# Chapter 78
The southwest area Chepel had mentioned was the Retrouva territory, surrounded by rugged mountains.
However, the mountains were exceptionally treacherous, and with the sun beginning to set, it would be easy to lose one’s way. Having all thousand Immortal soldiers cross the dense mountains was nearly impossible.
Yet taking the proper route would require going the long way around, resulting in battles at the outskirts of territories far from the castle.
If Levi heard news of the attack, he would once again escape alone across the mountains, concealed by the darkness that easily hid his presence.
This time, Ion was absolutely determined not to let Levi escape. Though it pained him deeply, now was his opportunity while Levi’s movement was restricted, unable to fully recover.
The majority of the Immortal soldiers headed toward the Talan territory, which stood in the way of a direct assault on Retrouva.
By then, the sun had already set, casting darkness over the land. The defenders of Talan territory were considerably surprised, not expecting enemy forces to attack after sunset—the same forces that had turned the Tefra and Perid territories into wastelands.
But this shock was momentary.
Befitting a territory with significant military power, Talan’s soldiers moved in perfect unison to block the Immortal Army.
Even though the Immortal Army was far fewer in number than the territory’s garrison, reinforcements were essential when facing such opponents.
Fortunately, upon hearing news of the fall of Iron Fortress and Antarbo, the empire had dispatched substantial forces to each territory. The lord of Talan, finding even these reinforcements insufficient, had sent swift messengers to neighboring territories requesting aid. Word came that considerable forces had departed from various territories, seemingly to surround the Immortal Army.
The question was whether they could hold out until all of them arrived. Watching the Immortal Army battle their troops from atop the high walls, the lord of Talan showed an expression of tentative relief.
‘Strange that Grand Duke Verdit is nowhere to be seen.’
The lord of Talan had met Ion Verdit by chance years ago while visiting the Delos Empire on diplomatic business. He was someone who shone so distinctly that he could be spotted instantly even among a crowd. If such a person had appeared on a dazzling white horse, wearing brilliant white armor with a helmet adorned with red tassels, he couldn’t possibly have missed him among those below.
“Grand Duke Ion Verdit is not visible,” said the lord’s aide in a somewhat bright voice, as if voicing his master’s exact thoughts.
“I heard he was the vanguard commander at Tefra and Perid, but it’s strange that he’s completely absent now. He doesn’t seem to be at the rear of the army either.”
“Unlike his subordinates, Grand Duke Verdit himself isn’t immortal—he’s more like a sorcerer with formidable recovery abilities. Perhaps he suffered severe injuries at those two territories and is healing himself.”
That made sense. How could he have remained unscathed after such hastily devastating two territories?
Yet it felt unnervingly ominous. If Ion Verdit had been among them, it wouldn’t have felt this unsettling.
With an unpleasant premonition seemingly pricking the back of his neck, the lord of Talan habitually stroked his thick beard.
Just then, his aide, who had been looking around and giving orders to soldiers on behalf of the lord, suddenly gasped.
“Huk!”
When the lord of Talan asked what was wrong, the aide, his face ashen, pointed to a distant location directly behind them, opposite from where they had been looking.
“S-smoke rising from over there…!”
“Smoke?”
Looking in the same direction with a puzzled expression, the lord of Talan finally realized what his ominous feeling had been about.
The direction from which smoke was rising was Retrouva, situated not far from their territory.
At first, he thought it might be a simple beacon warning of an enemy attack, but looking closely, there was distinctly red smoke mixed in.
‘I’ve never seen such a beacon before.’
Every country had various types of smoke signals for different messages in their beacon systems—enemy attacks, warnings, notifications of resolved incidents, and so on. Some would rise and fall rhythmically like the beating of a drum, while others might produce blue flames or pitch-black smoke.
Among such diverse beacons, this was the first time he’d seen red smoke. The lord of Talan instinctively knew it wasn’t a signal from allies.
Unlike the lord of Talan and his subordinates who were struggling to decipher the meaning of the beacon, the Immortal Army immediately understood its significance.
“The Third Division has scaled Retrouva’s walls! We will continue to crush Talan territory!”
