yobson had seen the Combat Emperor Star in the Palace. Yobson knew that Cain de Harry shouldn’t be taken lightly. In order to cut the Second Prince’s head off, Yobson and the others would have to defeat the Combat Emperor Star first.

“If you’re capable of thinking, you know that the key member of the national army’s reinforcements is the Second Prince. That is why he’s coming here with only a small number of people.” Yobson raised one of his eyebrows.

“Are you saying that his main goal is to boost the national army’s morale?”

“The Second Prince might not be as influential as the First Prince, but he’s still the Emperor’s son. The name ‘Joshua Sanders’ still holds a special significance in this country,” Yobson explained.

“I see. I understand.”

Yobson was certain that they would never have the chance to capture the Prince alive. He’d never been that lucky in his entire life. Due to his humble background, he had always failed to get promoted, although he was talented enough to become an Imperial Knight. That was what he believed.

That was why Yobson hadn’t hesitated when the civil war had broken out. Battlefields were where heroes were born, so the current Avalon was a land of opportunity where people could rise through the ranks without the support of a good family.

‘I’ll lay low and wait for my opportunity. This is a war, so mistakes cannot be tolerated,’ Yobson thought. He repeatedly told himself to calm down.

“Si-Sir Yobson.” His aide pointed ahead, pulling Yobson away from his thoughts. “Lo-look over there.”

Yobson’s eyes widened. “Wait… That’s…?”

In the distance, someone was running toward them on his own. Yobson and the others were hiding in the vast plain beyond the reed forest that led into the western region.

“...Doesn’t that person look familiar?” Yobson asked.

“His fiery-red hair, arrogant face… I think the same. He looks just like Kireua Sanders from the rumors.”

“And that magic armor is the same as the Emperor’s,” Yobson murmured.

Yobson and the others hadn’t been sure, but the runner’s magic armor settled it beyond doubt. That snow-white magic armor he wore could only come from a Deon Ring, and no one else in the world would have such a treasure.

Yobson trembled with so much excitement that his head turned blank. He forgot about the fact that he and the others were supposed to be hiding and shouted, “Get the Prince!”

This was his opportunity to make an accomplishment in this civil war, so he was no longer worried about the things he had been concerned about before. There was no way he could stay calm in a time like this.

“Jackpot!”

“That idiot prince. He isn’t aware of what kind of value he has and broke away from his group.”

“This is our chance to make an accomplishment! The Prince is on his own! We’ll capture him right now!”

“Woaaaaahhhh!”

Yobson’s people completely lost their rationality and started toward Kireua. Naturally, Yobson, the most power-hungry of them all, was leading the way.

* * *

-Urgggh! Ughhhh!

‘Ah, alright. Little more. Hang on a little more!’ Kireua told Coal.

It had been over a minute since Kireua had started to pacify Coal. Even at glance, Kireua could tell that Coal was at its limit. Coal’s cheeks bulged like overinflated balloons; his original, fist-sized form had swelled to become larger than Kireua’s torso. Sparks flew out from Coal’s mouth when it occasionally slipped open.

“Ah, it’s hot! Hot! Not here! We’re still near the forest, so just hold on until we get to the wasteland over there!” Kireua shouted.

-Urrghghhhhhh!𝚋𝚎𝚍ｎ𝚘ｖ𝚎𝚕.𝚗𝚎𝚝

Kireua pushed his horse as fast as it would go.

“Get the Prince!”

“Let’s get an accomplishment! This is our chance to earn a higher title!”

“Woaaaahhhh!”

Kireua tilted his head. All of a sudden, there was a group of people riding their horses toward him. There were about fifty of them and were all wearing robes. Considering where they were right now, it wasn’t difficult for Kireua to guess their identities.

“…Are those misters my welcoming committee from the west?” Kireua mumbled.

“Kireua Sanders!” their leader shouted. “If you voluntarily surrender, I’ll talk to Lord Turtler and spare your life!”

They seemed to believe that they could never lose him since they were on horses.

“Idiot.” Kireua chuckled as he came to a halt. He took hold of his glowing red sword and smiled. “Coal, are you ready?”

-Ugh!

Coal was already at its limit. It became so big that Kireua was shocked to find out that Coal could become this big, and the red light exuded from the sword was too bright—so bright that it was difficult to look directly at it.

“Then here I go,” Kireua said.

His back muscles slowly contracted. Kireua was actually looking forward to seeing what this blazing fire would turn into.

Of course, he shouldn’t rely on Coal’s ability because there was a chance of this mysterious power taking control over him. He should mainly focus on using his own mana and aura. A tool should remain the tool, not the wielder.

“Magic Sword Art Level 4, Extermination Sword,” Kireua murmured, swinging his sword from left to right.

A thin line was drawn in the air.

“Accomplishment! Accoooomplishmennnnnt!”

“He’s the Prince! Hahahahaha! I never knew I would hit such a jackpot in my life!”

“First come first serve!”

“Can’t we just take one limb each? Let’s share him equally!”

The enemies weren’t even aware of their situation.

Fire rose up from the line, and Kireua let his aura run rampant; that was Aura Overlay, which only Masters could use. No one would be able to resist the power to distort space and destroy the enemies.

-Ahhhhhh!

With perfect timing, Coal’s mouth opened wide, unable to hold the fire back. Ebon flame coated Kireua’s scarlet flame, turning his attack into a crescent of black fire, embracing a fire that was as big as a castle wall.

One of the enemies came to his senses and gasped, but it was too late.

“Ru-Runnnn!” someone screamed at the top of his lungs.

Just as Kireua’s attack slammed into their front ranks.