Chapter 95

Conrad stood at the door of the classroom, took a deep breath, and firmly held the letter containing the secret that his mother had given him.

After the battle, Conrad treated the wounded and collected the bodies of the dead.

Fortunately, the army of the Kuntachi Principality had an excellent recovery rate.

Since all the Kuntachi family's sword-mages were trained mages, everyone knew how to cast basic healing spells.

Therefore, the sword-mages moved around, treating their allies, and thanks to this, the army was able to recover its combat strength to some extent within half a day.

Moreover, there were quite a number of mages.

However, that was not the most important thing.

As Otto had predicted, the fog showed no signs of lifting even by afternoon.

If this continued, the fog would likely persist for days, and the wraith knights would undoubtedly appear even during the day to carry out massacres.

“What can we do about this?”

Conrad gathered the elders of the family and his vassals for a strategy meeting.

“……”

“……”

“……”

But no one spoke, maintaining a stubborn silence, and no one came up with a viable solution.

After all, if there had been a solution, they wouldn't have repeated this for 35 years.

Over the years, countless attempts had been made, but none had helped resolve the situation.

How could they stop the ghosts that kept resurrecting no matter how many times they were killed?

They had sent sword-mages to scout the Wraith Forest, but all of them had gone missing without a trace.

Now, on days when the fog was thick, they simply imposed martial law and focused on defense.

“First of all.”

Otto spoke up.

“Since I have requested reinforcements, they should arrive within a few days.”

“Indeed, I can only rely on my grandson. Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it….”

“And I’m sorry. As a grandfather, I can’t help my grandson, and now I’m just receiving help. I feel ashamed.”

“Don’t say that.”

Otto shook his head.

“Thanks to the troops and support you sent, our Iota Kingdom was able to overcome difficult times. Besides, are we not part of the Iota Kingdom and the Kuntachi family? I am not only the king of Iota but also the young lord of the Kuntachi family. It’s only natural that I help.”

“What a good boy. You are truly my grandson.”

“Since we have no choice but to hold out until the reinforcements arrive, let’s prepare for battle. The fog might clear before they arrive.”

“I understand. I will follow your advice.”

With that, they decided to prepare for the upcoming battle, and the meeting ended.

Without any significant progress, just as it had been for the past 20 years…

* * *

Otto climbed up to the western wall and looked out at the distant Wraith Forest.

The fog was so thick that the forest was barely visible.

Swoosh!

A chilling ghostly aura and cold air continuously flowed out from the forest, causing Otto’s breath to fog up.

“Is there really no way?”

“No, not now.”

Otto answered Camille’s question.

‘This is bad. We need to subdue the Wraith Forest, but it’s too early for that.’

To completely subdue the Wraith Forest, the third power of the Invincible Emperor was necessary.

With the third power, they could not only defend but also invade the Wraith Forest.

However, to obtain the third power of the Invincible Emperor, one needed to be at least level 200.

Otto was currently level 140.

There was no way to increase 60 levels in a short period, so realistically, there was no solution.

Moreover, the current situation was beyond Otto’s expectations.

According to the original scenario, the Wraith Forest should have remained calm until Otto reached level 200.

“Revenge… I want revenge.”

“Traitors… will be punished.”

The eerie voices of the wraith knights continuously echoed from the forest.

“Stop it. Stop it.”

“Ughhhhhhh.”

The soldiers on the wall clutched their heads in agony.

“What are you doing! If you keep this up… damn it!”

Thud!

One of the soldiers guarding the wall jumped off.

An accident that happened in the blink of an eye.

“The atmosphere is bad.”

“They are being influenced by the ghostly aura from the forest.”

Otto bit his lower lip.

“Those with weak willpower or who are exhausted are more susceptible. They might end up taking their own lives without realizing it.”

“This is dangerous.”

“I know. But there’s no solution right now. And.”

“Yes?”

“No, forget it.”

Otto didn’t say what he wanted to say.

‘If the ghostly aura is so strong that it can even be heard outside the forest… doesn’t that mean the situation is even more serious?’

At that moment.

“The wraiths’ attacks are getting worse. The last time, the damage was significant.”