A knight commanding the Immortal Army in Ion Verdit’s stead shouted powerfully, encouraging his troops. The already unwavering morale of the Immortal soldiers surged even higher at this cry, while Talan’s soldiers faltered.
The distance between Talan and Retrouva wasn’t great. If Retrouva fell, the tireless Immortal soldiers would charge to attack Talan from behind. In that case, with their retreat cut off and completely surrounded, Talan would inevitably be crushed.
‘How on earth…!’
Retrouva’s rear was surrounded by treacherous mountains along with the castle, making it impossible for armies to attack from that direction. Any assault would have to come from the front. And to reach that front, one would need to conquer Talan first.
‘Did they climb the mountains? Now, after sunset?’
Perhaps in broad daylight, but who would be reckless enough to climb mountains after the sun had completely set? One might try, but they would almost certainly get lost, missing the opportunity to launch a surprise attack.
But the lord of Talan couldn’t possibly have known that Ion Verdit once had a time when he could run through dense forests filled with pitch darkness without ever losing his way.
Stunned and bewildered, the lord of Talan revisited what the knight had shouted earlier and harbored another doubt.
‘But what does he mean by the Third Division…?’
Whether those before him were the First or Second Division, one division was missing.
The lord’s question would soon be answered in an unwelcome way.
Another beacon rose, not from Retrouva’s outer walls but from much deeper within the territory. It came from the location of the castle that Retrouva’s lord rather cherished.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Aaaaargh—!”
“Kheuk!”
The soldiers and servants guarding the castle fell helplessly. Ion Verdit, who coldly observed them, showed no interest in the piles of flesh and pools of blood accumulating on the floor.
‘Where is he?’
Ion only cared about one thing.
Levi.
‘I was told he was here.’
Chepel, who had led the Third Division over the relatively gentle mountain terrain to attack Retrouva’s front, had definitely said Levi would be at this castle. Levi, completely unfamiliar with the geography of the Caron Empire, wasn’t the type to actively change his destination without knowing which territory was where.
Ion knew this well. That’s why he had deliberately split his forces, choosing to lead the First Division over the treacherous mountains to surprise the castle.
‘Surely he hasn’t escaped.’
If he had fled, where to?
The castle was already completely occupied by the Immortal soldiers. If Levi had attempted to escape, a report should have come in by now.
‘He must be here. He has to be.’
Though Ion believed Levi was still in the castle, he couldn’t prevent his heart from growing anxious, contrary to his thoughts.
“Your Grace, we’ve almost subdued the inner areas.”
A knight in silver armor bowed his head and reported. As he turned his head, a severely wounded arm with damaged armor became visible.
‘They’ve stationed quite skilled soldiers here.’
The First Division of Immortal soldiers Ion led was small but consisted entirely of knight-level fighters, not ordinary soldiers. The skilled Immortal knight’s armor had been damaged, and his wound was quite deep.
To leave behind soldiers of such caliber suggested they were protecting someone extremely important. Perhaps a nobleman favored by the emperor.
Though the wound would heal on its own if left alone, it was the right arm needed for wielding a sword, so Ion directly applied his ability to it. The knight gazed in awe at his arm, which had completely healed in the blink of an eye, and bowed deeply at the waist.
“Light the beacon and open each gate. Bring all survivors to the lobby.”
The knight raised his head at Ion’s command.
“Will you take them as prisoners?”
“No.”
Ion’s golden eyes, gleaming from within the white helmet, sent a chilling gaze.
“If they can be dragged out, they’re not ‘that person’ anyway. Behead those who were guarding the castle and display their corpses as an example. Burn everything else.”
Nothing breaks enemy morale better than this. Though these territories would eventually be trampled without a trace, breaking their morale in advance would make what followed easier.
“I will obey your orders.”
The knight immediately replied and turned to relay Ion’s commands to the others. Knights moved swiftly, piling up mountains of corpses, and enemy soldiers crying for surrender while bowing their heads were thrown on top.
As Ion concentrated solely on finding Levi, indifferent to what became of the heaps of flesh gathered in one place, he turned his gaze to the staircase leading upward.
At that moment—
“Your Grace! We’ve found him!”
A knight who urgently appeared at the top of the second floor staircase finally shouted the words Ion had been waiting for.
