Regressor of the Fallen Family Novel - Chapter 294 (New)

Beneath a starless, obsidian sky, where only a few distant pinpricks of light dared to flicker, the crackling of a modest campfire provided the only illumination for a small clearing in the woods.

“Is this the first time we’ve ever been out like this, just the two of us?” a woman asked. She was clad in supple leather armor, her short brown hair and eyes of the same shade catching the orange glow of the embers. The man beside her, dressed in matching scout’s attire, gave a quiet reply.

“It would seem so.”

Gazing up at the void above for a moment, the man let out a tired sigh. “I wish the stars were out in greater numbers tonight.”

“I actually prefer it this way. Don’t you?” Eileen asked softly, leaning her head against his shoulder. Logan looked down at her, a smile touching his lips as he gave a firm nod.

They were moving toward a battlefield with a grim objective in mind, and while a certain level of anxiety was unavoidable, there was a strange, quiet beauty to this dark night they shared on their path. Perhaps it was simply the company he kept that made the difference. In this rare moment of quiet, a wave of sentimentality washed over him, and he voiced a thought he had been harboring.

“Have you ever worried that my stubbornness—these plans of mine—might be entirely wrong?” he whispered.

“Everything we do is for the sake of our future,” she replied without hesitation.

“Even so, I could be making a mistake. I’ve stumbled more than a few times before.”

“This time will be different.”

“Oh?”

“Our plans are solid,” she teased, “aside from the fact that we have to match our hair and eye colors so precisely.”

Eileen held up the identity medallion she wore tucked against her chest. The badge pulsed with a faint blue light; to a casual observer, it looked like a minor noble’s trinket, but it was actually a sophisticated transformation artifact crafted by the mage Clayton.

“Yes. That was quite a triumph, even for his recent standards,” Logan admitted. The breakthrough had actually come from studying the research notes left behind by Ignis and Craune, but he didn’t feel the need to recount those grim details now.

‘And if those journals really did originate from a specific organization…’

The memory of the black serpent insignia caused Logan’s jaw to tighten. Noticing his shift in mood, Eileen pivoted to a different point of playful contention.

“I’m still not entirely happy with this look.”

“Why not?”

“It’s far too plain. You could have at least given me a prettier face if we were changing things anyway.”

Logan couldn’t help but let out a genuine laugh. While the disguise they had crafted for Eileen was meant to be unremarkable, it still carried enough of her natural grace to be quite striking. He realized she was only poking fun to help ease the weight he was carrying.

“See?” she nudged him.

“What?”

“When you smile, even that face looks much better. We may be in a hurry, but let’s at least enjoy these few days of solitude.”

Logan realized he must have looked far too grim. His own disguised appearance had a naturally stern cast to it.

“…I’m sorry.”

“Stop with the apologies already.”

“Right, that…” He let out a soft chuckle.

“We are enough, just as we are,” Eileen said quietly. Logan nodded, his resolve hardening.

“Others might find our life together tedious, but there is joy in these quiet moments, just being able to talk with you.”

Logan leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to Eileen’s forehead, allowing his concerns about what lay ahead to fade into the night for just a moment.

Three days passed.

“Is this where our paths diverge? It’s a shame. From this point on, I suppose you’re Gail of Liberty?” Eileen’s voice was lower now, adjusted to match her disguise. She had cut her long hair into a sharp, short style to complete the transformation.

“That’s right. And you’re Armud of Teronan.”

“…Be careful out there.”

“You too.”

Logan stood at the crossroads, watching his wife disappear down the opposite path for a long time before he finally turned away. As a king, but more so as a man, a pang of guilt gnawed at him for sending her into the fray. However, he reminded himself that she was a superhuman, and one with a newly awakened defensive attribute at that. She was more than a match for any threat in a small kingdom’s squabble, let alone a clash between empires.

Shoving down the instinct to follow her, Logan began his own journey.

Two days later, Logan arrived at Libertas, the heart of the Kingdom of Liberty. Even with a letter of introduction from Lord Yordan Marlinz, gaining entry to the capital of a nation bracing for war was a difficult task. To bypass the bureaucracy, Logan decided to put his ‘Silver’ aura on display.

“One moment, sir! Please, stay right there!”

The guards, having watched his aura slice through a block of steel as if it were soft bread, scrambled toward the palace.

— A superhuman has arrived!

Within half an hour, a bald official who bore a striking resemblance to Yordan Marlinz came rushing out to greet him, gasping for air.

“Phew… huff… Are you Sir Gail? My apologies, Yordan Marlinz is currently away inspecting our supply lines. I have been sent in his stead. I am Eric Grecke.”

Logan was well aware of this. ‘That’s exactly why I timed it this way.’ Despite his disguise, he didn’t want to risk Yordan—who had seen him before—noticing some lingering familiarity in his movements or voice.

“Forgive the formality, but may I inspect your token?”