The knight captain said worriedly.

“What? Last time too? When was that recently?”

“A few days after you first visited and left, there was an attack. The damage was considerable.”

“Hmm.”

“Fortunately, the fog cleared quickly, which was a relief.”

“Usually, once the fog starts, it lasts from three days to a week?”

“Yes, young lord.”

“So this is just the beginning.”

“Yes….”

“This is a big problem.”

Feeling frustrated, Otto activated the <Piercing Vision> skill to observe the forest.

With the recent level-up, the <Piercing Vision> skill had also increased in level, enhancing his detection ability.

He could now see into the forest from a distance.

‘Let’s see…’

Indeed, the <Piercing Vision> skill allowed him to see through the thick fog and into the forest.

Then.

‘What?’

A completely different world unfolded before Otto’s eyes.

It was a memory from the past.

The vengeful spirits wandering the Wraith Forest.

Fragmented memories of the wraith knights from their lifetimes were now displayed before Otto.

* * *

A rebellion broke out.

It happened while His Majesty was inspecting the northern wall.

The rebels had clearly prepared for a long time and very thoroughly.

In just one night, they completely took control of the capital.

His Majesty’s loyal subjects were either executed or arrested.

The rebels, who had quickly seized military control, immediately mobilized the army to neutralize the units loyal to His Majesty.

The rebels ambushed His Majesty as he returned from inspecting the northern wall, and a pursuit ensued.

His Majesty managed to escape the continent and fled west.

The world changed.

The rebels took over the country.

The leader of the rebels who betrayed His Majesty established a new dynasty.

For several years, His Majesty did not return.

No news came.

Whether he had passed away during his escape or had left the world to live in seclusion, no one knew.

We did not give up.

We firmly believed that His Majesty would return one day.

We decided to wait for His Majesty.

We counted the days, eagerly waiting for His Majesty’s return, and continued the resistance.

After several years of resistance, we suffered a major defeat in battle.

As defeated soldiers, we fled into the mountains to escape the rebels.

However, the rebels were relentless.

They hunted us down even in the mountains.

One by one, we fell.

But this was not the end of our resistance.

Rebels.

Despicable traitors.

Even if our bodies fall and turn to bones here, our spirits will remain on this land, immortal.

As wandering spirits, we will surely take our revenge…

We wandered aimlessly in the mountains.

Our memories are fading.

Who we were.

Why we wander here…

We don’t know how much time has passed.

But, we felt it.

The traitor.

He has come.

We must take revenge.

We must punish the traitor.

Our desire for revenge boiled over.

Traitor…

Where are you…

We must find the traitor…

We must find the rebel and make him pay for his betrayal…

“Huh!”

Otto was startled by the sudden flood of memories from the wraith knights and gasped.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m, I’m fine. Huh, huff.”

“What did you see?”

“Memories….”

Otto answered Camille’s question.

“I saw the memories of the wraith knights.”

“Yes…?”

“Just a moment.”

Otto said to Camille and began to organize his thoughts.

‘The wraith knights appeared 35 years ago. Julius is about 35 years old this year. The timing matches. And the knight captain’s words. When I first visited, Julius was here. And this time, Julius was here and then left. The reason the wraiths are acting more crazily than usual…’

The scattered pieces of evidence in Otto’s mind came together like a puzzle.

“I understand now.”

“Did you find something out?”

“Yes.”

“What did you find out?”

“I’ll explain later. Send a messenger to the capital immediately. Tell them to bring Kairos here.”

“…?”

“The person who can resolve this situation is not me but Kairos. He’s the only one who can.”

Otto was certain.

Kairos was the right person to resolve this situation.

* * *

Following Otto’s orders, the Iota Kingdom army immediately prepared to move out.

It wouldn’t take long to reach the Kuntachi family.

Since the deployment area was the Kuntachi Principality, there was no need to prepare war supplies.

Otto had also ordered them to bring only the minimum supplies and move as quickly as possible.

However, the deployment order was suddenly canceled just two hours later.

Bring Kairos as quickly as possible, by any means necessary.

If Kairos refuses to move… (omitted)

- Otto de Scuderi (Seal)