Identification was a mandatory hurdle. Logan reached into his tunic and produced a jagged, broken half of an identity badge.

Click.

Eric Grecke pulled a matching jagged piece from his own pocket. The two halves fit perfectly. The official immediately bowed, a wide smile breaking across his face.

“Welcome to the capital, Sir Gail.”

“Think nothing of it. I, too, am a child of Liberty.”

It was all a performance, but it worked perfectly. Eric’s grin widened, and within an hour, Logan was granted an audience with the King of Liberty.

“So, you are the reinforcement we were promised?”

The room was quiet, containing only the King, Logan, and a grizzled knight standing at the sovereign’s side.

“I am, Your Majesty. It is a profound honor.”

Logan offered a simple, respectful nod. The old knight beside the throne narrowed his eyes, and a heavy, suffocating pressure suddenly filled the room, directed entirely at Logan.

— Kneel.

‘That must be Gunter Liberty.’

The knight didn’t say a word, but his oppressive presence made the demand clear. Logan’s eyes sharpened, and he met the invisible force head-on.

Vroom. Crackle.

The air between the two men rippled and distorted, the clash of their wills sending a sudden gust of wind through the chamber. Gunter Liberty, his expression turning solemn, gave a slight bow to his king.

“He is nearly my equal, sire.”

The king looked at Logan with newfound respect. Logan found the assessment somewhat entertaining.

‘His power is on par with Duke Luther. Not bad, but…’

In the grand scheme of things, the man was just a minor piece on the board. Gunter Liberty, the kingdom’s sole superhuman and its former king, was only an intermediate Aura User. He was formidable, but not truly elite. It served as a reminder of the massive power gap between this alliance, the Maclaine house, and the true might of the Empire.

“Incredible. He looks to be only in his thirties.”

“Your Majesty, appearances can be a mask. He is likely far more seasoned. Regardless…” Gunter trailed off. He knew that Aura Users often regained a youthful vigor after breaking through certain barriers.

However, looking that young was usually only possible if a specific condition was met. “…He must have reached his current stage while still in his thirties.”

“What? That’s preposterous. How could a man of that caliber remain unknown?”

“That is the question. If Maclaine truly has this kind of strength hidden away, the rumors might be more than just talk.”

The earlier tension evaporated, replaced by a much more welcoming attitude from Gunter. It was partly because ‘Gail’ was an ally, but Logan suspected another reason.

‘He believes he’s the stronger of the two of us.’

Logan was carefully projecting the persona of an intermediate Aura User—the ‘Silver’ identity was a facade. He had achieved this by meticulously suppressing and altering the external manifestation of his energy. It was a high-level technique that only a superhuman on the verge of the highest tier could even attempt.

— To alter the very essence after I taught you to simply observe it…

— It is a miracle you haven’t destroyed your core doing that. You are my pupil, but your talent is truly terrifying…

His own mentor had been shocked by the skill, which was now proving its worth in this charade. Logan maintained his bow, hiding his self-satisfaction.

“You are too kind, Sir Gunter. For the duration of this conflict, I am simply a soldier of Liberty. Please do not forget that.”

The king let out a boisterous laugh.

“Well said! With Gunter holding the capital and you on the field, this war will be won in short order.”

If Gunter actually joined the fighting, the balance would shift instantly. But Logan knew better than to expect a king to prioritize anything over his own hide. He nodded in agreement.

“As I traveled here, I noticed the city doesn’t seem to be in a state of full mobilization for an imminent war. May I ask why?”

“A fair question. Explain it to him, Gunter.”

“Yes, Majesty. The situation with our allies is… complicated.”

Logan listened as the knight laid out a scenario that aligned perfectly with the intelligence he had gathered from the Flames of the Eye and Damian.

— We will not bow to the ultimatums of the three kingdoms.

The four allied kingdoms had officially declared war against the Triangle’s aggression. No one believed the Triangle only wanted Tahiti; their ambitions were clear to see. However, a new problem had surfaced.

“The mobilization of the Kingdom of Tria—the very nation that called for this war—is lagging behind.”

“What?”

“They have their excuses, of course, but it is hard to believe the instigators were so unprepared. Our intelligence suggests they may have been telling the truth, unfortunately.”

“How so?”

“It seems they believed they could win with grand speeches and bluster without actually readying their swords.”

A flicker of genuine interest crossed Logan’s eyes, though neither the king nor Gunter noticed.

“So, Tria is only now beginning to move their men, and the four kingdoms are struggling to coordinate because of the crisis in Tahiti. War is breathing down our necks.”

“We intend to put you at the very tip of the spear.”

Placing a foreign mercenary at the head of the army was a bold move, but it made tactical sense when that mercenary was a superhuman. More importantly, it was exactly what Logan wanted.

“I understand. I will do everything in my power to bring this war to a swift conclusion.”

Logan spoke with a layer of sincerity, though his true purpose remained buried beneath his facade of a loyal ally. Two days later, he was dispatched to the front lines.